A surge of power filled my body.
I tightened my grip on the gavel and slowly lifted it.
Striking down, I finally passed a sentence.
"I sentence you mercilessly for the attempted murder of Wen Hanzhi."
A loud bang erupted from the gavel as the whispers from the smoke around me grew louder.
And just as quickly, everything went silent.
The Scales were making their decision.
25-0
Lowered was the Èmó, as the revolver rose.
Alright.
I just need to make sure the scale is lower than the revolver for the next three rounds.
Just as I'd expected, a figure had appeared before me.
It took the form of a humanoid figure, but was devoid of any facial features; yet despite that, it could speak.
[But the victim did not suffer any injuries relating to my client. The victim was even in a relaxed state, not running from the scene to avoid any further conflict despite having the option to do so.]
The scales churned.
25-18
Eighteen points? That many?
... I have to choose my words carefully.
"The victim was not able to choose to run because of their petrified state, not to mention they had also just woken up from quite a vulnerable moment.
To ask him to think rationally would be incredibly harsh. The perpetrator had attacked the victim at their most vulnerable time, taking advantage of the situation."
I looked up at the scale.
50-18
Am I already at fifty points?
Sentencing Wei felt way harder than this.
[My client could have seen the victim as a danger; the area was dark, and the victim did not clearly state their intentions.]
50-23
It's struggling to find a good point.
I charged back with another answer, and by the end of the final round, I had won by a landslide.
80-34
That was the final score.
Last time with Wei, I only got up to 60 points! That's a thirty-three percent increase!
Suddenly, the numbers on the scale glowed a bright red that engulfed the entire domain before disappearing.
If the score difference is bigger, then doesn't that mean debuff applications get stronger?
The loud, unwavering voice was heard again.
[FINAL JUDGMENT. THE DEFENDANT IS CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER. THE SCALE HAS WEIGHED YOUR SOUL, AND OF ALL CRIMES, YOU ARE GUILTY OF.]
The gavel in my hands vanished, and instead, left behind a revolver.
The same golden revolver that once sat on one side of the scales.
Soon enough, the Èmó appeared right before me, still bound and erratic.
I raised the gun.
This time, there was no need for any kind of force to make me do so.
The shot was deafening, piercing my ears as I recoiled from the gun.
Like clockwork, the red smoke dissipated, closing the domain and leaving behind the collapsed Èmó.
"Hah, now that's over with; let's start the real work."
***
"... Wei!?... Yin Ai...!?... Anyone...?"
I limped through the darkness, pressing my hands against the jagged walls to feel for anything.
It was a rough fall down.
I'm not sure why it was so rough; maybe it was because the Zeng Meng was still expanding while I fell in.
... Hah... fuck...
I'm pretty sure my ankle is sprained, not to mention my hip feels busted.
The pain numbed with every second that passed, but that wasn't a good sign.
My phone was completely shattered.
To conserve energy, I'd decided to use my Li-Liang only every once in a while to create a small flame.
No matter how much I yelled, no one came or answered.
Not even a single soldier, let alone Wei or Yin Ai.
At times, I thought I heard sounds or whispering, but when I ran in the direction the sounds came from, nothing appeared.
Silence would soon follow after that.
I didn't want to admit it, but I wasn't going anywhere.
Wandering around, yelling for help and expecting an answer when there hasn't been one for who knows how long.
"... Where is everyone...?
Why... how did this happen...?
... I... I even lost Boss' brooch... and the mission... and everyone... and..."
... No...
No, get it together, Churan...
We'll get out of here, somehow.
I know we will.
We...
... will.
I leaned against the cave walls for support.
They were wet.
Uncomfortable.
And my back was soaked.
I'm not sure how long I passed out for.
Luckily for me, the area I'd been in didn't have any Èmós roaming around.
But that also meant I was incredibly far from the Boss Èmó's location.
I remember waking up, just for a moment.
There was a loud sound.
Maybe a gunshot?
But it was so quick and fast; maybe it was just my ears ringing.
My eyelids wouldn't hold themselves up anymore, so I shut them.
And I drifted off to sleep again.
***
The light of my shield guided my path through the winding tunnels, and I quickly muttered a thankful prayer to my past self for being so resourceful.
Thankfully, I somewhat remembered where the teal-temple-like area was.
The blue light was incredibly dim.
Just barely lighting up my path, I could see about a foot in front of me.
... Hm... I think there was a super jagged rock somewhere around this turn... so I should go... left.
I took a turn until—
—Eh?
All of a sudden, I was face-planting into the floor.
I flung my arms out, trying to break my fall, yet somehow, my face still made contact with the floor.
"Agh—! What the hell?"
Looking back, what I'd tripped on wasn't a rock, but instead the leg of a person.
A very, very familiar person.
Her silver hair glistened against the light, and I could see the contours of her face.
She was bruised up and had smudges, yet despite that, her beauty still shone through, as if not even death could make her ugly.
Quite a befitting trait of many playable game characters.
My eyes widened, and gears started turning in my head, and soon, they were exploding.
... Churan?