The whole case was simple and clear. Twenty minutes later, Captain Carls, the acting defense lawyer, Lieutenant Charles, and several witnesses completed the statements. Neither the prosecution nor the defense disputed the process described in the meantime. Desai stared at the defendant expressionlessly. From beginning to end, Penduas, who was sitting upright, remained silent. Unless someone asked him, "whether the above statement was true", he nodded subconsciously. Only once, Penduas touched his yellow non-commissioned armband with one hand, feeling very reluctant.

"Colin!" Major Delney touched Desay lightly and quickly brought the presiding judge who was thinking about the number to the scene, because the next step was to require the defendant Penduwas to make his final self-defense.

While signaling Major Delney to continue on his behalf, Desai winked at the defense lawyer Charles. The lieutenant, who understood it, immediately stood up, walked to him before Penduas spoke, pressed the corporal's shoulder with his left hand, so that the latter would not speak, and obey the defense lawyer's arrangements.

Second Lieutenant Charles coughed twice, looked around the three judges and the prosecutor, and said seriously, "Dear judges, prosecutors, please allow me to make the final self-statement on my behalf."

"Agree!" Desai reacted quickly this time. He did not consult others at all, so he immediately made a decision. It seemed that he was about to be on the verge of being a slut. The other two interim judges didn't say anything, and the same was true for the prosecutor Carls. Instead, it was his assistant, a second gendarmerie lieutenant, who wanted to express his dissatisfaction, but was secretly stopped by his commander.

Ensign Charles, who was allowed, took a step forward and began to make the final defense of innocence.

"Dear judges and dear prosecutors, thank you for allowing me to make the following statement on behalf of my party, Corporal Penduvas:

...In my childhood memory, my father abandoned my mother and I, and two younger siblings, and ran away from home. Later, I realized that my father and his friends, together with a member of the parliament, sang Marseille all the way to Paris to save the stakes of the Great Revolution. When he returned to his hometown with his broken limbs and was penniless, I asked my father in a discomfort, what did you exchange for a lame leg? He told me in a proud tone that it is the spirit of freedom, equality, and fraternity, which is above all morals and laws in the world, and is the supreme universal principle. My father's words were too philosophical, and I didn't understand them at all. Maybe he himself did not understand them. He just conveyed the motto of a thinker until this morning

...When my gun was facing an unarmed and unthreatening child, the moment I shot, I hesitated for the first time, because I recalled the teachings of my father in my mind, and a voice called me at the same time, saying to me that I should make a choice based on my own conscience, because in this world, in addition to military discipline and laws, there is also human conscience. When law and conscience conflict, conscience is the highest code of conduct, but law is not. Respecting conscience and caring for life is a universal principle, and it is also the most direct embodiment of the spirit of equality, freedom and fraternity

...As a soldier, it is indeed a crime to not execute the order of care and not shoot at the fugitive, but as a man of a sound mind, a Marseille under the influence of freedom, equality, and fraternity, in that particular occasion, I have the right and must also raise the gun by one centimeter to allow the poor child to escape, because this is the obligation of conscience that I should take the initiative to bear

…”

Five minutes later, the three judges collectively made the final judgment and were read out by Colonel Desay himself.

The military court decided to accept the universal principle that "conscience is higher than the law, which is a direct manifestation of the spirit of equality, freedom and fraternity." However, Corporal Penduas was an active-duty soldier after all. Unlike ordinary people, he was still found guilty during the war, but the crime was forgiven and understandable. The court rejected the defense agent's request for innocence and also rejected the prosecutor's heavy sentence. The court finally ruled that Penduas would be deprived of the rank of corporal, demoted to private, and sentenced to two months of military pay. This is the final ruling, and neither the prosecutor shall appeal.

At least on the surface, this ruling was a happy matter, and both the prosecution and the defense expressed their acceptance.

Second Lieutenant Charles touched the sweat on his forehead and let out a long sigh. He finally completed the work assigned by the superior and his first experience as a lawyer, thinking about whether he should or who he should charge attorney fees;

The infantry major and artillery lieutenant who acted as the second and third judges had no other ideas and were purely perfunctory mentality. They wanted to return to the army as soon as possible after the errand was finished;

The expressionless prosecutor asked his assistant to clean up the documents and was about to leave, but he heard the second lieutenant of the military police complaining in a low voice. While cleaning up the documents, he muttered constantly, as if saying that the presiding officer "I prefer my subordinates and are not fair!". Captain Carls was unhappy and decided to find a proper opportunity to send the gossiping guy elsewhere.

As for the judge of Desay, he walked to Penduas with affectionate feelings, personally took off the latter's corporal rank, comforted him for a moment, and told him that he hoped that in the future battle, he could see Penduas make another contribution and regain the lost honor. At that time, he would personally award Penduas the title. These words made Penduas burst into tears, and repeatedly swear that he would live up to the colonel's expectations and work hard, and so on.

After dealing with Penduwas's problem, Dr. Kava's "crime" must be ruled. Because Dr. Kava, who was preparing to attack the soldiers and condoned the little boy to escape, was locked in a prison cell that temporarily acted as a prison.

Dr. Kava looked very embarrassed at this time. He was beaten by two strong soldiers and had a bruised nose and swollen face. There was still blood stain on the corners of his mouth that had not been wiped clean. The blue cloak was covered with mud, and the top hat was gone.

Desai sighed and said to the Irishman: "Doctor Kava, you really will give me a problem. You know, one of my soldiers had a slight concussion on the head, and another soldier who made military achievements lost his rank for it. Well, now let's talk about how to deal with you."

Seeing that the doctor was still indifferent, Desai didn't care and continued his topic, "You are very lucky because you are an Irish, and the French army never shoots doctors, especially doctors who know how to operate surgery, so your medical skills saved your life. So, please give you your decision carefully:

First, Major Alder's field hospital is in urgent need of a surgeon, and you must leave your patient and escort to the military officer to report;

Secondly, all patients in civilian hospitals must leave their current location under the supervision of soldiers and move collectively to quarantine outside the city. Your assistant can accompany you until the end of the battle;

As for the end, even after the battle, I personally need a private doctor. Even if I return to Paris or elsewhere, you and your family must always follow you and hire for at least 5 years. To add to the point where the remaining treasures are located, I must now know. In exchange, the food in civilian hospitals will not be requisitioned by the military, and the herbs will continue to be replenished."
Chapter completed!