Eli POV

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The next day passed drearily with me staring at a grey brick wall watching as mold grew on it. My meals were a bowl of tasteless gruel served with a cup of water. Sometime in the afternoon, Salamede came by. She had a red dress and leaned nervously against the cell bars.

"Eli, have you been hurt? Are they feeding you well?" She asked, her voice in the spirit connection was broadcasting fear but with a subtle tone of trying to keep it all in.

"I'm all right. What about you?" I asked. She shrank back slightly and gulped before continuing.

"It's bad, Eli. Some people are spouting off some ridiculous rumor about you being a child molester and a goblin mater. I tried to get to Ryan but they wouldn't let me in the academy and none of the three scions have come out the past two days." She said as she put her white striped snout through the bars.

Odd, but I had too much on my plate to ponder on that right now.

"Where is this all coming from?" I asked partly to her and partly to myself.

"I was hoping you knew," She said back.

"I've spent my whole time here thinking about it and I can't see who we've offended enough to merit all this trouble. The fat student from before is a possibility, but this is a lot of trouble for such a small squabble." I replied.

Salamede put out her hand and I took it. The guard looked at us carefully but her dress came up a good several inches short from her hand so he decided to let it go.

"We'll get through this. I talked with the investigators and they said I could be a character witness" She said with some confidence now.

I smiled in return.

"Well, I do hope I've made a good impression on you," I said with mock bravado.

She sighed with a kind look at me but eventually, she had to let go and head back home.

"You actually let a Kelton use spirit magic with you?" The guard asked incredulously, as his black mustache curled in disdain.

"It's easier than talking, why? Is it illegal." I asked defensively.

"Nah. Just odd, but I suppose that fits with you." He said indifferently.

"All right lads! Anyone needing to use the shitter will raise their hands now, else it's good night." He yelled to the rest of the prisoners.

The day and night passed in a haze of meandering thoughts and stuffy air, punctuated with nervous pacing but finally, my trial began around mid-day as I was lead into the big oak-paneled room.

It had a big central podium with two tables behind it. against the back of the wall was a fat man in a white wig with a red overcoat and a black undershirt, his sharp nose and eyebrows contrasting with the bloated frame. He sat higher than anyone else in his mini castle made of wood. To my right had the jurors in rows of ascending benches who seemed to be a mix of everyday peasant folk.

Behind my table was Salamede in her green dress and her mother. The prosecutor, a man in a grey suit with a white undershirt, sat at a table with an assortment of people both unfortunately known and unknown in the benches behind him. The small group consisted of Raymond, the water mages sharp facial features and brown, bowl-like hair cut unmistakable, the fat blond-haired student who slapped Salamede. His eyes shown with contempt towards my group.

The last member was an older gentleman who had a big brown coat to match his pants and a white undershirt. He was so skinny you would have thought he was recently excavated from a crypt, with his hairstyle speaking of a similar origin. The main contention for his categorization among the living was the mustache with flecks of brown and brown eyes.

A gavels bang from the judge stopped all of the surrounding chatter.

"The case will now begin," A secretary in a grey dress said to the right of the judges' mini tower.

"How do you, Eli-" The judge looked at a piece of paper. His plump nose and sharp green eyes looking over the paper until he looked at me.

"No last name, your honor," I said respectfully.

He raised an eyebrow at this but went back to reading over the paper.

"You stand accused of child molestation and orc mating. How do you plead?" He asked.

"Not guilty," I replied between gritted teeth.

"Very well, let us begin." The judge said.

The prosecutor, a slim man with smooth black hair and grey eyes stepped forward as did my pudgier public defender.

The prosecution took a step towards the jury as he apparently got to go first. His sharp black hair and cunning green eyes told of a man in the prime of his career and life.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today we are here to pass judgment on crimes among some of the most heinous. Crimes against children, future children and the whole of humanity. We have sworn testimony that this man" He pointed towards me his brown eyes flared in indignation.

"Has not only sated his perverse lust on children but also sired children with humanity's doom, the green-skinned malice on all of our lives." He gave a slight bow and went back to his table.

"Innocent until proven guilty," My lawyer said stepping forward.

"This principle applies to each and every one of us, especially for crimes such as this. The defendant has a sterling reputation for helping those in his community and exemplifies some of the best humanity has to offer."

He also bowed and then they both went back towards their respective tables

It was all very grand and high minded but eventually, they both sat down and we got to the meat of the matter, the witness testimony.

Raymond was the first called to the central podium.

