Location: Fontaine's Opera Epiclese
Furina sat in her exclusive seat, watching as the trial reached its final stage, about to conclude.
She let out a soft sigh...
Although this trial was complex enough, dramatic enough, and filled with unexpected twists and turns, without Neuvillette presiding over it, she couldn't help but feel that something was missing...
"Sigh..." Furina murmured, "Neuvillette has been acting strangely since yesterday..."
"Putting aside why he went from accusing Su Yuan of being a pervert to framing him as an assassin, this sudden combat exercise without informing anyone is just not something Neuvillette would do..."
"Neuvillette has always cared about justice, the integrity of the legal process, and the people of Fontaine more than anyone else..."
"He has organized training exercises before, but he always ensured every layer of approval was secured and personally oversaw every detail with extreme caution, fearing that the slightest mistake could lead to unnecessary casualties..."
"I was planning to question him about all of this today! But now, without any prior notice, he suddenly takes a leave of absence and doesn't come to Palais Mermonia?"
"In all these hundreds of years, I've never seen Neuvillette take an unannounced leave ... Even when he had something urgent, he would always apply for leave days in advance..."
"Could something have happened to him? No, that shouldn't be possible... Who in all of Fontaine could possibly do anything to him?"
"And then there's Captain Chevreuse too! Yesterday, she suddenly rallied forces to fight Neuvillette—it nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"But when I called for reinforcements, she went and sealed off the entire floor, refusing to let us go up..."
"And when I insisted on seeing what was happening, she actually knocked me out and sent me back to my room?"
Thinking about it, Furina felt a slight surge of irritation.
However, her frustration wasn't just because Chevreuse had knocked her out—it was because she was certain that Neuvillette and Chevreuse were hiding something from her!
"And then there's Su Yuan, that so-called 'pervert'..."
"Neuvillette said he had already been sent to Meropide for proper 'reformation,' but when I asked to visit him, just to have a word, Neuvillette refused..."
"Huh?" A sudden thought struck Furina.
"Since Neuvillette isn't here today, once I finish my duties during the day, why don't I sneak over to Meropide and take a look myself?"
"To be honest, as the Hydro Archon of the Nation of Justice, it's been quite some time since I last visited Meropide to check on the inmates and understand the conditions of the people..."
That thought lifted her spirits slightly.
"Yes! That's it! It's decided!"
"I wonder what Meropide looks like now under Duke Wriothesley 's management?"
"The evidence presentation and debate session now comes to an end."
The judge, a man named Aesilink, spoke from his seat and then turned toward the plaintiff's side.
"Ms. Ashiman, do you have any final statements or additional information to present?"
"No, we have nothing more to add," Ashiman replied.
Aesilink then turned to the defendant.
"Mr. Erin, what about you?"
"No, I have nothing further," Erin answered.
"Very well. In accordance with Fontaine's laws and procedures, all case materials will now be submitted to the 'Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale' for the final verdict."
With that, Aesilink nodded toward the staff below, who then placed a sealed envelope containing all the case details into the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale—an apparatus shaped like the scales of justice, symbolizing fairness and impartiality.
As the mechanism activated, a mysterious energy began to radiate from it...
"Wait a minute— isn't the energy of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale always water-blue? Why does it look like there's some red and black mixed in today?"
One spectator in the audience suddenly noticed something unusual and turned to his companion.
"What red and black? I don't see anything," his companion replied.
"You must be seeing things! Look again."
The spectator rubbed his eyes and looked back up, only to find that the red and black energy he had seen was no longer there.
"Maybe I'm just too tired and imagined it..." he murmured.
A moment later, the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale finished its process, and the verdict was revealed.
"According to the result given by the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, Mr. Erin..."
Aesilink spoke slowly.
"Scumbag! Deceiving someone's feelings! Serves him right!!"
"Scumbags should all just die!!!"
As soon as Aesilink announced the judgment from the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, the audience erupted into applause and cheers.
At the defendant's stand, Erin had a constipated and dissatisfied look on his face, but he had no choice but to admit that he had lost the trial...
