Chapter 852: Before the Trial
Rayton Millar had a special identity, and to convict him, a public trial was necessary. The Black Epaulets dared to come directly to the door, so they certainly wouldn't let the Holy Sword Society's "witness" be killed so easily.
And Lady Lily was confident that Ashis Werner would stumble over this. Whatever her backup plan, it clearly didn't rely on Xu Huo's assassination attempt.
So Xu Huo didn't intercept the man halfway.
First, the success rate was extremely low. Not to mention directly confronting that C-grade player, even breaking through the Black Epaulets' protective circle was as difficult as reaching the sky.
Second, keeping this person alive was more valuable to him.
He had watched two public trials and roughly understood the courtroom layout. Estimating the approximate position where the accused would stand, he took out a bag of powder and gently blew it into the courtroom.
A dust-like substance scattered evenly on the ground. Xu Huo bent down to check before quietly retreating from the courtroom.
What he used wasn't a prop, but a special kind of powder.
The Black Epaulets would thoroughly inspect both inside and outside the courtroom before the trial began. The chances of concealing a prop without being discovered were very slim. This powder was a type of plant pollen, easily trampled and carried, and the pollen grains attracted each other. It had no major use, only able to detect where people who had stepped on this pollen had been within a very short range, but it had one obvious advantage: it was inconspicuous.
Under such tight surveillance, unless one had overwhelming combat power, the chances of successfully making small moves in secret were very low. So after completing these few small tasks, Xu Huo followed a second patrol team out of the courthouse and found a random place nearby to settle down.
He stored the communicator in his luggage compartment and patiently waited until the next morning.
As expected, before the accused arrived, a large number of Black Epaulets and a few White Epaulets, after passing identity verification, entered the courthouse one after another for inspection.
The identity verification method used was on-site genetic testing. Each person had a unique match, making forgery impossible. The chance of changing one's appearance and sneaking in was minuscule.
However, the White Epaulets clashed with the Black Epaulets upon entering. All the important areas in the courthouse were controlled by the Black Epaulets, leaving only temporary staff rest rooms or changing rooms for the White Epaulets—before an important trial, most of the courthouse's own staff, unless absolutely necessary, were given time off.
"What's there to check in these places?" the White Epaulets complained. "Might as well send us to check the toilets!"
"The restroom is a very important place. Captain Ran specifically instructed us before coming. You want to check it? Dream on!" the Black Epaulets retorted.
This was just a simple verbal conflict. After a few exchanges, both sides hurried to carry out their tasks.
Enforcement Department members came and went. The Black Epaulet responsible for identity verification left alone.
Xu Huo kept a certain distance and followed him, but unexpectedly, the man broke away from the Enforcement Department team and dumped all the collected blood samples into a trash can.
Seeing this, Xu Huo's brow twitched slightly. Blood was like a true name for players—not entirely impossible to leak, but generally, they were especially careful not to expose it. Besides, genetic verification wasn't completely foolproof. How could an Enforcement Department member make such a low-level mistake?
Even if it was to be disposed of as waste, it wouldn't be done this way.
He widened the distance, placed a micro-camera at a farther spot, and then retreated even further, using binoculars to observe the area around the trash can.
Soon, a middle-aged woman came by with a basket. After sorting the trash, she tipped the basket over the trash can.
When she tipped the basket, Xu Huo saw the camera he had placed nearby shake. He opened the connection screen, and it was already black. In contrast, the low-tech binoculars in his hand were perfectly fine.
Seeing her take the blood, he leaped to the roof of another building and watched until she entered a residential building.
Because the distance was too great, he couldn't tell which floor she went to. However, she soon reappeared in his field of vision—after greeting a neighbor in the hallway, the woman walked into the living room. Without closing the curtains, she picked up some dirty clothes and walked out again.
It looked like she was heading to the laundry room, but she didn't come back out.
Xu Huo waited outside for ten minutes. Seeing that time was running low, he placed a camera on the roof facing the opposite room, then returned to the area near the courthouse.
The White Epaulets had already discovered the irregularities in the cleaning staff's changing room. Everyone who had come to do the final cleaning before the trial was arrested. The White Epaulets firmly refused to interrogate them jointly with the Black Epaulets and simply took the people away.
The Black Epaulets weren't idle either. After checking the external surveillance, they removed some of the defensive props and arranged for personnel to stand guard as planned.
The broken water pipe in the men's restroom was also discovered. However, the maintenance staff said it might be due to aging pipes and couldn't be fixed in a short time. After consulting Ran Ying, the Black Epaulets sealed off the men's restroom and temporarily converted the women's restroom into a unisex one.
Of course, before that, they had thoroughly inspected both restrooms using props.
By morning, the Holy Sword Society player was finally delivered to the courthouse. He wore a hood over his head, and his hands and feet were pierced through with torture instruments—these were naturally not ordinary instruments. Besides causing physical pain, they also released a toxin that made the whole body feel exhausted. To prevent him from escaping, his hands were also separately restrained with props, preventing his fingers from closing or grasping.
The Black Epaulets responsible for escorting him also kept a certain distance and were all equipped with protective suits and helmets that blocked spiritual interference.
The man was wrapped up tightly, with his face, hands, and feet not exposed. Apart from an approximate height indication, this Holy Sword Society player revealed no other personal characteristics. He paused at the courthouse door, seeming to ask the Black Epaulet beside him something. After receiving Ran Ying's approval, the Black Epaulet said something to him, and then the group formally entered the courthouse.
Following him was Rayton Millar. This not-so-young nobleman, aside from being a bit mentally sluggish, was otherwise fine.
In addition, Ashis Werner, Karg Herta, Lady Lily, and other nobles or players who had come to watch the trial also entered the building one after another after passing identity verification.
Xu Huo, however, had to retreat from his high vantage point when they arrived and blend into the crowd of onlookers.
The outer perimeter of the courthouse was completely guarded by Black Epaulets. Once the trial began, no one was allowed in or out. Even a few White Epaulets who wanted to re-enter to check the changing room were stopped outside.
These White Epaulets, who were looking for trouble, shouted that they had found important clues, threatening that if the Black Epaulets didn't let them through, all responsibility for any incidents would fall on the Black Epaulets. They also rejected the Black Epaulets' proposal to hand over the clues. After arguing for a while, they finally agreed to let the Black Epaulets accompany them.