"Raymond Drsedell. Do you swear to tell the truth here in front of the judge, jury, and the world." The prosecutor asked.

"Indeed" Raymond responded. He was wearing a fine cut suit of light blue and white.

"You took a trip with the accused, did you not?" He asked.

"Yes sir," Raymond said.

"Can you describe the trip? At least the parts were you interacted with the accused?" The prosecutor asked as he walked towards the jury.

"We went out on a guild trip for some supplies to and from the Bulwark. Along the way, he made sexual remarks and leering looks at the various passerby. I dismissed it as typical shitty behavior but when he started physically groping children it became too much. Over the course of the trip it got so bad we started fighting and I was relieved when he left our group on the way back." Raymond finished.

Yelling or glaring wouldn't help matters so I just leaned back in my chair with an air of indifference.

Now my lawyer went up to the podium.

"You say that your argument was due to his abhorrent behavior during the trip, am I correct?" He asked.

"Yes," Raymond responded.

"Yet, I have a testimony that asserts you were in fact jealous of Eli's success and that is what animated your mutual animosity for-" The bang of a gavel interrupted my lawyer.

"The sum total of evidence we have today is all that will be presented," The judge said.

Sweat started running down my lawyer's neck. He dabbed his forehead with a napkin from his jacket's chest pocket and took a deep breath.

"We-well, why didn't you report his activities earlier?" My lawyer managed to get himself together long enough to get to the next question.

"Everyone knows how well he did in the trials. And who knows what he has managed to make since then? I only just now got the assurance that I would be protected by coming forward." Raymond said. I had to admit he sold it well. Just the right amount of hesitation with the closing scene of a tortured child no longer afraid of his tormentor. The jury was certainly buying it as several members looked at me with open scorn.

Raymond was dismissed from the stand and the two lawyers went back to their respective tables to talk with their respective sides.

"Kid, who have you pissed off?" The pudgy man asked me, as he sat down in the chair beside me.

"No one. No one who's been alive long enough to complain besides those two younger guys and one other set of losers in the academy and some of their parents." I said ruefully as Salamede and her mother leaned in.

"That denial got a bit long at the end." My lawyer said exasperatingly.

"Well, I'm gonna just give it to you straight as I've seen this before. We're screwed. Whoever is behind this has enough pull to get the judge in their pocket. I'll do my best but this..." He leaned forward and put his hands over his eyes.

"But we could help with the character witness, right?" Salamedes' rough voice cut in.

"No. This whole thing is character assassination. Having a Kelton woman speak out on your behalf would only further add to insinuations of sexual depravity. I suspect that was the only reason you were allowed here." He said, his tone showing strain and a sense of defeat.

"The stand will now call Borin Ravencroft and Johnny Wilders." The judge called from on high.

The fat student and the older man went up to the podium which just barely fit both of them.

After giving their oaths to tell the truth, they started spouting their putrid lies.

"We were walking near Rose Bud Cliff six days ago. Coming down the road we took a slight detour." The old man, Johnny, stated.

"Quite dangerous, although I'm sure you've been told that enough times," The prosecutor said with a hint mischievousness.

"Yes, yes. My wife gives me enough flack about it. I don't need it here, sony." Johnny huffed irritably.

"Please continue," The prosecutor said putting up his hands in surrender.

"My friend and I were heading down the road there when we heard a cry from the forest. It sounded like it was from a small child so we moved in to see if we could help. When we got there we realized we were too late. The small girl and two other boys who were already dead, the girl already having her throat freshly cut as we saw her.... last spasms of life," The older man said. He had a tear in his eye now as he recalled the horror.

Then the fat student, Borin, picked up where the old man left off.

"The other two boys' bodies were bruised and bloodied laying among the dirt. Off to the right was Eli and two orc women. They were naked and acting like it was just another picnic outing. We heard Eli say: ' they felt good, but damn if their whining didn't get annoying.'

A blonde orc then complained to him 'you barely have enough seed left for us' as she and the muscular black haired orc leaned against him. We were far too scared to continue watching and quietly slid back as they went down on him. Johnny quickly contacted the authorities while I went to confront the villain a while later." Born finished.

"Also very foolish young man. Only the proper authorities should handle such cases." The prosecutor chided.

"I know sir. I know that now." Borin responded ruefully.

The prosecutor went back to his table while my lawyer went up to the stand.

"Gentlemen, did you take any evidence of Eli's supposed crimes? Any bit of information or other accounts to corroborate your trip together? " He asked them.

