Chapter 56: Night Raid Wants to Join, Is a God Emerging in This World?
In the Tribunal that resembled an opera theater, every seat in the audience was filled. The God of Justice sat at the highest point, watching as the sinner was judged for their crimes.
Before the god, the sinner's desperate attempts at excuses were laid bare. As the trial progressed, the sinner's hysterical ugliness and all the evidence of their crimes were fully displayed before the audience.
The angered cries of the spectators reverberated throughout the Tribunal.
"Kill him!"
"Let him die!"
"Tear him apart!"
"Death penalty!"
The audience's unwavering and unified will filled the opera house.
Among the audience, the members of Night Raid were deeply shaken as they watched this worldview-shattering scene.
Is this what a true judgment of justice looks like?
All the evidence of the sinner's crimes was revealed to the people, their collective will determined the guilt or innocence, and the law rendered the final verdict.
Neither the empire nor the Revolutionary Army had ever created laws that truly served the people—they existed only to serve the empire or the Revolutionary Army itself.
The God of Justice had returned the power of determining right and wrong to the people, leaving the law to execute the final judgment.
Wasn't this equivalent to saying that the people were the true masters of this world?
A solemn voice cut through the furious cries, pulling Night Raid out of their thoughts.
"Silence!"
The Arbiter, referred to as the Hydro Dragon Sovereign by the God of Justice, spoke.
"Now, the trial is concluded. Under the supervision of the God of Justice, this Arbiter shall deliver the final verdict."
"Bolic, the defendant, is found guilty of abusing his religious position to deceive, extort, and defile numerous women. He sold many of them to brothels in the Imperial Capital, exploited and plundered the people's wealth."
"I hereby sentence you to death. Effective immediately."
The stern pronouncement caused Bolic, already hysterical and despairing, to faint from sheer terror.
"Yes! Ohhhh!"
The crowd erupted in a thunderous roar of approval, their cheers filling the entire opera house.
At the moment of the final verdict, the lingering darkness and injustice in the hearts of the people were swept away completely.
Clorinde, her expression cold, stepped forward and signaled to the members of the Maison Gardiennage to remove Bolic. "Take him away. Execute the death sentence!"
Her heart was ablaze with fury, burning as though it would consume her entirely.
Despite her many years in Fontaine's law enforcement, even the most detestable trials she had ever witnessed were not one-tenth as heinous as this one.
If not for the need to publicly execute this beast before the people, she would have shot him full of holes with her gun right then and there.
Under the watchful eyes of the city's citizens, Bolic's head was severed from his body, marking the conclusion of the first trial. The people's cheers resounded across the entire city.
The suffocating gloom that had shrouded the city was entirely lifted, as though it were bathed in constant sunlight.
After the trial, the Maison Gardiennage and the Special Security and Surveillance Patrol Forces swiftly took control of the city's order. The faithful of the Path of Peace cooperated enthusiastically, harboring not a single thought of seeking power for themselves.
It must be said that the leader of the Path of Peace was indeed a very clever man.
Under the active cooperation of the Path of Peace, the entire city was sealed off, preventing any sinners from escaping.
After the city was locked down, the Opera Epiclese began ten days of non-stop, sleepless trials.
The citizens submitted requests for judgment to the Maison Gardiennage, and the judges reviewed these petitions.
Meanwhile, the Maison Gardiennage and the Special Security and Surveillance Patrol Forces scoured the city, capturing and pursuing sinners to bring them before the court.
Every trial was conducted with absolute fairness and justice.
Witnessing trial after trial, the citizens came to deeply understand what true justice meant.
True justice was justice aligned with the will of the people.
Although the law enforcement officers relentlessly apprehended sinners across the city, creating an atmosphere of fear and severity, the streets were still filled with laughter and cheer.
Everywhere, people discussed the sentences, the justice meted out, and the rulings of the god and the supreme arbiter.
The sinners, driven to hysteria, were publicly executed in the squares, rapidly reducing the city's collective "sin value."
The members of Night Raid emerged from the audience after witnessing the 326th trial. They saw the joyful, lively streets and felt dazed.
In the face of true justice, they began to question the justice they had been pursuing.
