Chapter 285: Ch 284: Proving innocence - Part 2

The journey finally came to an end in front of the Emperor’s palace, and Kael did not struggle as he was dragged inside for what appeared to be the last time.

He could make out the strong scent of corruption that this place emitted, and that made his emotions feel all tangled up. But he was determined not to worry about it.

After all, the world had reached a point where even the air seemed to carry corruption. Being too suspicious of it would do no one any good.

"Grand Master Kael, are you aware of the charges you are being pressed with? Then, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

The Emperor looked at him with a face that told him that it was a shame that things had to be like this. But his ministers looked far too eager to get rid of Kael, which told him that they were certainly involved.

He had to wonder if the ministers were being controlled by corruption, but then he decided to take a better look at their greedy eyes and realized that the ministers were not being controlled. They just never liked him in the first place.

Sigh

’Well, I just wanted a normal life this time around while saving those kids. Who knew that it would screw things over like this?’

Had Kael known that this would be the outcome, he wouldn’t have ever tried so hard. Or maybe, him being reborn and time being turned back had caused this mess.

And that gave him another idea.

’If things got messy because someone turned back time to save me, then won’t returning the timeline to how it was resolve everything? Those kids...might suffer again due to my absence, but it would be better than whatever is going on now.’

Kael was not one for having destructive thoughts, but there was a time in everyone’s life when they felt hopeless enough to try anything.

The ministers were saying something to him, but Kael could only half-pay attention to them talking about ’responsibilities’ and ’owning up to one’s mistakes’ as he made up his mind about what he needed to do.

Finally, everyone realized that he was not paying attention, and it triggered the ministers to start yelling.

One of them slammed his fist against the table, breaking it. And the noise was so loud that even Kael had to look at it in shock.

"Grand Master Kael, do you think we are joking here? You are standing in a trial, and that means you have made a mistake. Are you trying to retreat into your mind to run away from it?"

The minister seethed as he asked this question, but it only made him look even more pathetic in Kael’s eyes.

Every one of the people in here was against him and his ideals, and that made Kael not want to use everything in his power to help them.

’No, I should not get demotivated like this. Remember, I am not doing this for these people but for my kids. I need to concentrate and think about their future...’

From what Kael had heard from Leon and pieced together, those ’kids’ he was trying to protect were no longer kids. They were likely decades older than him now mentally.

But that did not mean that Kael was not going to help them. He just needed some time and resources to pull this off.

The ministers took his silence as even more evidence and started to press the Emperor to ’do away’ with him since he seemed to have no remorse.

But the Emperor was wise and much calmer than his ministers. He also had a sharp mind and seemed to know when to put a stop to his ministers’ annoying voices.

He raised his hand, and the ministers had no choice but to quieten down.

"I think I’ve heard enough from both sides. Grand Master Kael, do you wish to say anything in your defense?"

The Emperor asked, and Kael shook his head to show that he had nothing.

"I don’t have anything I wish to say."

The Emperor nodded his head, but the ministers were in a frenzy.

"Emperor, you cannot trust that traitor’s words. He is in league with corruption, and he wants to end us all. Please, have him punished-"

"For what exactly do I need to punish him for? As far as we know, there has been no evidence that he committed any crime."

"But those noble council-"

"I can take a vow that I was not the one who killed them. Will that satisfy you?"

Kael asked, and the ministers looked flustered at his lack of caution and easy-going nature. They were trying to find more and more ways to corner him, but they were failing miserably.

The Emperor ignored his floundering ministers and instead turned to look at Kael.

"Grand Master Kael, even though I know that you have not betrayed humanity, we still cannot let things be as they are. You understand what I am saying, right?"

The Emperor asked in a bored voice, but his intentions were pretty clear.

He was telling Kael that he needed to fix this mess somehow. And Kael decided to take full advantage of this opportunity.

"I understand. However, there might be some things that I would need before I can begin. Would you mind looking the other way for me?"

Kael asked in a sincere voice, and the ministers were instantly triggered by his request.

"This audacity-! Emperor, you cannot give this man even an inch, or he will take advantage of your generosity. Please be considerate for the sake of your people-"

But the Emperor was done with his ministers’ bullshit as well and decided to give Kael permission if it meant that they would get pissed off about it.

"You are free to do what you need to. As long as you are able to resolve this situation, we will back you up with anything. However, don’t think of this as permission to do anything you want. There is still a limit to the stuff you can and cannot do. Do you understand?"