"Erin... Go reflect properly in the Fortress of Meropide... When you get out, don't come looking for me again... I never want to see you for the rest of my life..." Ashiman spoke slowly from the plaintiff's stand.
"And don't ever deceive another girl again..."
"As per the ruling of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, we will uphold the guilty verdict..."
Aesilink read on, glancing at the results displayed by the machine.
"The final sentencing decision given by the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale is..."
The next second, Aesilink's face showed a deeply puzzled expression.
He could recognize every word on the verdict, yet he couldn't comprehend why these words had appeared here...
"Death penalty... to be carried out immediately..."
As soon as Aesilink spoke those words, the opera house fell into chaos.
No one had expected such a result!
"Wait... I mean, I just said that scumbags should die, but that was just venting! I didn't actually mean he should be executed..."
"But... the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale has never made a mistake in hundreds of years..."
"Could it be... that Erin has committed sins far more severe than just toying with people's feelings?"
"Otherwise, how could we explain why the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale would deliver such a verdict?"
"I don't accept this! This isn't fair! I only deceived them emotionally and financially, I didn't do anything truly heinous! Why am I sentenced to death?!"
Erin, at the defendant's stand, became extremely agitated.
"Aesilink, although I despise Erin, I do know him well enough to say that he has never committed any truly unforgivable crimes. He really doesn't deserve to die..."
Ashiman from the plaintiff's stand also pleaded on his behalf.
Aesilink furrowed his brows tightly, feeling just as bewildered...
Indeed, in his judgment, while Erin's philandering ways were reprehensible, they were certainly not worthy of the death penalty.
Even Furina, sitting in her private seat, was stunned.
What was going on? Why was he suddenly sentenced to death?
Sure, their relationship drama had been entertaining, full of dramatic twists and turns, but no matter how one looked at it, Erin—despite being a scumbag—surely didn't deserve to be executed, right?
"Honorable Lady Furina, today's trial was originally supposed to be presided over by Lord Neuvillette. However, he had urgent matters to attend to, so I stepped in to take his place..."
Aesilink looked up at Furina on the high platform and spoke respectfully:
"Lady Furina, you've seen everyone's reaction—none of us believe that Erin deserves the death penalty..."
"As the creator of the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale, we have a question for you..."
"Though the Oratrice has never made an erroneous judgment in hundreds of years, is there a possibility that it could malfunction?"
Faced with Aesilink's question, Furina suddenly panicked...
How was she supposed to answer that?
She was just a false Hydro Archon—she had no clue how the Oratrice actually worked!
Furina instinctively wanted to call for Neuvillette to bail her out, but he wasn't here at all...
There was no other choice—she had to bluff her way through this.
"Ahem..." Furina cleared her throat lightly, forcing herself to stay composed.
"My dear people of Fontaine, the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale is one of my supreme creations. Naturally, it is impossible for it to malfunction."
In her mind, she thought: I absolutely cannot admit that the Oratrice could have a fault. Otherwise, they'll expect me to fix it—but I don't understand how it works at all! So I have no choice but to insist that there's no issue...
"There must be some hidden truth behind this case," she declared.
"Therefore, I hereby announce that today's trial will be temporarily adjourned. Once Chief Judge Neuvillette returns, we shall reexamine this case in full!"
The audience erupted into applause, praising Furina's decision.
"Lady Hydro Archon is wise!" Erin was so overwhelmed with emotion that tears streamed down his face.
"I deeply recognize my mistakes—I truly don't want to die..."
Just moments ago, Erin had been indignant about being found guilty.
But the moment he heard he was sentenced to death, he immediately backed down and admitted defeat...
Furina let out a small sigh of relief—she had managed to get through this for now.
From here on, all she had to do was wait for Neuvillette to return and leave the matter in his hands...
She had to trust in Neuvillette's wisdom.
After all, her most important duty was to play the role of the Hydro Archon convincingly.
Exclusive access : 54ch on paetron
Join now : *com/DeCakraWnloverz