"That's enough!" the judge yelled not in an angry tone but in a disappointed one. "I have overlooked your rudeness thus far, but laughing at a perfectly well-reasoned argument is simply going too far! One charge of contempt shall be added to your case, Mister Immortus."

Sonya stood up and interjected, "Your Honour, as the defendant's arbiter, I cannot abide by that ruling of yours. Is it wrong for my client to find amusement in such a far fetched and thinly cobbled together excuse of an accusation? I think any one of us would laugh if we were told that we were actually spies of the greater council in a foreign trial, would we not?"

Lone barely managed to control himself enough to say, "Y-Yeah... W-What she said... Ha... Hahaha! A fuckin' spy! Ahaha... Oh, fuck... I pity Milindo's spies if they need to go through what I did under their 'care' to earn their badges... Bahahah!"

Sonya clearly didn't appreciate Lone's lack of care in this situation but she didn't chastise him beyond looking in his direction.

Honestly, he was pretty proud of himself for being able to sus out her expressions despite his eye wraps obscuring his vision, needless to mention the tears of mirth which were streaming across his face.

"Your Honour, I would like for you to retract that declaration as I believe it was unjust and premature. It's unbecoming of us as dwarves of the law to expect the same level of manners from an outsider as we would from a fellow child of the Stone," Sonya said loudly and earnestly.

Murmurs of agreeance spread through the public gallery.

The judge scowled but slowly nodded and backed down. "Very well. Granted. I rescind the charge of contempt."

'Wow. Didn't expect that. Sonya's gotta have Persuasion or something. I wonder if I'm immune to contempt charges now? I think that's how it worked back on Earth... or was it? Man, I should have watched more drama court case T.V. shows,' Lone thought in regret.

Mister Chillforge coughed softly. "I would now like to ask the defendant my first question. Mister Immortus, if you've calmed down, please tell the court why exactly did you come to Krieg Moor with a human, a fellow foxkin, and a pet fox in tow."

Lone cocked his head to the side. "For some sweet R and R? Pretty sure I said that to the gate guards who interviewed us when we arrived."

"R and R?" Mister Chillforge looked befuddled.

"Ah," Lone straightened up a bit. "Just means 'Rest and Recovery'. It's not spy code or anything. Definitely doesn't mean reconnaissance and regicide."

"I see, of course it doesn't," Mister Chilforge spoke softly. "Then, my nex-"

"Rest and Recovery from what?" Sonya interjected, earning her a very distinct look from both the judge and from leading prosecutor Chillforge. "Mister Immortus, why don't you speak on the subject that the court seems to wish to gloss over? The very subject that would cast quite some amount of doubt on this whole spy theory."

"What are you implying, Miss Forgegulf?" the judge questioned in an authoritative tone.

Sonya didn't give in despite the weight of the entire court bearing down on her shoulders in that moment. It was clear to Lone that everyone here 'in the know' clearly wanted all mention of his little stint at Ranton's dungeon to go unmentioned.

'Can't be having the public feeling that pesky little emotion known as sympathy, right? Honestly, considering how hard they are going in an attempt to make this all seem legit, it makes me wonder if the deciders might actually be neutral,' Lone thought. 'That or maybe they're worried the other foxkin clans will retaliate without good enough proof? Hell, maybe The Adventurer's Guild too? Maybe not that last one. I did admit to having learned Steamforging, so I did break the law and everything...'

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Enhanced Vision] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 4.

'Is that a hint at me seeing through the truth of the matter or am I reading into this skill too much? Fuck do I hope it works that way. What I wouldn't give to be a mini Gilbert...' Lone thought as a grin marred his expression.

He could vaguely see Sonya trying her best to resist the pressure bearing down on her. Sighing softly, he stood up and bowed respectfully. 'It bothers me I haven't gained a single level of Acting or Persuasion thus far. I hate to admit it, but if I appear 'normal' and well put-together, that'll probably change.'

It was never easy to accept that one was unhinged but considering what he was about to explain, perhaps it was justifiable in his case.

"Your Honour, if I may?" he asked with a decisively different tone from the one he'd been using throughout the entire trial thus far.

"You may not-"

"If you deny him from speaking then I will have to question the integrity of this whole affair, Lord Whiteshine," a young feminine voice threatened from across the courtroom.

