Leon POV
"Sent down here directly from a god. Rare, but not uncommon. It seems you recognize who we are and that we're supposed to deal with souls from specific regions. I oversee those from Europe, while my colleague here handles souls from Asia. The final judgment is left to Minos..but we deal with souls from all around the world and from other realms too. There are other judges, but you will deal with us today." One of the judges said
"174cm tall, dark grey hair, brown skin tone, dark brown eyes, glasses, 19 years old. Leonardo Silver." The judge on the left said as he read a file of sorts
"Damn...so those myths weren't really myths...cool. So correct me if I'm wrong, in the middle, you're Aeacus, on the left, he's Rhadamanthus, and Minos is on the right...But I’m not dead. Can’t you just send me back? This has to be some mistake."
Aeacus looked to be a man in his 70s, 170cm tall, with wrinkly tan skin, blue eyes, and white hair. Minos looked like a man in his 60s, had black hair and black eyes, and was about 172 cm tall. Rhadamanthus looked to be in his mid-60s, 167cm tall, with long grey hair and dark brown eyes.
"You may not be dead in the way that souls we typically judge are, but you are here because a higher power decreed it. You rejected your calling, and now you stand before us, judged not as a mortal soul, but as one who has refused to fulfill their purpose...and your list of sins and crimes" Rhadamanthus then manifested a computer in front of him and he scrolled down through some documents, "...You beat several elderly people."
"Self-defense."
"You've dropkicked a child."
"Also self-defense."
"You also threw a man out of a window."
"Self-defense."
"You punched a priest during a ceremony."
"Hey, he was a child predator, I did the right thing."
"You tied someone to a tree."
"He asked me to."
"You stole a horse."
"From an abusive owner...how is that crimes?"
"You still beat them and you did steal." Rhadamanthus said
"Can I call you Rhad?"
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"Rude to judge." Aeacus added to the list
"What? I'm trying to be friendly...your honor."
"I'll remove that, but I'll list a few more before we proceed." he said as he took out glasses and put them on before reading from Rhad's computer, "You tripped a man down a flight of stairs."
"He was trying to attack me. Self-defense."
"You then threw him off a roof." Minos pointed out
"They were an assassin. Self-defense."
"If you have problems with so many people, maybe...you were the problem?"
"Or I'm incredibly discriminated against, but what does that matter? I got justifications for all of those cases that included physical violence."
"Like dropkicking that child."
"Yeah-"
"Shush," Minos said, putting a finger to his lips.
Instantly, I found myself unable to speak, my voice gone as if it had been snatched away. I tried to protest and explain myself further, but nothing came out.
"Your list of actions, however justified you believe them to be, is not the only matter at hand." Aeacus announced, "The greatest crime you’ve committed is the refusal to fulfill your destiny as a hero. You were chosen to protect and serve, and yet you turned your back on that duty."
"For this, you will be sentenced to the Field of Punishment, where you will spend your time in prison. You will serve 1,000 years, and your efforts in hard labor there may reduce your sentence." Minos added
This is the most stupid plot for a novel ever, I can't even...1000 years for wanting to not risk my life.
I was grabbed by unseen forces, unable to resist or even speak as they led me away from the judging chamber. My mind raced, but there was nothing I could do as I was dragged through the cold, dark corridors of the underworld. I saw flames and heard crying, screaming, and all sorts of terrible things...Eventually, I was thrown into a small, dimly lit cell. The door clanged shut behind me, the sound echoing ominously in the narrow space. I was then left alone, the weight of the sentence settling in as I had to reflect on everything that happened just now.
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"Hey kid, you're alive...you must be one of those psychos who refused to be a hero." a guy from the cell crossed me said
I took a closer look at the figure in the cell across from mine. He was a centaur, his lower half resembling that of a powerful horse, with strong, muscular legs and hooves. His upper body was human, but he had a rugged, hardened look that spoke of years spent in the underworld. He looked to be a guy in his 40s, about 2.3m tall, has long curly black hair, and purple eyes.
"I'm John." he introduced himself, "You guys ain't rare, but your types are pretty famous, especially around these parts."
"There are others? I'm Leon, by the way."
"There are, but most have decided to die for real, and well...you're the only live one we got."
"What are you in for? You must have done some pretty serious crime."
"Oh, I accidentally got in the way of a hero when he was pursuing a demon, I got him killed, and well...I was killed and sent here, I should be free in...about 400 years."
"Damn, is there no way to escape?"
"Nope, I can introduce you to a guy who can get you sorbets though."
"Won't that melt?"
"There's magic, it won't."
"Ooh, magic, is there a way I can use some myself."
"Of course, you're going to be trusted first, but for a guy like you, it might take 500 years worth of hard labor."
"Why?"
"A failed hero is still a hero, the moment you can use magic...one wrong step, you'll be sent down to Tartarus, there's no wifi there."
"The underworld...has wifi?"
"Of course, those gods are evil, but they still have some sympathy. They even have a strip club here."
"I'm...not even going to question that."
"Well, they want to prevent people from attempting to escape and want us to be more cooperative, so they placed one...you are over 18, right?"
"This is the worst prank ever."