Are MZ Shamans In Trouble In Romance Novels? - Chapter 123
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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123.
[Lawsuit Information Notice]
Your lawsuit against ‘Barbasha Alchemy Shop’ and ‘Helorn First Administrative Office’ has been temporarily accepted. Therefore, we would like to inform you of several notification matters regarding the aforementioned case.
– Lawsuit filing fee: 300 coins
》 Hiring a lawyer is mandatory and additional costs are expected. Also, please be aware that if you lose the trial, you will bear all of the opposing party’s litigation costs.
※ Lawyer selection is limited to those with Arkea Empire Official Certification, and we recommend the campus Law club or Sun Street law offices.
Finally, given the high costs involved in filing lawsuits and hiring lawyers, there is a 2-week grace period before the lawsuit is finalized. If you wish to withdraw the lawsuit, please visit the Disciplinary Committee within this period.
“…These crazy bastards are charging 300 coins just for the filing fee?”
Calisia crumpled up the lawsuit notice. Where do you find people who give notice after the fact instead of informing you of the fees beforehand?
“Soettong, hiring a lawyer would be expensive, right?”
“It’s very difficult to get Law certification in the Empire. Their fees are bound to be expensive.”
“Sigh… And here I thought things were going well for once.”
Calisia buried her face deeply in her palms. For now, there were about two methods she could choose from.
1. Hire a lawyer with a high win rate.
Advantage: Higher probability of winning the trial.
Problem: The alchemy shop and administrative office also have a very high probability of hiring expensive lawyers. Therefore, the final win rate is expected to be roughly equal.
※ Since hiring fees are expensive, losing would result in very large coin losses.
2. Hire a cheap scarecrow lawyer and handle things directly.
Advantage: Freedom to engage in illegal activities like background investigation, weakness exploitation, entrapment investigation, public opinion manipulation, etc.
Problem: If caught, it could be applied unfavorably in trial, and in the worst case, result in losing and fines.
“Soettong, which one do you think would be better?”
Calisia had somehow picked up an old tray and was looking up at Ian.
“I don’t like option 2, but… The administrative office and alchemy shop have far superior financial resources than us. They might show up with not just one lawyer but an entire legion. So the premise that win rates would be equal is wrong. And here.”
Ian offered her richly brewed milk tea and cookies filled with plenty of strawberry jam filling.
“What’s this?”
Calisia looked up at him with surprised eyes. The club room didn’t have fresh milk or expensive cookies. Maybe tea leaves and dried fruit, but not this.
“…I bought them separately.”
For you to eat. Ian swallowed the rest of his words, feeling unnecessarily embarrassed.
“Oh, Soeddongi. Thank you. I’ll enjoy them.”
Calisia smiled with her eyes and took a sip of the milk tea with its rich black tea aroma. The sweet and smooth flavored milk, apparently mixed with honey, coated her tongue.
“…Option 2 would definitely be better. First, I need to dig into the background of those administrative office bastards. If I dig enough, something fishy is bound to come up.”
Calisia’s eyes gleamed as she crunched on the strawberry jam cookies.
“Oh, right. Do you happen to have more of this?”
Lost in thought, she suddenly looked up and pointed at the snacks on the tray with an “oh right” expression.
“I do. Are you going to eat more?”
Ian’s lips curved into an unmistakable smile of satisfaction. It was a moment that made spending his coins worthwhile.
“No. Hide it well. Don’t let the kids see it. Especially Balak.”
Calisia turned her head left and right, keeping watch of her surroundings.
***
-Aisha Rombar. He’s a low-level employee at the Administrative Office. His after-work routine is going to the night market that opens every three days on Sun Street. His hobby is fortune telling with tarot cards and crystal balls, and he’s been doing it especially frequently lately.
-He’s been getting his fortune told by every single fortune teller in the area.
Purple robe, thin cloth covering her face, and an old crystal ball. Calisia, disguised as a night market fortune teller, sat down with her mat spread out. According to intelligence from Balak and Izriel, it was almost time for the administrative staff member to appear.
“…Excuse me.”
Before long, a man with dark circles under his eyes appeared. It was today’s target, Aisha Rombar.
“I heard this place does good crystal ball readings.”
Aisha, pressing around his eyes, sat down on the carpet spread on the floor. It was the handiwork of COMISAE team members who had hidden in the night market beforehand.
“Seeing truth beyond the crystal, this is Lemancy Crystal Shop. So what brings you here with questions?”
Calisia moved her hands skillfully around the crystal ball. Following her hand movements, colorful lights appeared and faded within the transparent sphere.
“Just… my fortune and such.”
“Hmm, that’s strange. The crystal ball says you have a big worry.”