The older man got an irritated expression.

"I'm a veteran in the fight against the orcs. I've spent more time fighting orcs than most people here have spent alive and this is the thanks I get? How dare you impune my honor!" He said outraged.

My lawyer leaned back defensively and put up his hand. Some jurors also shot disapproving looks at him, their minds about my guilt clearly already decided. After a light cough, he continued the questions.

"You say there were 3 children involved. Quite dead yes?" He asked.

"Yeah," Borin said dismissively.

"Yet there have been no reports of missing children," My lawyer asked sharply.

"What? Are you saying we lied? That I would lie about the menace I dedicated my life to defeating?" the old man protested.

A gavel bang interrupted my lawyer before he could respond.

"Enough! If you continue to harass these two upstanding gentlemen, you will be held in contempt of this court" the judge said coldly, his brows furrowing in anger.

My lawyer just wiped his brow with a napkin, the thing so soaked it barely removed any sweat from his face. He then gave a slight bow and slunk back to our table.

I don't know what was worse: that they were screwing me over or that they were putting so little effort in to pretend otherwise.

Then I was called forward. The disdain filling the air was palpable, from the look of contempt in the judges' eyes even as the rest of his face remained emotionless to the open looks of hostility emanating from half the jury. Sweat was running down the back of my neck but I kept my breathing even and managed to just stand still like a statue.

"Ah, the man of the hour. So do you want to tell us where you were six days ago?" The prosecutor asked smugly.

"Salamede and I went out to deal with a problem a smaller local village near Holstead was having. A rather large rock troll was attacking them and we both rendered aid to them." I said evenly.

"Saving a village from a troll? Is that really the best lie you can come up with?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It's the truth, just ask the guards they sent there or let me go back to my house and get the-." I rebutted with a raised eyebrow.

The bang of the gavel interrupted me.

"No more evidence," The judge said forcefully.

"The survey department sends out regular public notices of such events. Tell me, have any of you heard of a troll being spotted near Holstead before now?" He asked the jury. Several of them shook their heads, while the rest just looked at me like they saw through my elaborate con being the smart, sharp-witted people that they were.

"The survey department screwed up, just get the captain of the guard in here and he will-" Another gavel bang interrupted me.

"Lad, the patience of my court is something of a legend. But I swear if you keep using its platform to impugn the good men and women who protect us I will throw every form of legal hell your way." The judge said, his ice-cold voice dripping with contempt.

"But there is a more interesting perspective on you generally, aside from your lack of respect for the troops. Six days ago you were seen traveling with that Kelton woman at the time of the crime." The prosecutor said as he pointed towards Salamede. She visibly shrank back as all eyes turned towards her.

"You know, people have remarked on just how close you two have gotten. I'm wondering if maybe we need to hear from her as well" He said. I knew he was trying to rile me up but I just bit my tongue and kept it together. Even so, I felt my sweaty hands gripping the podiums wood frame like it was his neck.

"Yes from this veil that you wear everywhere," He said waving dismissively at me, "To your companionship, you have many odd tastes. Now for our good men and women of the jury, we will be going over some-"

The slamming of the doors interrupted him. I saw a man coming through the middle but the prosecutor obstructed my vision as he moved nearer too him. I could still make out a black coat and pants as he moved to the judges' position and handed him a letter before going into the door on the left of the judges' fort.

"Lawyers and the defendant, in my office. Now." The judge said after reading the letter, he then stormed off to a door to the left.

The courtroom came alive with questions and general noise as the three of us and two guards shuffled through the door. Of course, the prosecutor shoved through and made sure he was in first.

Inside the rather grand room were two bookshelves on each side and a large window in the back letting in sunlight. In the middle of the room was a huge oak desk with one large plush red chair on one side and two other smaller wooden chairs on the other side.

What drew my attention was a wiry man with spectacles and a plain black shirt and pants on the right side of this desk. He had soft brown hair and a copper coin pinned to his chest alongside the wood pin marking him as magicless. His green eyes surveyed the three of us indifferently. Then his soft reedy voice rang out with a new lifeline for me.

"I am Gerald, from the Coalition Taxing Service. Unfortunately, this proceeding has run afoul of our nation's great tax law." He said.

"What?" The prosecutor asked. For the first time, he seemed nervous and now it was his forehead sweating.

"After receiving a tip, we conducted a review and it appears that the trolls movements were indeed not caught by the survey department. However, we have come across information that proves that the troll did exist and that it was sold by Eli," He then looked at me with severity.

