Echoes of the Past

Chapter 20 The Court of Judgment

After initial anxiety, the easygoing Suiyue got used to being watched and commented on.

The atmosphere was obviously tense, and even though she wasn't very bright, she could tell that someone harbored inexplicable malice towards her.

Strangely, before today, she had never met these splendidly dressed and distinguished figures.

"Nan'an?"

no respond.

"Nan'an, hello, are you there? How should I reply?"

Suiyue had tested it before; even in noisy surroundings, Nan'an could only hear her own mutterings clearly in her mind, so there was no reason for her to be disturbed.

"Wow, veteran, what are you doing!"

"Let them keep arguing for now, I have a problem."

"Huh? But they're all so aggressive, it feels like they're going to throw me out for a barbecue any second." Suiyue looked around, all eyes on her as everyone who was speaking so vehemently focused on her. Under the light of the magic circle, her features seemed to contort into a grotesque, demonic shape. "Wake up, old veteran! It'd be better to be eaten as a venison ball than to be thrown onto the grill by these people."

"You're just a nobody, and they're just using you to attack people who disagree with them. It's just that in the process, they'll also determine your fate."

"So what exactly are you up to?" Suiyue trusted Nan'an's judgment and asked about the situation inside.

"The Rubik's Cube is born."

"ha?"

Nan'an didn't lie to Suiyue; the Rubik's Cube really was born.

Within the cage of consciousness, the Rubik's Cube, which had devoured and purified the darkness and then floated in mid-air, underwent an unprecedented change.

The shape that Nan'an couldn't move no matter how hard he tried has changed.

Its surface texture flows and recombines slowly like a living thing, emitting an extremely subtle yet clear "click" sound, like the meshing and turning of a precision mechanism.

The angular cubic structure began to extend, and each cube that made up the Rubik's Cube was broken down into smaller cubes.

The densely packed particles converge into a torrent that intertwines in mid-air, forming a concentric circle structure that is nested and slowly rotates.

"A celestial globe?"

Nan'an murmured unconsciously.

Suddenly, a dazzling white light shone from the very core of the celestial globe.

"Click."

A soft sound, clear as if struck directly into the depths of consciousness.

A brand new, identical small cube detached from the center of the rotating celestial globe and gently landed in the palm of Nan'an's outstretched hand.

It was cold, heavy, and hard.

The little Rubik's Cube lay quietly in his palm, motionless, as if it were simply asleep.

Having witnessed the whole process, Nan'an could only say that the Rubik's Cube had been created; he really didn't know how to understand the current situation.

The good news is that the Rubik's Cube can still be rotated after it falls.

The bad news is... probably nobody finds solving monochrome Rubik's Cubes fun, unless they like playing with walnuts.

Subtly, as Nan'an touched the small Rubik's Cube, he felt a subtle connection with the large Rubik's Cube floating in the sky.

Almost the instant he got his hands on it, it was as if a pair of gentle hands had brushed across the depths of his consciousness, quietly placing a small note inside, like ink dripping into water, naturally spreading out.

Nan'an pondered the hazy thought carefully, wondering, "Perhaps... it's effective against the Nightmare God?"

As Nan'an had predicted, the argument around the round table was abruptly terminated, beyond her conscious control.

The four senators almost simultaneously picked up their gavels and tapped them lightly on the table.

That's enough.

In an instant, the groups of people who had been arguing fell silent.

Suiyue glanced at Huoya—he and Erlu, the two present, had kept their eyes closed the entire time, showing no intention of participating.

"I will repeat the question." An elder stood up. "Suiyue, your statement is irreversible. You stated that you defeated Almahern, the wielder of the Eye of Aging. What methods did you use?"

Nan'an fiddled with the Rubik's Cube, multitasking: "Tell him it was me."

After a long period of standby, Suiyue finally restarted her brain and dryly repeated, "Nan'an is dry."

"I didn't ask you to give me my name directly... never mind, it might be more convenient to say it out loud."

At this moment, the bewitching crow slowly opened its eyes and gazed at it thoughtfully.

The elder who asked the question looked slightly puzzled: "You used 'Southern'... does it refer to the root of some kind of grain? Or a specially made wood ash? Is this Elmarhern's weakness?"

Suiyue couldn't help but sigh.

This unfortunate name would leave even a normal Nora person stunned.

"Nan'an is the name I gave to my summoned creature," Suiyue stated frankly. "Elder..."

The witch, dressed in a robe with bamboo and moon patterns, glared at Suiyue.

