The Main Character i : Between the Time You Left (6)

Ti passed, and the day of the trial arrived. I attended the trial venue with a stern expression. I had no objects to present as evidence. All I had were my holy sword and mace. My opponent was looking at

with a triumphant expression. Grand Duke Rubicon was nowhere to be seen. It seed coming all the way from the Northern Region was too much of a burden. Only the Lord of Amur stood in the opponent's place.

I licked my lips. This was a problem. If things went south, I’d just have to smash both the lord's and the judge's heads in and bolt.

He was a fleshy man with a rat-like beard. The Lord of Amur spoke.

"High Priest Peta Lusius. I respect your love for the rmaid, but the case of a rmaid killing a noble's young master cannot be tolerated. I hope you understand as well."

I didn't bother to answer. It was a matter to be discussed again once the main trial began anyway. When I didn't answer, the Lord of Amur said no more. It seed he realized that any provocation was aningless since I had decided to ignore him.

"The judge is entering."

The judge entered the makeshift assembly hall where we were. He was dressed in judge's robes and had a long beard and a persnickety-looking impression. Sternness was plain to see on his gaunt face. He stepped up to the judge's seat and spoke.

"Then, we will now begin the dispute resolution between Amur Territory, Grand Duke Rubicon, and Peta Territory. Both sides, please present your basis or logic as to whether Peta Eve is human or not human."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Lord of Amur opened his mouth.

"There is no reason to proceed further with this trial on this topic. rmaids have always been prey for humans, and their playthings. How can speaking human speech be evidence of being human? Demons can also speak human speech, and goblins can speak it to a limited extent. The demi-humans of the mountains and the beastfolk of the eastern plains can also speak human speech. Respected judge. Are they human? They rely imitate thinking and speaking like humans; they are not human. They should not be treated as human simply because they speak human speech."

The judge looked at . I asked the Lord of Amur.

"Lord of Amur. What is your definition of a 'human'?"

The Lord of an Amur pondered my words for a mont before opening his mouth.

"A hairless being that walks on two legs and has red blood."

"Then if I pluck all the feathers off a chicken, is it human?"

The Lord of Amur shook his head at my question.

"Just because you pluck the hair off a creature that originally had hair, it doesn't beco a hairless being. It just becos a being with its hair shaved off."

"Then by your logic, Lord of Amur, are dwarves with a lot of body hair not human?"

The Lord of Amur's shoulders trembled slightly before he shook his head and said.

"Don't you know that the hair of dwarves is fundantally different from the kind of fur we're talking about? A being covered head to toe in shaggy fur like the beastfolk of the plains cannot be seen as human. It is said there are rare types of dwarves whose whole bodies are covered in hair, but these are treated as an exception."

"They are both hairy, so what is the reason one is an exception, and the other is classified as non-human?"

"It is because dwarves wish to assimilate into our human society, and beastfolk do not. They harass us by looting the Eastern Plains Region every year."

"In that case, if a beastfolk wished to assimilate into human society, would they also be human?"

"That is a matter to be discussed when such a beastfolk appears."

The Lord of Amur thought for a mont, then opened his mouth again.

"Even so, do rmaids not have blue blood? It ans they are ultimately a creature with different blood from us. How can we accept a being with different blood and a different ecology as human? A rmaid is not human. And this case is a horrendous incident where a rmaid murdered a human. The Grand Duke Rubicon of the North was deeply aggrieved upon hearing this sad news. He said he could not even begin to understand that his son was killed by a rmaid.

High Priest Lusius. If you truly intend to claim that rmaids are human, then try saying so in front of Grand Duke Rubicon. I dare you to claim that rmaids are human in front of the man who has spent his life hunting and killing demi-humans."

"The reason rmaids have not beco human is that we have refused to let them beco human, not because they lack the qualification. What is an insult? An insult is when you spew shaful or foul swear words for the purpose of making the other party feel sha. We do not insult a pig. Lord of Amur, if a resident's dog barks at you, do you take that as an insult?"

"I do not."

"Then have you ever mocked a resident's dog?"

"I have not."

"That's right. We only insult humans. Because only humans can feel sha and anger at an insult. That day, Rubicon Condrix used words like 'fish prostitute' and 'half-fish' to my wife, Peta Eve, and continuously committed provocations by showing her a rmaid-skin wallet. What does this an? It ans Rubicon Condrix insulted my wife. Even if others might not perceive it that way, it ans that until the mont before his death, Rubicon Condrix saw my wife as a human who could feel insulted.