"A transaction that was not reported to the local tax service and has thus far evaded our nation's federal due. And as I understand it the general thrust of this cases' conviction will be that the troll incident did not happen?" Gerald asked.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The judge and the prosecutor looked at each other for a long moment before the judge gave a light cough.

"We have the records from the survey department. There is no evidence to back up Eli's claim that he was involved with any such troll on the day of his crimes" The judge said carefully, he chewed his lips in nervousness as he produced a few sheets of paper from his desk and laid them across the table. A few lines about an odd incident or two for the past few days, but their lack of any mention of a troll being the most important part.

"Yes, yes, that what those reports say but this," Gerald took out a piece of paper from his front pocket, "clearly shows a sum total of four gold and 10 silver was paid out for the corpse of one rock troll near Holstead six days ago." He said as he put down the invoice on the table. Looking it over, it showed several lines detailing how the corpse was dissected, where it came from, the account the captain of the guard took the money to pay me from, and the destination of the goods: the Bulwark.

"So, I'm afraid that just cannot be. The transactions for magical items are among some of the most highly scrutinized and carefully crosschecked. It simply would not do for there to be a ruling that something on our books didn't happen," Gerals retorted with a polite smile.

Honestly, I've never enjoyed government incompetence or chaos. But at this moment I was never more happy to see a nation's bureaucracy stab itself in the dick. Please God, if this goes through I'll always pay my taxes on time and with glee from this day forward.

"Guards get him out of here," The judge said harshly pointing to a door to the left and looked like he would very much love to stab me right now.

I was lead through and it took a bit for the guards to get me onto a bench right by the door. Of course, it took a few precious seconds when I finally sat down for me to bend my foot back under the bench and through it construct a wind tunnel spell with my internal mana sending the invisible tunnel through the small gap of the doors bottom half to get back into the conversation as it pulled in the surrounding sound.

"- so I don't think you understand why this needs to go through," The prosecutor said sounding quite nervous now.

"Oh no, I do understand. But that's not my departments' concern." Geralds reedy voice responded.

At this, my lawyer snickered.

"I don't see what you're so happy about Joe. This may undo the bigger charge but your clients' ass is still in deep shit for a public indecency charge from the first testimony." The judge growled.

"Well, I could point out that testimony typically isn't sufficient for a prosecution, but we both know that doesn't matter. However, I don't think you read the manner in which the prosecution has filed the case." He replied smugly.

"What is he talking about?" The judge asked.

A pause of pure silence lasted for the eternity of five seconds. A barely audible grumble came through the wind tunnel into my ears.

"What?" The judge asked again.

"I BUNDLED IT!" The prosecutor yelled so loud I would have heard it even without the wind spell.

There was a slight sound of someone falling back into a chair.

After a few seconds, the judge spoke again.

"Listen, Gerald, this case is bigger than any one of us. This needs to hap-"

"Do you know why we wear these pins?" Gerald asked in an off-handed manner.

"The copper...No, I do not" The judge responded like he was trying to not scream.

"This is a reminder that we get everything due. Every single last copper." Gerald replied.

"This matter goes far beyond such-"

"I. Don't. Give. A. Fucking. Shit" Gerlad replied back, his reedy voice now getting some firmness to it. "You must have a very optimistic disposition if you can even entertain the notion that my department is going to accept this mark on our record for you and yours. Drop this case unless you want the full weight of the CTS legal division to get involved, and trust me, those guys love their jobs when it comes to slam dunk cases like these."

A hard silence passed until the judge called out.

"Guards take the defendant back to the courtroom." He yelled.

"Oh, one thing young man," Gerald said as the guards came to a halt.

"The due tax for the troll is 70 silver, to be paid by the end of the week. Understand?" He said strictly.

After I gave a vigorous nod, then the guards resumed pushing me towards the door.

I was lead back into a courtroom that was now buzzing with excitement. My eyes must have been simmering with excitement because Salamede and her mother immediately started looking more hopeful while Raymond, Borin, and the old man paled.

The three men then came back as I sat down. The judge looked like he was ready to commit murder, while the prosecutor had an almost green tint like he was ready to puke at a moment's notice. My lawyer came and sat down beside me giddy as a newborn tasting candy for the first time.

The judge took a long breath when he sat back down in his throne. A long pall of dead silence fell over the courtroom before he moved forward and put his hands on his desk.

