Chapter 49 Chapter Forty-eight

There is no day or night here.I can't feel the passage of time.So, when I was awakened by the mermaid soldiers who came to summon us, washed up, and came to that terrible council court, I didn't know how long it had been.Maybe I've only slept an hour, maybe I've slept all day.Who knows?Little S and Emily, whose wounds have healed, are holding hands and standing in front of me refreshed; and D, who has been with me since yesterday.Ever since we came to the Demon Realm, after going through all of this, it is a miracle that a few people are unscathed, what else can I expect? Setus is also with us.His hair was freshly brushed and braided, and he wore the same long cloak as before, with a gold buckle.The shield on his arm that had appeared in the arena was nowhere to be found, and the armor on his body also disappeared.He looked completely normal, just like the normal boys I'd seen on the street.

But I know it's not common at all.Because the robe on his body is an extremely discordant white color, without a trace of the popular arabesque pattern on it, which makes it not look like an ordinary dress, but has a special function, just like when offering sacrifices. The sacrificial attire worn, or the kind of clothing the prisoner puts on before going to the execution ground, in short, clearly announced a very ominous purpose.And his expression is solemn and solemn, exaggerating a kind of absolute piety as if worshiping ancestors. This is not difficult to understand.Because the place we are going to is the highest court that is regarded as a holy place by the water elves.

I have never seen such a beautiful chapel.The white marble columns are inlaid with countless gold flowers and arabesques, and the brilliant stained glass in the graceful arched windows is shining.Because this is the highest position in the entire mermaid palace, the water surface above the head is almost within reach. The top wall of the chapel and the entire circular vault are completely submerged in the water, forming symmetrical and turbulent shadows among the colorful water waves. This is the closest to the sky, and the light is the brightest.The chapel was gleaming with water, and every corner was filled with sparkling light, and we had nowhere to hide.I raised my head, squinted my eyes, and saw that under the high arched windows, there were sacred icons entangled in aquatic plants.

But they are not icons. In the main hall, there are twelve long windows with vaulted tops that are symmetrical to each other, just like a collage of stained glass in a Buddhist niche, with twelve statues covered with water plants inlaid in the center.If you don't look carefully, you will definitely think that they are twelve lifelike marble statues, which have been eroded and blackened due to the passage of time and the washing and soaking of the water. But they are still active.Although they have been enshrined there for hundreds of thousands of years, the ends of their hands and feet have been weathered, and some even their faces have begun to blur, and gradually merged with the vaulted windows under their feet, almost turning into real stone statues, but They are still alive.

They are committee courts.The Twelve-Person Government that Cetus called, the highest legal institution, formulates and controls all underwater rules and regulations. They are our judges. In addition, there is a golden throne facing the gate.The mermaid girl we met before, the queen who let us go in the arena, is sitting here waiting for us.Her gown was also pure white, but woven of thin gold threads and pearls, which shone in the blinding light of the chapel.Her head was covered with a transparent silk veil, like a layer of golden mist, which isolated her whole body, as if publicly declaring her neutral position in court, giving people a strange sense of distance.

I couldn't help turning my head to look for Setus, I wanted to see his reaction.But again, he didn't even lift his head.It was as if he had changed completely. He lost all his bravery in the arena. I saw him hang his head and continue to count the shadows of the school of fish under his feet. His expression was so calm that he seemed to have put life and death aside. With a loud bang, the two heavy metal doors of the chapel closed behind me, symbolizing the beginning of the trial and completely isolating us from the outside world.The water waves above the head trembled rapidly with the sound, and the reflection of the light and water caused the entire marble structure of the inner hall to move accordingly, as if a giant beast from the ancient times suddenly woke up from a deep sleep.

But it is not the main hall itself that wakes up, but the Law Enforcer high above the twelve vaulted windows here.They opened their eyes in the entanglement of aquatic plants.At this moment, all the rays of light above our heads are concentrated on the five of us.Like a deep well, or a savage gleam of a giant flashlight in the dark. The gate has been closed, and the only exit is the glorious water above.But here is the kingdom of water. D might get away with winning in the arena, but no one can fight a merfolk in water.Our chances of survival are next to zero. The water waves above the head became turbulent again.A law enforcement officer on the left front took the lead in asking questions.

"State what happened to you in the arena." Every time he said a word, the water rippled, bringing out trembling light and shadow, and at the same time, the echo hit the stone wall, humming endlessly in the turbulent hall. I looked up, but they were so high and far away that I couldn't see his face or his movements from this angle, only the folds of his marbled robes, the damp crevices covered with ink. Green moss.His voice was so deep and hoarse that it made me think of those fossils buried deep under the sea. Before D could speak, Setus suddenly said: "I lost." He finally raised his head, but his eyes were not on the law enforcer who asked the question, but on the veiled queen opposite.He looked at her and said, "But my opponent spared my life."

"There is no forgiveness in the arena," said the enforcer. "I've never heard of such a law." D said disapprovingly, "The victor has the right to decide how to deal with the opponent." "Those are your rules, not ours. Everywhere has everywhere's law. And the laws are not to be defied." "If the loser dies..." Xiao S suddenly joined the conversation, "Then what will happen to the winner in your law?" "The victor shall be free," said the enforcer at once. "Whether he is a slave or a prisoner, he shall be acquitted of all previous crimes as a tribute to victory."

"Then you should let him go." Little S glanced at D and continued, "Instead of continuing to interrogate him here as a prisoner." "But he also broke our laws," said another enforcer. "He pardoned his opponents." "These two things are completely irrelevant. You see." Xiao S sighed deeply, and spread his hands helplessly, "Your law that cannot be violated has clearly stipulated that the winner is free to leave the arena. He follows It was not his fault that he violated your laws by forgiving his opponent. Those pickets in the arena had no laws engraved on them. He did so because he knew nothing of your laws. Retire On the one hand, his forgiveness didn't actually have any effect. Because the rules of the arena will not be changed just because of a stranger's unintentional words." Little S paused, and made a question about the position of the golden throne. He gestured and said his main point, "It is Her Majesty the Queen who truly forgives them. It is Her Majesty's kindness that allows us to miraculously stand here today and accept the trial of the committee."

It was obvious that Emily had told him everything that happened after Little S fell into a coma.But it wasn't this that surprised me.What amazes me is that racist, overjoyed little S, who has nothing in common with me and is boring, I used to hate him so much after the breakup, I never thought there would be a relationship between us Here's the situation—he's standing here with D, and he's actually defending the latter. In defense of all of our lives. The water waves above my head were turbulent again, and there were circles of ripples. I heard a small humming sound, like the steam on the road in hot summer, setting off wave after wave in the air.I know these judges are exchanging opinions, but I can't make out the meaning, as if they can just send voices that I can't hear into the water waves, and then they can talk to each other. "You're right." Finally, the buzzing in the hall ended, and an enforcer in front of us on the right cleared his throat and said clearly, "Your friend has already won the battle with bravery in the arena." His life, but you did not. According to our laws, you must be sent back to the arena again."