northernbook Chapter 353 Court Trial, Not Yet Started
Chapter 353 Court Trial, Not Yet Started
The next day, Ling looked around the shop with great boredom. Behind the counter, in a room with an open door, a television was playing the news.
The video being broadcast is a special preview of the public trial of the Far East bombing case, which will begin in a day, and the reporter responsible for broadcasting it is currently standing on the tarmac atop the Janus District Police Department building.
It is clear from the reporters covering the case that soon the suspect, Charles Perlman, along with the victim's representative, Rabbit House, and other individuals involved in the case, will be transported by a dedicated airship to the Supreme Court in New Elidu a day in advance to await trial.
Of course, in order to allow the public to better monitor the trial of this case, tomorrow's court hearing will be broadcast live in its entirety.
At this moment, Zhe was preparing blank videotapes so that he could record the entire trial as a memento when the court session began the next day.
Meanwhile, inside the Rabbit House store, Nicole was sitting on the sofa watching the news and eating a hamburger, while reminding Nicole, who was enthusiastically packing her luggage, to keep an eye on her.
"Nicole, it's almost time to board the airship, haven't you packed your luggage yet?"
"Speaking of which, Nicole, do you really need to bring so much stuff to court?"
While helping to hold the suitcase, Billy asked Nicole with a puzzled look.
It's easy to tell from the unclosed suitcase that it contained not only Nicole's change of clothes, but also a lot of brochures and other items.
At that moment, Nicole was standing in front of the only full-length mirror in the room, trying on the suit she would be wearing the next day, and responded with a look of disdain on her face, wearing non-prescription glasses.
"What do you know! This is a major case that has shocked the entire city, which is also a great opportunity for our Rabbit House to make a name for itself. Of course, I have to appear in front of the public in the most perfect image!"
She then turned around and pulled out several brochures from her suitcase, handing them to everyone present, while reminding them to be sure to distribute the brochures to potential customers in the audience.
Just then, Nicole's phone on the table rang. The cat handed the phone to Nicole, saying that someone had sent her a message. After reading the message, Nicole's expression changed drastically.
Finally, under Neko's questioning, he handed her his phone. He saw that someone on the phone kept sending spaces to Nicole, and just as Neko was wondering about it, the other person sent another space.
After Nicole held her head in her hands and complained for a while, she led everyone to Zhe's video store. Meanwhile, Zhe and the others were watching the news and learning various information from it.
Just now, a big sister from the Rat People came to the video store, saying she wanted to rent videotapes for her friend. Without saying a word, she bought a membership card and deposited a lot of money into it.
Ling's bright smile never faded throughout the entire process. After completing this order, Ling finally couldn't contain her curiosity. She hung the "Closed" sign on the door, turned around, and sat down next to Zhe to start reading the news.
Time returns to the present.
"...These issues could all become the focus of contention in court. Now, let's welcome our special guest..."
After reading the news, Tetsuya couldn't help but sigh, "I originally thought that Perlman's crimes were clear and the trial wouldn't be too troublesome. I didn't expect there to be so many details in court. No wonder Nicole has been so worried about this case."
"Phaethon!"
Nicole's anxious voice came from the doorway, and then Nicole and the others from the Rabbit House appeared in front of the brother and sister.
“Nicole, what brings you here?” Zhe asked. “Nicole, I remember you were supposed to take an airship to the Supreme Court today, right?”
"That's how it should be, but there's something I feel I need to discuss with you, otherwise I'll be very unsettled in court!"
Hearing Nicole say that, Zhe immediately became interested. After all, there weren't many things that could make Nicole feel uneasy.
"What happened? Why does Nicole seem so unsettled?"
"Didn't you guys ask me to connect with hacker Ryan a while ago to crack the storage unit at White Heavy Industry...?"
“I remember, after all, the Public Security Bureau only released information related to the former president's case before returning it to Shirai Heavy Industries. We suspected that some information was being withheld, so we went to Shirai Heavy Industries to get it. When we needed a hacker to crack it, you volunteered, saying you had connections and could find that famous hacker from the rope net to help us…”
At this point, Ling couldn't help but crack a joke.
