The truth about the lumberjack deaths was horrific.

Gardner and Makayla, a middle-class infertile couple, adopted Devante, a poor child on the verge of starvation.

But then, out of nowhere, I got pregnant.

I finally got the real child I wanted so badly.

Then Devante immediately turned into a thorn in the eye.

Even though he was a child born from the heart, he could not be compared to a biological child.

Besides, Gardner and Makayla weren't such righteous people.

In the end, they ended up making a choice that was no different from the devil's.

"Do you admit that you planted sharp branches in the space where your son was working and instructed Yannick to push them?"

"...."

Abel asked the question in a cold voice.

But Makayla said nothing.

She just kept her eyes tightly shut, and her hands trembled.

Of course, an answer wasn't necessarily required.

Because her reaction alone was enough.

Finally, Abel looked at Gardner, Makayla's husband.

"It was Mr. Gardner who gave the money to the defendant, Yannick. Didn't you know it was money for an assassination?"

"Yes, I just did what I was told."

"So you're saying you didn't know what was going on?"

"Yes...."

Gardner gave a series of brazen answers.

But the author was also an accomplice.

The character information window said that he had made contact with Yannick.

While his wife was preparing the trap, Gardner hired an assassin.

As expected, Makayla, who had been shivering, suddenly screamed.

"What are you talking about? You were the one who met Yannick. I don't even have the key to the warehouse, so how can I give you the money?"

"If you don't know, just keep quiet..."

"Why? If I get caught and go to prison, will you remarry?"

"What kind of nonsense is that? I have a son whom I have longed for so long. How could I possibly do that?"

The couple's argument broke out in an instant.

The questions Abel asked seemed to have completely destroyed the bond between the two.

If you try to look at one side, I'll get angry and have no choice but to question you. And in that process, the truth will come out.

The courtroom was enveloped in a cold silence.

Gardner and Makayla realized their mistake too late.

Abel's voice was a bit loud because he was so emotional.

If this happened, it would no longer be a whisper.

"I heard you. Ms. Makayla sets the trap, and Mr. Gardner hires Yannick."

"...."

Eventually, the truth was revealed to the world.

They wanted to get a big piece of the action by killing the adopted son who had gone to work.

A piece of trash that insulted not only the Dapan Group but also the court.

Abel stared at the two people with dreary eyes.

"I sentence you—Yannick, the lumberjack who committed murder for money—to 25 years in prison. I also sentence Gardner and Makayla, who planned and ordered the murder, to the same sentence."

According to the Imperial Criminal Code, anyone who ordered a crime to be committed was also liable to punishment.

Makayla was more likely to be seen as an accomplice, as she had placed sharp branches on the ground.

Only the charges were different.

The sentence was the same anyway.

Those three would be sent straight to the Empire to spend the rest of their lives in misery.

But Makayla couldn't be punished like that.

Abel raised his right hand and calmed the commotion in the audience.

"But you can't say the child in the womb is at fault. Ms. Makayla will be held in the detention center until she gives birth."

Land! Land! Land!

In Earth, they are first put in prison and only sent to an outside medical facility when they give birth.

But here, it was a ridiculous story.

Because the prisons of the Empire are hell itself.

A pregnant woman wouldn't last even a week.

So, Abel showed mercy by letting her stay in the police detention center and letting her serve her sentence after giving birth.

He thought this would be an appropriate verdict.

He picked up Hector Punisher right away.

But that was exactly when it happened.

"Now, just a moment!"

Gardner, whose upper body was shaking with a dead, black face, raised his hand.

Abel stared at him, puzzled.

The facts of the crime had been fully revealed, so what more was there to say here?

Probably no matter what was said, it would have the opposite effect.

So he tried to just ignore it, but what Gardner hurriedly shouted out was quite interesting.

"Someone suggested using Devante, with the information that the Dapan Group handles industrial accidents well!"

What was this all of a sudden?

The incident took a new turn in an instant.

If there was someone who instigated the crime, that person should also be arrested as an instigator.

Abel went straight to Gardner and asked him a question.

"Who is that?"

"If I tell you, can you reduce the sentence a little?"

"...."

For a moment, Abel was at a loss for words.

He couldn't understand why there were so many surprising things happening today.

Not only did you request the assassination of your adopted son, you even attempted a plea bargain?

He just wondered how ugly it could get.

But there was no need for Abel to come forward.

"That crazy bastard, that crazy bastard!"

"Not only did you try to pass the blame on to your wife and get away with it on your own, but you even said something like that? You really are a monster."

"I can't believe there was a son of a bitch like that next door. It gives me goosebumps all over."

"I feel sorry for Devante, who thought of the scum of the human race as his true father."

Countless criticisms poured in from the audience.

Normally, Abel would have stopped it, but he didn't.

Honestly, he almost swore at Gardner himself.

Gardner was taken aback by the strong reaction from the people.