Lone looked to its owner but he struggled to make out her shape or features considering the distance between the two of them.

'Interesting. That is the Taker speaking on your behalf, Lone. She is a dwarf though there are patches of jewels on her skin. They seem natural which we find odd,' Sophie explained, clearly having seen Lone strain himself trying to get a good look at the woman.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Enhanced Vision] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 5.

'A subrace of the Mineral Dwarves - the Sparkling Dwarves. Their racial skill lets them find, control, and manipulate jewels of any kind. I read that there's a 1 in 2,000,000 chance for a dwarf to be born a Sparkling Dwarf among the Mineral Dwarven people,' Lone said.

Meanwhile, the judge frowned deeply. Clearly, he wanted to avoid letting Lone run his mouth but for whatever reason, the Taker wished for the opposite.

The fact that he hadn't dismissed her for contempt as well spoke volumes of how much influence she had here. Perhaps enough to rival Sheelda McStuderston just without the backroom bribes.

"With all due respect, Lady Taker, this is my courtroom. If I deem what he wishes to say as useless information in relation to his charges, then that is what it is," the judge declared.

'This man is as fearless as you are, Lone. Her protector is glaring right at the judge. Regardless, it is quite a shame that she is a Sparkling Dwarf then, is it not?' Sophie asked in a friendly voice.

Lone chuckled knowing that she was as worry-free right now as he was. 'Yeah, it sucks. I'd love to see that kind of racial skill in action, but y'know, Takers can't use skills. That must've been a huge blow to the kingdom when they learned she was a Taker on top of being a 1 in 2,000,000 Sparkling Dwarf.'

Sophie sent back feelings of a nod before she dropped the telepathic communication.

"Lord Whiteshine, if you don't wish to respect my opinion here, then I am more than happy to leave. The rotting smell was getting to me anyway," the Taker callously stated. "Xer'rava, let us go, shall we? We have more important things to do right now than this nonsense."

The judge almost lost his cool then and there but he managed to rein himself in at the last moment. Lone watched him clench and unclench his calloused hand that was wrapped around his gavel.

The bearded dwarf took in a deep breath and said, "Very well. Mister Immortus may speak on what his arbiter mentioned if that is your wish, Lady Taker."

Lone could barely make out the smirk on the Taker's face while the judge's expression fell. Clearly, the former was pleased while the latter was very much not so.

'Is he a dumbass? I'm gonna get so many sympathy points now. I bet Sheelda McStuderston's representative is giving him one hell of a Karen glare right now, hence the look of intense constipation. Sonya did say her end goal was for me to die. Having all of my skills taken was just the cherry on top,' Lone aptly thought.

Now with him being given a chance to say his piece on the events that transpired in Milindo, the likelihood of the deciders gaining a more favourable view on him had increased.

'The tightrope of politics, eh? I feel your pain, brother,' Lone thought as he nodded in a sagely manner. 'That's why you just gotta do what I'm trying to do - get strong enough to the point that you don't need to give a flying fuck about what anyone else cares for or wants since you're so powerful you can say or do whatever you want without consequences.'

Hell, with his Regeneration, Mental Destruction, his growing collection of pocket Primals, and Soph's Teleportation, Lone felt they were already halfway there.

"Thank you for showing me your kindness and grace, Your Honour," Lone said as he bowed respectfully.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Acting] has levelled up! It is now Advanced level 3.

'Yeah, yeah, fuck you too. Only time I'm not happy getting a skill level is when doing so confirms my lacking screws. Fuckin' hell.' Lone's sigh came accompanied by a good old eye roll.

"Speak, but do try to keep it brief," the judge ordered.

"I shall strive to do my best to keep this succinct. When I was in Milindo, I participated in an auction hosted by the very famous Malcolm Deposit. During which, I tricked the local hero into spending 10 of the kingdom's ruby-gold coins without the crown's permissiom," Lone explained. "Given it was an auction hosted by Malcolm Deposit, a withdrawal of the bid was impossible."

A collective gasp of disgust washed through the room. Not at Lone's declared action, no, but at the sheer volume of wealth presumably wasted since Lone had specifically said 'tricked', implying the item won wasn't worth nearly that much capital.

