One-on-one fight

 
 In the shaking assembly hall.
 
 The judge bangs his gavel down.
 
 ”Silence! We are still in the middle of the prosecution’s argument.”
 
 Within a moment, the assembly hall became silent.
 ——— along with a strange excitement.
 
 Graham-nii continued his explanation.
 
 ”We have certificates from both the Ministry of Justice, who were present at the seizure, and the Royal Magic Arsenal, who conducted the inspection, that this item has not been tampered with.”
 
 Saying this, he passed the two certificates over to the court official.
 
 After receiving the documents from the official and scanning over them, he nodded as he declared [there’s no mistake].
 
 
 
 My brother looked straight at the Duke.
 
 ”I implore the defendant once again. You used this here magic tool, and leaked the schedule of the day of the incident to the Principality, did you not?”
 
 ”……”
 
 With his arms folded, and his eyes shut, the Duke remained silent.
 
 An arrogant attitude as though he were saying [I just won’t answer your question].
 
 ”……”
 
 ”……”
 
 A stinging tense atmosphere dominates the assembly hall.
 
 Eventually, the judge, who’d lost his patience, called out to the Duke.
 
 ”What says the defendant?”
 
 In response to that question, the Duke finally responded.
 He opened his eyes, and declared a single statement.
 
 ”I don’t see why I need to answer?”
 
 ”Huh???”
 
 The judge had on a bewildered expression.
 
 ”In their argument up till now, the prosecution hasn’t presented any evidence at all that says [I leaked information]. The same applies to it being [to the Principality]. Against such baseless statements, why should I need to defend myself?”
 
 The Duke makes such a statement as though treating us with contempt.
 
 ”Hmm… that’s certainly true if you ask me.”^[1]
 
 The judge ponders.
 However, the Duke said something astonishing.
 
 ”The prosecution’s claims are just baseless fabrications, but… there is one area that, by chance, and by luck, they got right.”
 
 ”A-, and what would that be?”
 
 ”———that that magic tool is a [magic communications device] obtained by our Family’s company via certain routes.”
 
 
 
 The Duke replied so, brushing it off as if nothing was wrong.
 
 ”Then the defendant admits that the magic tool over there is a communications device?”
 
 The Duke immediately replied to the judge’s question with [I admit so].
 
 ”As I said earlier, [I shall remain silent due to trade secrets]. That communications device allows for alternating communication between two points separated by a distance. I probably don’t need to mention just how many business opportunities this would bring about for our company.———though it has been lost because of the prosecution’s sloppy demonstration.”
 
 Saying so, the Duke glared at me and my brother.
 
 ”I see. So what you’re saying is that [this communications device, which the company used for business, has nothing to do with the case]. Is that the case?”
 
 The Duke nodded at the judge, who had summarised it in an easy-to-understand manner.
 
 ”That is correct.”
 
 
 
 There was a bewildered atmosphere drifting about the assembly hall.
 
 ——— the Duke is suspicious.
 
 That Duke, he knew the schedule for the day of the incident.
 That Duke, he knew the venue was the Second Knights Order’s training grounds.
 That Duke, he had a magic device capable of long-distance communication.
 Of the two magic tools, one of them, located in the Duke’s mansion, had been destroyed by a self-destruct mechanism.
 At the time of the incident, there was someone that had arranged beforehand to send a signal to the dragons that seemed affiliated with the Principality.
 
 However, there is no [proof that the Duke called for the dragons].
 
 In such a situation, no one is able to judge him guilty or innocent.
 
 If they continue to fail to present definite evidence, the prosecution will lose.
 
 Amidst the assembly halls clamour, the Duke sniggered condescendingly at us.
 
 To that old enemy of ours^[2], I ———
 
 
 ”Objection”
 
 
 ——— calmly thrust a finger at him.
 
 
 
 All the eyes in the assembly hall were on me.
 
 I asked the Duke a question.
 
 ”I would like to ask His Excellency the Duke of Oswell this, but… Your Excellency, how do you think we located the second communicator?”
 
 ”……”
 
 The Duke was silent.
 After thinking for a while, he spoke up.
 
 ”You searched our Family’s company’s buildings, didn’t you?”
 
 The Duke looked at me with mocking eyes.
 However, that carelessness would lead to his ruin.
 
 I smiled while shaking my head.
 
 ”You get 30 points for that answer. We ended up stepping into Your Excellency’s Family’s company, but that’s only the result.”
 
 At my words, the Duke raised one eyebrow, twitching uncomfortably.
 
 ”Then, you probably looked for the building where that [antenna] was installed.”
 
 Saying so, the Duke pointed at the wooden frame with Mistreel wires wrapped around.
 
 I nodded.
 
 That’s 60 points. Certainly, we did look in Padma for buildings with this [antenna] installed on their roofs. But that’s only after having narrowed down the candidate sites.——— So everyone, I’ll now show you the method used to find the two magic communication devices, so let’s look.”
 
 Saying so, I walked over to the stand where the evidence was laid out.
 

TL Notes:

[1]no, just say . Ugh ↩

[2]for a moment, I forgot that she’d see him as an enemy from way back in her first life ↩