But soon, Hong Lin's gaze shifted back to the dice resting in Cheng Shi's palm. When she noticed it still had only six sides, her grin grew even wider.
Hearing that grating laughter, Cheng Shi's expression darkened.
What, having more faces is sothing to brag about?
He pursed his lips and glanced at the twenty-four-sided die sitting in Hong Lin's hand. His mouth might stay stubborn, but the envious gleam in his eyes couldn't lie. He was jealous—exactly as jealous as he'd been when he learned Mi Laozhang possessed nine talents.
After a mont, he finally couldn't suppress his curiosity and muttered under his breath:
"Your die has that many sides—the probability of rolling the maximum must be... pretty low, right?"
Hong Lin shot him a sidelong glance, the corner of her mouth curled upward, barely suppressing a laugh as she nodded:
"True enough. But I don't use it often—only rolled it three tis since I got it.
Once I got a twenty-one. Twice I got twenty-two. Never hit the max."
"???"
After hearing that, Cheng Shi wanted nothing more than to slap himself across the face.
Why the hell did he ask a Fate follower blessed by fortune this kind of question?
He was just making trouble for himself.
The corner of his eye twitched violently twice, and then, without a word, he strode toward the tribunal's exit.
Hong Lin burst out laughing at the sight.
She casually summoned her tree-servant Yu Mu, sending the Hunter out ahead to scout the path, then leisurely followed the emotionally devastated Clown.
Of course, in Hong Lin's eyes, Cheng Shi was no Clown. He was still the Fate Weaver who nded destiny wherever he went.
It was just that this particular Fate Weaver's die had... a few too few sides.
"This should be the East District Tribunal. During the day, I noticed the spectators at the trial were dressed lavishly—only the wealthy folk of the East District dress like that. Cheng Shi, where are you heading?"
Hong Lin's stride was wide, and she quickly fell into step beside him, asking with curiosity.
Cheng Shi didn't answer imdiately. Instead, he countered with a question: "What were you after when you asked Aph Ros about Yu Go?"
Hong Lin blinked, then furrowed her brow:
"This Envoy of Decay seems to have awakened from the river of ti. I've seen people ntion him more than once in the Prosperity faith channel.
He's been hunting followers of Prosperity. At first I figured that, as opposing faiths, this behavior was weakening Prosperity's influence, but I could understand it—their positions demand it, after all.
But after hearing what you and Aph Ros discussed, I realized this Yu Go really is a coward."
"How so?" Cheng Shi's interest was piqued.
"He's just buried his cowardice deep inside. Even now, he doesn't dare confront Oblivion for an explanation, doesn't even dare take revenge on a few Oblivion players. All he knows is venting his frustration by hunting Prosperity followers.
Isn't that because he's perfectly aware that Prosperity won't personally intervene, and that there's no Envoy to step in either?"
Hearing this, Cheng Shi paused briefly: "Hong Lin—is that what he thinks, or what you think?"
"Is there a difference?"
'Is there not?'
'Sis, why does everything you just said sound like you're pinning charges on Yu Go, building a case so you can go pick a fight with him?'
'What's that gleam of eagerness in your eyes about?'
'You can't beat Decay itself, so you're going after a Decay Envoy to test your strength, is that it?'
'Was it the undefeated record against the Barren Walker that gave you this confidence, or has wielding Prosperity's authority gone to your head?'
Cheng Shi's expression turned peculiar: "You... be careful."
Hong Lin hadn't expected her thoughts to be read so easily. A faint blush colored her cheeks as she turned away, murmuring a quiet "mm" with a nod, but she quickly changed the subject.
"You still haven't told
where you're going."
Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow: "I'm going to find the most law-savvy person in this city. I want to get a read on the recent legal climate in Katouting—see whether sothing really is wrong with this Grand Tribunal capital."
"The most law-savvy person?" Hong Lin looked faintly startled. "You're going to see the three Supre Inquisitors?"
"No, why would I? What if they beat
to death?"
"With
here, they couldn't kill you on their own." Hong Lin said it offhandedly, but the words set Cheng Shi's blood pumping.
Now that was confidence!
While other players—even so peak players—would take wide detours around the Grand Tribunal's Supre Inquisitors, this Chosen of Prosperity—no, this Heir of Prosperity—was already bold enough to talk tough in Katouting, right under Order's nose.
But Hong Lin didn't truly an it. She followed up with a puzzled look:
"Not them? Is there soone who understands the law better than the Supre Inquisitors?
The Grand Executioner? The Grand Justice? The Grand Investigator?
None of them?
Cheng Shi, if not even the six highest authorities of the Grand Tribunal are your target... are you sure there's soone within Grand Tribunal territory who knows the law better than they do?"
"Of course!" Cheng Shi grinned, a playful smile laced with a hint of disdain. "Inquisitors only know how to convict. Executioners only know how to chop heads. Justices only know how to play diator. Investigators only know how to arrest people. What do any of them understand about the law?"
"..." It was blunt, but it strangely made sense. Hong Lin blinked, then asked, "So who's your target?"
"Prisoners!
The people who truly understand the law are all locked up in the Grand Tribunal's prisons.
And the closer soone is to death, the better they understand the law. Those on the execution block understand it best!
And the place we're heading is the Howling Iron Prison, under the Grand Executioner's jurisdiction.
Hong Lin—look forward to hearing what these eloquent legal experts can tell us."
"..."
The two moved swiftly. With the tree-servant Yu Mu scouting ahead, they skirted around nurous patrolling knights and slipped silently into what was known as the most fortified stronghold in all of Katouting.
It was rather ironic, really. The safest place in the Grand Tribunal's capital wasn't the Supre Court itself, but this prison packed with inmates awaiting execution—the Howling Iron Prison.
Didn't that only further prove how important these prisoners were?
When Cheng Shi voiced this line of reasoning, Hong Lin fell silent.
She knew she could never out-argue this silver-tongued Fate Weaver.
The two, plus one servant, threaded their way through the sparse gaps in the prison's outer periter defenses. After navigating layer upon layer of iron walls arranged like a labyrinth, they finally reached the heart of the facility—a steel fortress perched halfway up the mountainside.
In truth, the city of Katouting itself stood upon mountains. In the center-west of the Land of Hope lay a vast mountain range, where three great peaks were spaced equidistantly in a row, known as the Prologue Holy Mountains.
Katouting was a city suspended in the sky between those three peaks, linking them with bridges and enormous cables at their midsections, stretching between the mountains like the beam of a balance scale—displaying to the world the image of Order's fairness and justice.
The Howling Iron Prison sat on the northeastern edge of Katouting, beyond which lay nothing but sheer cliffs. Of course, it wasn't chosen for the geographical advantage or to save costs. The mountain beneath this particular peak had the hardest bedrock, making it ideal for constructing the infinitely descending... dungeons.
The prisoners held here numbered far more than a few hundred. This was very nearly the largest death-row concentration camp in the entire Grand Tribunal.
Once they reached this point, Cheng Shi was no longer the one leading the way. He quietly fell in behind Big Cat, letting this true great feline—who had shifted back into the form of a Dense Forest Spotted Leopard—take point, while he watched for any opportunity to slip into the dungeon.
If the outer defenses could be described as having "a gap in a hundred locks," then the dungeon entrance was an iron slab without a single crack. To get in, they could either force their way through, or sohow acquire a set of guard knight armor and blend into the shift-change formation, slipping in during the handover.
But even if Cheng Shi wanted to take the subtle approach, there wasn't enough ti. The trial was about to end, and they still knew nothing about the dungeon's shift-change schedule.
So, after careful deliberation, Big Cat decided to...
Force their way in.
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