That much money was equal in value to several of the larger kriegs as well as many profitable trade routes combined. The spectators could only applaud Lone's ability to get a human kingdom to waste such vast resources.

"The item in question was a mana orb, a perfect-grade one, no less. Of course, being manaless myself, it was useless to me. The hero though, well, he was a paedophile who was a great supporter of slavery. One of his slaves was even a Stone Dwarf. Of course, it was nothing less than my duty to make a fool of him in front of his ruler," Lone said with a smirk, earning him some cheers of agreeance.

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"Order! I will have order in this courtroom!" the judge proclaimed, clearly upset at the support Lone was starting to garner from his tale.

"Mister Immortus, if I may interject?" Mister Chillforge asked. Lone nodded, so the man continued, "You say you were manaless, correct?"

"That's right, sir," Lone replied candidly.

"Then I find it odd that there are quite a few reports of you using lightning magic, a fairly rare type of magic, might I add. Are you truly as manaless as you claim?" the bearded dwarf asked pointedly.

Lone raised a finger and shoved it in the man's direction as he nodded his head vigorously. "You, sir, are a very good lawyer! He's not wrong. I once was a lightning mage. A strange profession, I might add for a supposed assassin."

Sonya said, "My client will explain his circumstances if you would avoid interrupting him, Mister Chillforge."

"Of course, Miss Forgegulf," the man answered with a kind smile.

Some of the support from the spectators had dimmed a bit with this new irregularity coming to light, but Lone didn't mind. He had prepared for this, after all.

'Not like I really care. My main goal here is skills, not to be acquitted. On that topic though, I so hope my plan works...' Lone thought as he continued to weave his story.

"Needless to say, the petty human king took it personally that I was the one who had goaded his useless pet into wasting so much money. In the annual tournament, I ended up cutting off the arms of the crown prince who had been ordered by his father to cut me down. Well, I can only assume that was the case since he, a C-ranker, was seriously trying to kill me, an E-ranker at the time. Of course, he was healed immediately after the fight and the limbs were safely reattached, but at that point, His Majesty Ralph Heidron the Third had decided my fate," Lone said in a cold tone. 'Much like some of you are trying to do right now.'

"I was taunted enough during the final fight of the tourney in my battle against the hero for me to snap. I awakened to Void then and there," Lone announced.

All that met him was confusion despite the massive gravity of what he was saying. He did barely manage to notice the Taker's smile and her protector's narrowed eyes, however.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Enhanced Vision] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 6.

"I'm sorry, Void?" Mister Chillforge questioned. "I am no expert on the beastkin and on the topsider gods like Miss Forgegulf is, of course, but I am fairly certain that your kind can only awaken to the eight Primals, no? Darkness, Radiance, Sky, Land, Reality, Illusionary, Death, and of course, Life - who hasn't awakened anyone in over a century."

"An understandable misconception," Lone nodded. "There are actually nine Primals, not eight. It is to my understanding that the eight we all know of worked together to kill the ninth, Void. They failed, instead making it the same as them- a Primal. I really don't know much more than that. Regardless, it is up to you to believe me or not. I feel like the black in my hair and at the tips of my tails is proof enough."

"Please, go on," Sonya said, not giving the leading prosecutor room to question Lone further.

Perhaps had this court been held anywhere above the surface where people cared about the Primals and its church, then they would not have let this matter go so easily.

However, down here in the Farwinds, only the Stone sang true to the hearts of men and women who called the underground roads and her kriegs and urds home.

"Right, well, as I'm sure a lot of you already know, when a beastkin awakens to a Primal, there is a chance they will lose control of themselves. That happened to me with Void. While being controlled by my awakening, I killed the hero and removed the mouth of an SS-ranked duke. I was promptly imprisoned afterwards," Lone explained truthfully.

"What do you mean by 'removed the mouth of an SS-ranked duke'?" the Taker asked, much to the ire of the judge and the leading prosecutor.

The fewer questions asked, after all, and the fewer answers Lone would have to give. Meaning less clarity of the situation to all listening to him.

He smiled warmly at her. "One moment the duke had a mouth, the next, he didn't. In its place was a void. That isn't very important for my point here though."

