I was excommunicated from the Holy Knights

15 – Merchant of Bennett 5

Right after hearing the explanation of the situation from the butlers, I told them with a sense of amazement.

“Ah..no.. or something like that.. does it make sense to arrest and imprison people with just such an idiomatic phrase?”

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No matter how many times you think about it, it’s a story that goes beyond resentment to absurdity.

This is in effect ‘I will keep my promise with all my heart’. With the words, it could be said that this guy was accusing me of trying to kill me by pulling out my heart.

In response, I spoke with intense anger, but Cazeros spoke to me in a calm voice.

“Sorry, but it is possible. For any reason, a Jew cannot injure a member of the church, and if such a sign is seen, it is a situation that is set by law to officially punish. Even so, this is certainly irrational, but there is nothing that cannot be done if it is legally staked and stumbled.”

“No..something like that..ha..”

At her words, I began to feel the emotions of anger bursting out once again, but I had no choice but to calm them down.

Whatever the case may be, it was the early modern era when the concept of human rights was not fully established, and in that respect, it was a world where it was accepted as a matter of course that Shylock, a Jew who could be called a pagan, was discriminated against.

A world where discrimination based on religion and jealousy are rampant.

In it, it was common that all Jews and Gentiles, not just Shylock, could not easily claim their rights even if they were wronged.

Right after confirming that I had forcibly calmed down my emotions, the butlers continued their conversation.

“I learned later during my investigation, but… all of this was a conspiracy plotted by Anton with the Holy Empire behind him.”

“From the beginning, I was a bit suspicious from the time I brought the IOU form with my own hands, but I never thought that such a conspiracy was conspired.”

“ha..”

Butlers talking with frustration, not knowing what to do.

I felt the same way about this.

Shylock, who earned a lot of money mainly through usury as a merchant at Bennett,

From a general point of view, it could be said that usury is not a very clean business, but…

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Nonetheless, there were very few people at Benessa who, though they felt uncomfortable with a man named Shylock, would criticize him.

Rather, because he is a Jew, he cannot openly express this, but surprisingly, not a few people thought of him as a benefactor.

This was a fact stemming from the strict business principles he set while engaging in usury.

We do not lend money that we cannot receive, and even if the other party fails against our expectations, we do not rebuke them and give them another chance to help them succeed.

From a modern point of view, practicing sound investment rather than debentures was the reality of his usury.

In this world, Shylock was unwillingly treated as a moneylender because this kind of separation between investment and usury had not yet been fully established. He was a man who could go.

I asked the butlers in front of me, feeling deep anger at the fact that such a person was imprisoned and punished for such an unreasonable reason.

“So, when is the trial date?”

“The trial is in three days. It’s supposed to be held in the central court… but it’s probably impossible to expect an easy release.”

“Why? Isn’t Shylock the one who can’t escape this lax trap no matter how much he has the support of the Holy Empire?”

“..it will be difficult.”

“yes?”

Cazeros speaks with a bitter feeling in my words.

At her words, I asked with deep doubt, and Cazeros looked around at the butlers who were making sad expressions in front of me and said, not me.

“Looks… you haven’t even saved it yet, have you? A lawyer.”

“Kuh..”

“… yes. That’s right..”

“!…ah..”

At Cazeros’ words, I automatically sighed as I more clearly recognized how the current situation was going.

From an objective point of view, Shylock can of course be in an unfair position.

Unfortunately, however, in Benessa, where the power of the church is deeply rooted and the majority of the residents are believers, few people step forward to take the side of Shylock, who is a Jew.

In particular, this trial was indicted for the crime of trying to murder a member of the church, even if it was falsely accused.

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No matter how much money was given, if you recklessly defended yourself in this situation, you could end up in great trouble not only for your life as a lawyer, but also for defending Jews as a member of the church, regardless of the result.

As such, Shylock is a person who has no ill repute, but is in a position where it is difficult to get help from anyone due to the characteristics of being a pagan even if he is unfairly punished.

Even so, even if Shylock, the accused, tried to defend himself, he could not even be sure that the judge who was in charge of the trial would listen to Judain’s defense.

‘From that point of view… it may look sloppy, but the Holy Empire has designed it subtly and skillfully. The reason for doing this was obviously close to fault, but the other person was in a position where it was difficult for people around him to reach out for help. In a situation like this, even a trivial quarrel could cause a big deal, and the other person could be treated as a criminal and buried.’

Right now, even in the world where I originally lived, it was not uncommon for people to be lynched or killed unjustly on the road due to racial discrimination in foreign countries.

Even in modern times, where the notion that this is not right is established to some extent, if this happened, much less in this world where killing and killing each other is considered the right thing due to differences in religion, there was no need to say anything more.

So, recognizing that Shylock’s situation was more difficult than I thought, I began to fall into serious trouble.

There was also a personal loyalty to a person named Shylock, but above all, if he did not receive his help here and now, the process of crossing over to the pagan country in the east, which was the destination, was highly likely to be very dangerous.

The current situation is in a very harsh atmosphere due to the aftermath of the war.

At times like this, even if there was no shortage of travel expenses, I had to avoid leaving this place as much as possible until I figured out a safe route.

‘In the end… it’s not just for the sake of loyalty, but for our needs, we have to save Shylock no matter what…’

However, in the current situation where there is no one to defend right now, no matter how much I do, there is no sharp point.

I wouldn’t know if it was before, but now I’m here with an excommunicated status, so it was difficult to openly help someone.

Of course, standing in court and defending was impossible.

‘In addition, although the reason for the prosecution itself was close to nonsense, the process of catching it must have been done by the other side to reduce the hole that could escape as much as possible. He would have bribed the judge or the prosecutor or the jury or the observer or put someone on his side there.’

In other words, it means that most of those in the courtroom in the upcoming trial are likely to be ‘enemies’ who have an intention to bring down Shylock.

If this happened, there was a very good chance that Shylock would be punished unjustly without doing anything in a literal and virtually concocted play.

‘I have to turn this situation around somehow… First of all, I need someone to take care of my defense anyway, even if other issues are put aside…’

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No matter how good a plan was, it was of no use if there was no one to explain it in front of people.

However, most of the lawyers at Benessa refused to attend the trial, and it was impossible for me to represent.

‘Damn it… I never thought I’d feel sorry for the excommunication like this…’

That’s how it was at that time when I was in deep trouble without being able to put on the first button.

“excuse me..”

“yes?”

The next moment, a person starts talking to me.

“Can I… do it?”

In this situation, someone with sufficient status to act as Shylock’s defense…

Cazeros looked at me and said cautiously.