I have to admit, for as long as I can remember, I have had a bit of an attitude towards nobles, rulers, or judges. It’s hard for me to say if that’s because being a [Demon Lord] makes you naturally opposed to the ruling opposition, or just because the first few I met were conniving nitwits.

Or maybe I just ended up becoming a rebel because it would fill in another box on the edgy checklist.

Either way, the events of my first day in Vir didn’t exactly help with that…

---

The first thing that I noticed about the capital city was that it was absolutely massive. That fact wasn’t limited to just the buildings and roads either. We were still about 10 minutes outside of town when we got the system message.

System: Zone entered, Capital City Vir. Faction - Vir

However, I also got an additional surprise.

System: Warning capital city zone detected. Monster wave spawning is disabled

What? Is that… Actual relevant information from the System? Am I dreaming? I pinched myself just to make sure and got some funny looks from the party. I tried to play it off as just being surprised by the scope of the city, but that mostly just made things more awkward.

Either way, soon, dirt roads gave way to cobblestone paved ones, and we were in the town proper. That was also the time to finally say goodbye to our driver and the rest of the caravan. We thanked them for the ride, and they thanked us for defending them, and we parted on a good note.

“So, where to first, oh glorious leader?” I asked Jake.

“The castle,” Jake replied. “We need to meet with the [King] as soon as we can.”

“We’re just going to stroll up and knock on his door? He is a [King] you know, he might be a bit busy.”

“Well, we’re the heroes who are here to save this world, so if he can’t make time for us, then I doubt he’d be willing to help us anyway.” Jake shook his head. “Either way, that’s our first stop since it will determine where we should go next.”

Jake had a point, so I fell into line, and we made our way to the castle. We attracted quite a few stares along the way, and if I had to guess, the majority of them were directed at Sam and me. Or more accurately, David Junior the Second and me.

You know. I feel like I would have faced a lot more… racism? Yeah, I guess racism is the closest word. I feel like Earth would have been a lot more racist towards me than I’ve faced here. I glanced over Tim, Andrew, Emilia, Lindsey, and Sam. I don’t think I’ve seen much racism towards any of them either.

Then I chuckled to myself. Then again, adventurers in this world are basically the equivalent of foreigners in body armor with advanced weaponry. I suppose I’d be pretty polite to those people too.

Soon enough, we reached the drawbridge to the castle. It was down, but two soldiers armed with spears were standing in front of it.

“Halt!” One called to us. “State your business!”

Jake stepped forward. “Yo. I’m Jake, the [Hero], and this is my party. You may have heard the prophecy about us?” He paused for a bit, but the [Guards] didn’t look too amused. “Anyway, we’re here to petition [King] Vir for aid with our quest.”

One of the [Guards] finally nodded slowly. “Fair enough. We’ll get someone out here with a skill that can verify your story.”

Jake sighed in relief. “Yeah, that would be great. Thanks.”

The [Guard] looked like he was about to give an order to the other one when he paused. “But before that. [Detect Guilt].”

His face went white, and before we could say anything, a horn materialized in his free hand. He blew it and shouted, “Adventurer threat at the gate! Reinforcements, to me!”

“Wait!” Jake called out. “This is a misunderstanding! We mean no harm!”

He took a step forward, and both [Guards] levered their spears in his direction. He had his foot halfway through the next step when the [Guard] called out another skill. “[Halt]!”

Jake paused with his foot in midair and then put it back down with a sigh.

“What next, [Hero]?” I asked.

“We wait for them to finish freaking out, and then we talk it out. No attacking the [Guards], okay?”

I shrugged, but I was getting a bit worried. If what he saw from [Detect Guilt] was enough to freak him out… It has to be me, right? Probably both of the monster waves I’ve spawned? I frowned. Or can a [Guard] determine that I’m guilty of being the [Demon Lord]? That would suck. Make it all the way here and finally get found out by a random town [Guard].

My ruminating was cut short when I heard a panicked cry from atop the walls.

“Monster! It’s a monster attack!”

I looked up and saw several archers on top of the castle walls. However, one was obviously aiming down at us.

I once again assumed it was all about me. That’s rude. I’m standing right here, you know?

However, the arrow that was let loose wasn’t in my direction. It was headed in Sam’s, or more specifically, David Junior’s.

I moved before I really knew what I was doing and got in the path of the arrow.

Then I snagged it out of the air.

There was a moment of stunned silence as the [Guards] looked at the party in bafflement, the party stared at me in shock, and I stood there looking at my hand holding the arrow shaft, wondering how on Earth I had done that.

