"I see," the magistrate continued. "Why don't you call that place home?"

"If you want to die in a place where you die, can you still call it your hometown?"

"So, you're exiled?"

"That statement means I want to go back." Rui Wen said.

"Don't you want to?"

"Noxus has changed." Riven's voice began to cut into an impatient tone. "Okay for the next question?"

"That's good," the Pusher's calm tone was more disgusting than the shackles on her wrists. "You're coming with the Noxus fleet, aren't you?"

"I guess so."

"Are you not sure?" The magistrate looked confused.

"I don't remember," Rivien said. She squinted at the crowd, out of the corner of her eye meeting Shava's gaze. The old woman had asked her a similar question. Riven shook her head. "Does it matter? There was a war. Many died. That's all I know. ”

The painful memories of the war in people's hearts were already smoldering, and as soon as Rui Wen's words fell, this anger was ignited. They were pushing and shouting at each other, and everyone wanted to stand up.

Someone scolded. "Noxus offal! You killed my son. ”

A moldy egg fruit flies and hits Riven's neck. The rancid juice and flesh flowed down the back neckline of her clothes. A rancid stench came over her, but Riven didn't want the smell of death to take her back to that distant moment. She closed her eyes and let out a long breath.

The crowd erupted. Riven knew that her answer was inconsiderate, making people think that she had no sympathy for the deceased. "Please." She whispered to herself, not knowing whether she wanted to beg them to stop, or to encourage them to let go of their irrepressible anger completely.

As if in response to her request, more late-season eggs exploded on the stony floor. Another one smashed on the back of Riven's knee. She stumbled, nearly losing her balance from her bound hands.

The Governor stood up high, his figure enveloping the crowd and Riven in his seat. She slammed the chestnut against the base, and the doll's robe rose like flames in an instant. The wooden benches beneath the people twisted, deformed, and moaned at the will of the magistrate.

"I'll reproduce the balance!"

The scolded villagers fell silent.

"Yes, Ruiwen, this court remembers that time," the magistrate continued in a more tactful manner. "Many Ionians...... and the Noxians...... They all died. What about you? ”

This question also made Ruiwen struggle for herself. Why is she the only one who survived? She couldn't find a satisfactory answer. "I seem to have been spared." She said quietly.

"Indeed." The Governor smiled coldly.

Riven knows that no matter what she says, she can't calm the pain of losing loved ones. She owes everyone the truth, but she can't tell the truth. Her memories of that time were shattered. At the moment, she could only bow her head.

"I don't remember," Riven said.

The magistrate did not stop questioning. Riven knew that this would only cause more angry voices to erupt from the hall, interrupting the trial again and again.

"How long have you been on this land?"

"I don't remember."

"How did you get to this village?"

"I don't remember."

"Have you ever been here?"

"I'm ......" Riven hesitated, unable to find the memory that carried the exact answer. I can't remember. ”

"Have you ever met Elder Soma?"

The name stirred something inside her. A memory within a memory passed through her mind, vague and sharp. What once existed is now flooded with anger. She was betrayed. She also betrays people.

"I can't remember!" Rui Wen snapped in annoyance. The shackles on the wrists clanged.

"War has destroyed many," the magistrate said softly. "There are things we can't see."

The oncoming enlightenment calmed Rui Wen's fighting spirit a little. "I can't remember," she said in a calmer tone this time than before.

The magistrate nodded. "If you can't remember, someone might be able to answer for you."

Rui Wen saw the old man slowly walking towards the witness seat in front of the magistrate's seat. His fingers trembled as he smoothed his thick eyebrows.

"Asa Comte," said the magistrate patiently. "Daddy, thank you for testifying with us today."

The old man nodded.

"Do you know this woman, this Ruiwen?" The magistrate asked.

"Yes," said the old man. "When she arrived at our house, the wet season had just started this year."

"You guys?"

"Me and Sava, my wife."

The magistrate glanced at Madame Comte, who was still fidgeting on the bench in the front row. The magistrate pointed at Rui Wen.

"She went to your house?"

"Actually, I found her in our field," Benono Sr. confessed. "There was a calf that got lost in the night. I went out in the wee hours of the morning to look for it. And I found her. ”

The crowd stirred again, and exchanged heads and ears in shock and worry.

"Spy!"

"There are endless troubles!"

"We must defend ourselves!"

The magistrate put his hand on the spherical tree in front of him. The room was quiet. "What was she going to do, Master Comte?"

The old man brushed his eyebrows again and glanced at Ruiwen. It's like asking for forgiveness.

"She wants to die, push." He said lightly.

The pusher is possessed forward.

"The wet season has just arrived," Asa continued. "She's soaking wet, with a high fever, almost like a handful of Noxian bones stuck together with mud and muscles."

"You knew she was Noxian?"

"She carried a weapon, a sword, and their language was inscribed on the scabbard. The Ionians would never carry such a weapon. ”

The magistrate pursed his lips. "Master Comte, you have suffered heavy losses during this invasion."

"Yes, Push." The old man said as he looked at his wife. "Two sons."

"What did you do with this woman?"

The old man took a deep breath first.

"I took her home and gave her to Sava." He said.

Whispers in the hall began to rise again, and people questioned why he was so merciful to his ruthless foes. Every face in the hall tells the story of their bereaved loved ones. None of the people here have been spared from this conflict. The old man looked up, then turned to the crowd, he didn't believe that everyone was hard-hearted.

"My sons...... My children...... Their bones have long since been cleansed from the heavens. Will those who have passed away want to see us overwhelmed by grief or even bury ourselves beside them? ”

Rui Wen saw the old man and his wife looking at each other tacitly. Shava's round eyes were filled with tears.

"We can't just forget it, but ......," the old man's voice trembled. But we can't get bogged down in the past, and we have to go on with the rest of our days. ”

Sava bit her lower lip and straightened up, as if to block anyone behind her who dared to denigrate their choice. Asa turned away from the gaze of the crowd. He sat down facing the magistrate, the round stool creaking beneath him.