'Yes, I went to the clinic that day to speak to the doctor, I wanted that chart, but I failed to get it. So I went back to the clinic later, In any case, I didn't shoot him. You don't even have proof I stole that pistol, do you, And that brat was spotted in the park at the moment of the crime, Frankly, I don't think it matters if Dr. Meraktis was shot in the temple or not'
'You went back "later"...?'
the judge questioned
'That chart was dangerous, you understand. I needed to get rid of it, that's why I went that day...'
Klavier looked over at her
'But you couldn't get the chart then, could you?'
she shot him a nasty look
'...And later that night, Dr. Meraktis was shot. I heard about the shooting, waited a day, but then I had to go back... ...No easy feat with the cops all over the place'
apollo's eyes widen
'...Ah! Th-That was you!?, you were the burglar?!'
she eyed them now with shock
'That was you two? If only I had one more minute... ...then I could have opened that safe and gotten the chart!'
the judge couldn't believe what he was hearing
'What!? That's trespassing! And brazen, at that!'
she raised a brow at him
'Oh, is this a trial for trespassing now? Besides... You can't blame a girl for wanting to protect herself... They are gangsters, you know'
the judge then suddenly banged down his gavel
'In any case, Mr. Justice, your cross-examination!'
"Admitting the little crime to avoid the big one, eh?"
cleaver, apollo would admit that, it was a cleaver tactic, but it wasn't going to work, he will prove ALL of her crimes right here, right now
'The doctor was shot in the right temple, yes?'
he asked, high-lighting the statements he was asking so he wouldn't confuse himself, she simply put her hand on her waist
'So it seems'
klavier then interjected
'...Let's review the facts again, shall we? If the killer shot from this location... ...the bullet would've struck our victim square in the forehead. However! The entry wound... ...was in the right temple'
the judge nodded in agreement
'Yes, we heard testimony on this yesterday. At the time of the shooting, the witness was standing here. Just before the gun was fired, he shouted. The victim turned his head to look... and was shot'
'But that testimony was proven to be a lie! Our egregious panty-snatcher, Mr. Stickler, did witness the crime... But he was standing to the north, next to the trash can where he tossed those panties! If Mr. Stickler shouted from this location, the bullet couldn't hit his right temple!'
apollo argued, alita shook her head at him as she smiled smugly
'Silly, silly attorney...'
she taunted, like as if apollo was a child, he snapped his head at her, in both anger and nervousness, anger for being taunted with, and the nervousness came from her smug attitude
'Wh-What...!?'
he said in a demanding but an anxious tone
'Do you remember what you had for breakfast that morning?'
apollo blinked as he didn't answer, what did that have to do with anything
'..i don't know?!'
he answered in a confused tone of voice
'What matters is one thing: The doctor was shot in his right temple. If that's the case, there can only be one explanation! The panties guy was mistaken'
'But his location was proven! You can't write that off as him being "mistaken"!'
'OBJECTION!'
klavier smiled as he raised a brow at him
'...Then why don't you show us, Herr Forehead?'
apollo bit back to urge to tell him off for calling him "herr Forehead" again!, since this guy's hair looked like a tornado for crying out loud!
'Show you... what?'
he asked instead
'Must I explain everything? Very well, let's recap: If the witness, panties guy, was standing to the north... ...then where was the shooter standing? From what location did the killer shoot the victim?'
the judge intervind
'But wait! If the witness was standing there... ...how could anyone shoot the victim in the right temple?'
klavier shook his head as he started to chuckle, as if he was told an amusing joke
'...Ah ha ha ha ha! I merely laid out the facts for us. It is up to the one possessing the shiny forehead to show us. ...If you can, that is'
"Wocky Kitaki was standing at the "Killer" mark... Wesley Stickler at the "Witness" mark... And of course Pal Meraktis was at the "Victim" mark..."
apollo thought to himself as he went into his notebook and wrote out his thoughts into the page, mr wright had done this all the time, and he could see why, seeing your thoughts from outside of your head, really helped to figure them out
'Let's hear what the defense has to say. Where was the killer standing when they shot the victim?'
apollo took in a deep breathe, if he was right, he might just be able to get an advantage, if he was wrong, game over, he took his chances
'As the facts stand now, we can't explain this crime... ...without contradicting ourselves at some point. But I know why. The real killer shot from an entirely different location!'
alita looked over at him
'What are you talking about!? I don't see any other place...'
the judge simply shrugged
'Apparently, Mr. Justice does. ...Let's hear it. Where in the park did the killer shoot the victim from?'
'OBJECTION!'
klavier called out suddenly
'It's time to raise the roof! ...And the stakes'
Apollo look at him confused
'Penalties are such frightening things, don't you think? But what if they were a bit more... terrifying? ...Like so'
the judge frowned and blinked at him
'D-Double penalty?'
'Herr Forehead wishes to take us in a new direction? Then he must be ready for the challenges ahead!'
apollo pondered this to himself, ..all or nothing! it was all or nothing!
'...Challenge accepted'
trucy looked up at him a little nervously
'A-Are you sure, Apollo?'
apollo stared down back at his notebook
"The key is the witness, Mr. Stickler's testimony! If we believe that, and we know where he stood... ...and the victim turned when he shouted... ...there's only one place the killer could have been!"
apollo then started to re-ranged the diagram in the court
'The killer shot the victim from... here!, and I believe we all owe a debt of gratitude... ...to Ms. Alita Tiala'
alita stared at him
'Wh-What do you mean?'
'Thanks to you, we had a chance to review the crime... ...and this time, we were prepared. We know that Wesley Stickler was telling the truth! We should have listened to him from the beginning. Wesley Stickler was standing next to the trash can when he saw the two men. ...He shouted, just as he told us in his testimony. ...And the victim turned to look in his direction. A shot was fired! The victim was hit in the right temple'
the judges eyes widen
'Oh no...'
'Oh yes! Which direction was his right temple facing at that moment? That's right! Toward the noodle stand!'
the court started to go wild, but was soon died down by the judge's gavel
'Order! Order! Order!!! S-So you're saying... ...the killer was inside the noodle stand!?'
'OBJECTION!!'
klavier yelled out
'...Let's think about this a bit more, shall we? You say the killer was "inside the noodle stand". Which would mean the victim, Dr. Meraktis came to the park... ...wheeling his own murderer in the cart behind him!'
alita huffed
'This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard! I'd think you'd notice if you were pulling someone along!'
Apollo semi-glared at her as he retorted back
'There's something we should worry about before that! Why was he pulling the noodle stand in the first place!?'
'OBJECTION!'
'Let's deal with our problems one at a time, shall we? Someone was hiding in the stand... We have not come this far to talk about "possibilities". ...Let's talk about "proof", baby. Show us evidence that proves someone was in that stand!'
he said, apollo went back to his thoughts
"Can I prove that...?"