I was the first one to recover. “Hey! Uhh, that monster’s friendly!” I called up to the archers. “Please don’t shoot at it anymore, okay?”

“What is the meaning of this?” Another man shouted as he ran across the drawbridge with several [Guards]. “Form up!” He barked, and the reinforcements formed into a line with their spears facing us.

“Commander James, sir,” began the [Guard] who called the alarm. “These adventurers were asking for passage into the castle and claimed to be the ones in the prophecy. However, something felt off, so I used [Detect Guilt]. There were pretty strong hits for several of them, so I immediately called for backup.”

“It’s always System-cursed adventurers,” [Guard Commander] James sighed.

Meanwhile, our party hadn’t made a single move since we were afraid of accidentally setting off the powder keg. However, that was finally enough to make Jake speak up, “Excuse me, we are the party the prophecy talks about. I don’t know what that skill looks at, but I don’t think we’re exactly a party of lawbreakers…” He trailed off as he looked at Megan. “Well, except for her. But she’s basically out on parole. Is there any way that we can clear this up?”

“[Detect Guilt],” James intoned the skill as well. “You claim to be the heroes, but I just confirmed that your party contains several people with crimes that haven’t been paid for.” He paused briefly, and I thought I caught a slight smile cross his face, “Would you be willing to stand [Trial] to clear those up?”

He looked across the party, and I could’ve sworn he spent extra time looking at me. Crud. How do I get out of this?

“Sure!” Jake replied. “We don’t have anything to hide, so let’s get this over with.”

No! Dang it, [Hero]! The [Guards] surrounded us, and I was starting to get a bit concerned. Worst-case scenario, I can still fight my way out if I have to, but… That basically destroys any chance I have of staying with the party.

“We’ll need to bind your hands, of course,” the [Guard Commander] said. “I’m sorry, but we can’t take any chances with adventurers.”

Jake offered his hands up. “Sure. No worries.”

I reluctantly followed suit. Okay, bound hands would make fighting my way out way harder, but not impossible-

My thought was interrupted.

System: Your arms are bound. Skills and equipment use are restricted.

“What? I can’t use skills just because my hands are tied together?” I asked aloud. The [Guards] gave me a weird look when I asked that, so I kept my next complaints to myself. What kinda system is set up so that you can’t use skills just because your hands are bound?

The [Guards] marched us along, but I kept thinking about it. Unless… It did just say “restricted,” right? So, maybe it doesn’t mean all skills? I tried to [Fire Strike] the road while walking but failed. I did have one more idea, though. It said skill and equipment, but nothing about magic. I nodded. Okay, if things go sideways, I summon a dave, have it destroy the ropes, and then I book it.

Tentative escape plan done, I finally noticed that Megan was looking upset and a bit worried too.

“Something the matter?” I asked her.

“I hate fricking [Trials],” she whispered.

“Why?” I whispered back. “Didn’t you pay for your crimes already? Your case should be open and shut, right?”

“Unless they ask me questions about your situation. I can’t exactly fool a truth stone.”

That’s right. The [Guards] did mention a truth stone. I’m 100% hosed if they get me on the stand and ask if I’m the [Demon Lord]. I paused for a bit and thought. “Is the truth stone based on subjective truth or objective truth?”

“What?”

I clarified. “Does it say that you’re telling the truth based on what you believe or based on the actual fundamental state of the world? Like, if I was a flat-earther that said the world is flat, what would it do?”

She thought about it. “I think it would say you’re telling the truth.”

I nodded. I lowered my voice even further to make sure even Emilia’s [Enhanced Senses] wouldn’t pick it up. “Alright, then I think there are some very specific things we can say…”

---

We soon arrived at our destination, the “Hall of Judgement.”

I initially thought the name was pretty pretentious, but the building itself ended up being ostentatious enough to match up to it. It was a large building supported by multiple marble pillars, and there were several “courtrooms” inside. Those were set up with seating for people wanting to observe the [Trial], a small area for the defendant to stand, and then an elevated near-throne for the [Judge] to sit on.

To make the defendant feel even more judged, their platform was the lowest in the area. That meant everyone would literally look down on you during your entire [Trial].

We stopped in a reception area for a bit, and I watched as James traded some words with a clerk in a low voice. Something about it made alarm bells go off for me, but they were speaking too softly for me to hear.

Maybe Emilia picked up something, I thought. I sent her a quick “gather” message through the party. She gave me a confused look but eventually came over, and I quietly asked her if she could overhear any of the [Guard’s] chat.

