My Most Precious Human novel Chapter 32

Sariel snapped his fingers and, in a split of a second, two servants brought in a massive wooden seat and put it in the middle of the courtroom. Then he reached out his hand towards me with a courteous smile beaming on his face. I gulped, but put my hand on his and let him lead me to the witness seat.

Once I sat down, I immediately felt as if I was a dwarf sitting in a giant's seat. The back of the seat ended almost two feet higher than my head. I couldn't touch the chair back even when most of my legs were on the seat. I ended up straightening up without leaning, with my feet swinging in the air. I must have looked ridiculous, yet I did what I could to present myself elegantly. I sat on the edge of the seat with my back straight and my head raised, eyes holding a confident gaze. Sariel smiled briefly at me as if he wanted to give me a little courage. I took a deep breath, trying to concentrate.

"Ms. Lilith Leber is the only survivor from the night of the auction, "Sariel loudly announced, "As you can see, she is a human."

His words caused a commotion again. Previously, I was convinced that every vampire had already sensed that I was a human the second I entered the room. I quickly figured they could either be genuinely unaware, which I doubted, or they could be faking their tremendous outrage.

"Duke Calvet, what is the meaning of this?! You are now bringing a human to a vampire's sacred court?!" One of the auxiliary judges burst out.

It was a fierce-looking man with raven-black hair and deep-brown eyes who started to burn in red when he glared at me. I tried not to flinch under his gaze, but my heart nervously rushed, forcing me to take a deeper breath. Sariel stood between me and him, shielding me from his side.

"My dear Duke Orseolo, how could I not bring a human in front of this court when she is the victim and an important witness? Besides, don't tell me you just noticed now that she isn't a vampire. If so, I am greatly concerned about your weak senses." Sariel mocked while grinning wickedly.

"I was the one who allowed this human's testimony!" the main judge called out while getting up from her seat.

Her voice instantly dispersed the disdainful muttering, filling the room with silence. Duke Orseolo glared at her but apparently didn't dare to go against her. Her gaze, filled with absolute authority, was strong enough to make everyone cower. Well, everyone except for Sariel. He seemed to be unmoved by her severe glare. He smirked at her and slightly nodded his head. When she responded, nodding back, Sariel walked towards me.

"Ms. Leber, can you tell us how you got to the Diamond Crown Casino's special event?" Sariel started his questioning.

I took a deep breath and began to describe everything in detail. I followed Sariel's advice and did everything I could to hide my pain and anger while slowly recalling each second of that dreadful night. I spoke about Carla, and about the so-called banquet, which turned out to be the presentation of the auction items. I told about our imprisonment and the valuation of our blood. Then finally, I told about what happened to the rest of the waitresses. I clenched my teeth and described the shredded body parts, torn flesh, and corpses drowning in their own blood. I don't know how I managed to say it all without shedding tears or making an enraged roar. Perhaps it was all because I focused my eyes on Sariel and imagined I was telling my story solely to him. Somehow, his calm stare kept soothing my heart throughout my testimony.

As soon as I finished answering, a discussion started. The judges sitting in the lodge consulted something, whispering to each other, their expressions agitated. It was a nerve-racking moment. Unknowingly, I glanced at the Adragnas. My eyes met the eyes of the Marquess's sons. He glared at me, fury in his eyes. I gulped, but quickly remembered Sariel's words, telling me that he would protect me.

"Calm down, Lilith. You cannot show fear. Don't give them satisfaction," I told myself inside my mind.

Suddenly, another judge spoke, "I get that a human would care about his kind dying, but despite the cruelty of giving those humans to degenerates, I see no crime here. Humans tend to sell their own blood and flesh willingly. How can we trust that this is not a case like that as well?" The man with dark-grey hair sent me a cold, cunning smile.

I gritted my teeth. I could feel the fury flooding my blood at his arrogant manner of speaking. I glanced at Sariel; his face seemed emotionless, then slowly a sly smile appeared. He didn't say a single word. It seemed he was waiting for something.

"Then what do you suggest, Judge Connor?" The leading judge asked the one who had spoken before.

"I am convinced that the Adragna family might like to present some evidence of their own," he said, pointing at the already prepared Adragnas' attorney.

"Excellent, let's hear about the wonderful evidence." Sariel maliciously chuckled, then gracefully glided towards his seat, leaving the stage to the defendants.

While he left the spotlight, I was still sitting on the uncomfortable witness' seat, and at that moment I was completely exposed to the enemy. I gazed at Sariel nervously, but he didn't even look at me. He started indifferently flipping pages of some documents that Mr. Gotha gave him while smirking at the Adragnas' attorney.

"Mr. Baro, you may proceed." The leading judge gestured at the attorney.

"Thank you, Your Honor." He smiled coldly, then stood at the middle of the stage with some documents in his hands.

I couldn’t explain it, but something sinister filled the air. My heart started to pound for unknown reason as Mr. Baro cleared his throat right before starting his speech.