"The case has run into legal technicalities. One of the charges has been rendered invalid and the case has been packaged as a whole legal motion by the prosecution" He stopped for the briefest second to stare at the nearly crying prosecutor with clear hatred in his eyes.

"As such the case in its entirety will have to be dropped. Dismissed." With a final bang of his gavel, he then got up and stormed out of the courtroom back to his chambers.

That motherfucker.

He just left it at a 'legal technicality' so now everyone will think I'm guilty but escaped justice through some legal loophole bullshit. I took a deep breath and just tried to revel in the moment as I pushed aside my anger.

The three shitheads who lied about me promptly shuffled out while Salamede, her mother and I hugged and whooped for joy. A lot of the jury looked at me with scorn but fuck them.

"First thing when we get back, I'll make us all Lunch," Salamede said to us in her rough voice.

"Aye, but I need to stop by the tax office and drop off a payment," I said when all the hugging and handshaking was done. Salamede and her mother quickly left. Then I turned towards Joe my lawyer and shook his hand one last time.

"Thanks, man," I said as I shook his hand.

"Thank me? No, thank you, lad. My reputation as a lawyer is going to shoot through the roof after this. Who knows, I may be able to start my own practice after today." Joe said ecstatically.

I headed out the back door, but my head thumped and my throat choked up with bile as my reflex to vomit surfaced. I was getting faint and plopped down on a bench. Fortunately, it seems everyone else had filed out by now and I had a moment to myself.

The reality of what I narrowly avoided crashed down on me like a wave. The stress over nearly two days of agonizing wait came out in a few seconds with all of its anger, fear, worry, and uncertainty.

Then I started doing my deep breathing exercises.

One, two, three, four, five, six...

After that, I heard a light laugh coming from behind me. It was the old man and Borin.

"Aye it was quite the days way back then... but ...."

I was struggling to hear them so I shot a quick look around the corner, seeing the old man and that fat blond student in a brief flash. Luckily, when I used my internal mana generation even a wind mage would only notice an odd gust of wind on the floor if he was looking closely at the wind tunnel.

"That's what I'm doing here anyway. Some old pals really needed ...what was his name," The old man, Johnny I believe, started saying. At the last, I head him take out a piece of paper from what I assume was his pocket.

"Ah, Eli. Well, good day to you lad. And remember to enjoy your youth for the sake of us old people who didn't" He said.

Snatching a quick look I saw him put a piece of paper back in his front pocket as he tipped his cap in goodbye. I quickly ran through all the options I had. Going outside and stalking them wouldn't work as I didn't have a prayer of blending into the crowd. Then I did the only thing I could think to do.

I quickly summoned a gust of wind using the same hidden techniques I used for the wind tunnel. The gust of wind hit them just as they went through the door and it curved from behind them to make it look like the wind came from outside.

Using the wind tunnel, I ran it across his chest to catch on the letter sticking out of his pocket. As I'd hoped, the letter got caught up in the gust and even better the old man instinctively went to keep his cap on instead of putting his hand to his front pocket.

The letter fell to the floor and the guards were still looking out into the street, so I rushed to quickly read it.

'Dear Johnny,

I need you to provide testimony against a certain crafter called Eli. We managed to cut a deal with our associates in the grove after they lost three men trying to get him in a nighttime operation and we need all the help we can get out here. Contact your old boss when ready.'

After memorizing the short paragraph I put the piece of paper back on the floor. A minute later Johnny came back and picked it up. He seemed sweaty and very worried about losing it but promptly shoved it back into his pocket and went out the door.

I sat there waiting for a good minute to make sure he was gone then went out the door. I started thinking over when I had been attacked during the battle of the docks by the three casters as I walked towards the main road. The local guard who I asked for directions looked at me like I was diseased but still pointed me where I needed to go.

Losing those casters must have been a massive blow to the bandits considering... Wait.

'in a nighttime operation' was what the letter said.

Thinking over the past few weeks as I went in and paid my due tax I eventually honed in on what it was referring to. That night time robbery where three men snuck into my home.

As I walked over to the carriage station I went over everything that had happened so far, chewing on a growing sense of dread in my gut as it took root. Coming home, I went over to Salamedes' house where she was putting the finishing touches on a spicy beef stew and some milk to drink it all down.

We talked over some minutiae as we ate at the kitchen table and went over the trial again. But when Salamedes' mother went to bed I switched the conversation to a new topic. This time I used a spirit connection for the sake of absolute secrecy.