“Just snippets. Two names. [Judge] Lawson, and [King] Vir… I think he asked if [Judge] Lawson was available. Then he looked at us and said, ‘they’re the party [King] Vir mentioned.’ I couldn’t hear anything else after he turned back,” she whispered.

When their chat finished, Emilia went back to her spot over by Jake, and we were led away to one of the courtrooms.

Meanwhile, I was trying to puzzle out what that snippet of conversation could mean. I didn’t come up with anything concrete. All I had was a vague feeling of something being off about the upcoming [Trial].

I also didn’t have to wait long. Soon enough, an old man wearing ornate robes was escorted into the courtroom and took his place at the front. If I had any hopes of watching the others’ [Trials] first, those were dashed too.

“You,” James pointed at me. “You’re up first.” He gestured me down to the court floor.

Fortunately, Jake intervened. “Hey, he hasn’t been on [Trial] before, so maybe you should have someone else go first?”

“I also feel that you should let us know exactly who will be standing [Trial] and for what,” Emilia said with her best death-glare active. “We have been accommodating even though you’ve told us nothing more than the fact that you have some skill we’ve never heard of that has made you think that ‘some of us’ have committed crimes. You have also yet to tell us what we are accused of.”

James sighed. “Very well. [Detect Guilt] is a [Guard] skill that can detect if someone has committed a crime and not been appropriately punished for it. It doesn’t give information about what actual crimes you have committed.” He looked at our party again. “As for who should stand [Trial]…”

“You,” he said while pointing at me.

“You,” he pointed at Jake.

He continued and pointed at Megan, Andrew, Emilia, Sam, and Garrett.

What? I get Megan and me, but how the heck is anyone else considered a criminal?

“Okay, there’s no frickin’ way that skill’s accurate,” Jake said. “Let me go first.”

James looked like he was about to protest, but Jake practically shoved his way down. The [Guards] looked like they were caught between wanting to obey their commander and not wanting to get in Jake’s way. Eventually, James just motioned Jake through.

“[Aide], truth stone, please,” the old man at the front of the court said. A boy ran to Jake, unbound him, and placed the inert stone in his hands. “Now then, by the power to [Judge] vested in me by [King] Vir, I, [Judge] Lawson, commence these proceedings. [Trial]!”

The stone started glowing a soft white.

“Please state your name,” the [Judge] continued.

“Jake Smith,” said… Jake Smith. The stone continued its glow.

“And you are an adventurer?”

“Yes.”

“And what is your class?”

“[Hero].”

The [Judge] frowned. “Can you please restate that?”

Jake shrugged. “Sure. My class is [Hero].”

The old man stared at the still glowing truth stone. “Interesting,” he muttered. “Very interesting.”

There was a pause there for a second, and Jake spoke up. “Yo, [Judge]. What does all of that have to do with what the [Guards] were saying about [Detect Guilt]?”

“Not as much as I assumed it would,” [Judge] Lawson muttered and then coughed. “Anyway, now that the formalities are out of the way. We may continue.”

Wait, could this have been set up because the [King] doubts that we’re the party from the prophecy? My puzzlement grew. He had to have known that we were coming from Faroff, right? And me being in the party makes it pretty dang obvious who we are. There aren’t any other demon-looking adventurers running around.

My thoughts were interrupted as the [Judge] used a skill. “[Recall Crimes],” he intoned.

“Wait, what?” Jake asked.

“It is a skill that brings your greatest crimes to mind.” The [Judge] affected a wry smile. “I don’t suppose that will be a problem, [Hero]?”

“No, I meant I don’t get it. The only thing that skill brought to mind was when I accidentally interrupted Sam and Tim’s duel.”

“Of course it would bring that up!” the [Judge] practically exploded. “Interrupting a sacred duel? A matter that System itself presides over?”

Sam and I looked over at each other at that pronouncement. We both remembered that we had done a thousand of those “sacred duels.” With rock-paper-scissors. We both chuckled nervously, and I’m sure she hoped along with me that making trivial duels wasn’t illegal.

“But I already paid the freaking fine!” Jake shouted back.

That shut the [Judge] up momentarily. “[Read Criminal History].” He paused for a few moments. “How much did you pay for your fine?”

“100 gold,” Jake answered.

[Judge] Lawson nodded slowly. “Ah, I take it that is all the money you had at the time?”

“Basically, yeah.”

“Well, the true fine for interrupting a duel is 250 gold. So your guilt that the [Guards] found is likely due to the unpaid difference.” He raised an eyebrow. “Unless there was something else the skill brought up?”