"Nicole, you're not suddenly having a change of heart and coming to tell us you don't know her at all, are you?"
"How could that be! It's one thing at other times, but you actually question my connections?! Even if Ryan is a hot commodity in the rope net, I still have to give her face."
Nicole retorted, then showed a slightly embarrassed expression.
"However... something strange seems to have happened on her side recently."
"Hmm? I smell a conspiracy."
Tetsuya's expression also began to turn serious. Ever since they learned about the creature called the Beast and the Praise Society from Kiana, Tetsuya and Rin had become very cautious in this regard.
"Whether it's a conspiracy or not, I can't say for sure right now."
After thinking for a moment, Nicole recounted everything that had happened recently...
Simply put, recently, people who know Nicole and Ryan have been receiving blank messages from her from time to time.
At first, no one thought much of it, but this situation lasted for a full half month. In addition to this information, Ryan simply vanished without a trace.
Even today, Ryan sent five or six blank messages to Nicole. Feeling that something was very wrong, Nicole decided to come to Daozhe and the others to confirm the specific situation.
After listening to Nicole's account, Zhe immediately instructed Fairy to analyze the information. Fairy's analysis revealed no hidden details. However, the sending addresses were not concealed, and Fairy's investigation showed that all the messages were sent from the Leiba Building.
Upon hearing this news, the expressions of those present turned serious, because the Leiba Building had long been swallowed by a void, but recently the void covering the Leiba Building had begun to collapse, exposing its top floor as well.
But why would a hacker like Ryan go there for no reason?
Zhe was completely baffled. After all, the place was indeed hidden, but to get to the top floor, which was not in the hollow area, one either had to climb up through the hollow or take a flying vehicle.
It's well hidden, but surely it's not really hidden there?
And what about resupply? Most importantly, if she really went up there voluntarily, why would she send blank messages with no hidden information to people she knows every day?
Especially today, I sent Nicole five or six messages at once. Could it be that she was kidnapped and taken there?
Following this line of thought, Zhe suddenly remembered that the airship responsible for escorting Perlman seemed to have passed by the Leiba Building.
Could it be that...!
Zhe, with a grave expression, told Nicole his guess.
"Nicole, listen to me, don't get agitated no matter what I say later, okay?"
"Zhe, what's on your mind?"
Zhe took a deep breath and said, "This is just my speculation, but it's very likely that Ryan was kidnapped there!"
"what?!"
Zhe then told Nicole and the others his guesses, as well as about the sacrificial spirits and the praise meeting.
"Zhe, is this information you have true?" Nicole asked in a deep voice.
"It's true, Kiana told me all of this."
"hateful!"
Nicole slammed her fist against the wall. She never imagined that helping Zhe and the others would involve such a behemoth.
What's wrong with her luck lately? She gets all these simple commissions, but the behind-the-scenes stories she uncovers are all incredibly significant.
Most importantly, she even dragged her best friend into this mess.
"Nicole..."
However, now is not the time to be sentimental, so Zhe immediately decided to help Nicole with this favor.
After all, she still had to catch the airship to the Supreme Court, and she didn't have time to waste here.
After a brief discussion, Nicole decided to send Tetsuya and Neko to the Layba Building Hollow together, while she would take Ambi and Billy to catch the airship.
While the true motives behind the kidnapping of Ryan are unknown, it's highly likely related to the Far View bombing case. The worst-case scenario is that the kidnappers intend to use the height of the Leybar Building to hijack the airship, and then either help Perlman escape or eliminate him.
Neither of these scenarios is what anyone wants to see, so it is urgent to head to the Leiba Building to investigate the matter thoroughly.
After assigning their respective tasks, Nicole took Ambly and Billy to the Janus Police Department to catch the airship, while Neko took Ies to the cave where the Leiba Building was located.
Meanwhile, on the other side...