The courtroom was heavy with the suffocating tension of judgment.
Noah's mind was a whirlwind of rage, confusion, and betrayal as the young female Vanguard member stood up, taking a deep breath before addressing the court.
She was no older than him—third year, if he remembered correctly.
Her uniform was pristine, her posture rigid, a picture of conviction in stark contrast to Noah's disheveled state.
She held a notepad in her hand, eyes narrowing as she began to read.
"On the day of Noah Ashbourne's arrest, which was today, it was noted that despite his mana reserves being blocked by the [Mercurial Seal], he was able to tap into another energy source."
She said firmly, her voice ringing with an authority she clearly believed in.
"Our investigation confirmed that this energy did not originate from his natural reserves.
The tattoos visible on his back, which glowed red during the confrontation, strongly suggest the use of demonic magic.
This was further supported by residual traces of corrupted mana in the air at the scene."
There was a low murmur from the gallery as she continued.
Her gaze darted towards the judge, who gave a slight nod, signaling another attendant to step forward.
In his hands was a sleek, black device—a cylindrical object with glowing blue runes.
He moved toward Noah, who instinctively took a step back, but the manacles around his wrists tightened, forcing him in place.
"Bring it here," the judge ordered, his voice cold and final.
The device was held up to Noah's chest, and a light whirring sound filled the room.
The crystal at its core began to glow a deep, malevolent red—signaling demonic energy.
The courtroom gasped. It was irrefutable proof, undeniable to anyone present.
Noah's eyes narrowed, his mind racing.
He felt the weight of the device's implications, a confirmation that struck him like a physical blow. Find more to read at m_v l|-novelhall.net
He was drowning in a flood of accusations that all bore the weight of truth, but each was stripped of the context that could have exonerated him.
"Third," the judge read, "we have a report from Lorna Vex, a first-year student who testifies that Noah manipulated other students into acquiring rare and illegal artifacts for him, using his influence as a Vanguard member to coerce them."
The screen flashed again, this time showing transaction records linked directly to his account.
There it was—every interaction he had made, the purchase of rare magical items, the acquisition of forbidden texts.
They were all for his research, his desperate attempts to find out who was manipulating the academy from within.
Now, the documents had been altered, the dates changed, the context erased to paint a damning picture.
"Fourth," the judge said, "from Master Fabian Croll, a senior professor in the Magic Engineering Department.
He discovered that Noah had manipulated his access to restricted files in the department's archive, stealing sensitive blueprints for magical devices."
Again, the screen flashed
This time, the documents were unmistakable—blueprints for devices Noah had indeed looked at, but only in the hope of understanding the cult's hidden machinations.
How had they known?
How had they known which files to plant, which records to alter?
The thought made his skin crawl.
"And finally," the judge concluded, "a statement from Garth Hollister, an academy groundskeeper, who caught Noah in the restricted section of the woods surrounding the academy grounds.
Hollister reports seeing Noah near a summoning circle, attempting to activate it with a dark artifact in his hand."
The screen then flickered yet again showing the portrait photos of the individuals who had testified against him.
He remembered that night clearly—the desperate search for answers, the ritual he had found half-completed, trying to dismantle it before it could be used.
But the guard might have caught the moment when his hand hovered over the glowing sigils, the incriminating angle that spoke of intention rather than investigation.
The judge's voice was solemn, unyielding.
"With these five statements, the charges against Noah Ashbourne are clear. Let them be read for the record."