Chapter 51: Chapter 240

The Judgment of Evil

From a high tower, a handsome man with long, black hair watched as Fanel descended into chaos.

"The main event has only just started."

His face, painted with a grin of excitement, looked incredibly breathtaking under the moonlight of the three merged moons.

"It's time to send the failure at your side onto his next Loop, Ailette Rodeline."

✠

⟬«System» Warning. [Demon Lord Inferinos' Instant Judgment] is about to begin. Time remaining: 4 minutes, 59 seconds.⟭

I was separated from Tesilid when the dungeon sink swallowed me, but I had a feeling that my other colleagues from the knight division were somewhere nearby. The place I had arrived at was somewhat like a waiting room for sinners.

"W-where am I?"

"Hmm, ugh, urgh..."

"M-mommy... Mommy..."

The other humans in the room slowly started making noise as their ability to breathe returned after having their chests practically crushed by the presence of the Demon Lord, which no regular human could withstand. Cries of desperation could be heard all over the place, and the air smelled foul, as if someone had accidentally relieved themselves out of fright. However, strangely, I didn't hear anyone coughing.

I thought everyone here would have been infected with the respiratory disease from the dungeon drain. What is going on? This question was quickly answered, thanks to the demon who approached Inferinos to give her an update.

"Your Majesty the Great Demon Lord Inferinos..."

I couldn't see the demon's face beneath their white mask, but something about their blue hair and sharp voice felt familiar.

"The selection process is complete. I have tossed all humans who are too weak to receive the labor punishment into the Pit of Solitude."

The Pit of Solitude?

⟬The Advocate of Confidentiality advises that this isn't a part of the original story.⟭

⟬The Eye Overseeing All Chaos explains that "Solitude" is a type of evil spell.⟭

Based on the tone of the demon's voice, I could determine one thing for sure.

«They killed them all.»

This was why there were less than a thousand holy kingdom citizens left in the dungeon sink with me.

There should've been at least ten thousand or more. I was clenching my fist to the point of it turning white when Inferinos spoke.

"Well done, Marchioness Levant," the Demon Lord said, complimenting the demon with a cold and emotionless voice. It was but a short phrase, yet heavily laced with dignity and power—even the air that carried her voice seemed as if it trembled in awe of her strength.

"Then I suppose I should welcome them now," remarked Marchioness Levant. She turned toward the waiting room full of sinners. Her red eyes glistened through the mask's eyeholes as she continued, "Welcome to the courthouse of the Demon Realm."

Sounds of hiccups, swallows, and gasps filled the room at once.

"From now on, you human bastards will be on trial for your sins. Each will be given a sentence depending on the severity of your crimes, either labor or execution."

Marchioness Levant raised her left hand as she mentioned labor and her right hand as she mentioned execution, each pointing toward a gaping pit. The pits were positioned on either side of a narrow path connecting the court and the waiting room of sinners.

The left one echoed endlessly with the sound of clanking pickaxes and whip strikes, while the right one, though deathly silent, reeked of blood. Anyone could tell that neither was suitable for a human to enter. It didn't take long for all citizens of the holy kingdom to tremble with fear and despair.

"W-why is this happening? What did I do wrong?"

"Oh, god... Strict Order and Goodness... Please deliver us from this horrid place!"

"T-there's no way out. We've been abandoned, both by God and by the religious order!"

The murmurs became more and more resentful, especially since everyone here had been locked outside the Vatican when they were sucked in. Although the citizens who managed to enter the Sacred Place Establishment region celebrated how they were chosen by God, those here had to endure the horror of the dungeon drain and the dungeon burst in their entirety without receiving any protection from the Vatican whatsoever.

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World explains that the Vatican gave up on one third of their entire population.⟭

Those survivors, who narrowly avoided being wiped out, were saved by my grandfather and Marchioness Lecandro, only to be dragged down into the Demon Realm before they even had time to celebrate making it through the dungeon burst. This was the second disaster they had to face, one they never would've experienced had they made it into the Sacred Place Establishment region. I could understand how they would never forget the image of the Vatican gates closing right in front of their eyes.

"Grand Duke Heathfenrir and Marchioness Lecandro entered the Vatican just before we got sucked down here."

"So they abandoned us as well. No one will save us now..."

"We're going to die. We're all going to die."

The cries of around a thousand survivors deafened my ears—just listening to it was devastating.