"What blasphemy! Don't you know any manners? How dare you address the Senate with such disrespect..."

Suiyue really didn't know what she had done to offend this witch who looked almost 30 years old.

From the moment she entered the conference hall, her remarks were almost entirely targeted.

The questions from others mainly revolved around the two points of "pollution" and "nightmare," and the core issue was still the fear of the unknown.

It seems like this person has a personal grudge against her and needs to resolve it through a letter.

"Areille, interrupting me is also blasphemy."

"I'm so sorry..."

The elder who was asking the question also interrupted Arele's apology and turned his gaze back to Suiyue.

"We did see from the information that you used summoning magic during the last attack on the nobles. Are you trying to tell us that both summonings corresponded to the same summoned creature?"

"Yes."

A murmur of discussion immediately arose around them.

Even the four elders couldn't help but whisper among themselves before speaking with complicated expressions: "Gentlemen, you may now ask your questions."

As expected, Ariel was the first to stand up. After receiving a nod of permission from the elders, she walked straight to the center of the circular hall, stopped a few steps in front of Suiyue, and looked down at her.

"Since the beginning of the Black Mist, the summoning ritual has been highly unstable. From the 49th year of the Black Mist Calendar onwards, the summoning ritual often failed to deliver the promised result. In the 112th year of the Black Mist Calendar, the summoning ritual actually summoned a mad summoned creature for the summoner, which then committed a horrific massacre in the territory of Lundran, which is now long since swallowed by the Black Mist."

The crow turned around, facing the people seated around the round table, and then looked at the elder at the head of the table.

"More than a hundred years before the High Magic Limited Learning Act was introduced in the 283rd year of the Black Mist Calendar, summoning magic was already a well-known forbidden art. Both the common people and the academy kept their distance from it. Now, there is an even greater risk that the summoning ritual will be corrupted and distorted by the Nightmare of God."

She pointed at Suiyue.

"Now, someone claims to be able to reliably summon the same object while in a highly unstable summoning state, and that the summoned creature possesses power far exceeding its own capabilities, and willingly submits to being controlled... Ladies and gentlemen, we have placed a potential source of divine nightmare contamination in the conference hall!"

"Such an evil spirit, protected by the self-proclaimed elite Elru, has its observation period shortened and is granted early exemption, showing utter disregard for Solitz's will—it's utterly shameful!"

What he said makes sense. If Nan'an were to take a bystander's perspective, his view of Suiyue and Erlu would become negative as a result.

If Nan'an hadn't sensed her deliberate targeting and aggressiveness towards Suiyue, she would have truly believed that she was simply stating the facts.

Arele turned to the head of the table and bowed slightly to the four elders.

"I believe it is necessary to initiate trial proceedings and begin the court process," Arele's voice regained its apparent restraint, "to confirm whether Suiyue colluded with the Living Eclipse and the Nightmare Gods in the previous attack on the nobles and in this incident involving the Black Mist of Kren. At the same time, we should also thoroughly investigate whether the Evil Deer has fallen and become their tentacles that corrupt Soliz."

Nan'an wondered to himself, "Didn't we say there was no such thing as a religious inquisition?"

Suiyue replied softly, "The Inquisition and the Senate have different meanings."

Not only Nan'an understood Arele's intention to expand the scope of the matter, but everyone present also understood it.

Just a few minutes ago, they would have been very willing to step in and act as peacemakers.

However, Suiyue's description of "stablely summoning the same unknown existence" was too subtle, making everyone feel a chill run down their spines.

The Lundland massacre is too painful to read about; no one wants such a thing to happen again.

Bad luck could certainly explain both experiences, but on the other hand... was it really just bad luck?

She was present when the nobles were attacked, which may well have been an attempt to infiltrate Solize.

After all, the rewards and reputation gained from heroic battles would greatly benefit her in building a new network of relationships and would make her less likely to be suspected.

The elders clearly had their concerns. They had always tried to remain neutral, but since it involved a divine nightmare, they couldn't help but be cautious.

Let's vote by raising our hands.

Suiyue sensed the unease and hesitation in the air, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"Nan'an, what am I going to do? I'm really going to end up on the barbecue grill now!"

"To be honest, back in the Gray Star era, calling a stake a barbecue grill was a hellish joke only circulated among us crude adventurers. For you, a participant in this, to make fun of yourself like this, your hellish index is truly off the charts." Nan An laughed. "What to do? Well, I'll personally 'save' you for 3 jin (1.5 catties). Hopefully, they'll keep your horn as a trophy, and when the next person summons me, I'll try my best to take it with me as a memento."

