“An assassination attempt at a time like this. Ha…”
Perhaps worried that Duke Gloria might fall under suspicion, Miro pressed his lips tightly together.
If someone had openly targeted Liselotte at this time, the East would have been the first to draw suspicion.
‘Well. After all, the only person who would benefit from killing me here is Duke Gloria.’
Petty lawsuits could be seen as maliciously exploiting the system that existed anyway, but assassination carried too great a risk.
Even if she was a Princess treated coldly by the Imperial Family, royalty was still royalty.
In cases involving the murder of a member of the Imperial Family, the punishment was immediate execution.
‘If Duke Gloria were that foolish, I would have nothing to say, but…’
Something felt off, but for now, it was time to focus on the trial.
The presiding official rapped the gavel sharply to quell the commotion.
“Order in the court. The plaintiff’s representative has arrived, so we will proceed with the hearing.”
Miro, who had been alternately staring at Eren and Liselotte in a daze, cleared his throat with a fist covering his mouth.
“Ahem. Honorable Presiding Official. In order to more definitively establish the probabilities involved in magic tool production, we request to examine Professor Gilly of the Academy’s Department of Magical Theory as a witness.”
“You have prepared a witness. The request is granted.”
At the mention of a professor of magical theory, the presiding official’s expression brightened.
Miro seemed to have prepared thoroughly, perhaps because he had failed to obtain any particularly meaningful results at the previous hearing.
The gaunt, middle-aged woman made no effort to hide her irritation.
Standing before the witness stand, Miro asked with a bright smile.
“Could you briefly introduce the work you are currently engaged in as a witness?”
“I am in charge of lecturing on the theory of magic tool production at the Academy.”
“From the perspective of magical theory, how do you approach the probability of magic tool production?”
Apparently finding Miro’s question disagreeable, Professor Gilly let out a long sigh.
“From a magical theory standpoint, the probability of making magic tools varies depending on the individual mage’s capabilities. Therefore, we take those who correspond to ordinary mages of the magic tower as the average and compile statistics.”
Her tone suggested she found it bothersome to have to explain even this much, but Miro simply kept smiling placidly as he soothed her.
He sharply turned his head and looked up at the presiding official.
“That is correct. The average spoken of in magical theory refers to ordinary mages. However, the plaintiff is the Magic Tower Master, the greatest mage on the continent.”
Hedmilton, who was seated beside them, hurriedly rummaged through the stacked documents.
Receiving evidence related to magical theory, Liselotte tore a few pages apart without even looking at them and crumpled them up.
Thanks to Miro’s argument just now, the evidence submitted last time had become invalid.
“If we are speaking of the greatest mage on the continent, it is possible to produce magic tools of grade two or higher using even low-grade materials. Is that correct?”
Miro asked the question very skillfully, carefully avoiding points that could be disadvantageous.
Naturally, Professor Gilly gave the answer he wanted.
“That is correct.”
“What would you estimate the probability to be?”
“To begin with, the Magic Tower has historically not been cooperative with the advancement of magical theory, so it is difficult to derive an exact figure. However, it cannot help but be higher than the commonly known probability.”
“Then in the case of an ordinary mage, would the probability of producing a grade-five magic tool using high-grade materials be one hundred percent?”
“No. Even when using good materials, magic tool production cannot succeed with a one hundred percent probability. In the end, the success rate varies depending on individual skill and the materials used. Good materials alone do not guarantee success.”
Miro confidently raised one hand and shouted loudly toward the spectators.
“Honorable Presiding Official. As you can see, even the witness, an expert in magical theory, has stated that magic tool creation cannot guarantee a high success rate, even when using good materials.”
“Hmm.”
“The evidence regarding the plaintiff’s probability of magic tool production is, in effect, entirely unrelated to the plaintiff himself, and this is something that anyone managing numerous mages as the Tower Master would naturally be aware of.”
The presiding official nodded with a satisfied smile, listening attentively to Miro’s argument.
Seeing this, Miro continued with a smile in his eyes.
“In other words, the plaintiff knew that creation was possible regardless of the materials supplied at the time, and therefore personally signed the renewal contract. He is merely finding fault in order to conceal his change of heart.”
“Objection! That is personal speculation!”
Liselotte raised her hand and protested, but the presiding official didn’t look particularly inclined to accept it.
