The sudden turn of events inside the hall sent the situation spiraling out of Granor’s control. ’No, from the very beginning, Kano never believed the Lord Earl was in control of anything, not with that bunch of sycophantic trash...’

Outside, the entrance to the Magic Guild was suddenly a cacophony of carriages. Ten coaches from the Tower of Stars occupied the driveway in front of the entrance, from which emerged members of the Alchemy Department and Star Robe Mages in deep blue.

"What is all this...?" A staff member from the Magic Guild, unsure of what was happening, moved to block them but immediately recoiled upon seeing the arrivals.

The Low Tier Mages and Apprentices mailing letters in the main hall had no idea what was happening. They could only watch as the Guild building was sealed off.

It was a lockdown in the truest sense of the word. Not only were the entrances and exits seized, but Mages also began Casting spells from four directions, raising a Barrier that enveloped the entire building to ensure no one could teleport out.

Snow entered the Communication Room, opened a Pocket Watch, and announced, "As of now, the Valuva node of the Communication System will be offline for one hour."

"I don’t approve! Do you have any idea how much this will cost us in losses?" The system supervisor rushed out, shouting.

"That wasn’t a request for your opinion. It was an order from the Chief. I am merely stating the fact that a Space Lock is being deployed," Snow said, giving the man a cold glance. "Losses? You’ve earned quite a profit sending letters for those merchants, haven’t you? Perhaps I should have the Star Robes audit your books? Rest assured, the Starlight Torch Tower will bring a temporary node online to compensate."

"Unbelievable..." the supervisor muttered, repeating himself before collapsing into his seat, completely at a loss.

Outside, another carriage pulled up. Two towering members of the Alchemy Department "escorted" Valon, the general manager of the mining company, inside.

It was Valon’s first time in a place like this. He looked around curiously, his eyes first falling on two Samurai in Full Armor. Their two Great Swords barred the way for anyone trying to enter or leave.

"You Mages have Knights, too?"

"No, no. These two are masterpieces from our Alchemy Department." Valon’s "Bodyguard" said no more, simply leading the general manager onward. "Let’s go. You’re today’s key witness."

Valon took a deep breath and stepped into unfamiliar territory. The young man thought to himself, ’If this is how it ends, so be it.’

Inside the hall, the Mages who had been forcibly summoned began to calm down. Some tried to secretly cast spells to flee the volatile situation, only to discover that all space-related Magic had been nullified.

Granor remained relatively composed. He reassessed the situation behind him. Seeing that the people who had been dragged out from the shadows had utterly lost the will to resist, his heart sank, and a bitter taste filled his mouth.

’What a pathetic bunch of supporters I have!’

’But I can still fight this...’ As a Great Mage himself, Granor knew he had to stand up for his supporters. If he were to step down from the platform, all would be lost. The Lord Earl maintained his role as judge, demanding, "Kano, what do you intend to do to the jury assembled here?"

"As I’ve already said, the real trial has begun." Kano reiterated his point as he advanced on Granor. "I thank you for gathering everyone to bear witness... to witness how Grand Master Granor sold out the interests of the Magic Guild."

"I don’t know what you’re talking about..."

Kano spoke so that all could hear, his voice booming like a great bell through the hall. "Everyone knows that after discovering a Sub-plane, the head of our Mason Brotherhood, Grand Master Granor, was made a Count of the Valois Kingdom."

"Yes. I’m glad you remember that it was I who discovered the plane. You have no right to dictate how it is managed."

"Then I would like to know, did the Magic Guild not bear the cost of the initial exploration and the maintenance of the passage to the plane? I and my students have been to that plane. So why did it suddenly transform into a personal fiefdom for you and a select few Mages, while the Magic Guild and all other Mages received no compensation whatsoever?"

At these words, all eyes swept back and forth between Granor and the few "highly respected" Mage Lords, many of whom held high-ranking positions in the Aurora Elder Council.

"Compensation? I already gave that fine student of yours plenty of benefits. As for your other student, that Empireist Rorschach, he is an ungrateful whelp who ignored the olive branch I extended to him!"

Rorschach was speechless. He defended himself, "I’m still being lectured about a single meal I had with you? Should I vomit it up for you now, Lord Earl?"

A soft chuckle of derision was heard from the platform.

"Insolence! Utter insolence!" An Elder from the Elder Council, who had also received a fief, stood up to support Granor. But finding little support, he could only sit back down.

Kano hadn’t gotten to his main point yet. He ascended the platform step by step until he stood face-to-face with Granor. "Lord Earl, please answer another critical question. The accusation against my student, Pascal, stated that his actions might lead to a misunderstanding of the Magic Guild’s stance toward the authorities."

"So I ask you, Lord Granor, you and the other Lords of the Sub-plane endorsed a non-existent gold mine on behalf of the Magic Guild. What crime does that constitute?"

Granor hadn’t expected Kano to bring this up. A cold sweat beaded on his brow. "Slander! This is slander..."

"I certainly won’t play that childish ’yes or no’ game we played earlier. Now, let’s get straight to the evidence. The first witness is my student, Rorschach. You were on the same team as the one who ’discovered’ the gold mine. Please, tell us, during your exploration of the Sub-plane, did you find any such clues?"

Rorschach shook his head. "I found absolutely no trace of any gold mine."

"My student is still under the effects of the Truth-telling Skill. If any of you still doubt him, there are Mages among our jury right now who participated in that exploration. Can any of you stand and testify that a gold mine was discovered in the Sub-plane?"

A silence fell over the seats, followed by a wave of furious discussion. Granor was on the verge of a breakdown. Trembling, he used the Communication Skill to plead with Kano:

"Leonel, stop this. I’ve lost! I... I was wrong. You can’t keep going. You don’t understand how many people are involved in this... I did it all for the Magic Guild, for all Mages! You have to believe me!"

This private plea, heard only by the Great Mage, was the Lord Earl’s last shred of dignity.

But Kano did not accept the accused’s surrender. "I don’t think everyone here has realized the full extent of how Granor and his accomplices sold out the Magic Guild. Let us welcome our next witness, the general manager of the Shaleanna Mining Company, Valon!"

The members of the Alchemy Department, already waiting outside, "invited" Valon in. He was trembling slightly. It was his first time seeing so many Mages in one place.

The moment he saw the familiar young man, Granor shrieked, "Valon, you’ve betrayed His Majesty the King! You’ve betrayed Lord Nekker! They’ll have you executed! Executed!"

Ignoring Kano beside him, he raised his hand and began Casting.

Seeing Granor lashing out in desperation, Rorschach quickly unleashed a Magic Roar, interrupting his Casting. Kano pulled out a crystal. Under the Great Mage’s control, it expanded, enveloping Granor in a Crystal Wall while he was still stunned by the spell.

"For your refusal to cooperate with this trial, on behalf of the Aurora Elder Council, I hereby seal you, Granor."

Everyone witnessed this exchange. However, most failed to notice that it was Rorschach, a Middle Level Mage, who had stopped the Great Mage. They simply assumed it was all Kano’s work.