The Beginning of Betrayal — Part 1
Darkness. That was the first thing Ruko saw.
Not the dramatic kind of darkness. Not some mysterious void. Just darkness because somebody had apparently knocked him unconscious.
"Ugh..." His head throbbed. His eyes slowly opened. Stone walls. Tall pillars. A massive courtroom. Rows upon rows of citizens. Knights. Adventurers. Nobles. Judges. And chains. A lot of chains.
Ruko blinked twice. Then looked down. His arms were bound. His legs were bound. Even his waist was wrapped with strange silver chains covered in glowing runes.
Silence filled the courtroom. Ruko stared. The courtroom stared back. "...What a way to start my judgment." The silence continued. "What the fuck is going on?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the entire courtroom exploded into whispers. "That's him." "The suspicious adventurer." "The one from the castle incident." "The rumored Devil King's successor."
Ruko frowned. Then his eyes landed on a familiar group. Kazuma. Aqua. Megumin. Darkness. Mitsurugi. And several others.
Immediately, relief appeared on his face. "OI KAZUMA!" Every head turned. Kazuma immediately looked like he regretted existing.
"What?" "What the hell man? Why am I chained up like some criminal? There has to be a reason for this!"
Kazuma rubbed his forehead. For some reason, he looked exhausted. The kind of exhausted that came from dealing with Aqua for an entire month.
"Can you keep it down for once?" Kazuma groaned. "I've been trying to keep my cool all day and you're already making it impossible."
Ruko looked offended. "Since when do you keep your cool? You're the guy who throws tantrums whenever life inconveniences you."
Kazuma's face became blank. "You always know exactly where to attack." "Hey. That's a family offense." Aqua pointed dramatically. "Oh shut up! Ever since I met you my life has gotten worse!"
Ruko pointed back. "That's because you're 'Aqua' the 'useless goddess'." Aqua froze. Several citizens nodded. Aqua immediately became depressed.
"W-Why does everyone agree with him..." Megumin stepped forward. "Ruko." "What?" "I consider you my friend." "Aww." "But the way you insult Aqua is terrible." "Aqua found backup?" "M-Megumin!"
Tears appeared in Aqua's eyes. Megumin proudly folded her arms. Meanwhile, Ruko looked genuinely amazed.
"Wow. The dead weight finally evolved." Megumin's eye twitched. "Who are you calling dead weight?!" "You, of course!" "...Dead. Weight.." "You little—!" "EXPLOSION—"
THWACK.
Kazuma karate chopped her head. Megumin dropped instantly. "Not in the courtroom!" "Ow..." Darkness sighed deeply.
"Why is this happening..." Ruko noticed her. "Oh. Darkness." Darkness looked up. "What?" "You look like someone forced you to pay taxes." Darkness looked away.
"I don't even know what to say anymore." Ruko blinked. That was strange. Darkness always had something weird to say. Before he could question it further—
SLAM!
A gavel struck. Sena stood from her seat. The entire courtroom became silent. "Enough." Her voice echoed throughout the chamber. She glared directly at Ruko.
"Ruko Satou." Ruko smiled. "Listen babe—" "DO NOT call me that." "When did you become my sweetheart then?" "I DIDN'T." "Just now."
Several nobles nearly choked. Even Kazuma buried his face in his hands. Sena looked seconds away from committing murder. Unfortunately for her, murder was illegal. Probably.
"Ruko Satou." "What? Want me to carry you home so we can have our honeymoon." "Shut up." "...Okay." For five seconds. Then—
"Can I ask—" "NO."
"..."
The courtroom somehow felt tired already. Sena took a deep breath. Then finally began.
"Today, this court will determine whether Ruko Satou is innocent or guilty regarding multiple suspicious incidents connected to recent events."
Ruko frowned. "Guilty or not? What incidents?" "You'll answer questions." "That's concerning." "We begin now."
A magical bell was placed beside her. Its surface glowed faintly. The Lie Detection Bell. A famous magical tool. Sena pointed toward it.