“Objection overruled. It is a fact that the plaintiff personally affixed his seal to the contract.”
‘That was because he didn’t know what it contained!’
It was a reaction she had anticipated ever since a magical theory scholar had been called as a witness.
Of course, it was still somewhat surprising how consistently everything unfolded exactly as expected.
‘Saying he signed it without knowing doesn’t help in the current situation.’
To overturn this contract, they had to argue that Duke Gloria had concluded the contract with impure intentions.
The problem was that this so-called “impure intention” wasn’t an easy thing to assert.
‘The evidence to overturn it is prepared. The question is how to design the flow of the trial so that it cannot be refuted…’
Liselotte scrunched the bridge of her nose and focused.
She clearly remembered seeing relevant content in a magical theory text.
Liselotte quickly snatched another page from the torn documents and flipped through it rapidly.
For now, breaking the flow was the priority.
If one didn’t think carefully, someone among the spectators might be swayed.
‘Honestly. I knew it from the moment he started being overly sensitive about reputation.’
Miro glanced sideways at Liselotte, then smiled thinly, placed a hand politely over his chest, and bowed his head slightly.
“That is all.”
The presiding official swept his gaze over the murmuring gallery and nodded.
“Next. The plaintiff’s side may proceed with the examination.”
Liselotte rose aggressively from her seat and signaled to Hedmilton with her eyes.
He had been staring blankly, but as if something occurred to him, his eyes widened. He nodded and whispered.
“They should be on their way. I’ve been running around like my feet were on fire since this morning because of that.”
That would do. She only needed to take control of the flow.
Letting out a breath, she stepped forward confidently, clutching the documents, and stood before the witness stand.
Professor Gilly, tilting her head askew, glared at her irritably.
Liselotte smiled brightly and asked.
“Witness. You stated that because the success probability varies according to individual capability, the probability for the plaintiff, the Tower Master, cannot be determined. Is that correct?”
“Yes. And?”
“Between an apprentice mage and a regular mage, which one is more proficient in magic?”
“Obviously, a regular mage.”
“Why?”
“Apprentices are those in the process of training despite having magical talent. They have not yet been classified as regular mages or high mages, and they are inexperienced, so they cannot effectively use magic in practice.”
Professor Gilly answered with an attitude that seemed to say, why ask something so obvious.
Liselotte raised the documents and spoke loudly.
“However, according to recent research, there have been findings showing that there is almost no difference in the probability of magic tool creation between apprentice mages and regular mages.”
Liselotte lifted the documents with the torn front page high, then handed them to the clerk.
It was a paper officially recognized within the field of magical theory.
‘This may not serve as proof that even the Tower Master finds it difficult to create grade-two or higher magic tools using low-grade byproducts, but…’
At the very least, it could invalidate Miro’s argument.
Liselotte asked Professor Gilly again.
“This research contradicts the witness’s earlier statement. What is the reason for that?”
“It has not been the mainstream position until now. The discussion has only been underway for a few years, so I conveyed the generally accepted view.”
“When you say ‘generally accepted’, do you mean that most people are aware that success probability is determined by individual capability and the grade of materials?”
“Yes.”
“In that case, it would be possible that when drafting this magic tool supply contract, an uncertain and merely general standard was deliberately included.”
No sooner had Liselotte finished speaking than Miro raised his hand.
“Objection. Leading the witness.”
“Sustained. The plaintiff’s side will ask factual questions only.”
Letting out a breath, Liselotte lifted her head toward the presiding official.
“Honorable Presiding Official. The defendant has claimed that, as the Tower Master, the plaintiff can create high-grade magic tools even with low-grade byproducts, and that therefore the contract itself poses no issue. This…”
Taking a deep breath, Liselotte broke into a confident grin and continued.
“Means that he changed the clause in the existing renewal contract because he knew that even if low-grade byproducts were intentionally supplied, it would still be possible to create magic tools of grade two or higher. Because that is the generally accepted understanding.”
Intentional.
The flow was now in her hands.
Liselotte walked back to the plaintiff’s bench and picked up the brooch resting on the table.
It was the magic tool that Virki had personally worn when he went to speak with Duke Gloria.
“As additional evidence, I submit a magic tool containing a recording of a conversation between the plaintiff and the defendant.”
