-THE WOMAN'S STORY-

That terrible ninja… I would never dream of betraying my dear Samurai!

She was certain that she could sway me, bragging about what a great bandit she was. "I can even steal people's hearts!"

I tried to run to his side, but I became dizzy and fell to the ground, such that my veil came tumbling off.

I may act strong now, but the truth is… In the moment, I failed.

The bandit attacked the Samurai, but unlike in her grandiose tale she was unable to finish the job. She ran away in the middle of the fight, dropping leftover pieces of rope like a trail behind her.

When it was safe, I finally rose and made it into the samurai's arms. But… the look I saw in his eyes chilled me to the soul.

It was neither anger, nor sorrow… but the cold light of pure hatred.

"Have I dishonored you, my Samurai? Don't look at me in such a way! It's the cruelest punishment I can imagine!"

But his steely gaze held steady, almost as if in some sort of trance.

I held out my rapier as an offering to him, resigned to my fate. "Kill me if you must! Preserve the honor of your name! Just stop with that cruel look in your eyes! I can't take it! Stop, stop!"

"Maya, please… Wasn't she just looking at the face on his mask?"

"Nick, it's not your line! Have you no tact? Let the Princess mourn!"

"But I mean…"

"4C710N!"

And that was it. I must have fainted after that. When I came to, and looked around… There it was. My own rapier, stuck in my own dear lord's chest!

"A tragedy indeed," the prosecutor laments. "But does this mean you are unclear about the actual moment of the murder?"

I refuse to accept the ninja's victory with honor. I know not what happened, whether she returned to catch him in a weaker state, or whether another person entered the scene. But I can certainly say that his demise was the doing of a coward.

"Oh my." The judge looks troubled. "The more we hear, the less clear it gets."

The policeman waggles his heavy eyebrows. "You know, pal, it's funny. Since the suspicious bandit was found with the Samurai Sword, we would've thought that was the murder weapon."

"Hm, why yes. And yet both witnesses have testified that it was the Princess's rapier."

"The rapier itself wasn't found at the scene. I wonder where it is now, pal!"

"In lack of evidence," the prosecutor speaks, "these words are everything. Unfortunately, everyone inevitably holds a biased account."

"You're right. What can we do, sir?"

"…HOLD IT!"

(Finally, I get a line in somewhere! And one I've practiced so much.)

In an instant, all eyes converge upon the source of the shout.

"I have an idea," the attorney speaks, "if the honorable court would hear out a commoner's plan."

(Though I could do without the excessive humility.)

"Very well," the judge graciously agrees. "What are your thoughts?"

"Well, we've heard from all the witnesses. I would say that the only thing left to do… is to hear the tale from the man himself."

The courtroom gallery buzzes with confusion. "Huh? From the Steel Samurai? But how?"

"I happen to know a spirit medium, who can communicate with the spirit of the deceased."

"So even if he's gone, we can hear his story…"

The camera pans down, down, down. A petite body draped in light purple robes peeks out from her hiding spot behind the defense's bench. The extra small medium speaks in an even smaller voice.

"H-hello. I am a channeler of the dead. I will do my best to shed a shining light on the true purr-pa-traitor."

The judge's eyes widen. "This is madness! A spirit medium? We haven't used this technique in years, since the fall of the last regime…"

"And yet," the attorney insists, "it may be the most reliable method there is. After all, why would a dead man lie?"