Jake shook his head.

“Please state it out loud for the truth stone.”

“Oh, right. The duel was the only thing the skill brought up,” Jake said.

The [Judge] took a long look at the truth stone and then nodded with a slightly smug look. “Very well, we will have to imprison you for enough time to make up the 150 gold-“

“Can’t I just pay the fine? I have the money now.”

[Judge] Lawson’s smile vanished. “You have 150 gold on your person. Right now?”

“Yeah.”

“Why am I surprised?” the [Judge] muttered again. “Very well, come forward and pay your fine, and that will end the [Trial].”

Jake walked up, and true to the [Judge’s] word, the truth stone went inert. After that, he walked back over to us. The [Guards] looked at him with [Detect Guilt] once more for good measure, and he no longer registered at all.

James gestured to me. “You’re next.”

I nodded and let them lead me down. Drat. I was hoping I could go last.

The [Judge] gave the same spiel that he had for Jake, I was unbound and handed a truth stone, and the [Trial] began.

“Please state your name,” he said.

“Titus,” I replied.

“And your last name?” he asked after an awkward pause.

“I… Don’t have one, as far as I know.”

The old man stared at the truth stone. “How, is that possible?”

“Are you actually wanting an answer for that? Because I don’t think I have a good answer for you, unfortunately.”

He coughed. “Very well. What is your class?”

There was a very spiteful and idiotic part of me that wanted to answer [General] or [Miner] since those would both be technically true. However, I knew that I would have to be very careful how I answered questions, so I went with my prepared statement.

“My class? Well, when I go into my status-“ It popped up in my face. Dang, it. It’s been quite a while since I’ve done that to myself. “It says [Half-Demon] under my class.” Which it did. It also had some other words like [Demon Lord] and an indication that it was only displaying [Half-Demon], but I wasn’t technically lying.

However, the [Judge] immediately knew something was off with my explanation. Because… he had more than 2 brain cells. He gave me a suspicious look. “And why are you not simply saying that your class is [Half-Demon]?”

Fortunately, that was a question I was ready for. “I say it that way because, to be honest, I’m not sure that [Half-Demon] is accurate.” The truth stone kept shining. I continued before he could question me further. “My status-“ I flipped it closed, “says [Half-Demon]. The party interface says that I’m a [Half-Demon]. Finally, the prophecy even mentions a [Half-Demon].

“However,” I kept going. “My class seems really weird and doesn’t act like I think a [Half-Demon] class should. So that’s why I didn’t just say that my class is [Half-Demon].” The truth stone dimmed the slightest bit at that, so I rushed to finish my prepared speech. “I didn’t want to make a statement that wouldn’t come across as the truth.”

The [Judge] seemed to be digesting that, but I didn’t let him do that for long. I knew that if I got the question “are you the [Demon Lord],” that would be game over.

“Anyway, just use your dang skill already. I fail to see what my class has to do with my supposed crimes,” I said.

“Careful there, boy,” the [Judge] said with a sneer. “Lest I add contempt of court to your charges.”

I snorted. “Go ahead!”

I honestly didn’t notice that my wrath aura had leaked out until Jake smacked it down with his own aura.

“I think that’s enough, Titus,” Jake said.

I sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. Sorry.” I turned back to the [Judge]. “Your honor, your skill if you would? Our party’s trying to go north as quickly as possible, and we want to avoid delays.”

“Very well. [Recall Crimes],” [Judge] Lawson intoned.

The skill was powerful. I was overwhelmed with guilt. Every single criminal thing I had done consumed me.

… Kidding.

I stood there staring at the [Judge]. “Uhh,” I said after a few seconds. “Did you not actually use the skill?”

“Nothing is being brought to mind?”

I shook my head.

“Please state that out loud for the truth stone.”

“Your skill didn’t bring anything to mind,” I replied.

He looked deep in thought for a few moments. “Do you have other classes?” he asked.

“Uhh, yeah. Why?”

“Name them.”

“Greg and George,” I deadpanned. I got some confused looks out of that while I internally winced. Oops. Been spending too much time with my snarky girlfriend, I guess. I coughed. “My other classes are [General] and [Miner]. Now, why did you need to know that?”

He looked intently at the truth stone that hadn’t changed. “Intriguing. That has only happened when the defendant has been innocent-“

“Well, there you go,” I interrupted.

He continued on as if I hadn’t spoken. “Or they had a high-level criminal-type class. In which case, you likely have a skill that is rendering most of this [Trial] moot.”