Suddenly, gray storm clouds appeared in the sphere and rain began to fall. Aisha flinched and trembled slightly. Of course, fortune tellers always talked about worries and troubles.
‘But somehow she feels different from other fortune tellers. Her eyes, her atmosphere…’
But the woman before him was different from them. She had the scent of something real.
“Crystal, oh crystal! Show me the hidden truth beyond the crystal!”
Calisia raised and lowered her arms, adding momentum to her performance.
“You’ve had something good happen recently. Hmm, no, no. Not good for you personally. For everyone? Everyone… Did something like good news happen at your workplace?”
“…!”
Aisha’s eyes widened.
“Actually, a very precious item came to our workplace. I was involved in transporting it too.”
Aisha looked around and lowered his voice.
“Something went wrong.”
“Haah, I’m really going crazy. It would have been better if I hadn’t known…!”
Aisha grabbed his hair and let out a wailing sound. It was all because of ‘that night.’
Swoooosh-
Aisha, who had finished working overtime, made a sad face at the sudden downpour. He hadn’t brought an umbrella on such a clear day.
-I think there was an umbrella left in the supply room.
Taking shelter from the rain under the building, he headed back to the Administrative Office. And that was the source of trouble.
-…Do you think I don’t know that you took bribes and interfered with budget allocation?
Aisha, who was about to leave with an umbrella, stopped in her tracks at the shouting coming from beyond the supply room.
‘Who is it?’
Unable to contain her curiosity, she pressed her eye to the slightly open door crack.
-We never did such a thing, but what does that have to do with you!
It was Driton Burdio, the Administrative Office Director, with his hair slicked back with oil.
-Why wouldn’t it matter! Our budget has been drastically cut! I won’t just sit back and watch this! I already have evidence!
-…Evidence?
He frowned as much as possible and continued his heated argument with someone.
-Do you think I would have barged in here without that kind of backing? Ha, this works out perfectly! I can use this opportunity to completely overhaul the administrative office!
Aisha pressed her eye closer to the door crack. A woman with a slender build was poking the Administrative Office Director’s shoulder with her finger.
-…What do you want.
-Half of the goods. Just give me exactly half.
Aisha, who confessed about that night’s events, sighed deeply enough to sink into the ground. Overhaul. Why was this trouble falling on her when she was just a low-level employee?
“…So some ‘precious goods’ were taken away by ‘someone’ – a whole ‘half’ of them?”
Calisia took a deep breath and exhaled. Her small fists trembled beneath her purple robe.
“Yes! I’m so anxious I could die. I just moved the goods as I was told. What if that person changes their mind and exposes about ‘those goods’? If the higher-ups find out about the bribes…!”
Aisha’s voice began to crack terribly. How could she be kicked out of Helorn because of some damn shed skin or shell when she had worked so hard to get in?
“Calm down, customer. The crystal ball says such a thing won’t happen.”
“R-really?”
Aisha’s eyes widened as she patted her chest in relief. Even if it was just superstition, she seemed much more reassured than before.
“Yes. Really. The crystal ball doesn’t lie.”
Because it won’t be that person but me who will expose it at the trial. The crystal ball – no, the magic video orb – captured Aisha smiling with relief.
***
“The place that had its budget drastically cut this month is the Comprehensive Magic Research Lab. The woman with the slender build is most likely Christia Slandik, the research lab director.”
COMISAE gathered in the club room focused on Ian’s words. Not just the administrative office, but now the Comprehensive Magic Research Lab too. The scale of the trial seemed to be growing larger and larger.
“If it’s the Comprehensive Magic Research Lab, couldn’t they have already used up all the shed skin?”
Raktar drummed his fingers on the table. The Comprehensive Magic Research Lab was a group of eccentric researchers obsessed with studies ranging from potions to engineering.
“Probably so. And if this continues, we’ll get caught up in their power struggle… Isn’t that a bit burdensome, Chief?”
Balak leaned back on the sofa as if he found this troublesome.
“It’s fine. We can just sue both of them together. And is there anyone here planning to join the administrative office or research lab in the future? There isn’t.”
COMISAE nodded, agreeing that was true.
“So what do you plan to do now?”
Ian crossed his arms. The administrative office and the Comprehensive Magic Research Lab. Especially the latter was one of Helorn’s major powers. It meant they wouldn’t be as easy to deal with as it sounded.
“First we need to secure evidence from the research lab side and prepare for public opinion warfare.”
“Pu-public opinion warfare?”
Izriel, who had been mass-producing lucky letters just in case, looked up.
“Yeah. There are jury members.”
“How are you going to do it?”
“The Drama Club. We’re going to use the Drama Club.”
When your power is weak, using the masses is the answer.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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