IN THE NAME OF THE CONJURERS
Slowan town or village was just a small town in the kingdom of Nymera, which was itself at the fringe of the main continent, a nation uncared for and unbothered by the advanced civilizations of the Ten-Kingdoms.
Michonn, the baron of the town, despite all his arrogance, was well aware of his place in this world.
"How did you get the magic armor that you gave to Raven and Bommurs?" Wilmonn asked me politely this time.
"I made the armor myself", I replied to the Baron.
"Preposterous how can you a young apprentice make such an armor", the Baron shouted out with disbelief, unable to contain his displeasure with my insolence and arrogance.
"It's not hard because it wasn't made, it was only sewed", I told the court as the court was puzzled.
"What do you mean it was sewed?" the Baron asked me.
"Well, you must have never even looked at the armor", I told the Baron as he quickly asked for Raven's armor to be brought out as evidence to inspect it.
One of the village elders came to inspect the armor.
"This armor is made from serpent skin, at least a Mercury tier beast", the village judge proclaimed to the shock of everyone in the hall.
"What? a Mercury Tier?" Caelum asked in shock.
"Even the best hunters in Slowan have not killed a Mercury Tiered beast for a very long time, not even in our memory", another hunter who came with Caelum screamed out in shock at hearing about it.
While templars were classed in the magical tiers of planetary system, powerful magical creatures were similarly classed.
"What is Mercury tiered creature? Never heard of it before", Michonn shouted to disagree with the elder.
"The Conjurer's Court of Drachia has given classifications and tiers to powerful creatures through their experiences in dealing with them and this skin on the armor is from a Tanith, a serpent classified as Mercury tier on the Drachia scale", the elder replied to him.
"I don't believe you, there is no such thing", Michonn disregarded the elder's reasoning and explanation.
"It's all written in this book, the Classification of Magical Creatures", Caelum told the court as he brought out a volume of bound pages.
The book was the Classification of Magical Creatures, which designated a Tanith as a Mercury tiered creature.
"And how did you come across this valuable leather?" Wilmonn asked me.
The court was expecting that I tell them that I got the serpent skin from my Conjurer Master, but I told them the truth, "I killed the Tanith myself and took out its skin".
The town hall was shocked by my revelations and rose up in disagreement.
"How did a thirteen-year-old kill a Tanith?", those in the court asked and wondered among themselves.
"Silence", the judge of the court ordered the people to shut up before the trial of Raven continues.
"You must have stolen this treasure from somewhere", Baron Wilmonn accused me again without a shred of proof.
"Where is your proof?" I asked the Baron.
"The proof is with the hunters. None of them caught a Mercury Tiered serpent for a very long time and definitely not a Tanith", Baron Wilmonn replied to me as Caelum and his hunters held their heads low, acknowledging the baron's words.
"Who told you that the Tanith skin came from the hunters?" I asked the baron.
"See, you must have stolen it", he accused me again.
"Moron, if it doesn't come from the hunters then it is considered stolen. What about that bloody belt on you and your shiny leather thongs? Those didn't come from the hunters, you must have stolen them from someone", I accused the Baron of stealing to the shock of the entire court.
The Baron was also wearing magical armor made from some powerful and exotic creatures. He didn't have the armor made locally. He probably bought it from the shops in a larger town.
"You..", the Baron wanted to say something to me but refrained from doing so at the last minute.
He wasn't my match when it came to litigating the case, not with my position as the Apprentice Conjurer being made known to the court. He also didn't want to have any grudges with the Conjurer's if the matter wasn't resolved properly.
So, the baron pointed to the village judges to continue with the trial of Raven.
"You must prove to us where you got the Tanith leather otherwise it must be considered stolen", the village judge said to me.
"How can I prove it to you if I was alone when I killed the Tanith?" I asked the court.
"See, he's lying", Michonn shouted to the court.
"Then there is no proof that you acquired the armor legally", the elder told me.
"Stupid moron", I shouted back at the judge to his shock and horror.
Controlling his anger he asked me back, "What is so stupid about what I just said?"
"Look at the bloody seal on the armor. It had my seal on it", I told the judge.
"That doesn't prove you didn't steal the serpent skin", he replied to me before the baron stopped him to let me continue.
"An artifact once sealed by a seal of the Conjurer's Court of Drachia is deemed an artifact of value, authorised and legal in all the regions of the Ten-Kingdoms", I told the court as I held out a large volume of book before them.
"What is this?" the judge asked me.
"The Compendium of the Conjurer's Court of Drachia, you moron", I replied to him.
"Yes, this matter of theft is resolved. There is no theft involved", Wilmonn suddenly spoke to the shock of the court.
Wilmonn, being the baron of the town, wasn't illiterate and he knew what was written in the Compendium.
If an artifact was deemed legal by the Conjurer's Court, it is deemed to be legal for use throughout the Ten-Kingdoms and its legality could not be questioned by any court. Whether the materials taken to make the artifact was illegally obtained doesn't matter at all.
"I don't understand, how did materials of doubtful origin become suddenly legal and unquestionable if it was made by Conjurers?" Caelum asked us.
"That is a story for another time", I replied to him.
Suffice to say, people who obtain treasures illegally will launder them with the seal of the Conjurers, which approves their authenticity for resale. Without, the Conjurer's court, it would be difficult for nations who plunder other nations, to resell the spoils of war in the open market.
"That may prove the serpent skin used to make the armor is not stolen but it is possible that you stole the armor from your master", the judge accused me again.