Early the next morning
"Thank you for arriving on such short notice, Magistrate." Spoke an elderly man in his sixties with a deep bow.
"No need to be so formal village chief." replied a young man flanked by a dozen soldiers. "I was already in the area, so it's only right that I come as soon as possible when I received your message."
The Magistrate, who appeared to be about 20, demonstrated the bearing of an experienced official.
"Would you care for some wine before-"
"No. just bring me to the victims so I can begin my investigation. Time is short and I have a lot of work ahead of me." said the Magistrate
"Yes, of course. Whatever the Magistrate desires. Luka, Kenn, Ves!" shouted the village chief "Tell him everything that happened in that incident. don't leave anything out."
The trio stepped forward and gave a deep bow. while they were usually arrogant trouble makers in the village of Lorik, before someone with real power, all they could do was humble themselves.
Luka was the one who retold the story of the altercation with Ethan. Of course, being the villian he was, the entire thing was filled with lies designed to make him seem like a vile troublemaker.
If one were to believe Luka's version of the story, then he and his followers had simply tried to engage Ethan in conversation. But when they noticed him acting suspiciously, they attempted to question him. Little did Luka and the others know that Ethan would violently attack them. Even going so far as to threaten to kill them if they came back.
"....."
"M-magistrate?" Th village chief asked when he saw no response to Luka's story.
Because they were in the same boat, when he had heard of the failed extortion and subsequent defeat of Luka and his goons, he had devised the strategy of using the Magistrate to get revenge. If He didn't believe Luka, and thus dug deeper, they could all be punished severely for lying to an official. Perhaps even to the point of being branded as slaves.
"Take me to this person. I will get to the bottom of this." said the young magistrate.
"Of course! right this way." replied the chief before leading leading him towards the Blue Moon Inn.
Back at the Blue Moon Inn
Ethan and Amira were discussing their plans for the day while they ate breakfast. As they had already seen pretty much the whole village yesterday, they weren't sure what to do.
Ms. B who was wiping down a nearby table heard her chance to add something "If you're looking for something to do, you could always go see the Field of Dreams." She suggested with a smile
"Field of Dreams? what's that?" Asked Amira, her curiosity clearly piqued
"The Field of Dreams is a local wonder. Just outside the north gate, on a hill covered in wildflowers, there stands a large oak tree. Legend has it that if you go there alone and put your hand on the tree, you will be shown a vision of your soul mate. But if you go with your partner and you both place your hands on it, if your truly destined for each other, the magic in the tree will grant you a gift."
"Wow! Is that true?!" Amira squealed in excitement. He eyes were filled with shining stars.
"Of course, I told you I was never wrong about these things didn't I?"
Ethan simply sat and smiled as he listened to the ladies conversation.
Eventually, Amira and Ms. B finished speaking about the mysterious field.
"So, should we go?" He asked
"You don't mind?"
"Of course not. I'm as curious as you about that place." Ethan replied
"Then I'll be back after I change." Amira said as she ran back up to the room.
As he watched her small figure hurry up the stairs, Ethan stood up and stretched his arms. He was going to ask Ms. B a question when suddenly the door to the inn swung open.
"Oh no...it's the village chief..." Ms. B said anxiously
Ethan furrowed his brow deeply when he heard her words. But when he saw a group approaching he frowned. Ethan recognized 3 of them immediately.
Luka and his lackeys followed behind an elderly man and young looking man in scarlet robes.
"That's him." Said Luka shakily while pointing at Ethan. He was still sore from the blow he had received yesterday.
"What is your name?" Asked the village chief
Ethan looked at Ms. B, ignoring the old man's question, and whispered "Do mind looking after Amira for a bit?"
Ms. B quickly nodded and disappeared up the stairs.
"Did you not hear me?! I said what-"
"What's it to you old man?" Ethan bit back cutting him off.
"You..how dare you speak to me that way!" Said the chief, his face red with anger.