"Of course. Apologies for interrupting," she replied with grace.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Acting] has levelled up! It is now Advanced level 4.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Enhanced Vision] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 7.

'Nice,' Lone cheered internally.

"My imprisonment was contested by the local branch of The Adventurer's Guild. Rightfully so, I might add, since I was provoked into the killing of Milindo's hero. We all also know that it isn't the fault of the beastkin when their mind is not their own. Still, I was tortured day in and day out in the rancid dungeon of Ranton's castle for four consecutive months," Lone said, earning him a collective gasp from the crowd. "I know, right? Humans. They can be disgusting creatures when they put their minds to it."

'Not you though, Sophie. Or Soph. I love you two to bits,' Lone added privately. 'My sister and my gaming buddies back home too. I wonder how Hazel is doing anyway? It's been a while since I went 'missing'. I wonder if I even did? Maybe a copy of me is acting in my place? Maybe I'm the copy? Spooky thought.'

'We know, silly man,' Sophie replied followed by a short but melodic giggle.

The judge raised his hand to calm the crowd. "Can you prove this in any way, Mister Immortus?"

Lone pursed his lips. "I don't suppose you have any poison lying around, do you? I was forced to ingest poisons every day so my resistance is at expert-level-nine."

Mister Chillforge shook his head as he chuckled in disbelief. "We do not have any poison on hand, no. Even had we, we would not allow you to touch it, let alone ingest it. Regardless, even if your outlandish claim is true, such a skill is a perfect fit for a spy, no?"

"I'd argue it's better for a king or a noble, however, I'll concede. That's a fair point, but what's so outlandish about it?" Lone asked.

"Surely you jest?" Mister Chillforge asked. "Getting any skill to expert rank takes decades, sometimes even centuries depending on the person. You are only 25 years of age according to your own testimonies."

"Hey, I have a master rank skill as well," Lone complained. "If there's one thing I've proud of, it's my fuckin' skills."

His polite facade was starting to slip. Coughing faintly he said, "Anyway, you doubt me? Fair, that's your job, kind of. Anyway, after four months of torture at the hands of a man called Sir Ardus, I was liberated from my jail cell by some friends."

"Spy friends?" Mister Chillforge probed.

Lone stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Sonya, does the dwarven greater council train their own to be spies that infiltrate human kingdoms and directs or allows said spies to liberate beastkin prisoners of those human kingdoms?"

She shook her head very slowly. "No, they do not. Not as far as my knowledge extends, at least."

"... Are you implying it was a dwarf who helped you escape?" Mister Chillforge asked.

Lone nodded. "That's right. My blacksmithing master at the time, Grimsley Ironsbane, as well as his recently rescued niece, Shana Coppersbane. She was the dwarven girl whom the hero had purchased and abused, by the way."

A handful of outraged tongue clicks and appreciative murmurs in favour of Lone reached his ears.

'Almost there. Just a few more sentences and I can get my big chance for some sweet skill level ups,' Lone thought eagerly.

"How exactly did they help you escape, Mister Immortus?" the leading prosecutor inquired. "I don't believe for a moment that dwarves aided you in such an endeavour, if you even were incarcerated in the first place, but let's pretend this happened for now, shall we?"

"Simple. They just dug a tunnel straight to me." A loud silence met Lone's answer. "Okay... I, uh, I get that that sound pretty fuckin' stupid on the surface level, but it is the truth. Once we were out, we split up and I then got chased down by Milindo's king himself."

"The recently declared missing King Ralph Heidron the Third, an SS-ranker who specialised in his ruling skills and social stats but who could also easily kill someone of your power?" Mister Chillforge asked, the doubt clear in his tone.

"Yup. That's the one. I knew he was coming for me, you see, so I taunted him a bit, called him out for his bullshit, then killed him. Doing so gave me the enlightenment I needed for my breakthrough to D-rank. Funny how the world works sometimes," Lone sighed wistfully.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Enhanced Vision] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 8.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Persuasion] has levelled up! It is now Intermediate level 10.

'Oh, shit! Some of the crowd actually believes me? Damn, that's honestly heart-warming as fuck,' Lone thought gleefully.

