Men in Black Robes pt 2

The men in black robes!

Jutio gasped in surprise. Not even his father believed him when he told his father about them. Who told the archduke about them? How did the archduke know what he saw? Did his father tell the archduke about his story?

The child then clenched his fists and spoke louder as if desperate. "Your Grace, Your Grace, I know what I saw! Those men in black robes would touch the stands and set it ablaze with their bare hands! Kali went after them, but the marketplace was suddenly on fire!

"Father didn't believe me when I said I saw them burning wood with no torches! It's just their hands!"

Miel murmured to himself and went to the side to instruct a servant about something. Artie caught that action, but she was more interested in how Larkin knew about the men in black robes. Could it be that he could really understand animals like she did? How did he get that ability…?

'Stupid! Artie, how can you be stupid?!'

Artie then turned to Barda and asked in a whisper, "Marshal, is Lord Ellis… a demon?"

Barda wasn't expecting anything so bizarre to be asked by an angel. That was why he was definitely stunned. His brows frowned, and then he cleared his throat. How could an angel be ignorant?

In a soft voice, he answered, "Demons do not take impersonations lightly so don't ask such suggestive questions about them, milady.

"The archduke is only a demon descendant, cursed to wield magic that pulsed along the demon magic veins underneath the archduchy. Only those who could wield such magic have the right to rule a duchy or a territory.

"Without this magic ability, the demon emperors refused to acknowledge them as rulers of their own lands. Other nobles without this power had their lands—their ultimate birthright—revoked and relinquished to demons.

"That is the sad reality of the territories. Duchies, like Ellis Plains, are kept by their owners for this very reason as well."

Barda's explanation sounded like a round-about, but Artie was able to make out the important parts. All rulers of lands must have this ability to wield magic, or else the demon emperors would take away their lands and make their people suffer. The lands kept by their owners were called duchies.

However, her brows still frowned. 'If that's the only difference, then why is Ellis Plains an archduchy instead of just being called a duchy? The demons had no regard to the nobles' lineage, correct?'

The child continued to recount his story to the inquisition, Larkin listening without making any other noise. Because of this silence, Jutio felt the pressure of pouring out every little thing that he knew.

The witnesses didn't know what to believe. Only their archduke could wield magic in the land after all. If there were people who could set things ablaze through their hands, then… wouldn't the archduchy be in danger? Wouldn't the demon emperors intervene?

Finally, Larkin raised his hand and stopped Jutio from speaking through his gesture. Then, Miel cleared his throat and let someone walk into the defendant's floor, before the defendants themselves. The man had a black robe on top of his civilian clothing.

Silence. Even Jutio was puzzled why this man was here.

As if seeing a cue, the man walked out as soon as he was faced with silence. After him came another man. This time, he was wearing a silken black robe with strange lines embroidered into the fabric. He also had a black mask that hid most of his face. Only his mouth and chin were seen.

Bark! Kali got up and barked at the man. ["Strange… they look the same, but… something's amiss..."] Nonetheless, Kali barked as if confused about something. However, she was on an alerted stance.

"Eh? Why is the dog barking? What's with that appearance?"

"Huh? Now that I've seen it again..."

"What a scary-looking man. The guards allowed him to get inside the castle?"

"The dog didn't seem to be angry at all..."

Artie was puzzled herself. The dog was reacting differently to something that should be the same for a dog. Then again, there was confusion in her voice. 'Can this dog feel magic? If those men could set things on fire, then they should be able to wield magic. Kali could feel that the magic is missing?'

She then turned to Barda to ask again, but she was alerted by that frustrated look in his eyes. It was as if Barda knew what that masked man was supposed to be. Moreover, the person who arranged for this was also making a very disgruntled look. Miel never looked so aggravated.

'What is this? Is this supposed to be a uniform?' Artie stared at the seneschal and tried to hide herself as she used her Gaze of Confession on him.

["How could this be? Is it because of Lady Shen's arrival? No, we were so careful about the fact that she's an angel. Could it be that they were already watching us? Why is that?"]

Chatters echoed in the Audience Hall as Kali reacted to the masked man. None of them recognized the black robes as a uniform unlike those from Larkin's court. To them, it seemed to be the same as the man earlier, if not for the grotesque-looking mask.

However, they were all silenced when Larkin got to his feet. He walked down the steps of the throne and gestured for the masked man to leave. Everyone thought he was going to pass judgment on the child-dog pair… now that he had risen from his seat.

It's just that… he walked right past them, his eyes directly regarding the witnesses. Moreover, he walked past the knights and into the crowd. The people parted as he approached them, not knowing why the archduke was getting close to them—the common folk.

"You..." Larkin gestured to a man who seemed to be one of the merchants in the marketplace. Being singled out by the archduke made the commoner suddenly prostate as if he suddenly begged for his life. However, he didn't get a word in before Larkin spoke again.

"You said you saw 'it'..."

The man twitched. He lifted his head in shock. He indeed murmured about seeing something similar, but to be heard in the crowd filled with chattering? The man bowed down again. "Your Grace! I swear I didn't mean to… I just thought I saw someone wearing the same clothes at the harbor last night…

"I was fetching my brother who worked in the harbor for a drink when I noticed that man walking around. It was night, very dark in the harbor. I thought I was hallucinating. My brother arrived shortly so I didn't know where he went."

"Harbor..." Larkin then turned around and walked back towards the throne. However, his next words sent chills and terror to the people in the Audience Hall. "Lock down the plains. I want every registered citizen accounted for. Bring all visitors to me."