"Ok, so I think I have some pretty important information. But I wanted to get your opinion to help me work through this," I said as I gulped down the last of the milk. She nodded as she sipped some of the stew and bit into a roll.

"The old man who lied about going on a walk with Borin. I got ahold of a letter he dropped and it appears he agreed to testify for the sake of old associates in 'the' grove. Know where that could be referring to?" I asked her. She took a second before responding.

"Yeah, there's only one place someone could be referring to by saying 'the' grove. It's a northern section near the dwarves space called Bandits Grove. That's a battlefield between the bandits and the orcs so most people avoid it like death itself. So what? Some of the bandits got away. I imagine they were mighty pissed at you and I could see them getting a judge under their thumb" Salamede asked back.

"Remember that night where three men broke into my house?" I asked.

Salamede nodded back.

"That was them as well," I said.

"But that was before the raid. Why would... the people you've been hiding from?" Salamede asked as she ran ahead to her own conclusion.

"But the elves. Why bother with humans if they have elves in their ranks?" She asked, seemingly to me and herself.

"The thing is when I got...away from them a lot of their people died and one of them is the elf that all the guild members are looking for," I said in the spirit connection.

Her eyes went wide but all she managed to say was:

"wow"

"Indeed, but this is the part where it gets tricky. As far as I can tell there are two possibilities considering who could possibly want to harm me before the raid: They already know where I am. But they've lost their elven connection, who I'm guessing the elves genuinely don't know was involved, and their main base of operations. So one or two people in the bandits have been trying to use their positions to get at me instead of.... coming as necromancers." I said gently.

"Necro-They're necromancers?!" Salamede yelped through the connection.

"Yeah. But another possibility is that this might be some nobles who were still pissed at me but didn't want to risk running afoul of Ryan and these bandits are just their workaround for that issue." I responded as I leaned back into my chair and looked at the rough boards of the ceiling.

"I doubt it's the nobles. Getting access to the magical training and resources of academies is a house's highest priority. Sometimes a lord will raise taxes on his subjects just for that explicit purpose. I've seen one or two lords get ruined from having their illegal activity exposed and getting caught up in the gangs would be a huge risk to take with little reward considering they have their own goons and lands to manage. As that welcome party we 'greeted' when you came back from working with Ryan will well attest," Salamede said, looking into her bowl of soup.

"Never underestimate the power of short-sighted greed, Salamede. Although, I would think mages were too valuable to be disposed of so ruthlessly." I said

"Oh, they are. But a mage versus a mage recognized as part of a house is two different things. I've heard of a few incidents where the mages are shipped elsewhere with explicit orders to never contact their house again lest they tarnish the good name of mages everywhere. Not that the houses typically survive long enough to receive mail once the magical talent they poured all their money into has been cut off from them." Salamede said as she sipped her glass of milk.

I gave a deep sigh and thought over it some more.

"Did the judge say anything that might be a clue to who's behind this?" Salamede asked.

"Nah, all I got from him was a bunch of snippets that didn't say anything when it came to the purpose of the trial," I said as I moved forward and rested my elbows on the table.

"Whatever the reason, I think focusing on the Bandit Grove is the best bet. Even if it doesn't turn out to be the necromancers I can still focus on killing a lot of the bandits now that I'm probably going to be a pariah after this. Keeping my public appearances to a minimum would be for the best and since I'll have my own place I can start working harder on the vine suit." I said as I leaned back into my chair.

"Are you sure you want to be killing the bandits? It may be better to just focus on the few people involved, like those pieces of shit who lied about you." Salamede asked hesitantly.

I chewed on my lip for a bit before answering.

"Even if it wasn't the bandits this time, it doesn't mean they won't try to kill me for the battle at the docks later," I said. The prospect sent a thrill up my spine as contemplated surgical blows I would reign down on them. Just charging in blindly would be a terrible idea but once I had enough information... ooh boy, was that going to be fun.

"Besides, if any of the people who lied about me suffer so much as a scuffed knee, all eyes will immediately look to me. The bandits, however, getting slaughtered by a plant mage is not something people will trace back to me and who knows, I may come across some information to clear my name as I scrounge through their corpses."

A few moments of silence passed before Salamede spoke back up.

"Oh, yeah. you got some mail. I picked it up considering.... well, considering," She said before getting up and going over to a cabinet to pull out two letters, both with the distinctive red G of a guild correspondence.

I nodded in agreement and opened the letters.

"So what does it say?" Salamede asked excitedly after I had been reading for a few minutes.