"You're still joking at a time like this?"

"You're making it sound so hellish, I'm in hell too," Nan'an said. "Don't rush, that guy named Arele is too eager. Didn't he notice that the Crow didn't refute anything? This matter concerns him and the Deer, and he himself is accused of violating regulations, but he's not in a hurry at all. He must have a backup plan."

"What if he doesn't?"

"Then I'll save you 4 pounds."

Suiyue mumbled through her throat, "Veteran!"

"Aren't you fearless?"

"At the very least, they can't be burned to death; going through the trial process will most likely result in their bones being reduced to ashes."

"Then you can rest assured. Arele has temporarily intimidated the elders. If they continue to press for answers, it will be more advantageous for you."

When Nan'an pacified Suiyue, the vote by show of hands had already ended.

Those who support Ariel's change of trial procedure reached a delicate three-fifths, just over half.

It was clear that most people present did not want the situation to escalate indefinitely, but Ariel's ability to incite and exaggerate was indeed outstanding.

I bet many people here would love for Suiyue to trip over a pebble and die while walking, because that would be better for everyone.

The elder statesman strikes the gavel.

"Put Suiyue in the Wind Velvet Crystal Prison in Keren City for safekeeping. The trial will commence tomorrow at noon, and the matter will be formally discussed again."

Suiyue licked the corner of her mouth.

She wouldn't mind if it were the prison in Kren City; even without Pirion's food, she wouldn't be deprived of sweet potatoes.

Even after the announcement that the gathering was temporarily adjourned, Hokuya remained silent. Only when Suiyue was taken away did he smile and nod at her.

Suiyue suddenly felt relieved.

Nan'an is probably right; his calm demeanor regarding matters concerning himself is definitely intentional.

The familiar prison, the familiar jailers.

After more than half a month, Suiyue returned to her "home" where she felt most at ease after going around in circles.

The jailer couldn't help but make a sarcastic remark as he locked Suiyue up.

"You're back again? Then we'll have to start betting on whether you can get out of here again."

Few people who are imprisoned in Windgrass Prison can actually get out smoothly.

No one thought that Suiyue, who was going to be imprisoned for the second time, would be able to get away unscathed this time. It was said that the trial would be conducted in a court of the senatorial standard.

Tsk tsk, if you don't buy Suiyue now, you'll be doing your wallet a disservice.

Suiyue was completely unaware of this; at that moment, all she could see was…

"Wow, there really are sweet potatoes, three of them! Hehe, this is going to be a feast!"

"Waaaaah, this is a veteran! You can taste the meat in the broth! There really is meat in it."

Judging from Suiyue's voice, Nan'an suspected that she ate her last meal with a smile, and could even lick the bowl clean until it reflected light.

"Eat your fill and go to bed quickly, I'm waiting for you," Nan'an said. "Come play with the Rubik's Cube."

Upon hearing this, Suiyue slurped her words down, wiped her mouth, and rolled onto the bed.

Being able to eat and sleep whenever she wants is also a skill, and in the world where Nan'an lives, many people would probably envy her physique.

Upon entering the prison of consciousness, Suiyue's excitement had dissipated.

"What's the point of using the Rubik's Cube if I can't even see it?"

The moment she saw the translucent, crescent-shaped white Rubik's Cube in Nan'an's hand, all her thoughts vanished.

"What do you mean!" Suiyue exclaimed. "I can see it! I can see it!"

Nan'an's intuition was confirmed. He pointed to the "giant" Rubik's Cube in the sky, which had transformed into a celestial globe and stood shoulder to shoulder with the sun.

"Can you see what's there?"

Suiyue took the Rubik's Cube and played with it for a while, then looked up and squinted at it for a long time.

"I can't see... what is it?"

As expected, the Rubik's Cube remains a special entity that is invisible and intangible to outsiders, but its derivatives have become physical entities that can be seen and played with by outsiders.

"You've been fiddling with it for so long, do you understand its function now?" Suiyue really treated the Rubik's Cube like a walnut, letting it bounce around in her palm.

"My intuition tells me that it can have unexpected effects on the Nightmare God."

"So we still need to find a Nightmare God and fight it?" Suiyue asked in astonishment. "We're already high-risk individuals. Even if we escape the Tribunal unscathed tomorrow, if we get involved with the Nightmare God again, we'll still be suspected. Third time's the charm!"

Nan'an understood this principle, of course, but he had already come up with a solution.