Chapter 174 First Kill in Life, Teeth Just Beginning to Turn...
"Is everything alright, Leosley?"
Navette was still uneasy.
“You don’t need to stay here and watch any longer. After the trial, I can tell you everything I saw, down to the smallest detail.”
For any living being, watching family members suffer in a past they cannot change is incredibly cruel.
“Don’t underestimate me, Violet.”
Reaching out to pinch Mainkuen's thin cheek, Leosley tried to compare him to the lively child he remembered.
Weak and feeble, he was like a completely different person.
"The bitter fruit has already ripened, and the past cannot be changed."
"But if I could see the location of the hidden injury with my own eyes, I could still give him a better future."
"I want to see it; it's my responsibility as an elder brother."
“Leosley…Mainkuhn…”
Shuilong looked at the two brothers with their tragic fates and a pang of heartache flashed in his eyes.
A duke of humble origins, a sinner who saves the world through hatred.
Your resilience has stirred up waves in my heart that I still find hard to calm.
"Alright, Vilette, go back to your seat in the first row. Don't worry."
He didn't hear the judge's footsteps leaving; instead, he heard the sound of a chair being moved.
"Naviette, I'm really okay."
"Um... I'm sorry."
Dragon was somewhat embarrassed, but he still firmly placed the chair next to Mainkuen.
"It's not because I'm worried about you that I'm doing this, it's just... I just want to sit with you all, that's all, cough."
Dragons aren't good at lying, and Leosley could tell from his eyes that he couldn't hide his worry and concern.
Clearly, no matter how many times Leosley said he was fine and didn't need to worry, he ignored it completely.
"…Ha ha."
Leo's mind, still reeling from the past, settled slightly, and he chuckled softly, "This doesn't seem to follow the rules, after all, this is the defendant's dock..."
Before he could finish speaking, there was another loud bang, and the petite Melushin struggled to lift the chairs and place them next to the Dragon King, lining them up in a row.
“I’d like to sit with everyone too,” Siegwen said with a smile. “Your Grace, is that not allowed?”
"Eh..."
Leosley looked slightly bewildered, like a wolf who had resolved to overcome its pain on its own but was now being comforted by humans. But the two chairs weren't the end of it; the blond traveler, accompanied by his guide, approached him with a nonchalant air.
"You sit next to Mainkuhn, and I'll sit next to you, okay?"
"Paimon, Paimon is willing to give you his shoulder to lean on! Don't be sad!"
"ah…"
Startled, Leosley glanced instinctively at Paimon's small shoulder.
"...This is really quite embarrassing."
"What does it matter?"
Paimon floated up and patted Maine's head with her tiny hand, on the top of her gray, cloud-like hair.
"If he were awake right now, I'd be happy to lend him my shoulder."
"Then... I'll thank you on his behalf, haha."
The little white elf's words were somewhat amusing, and Leosley stopped resisting and sat down in the audience seats set up by old and new friends, right next to Mainkuen.
I'm surrounded by trustworthy people.
"This feeling is so wonderful."
I really wish Mainkun could experience it too.
"Then, shall I let Ms. Nasita continue playing?"
Seeing that the Duke was nearing a calmer state, Navelette tentatively asked.
"Okay...no, wait."
After hesitating for a moment and glancing at the people around him, Leosley still offered his suggestion.
"Let's invite Funina over to sit down too."
"Funinna?"
"Hmm, she's been in a bad mood lately and didn't even take the psychological test at the entrance; she was just let in directly. I'm a little worried."
“After all, she’s a deity. It’s hard for deities to have psychological problems, right?” Little Paimon waved his hand in confusion. “Could she be so sad? If that’s the case, I might as well lend her my shoulder.”
"Such a tiny floating object, yet it talks big."
As soon as Paimon finished speaking, he heard a faint, unreal murmur coming from behind him, as if he was trying to maintain his authority.
"One Leosley is enough to flatten you into Paimon sauce."
Wow! When did you arrive?
Furness turned her head away, avoiding eye contact with anyone, especially Leosley.
"I was just passing by, no need to pay attention."
Leosley: "You came here from the VIP section?"
"...Enough with the chit-chat! I didn't want to see how you were doing!"
"Pfft... Okay, okay."
