Iron Powder and Spellcasters

  Chapter 507 Rebuilding the Country (23)

   During the inter-provincial officer trial, Skull Mecklen changed his previous calm and restraint, and his rhetoric became sharp:

"So, Major Felt, please tell me, and please tell the jury citizens here, why a serving officer of the Union Provincial Army is at Plato, at New Clearing, at this trial the scene?"

  Alder Felt raised his haggard head, and he was greeted with thousands of eyes with instinctive suspicion, disgust and rejection, just because he was a "foreigner", he felt a burst of sadness.

   "I'm sorry." Major Felt lowered his head again: "I have nothing to say."

"Be careful with your tongue, Major Felt." Skull Mecklen issued a friendly warning: "The question you are asking at this moment is not a 'Military Punishment Committee' that was convened just yesterday, but the A 'special tribunal of free men' formed by the rights conferred by the Charter. Choose your answer carefully, because every free man on the jury in this hall will decide your fate."

   "I'll ask you again." Colonel Skool emphasized, "Why are you here?"

   "I'm sorry." Major Felt replied mechanically, "I have nothing to say."

  The free people of New Reclamation obviously didn't like Major Felt's answer, and there was a buzz of dissatisfaction immediately in the large meeting hall.

  Of course, what free people dislike even more is Major Felt's status as a "Interprovincialist".

   Colonel Scull tapped his gavel to silence the noise around him.

  He looked at Major Felt, and his tone was already threatening: "You know the consequences, but you still want to answer 'no comment'?"

  Alder Felt seemed to be stimulated, he raised his head angrily, and met the indifferent eyes of the Platonic alumni on the judge's bench.

  He turned around again and cast his eyes on the xenophobic, conservative, and greedy 'free landowners' sitting high in the jury box.

   "Yes!" When he spoke again, the anger in Felt's eyes had been replaced by contempt and contempt, and he firmly replied: "No-report-report!"

  Although Alder Felt said the same thing three times in a row, it did not prevent him from conveying his emotional changes.

  So the free people in the new lands were even more disgusted with him because of the ignorant attitude of the interprofessional on the trial bench.

  Many people have been secretly preparing, and there is only one opportunity left before the cry that is still circling the dome.

   On the contrary, Colonel Skool raised the corners of his mouth slightly, with a bit of appreciation in his eyes.

   "You are loyal, Ald Felt, and I respect you for that."

  Skool Mecklen sincerely praised Alder Felt, which surprised the latter.

  However, at the next moment, the colonel changed the subject abruptly, and asked the major: "So is the 'department' asking you to answer like this?"

   "Me." Major Felt was caught off guard, and he subconsciously licked his lips: "No comment."

   "Maybe I didn't make it clear, so I'll give you another chance to answer."

   Colonel Scull retracted his body that was leaning forward, and looked at the free men on the seats on both sides. Although nominally, he was talking to the people on trial, his body language showed that he was preaching to the jurors.

The colonel asked in a loud voice: "Has the Military Command of the Federal Provincial Army—that is, the actual highest command organization of the Federal Army—issued an official order to you, once you are captured, you must not confess, mention, or reveal anything that may involve the military command. information, otherwise there will be severe punishment.”

   Colonel Scull retracted his gaze and refocused his gaze on the major.

  Major Felt felt that the colonel's gaze was like a meat cleaver, almost cutting him to the bone.

   "So, you can only answer..." Colonel Skool asked word by word: "No comment?"

  Major Felt was a little flustered, not because the other party knew the gag order, but because the other party even repeated the wording of the gag command.

  He forcibly suppressed his anxiety and doubts, trying to maintain his superficial composure: "Sorry, I have no comment."

   "Since you have nothing to say, I can only tell you." Colonel Skool put on a monocle, opened another file, and publicly read:

   "Ald Felt, Major, Union Army Academy 8th graduate.

   "Before you were sent to the Republic of Plato, your original position was the Piedmont Republic—that is, the Inter-Provincial Republic,

   "Army Command—that is, the actual command structure of the Inter-Provincial Army,

   "The second part—that is, the logistics training department,

   "Second division—that is, the training division.

   "The second division—that is, the cavalry division,

   "Second section chief—that is, the deputy officer, huh."

  After reading this, Colonel Scull stopped, and looked at the juniors on the trial seat through the crystal grinding into a monocle: "Aren't you an infantry department? Why did you go to train cavalry?"

   A burst of laughter broke out from the auditorium. Although few of the freemen present could understand the meaning of those awkward names, it was always right to laugh at the Interprovincials at any time.

Major Felt's cheeks were flushed and hot. He really wanted to rush up the stairs and yell into the ears of the ignorant people around him: "Do you know how terrible the competition for infantry-related positions in the inter-province is? Do you know that?" I don’t know, being selected to work in the military headquarters is already a great thing?”

