The next morning the castle square was packed much faster than the previous time, the weight of the trial that would take place was much greater than Ezer's, so much so that even cries of discontent could be heard from the crowd. After all, Lyaria was too well known among the people.

Utrecht was on the same platform that Ezer was on the previous time, only now five men were with him, standing in a line a few steps behind. This made clear the difference in authority between Utrecht and the other five.

“Who are they?” Ezer asks Gretka who was by his side having taken a break to witness the event.

“They are the members of the council, only the Alpha is above them, although if they consider that his decisions are not correct, they call a vote against him. The times in which the people participate in a vote are very few and most are to influence them in one way or another.” She speaks softly, not wanting anyone other than Ezer to hear her.

“So it's those five who forced a trial on Lyaria.” He doesn't notice it, but anger begins to show in his voice.

“It's very likely, although I wouldn't worry too much, a vote from the Alpha can break a tie being worth two and clearly, he will vote in favor of his daughter. Adding the votes of the people... it is impossible for it to go wrong.”

“Yes, with all the discontent that is evident in the environment, it is obvious that they will vote in her favor.” Ezer begins to relax knowing that she had a lot of support.

“That is not decisive, people will vote for or against depending on how the six do on that platform. Many trust their decisions, after all, they are the ones who protect us. Don't worry, more than half support the Alpha.” Her words bring Ezer a bit of nervousness again and then she calms him down once more with the final sentence.

“Looks like it's starting.” The old man slowly makes his way over the stairs with Lyaria leaning on his shoulder.

"She should be resting! What is she doing moving?” Ezer gets upset, but knows that being present the old man he has nothing to worry about, besides, she seems to be much better. But she still wasn't able to put weight on her injured leg, though.

"It's better if she shows her face, I suppose no one would bear to be resting while your life is being decided a few steps near you." Ezer agrees with the nurse's words, after all, he experienced it firsthand.

Lyaria reaches the center of the platform and looks for Ezer, it doesn't take long to find him and a slight smile appears on her face. Ezer can't answer in the same way because he feels something strange in that smile, something different from the ones he was used to.

“It's starting.” The crowd falls silent as if in sync with Gretka's last words, and Utrecht's voice echoes through the square once more.

“I am sure that many already know it while for those who do not, I will make a brief summary. Yhia, whose health was only getting worse, died a few days ago due to lack of medicine to treat her because Lyaria, here, used said medicine on a person from outside our village, without stopping for a moment to think that it could be an enemy. Arguably she would have indirectly killed her, this is what I and the council wish you to choose.” Ezer is speechless to hear how Lyaria's father does not try to favor his daughter at least a little, besides the whole thing seemed exaggerated, he was sure that the people present would not be seriously affected. "Raise your hand if you think your offense deserves punishment."

But before the Alpha even mentions it, several people raise their hands, surely the girl's relatives since there were no more than twenty people. However, the mood changes considerably when one of the five council members raises his hand.

"No wonder, after all he is her grandfather." Gretka explains while some people also raise their hands to the sky.

"We need to be together! Now more than ever when so many dangers lie in wait for us! We can't let just one bring us all down!" The words of the first council member who raised his hand makes incredibly two of the remaining four join him.

The atmosphere, already heavy, plummets further. Utrecht expresses no emotion and just waits for the reaction of the crowd in front of him, which is not long in coming. More and more hands join the hands of the council members making up almost half of the total people gathered, the gap from who supported who was clearly visible now.

“This is bad.” Ezer can't help but turn his head left and right looking in disbelief.

“It is… but Utrecht is still to come, which means there's a good chance some will change their minds.” Even Gretka acknowledges the severity of the situation.

While all this was happening around her, Lyaria simply had her head bowed slightly with an expression that was difficult for even her closest acquaintances to understand, of course this also included Ezer.

She sighs, looking up at the cloudy autumn sky as cold as any winter. She remembers the words that the old man said to her very early in the morning with a wry smile, she agreed with the goal, but still did not fully understand what it meant to become a martyr to achieve it.

Her thoughts are interrupted with pain when his father, standing next to her, raises his hand with painful slowness. She was prepared for that, although seeing the stunned faces of her acquaintances made this hurt more than expected.

This causes a chain reaction, the remaining council members following Utrecht's lead as does the crowd. Many raise their hands uncertainly, after all doing so meant voting against the Alpha's own daughter, though they do so blindly trusting their leader just as they did in the past.

Ezer's stupor was evident all over his face, he simply had no words. He alternates his gaze between Utrecht and the old man trying to find an explanation that cannot found.

Lyaria, on the other hand, feels an immense sadness inside her as she fights to keep her tears from overflowing. The current situation did nothing but bring out her true regret and the reason why she was on that platform surrounded by a sea of people. What hurt her the most was the fact that she had failed to save a little girl by breaking her promise, that really hurt her. Besides, it was a lie that Lyaria was completely unaware of the little girl, after all, the relationship she had with her brother was more than just friends.

“The punishment of death is clearly excessive in this case, I request a brief pause so that the members of the council can deliberate together with the Alpha.” The first member of the council to raise his hand is also the first to give his suggestion since the feelings of the multitude did not need to be expressed in words to be know.

"This is ridiculous... simply ridiculous." Gretka expresses what surely many thought, but when Ezer looks around him, he can notice the fear in many people.

“This is what they want to achieve.” Ezer finally understands, it made sense, as much as the people are united, this does not ensure that they will not be divided in times of crisis. Fear of reprisals might be the only thing keeping them together, and if even the Alpha's daughter suffered the consequences, what would happen to an ordinary person?

“Is the situation so bad for them to resort to this method?” Ezer came from a family that ran its own territory so he had some basic knowledge on how to run a village.

A loud murmur from the people around snaps him out of his thoughts and he watches as the six on the platform seem to have come to a conclusion.

“An appropriate punishment has been decided for Lyaria Adargar's transgression... From the next full moon she must depart from the village, forbidden to return to these lands for ten years. His sentence is exile.” Silence, silence is the only response from the crowd.