Dark Star Scandal

The Dark Star Scandal was the name given to the corruption that plagued the Dark Star Bureau from EC 980 until the end of the Leviantan Civil War three years later. Allowed to thrive under the jurisdiction of Chief Justice Gallerian Marlon, the incident became among the most infamous in the history of the Union State of Evillious.

Origins
Following his wife and daughter's tragic deaths in EC 978, Chief Justice Gallerian Marlon became wracked with grief. Two years later, the judge consulted his longtime friend, Ma, on her earlier statements regarding the Seven Deadly Sins, claiming that when all seven were collected that they would grant a wish. Willing to bet on her testimony, the judge decided to find and gather the vessels of sin for himself.

Ignoble Dealings
Presiding over the Spoon Corruption case, Gallerian identified the Marlon Spoon as one of his required vessels. As a result of the jurisdiction, he confiscated the spoon and kept it for himself. Around this time, the Dark Star Bureau was privatized, leading Gallerian to accept bribes to judge aristocrats innocent for their crimes; similarly, kickbacks were accepted to falsely indict enemies of the nobles and present phony evidence that would convict the innocent accused.

With the corruption spreading to many officials within the court, Gallerian was free to profit off his deceitful rulings. Around the same time, he had his daughter Nemesis Sudou act as his gun for hire, giving them the codenames of "Santa Claus" and "Eight" respectively. At some point, he conducted the murder trial of Second Lieutenant Nyoze Octo, who was in possession of the Venom Sword. After convicting Nyoze of multiple homicides, the weapon was confiscated as evidence and stored in the judge's personal warehouse in his home before giving the vessel to Ma.

Sometime during his career, he was bribed and exonerated the famed celebrity Scherzer for assaulting a woman. Later on, Gallerian received a tip from one Scherzer's subordinates that he had been responsible for kidnapping and defiling numerous women in his suburban mansion. Promised the celebrity's entire fortune for his execution, Gallerian sent out a police squad to investigate the premises and arrest Scherzer. The judge misled Scherzer into believing he would help him and presided over the trial, only to find him guilty and having him executed.

Sometime after, he began collecting each of the Four Mirrors of Lucifenia. Later on, he discovered the Glass of Conchita was in the Graveyard restaurant and dispatched a warrant for the workers' arrest, confiscating the vessel for himself. On his collaborator's suggestion, Gallerian constructed a small theater in EC 982 to house his collectibles away from prying eyes. By EC 983, the infamous Marlon collected six of the seven vessels and garnered a fortune from his shady dealings.

Leviantan Civil War
In August of that year, General Tony Ausdin was charged with serial murder and placed under Gallerian's jurisdiction. After accepting the bribe and judging the general innocent, his corruption had come to light; riots broke out in the streets of Levianta in opposition to the injustice. General Ausdin was brutally killed in the chaos, followed by the rioters setting fire to Gallerian's home; Trapped in a confrontation with Nemesis, Gallerian was killed.

Aftermath
After the riots had been suppressed, the mangled corpse of General Ausdin was discovered in his backyard. As the sole benefactor in his will, Ma inherited Gallerian's remaining collection in his home before disappearing from the public eye a few days later. The rest of the collection was stored in the small movie theater thereafter and was largely ignored until being rediscovered in EC 990, leading many to go missing after entering the Millennium Tree Forest in search of Gallerian's vast fortune.

Civilian Perception
With known criminals and murderers being exonerated while innocent citizens were being convicted, public opinion for Gallerian quickly plummeted in the years of the scandal, and the uproar by the corruption plaguing the Dark Star Bureau eventually led to civil war. In the years after his death, his existence in the bureau became a blemish in the USE's history that was often spoken about. Because of the vast fortune he collected from his corrupt dealings and personal collection of the vessels of sin, he was regarded by later generations as the "Collector".