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World reminds you to prioritize your safety.⟭

⟬The Critic for Balance advises that you're in no position to be reckless right now.⟭

I understood what the gods were worried about, but luckily, I wasn't an impulsive person. Quietly placing my hand into my inventory, I took out a robe and covered my face with the hood. I knew that my presence would give the other people in the courtroom some hope, but unfortunately, I couldn't even guarantee my own survival right now.

If I make it out of here, the first thing I better do is buy the luxury watch from the VIP Point Shop. It was the artifact that allowed a transmigrator to live a second Loop like a returner. It would be nice if I could purchase one right now, but I wasn't allowed to access the VIP Point Shop when I was in a dungeon.

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World argues that returning is Tesilid Argente's forte.⟭

⟬The Voice that Shapes the World remarks that such a painful concept doesn't belong in your genre.⟭

I'll do my best. I replied like I was prepared and ready, but my heart was pounding in my chest. My neck was already drenched with a cold sweat. I had naively believed that I wouldn't come up against a Demon Lord for at least a few years. Never did I imagine that a battle of this magnitude would come so soon.

Reed is really going full out this time...

I felt the tips of my fingers turn cold, when Agnes interrupted my racing thoughts. «Ailette.» Her voice brought me back to focus. She was calling me to advise that something was about to start.

Her intuition was correct as always, for Marchioness Levant raised one hand and bellowed, "Begin!"

⟬«System» Warning. The trial of the Demon Realm has started. [Demon Lord Inferinos' Instant Judgment] has begun!⟭

"Sinners, walk up to Lord Inferinos one by one!"

Demons with whips appeared from out of nowhere and cruelly urged the humans to move forward toward the waiting Demon Lord, forcing the frightened citizens to obey and stand in a line. I was no exception in this process. No one wanted to stand at the front, but the order was decided arbitrarily, regardless of anyone's wishes.

⟬«System» Warning. You have been handcuffed.⟭

⟬«System» Warning. You have been given a number.⟭

Clink!

Handcuffs appeared around my wrists that were connected to the person in front of me, and on the back of my left hand appeared a number like I had been branded. It was the number 362.

"Walk straight!"

We trudged slowly forward as directed.

"Ah, hmph..."

"Ugh, urgh..."

The citizens of the holy kingdom left the waiting room and began walking down the path toward the demonic judge, flanked by cliffs on either side. The entire space was filled with wretched sobs. The sound of crying was soon converted into cries of shock whenever the people got up the courage to peer over the side into the pits—their faces turned pale the moment they could attach an image to the noises they'd heard and an odor to what they could smell wafting up earlier.

"No..."

"Oh God."

I also took a look below as I inched forward.

This is exactly as how the original story described it. In the left pit, which was called the Labor House, was a concentration of humans who were mining away with their pickaxes. Their objective was to collect Blood Mana Stones, which had a unique red glow. Those who were laboring didn't look normal, but not in the sense that they had been severely damaged and injured from the torture.

The intense demonic energy in the pit was slowly turning the humans into demons, for around half of the laborers were becoming skeletons with their leg and arm bones showing. It was practically impossible to consider them as humans anymore because they had worked endlessly without eating, sleeping, or resting.

The other pit called the Execution House was also just as horrific.

«What a gruesome place,» Agnes whispered.

On a pile of white bones were objects such as axes, hammers, crosses, pegs, wagon wheels, and cannons, all of which I did not wish to know the purpose of, and atop these strange objects grew a lush layer of dark red Dead Man's Flowers. Several streams of thick blood flowed slowly around these piles. There were innumerable flowers, yet it was the smell of rotting flesh and blood that met my nostrils.

I had reached the middle of the path between the pits when the row of people waiting to be slaughtered came to a halt. It meant the first person had reached the front. The poor fella who was the first to go was an old man with white hair and a humped back. Even from this distance, I could tell how terrified he was.

His fate was going to be the fate of many others here, so everyone paid close attention to his trial. I amplified my hearing ability using aura so that I could listen in onto what was happening ahead of me.

That's when Marchioness Levant stated, "Sinner, Ross Melbourne."

The man remained in mute terror.

"No response, huh?"

The Demon Lord on the elevated stand immediately spoke as if she'd been waiting for this moment for a long time.

"Guilty. One hundred years of hard labor as punishment."

"What?! W-wait!"

He wasn't given any time to refute his sentence as the demons instantly dragged him away.

"I-it's over already?"

"That's the end of the trial?"

The onlookers were horrified by how a split second decision determined the fate of the old man, but there was more to be shocked about than that.