"The first letter is saying that they are putting me through the process of background checks."

"Yes! That means they skipped putting you through the competency trials." She said excitedly.

"But the second letter is a newer notice that my application was put on hold for further deliberation, that's the summation of several paragraphs of very nice sounding text beating around the bush. I don't think they want me in their guild now." I said evenly.

Salamedes ears drooped but she got up and came over to me then gave me a comforting hug.

"Hey, it's fine." I lied.

"Besides, this may end up working out for the best considering this is the first inkling of a lead on these people I've had since I got here. If this does turn out to be the necromancers, then once I've got a better understanding of their intentions and, probably, killed them I can reveal my self as a quad element caster.

If it's a noble house doing this, then I'll still kill all the bandits and we will have one less problem to deal with considering they may want revenge against me, even if I will still have to disguise my self as a crafter. First thing tomorrow morning I'll head to the local authorities and see if their reports on the incident at night hold any clues about who I'm looking for" I finished.

"All right, but it looks like we will want to finish our end of the bargain with the city council as quickly as possible. Jurors are forbidden from discussing what they see and hear during the trials but this isn't going to stay contained for long." Salamede said as she got several bottles to fill with fresh water from the well.

"My thoughts exactly. I'll get the cart and make you a quick and dirty one as well," I said as I got up and went back to the house. I made myself another one as well to do two blocks at a time Salamede took the new cart and started on the other side of town.

We spent the rest of the afternoon working on the various roads, and this time I didn't even have to pretend to soak up all the ambient mana to do it. The only stops were for a quick dinner and using the latrine. The crowds and traffic made it slower than it would have otherwise been, but eventually, we finished as we met up at the bridge. The stone blocks didn't quite meet up at the lisp of the bridge and there were a few odd corners in the blocks of the roads meeting up, but if the local government couldn't even manage that small problem then they had no business employing people with anything sharper than a spoon.

Then as the sun was sinking in the sky we headed back towards the town hall. When we came in the secretary immediately recognized us.

"George, they're here!" She called into the hall.

The pudgy man came through the door rather swiftly. His green overcoat and brown overalls were prim as was the lamb chops on both sides of his face, but what drew my eyes was the rolled paper in his hand.

"Yes, yes. Good job on the roads, the guards were quite talkative about your incredible speed at getting it done in one afternoon. Here. Normally I would have only expedited your acquisition but after that sham trial, I think it's best we conclude our business as quickly as possible," He said, tossing the paper to me.

After looking over the paper, I handed over the gold for the building, but I couldn't help but ask.

"How do you know it was a show trial? Not that I mind you thinking I'm innocent," I asked.

He just chuckled jovially and his hungry brown eyes got some mirth.

"Boy, here's a life lesson. Just because some people choose to be blind doesn't mean everyone will. Those asses can say a troll wasn't there all they like, have all the survey records say whatever it is they want and the courts hush it up as they stack juries with their lackeys. But memory is still one of those pesky things the desk jockeys haven't quite figured out how to scrub.

And having a crowd of people come into Holstead talking about a troll destroying their homes? Oh, people remember that." He said.

"I know that I just thought you would be... if not in the pocket of the people behind it at least too afraid to dismiss them so easily," I responded carefully.

Geroge just laughed at that, abandoning the restraint in his previous chuckle.

"The tax service is giving that judge and the whole legal department a good bloody nose over the mess. Apparently, he and several other accomplices had been using some 'creative' accounting to hide due taxes, which was only caught due to them looking into the troll.

Besides, I'm the one who helped establish the academy with Tansen. I made this city what it is and I'd love to see anyone short of the president himself try and get me on my own turf," His smile turned predatory at the last part.

'Well, that's at least something. I'll just have to see how this all shakes out,' I thought. Afterward, we both quickly left the town hall and headed to our respective homes.

That night I put in more traps and moved my hammock down into the workshop. The thought that, despite my best efforts, the people who brought me here had tracked me down made me want to lash out at those ethereal shadows stalking me, like an itch you can't quite scratch. This urge continued even as I laid down in the hammock. To try and soothe my nerves I went over how the likelihood of them being the culprit behind my show trial was almost non-existent.

A near-infinite mana generator was a prize too ludicrous to let roam free for any amount of time.

I repeated this several times until my nerves calmed.

After a troubled sleep, I got up the next morning and went out to get my breakfast. There were a few whispers here and there but most people seemed indifferent to my presence. Despite wanting to immediately head out to my new home or look at the guard reports, I remembered that I had some classes I needed to attend.