"Since you're already here, why don't you sit down with us?" Seeing that the god was about to get angry, the traveler quickly smiled and waved his hand to the side, indicating that there were plenty of empty spaces.
She turned and left. "No, the view from here isn't as good as from my seat... Whoa! Clarind, what are you doing?"
Clarinde, carrying a chair in each hand, blocked her way with a straight face. "I enjoy a lively atmosphere, and I'd like to watch with them."
"What kind of talk is that? Are you a child?... Fine, I'll agree to this just once, okay?!"
The white-haired girl stepped into the crowd gently and hesitantly.
"Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Lady Funina."
Her guards followed firmly.
Nasita breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the turmoil surrounding Mainkun had subsided.
"The memory is about to continue. Everyone here has the right to leave early by raising your hand to stop it."
Furina muttered as she sat down, casually placing herself next to the traveler. "Completely chaotic. This is the most disorganized trial I've ever seen..."
*
"I won't go with you! Meow meow meow!"
Little Mei squirmed in the man's arms, her big tail whipping around like a propeller.
"Listen to me! It's really just a trip."
The man held the child tightly, but couldn't bear to let go, so he could only hurriedly utter some lies to fool the child.
"Weren't you so well-behaved before? Why did you turn out like this as soon as I got your hands on you? Someone, open the door for me!"
"Waaah—"
The door to their "home" was opened, and Xiaomei, terrified, was carried into a blinding ray of sunlight, looking up to see the world outside.
"...Huh?"
"Huh? Why did you suddenly stop struggling?"
Ignoring the man's confusion, Little Mayin Kuhn simply stared wide-eyed at everything before him, his beastly pupils round and staring blankly.
"What is that?!"
He let out a small scream and pointed excitedly ahead.
"Its fur looks smooth, is it a puffy beast? My brother said it's blue, a puffy beast that can go ashore!"
"Oh My God!"
The man gasped when he saw the direction the man was pointing, and felt as if he were about to scoop him up and stuff him into his carriage.
"Keep your voice down! That's Officer Melissa! Remember, these creatures and those adults called the security team are extremely terrifying monsters. They love to eat children! You absolutely cannot trust them... Butler! Let's go!"
The servant in front responded and cracked his whip to urge the horse forward. Little May, with her ears perked up, stood on tiptoe and pressed herself against the window inside the carriage.
"I...I haven't seen enough yet! Melusin? That's Melusin? I haven't even seen her clearly! Why are you leaving?"
"I can't take it anymore!"
A burst of angry shouts erupted from the audience.
"You beast! What child in Fontaine hasn't seen Melousin before!"
"However, lynxes have such unique appearances when they are young that an ordinary person would remember them for a lifetime after just one look. It is indeed unlikely that human traffickers would take him to the street, let alone take him to see Officer Melissa... Sigh, what a pity."
Not seeing Meiluxin, Xiaomei, who had turned her ears away, started to get angry.
"You're lying again! My brother said that Melusians are wonderful creatures. They are cute, helpful, and great friends of humans!"
"Your brother lied to you. They are actually monsters that came out of the sea, dangerous and terrifying!"
"You're lying! My brother would never lie to me!"
Xiao Mei gets anxious whenever her older brother is mentioned, "And they don't even look as scary as me!"
"Okay, okay, your brother is right."
The man had roughly figured out the child's personality, so he coaxed him a bit, then suddenly said:
"Since your brother is so amazing, can he let you out to play?"
"...Going out to play?"
"It's about swinging on swings, skateboarding, catching small fish at the beach, and building sandcastles."
With each item he mentioned, Xiao Mei's expression became more and more bewildered.
"You haven't even played this before, have you? That's terrible, you have no freedom at all."
Xiaomei didn't understand what he was lamenting, but she heard a word that rarely appeared in "home": "What is freedom?"
"Hahaha, freedom is something only I can give you, something your brother can't."
With a sly smile, the man opened the window, letting the gentle breeze caress the small child's face.
"Wow!"
The clatter of hooves and the clamor of voices filled the air as a nobleman's carriage passed through a commercial street. Xiao Mei tilted her head back and took a deep sniff of the air.
"So many, so many kinds of things!"
He immediately became excited and clung to the window frame with his little paws.
