1 In the Court

"Wood Johnson stands accused of stealing a pair of gold-plated horse harnesses belonging to Mr. Raoul Hendler, valued at approximately 15 soli, on November 17th. Do you plead guilty, Mr. Johnson?"

"I plead not guilty, sir!"

As the familiar words echoed in his ears from the clerk and the defendant, Burton Chester turned his gaze towards the young man seated to his left in the same row.

He was a handsome young man with well-defined features, wearing a white stiff-collared shirt and a black open-front robe with padded shoulders. He had a short white wig made of horsehair atop his head and was attentively looking at the judge's bench on the podium. He was the defense attorney for the accused, Rolls Adrian.

Burton Chester was quite familiar with this young man, just as anyone involved in the legal profession in Backlund would be.

Rolls came from a family of lawyers. His father, Mason Adrian, had humble beginnings but was not content with his circumstances. He worked as a laborer in the dockyards during the day and studied at the free night school established by the Goddess of the Night. With his diligence and hard work, he managed to gain admission to law school and became a prominent lawyer in a short span of time. At the age of thirty-five, he even established his own law firm. Unfortunately, Mason's excessive exertions in his early years prevented him from living past sixty, and he passed away due to illness the previous year.

Rolls Adrian, who was still studying at the Tingen Lincoln Law School at the time, returned to Backlund to handle his father's funeral and took over the family law firm.

But if it were only that, Burton wouldn't have known Rolls so well. He was just a young man who inherited his family's law firm. Backlund saw plenty of young people inheriting vast fortunes every year, only to squander them and end up as workers in the dockyards. Burton had encountered many such cases during his time as a legal practitioner and even drafted numerous contracts for buying and selling.

But Rolls Adrian was different. After his father's death, he completed the remaining five years of study in just six months and graduated from Tingen Law School to become a prominent lawyer.

He achieved fame even faster than his father, becoming a renowned lawyer in Backlund within a year.

Although in the past half-month, for some reason, Rolls had started handling ordinary civil cases, even taking on small cases like this involving a sum of only one pound.

Glancing at Rolls once again, Burton couldn't help but sigh inwardly. He was too young! It was said that Rolls wasn't even twenty-two yet, whereas Burton himself was still studying at law school when he was twenty-two.

As Rolls observed Judge Harvey Brook on the bench, who appeared to be in his fifties with a wrinkled, broad face, dressed in a black silk judicial robe and wearing a short white wig, he noticed the cluttered pen holder with feather quills, the silver candlesticks, and the slightly tilted scales.

Although Rolls knew from his predecessor's memories that many Storm Lord devotee judges had a habit of drinking a glass of Lanzhi wine before court proceedings, neither his predecessor nor himself had witnessed it.

Perhaps it was because this was a minor civil case involving a sum of only 15 soli that Judge Brook could enjoy a glass of Lanzhi.

Rolls thought that when it came to the major civil and criminal cases he handled in the past, no judge dared to have a glass of Lanzhi wine before court proceedings, let alone the strong Lanzhi wine.

However, as Rawls observed the quilled pen holder, silver candlesticks, and the already tilted scales scattered on Judge Brooke's bench, he couldn't help but feel that His Excellency the judge might not be averse to indulging in a drink during a high-profile trial.

Yet, in his old age, Judge Brooke was merely a salaried magistrate at the Chorwood District Magistrates Court. Rawls worried that the judge wouldn't have the opportunity to preside over significant cases. After all, this was the capital of the Loen Kingdom, often referred to as the "capital of all capitals," housing esteemed institutions such as the House of Lords, the Court of Appeal, the High Court, and the Royal Court. It seemed unlikely for a magistrate from a local court to handle such important matters.

These thoughts crossed Rawls' mind as he delved into the biography of Raul Hendler. When he heard the clerk calling out Raul Hendler's name, Rawls knew that the trial had commenced. Judge Brooke, setting aside his glass, straightened his black casual robe and fixed his gaze upon Raul Hendler, the defendant.

Raul Hendler was about fifty years old, wearing a white shirt and a red waistcoat trying to restrain his bulging belly, his face warm

"Mr. Johnson came to my house last November and became my coachman. However, in November of that year, he pleaded with me to return to Whitecliffe because his son was ill," Hendler explained to the jury. "Being a gentleman, I agreed. After settling Mr. Johnson's wages, I went on a holiday to Dixie Bay and returned in February of this year. Upon my return, I discovered that one of my gilded harnesses was missing. My servant informed me that it had been taken by Mr. Johnson when he left!"

Hendler gestured towards Wood Johnson, who stood in the dock. "Knowing about Mr. Johnson's son's illness, I suspected that he may have taken my gilded harness and sold it to cover his son's medical expenses. Consequently, I promptly instructed a servant to investigate. The servant informed me that they had discovered my harness when they visited Hendler's house."

"So I wrote to Mr. Johnson and requested the return of the harness. However, Mr. Johnson refused to return it, so I had no choice but to take legal action against him."

Hendler's statement caused a stir among the jurors, and Judge Harvey Brook struck the gavel.

"Adrian Rolls!"

Rawls stood up from the bar, acknowledged Judge Brook, and directed his gaze towards Raul Hendler, seated to the right of the plaintiff.

"Mr. Hendler, how did you discover that your harness was missing? Did you realize it was gone while using it?"

"No, I discovered it during an inventory of my belongings. You see, I left Backlund to go on a vacation to Dixi Bay for over a month, and there are some untrustworthy servants who take advantage of my absence to clandestinely pilfer items." As Hendler referred to "the servant with a black heart," he cast a glance at Wood Johnson, who stood opposite him. "This is something every gentleman despises, so I've made it a practice to conduct an inventory of my possessions before and after every vacation."

"That's correct, such occurrences are quite common within my family. It seems I have much to learn from Mr. Hendler!" exclaimed a young man in a black tuxedo within the jury.

"Tuk~~Tuk~~"

"Mr. Charles, don't you desire an invitation outside?" Judge Brooke sounded the gavel and cautioned.

A disgruntled young Charles sat back down.

Rawls turned around and discreetly gestured to Wood Johnson, who was eager to defend himself.

"Oh?" Rawls chuckled, "So, you possess two carriages?"

"No, just a two-wheeled carriage."

"That doesn't befit your social standing. You should acquire another four-wheeled carriage." In Backlund, affluent gentlemen often own two carriages, one with two wheels and another with a four-wheeled carriage .

"I haven't reached that point yet, Lawyer Rawls." Although Hendler wasn't sure of Rawls' intentions, he replied nonetheless. Despite Rawls currently being his "adversary," Hendler was keen to befriend such a promising young barrister, particularly since his current circumstances were not favorable.

"But I heard that you purchased a significant amount of land two years ago, and last year you earned nearly 3,000 pounds..."