In fact, Kallen could have Advance to Arbiter long ago. His talent, his accumulated strength, his absorption, his opportunities—in every respect, he had long since exceeded the wildest expectations for anyone like him.
It was just that his path was rather unusual, and with Dis's example before him, speed was not his sole pursuit. Before taking each step, he had to think it through carefully, because one misplaced foot could send him straight into a dark abyss.
Still, Bishop Dorf's death had always been the milestone Kallen had set for his advancement.
And now, the time had indeed come.
Kallen turned around to face Bishop Dorf again, who sat quietly there with his head hanging down.
Scenes from the past were drawn out of his memories, one after another. Most of them had also been recorded by Alfred in his little notebook.
In one scene, Kallen stood outside the Pavarro Funeral Society and learned that an Arbiter named Vicolai had stolen Inquisitor Pavaro's credit. He had sworn then that he would kill that man.
In the interrogation room, when Vicolai compared Pavaro's family to bitches, Kallen had passed judgment on him;
In the Court of Judgment, under Bishop Byrne's relentless pressure, Kallen had begun to grasp the true atmosphere of "Ankara Story" and understand the definition of adjudication anew;
Then came his pronouncement of judgment on Trisen, and now, the sight of Bishop Dorf dead before him.
These scenes began to overlap in Kallen's mind.
For a long time, Kallen's understanding of "adjudication" had remained within the bounds of dogmatism. In a world with gods and clerics, it was not that idealism was necessarily correct, but that, when analyzing specific circumstances, the boundary between idealism and materialism actually needed to shift.
This was a path destined for solitude. When you