Chapter 337: The Trial

“Noah Webb, did you or did you not bring the monolith into reality?” Edric asked.

Memories of Lady in Dark whispering of a way to get the Mana Leech out of his body rose up unbidden in his mind, and before he could even say anything, the pain hit.

“Arrgghhhh!” Noah couldn’t help but scream as pain lanced through his skull, making him feel as if someone was sending spikes into his brain.

His vision turned white as he felt something rippling through his memories with the grace of a bull in a china shop. The force seized every memory related to monoliths, not caring what it damaged.

It finally found the memories of the dragon monolith, tracing it back to the memory of that day in the infirmary.

After what felt like hours, the force retreated, having satisfied its curiosity.

Noah was left gasping for breath, head pounding with the worst headache he’d ever had. Blood slowly dropped down his nose.

His vision slowly cleared, and he became aware of the mage’s hands still on his shoulder.

It was her. She’d been the one rippling through his memories.

His eyes widened in horror as he realized what was happening. They weren’t there to give him a chance to explain himself. They were there to rip what they wanted directly from his head. The questions were simply to bring the relevant memories to the forefront of his mind.

Edric’s voice filled the air as he asked the second question.

“Were you part of the coordinated attack on the Royal Academy of Magic?”

Noah had been aware there was going to be an attack. After all, why else would Lady in Dark want the wards of the academy gone? But he hadn’t been an active participant.

However, memories of Lady in Dark rose as he thought about the attack. It was like when someone tells you not to think of an elephant. You end up thinking about it.

Once again, the force slammed into his brain, moving through his memories without mercy. It went on a tangent on Lady in Dark, unearthing every memory related to her.

After thirty more agonizing seconds, the force withdrew,. leaving Noah breathing heavily where he sat.

Edric didn’t stop. “Are you planning or are part of any group or organization planning any attack or movement that would be detrimental to the kingdom of Camelot?”

The force slammed into him again, and a scream of pain tore through his throat. It searched for any relevant memories to answer the question that had been posted, and after satisfying its curiosity, left his mind.

“Are you affiliated with or support demons or any demon related groups within or outside of Camelot?”

Again, the force slammed into his brain, giving him no respite. And so, the trial continued, except there was no defence, and there was certainly no mercy.

***

Council chamber

Inside the council chamber, the different council members were gathered, whispering furiously among themselves.

Thomas Ramsay, First Premier of Camelot, stood alone. He was dressed neatly, his broad shoulders covered by a dark coat, his salt and pepper hair neatly combed back.

His softly glowing purple eyes swept through the room, taking in the atmosphere.

Whether the members were aware of it or not, the room was currently divided. The hybrids congregated around the left side of the room, while the normal mages whispered among themselves on the right side of the room, sending glances at their counterparts.

As a hybrid himself, he knew the other hybrids were counting on him, while the normal mages would be looking to Edric to spearhead whatever agenda they had.

This divide between hybrids and mages had already existed since that fateful night of the Winter Ball, but the incident that had happened the previous night simply made it worse.

After the dead attackers in the academy had been accounted for, it had been discovered that all of them were hybrids, with no exceptions. They hadn’t been able to capture any one of them alive, so the only fact they had was that the perpetrators were hybrids.

They could only come to the conclusion that these were the same people that had poisoned the drinks during the Winter Ball. They still hadn’t been caught.

After Thomas had verified that his son had survived the incident, he’d turned his attention to figuring out how to navigate this incident. And that meant going on the attack.

The double doors to the chamber were thrown open, and High Magus Edric walked in, his eyes cold, and each step sending his aura radiating around him.

Thomas allowed a small smile slip onto his face at the sight, before heading to his seat around the roundtable.

The other members took their seats, and when everyone was seated, he couldn’t help but raise his brows at the sitting arrangements.

The hybrids occupied one half of the roundtable and the mages occupied the other half. And unintentionally, he found himself seated opposite Edric.

As was the duty of his role as First Premier, Ramsay commenced the meeting. “Let us begin.”

And before Edric could speak, he continued.

“A great tragedy has befallen Camelot. The Royal Academy of Magic has been attacked, putting the future generations of our kingdom in great danger. But before we begin any other things, there is one question we must get an answer to.”

“Who brought down the academy wards?”

Every eye in the room turned to Edric. He was the one in charge of the investigation.

Of course, Ramsay knew the answer to that question, but he needed to ask it if he wanted to keep the focus of the meeting today away from the subject of hybrids.

Edric cleared his throat, leaning forward slightly. He held Ramsay’s gaze as he spoke.

“After extensive investigation, we have determined the leader of the attack to be the Lady in Dark, the same person sighted at the Winter Ball.”

At that, whispers exploded around the room.

“Her again?! These are the same people that created the hybrids, are they not?”

“I knew it! There’s no way a mage would become part demon and still be perfectly sane.”

Ramsay’s hand twitched, but he gave no other visible reaction. ’I should have known that Edric would find a way to bring the topic back to hybrids.’

But he could still drag the conversation in the direction he wanted.

He spoke again, subtly raising his voice. “That was not the answer to the question I asked, High Magus, so I’ll ask again. Who tore the rift for the dragon monolith to enter reality and destroy the wards of the academy?”

Silence filled the air.

Then Edric answered.

“Noah Webb.”

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