After getting up to the academy dorms to head to class I went to lean against the wall. Most of the students looked at me with a look of scorn or avoided me like I was a plague victim.

This mix of hostility continued as I got to the classrooms. When I got through the double doors, all the students either avoided me or even spat at my feet. On the upper floor leaning against a rail, I saw Jeff and Andrew look down at me. The redhead looked away in disgust while Andrew gave me a sad look and just walked away with his brother. What was odd was that I could make out what almost looked like a monkey on Andrew's shoulder.

'What is going on? I thought that everyone knew... Shit' I thought to myself.

Holstead was specifically designed to be the place where the mages wouldn't visit and the village had been too poor to even request guild help. With the troll remains being sent to the Bulwark the only thing my classmates had to go on was the official story considering how mages didn't bother mingling with peasants.

But surely just asking a few questions would clear up... No. Getting the truth of what happened would take an effort that many wouldn't want to expend. A good number of my peers would rather enjoy seeing me taken down a peg while all the others were mostly indifferent, or at least not invested enough in me to go through the trouble of going against the preferred narrative of those who disdained me.

Eventually, the day passed with as much rudeness and disdain as it began and I got through my classes around midday but on my trip out of the building, I was stopped by Bess, my assigned groups' mentor, in between some of the bookshelves.

The middle-aged woman just stood there for a minute, twirling her short brown air between her fingers while biting her lip for a few long seconds.

"Did you do those things they say you did?" Bess asked, her green eyes projecting worry and the subtle hint of an accusation.

"No. I may have gotten off on a legal technicality, but the technicality was that it wasn't physically possible for me to have been there." I said firmly and deliberately, trying my best to not show the anger I felt at this injustice.

She looked at me uncertainly for a minute until she took a deep breath and relaxed.

"All right, I believe you" She finally said.

I had to admit, this may not count for anything but it still meant a lot to me. Some of the tension in my shoulders came out and I felt more light.

"Thank you. I need all the support I can get right now, even if it's only a few words." I said but then I turned to business before I got too emotional.

" What about the research applications? I suppose you guys have withdrawn them?" I asked.

"Yes, unfortunately... I did. But... Eli, she told me to tell you this. The crafting master has withdrawn her support from your application and has asked that you not contact her in the future." She said as her eyes shimmered with sadness.

I just gave a stiff nod. After all, I can't really say I blame her.

Bess then came forward and gave me a hug.

"It's all right Eli. It will all work out in the end." Bess said

Afterward, we parted ways. The walk back home was still hell but at least I would be done for the day.

"Eli?" One of the guards asked.

"Yes," I responded.

"You're wanted in the headmaster's office." He responded.

Oh boy, with how this day has gone I'm probably going to be expelled or burned at the stake like a witch.

Heading up to the main office I saw the black-haired man with a ridge running down his forehead sitting in his leather chair behind his desk in the typical black kimono with waves of sapphires. But his brown eyes lit up when he looked up from his desk and saw me.

"Ah good, good. Come in" Tansen said as he got up.

Coming over he shook my hand with his right hand, which I now saw was covered in a black leather glove. He then leads me over the blue and white tile work back over to his seat and motioned for me to sit down at a rather large wooden chair in front of his desk.

"I know that I typically don't have chairs in here aside from mine, but I figured you of all people needed a rest." He said as he sat back down in his. I noticed he still made sure that his chair was the larger one.

"So, may I ask what it is you need?" I asked politely. I had a brief flash of suspicion, something in his manner. But then again if he wanted me dead I doubt I would have made it up the tower. Still, I quickly went over the spells and crafts that would most aid me in escaping.

"We need to go over your course curriculum, to make sure that you're still on track. Eli, I know it seems like the world is ending right now. But all things will pass. And even if the people still give you shit for what they think you did, know that being highly skilled will overcome many shortcomings, especially when people need those skills." He said.

The fact that the headmaster seemed to believe my innocence was definitely a good sign. Being such an important figure, he probably had the connections to see why my case had been thrown out. So that means at least four people believe I'm innocent. Now I only had several thousand more to go.

Over the next several hours we talked at length over various coursework and other such academic interests before I was let go, thankful that my paranoia was unfounded. Still, afterward, I wondered whether or not having to dodge the guards for the rest of my life was worth all of this trouble. With the shit day I had, I spent the rest of it finishing out my new home and getting ready to move my workshop.