"First question." Ruko felt nervous. Not because he was guilty. Because he was terrible at lying.
"Where were you during the Devil King's invasion?"
Ruko immediately thought: (Well shit.) Outwardly he smiled. "Simple." Everyone watched.
"I was fighting on Axel's frontlines and helping the adventurers." The crowd exploded. "Liar!" "No way!" "Impossible!"
Sena raised a hand. Silence. Everyone stared at the bell. Nothing happened. No ringing. No reaction. The statement was true. The crowd became confused.
Ruko smirked. "What happened? Reality not matching your fanfiction?" Several citizens looked offended. Kazuma sighed.
"Why do you always make things worse?" "It's a natural talent." Sena continued.
"Second question." Ruko braced himself. "After the invasion, where did you go?" "I pursued one of the Devil King's Generals."
Murmurs spread again. "Which General?" Sena asked. "The black-haired one." Several adventurers froze. "You mean Serena?" "Yeah." "And why?"
Ruko pointed toward Kazuma. "Because she was trying to kill that buffoon." "HEY!"
The bell remained silent. Truth. Again. Sena frowned. "Continue."
"When she entered Arcanretia her powers weakened because of the city's divine influence." Aqua proudly puffed her chest. "See? My city!" "No one asked."
Aqua deflated. "Mean..." "The point is," Ruko continued, "there wasn't much reason to finish her off at the time."
Again. The bell remained silent. Truth. The crowd became increasingly uncomfortable. Every answer so far had been true. Yet something felt wrong.
Sena narrowed her eyes. Then came the final question. The atmosphere changed. Even Ruko felt it. The courtroom suddenly became heavier.
"Third question." The room became completely silent. Sena stared directly into his eyes. "Did you participate in the battle involving a name Devilness?" Ruko swallowed. "...Yes."
The bell remained silent. Truth. "And what happened to the Devil King's Castle?" The question hit harder. Much harder.
Sweat rolled down Ruko's forehead. Because this answer mattered. If he answered incorrectly—Everything would go wrong. Ruko forced himself to stay calm.
"I fought Devilness." Silence. True. "The castle..." His thoughts raced. "I don't know exactly what happened." His heart pounded. "My memory around that time is foggy."
The bell remained silent. For one second. Two seconds. Three—DING. Everyone froze. Ruko froze. DING. The bell rang again. Sena frowned. "A malfunction?..."
DING.
DING.
DING.
The ringing grew louder. More violent. The bell shook. Cracks spread across its surface. Ruko's eyes widened. "Uh..."
DINGDINGDINGDING—BOOM!
The bell exploded. Pieces scattered across the courtroom. Silence. Absolute silence. Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Every eye slowly turned toward Ruko. Cold. Suspicious. Angry. Ruko felt a bad feeling forming in his stomach. A very bad feeling.
"Wait..." No one answered. "Hold on." Still nothing. Then somebody shouted.
"LIAR!" Another voice followed. "DEVIL!" "TRAITOR!" "MONSTER!" "DEVIL KING'S SPAWN!"
The accusations came from every direction. Like arrows. Like knives. Like stones. Ruko looked around. People he had never met. People he had helped. People he had saved. All staring at him with hatred.
Even some adventurers looked uncertain. His hands clenched. The chains rattled. For the first time in a long while—Ruko felt alone.
Sena looked troubled. Kazuma looked shocked. Megumin looked confused. Darkness looked uncomfortable. The entire courtroom had become chaos. Then—
A voice echoed through the chamber. Smooth. Mocking. Familiar. "Well, well, well..." Ruko froze. His pupils shrank. No. Not her.
Slowly, he turned around. The massive courtroom doors stood open. A woman stepped inside. A grin stretched across her face. The moment Ruko recognized her, his expression paled.
"...Luna."
The woman laughed softly. "Did you enjoy seeing everyone turn against you?" The courtroom fell silent once more. And for the first time since waking up—Ruko felt that something far worse than a trial was about to begin. To Be Continued...