“And if I swear that I don’t have one?” I realized that I may as well say it just to have the truth stone verify it. “I don’t have a criminal class.”

He snorted. “That is what every criminal would say. We may as well end the [Trial] here.”

I blinked. Huh. I guess I go free. What a bizarre legal system. I paused. But now they’re going to assume I’m some high-level [Crook] or something. Unless… “Wait,” I said. “I might be able to figure out what [Detect Guilt] found on me. Give me a minute. We can still get this cleared up.”

I was lost in thought, and I missed the smug smirk that crossed the [Judge’s] face.

Okay, first off. Monster waves, can’t talk about those. Then I paused. Wait. Wouldn’t monster waves be more like… War between factions? Is war illegal? I shook my head. Not a helpful topic. What other crimes have I committed? If monster waves are the only ones, I may be hosed. Then I remembered DeepMine and I sighed. “Alright, so this is probably the thing that has me flagged as a criminal.”

I relayed the entire story of taking down the crime ring in DeepMine. At the end, the [Judge] confirmed my suspicions. “Even though they were also criminals, that would indeed constitute several counts of assault. Your account of nearly killing one of them with your skill would be aggravated assault with a deadly skill.”

He paused briefly, motioned to an [Aide], and then whispered something to them. The [Aide] ran off outside the courtroom. After that, he asked, “Are there any other crimes that you wish to confess?”

I almost said no, but then I remembered another one that may have been counted against me. I quickly relayed the story of my time attacking and downing Garrett to get him to stop [Raging].

“And that should be everything,” I said. The truth stone started dimming, but I frantically reassured myself. Monster waves can’t be illegal. War isn’t against the law. The stone stayed bright, and I barely stopped myself from letting out a sigh of relief.

The [Judge] nodded. “Very well. 2 counts of aggravated assault with a deadly skill at 250 gold each will result in a fine of 500 gold.”

“What? How does hitting Garrett count as aggravated assault?” I asked incredulously.

“His life total. Though you may have been doing it for his own good, you still attacked him with a skill that you knew would put him into a dying state.”

I frowned, but there wasn’t much I could do to argue that point.

It was about then that the [Aide] returned. “[Judge] Lawson, the report from DeepMine is that 57 men were jailed from the incident the accused referred to.”

The [Judge] nodded. “57 counts of assault at 20 gold each comes to…” he trailed off, thinking.

“1140 gold,” I supplied.

“Yes. Adding your 500 gold fine from aggravated assaults to that, your fine will be 1640 gold.”

The rest of the party blanched while I just frowned and thumbed the coin in my pocket. Dang, it. Guess the gift will have to wait.

Jake looked back and forth at the party and received nods in return. “Your honor, we’ll pay Titus’ fine as well.”

[Judge] Lawson shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t allow that. Only the accused or their next of kin are allowed to-“

“Here,” I replied. It was hard to tell if the [Judge] was more shocked by my casual reply or by the 2000 gold piece I tossed in his direction. As he fumbled with it trying to catch it, I continued, “I want change though, okay? I had to kill a metric frick-ton of monsters, so I won’t have you cheating me.”

The old man squinted at it. “What… Is this?”

“My fine payment, you crotchety old coot!”

He glared at me. “An extra 10 gold has just been added to your fine for contempt of court. I also expect you to come up and pay your fine like normal! Not just toss gold at me and expect me to work it out!”

“Whatever,” I grumbled and walked up to him. I took the gold back and tried to figure to activate whatever interface I needed to pay my fine.

I got an unwelcome surprise.

System: Error. No valid inventory

Judging by the wicked grin that split the [Judge’s] face, I had to assume he got some form of message too.

“It would seem that the accused is incapable of paying his fine and must go to prison instead,” he said and motioned to the [Guards].

Great, I sighed internally. I let the [Guards] rebind my hands and lead me off to the side of the courtroom.

Jake, however, didn’t take it lying down. “What? That’s not fair!” he exclaimed. “He has the money to pay you. Why does he have to go to jail?”

“Looks like it’s because I don’t have an inventory,” I replied to Jake. “I guess after all of you finish up your [Trials] try to get me a pardon or something.” Jake calmed down a bit after that, and I whispered to one of the [Guards] near me. “Hey, how long are prison sentences?”

The [Guard] shuffled nervously. “Generally, it’s 1 day for every 2 gold of the fine you didn’t pay.”

