The mastermind behind Hogwarts

Chapter 499 Trial of Old Barty

After Gemma finished speaking, a terrible silence fell over the courtroom, as if everyone there had died.

Apart from Lilith and the members of Justice Law, everyone's face displayed an eerie terror.

Dozens of eyes fell on Batty Crouch.

Old Barty had short gray hair, which he usually kept perfectly combed, but today his hair was as messy as his heart.

On the surface, Barty Crouch Jr. is dead.

He died in Azkaban.

But Old Bati knew that Little Bati hadn't actually died; it was Old Bati's wife who had died in prison.

This is a terrible secret.

Because it hides a shocking truth!

A truth that, if revealed, could destroy Barty the Elder and the Crouch family!

Old Barty always thought that only he knew.

But how did Lilith know that?

Regardless, it doesn't matter anymore.

When Gemma uttered her name, Old Barty knew he was doomed.

A vein popped out on Old Barty's forehead, throbbing rapidly.

His face also turned red, a sign of high blood pressure.

Everyone witnessed this scene, and gradually, despair filled Old Barty's eyes.

"Thump!"

Old Batty's legs buckled, and he collapsed to the ground!

Even when lying on the ground, his legs trembled uncontrollably.

Seeing Old Barty like this, the wizards present had a good idea of ​​what was going on.

Fudge swallowed hard and said softly, "Can we begin?"

"Anytime is fine," Lilith said calmly, gesturing to the members of the Justice Law team. "Bring the defendant to the judge's chair."

As she spoke, she strode toward the judge's bench in the center.

Fudge and Amelia Borns exchanged a glance and followed.

The wizards in the entire courtroom sprang into action, taking their seats in an orderly fashion and each performing their assigned duties.

However, the two lawyers encountered difficulties in helping old Barty up.

Old Barty... is too weak to stand up.

He lay on the ground like a corpse, his eyes lifeless, radiating an aura of despair.

Nobody knows what he's thinking.

One lawyer said, "Please have some decency, sir. We don't want to curse you."

He just graduated from Hogwarts Ravenclaw this year, and he embraced the ideals of justice and law, so he devoted himself to a legal career right after graduation.

One of the core tenets of just law is to treat criminals as wizards, recognizing that criminals also have human rights.

When dealing with criminals, the law of justice never uses magic like an Auror.

This is also one of the reasons why the problems left over from Azkaban were resolved smoothly.

Old Barty knew all this, but he didn't react at all.

The other lawyer sighed and said to Leon, "Please have the Aurors do it."

Without any qualms, Leon used magic to "send" Old Barty to the trial chair.

Old Barty looked like a lump of mud, slumped in his chair.

The wizard in charge of the fair has already determined that Old Barty is guilty.

This unwitting admission makes it hard to believe Old Batistuta.

At the same time, I'm even more curious about what Old Barty did.

People started whispering among themselves.

"cough."

Lilith cleared her throat. All eyes were on her.

Lilith's attire was very ordinary; she simply tied her blonde hair into a ponytail. However, it was unclear whether she had used a shapeshifting technique, but she appeared to be several years older than her original age.

Her pretty face revealed an air of authority and severity beyond her years.

The expression on his face was intimidating.

Lilith's eyes met all of their gazes, meeting each one's eyes.

The scene quickly quieted down.

"Indictment."

Lilith's cold voice echoed in the courtroom.

"The defendant committed the following crimes..."

coming.

The wizards were invigorated.

Old Barty shuddered and looked up, staring blankly at Lilith.

Lilith pulled a parchment from a pile of documents and read aloud:

"Using the Compound Elixir, he arranged for his wife to switch identities with Barty Crouch Jr., a Death Eater, and die in his place."

"After rescuing his son Bati Jr. from Azkaban, he used the Imperius Curse to control his behavior."

"Knowing that the above actions clearly violate the law, yet still continuing to carry them out—this is knowingly breaking the law."

The courtroom was completely silent.

Lilith scanned the room and continued, "The above actions violate the 'Regulations on Violations by Ministry of Magic Officials,' the 'Law on Reasonable Restraint of Ministry of Magic Officials,' and the 'Regulations on the Prohibition of Unforgivable Charms.'"

After speaking, Lilith looked around the room again.

Apart from Dumbledore, who managed to remain calm, the facial expressions of everyone else—Lilith swore—were the most spectacular she had ever seen.

Fudge looked shocked. His face turned as red as a pig's.

Director Burns' eyebrows were raised high, and his monocle looked like it was about to slip down.

The Auror leader seemed both shocked and furious, his hair shaking like a lion's mane.

Lockhart looked on with amusement.

The judges in Wisengamo began to discuss the matter, and the noise gradually grew louder.

The initial surprise and fear gradually faded, and the atmosphere became even more eerie.

"Do you have any objections, Mr. Crouch?" Burns asked as usual, though she knew most likely not.

Old Barty remained silent, his eyes wide open, as if recalling what had happened.

Fudge snapped out of his daze and looked at the law of justice: "Does the plaintiff have evidence to prove the defendant's actions?"

"have."

Gemma stood up.

A report was submitted.

"This is the identity verification for Bati the Younger who died in Azkaban. After the compound potion lost its effectiveness, the person who was impersonating Bati the Younger naturally revealed her true identity. She was Bati the Elder's wife and Bati the Younger's mother."

The report began to circulate.

Fudge was stunned and asked in surprise, "You've verified the identities of the criminals who died in Azkaban?"

"Yes, Minister," Lilith replied calmly.

She blinked her beautiful eyelashes and said to everyone, "Justice and the law will not wrong any wizard, nor will they miss the chance to judge any criminal."

The criminals were identified.

This is also one of the reasons why just laws quickly resolved the legacy issues of Azkaban.

By verifying identities, the law has exonerated many criminals.

The wizards, upon learning the truth, all expressed their praise.

Borns looked at Lilith with admiration in his eyes.

This demonstrates a high degree of respect for wizards.

Fudge's face turned ashen.

He thought of Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew.

At that moment, he was glad that what happened between the two of them had happened in the past, otherwise Lilith would have caught him.

Lilith's reputation may really be reaching its peak.

"ladies and gentlemen."

Gemma smiled and said, "We have one more crucial piece of evidence."

All eyes were immediately drawn to Gemma.

Gemma said, word by word, "Or rather, a key witness—the Crouch family's house-elf, Sparkle."

When Old Barty heard "Sparkle," he regained his strength and jumped up.

He lunged forward!

"Halt!" Leon, who was already on guard, raised his wand: "Immediately restrain!"

"Snapped!"

Old Bati stood still like a soldier at attention.

Two lawyers came over and dragged old Barty back to the judge's chair.

"Tie his hands and feet."

Lilith calmly gave the order.

No one objected.

There are four iron chains on the judge's chair.

Leon walked over and roughly tied up Old Barty's limbs.

Each chain was connected to a large iron ball.

"Bring witnesses."

"Borns shouted."

"According to the Wizengamo Charter of Rights, both the plaintiff and the defendant have the right to call witnesses to appear in court to testify on their behalf."

She looked at Dumbledore, who nodded in agreement.

Lockhart volunteered to bring Brilliant over, even though Brilliant had already been captured by the wizards of justice and law.

They returned shortly afterward.

"Given the special nature of house-elves being forbidden from betraying their owners, I have granted special permission to use Truth Potion."

Lilith made a decision with a single word.

(End of this chapter)