Immediately after hearing the situation from the maids, I felt a wave of disbelief wash over me, and I said to them:
“Wha.. what the heck! Does it even make sense to arrest someone over such a damn ridiculous idiom?”
No matter how many times I thought about it, this was a story that went beyond unfairness to sheer absurdity.
It was basically like saying someone was suing me for murder just because I promised to keep my heart in it.
Fueled by rage, I spoke up, but Cazerose responded to me with a calm voice.
“I’m sorry, but it’s entirely possible. For whatever reason, Jews cannot harm the believers of the church, and if there’s even a hint of that, the law allows for official punishment. Yes, this is definitely pushing it, but if we pressed charges legally, it’s not impossible.”
“No.. how can that be? Ha…”
Her words ignited my anger again, but I had no choice but to force it down.
After all, this was an era where the concept of human rights hadn’t completely settled in yet, and it was only natural for the heretic Shylock to face discrimination in a world like this.
A world rife with religious discrimination and jealousy.
In such a world, it was common for not just Shylock, but all Jews and foreigners who faced injustices to find it hard to assert their rights.
As soon as I managed to suppress my emotions, the maids began speaking again.
“Later findings revealed that this entire affair was a conspiracy orchestrated by Anton, who has the Sacred Empire backing him.”
“From the moment he brought in the loan agreement form, it did seem a bit strange, but never did I think he’d concoct such a scheme.”
“Ha…”
The maids spoke in frustration, unsure of what to do.
I felt just as helpless.
As a wealthy moneylender in Benetsa, Shylock had made a fortune, and while moneylending isn’t exactly a clean profession, not a single person openly insulted him despite any slight discomfort.
Oddly enough, many regarded him as a benefactor due to the strict business principles he adhered to in his moneylending practices.
He wouldn’t lend money to unqualified borrowers, and even if they failed to meet expectations, he wouldn’t scold them; instead, he’d give them another opportunity to succeed…
In modern terms, he was less of a loan shark and more of a responsible investor.
In this world, the lines between investment and moneylending hadn’t been fully drawn, leading to Shylock being treated as a loan shark without a deserved reputation, but by my standards, Shylock was a respectable businessman with great insight and character.
The fact that such a person was imprisoned for such ridiculous reasons filled me with deep anger, and I asked the maids before me:
“So, when’s the trial date?”
“The trial will be in three days at the central court, but… it seems unlikely you’ll be able to get out easily.”
“Why not? No matter how much backing Anton has from the Sacred Empire, Shylock isn’t someone who’d get caught in such a flimsy trap, right?”
“…It will be difficult.”
“What?”
Cazerose answered with a bitter tone, and as doubt clouded my mind, she glanced at the maids, who wore sorrowful expressions.
“It seems you haven’t found a defender yet.”
“Ugh…”
“…Yeah, that’s correct…”
At her words, I began to clearly understand how the situation was unfolding, and a sigh escaped my lips.
From an objective perspective, it was plain to see Shylock’s position was utterly unjust.
However, the church’s influence ran deep here in Benetsa, and with the overwhelming majority being believers, there were few who would stand up for a Jew like Shylock.
Especially since he was being charged with an attempt to murder a believer, even if it was a groundless accusation.
No matter how much money one might offer, stepping up to defend him in such a situation would risk their life as a defender, and they could end up in serious trouble just for supporting a Jew.
Thus, even without malicious reviews, in a position where someone is a heretic, it’s utterly difficult for Shylock to receive help even when faced with injustice.
That being said, even if Shylock tried to defend himself, there was no certainty the judge would listen to a Jew’s case.
“From that perspective… it might seem flimsy, but the Sacred Empire has subtly set this all up. The reason for this incident is trivial, but the opponent is a figure with little chance to find help. In this situation, even a minor argument could lead to a huge mess, and they’d simply bury their opponent as a sinner.”
Even back in my home world, there were many instances of people being unjustly attacked or killed for being of a different race.
In modern society, where the concept of these things is somewhat established, such occurrences still happen, let alone in a world where killing each other for religious differences is considered acceptable.
Thus, recognizing that Shylock’s situation was more dire than I had previously thought, I began to dive into serious contemplation.
While I had my personal loyalties to Shylock, above all, if I didn’t get his help here, the path to the Eastern heretic nation would be perilously dangerous.
The current atmosphere following the war was quite hostile.
At times like this, even if I had sufficient travel funds, it was crucial to avoid leaving until I discovered a safe route.
“In the end… it’s not just about loyalty; we need to save Mr. Shylock for our own needs too…”
However, the current situation where I couldn’t even find someone to defend him left me feeling utterly hopeless.
If it were in the past, perhaps I could have acted freely, but now I was an excommunicated individual, making it difficult for me to offer help openly.
Naturally, standing trial and defending him was out of the question.
“On top of that, while the reason for the charges is absurdly flimsy, they’ve likely taken measures to minimize any escape routes in gathering this information. They probably bribed the judge, prosecutor, or jurors, or have infiltrated their own people among them.”
In other words, it was likely that most of the people present at the upcoming trial would have ulterior motives to bring Shylock down.
If things unfolded this way, Shylock would likely suffer unjust punishment while being unable to fight back in what was essentially a rigged play.
“I have to find a way to turn this situation around… First and foremost, I need someone to take on the defense, regardless of other issues….”
No matter how brilliant a plan I could devise, without someone willing to advocate it in front of others, it would be utterly useless.
Unfortunately, most of the defenders in Benetsa had already refused to participate in this trial, and I couldn’t assume the role of a defender myself.
“Damn it… I never thought I’d regret this expulsion…”
As I sank deeper into troubles without even managing to secure the first step, it was then that I heard a voice.
“Um…”
“Yeah?”
Next moment, someone started speaking to me.
“I… might be able to help.”
A person with sufficient status to potentially defend Shylock in this situation… Cazerose looked at me and spoke cautiously.
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