"Men, women, children, bitter smells, fragrant smells, I can't tell... Where am I? Let me see!"
With a flick of its big tail, the kitten couldn't wait to squeeze out the window.
"Wow!"
The man swiftly grabbed him and forced a smile at the curious vendor.
"A serving of fruit gummies, please."
"No, don't press me down, just let me take a look. I've never seen so many adults before..."
Babies will stand up and try to cross the fence, and small animals will squeeze their heads through the gaps and try to get out of their cages. All of this happens because of instinct and cannot be suppressed, but men clearly cannot patiently understand this instinct.
"That's enough! They have no tact whatsoever!"
With a low growl, the man tore open the candy wrapper, pinched out a candy, and shoved it into Mayne's mouth.
"Didn't you ask me what freedom is? Well, let me tell you, this is freedom, freedom is sweetness! Follow me and you'll get candy, as long as you behave—"
The gummy was chewed twice by the tiny, sharp teeth, and then spat out without hesitation.
"It tastes weird," Xiaomei complained, sticking out her thin tongue. "It's awful."
"..."
The man stared at the candy on the ground for a few seconds.
"I've already tried my best to comfort you."
"What?" Xiao Mei looked up at him in confusion. "Are you talking to me?"
"To hell with that damn advice!" *smack*
A crisp slap rang out, followed by a child's shrill scream from inside the carriage. The driver paused, then gently reminded him.
"Sir, someone is looking over here."
The scream immediately turned into a muffled groan, followed by the man's gloomy reprimand.
"Then why don't you hurry up and get going!?"
"Damn it...you need to be disciplined..."
"Heh." Zhongli's face turned cold. "Those who harbor foolish and arrogant thoughts should be severely punished."
"Ouch!!" Paimon screamed, clutching his face. "Ouch! It looks so painful!"
"This is a desecration of freedom."
Diluc frowned in disgust, while Wendy responded by playing her violin.
Even I'm a little angry.
"Your Highness! ...How could you treat a child like this? He did nothing wrong, and even if he did, it's not his place to discipline him! I really want to smash him to death with a brick!"
"I can't stand it anymore..."
In the audience, people frequently covered their faces, unable to bear it any longer, and asked Nasita, "Where exactly did this lynx of Fontainebleau, this tyrant of Mount Sumeru, this man called a god, commit his first sin?"
“We did not see the birth of a ferocious beast, or the childhood of an evil king; we only saw a somewhat clumsy child, bewildered by the evil of adults.”
Nasita lowered her eyes in pity, watching the man's carriage arrive at the magnificent villa, from which screaming children were forcibly dragged.
"You all stay away, and no matter what sound you hear, do not come to investigate," he instructed his servants.
"Don't take my pants off! My brother said that's not allowed!"
"Gods, can't someone come and stop this?!"
When the cat-eared child was forcibly pushed onto the bed, almost everyone succumbed.
"No matter what kind of person he becomes in the future, he's still just a child right now!"
"I believe his future ruthless actions are influenced by this incident..."
"I hate you!!"
A piercing scream rang out, and almost everyone assumed it was the child's last stand. But the next person to begin wailing had a hoarse and unpleasant voice, far from gentle.
"Ugh, ooh..."
Blood spurted out and splattered on the ceiling. Nasita quickly covered it all with mosaic, but because she was inexperienced, she was a step too slow. Almost everyone could see small teeth marks on the man's neck, with blood trickling out.
What happened?
“My dear people, friends in foreign lands, brothers and sisters from all nations.”
Nasita took a deep breath and looked at the child's face, which was smeared with blood.
"Come with me to judge this lynx, tyrant, wild spirit, for the first sin of its life."
Huh? What? The audience was shocked and stunned. Only Leosley breathed a sigh of relief and patted Mainkuen on the shoulder next to him.
"Although it's not appropriate for me, the warden, to say this, I'm very glad you killed him. After all, it's better to see the judge than the forensic doctor."
After he finished speaking, he saw that Villette was looking down at him.
"Um... just pretend you didn't hear me?" she said guiltily.
"It would be even more inappropriate for me, the judge, to say that."
Shuilong thought for a moment, then nodded subtly to the sleeping Mainkuhn.
"So I won't say it, you'll understand."
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