I did the math and blanched. 820 days. Or I guess, 825 days now that I have a contempt of court charge. That’s 2 years and some change. Ouch. If I don’t get pardoned quickly, I think that might be “jailbreak and flee the country” territory. My thoughts wandered a bit. I wonder what the elf nation is like?

However, there were still a couple more [Trials] to go since Jake and I weren’t the only ones accused of crimes.

Megan was the one who was up next. The [Judge] tried to convict her of stealing from the people in the tutorial before Jake butted in and mentioned that it didn’t happen inside of Vir. Megan also said that she already stood [Trial] for the smuggling, so that wasn’t rehashed.

After that, she reluctantly brought up [Stealing] from people and then putting it back. We ended up with a pleasant surprise in that case. It turns out that the punishment for stealing was to return any stolen goods (already done) and then pay a fine equivalent to the amount stolen.

Megan argued that her fine should be 0 since she didn’t keep any of the stolen items. The [Judge] initially wasn’t having it. However, one argument and one contempt of court charge later, I convinced him to drop it.

Andrew was next in the hot seat. The two crimes he was charged with were interrupting a duel and “aggravated assault with a deadly spell.” Both were from the same instance where he interrupted my duel with Tim and nearly killed me.

I could have tried to argue that [Cure] shouldn’t count as a “deadly spell,” but I realized I didn’t really want to.

Maybe I’m holding more of a grudge than I thought.

Together that was a 500 gold fine, and Andrew didn’t have enough on him to pay it all. However, what he did have was a son who had enough to make up the difference.

The look on [Judge] Lawson’s face when he was told, verified by truth stone, that the young dog beastborn was the biological son of a dwarf was priceless. If I could’ve bottled it and sold it, I probably would have made enough to pay all of the fines that he saddled me with.

Next up was Emilia. Her charge ended up attempted murder from when she shot at me while I was near death. That one ended up being a straightforward 400 gold fine (Jake made sure to hand her some extra funds before she went down just in case).

Wait… Doesn’t that mean that she would spend less than a year in prison? I whispered to one of the [Guards] near me. “Hey, how much is the fine for actually murdering someone?”

“1000 gold usually,” he whispered back.

What the frick? Murderers are out in a year and a half? I shook my head. I mean… That might even be longer than average for video game logic, but still…

Sam’s case was perhaps the most unusual out of all of us, though.

She strode into the box with David Junior the Second riding on her shoulder, and the [Judge] sighed. “Well, I suppose we already know one of the crimes that you will be convicted of,” he stated flatly.

“Um. What do you mean?” she asked.

“Your crime is sitting on your shoulder right now,” he replied.

She gasped. “David Junior the Second is not a crime!”

“David Junior… The second?” [Judge] Lawson asked. “You have named the monster that you have somehow managed to bring into our town?”

“Your honor,” I interjected. “It’s really more of a pet than anything. It’s also completely tame.”

He glared at me. “That doesn’t change what the law has to say on the matter.”

“Oh? And what does the law have to say about the matter?”

After that, we got into an argument. The [Judge] claimed that the same law that forbids people from openly carrying around weapons in town, which was actually the first I had heard of that law, was stated in a way that also prohibits carrying around monsters. The idea being that they were both things that could cause a large amount of HP damage and that they were dangerous.

I called BS because if that was the case, then my fists should also technically have been illegal to have around. After all, they were also capable of dealing a large amount of HP damage at a moment’s notice.

We also got into an argument because he claimed that it was similar to activating an offensive skill or spell in town. I argued that summons were actually a utility spell. Just because I used them primarily to fight monsters didn’t mean that was their only use, and I gave the example of Sam using the dave as a pillow.

The argument lasted a while, and I ended with 3 more counts of contempt of court for my trouble, but he finally declared Sam not guilty. Though, I think that was mostly because he was just tired of arguing over what would be a relatively small fine.

Garrett was up last. He sheepishly confessed to slugging the guy who spilled on him in the tavern in DeepMine, and that was it. [Judge] Lawson was initially pushing for assault with a deadly skill, but we quickly proved that [Rage] doesn’t affect punching damage at all… By having Jake stand in front, get decked once with Garrett [Raging] and once without, and then testifying under truth stone about his HP values.

Garrett paid his 20 gold fine, and with that, the entire party was squared away. Except for me, of course. I was still headed off to jail.

“Try to get me a pardon, but don’t trust the [King],” I called to the party. “I think something really shady’s going on here.”

“Oh, sure,” Jake called back. “We’ll just get a pardon from the guy you don’t trust. No big deal.”

