Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
As the three strikes of the gavel fell, the expanding barrier technique completely enveloped Kinoshita.
He formed a hand sign with one hand, wrapping himself in the the『Hollow Wicker Basket』, but despite this, he was still forcibly bound to the defendant’s stand by the domain.
Hollow Wicker Basket… has no effect?
I see.
It’s because this isn’t a pure “sure-kill” domain, but a rule-based functional domain the likes of which didn’t exist in the past…
In that case, there’s no need to waste cursed energy on it.
Releasing 『Hollow Wicker Basket』, Kinoshita rested one hand on the defendant’s stand and looked straight at Hiromi Higuruma.
The rules inherently embedded in the domain had already poured into his brain, explaining exactly how this functional domain operated.
As long as he delivered a successful “not guilty” defense to the court, he could win this battle.
But before doing that.
“Hey, you’re Hiromi Higuruma, right?”
“That’s right.”
There were some things that needed discussing.
“Expanding your domain against me for no reason like this—what exactly are you trying to do? As the defendant, I should at least know what I’m being accused of, shouldn’t I?”
“In a short span of three days, you have killed over 35 people… If we look at this through the lens of modern law, it already constitutes a case of serial murder. As a public defender, it is perfectly reasonable for me to initiate a public prosecution, is it not?”
“Oh? And what makes you so sure I’ve killed over 35 people, rather than, say, over 175?”
Looking at the trace of “suspicion” lingering in Higuruma’s eyes, Kinoshita mostly understood the man’s psychological state.
Perhaps he hadn’t fully accepted the reality of this slaughter yet; his expression was entirely different from the hardened look he wore in the manga after surviving over a dozen days of death matches.
“After Hajime Kashimo added a rule, I started closely monitoring your ‘score.’ Every time it ticked up, it was in multiples of 5. If it only happened once or twice, there might be room for doubt, but the pattern is obvious.”
Higuruma gripped the gavel in his hand, pointing it directly at Kinoshita.
“Judging by the massive energy field you exuded when you used your superpower just now, you are completely different from the people I’ve faced before.”
“Hold on a second—and how exactly did you deduce that I was the one who added the first rule?”
“Only two people have added rules. Hajime Kashimo’s score dropped to 0 the day after his rule was added, whereas your score ticked up a few more times right around the time of the addition. That is my basis.”
“Your logical deduction skills are excellent. As expected of someone fit to be a lawyer.”
“Therefore… before the trial officially begins, I want to ask you a question.”
“Go ahead, Mr. Lawyer.” This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Kinoshita experimentally tried to mobilize his cursed energy.
It worked, but if he tried to expand his own domain to counter this one, the domain’s embedded rules would classify it as an act of aggression.
Thus, an offensive domain could not be deployed inside this space to initiate a domain clash.
Taking it a step further, if he tried to summon Mahoraga right now—no, the very act of chanting the incantation would likely be deemed an attack, so that was off the table too.
“57 points.”
“That is the number of points I’ve acquired. I killed 11 sorcerers who had practically earned the death penalty, as well as two ordinary people who, legally speaking, were likely innocent.”
“Oh? And your point is?”
“I tried communicating with Kogane to limit my searches specifically to the people you have killed, and I came to the following conclusion.”
Higuruma paused briefly, then pulled out a slip of paper.
“Hajime Zen’in, 9 points… Miru Kon, 4 points…”
“Among the majority of the sorcerers you’ve killed, quite a few of them had scores that weren’t multiples of 5. While I harbored doubts about whether ancient sorcerers like you possessed the moral conscience of modern humans, I just watched your fight with Fumihiko Takaba from a distance.”
“Did you find it mesmerizing?” Kinoshita’s lips curled up slightly.
“If we were outside the barrier, that performance would have been worth the price of admission. It was full of fantasy and impossible scene transitions… But we are inside the barrier. Of course, that has absolutely nothing to do with what I’m trying to say.”
“Then what are you trying to say?”
“I deduce… that your primary criteria for killing a target is ‘their level of threat to ordinary people.’ If we apply existing laws, your actions would teeter on the line between justifiable defense and intentional homicide, though it would ultimately fall under intentional homicide.”
“I hear you loud and clear. You’re quite dissatisfied with Japan’s current legal system, aren’t you?”
“You act just like a vigilante from ancient Japan.”
After saying this, Higuruma paused for a moment.
“So, what was the question you wanted to ask? You’ve been talking all this time, but you still haven’t actually asked the question. Isn’t that dragging it out a bit?”
“…If a sorcerer committed murder because they were provoked by ordinary people, or if they rose up and killed because some ‘official’ compromised fairness and justice, would you consider that sorcerer someone who absolutely deserves to die?”
“Ah… that’s a very difficult question to answer. If a situation like that really occurred, I would first have to investigate the full context before making a judgment.”
Kinoshita clapped his hands.
“To think you, a man who murdered two key figures in a courtroom, would come asking an ancient sorcerer like me for answers simply because you’re unsure of your own true heart—you really are…”
Bang!
“Way too insecure.”
Bang!
After the two sharp cracks of the gavel, Higuruma spoke again.
“Judgeman, begin.”
Kinoshita looked up at the “shikigami” wrapped in a mass of black cursed energy, revealing only a stark white face.
“Gen Zen’in is suspected of stealing food and beverages from a KFC in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, on the morning of November 1, 2018.” Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
Hearing this charge, Kinoshita blanked out twice in rapid succession.
First, because of the name Gen Zen’in.
Second, because of the crime itself.
“What the hell?”
Kinoshita stared speechlessly at Higuruma, while Higuruma simply held a case file, looking back at Kinoshita with a deadpan expression.
“…”
“I get it, I get it. I’m supposed to make a ‘not guilty’ plea, right? Then there’s one thing I need to prove.”
Kinoshita threw his hands up in exasperation.
“First of all, I didn’t steal anything. I merely borrowed a little.”
“Secondly, even if I wanted to pay for it, I’d have to find an employee first, right? I left an IOU, you know!”
Kinoshita rambled on, completely utterly exasperated.
However, Hiromi Higuruma across from him didn’t change his expression in the slightest.
He simply unsealed the file folder in his hands, revealing the “photographic evidence” inside.
It was a crystal-clear photo of Kinoshita instructing his two Divine Dogs to take items from the store.
It perfectly captured Kinoshita’s face, along with the “stolen” food in question: a massive bag of burgers slowly sinking into the shadow domain, while a Divine Dog stood proudly with roasted chicken wings clamped in its jaws.
“…Based on the contents of this photograph, we can almost certainly determine that your statement is entirely untrustworthy.”
“Hey—at least show the IOU in the picture! This is totally perjury!”
“…”
“Look, even your shikigami is completely silent! It’s definitely because it’s committing perjury! Hey!!!”
“Guilty. Confiscation.”
As if directly responding to Kinoshita’s shouting, the shikigami instantly opened its mouth, spitting out words that viciously shattered the “pride” Kinoshita had desperately tried to uphold.
Why did it have to be this one specific thing that I have absolutely no way to deny?!
This is way too embarrassing!
What do I do?
Should I just silence him permanently right here?!
But if I silence him over this, it’ll make me look incredibly petty!!!!
Amidst Kinoshita’s violent internal struggle, the domain slowly began to crack and dissolve.
Immediately following that, an enlarged gavel came hurtling fiercely toward Kinoshita’s body.
Kinoshita instantly yanked his cursed tool out of Kogane, and a shadowy Japanese katana materialized in his grip, cleanly blocking the incoming gavel strike.