   But in the end, he still swallowed his anger and didn't say a word of explanation: "I'm sorry, I have no comment!"

"You were ordered on April 3rd—the day after the coup d'etat on April 1st." Colonel Skool continued mercilessly: "The man who issued your order is Jason Cornely. S — that is, the initiator of the coup."

   Speaking of this, Colonel Skool stopped again, pondered for a moment, and asked seriously: "Isn't Jason the head of the Army Academy? Why did he issue your transfer order?"

  The laughter grew louder, and Major Felt felt extremely noisy.

  From the "April 1st Revolution" until Mr. Richard Myerhouse publicly admitted in his speech that "the revolution is an illegal coup", the actual affairs of the Federal Army were presided over by Colonel Cornelius.

   Alder Felt really wanted to ask the colonel sitting on the judge's bench: "Since the transfer order was issued on April 3, it was not issued by Colonel Jason Cornelis, who else could have issued it?"

   "No comment!" Felt replied bluntly.

Colonel Scull turned down the page, glanced at it, and then put the file on the table: "You arrived at Kings Castle in about mid-April, and your task should be to supervise the handover of ordnance and provide military support. Suggest and help the Fortress of the Kings to train new recruits to rebuild the Fifth and Sixth Legions. Am I right?"

   Alder Felt was silent, because everything the colonel said was wrong.

   But at the same time, the major was keenly aware that although the other party's tone was still firm, he unconsciously used words such as 'approximately' and 'should'.

   Major Felt quickly calmed down.

  The information before coming to Plato can be accurate to the date; the information after coming to Plato is not so detailed?

  This may mean that the source of intelligence for the rebels is not in the Fortress of Kings, but in Guitu City—Major Felt thought to himself.

   But right now, how to survive today's "interrogation" is more important than catching the mole far away on the shore of the inner sea.

   "I'm sorry." Major Felt pulled himself together and took a deep breath: "No comment."

  On the judge's bench, Scull Mecklen also immediately noticed the emotional changes of the trialees. Compared with the depression and sluggishness when they entered the large conference hall, the elementary school students at this moment suddenly showed some unknown fighting spirit.

  The colonel realized that something he said must have attracted the attention of the other party.

  After a quick review, Colonel Skool understood—he might have accidentally leaked the secret.

  Skool Mecklen calmly picked up the quill pen, dipped it in red ink, and drew a thick and red circle on the name of "Alder Felt" on the list of persons to be interrogated.

"I have a duty to remind you, Alder Felt." Colonel Scull put the list back into the folder and said with a blank expression: "You don't have to answer the question, but it means that you also voluntarily give up the responsibility for yourself. The right of defense; you may not recognize the authority of the Tribunal of Freedmen, but this also means that it will cost you more to live than to die."

  Listening to the Colonel's statement without emotion, Major Felt shivered for no reason.

   Regarding the colonel's last reminder, Major Felt didn't reply with "no comment", but he didn't say anything else either. He chose to remain silent.

"Major Alder Felt, how you answer the next question raised by the court will determine your final fate." Colonel Skull Mecklen clasped his fingers and asked calmly: "Since, your mission Just handing over ordnance, giving advice, training recruits..."

   "Then, why?" Scull Mecklen's eyes flashed coldly: "Where you were captured—Fort Maple Leaf?"

   [Compared to this week, various debuffs are stacked together, only keeping the mini three shifts]

   [But I believe...hope.(T_T)]

   [A lot of sorry everyone, if I have enough writing time next week, I will definitely make up for it]

【Remark】

   [The Military Command of the Federation-Provincial Army cannot be compared with the General Staff of the later generations. The reason why the Federation-Province Army has created such a complicated establishment is mainly to accommodate the "huge" professional officer corps without real positions]

   [In this regard, the structures of the Vineta Army [organization with various names] and the Inter-Provincial Army [a large department and a small department] are similar in purpose]

   [For the federal province, due to the separation of military orders and military administration, there are both military orders and army provinces, which are also called provincial departments. The former is responsible for using troops, while the latter is responsible for raising soldiers]

   [As for Vineta, the Army Headquarters, like the Navy Command, is directly subordinate to the highest five-member ruling committee, which can be regarded as avoiding going alone in the procedure]

   [Whether it is Vineta or the Federation, the [Rating] of the military's organizational structure is far from being comparable to the military of later generations]

   [However, it is already a great progress to set up a special agency to take charge of military affairs]

   [In comparison, the top-level buildings of the imperial army, compared to the republics, are simply as complicated as a mess]

[The emperor could not allow another person to have more power and influence in the army than he did, so he set up various committees, divided military affairs into small pieces, and handed them over to independent committees, and adjusted them frequently the terms of reference of the various committees to ensure their integral status]

【thank you all】

  (end of this chapter)