Chapter 9 - Trial And Error

The Reimagining of the Bow Hero

Chapter 9 – Trial and Error

Author's Note: The first trial is here! Hope you enjoy!

Naofumi and I were ushered into the throne room, with spears pointed at us from the rear, and guards surrounding us from all sides.

The king was sitting on his throne, with court officials standing on either side of him. Ren and Motoyasu' s parties were standing in front of the king, and my party was there as well, seemingly confused that I had left them and gone off. Myne hid behind Motoyasu in fear, fixing her gaze at Naofumi.

"Myne!" Naofumi asked. "Why are you hiding behind Motoyasu?"

Motoyasu walked over and shoved Naofumi.

"You mean you really don't remember what you did?"

"What are you talking about? What did I do?"

Seeing enough, I placed myself between the two arguing individuals.

"Gentlemen, settle down. Let's wait and see what the king has to say before we jump to conclusions, alright?"

The two men backed up, agreeing to my proposal.

"We will now hear the charges against the Shield Hero."

Charges? Naofumi committed a crime?

"Charges? What did I do?" Naofumi gaped in disbelief.

Myne testified while sobbing uncontrollably.

"The Shield Hero drank too much, and he came bursting into my room and held me down. Then…"

"What!?" Naofumi cried.

"He said. "The night is still young. Baby." While ripping my clothes off and…"

Myne pointed a shaky finger at Naofumi while she finished her sentence.

"I screamed as loud as I could and ran from the room. That's when I found Mr. Motoyasu, and he rescued me."

"Huh?" Naofumi questioned in disbelief.

This was a lot to process. Just our third day here, and Naofumi immediately gets accused of rape? After befriending him, and seeing his personality, I did not believe that he was capable of such an act. Looks could be deceiving, but I was quite divided on whether to believe Myne or not. Until then, I would analyze the room and the faces of the people around me to better determine my course of action.

Naofumi rebuked: "What are you talking about? I went to bed right after we finished eating!"

"Liar!" Motoyasu screamed. "If what you're saying is true, why would Myne be crying like this?"

I swept my glance across the room, but I could not sense any abnormalities. It seemed quite stupid to me that Naofumi would rape a person around 15 levels higher than him, and right inside town limits too. If he truly wanted to commit such an act, wouldn't he need to be stronger and also be a bit further from the city in order to not be caught?

"Your Highness! This is truly a grave misunderstanding! I didn't do any of what I've been accused, I promise! Please, bring whoever did do such an evil deed to justice!"

"Silence! Any act of sexual aggression committed against the citizens of this kingdom, will be punished by death!"

"But this is all a mistake! I didn't do it!"

"I had a feeling you would do this, you piece of scum!"

"What did I do?"

"I knew it! You were different from the rest of us! I'd never think you'd stoop so low."

"Satoshi, got anything to say to this criminal?"

"Your Majesty," I respectfully asked. "May I have a word?"

"Yes. You may."

"In my country, I am training to become a lawyer, which is the upholder and protector of the law. After seeing what happened in this trial so far, I'm not sure if I can accept all of this as fact."

"Yes! Finally, someone who believes me!" Naofumi sighed in relief.

"How could you not believe?" Aultcray bellowed in fury.

"Who are you helping here! Are you in on this?" Motoyasu fumed.

"In my country, you are innocent before proven guilty, not the other way around. There is barely any evidence to support either side. A piece of lingerie wouldn't amount to anything in my country."

After pausing to give myself time to breathe, I saw the angry looks on everyone's faces, except Naofumi who looked at me in gratitude.

"One inconsistency that I have recognized so far is that Naofumi here was only level 2 at the time of the accused crime, and from what I have gauged so far, he is horribly weak at combat. The shield is the weakest weapon there is in terms of attack, and with those abysmal stats on his end there is no way he would have the strength to force himself upon the young lady here?"

"That is quite easy to explain." Myne added. He knocked me out first, using a strange medicine that he slipped into my drink, and only after regaining my consciousness did I see him on top of me. How barbaric!"

"Yeah! He could have done that!"

"There is no telling what that monster could do!"

"True, that could also be a possibility, but we must note that it is quite unlikely that Naofumi here would have had the time to acquire such a substance. He was shopping with us most of the day, and I doubt he would have known where any pharmacies were during his short stay here. For the few hours that we were apart, I doubt that he would have been able to know where to get the medicine. It also seems odd to me that Naofumi would commit such a heinous act without leaving the capital first, as would make it harder to apprehend him if he decided to do such a thing."

I took a moment to take another breather.

"I am not on anyone's side here, just stating what was on my mind. I wasn't there to witness the crime, and since I am fully impartial and not Naofumi' s assigned lawyer, there is not much more I can do. Although I find it extremely unlikely that Naofumi did commit such a crime, I will also not disregard the possibility that he did commit the rape. That is why I would like to remain completely neutral for the duration of the trial. I do not believe Naofumi did it, but I also do not believe that Myne is lying. With that said, my statement is done. Please, proceed with the trial."

Saying that, I walked a few steps backwards and motioned for the king to continue.

Chapter 10 out tomorrow!