Bulat looked at the streets filled with laughter and cheer. He had never seen such a sight before. He clenched his fists and asked, "Boss, do you think the Revolutionary Army is truly just?"
"While I believe what I've been doing is just, is the Revolutionary Army itself just?"
He turned his gaze toward Najenda as he spoke.
Mine pressed her lips together and also looked at Najenda. Having seen true justice, this city felt like a paradise beyond her wildest dreams.
She had fought so that children like her wouldn't have to suffer discrimination, dreaming of a nation where everyone was equal and fair.
Now, it seemed such a nation already existed here.
Najenda didn't answer. Compared to the empire, the Revolutionary Army could claim justice if it offered the people relatively less exploitation. But compared to the city touched by the God of Justice, even the Revolutionary Army was steeped in sin.
Leone crossed her arms and laughed heartily. "Hahaha, Boss, your silence is as good as admitting it."
"I joined Night Raid because I couldn't stand the nobles in the capital. I wanted to kill those bastards who bullied ordinary people."
"But compared to the Revolutionary Army, those guys"—she gestured at the enforcers of the Maison Gardiennage—"are the real justice. So, sorry, Boss. I want to leave Night Raid."
"Of course, I'll return the Imperial Arm the Revolutionary Army gave me."
At Leone's words, the already wavering hearts of Night Raid members were pushed closer to abandoning the Revolutionary Army.
Akame looked at the Maison Gardiennage enforcers capturing criminals.
As a former member of the empire's assassination unit, she understood the empire's darkness. She also recognized how bright the city under the God of Justice truly was.
Turning back to Najenda, Akame spoke coolly: "Boss, I want to leave Night Raid as well and join them," she said, pointing to the Maison Gardiennage's enforcers.
Bulat looked apologetically at Najenda, scratching his spiked hair. "I'm sorry, Boss, but I feel the same way."
Najenda took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I understand."
The Revolutionary Army was originally seen as justice. However, now that true justice had been witnessed, those who had joined the army for the sake of justice would naturally grow disillusioned upon realizing that their organization was not as righteous as they had thought.
Najenda understood that Night Raid had effectively ceased to exist the moment they arrived here.
"I'll inform the Revolutionary Army about this," she said, pausing before smiling faintly. "And then, I'll join here as well."
A woman with long purple hair that reached her waist rubbed her eyes and asked, "Did something happen?"
Her question broke the tension in the air.
Leone clapped Sheele heartily on the shoulder and laughed. "Pfft… Hahaha! Sheele, you're as clueless as ever, huh? Hahaha!"
…
Teyvat World
Celestia
"Well done. You've managed to complete the first step so quickly."
Noah sat on his throne, one leg crossed over the other, watching the live broadcast unfold.
The Human Realm Force System rapidly extended its influence over the Akame ga Kill world, extracting threads of faith and law from it.
"The strength of the laws in the Akame ga Kill world is only one tier below that of Teyvat. It's even capable of generating power comparable to that of a high-ranking god. Impressive."
A colorful thread of law appeared in his hand. With a casual grip, he condensed it into a Vision unique to the Akame ga Kill world, holding it in his palm before tossing it toward the world below.
The broadcast shifted to a scene showing a woman with long ice-blue hair radiating an ominous, murderous aura.
"I thought the world's power would peak at a lower-tier god level, but it seems that's not the case…"
"The Akame ga Kill world is in the process of ascending to a high-energy world. It only needs to fully manifest a god, and it will stand on the same level as Teyvat."
"Eighty percent of the world's rules are governed by ice, and twenty percent by time. Though its laws aren't as robust as Teyvat's, they already rival the strength of the first-generation Seven Archons of the Human World."
"If this were to consolidate into a proper authority, it could completely give rise to a new god."
With a wave of his hand, Noah opened a portal to the Akame ga Kill world before him.
"Ice and time laws are counterproductive for Furina and Neuvillette to face…"
"The combat power of the first-generation Archons shouldn't be allowed to interfere on the chessboard of the second-generation Archons."
Standing from his throne, a faint smirk curved his lips.
"Thus, I, the Heavenly Principle, shall personally oversee the matter."
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