Chapter 220

[Looking ahead, Mirajane raised an eyebrow slightly: "This person is no good news."]

[Erza rarely agreed with Mirajane's statement.]

[She nodded: "Yeah, I can feel it. She's very scheming; every sentence seems to be plotting something..."]

[Black Natsu shrugged: "Forget it, let's not worry about it for now."]

[Then he turned to look at the frog-man beside him: "How much longer? We're in a hurry to get back."]

[The frog-man finally raised his head, and after seeing Ultear disappear, he silently breathed a sigh of relief.]

[He hurriedly said: "Soon... soon..."]

[...]

[Clang, clang, clang...]

[The crisp sound of a gavel rang out on the judge's bench.]

[A solemn and sacred voice followed.]

["Order! The Magic Trial is now in session!"]

["Defendants, Erza Belserion, Mirajane Strauss."]

["In the previous Eisenwald incident, you two caused large-scale destruction at Oshibana Station, the Lushica Canyon railway bridge, and Kunogi Town."]

["Defendant, Natsu Dragneel."]

["You are accused of burning down over eighty percent of the forest greenery around Kunogi Town, and even causing the complete disappearance of a mountain peak."]

["These are the specific charges against you."]

["Do you three plead guilty?"]

[Under the gaze of countless people, Erza was about to speak to handle it, but was stopped by Black Natsu.]

[Black Natsu, leaning on the defendant's seat, crossed his arms.]

[He looked directly at the Chairman on the judge's bench and spoke softly.]

["I object."]

["We... are innocent."]

["On the contrary, we are the victims!"]

["You?? Victims??"]

[On the judge's bench, Chairman Crawford's eye corners twitched wildly; this was a reaction close to a sixth sense.]

[For some reason, Crawford had a premonition.]

[This trial... is probably not going to proceed as expected.]

[Maybe... it might even cause trouble.]

[At this moment, it wasn't just Crawford who was surprised; the moment Black Natsu's words came out, everyone in the Council began to discuss.]

[The bustling noise was endless.]

[But Black Natsu's expression remained unchanged, staying calm and composed in the defendant's seat.]

["Ahem..."]

[On the judge's bench, Crawford coughed twice, and the entire Magic Council immediately quieted down.]

["You say... you are the victims?"]

["Yes." Black Natsu answered neither humbly nor arrogantly.]

["Can you tell me exactly how you are the victims?" Crawford asked.]

[Black Natsu shrugged upon hearing this: "Isn't that obvious?"]

["From beginning to end, we were forced to fight back."]

["Forced to fight back?" Crawford was so angry he laughed.]

[He looked at Black Natsu below: "According to eyewitnesses, you destroyed over eighty percent of the forest during the battle with Lullaby. How do you explain this?"]

["I had no subjective intention to fight. As I said, at that time, Lullaby was about to release the curse song to take our lives."]

["In a life-or-death crisis... can't I fight back?" Black Natsu retorted.]

["I didn't say you couldn't fight back, the point is, the destruction you caused was too great..."]

[Crawford's words were immediately interrupted by Black Natsu before he could finish.]

["What destruction? Who destroyed it? I just kicked it once, why do you say I destroyed it?"]

[Black Natsu looked directly at Crawford.]

[Crawford widened his eyes: "The eyewitnesses said it was because of that kick of yours!"]

[Black Natsu laughed disdainfully: "That kick I made?"]

["No, no, no. In fact, something went wrong inside Lullaby, its magic power expanded to the limit, and it exploded on its own, even injuring me."]

["The destruction of the forest was all caused by Lullaby's explosion. I was also a victim of the explosion, so why do you say I did it?"]

["You are sophistry!" The third seat of the Council, Michello, couldn't listen anymore and slammed his cane on the ground.]

[He shouted angrily.]

[Black Natsu glanced at Michello upon hearing this and smiled: "I'm just stating the facts. Lullaby's magic trajectory went wrong, and it exploded on its own. If you don't believe me, you can go check."]

["Check? Easy to say, the whole Lullaby exploded into fragments, how can we check?"]

[Michello frowned and scolded.]

["Then why do you say I did it? Just like you said, Lullaby is already in fragments, so how can you be sure it was caused by that kick of mine?"]

[Black Natsu turned to look directly at Michello.]

["I... I... we have witnesses." Michello said loudly.]

["Witnesses' words can only be used as a reference, not as a decisive condition for conviction. This is universal in any kingdom." Black Natsu replied calmly.]

["If you want witnesses, I can pull out a bunch for you in minutes, even Ten Wizard Saints level witnesses. For example, Master Makarov. As a recognized Ten Wizard Saint, their words should be more authoritative, right?"]

[Michello's eyes bulged: "You... you... Makarov is your Master, can you guarantee he won't be biased toward you?"]

["Then how can you guarantee that the witnesses you found are absolutely impartial?"]

["Who is he? Was he there? Even if he was there, does he have the ability to see it? Or even, did you bribe him privately?"]

["You... you... you are insulting a Council member!!!"]

["No, I'm just making an assumption. Could it be... I hit the mark?"]

[Black Natsu looked at Michello with a half-smile.]

[At this moment, Michello was already gasping for air, pointing a trembling finger at Black Natsu, unable to say a word for a long time.]

[Not just Michello, all the Council members, the jury, etc., were all dumbfounded.]

[Some Council members wanted to retort, but upon closer thought, it seemed to make sense.]

[Black Natsu really didn't say anything wrong.]

[But... it felt like something was wrong.]

[Isn't this... just a trial to go through the motions and push off responsibility? How did it get so complicated?]

[In the defendant's seat, Mirajane was stunned.]

[Her big eyes blinked and blinked, staring fixedly at Black Natsu.]

["You can even talk your way out of this??"]

[Even Erza couldn't help but take a deep breath, holding it for a long time before she could only say one sentence.]

["As expected of you!"]

[On the judge's bench, a man with blue hair and strange patterns on the corners of his eyes was resting his chin on one hand, watching this debate with interest.]

["Ultear, is this the Black Mage you've been paying attention to?"]

[He asked.]

["Yes, Lord Jellal." Beside him, Ultear, also a Council member, responded with a smile.]

[Her beautiful eyes looked at Black Natsu below: "I originally thought he was just very strong, but I didn't expect his logic to be so clear."]

["Heh! Now there's a good show to watch. I wonder how those old guys will respond?"]

[The man called Jellal glanced at the side, at the Council members who were already furious.]

["That... you two stop for a moment, let's not talk about your business for now."]

["Defendants Erza and Mirajane broke into Eisenwald and caused a large-scale battle. What do you have to say about that?"]

["You know, internal fighting between guilds is strictly prohibited. Even if the other party is a Dark Guild, you still need to follow procedures and apply. Rashly starting a war will lead to unpredictable consequences."]