I Am Really The Best Anti Hero In Another World!-System Of Anti Hero! novel Chapter 34

Chapter 34 - 34 - Impartial Judgment

The guards entered the room, worried—and a little frightened—wondering if this could be the start of another incident. Their eyes swept over the entire room, and nothing seemed out of place—nothing except for Guang Ai, kneeling on the floor in panic.

"W–what happened?!" one of the guards asked, while another ran over to assist Ai.

Noah merely shrugged—not out of disdain, but because the guard's bewilderment was mutual, after all. He then replied,

— I was meditating alone, as far as I can remember.

Upon noticing the injury on Guang Ai's wrist, the guard stood up, exclaiming,

— What have you done to Miss Ai's arm?!

He touched the sheath of his sword and shot a menacing glance toward Noah.

The guard found himself in a delicate predicament. On one side was one of the family's most important members, and on the other, a direct guest of the leaders along with his daughter. Touching his sword already had been an overreaction—even if it was merely reflex.

Seeing the situation, the other guard quickly left the room, running to fetch Arthur so that he could handle the matter personally.

"Hey, I already said I was here alone. I don't know when or why that girl came in. And her arm..." He glanced at her briefly before adding, "She probably tried to touch me when I wasn't looking—that's all."

"She tried to touch you? That's ridiculous! Miss Ai would never do that! Everyone knows that touching someone during meditation is dangerous and can cause a Qi deviation."

"Oh... is that true..?"

Ignoring the rest of the guard's words, Noah focused only on the last phrase. Although he didn't know all the details, he understood what a Qi deviation was and its possible consequences—losing one's cultivation being the most likely, though in some cases, people even die.

Looking directly into Guang Ai's trembling eyes, he asked,

— So why did you try to touch me, even knowing that?

"You... What do you think you're—!"

Before he could finish, Arthur burst into the room in a hurry. The door slammed so hard it fell off its hinges as he exclaimed,

— What happened?!

"Noah?" Sophia called out, surprising him—his heart warmed at the sound; the feeling of being cared for can be intoxicating. She ran toward him, but when she saw Guang Ai, she knelt down to help her after realizing that Ai's situation seemed worse than Noah's—she was crying and trembling, as if in shock.

"Sir, he... this boy is saying that Miss Ai tried to touch him while he was meditating," one of the guards revealed.

"What did she do?!" Arthur shouted, his veins bulging with the force of his cry—making Noah realize that this was more serious than he had imagined. "Are you out of your mind?! How could you even think of doing something like that!"

Sighing, Alice stepped forward—taking charge—and said,

— Dear, calm down. First, let's try to understand what happened.

Attempting to soothe everyone's nerves.

"Yes, she's right," one of the elders said—one of the three who had accompanied Arthur and his family—with Noah immediately feeling his stern gaze. "Let's start from the beginning then: first, who are you, boy?"

"He's the one who saved my daughter!" Arthur exclaimed, his irritation a bit more than necessary; Noah sensed that there might be something deeper behind that overreaction.

"Oh, so that's it," the elder said, clasping his hands together and bowing briefly. "I apologize for the tardy introduction—I am Guang So, an elder of the Radiance family."

"And I am Andrew Radiance," added the other elder, placing his hands together next to his cane, even though he couldn't bow.

Guang So then walked through the room—his wooden sandals causing his footsteps to echo—until he stopped before Ai. She trembled merely at the sight of his feet, and then his hoarse voice resonated:

— Did you do it or not, Ai? I hope you'll tell the truth.

"Grandpa, I..." she hesitated, "...Yes..."

"What? Ai, you... why?" asked Sophia, confused—unable to fathom why Guang Ai would try to do something so dangerous.

"I... I just wanted to see who he was..." she replied, sobbing.

"The punishment should be harsher; however, as Philip mentioned, since you are one of our most promising youths—and considering the circumstances—you will be confined for two weeks," declared Guang So, glancing at Noah. "I hope that will be sufficient."

Noah bowed—whether it was out of justice or coldness, he wasn't sure—

— I appreciate your impartial judgment, elder.

"But Grandpa, two weeks is..." Sophia tried to intercede on Ai's behalf. "Really, nothing happened; can't the punishment be a little more lenient...?"

"...If she had managed to touch him, even with the slightest mistake, the consequences she would have faced wouldn't be mitigated in the slightest, Soph."

"...I understand... sorry."

Before leaving, So gently caressed Sophia's head and offered one final word to Ai:

— I believe it's best if you tend to that injury and inform your father of what happened before you begin your punishment. Don't harbor any bitterness about this—there's no reason to. Use this time to better yourself and grow as much as I know you're capable of.

"...Alright, Grandpa... I'll do that," she said, wiping away her tears.