Ethan simply stared a hole in to the old man. He had already heard that the chief of this village was on the take from Ms. B yesterday. Because of this fact he had no respect for the men before him. The only one he wasn't sure about was the young man in red.
"Settle down village chief." the young man said as he took a step forward to look Ethan in the eye.
"My name is Virgil Derrean. I am a Magistrate of the Law for the Kingdom of Syrena." he said. "May I have your name?"
This was the first time Virgil had ever introduced himself first before asking someone their name. Perhaps it was his impressive stature, as he had never met someone taller than himself, or his imposing aura. Whatever it was, he had been impressed from the get go.
Ethan thought about how to respond. Would it be better to use his full name or just his first name? after a moment he decided to reveal who he was.
"My Name is Ethan. Ethan Romulus Specter." he stated plainly.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of a Kingdom Magistrate coming to find me?"
When Virgil heard his name, his eyes went wide.
'A Titled name?!' He shouted internally 'This kid is Royalty?!'
'Shit! we're totally screwed!' thought the village chief
Luka, Kenn, and Ves began to sweat profusely. They had thought with a Magistrate on their side nothing could go wrong. Now that idea was up in smoke!
"Sir, I was asked to come and adjudicate an incident that occurred yesterday that involved yourself and those three over there." Virgil said indicating the three hoodlums.
"May I ask if it is true that you attacked these gentlemen unprovoked?"
Ethan gave the three a quick glance before asking "Is that what they told you? That I attacked unprovoked?"
Virgil nodded his head slowly.
He had initially been slightly suspicious of Luka's story as it is uncommon for a single person to defeat three men in a fight, let alone to attack for no reason. But looking at Ethan, he was sure this man could defeat 3, maybe 4 people by himself.
"That accusation is false." Ethan finally said.
"Is that so? Then would you please explain what happened, from your point of view?"
"Firstly, I'd like to ask, what would be the punishment for certain individuals who attempted to extort, assault, and falsely accuse two innocent people?" Ethan asked curiously
"Two people? It wasn't just you involved?" Virgil asked
"No sir. My fiancee, Amira, was also present."
"Then I would say, if those things truly did happen, at minimum the punishment would be enslavement and harsh labor. At most, death."
"Then this is what happened..."
Ethan told the Magistrate everything that had happened yesterday. Down to the last detail.
By the time he was done listening, Virgil was furious. As a man who dedicated his life to justice, he could not abide by such wrongdoing. Add to that the fact he had been lied to and used, he could barely contain himself.
Virgil turned and stared daggers at the four men who had accompanied him.
"What do you have to say for yourselves?"
The village chief went ghostly pale "Y-you don't actually believe him do you? He's obviously lying!"
"Right! He's lying! he just wants to push the blame on to us!" cried Luka
"It seems those two don't agree with you." said Virgil pointing at Ves and Kenn.
Ves had a steady stream of urine running down his leg, obviously terrified.
Kenn was on all fours, again, begging for forgiveness "It was their idea...their idea..." he muttered.
"I think I've seen enough here. Captain! arrest these sinners!" Virgil shouted. Soon a group of lightly armoured soldiers flooded in and apprehended the group.
Once the soldiers had escorted the criminals out Virgil said "I apologize for bringing all this unpleasantness to your day. If you would please forgive me-"
"There's no need for an apology. It all worked out in the end." Ethan assured.
"If that's how it is, I'll leave it be. However, if there's anything you need in the future, just let me know. Or if you run into any trouble later, just use my name. At the least, it should buy you some leniency."
After a exchanging some parting words, Magistrate Virgil left the Blue Moon to go handle the punishments of the chief, Luka, Ves and Kenn.
Ethan returned to his room to check on Amira. When he opened the door a small female figure leapt into his embrace.
"You're okay! I was so worried!" cried Amira between sobs
"It's okay. I took care of everything." He said in a hushed tone, and patting her head gently.
"I'll leave you two alone." Ms. B said as she made her way out. "I'm glad you're safe." she added before finally returning downstairs.