And my wife, upon hearing Rubicon Condrix's statents, felt insulted and attacked."

The Lord of Amur said.

"To claim they are human just because words for demi-humans were ntioned is weak logic. And to claim they are human because they feel insulted is also flawed logic. Even a dog or a cat will bare its teeth if you throw a shoe at it. They cannot be called human just because they feel insulted.

Even if Rubicon Condrix saw the rmaid as human, what difference does that make to this topic? Will other people see rmaids as human? If I were to call that chair a human, would you, High Priest, be willing to see that chair as a human?"

"The conversation is just going in circles. Is the only reason they cannot be called human because they cannot be called human? If so, what is the reason a human becos a human? Isn't a human a human simply because they are called human."

"We and rmaids are fundantally different."

"What is different? I will not hear any more talk of red blood and blue blood. Through this trial, I intend to sound a warning to this society that aninglessly massacres rmaids. Are rmaids an important resource that our society cannot do without? If we don't kill rmaids, will they sink our ships? In the past 10 years, excluding Peta Eve, there has not been a single case of ship damage caused by rmaids. The rmaids have sent us a clear ssage that they hope for coexistence. But we did not listen."

"You try to say all rmaids are peaceful, but does your wife not have a criminal record? In the end, the reason rmaids don't attack us is because they lack power, not because they are peaceful. Your wife's criminal record proves this."

"And it was humans who made rmaids violent. There is a cause and effect for everything. Your statent is like blaming a person who fought back against a slave hunter for being violent."

"But a rmaid is not human. If a bear that lost its cub attacks a village, would you, High Priest, sympathize with the bear and accept it as a mber of the village? If your young master was killed by a bear after tornting it, could you propose to let the bear go without taking revenge?"

"In the end, you're only saying that a rmaid is not human. rmaids are humans with whom we can coexist. This is because they hope for coexistence with us and can use human intelligence and language. The side that hopes for coexistence and the side that rcilessly draws its sword. Which side is more 'human'? Are rmaids as dangerous as wild beasts like bears to be compared to them?"

The Lord of Amur remained silent for a mont before spitting out a single word. His stubbornness was palpable from his tightly shut lips. I really wanted to smash that rat-bearded lord's head in.

"A rmaid. is not human."

"What is the reason you wish for rmaids not to be human?"

I asked. The Lord of Amur did not answer. I asked again.

"Is the reason you don't see rmaids as human simply because if they beca human, you couldn't use rmaid skin anymore? I've heard that nobles and so Archdeity Church clerics enjoy using ornants made from rmaid skin. That's because a rmaid's scales sparkle and are beautiful. Isn't it that you can't admit that? You can't admit to the fact that you've adorned your bodies with ornants made from human skin, so you insist that rmaids are not human, isn't that it?"

"No matter how you insist, a rmaid can never beco human. In the end, they are a being with blue blood, that eats fish, and has the lower body of a fish. How can such a being be the sa as us humans? If they beco human, then who will beco human next? The beastfolk of the plains? The demi-humans of the mountains? If they beco human one by one, how many more concessions will we have to make? High Priest, you are blinded by love and are missing many things. No one would want such a future."

The talk of blue blood ca up again. The mont I was about to open my mouth to rebut, soone kicked open the door to the trial venue and entered.

"Enough of this trivial debate! Even at this mont, the demi-humans in the North are moving to seize the mines, and the beastfolk are swarming in the eastern plains! How can the Southern High Priest turn a blind eye to this miserable reality? A rmaid is human, you say? News has arrived that rmaids are collectively attacking ships in the Western Coastal Region!

A rmaid is human, so they must not be insulted? A rmaid is not human! A rmaid is nothing but an enemy that attacks us! Demi-humans and beastfolk are all just targets to be defeated! Why do you still not understand that the Human Kingdom must join forces with the Dwarf Kingdom and the Elf Kingdom to overco this situation! High Priest Lusius! Admit your wrongdoing and apologize at once! I do not wish for a great reward for the death of my son! Frying that atrocious rmaid to death! I want this case to end with just that!"

Grand Duke Rubicon had revealed himself. Dressed in thick clothes that made a mockery of the southern region's warm weather, he seed to be the very personification of the abstract concept of the North. A shaggy beard, a towering height that looked to be 2 ters, and a rugged impression with piercing, wide eyes. He dominated the trial venue with a formidable first impression.

Now, the real ga was starting.

Well then, ti for An Honorable Contest.