I ignored him. “Either that or find a way for me to pay my fine without an inventory!” I called as the [Guards] led me away.

---

“I think that went pretty well,” Jake said as the party began their walk back to the castle.

Emilia stopped. “Titus is in prison. How did that go well?”

The rest of the party stopped as well, and Jake thought for a moment. “Well,” he said. “He didn’t attack anyone or cause any more trouble, and the rest of us got to pay off our fines. That means we just have to get one pardon, and we’ll be good to go.”

“Or we have to find a method that allows him to pay his own fine,” Tim added. “Though I am surprised that he had enough funds to do so.”

Jake thought back over the fight outside of Holdover. “Yeah, but I think he killed more wolves the night I went after him than the rest of our journey combined. It makes sense.”

Jake motioned the party onward. The sooner we can talk to the [King], the sooner we can clear this up.

“I’m just surprised that he had two extra classes,” Sam said as they started walking again. “Did he tell any of you that he was a [Miner]?”

“He did not,” Tim replied. “However, perhaps he simply did not want us to be envious? Most adventurers are restricted to a single subclass after all.” Tim’s eyebrows furrowed. “Though, I suppose that confirms that Titus isn’t actually an adventurer, does it not?”

Huh. Tim has a point, Jake thought. However, he didn’t have long to dwell on it because they soon reached the castle.

Jake was prepared to lead the party directly to the throne room as soon as the [King] would have them. Emilia had other plans.

“Excuse me,” Emilia asked one of the [Guards]. “Is there someone who could give us a brief overview of the etiquette expected when meeting with the [King]?”

“Is that really necessary?” Jake asked.

His girlfriend rolled her eyes. “Jake. I love you, but during your [Trial], you literally addressed the [Judge] as ‘yo [Judge].’ I think it would be best to not offend someone that we are going to be asking for a pardon.”

Jake had no further arguments.

After a quick lesson on etiquette from a frazzled [Steward], the party was led into the [King’s] throne room. Just as they were taught, they approached and then kneeled until the [King] told them to rise.

“Your majesty,” Jake began. “We are the ones that were spoken of in the prophecy. We’ve come to request your aid in traveling to the second dungeon as quickly as possible.”

The [King] nodded. “Yes, I am aware. I have been keeping track of your exploits in my lands.” Vir paused and looked grave. “That is why I am glad that we are able to speak without the demon present. There have been more prophecies since then, and we have many matters to discuss.”

---

I was initially escorted off to the general prison, but apparently, I was designated as a VIP—Very Imposing Prisoner. I was quickly taken from there to the castle’s dungeons and assigned multiple [Guards] to watch over me.

I just shrugged and went with it. It didn’t really matter to me which box they stuck me in, and it wasn’t like a few extra [Guards] would be able to hold me anyway.

I also learned part of the reason why they were so eager to send us to jail when a richly dressed man came by and tried to talk me into taking a [Lawfully-Binding Oath] that I wouldn’t harm any of the people of Vir. He promised me a reduced prison sentence if I did, and I pretended to be debating it quite hard.

I “reluctantly” agreed on the condition that my hands would be unbound while I was in my jail cell. That made the [Guards] a bit nervous, but the man acquiesced.

He smirked like he had gotten the better of me, but he hadn’t done his homework. I would have accepted any ridiculous terms he threw at me.

Why? Because it relied on a skill.

I waited until he was gone, and one [Disrupt] later, I was free of the oath.

However, I soon faced a more dangerous foe. Boredom.

I tried to practice [Martial Arts], but there wasn’t enough room to really give it a go. That, combined with the fact that I wouldn’t be able to get it past level 5, put a damper on that pretty quickly.

My solution was to use [Summon Dave], freak the [Guards] out, and then be pleasantly surprised when I found out I could make the dave bounce off walls like a gooey basketball.

I played catch with myself until I was greeted by my second visitor. Megan.

I couldn’t help the goofy smile that came over my face. “Heya, gorgeous. You come here often?”

Megan sighed. “Can I have a minute alone with my idiot boyfriend?” she asked the [Guards].

“I’m sorry, but we can’t leave our station,” one replied. “You’ll have to stay under our watch.”

She frowned, and I did too. “What if you let her into the cell really quick?” I asked. “She can whisper whatever she needs to, and then you just let her out after.”

“I can’t allow that. I’m not opening the cell,” the [Guard] replied.

Megan wasn’t the kind to want to have a minute alone with me to whisper sweet nothings into my ear, so I assumed it was something important. “Stand back,” I said. Before anyone had a chance to protest, I [Earth Strike] kicked the cell door open.