"Of course. Now, how exactly did you, an at the time E-ranker, manage to not only wound an SS-ranker, but kill one? Forgive me if I and the rest of court don't exactly believe such outlandish words," Mister Chillforge pointed out.

Lone smiled. "Forgiven! But it's simple, really. I'm a foxkin. Specifically, a Golden Foxkin. Surely some of you are old enough to have met my kind before they disappeared, right? Don't you know our racial skill?"

The judge nodded thoughtfully. "Tail Spear. A powerful and very dangerous racial skill. I know it well. You mean to tell the court you killed an SS-ranker with that skill?"

"Yup. The guy was so arrogant he let me get close to him while I berated him. Then boom! Tail right through both eyes. I would have been lucky to have scratched his skin since the rank gap was too huge, but the eyes? Squishy weaknesses of us all. He died damn-near instantly since I crushed his brain," Lone casually explained.

A few of the spectators gagged while a handful even opted to leave the courtroom, clearly unaccustomed to such gruesome descriptions.

Congratulations! The host's passive skill [Persuasion] has levelled up! It is now Advanced level 1.

Passive Skill: Persuasion Naturally makes everything that the host says 30% [+15%] more believable and also entices the host's listeners to trust the host's words by 30% [+15%] more. Cost: N/A Mastery: Advanced Level 1

'Yes! It never hurts to become a better bullshitter,' Lone commented in thought.

'What are you planning, Lone? This is going off the script,' Sophie asked him mentally.

He grinned. 'There's a big scary X-ranker in this room. I want to have some fun with them.'

'... We see. At least it is not a god for once. However, the moment we give you the command, you will create an opportunity for us to teleport you out of here,' Sophie demanded. 'Should we deem it necessary.'

Lone sent back thoughts of acceptance before he closed the telepathic dialogue. "I get it. That's really hard to believe even knowing what Tail Spear is supposed to be capable of, right? It's been a century since my kind was seen, after all."

The judge and Mister Chillforge both nodded.

"Then why not let me demonstrate the skill?" Lone asked as he turned to face the Taker. "Your protector. Let me demonstrate my Tail Spear on him. I obviously won't go for his eyes, just his chest. If I can so much as leave a single mark on an X-ranker as a D-ranker, surely that will prove my prowess when I was an E-ranker?"

"What's the point of this?" Mister Chillforge questioned. "This means nothing in regards to our case. You were retelling your story to disprove my theory of you being a spy sent here to steal our secrets and artefacts. Who cares if you killed a human king or not? It holds no merit here!"

The Taker stepped forward. "I care. This is highly intriguing. While what you say does hold some truth, Prosecutor Chillforge, surely if he could prove his destructive capabilities, a sentence of militaristic enlistment for our overrun kriegs and urds could be taken into consideration over some... other options of punishment for his crimes, no?"

"I'm glad someone was able to see my point here," Lone said in relief.

Sonya had mentioned this as a goal for the trial if Lone's exile couldn't be arranged. He was happy to go and hunt down some monsters in lost kriegs and urds. Levels and enlightenment wouldn't earn themselves. Sadly, neither would stats. Not for Lone at least.

He would happily do such a job with Soph, Sophie, Breena, and the lazy Kyuubi, for a few months before teleporting top-side.

Had no one pointed out the merit of such a demonstration of skill, Lone would have prodded Sonya to point it out instead. Thankfully, that wasn't necessary since the Taker seemed to have... taken an interest in seeing him using his racial skill.

"... Very well. Come forward then and show us your capabilities provided Lady Taker's protector is willing. Do as you have claimed yourself capable of and the deciders will add militaristic enlistment as a possibility for your sentencing," the judge decreed.

'What? I expected some more back and forth there since he's clearly been paid to try to get the Deciders to have me executed...' Lone was confused.

That confusion only deepened when he saw the Taker smile mischievously towards him through his eyewraps.

The Taker's protector stepped forward and glanced towards his charge who nodded. Seeing that, the hulking dwarf said, "I am willing."

'Ah! Perfect!' Lone exclaimed internally. Odd circumstances withstanding, everything was going as planned. 'This will make such a good memory from this whole farce. I wonder if it'll count as a historical moment or not too? 'The day a D-ranker injured an X-ranker'...'