POV: Nameless Narrator
Date: Sixth Day of Court
Location: Narshia Town – Main Court Hall
---
The courtroom was colder today.
Halden Narshia wore black and silver. The colors of finality. Of decision.
His voice, once tired, now rang like steel.
> "Bring them forward."
The doors opened.
Sael Narshia, the Count's younger brother, strode in with forced calm.
Lady Yveline, veiled in lace and poison, followed gracefully — like a dancer walking toward the gallows.
They bowed.
They smiled.
They lied.
---
But Halden did not smile.
And beside him stood Nitsuo, clad not as noble nor knight, but as witness.
Silent. Steady. Unflinching.
He said nothing.
He didn't need to.
The documents spoke louder than words.
The court read aloud the mercenary contracts.
The assassination orders.
The sealed letters.
Alice's eyes gleamed.
Lily remained still, watching the two traitors as if willing them to crack.
Leander muttered something beneath his breath. Anna elbowed him, but even she wasn't smiling.
Riya gripped her sleeve tightly.
Gideon stood behind them like a mountain.
Elric's hands were clenched in his lap — praying again, maybe, or simply steadying his heart.
---
Yveline's defense was calm.
Sael's, louder.
Both useless.
When the final page was read, Halden stood.
> "Lady Yveline. Sael Narshia."
> "You have conspired against this house."
> "You have attempted murder against my blood."
> "You have betrayed oath and name."
Yveline's face twisted into cold defiance.
Sael looked away.
> "You are hereby stripped of all claim to Narshia."
"You are exiled. Permanently."
"If you return — you die."
No one clapped.
No one cheered.
Justice, when true, comes not with joy — but gravity.
And mercy was not part of this ruling.
---
Later – Outside the Court
The courtyard was quiet.
Anna looked up.
> "It's over?"
Nitsuo shook his head.
> "It's settled."
Alice stepped beside him.
> "And the cost?"
> "Too high," he said. "But paid."
Lily touched his sleeve gently.
> "You ready to go home?"
He paused.
Then nodded.
---
Closing Scene – Narshia's Eastern Road, Dusk
Their bags were packed.
The wagon waited.
Cerene stood beside her father. Her eyes red, but proud.
> "Thank you," she said. "For not breaking apart, even when we did."
Leander grinned.
Anna gave her a wink.
Elric offered a prayer.
Riya hugged her.
Gideon simply bowed.
Alice and Lily said nothing — but their eyes held quiet respect.
And Nitsuo?
He turned once, looked at the manor behind them…
…and then looked forward.
> "Let's go home."
---
Final Narration — Nameless Narrator
> "The arc of justice may bend slow."
"But when it strikes, it leaves scars."
"Not on the guilty."
"But on those who held the line."
"The Silent Tactician never asked to be a hero."
"But in a broken land, even silence becomes a blade."
"They returned to the Academy not as students."
"But as survivors."