Before the stunned [Guards] could react, I pulled Megan into the cell and attempted to shut the horribly warped door. It didn’t exactly stay closed, but I figured it was close enough. I took Megan to the corner and whispered, “Okay, what’s up?”

She groaned. “You really are an idiot sometimes, you know that?”

I just nodded.

“Anyway, the party’s planning to bust you out of here,” she whispered. “The [King] suspects you of being the [Demon Lord], and if a monster wave spawns tonight, he’ll know for sure and declare you an enemy of Vir.”

“Why does the party want to bust me out then?” I whispered back.

“Jake’s convinced that you aren’t but that you might trigger one anyway after Holdover. Either way, the plan is-“

I cut her off. “Don’t worry about it. The System told me that capital cities are immune to monster waves.”

She paused and then glowered at me. “That would have been good information to have!” she hissed.

“Hey! We didn’t have any time alone since we got here. I didn’t have a good time to tell you!” We stared at each other for a bit before I eventually chuckled. “Does that count as our first fight?”

She sighed and shook her head. “Okay, if you’re staying here, what do I tell Jake?”

“That I didn’t want the party to break the law on my account? Also, if a monster wave does spawn, I’ll just break myself out so that the party isn’t incriminated.”

“That should work,” she muttered. “And you’re positive that one won’t spawn?”

I shrugged. “If it does, the System has straight-up lied to me. If even the System is out to get me, I think that means I’m hosed either way.”

She relented. “Okay, I’ll let him know about our change in plans.”

I nodded. “Thanks.”

I walked her out of the cell and then shut it behind her.

She paused. “Have a good night, Titus.”

“You too, Megan. Love you.”

She walked off, and I was left with [Guards] who were looking very nervous about my breached cell. I eventually convinced them to move me to another one that didn’t have a broken door. For some reason, they still looked pretty nervous. I couldn’t imagine why.

I went back to bouncing my dave-ball, and was surprised when I got a third visitor.

If his regal bearing, rich robes, or the weighty stare he gave me weren’t enough for me to determine who he was, the crown was a dead giveaway.

I got up from my cot and gave an exaggerated bow. “Your majesty! What brings you to visit a humble prisoner like me?”

“We may be from differing worlds, but I can still tell when I am being mocked,” [King] Vir replied.

“What?” I asked in fake shock. “Why would I mock someone who puts adventurers on trumped-up [Trials] and then offers them disadvantageous oaths for reduced sentences?”

Up to that point, I had only been able to assume that what happened to our party wasn’t a one-time deal, but the [King’s] silence spoke volumes. Eventually, he said in a soft voice. “I will do whatever I must to keep my people safe.”

That honestly made me feel a little bad about being such a jerk towards him, and I softened my tone a bit. “So, what does bring you here?”

“Before speaking with your party, I had no doubt in my mind that you are the [Demon Lord],” [King] Vir said. “However, their insistence and belief in you have tempered that. I am here to offer you a duel.”

“A duel, your majesty!?” one of the guards exclaimed. “I beg your pardon, but you would not last a minute against him!”

“He’s right, you know,” I replied. “Non-adventurers don’t last long fighting adventurers.”

The [King] shook his head. “You both mistake me. The terms of the duel shall be this. If the midnight bell tolls and a monster wave appears, you shall depart the city and leave my lands to the south. You will dwell in exile in the great southern swamp.”

Interesting. Not going for the death penalty for the [Demon Lord]? I was honestly pretty surprised about that, but that wasn’t my only concern. “What about if no wave spawns at the stroke of midnight?” I asked.

“I shall provide for you a full pardon, and I will give you and your party whatever I can to assist your travels to the north.”

That’s… Pretty clever. From his point of view, this is a win-win. If I lose, I have to go exile in the south, and the party wins the race north. If I don’t accept, I must obviously be the [Demon Lord]. If I win, that means that I’m definitely not the [Demon Lord]. That was, of course, from his point of view. He didn’t know of the fourth option where I was the [Demon Lord], and no wave spawned anyway.

“I accept your duel,” I said. “However, make sure the terms say immediately. I don’t want you to be able to pardon me with only 1 day left in my prison sentence or something.”

With that, the duel began, and my day ended with an anticlimax. The midnight bell tolled, I won the duel, and the [King] gave me both a pardon and an apology.

I was free to go, and I spent my night hours wandering the streets of the city.

Maybe I should live here after all of this is done. I thought idly. It would be nice to not have to worry about monster waves again.