The capital’s royal prison was not built underground.
It was built above the city—
so that everyone could see it.
A massive circular court of black stone rose like a crown over the capital, banners hanging from every pillar. Each banner carried a different color, each one heavy with authority.
At the highest point of the court—
The black flag of the Kingdom.
Below it, arranged in a half-circle, were eight other flags, each hanging behind a raised seat carved from ancient stone.
Silver.
Gold.
Blue.
Yellow.
Red.
Green.
Pink.
Grey.
And standing before them—
Two kneeling figures in sealed restraints.
Akitsu Shouga and Kael Ardent.
Chains of suppression wrapped around their arms, legs, and necks, glowing faintly as they drained strength, magic, and spirit alike. Every movement felt like wading through deep water.
Akitsu kept his head lowered.
Kael did not.
The crowd was enormous.
Nobles.
Scholars.
Military officers.
Academy students forced to watch.
And near the front—
Renjiro and Rikuya Ryozen.
Rikuya’s hands trembled as she clutched her husband’s sleeve. Renjiro stood rigid, jaw clenched, eyes locked onto Akitsu and Kael.
Between them—
Kaoru.
She looked pale. Awake. Alive.
Her eyes met Akitsu’s for only a second.
He looked away.
A voice echoed through the court.
“Begin the tribunal.”
The speaker sat beneath the silver flag.
Itsuki Shiraishi, headmaster of Fiester Academy.
Her posture was calm, composed—but her eyes were sharp, burning with restrained fury.
“To judge students without hearing their intent,” Itsuki said,
“is to abandon the purpose of education itself.”
A scoff came from beneath the red flag.
A broad-shouldered man leaned forward, fingers interlocked.
“Intent does not resurrect the dead, Shiraishi.”
Another voice followed, cold and smooth, from beneath the gold flag.
“Twenty-three royal guards lie dead. One noble estate destroyed. If this is not treason, then what is?”
Kael finally spoke.
“They were torturing a civilian.”
The blue-flagged figure—a woman with sharp eyes and braided hair—tilted her head.
“And how many must die to justify one rescue, Hero?”
Akitsu raised his head slowly.
“All of them,” he said quietly.
A ripple ran through the crowd.
Itsuki’s eyes snapped to him.
“Akitsu—”
The grey-flagged figure interrupted.
“This one shows no remorse.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Akitsu met their gaze.
“I regret nothing,” he said.
“But I accept the consequences.”
Kaoru gasped softly.
Rikuya’s breath hitched.
The green-flagged headmaster leaned forward, voice thoughtful.
“Then answer this, Akitsu Shouga.
If every man decided his own justice…
what remains of the Kingdom?”
Akitsu was silent for a moment.
Then—
“A graveyard,” he replied.
“But an honest one.”
The pink-flagged figure laughed nervously.
“This is absurd! He’s just a boy!”
The yellow-flagged headmaster slammed their staff against the stone.
“Enough.”
A pause.
Then a new presence announced itself.
Two figures stepped out from the shadows behind the tribunal.
One wore dark attire, immaculate, timeless. His eyes were calm, calculating—as though measuring something unseen.
The other was harder to focus on.
Every time one tried to look directly at him, their gaze slipped—like trying to remember a dream.
The crowd fell silent.
Even the flags seemed to still.
The calm man spoke first.
“Execution,” he said gently,
“is an efficient solution.”
The other chuckled softly.
“But inefficient consequences.”
Itsuki stiffened.
“These proceedings do not require—”
“We are only observers,” the calm man said, smiling faintly.
“Continue.”
The tribunal hesitated.
Then—
The black flag shifted as a royal decree was unrolled.
“Akitsu Shouga,” the herald announced,
“is hereby sentenced to public execution at dawn, three days from now.”
Gasps erupted.
Rikuya collapsed into Renjiro’s arms.
Kaoru screamed.
“No!!”
Kael surged forward against his restraints.
“Then execute me too.”
Silence.
The gold-flagged figure spoke.
“You will be.”
A murmur spread—fearful, uncertain.
Itsuki stood.
“If you execute them,” he said slowly,
“you will fracture the academies.”
The blue flag fluttered.
The green flag wavered.
The silver flag shone brightly.
“Students are watching,” Itsuki continued.
“Teachers are watching.
Heroes are watching.”
The calm observer laughed softly.
“How interesting.”
The unfocused one leaned closer to him.
“Do you feel it?” he whispered.
“Something is already moving.”
Far below the court—
Vines cracked stone.
Students whispered.
Uniforms clenched fists.
Akitsu closed his eyes.
Three days.
The world was watching.
And somewhere deep within the Kingdom—
Something had begun to answer back.
