Chapter 106. The Winter City Public Trial
Winter City First Court.
Rather than a court, the place looked more like a bustling marketplace, or the stage of so third-rate theater troupe.
The gallery was already packed.
Silk formalwear everywhere. Delicate lace collars. And the air was thick with the scent of expensive perfu.
Nearly half of the Northern Territory nobles who had any reputation were present today.
They had not co to care about justice.
They had co to watch a show.
“Hey, Jason, how much did you bet?”
A baron with a protruding belly cracked walnuts as he nudged the man beside him with his elbow.
“I bet five thousand Golden Lion Coins.” The noble called Jason raised five fingers, wearing the sort of grin that clearly enjoyed watching chaos unfold. “This ti that brat Viscount Gleiman really offended the new Chief Judicial Officer badly. There is no way he gets out of this without bleeding a large sum of money.”
“Five thousand? You are seriously underestimating the Gleiman family’s wealth.”
A count wearing a monocle in the front row turned around, his tone full of certainty.
“Old Gleiman is the head of the Defense Army logistics departnt. That is a very lucrative position. If he wants to protect that foolish son of his, he will have to cough up at least ten thousand. That is called ‘spending money to avert disaster.’”
“Tsk tsk, ten thousand Golden Lion Coins… that would be enough for to keep that newly debuted dancer for an entire year.”
Laughter broke out everywhere.
In the eyes of these old nobles, a so-called legal trial was nothing more than a negotiation over price.
As long as the money was sufficient, no cri was impossible to wash clean.
That was called an unspoken rule.
That was the rule of the Northern Territory for hundreds of years.
At the defendant’s stand.
The young Viscount Gleiman clearly looked uneasy.
Beside him stood a short, fat middle-aged man with an oily face.
That was his father, the head of logistics for the Winter City Defense Army—Old Gleiman.
“This is the fine ss you caused!”
Old Gleiman lowered his voice and glared fiercely at his son.
“How many tis have I told you? Even when you are fooling around with won, you have to pick your targets carefully! Is that carriage sothing you could block? That was the Chief Judicial Officer!”
“Co on, Father, how was I supposed to know that outsider would be so stubborn?” Young Gleiman looked aggrieved as well. “At worst we just pay more money. Our family is not short of that little bit.”
“Nonsense! That is still my money!”
Old Gleiman clutched his chest painfully. “Behave yourself later. I have already had soone prepare a draft for twenty thousand Golden Lion Coins. As soon as that fellow Cicero appears, I will hand over the money and have him close the case imdiately.”
The father and son were still calculating how to bribe their way out.
Suddenly—
“Silence!”
A voice that was not particularly loud, yet carried a bone-chilling coldness, echoed across the entire courtroom.
The previously noisy gallery instantly fell silent.
All eyes turned toward the judge’s bench.
The side door opened.
Cicero walked in.
He was not wearing the traditional bulky black judge’s robe.
Instead, he was still dressed in that well-tailored dark gray suit, with only a black cloak symbolizing judicial authority draped over it.
He held a jet-black law to in his hand.
He strolled slowly to the center of the bench, placed the to on the table, and only then lifted his head to scan the room.
His gaze was calm.
So calm that it made people uneasy.
“Is everyone here?”
Cicero spoke casually, as if hosting a tea gathering. “Then let us begin.”
“I am Cicero, Chief Judicial Officer of the Northern Territory. The trial concerning Viscount Gleiman’s street assault on a judicial officer and attempted harm to the family of a public official will now comnce.”
There was no long opening speech.
No complicated oath-taking ceremony.
They went straight to the point.
Old Gleiman had always been impatient and arrogant.
Before the clerk had even finished reading the indictnt, he directly pulled out a gold draft he had prepared long ago.
“Lord Cicero, let us not waste ti.”
Old Gleiman abruptly produced the draft.
“Here are twenty thousand Golden Lion Coins. My son was indeed in the wrong, but he had drunk too much and was not in his right mind. Consider this money compensation for your emotional distress. In addition, we will donate another five thousand to the city hall. Let us consider the matter settled.”
After speaking, he even winked at Cicero.
“My lord has just taken office. There must be many places where money is needed. Let us beco friends. In the future, if you need any supplies from the logistics departnt, I will definitely approve them for you first.”
The gallery erupted in an uproar.
“Twenty thousand! I told you! Old Gleiman is really bleeding this ti!”
“With twenty thousand coins on the table, that Cicero will definitely have nothing to say. That is enough for him to earn in ten years.”
Everyone believed the matter was already settled.
After all, who would go against money?
Cicero looked at the draft.
Then he looked at the confident Old Gleiman.
Suddenly, he smiled.
A bright smile, revealing a row of neat white teeth.
“Twenty thousand Golden Lion Coins? That truly is quite a large sum.”
Old Gleiman thought he had been tempted. The fat on his face nearly blood with joy.
“That is right, that is right. As long as you are satisfied, my lord—”
“Unfortunately.”
The smile on Cicero’s face vanished instantly.
“I am not selling.”
The mont those three words were spoken, the atmosphere in the courtroom froze.
Old Gleiman was stunned, suspecting he had heard wrong.
“My lord, what did you say? That is twenty thousand—”
“Can you not understand human language?”
Cicero’s expression suddenly turned fierce.
The oppressive aura belonging to the tribunal erupted instantly.
“I said, I will not take your money.”
“And who told you that this case could be settled with money?”
Cicero picked up a docunt from the table and lightly shook it.
“According to Northern Territory Special Act No. 001 — 《Decision on the Abolition of Noble Judicial Immunity and the Privilege Redemption System》.”
“From this mont onward, for serious cris involving violent offenses, threats to public safety, corruption, bribery, and similar felonies, the ‘fine redemption’ system is abolished for both nobles and commoners alike.”
“A life for a life. A debt repaid.”
“This law ca into effect last night with the personal seal of Acting Governor of the Northern Territory Sylvia.”
The entire hall fell into absolute silence.
There was truly not a single sound.
Even breathing seed to stop.
All the nobles stared wide-eyed as if they had just heard an impossible fantasy.
Abolish immunity?
No paying money to redeem cris?
How could that be possible?
“You… you are talking nonsense!”
Old Gleiman was the first to react.
His face flushed a dark red as his trembling finger pointed at Cicero.
“That is impossible! This has been the rule for hundreds of years! I am a hereditary noble! I am the descendant of ritorious officials! You cannot judge ! I want to see Her Highness! I want to see the council!”
Beside him, Viscount Gleiman also panicked and shouted hoarsely.
“I am a viscount! I have privileges! I want to pay! I have money!”
Looking at the father and son shouting like clowns, Cicero rely frowned in disgust.
“How noisy.”
He snapped his fingers.
“Let the veterans stretch their limbs.”
The mont his words fell—
From the shadows on both sides of the courtroom ca a series of teeth-grinding tallic scraping sounds.
Four slender, jet-black “Night Owl” Magitech Armors stepped out like ghosts.
Their footsteps were not heavy.
Instead, they moved with a lightness resembling enormous black cats.
The cockpits were not fully sealed.
One could clearly see that the people inside were the sa white-haired forr Judicators from that day.
“Oh my, this chubby fellow sure has a loud voice.”
The old man in the leading armor grinned as he controlled the chanical arms to stretch.
“Perfect. I ate too much breakfast. Ti to work off the food.”
The next second—
Without any warning.
Old Gleiman only felt darkness flash before his eyes.
A cold chanical hand had already pressed down on his head.
BANG!
Old Gleiman’s face was slamd directly against the railing of the defendant’s stand.
His thick lips were squeezed and distorted, leaving him able to produce only muffled whimpers.
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