Damn, I recarneted As A Judge in Fantasy World

Those who had been cursing the Duke of Carriers disappeared in an instant.

Like the friends in the forest who quickly run away when the truth is revealed.

The streets of Perias were alive with the sound of cheering as people chased after rascals, shouting:

"The Duke of Carriere has defeated the plague!"

"I lost my wife during the last plague, but this time everyone was safe. Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Khuuuuk!"

Those who had been forced to send their families away due to the plague could not stop crying. The air was filled with emotions, and the city buzzed with relief.

However, in one corner of the city, something rather absurd was taking place.

"What did you just say? To cure the plague, you want me to pay 200 more gold?" A man shouted, his expression filled with desperation.

His opponent was a young man wearing shabby robes. Though the overcoat was plain, his inner clothes were pristine white priestly garb. The person demanding money was, in fact, a priest.

"I'm also very busy. Do you know how many requests I have coming in right now?" the priest replied.

Although the plague was being suppressed by Duke Carriere, it didn't mean no one was infected.

This desperate man had an only son who was gravely ill, the kind of illness that made you feel like you could suffocate just by looking at the child.

But there was no way for him to come up with the money. Where on earth would an ordinary middle-class father find 200 gold coins? How much had already been spent trying to cure his son?

Just then, a gasp echoed from inside the house.

"Ugh! Keuk!"

"Oh, oh, oh!"

The sound of strained breathing filled the room, and the man, who had hurriedly entered earlier, now walked out with a dark expression.

He glared at the priest, his eyes full of fury.

"Hey! You son of a bitch! Save my son!"

***

The use of masks and overcoats had significantly reduced the spread of the disease. Since fewer people were infected, the mortality rate naturally dropped. Isolation and treatment were easier to manage.

"Phew! I feel relieved for the moment," Abel sighed.

"I didn't know it would work this well. To be honest, I was skeptical," Butler Miller Xavier said, looking bewildered.

Well, it must have been hard to believe since they had never dealt with a plague in this manner before. Still, Abel wanted to praise him for faithfully following the somewhat questionable orders.

"Thanks to you, I was able to overcome the crisis. Thank you for your hard work," Abel said.

"What did I do? I just did as His Majesty the Duke instructed."

"There are many people who can't even do that. Let's just keep things this way for now and monitor the situation. Is there anyone among the employees who got infected?" Abel asked.

"Yes, everyone is following the quarantine guidelines very well."

Perhaps increasing the supply of liquid soap had been effective. By simply washing hands well, most germs could be eliminated.

However, this state could not be maintained forever. Butler Xavier seemed hesitant to broach a subject but finally spoke.

"The quantity of liquid soap is insufficient. It is an expensive product to begin with, and the production volume is not that large."

"Are other nobles buying a lot as well?"

"Yes, that's right."

They had asked the government to promote handwashing, and the participation rate was much higher than expected.

The plague had not appeared at all in the Duchy of Carriere and Midias. The streets were filled with people walking around as if everything was fine.

Wasn't that proof that quarantine rules were effective?

'Of course, there were a few cases,' Abel thought.

Because he had used Vargas' potion, it seemed like no one had been seriously affected.

But the treatment wasn't a fundamental solution. The ingredients for the potion were so rare, making large-scale production nearly impossible.

As things stood, they could barely sell any liquid soap because they didn't have enough.

'I wish Vargas would make some solid soap instead.'

Of course, Abel had already discussed this in advance. He wanted Vargas to research a product that could replace liquid soap.

But Vargas wasn't some kind of wizard who could conjure something out of thin air.

Besides, his current focus was on finding a cure for the plague rather than soap.

"If I get lucky like in Deliat, I don't know. Maybe I can find a congratulatory gift somewhere... Huh?"

As Abel absentmindedly muttered to himself, someone's face popped into his head.

He remembered receiving help from someone during his experiments to determine the cultivation conditions for Cordyceps sinensis.

Coincidentally, that person was currently in the imperial capital.

'If it's Princess Justia, then maybe it's possible.'

Wasn't she someone blessed with luck?

However, Abel couldn't just go meet her without thinking it through. It wouldn't be appropriate for someone about to get married to frequently meet with other women.

But Abel was known for having a spotless private life, so if they met for business, no strange rumors would spread.

'Let's go after work today,' Abel decided.

It would be impolite to visit without notice, so he asked Deacon Xavier to handle the arrangements and set off to work with a lighter heart.

But lurking in the court was an unexpected issue.

"Hello?"

"I guess Judge Padilla is in charge of distribution today," Abel remarked.

"Yes, that's right," Judge Josef Padilla responded.

"Could you please leave the documents here in front of me?"

"Of course. But…"

Judge Padilla hesitated, as if something was weighing on his mind. Abel noticed his discomfort.

"What's going on?" Abel inquired.

"I have a headache thinking about the upcoming trial," Judge Padilla confessed.

"Aren't all those cases going to be passed on to me anyway?" Abel replied dryly.

"This one's going to be an even bigger headache than usual."

"Really? What makes this one so bad?"

"The defendant is a priest, and he's also the second son of the Duke of Giovanni."

"Yes, a priest, Giovanni. Wait… What?!"

The realization made Abel sigh deeply. The church and the Giovanni noble faction combined? Even separated, those two were enough to cause problems.

Together, it was a nightmare. Discover hidden stories at empire

"Thank you for letting me know."

"You're welcome," Judge Padilla smiled as he handed the documents over.

Despite his earlier troubled look, he now seemed oddly cheerful.

'Why is he acting like that?' Abel wondered.

There was no way Padilla was pleased because of some affiliation with the Giovanni faction, right? Abel dismissed the thought, but just as the door was closing, he caught sight of something bizarre.

Ta-da-tat! Click!

Abel shook his head. "Anyway, that guy is quite the troublemaker."

Why was Judge Padilla suddenly so cheerful? Abel had seen him do a short tap dance in the hallway.

'By the way, how do I deal with this?' Abel thought, focusing on the court documents.

The upcoming trial involved both the Aramid Order and the Giovanni noble faction. This was going to be a mess.

"Ah! I just got to work, but I already want to leave. Can someone help me with this?"

Abel muttered to himself, voicing the thoughts of every tired office worker everywhere.