Darkstone Code

Black New Year.

This is the evaluation given by the "Federal Times" for the last day!

Black New Year, too much evidence of the Duncan Clan’s crimes surfaced, presenting a terrifying world gradually to people.

Who would have thought, while the whole world is actively advocating for the abolition of slavery, that hidden within the most civilized Federation is the largest human trafficking organization in the world.

Every report makes people feel uneasy, and many have the same question at this moment: with so much evidence already in place, why not send these people with evil bloodlines to the gallows, or give them a bullet?

Do we still need to wait for something?

"Of course, for the justice of the judiciary!"

Due to New Year’s, Serra and Nell both came to Bupen, though this time Nell did not bring his wives and children with him. He knows that bringing these people would be annoying, so he left them all in Nagariel.

Moreover... people living in Nagariel have resistance problems to the cold temperatures, they get sick as soon as they arrive in cold places.

The children are still young and cannot handle the toss.

They cannot be called a family; it’s just that the parents and the children are sitting together again, sitting at the dining table in Lynch Villa.

There’s also a girl, Penny.

She hasn’t left yet. Due to Lynch’s intervention, all the academic types now gather under him, forming a year-end award ceremony called the "Starlight Awards."

Originally, Lynch intended to make it happen this year, but it appears impossible now due to the exposure of the Duncan Clan’s affairs, not to mention the rushed publicity, and the launch of the new magazine is also not feasible.

To make the Starlight Awards the most authoritative award ceremony within the Federation film circle, Lynch also founded a magazine with the same name.

The magazine’s design is also personally executed by Lynch. It’s split in half, and the upper and lower halves are inverted.

The first half is for the general audience, most of whom are movie enthusiasts hoping to learn additional information about various movies, such as behind-the-scenes content or a deeper interpretation of the plot.

Fans love discussing these things, and "Starlight" provides them with such a vibe, an environment, a platform.

The latter half is more professional, intended for industry insiders. It introduces the situation of new and old actors and covers some new cutting-edge technologies.

Of course, the most important thing is that during award season, there will be a ticket that allows fans to vote for nominated films, determining from a fan’s perspective which is the truly most successful commercial film!

As for art films, they are left to critics and film industry workers.

This method is good; there will always be irrational people buying magazines "by the ton," just for the ticket inside.

Overall, it’s certainly too late for this year, but the word is out now, and everyone knows there’s large capital involvement, which will change the way awards are operated in the future.

Many filmmakers are starting to work on their connections, looking at how to maneuver the first Starlight Awards. Regardless, with Lynch supporting it from behind, this Starlight Awards definitely won’t collapse, plus support for up-and-coming filmmakers might very likely make it an authoritative award.

By that time, whoever wins at the first awards will leave their name in film history, which is the ultimate pursuit for artists!

Naturally, Penny, who has a good relationship with Lynch, is quite busy too.

She couldn’t find the time to go back for New Year, so she spent it with Lynch.

During dinner, Nell couldn’t help but ask about the ongoing affairs. Lynch casually answered him.

The more important the case, the more it requires judicial fairness, which is also a feature of the Federation!

Nell put down his knife and fork; he had eaten enough. "I don’t quite understand why they can’t investigate while trying the case?"

Serra chuckled lightly, causing Nell to frown, "Did I say something wrong?"

The changes in life led to personal growth for both of the former couple, making them entirely different from the past.

Serra shook her head, "It’s nothing, I just thought of something funny, unrelated to what you said!"

Nell looked at Lynch, who straightforwardly and simply explained the reason so it was easy to understand.

In simple terms, a person cannot be punished twice for the same thing. Therefore, whether different pieces of evidence belong to the same matter doesn’t have an exact judicial definition.

For instance, a serial killer constantly killing people—should his entire crime process be viewed as an interconnected case, or should each act be looked at as an isolated case?

If each case is treated separately, then this serial killer, in a strict sense, should not be labeled a serial killer, as each case is isolated. For sentencing and insight, the negative impact he has brought to society shouldn’t be taken into account.

Because each case is seen as isolated and unrelated, there’s no negative impact; it’s just simple murder.

Furthermore, each isolated case must ensure a complete chain of evidence and legal judicial processes, significantly increasing the difficulty and costs of collecting evidence.

In fact, numerous historical Federation serial killers were finally caught when they felt unbearably bored and turned themselves in. Otherwise, the Federation police and investigation bureau might not have caught these people even today, highlighting the challenges of evidence collection and investigation.

If each case isn’t isolated and all murders are seen as interrelated serial acts, what do we do when a new victim unknown at trial is discovered after the trial ends?

Should it be added in?

That would probably become more troublesome, besides dealing with other reasons like early judicial fairness issues.

The original Federation judiciary... Anyway, it’s difficult to express clearly in just a few words, but ensuring a person isn’t punished twice for the same matter has become the right course for Federal judicial fairness.

Under such circumstances, although the Federation Government holds much evidence of the Duncan Clan’s crimes, they still aren’t in a rush to take action.

They need to prepare for a period and allow most of the evidence to surface before locking them away for life at once!

Otherwise, they’ll always find ways to resolve some issues with processes and procedures, rendering some evidence and investigation results void.

Serra was previously involved in the You’Er Mei case and read some legal-related books, so she knew some content.

As for Nell... you can’t expect a former worker and now a capitalist to read legal-related books.

What capitalists most often do is sign a check and get what they want from someone else’s mouth.

After listening, Nell somewhat understand, though he wouldn’t "admit defeat," at least not in front of Serra.

He shook his head, "Federal laws are truly headache-inducing. Did they intentionally make them this complicated?"

Serra sighed lightly, "If I were you, I’d shut my mouth."

The former couple stared at each other, neither willing to show weakness, lasting about more than ten seconds before looking away.

After dinner, Serra and Nell left; they both have their residences in Bupen—another benefit of wealth.

At least they don’t need to cram into a small room as before; money expands their living space countless times.

Penny was still somewhat curious about Lynch’s family, hoping to interact more.

"What does Nell do?"

In the evening, while watching TV, the girl couldn’t help but ask. She knows Serra manages You’Er Mei.

Though previously affected by franchise issues and even had a few lawsuits, Serra ultimately didn’t lose.

The problem was with the franchises; the direct stores were issue-free, but the lawsuit and these problems kept You’Er Mei’s stock consistently dim.

Meanwhile, some other fitness brands quickly entered the market, seizing quite a bit of share during You’Er Mei’s untrusted period, dealing it a heavy blow.

But regardless, in Penny’s eyes, Serra is a successful merchant; at least she’s wealthy and... elegant!

She certainly hasn’t seen Serra before!

As for Nell, she knows nothing.

Lynch, watching the program on TV, casually replied, "He runs a labor company over in Nagariel..."

He knows what Penny is thinking, but her thoughts are bound to fall short.

"Labor company... should be quite profitable?", she isn’t too sure but instinctively thinks it should be a money-making business.

Lynch nodded noncommittally, his eyes entirely focused on the television.

The first season of "Wealth Maker" was a brainstorm, causing many to start memorizing questions before the second season started, including previously appeared questions.

Some publishers even collected the show’s content and printed it out, reportedly selling well.

But nobody expected that in the second season, the brainstorm would suddenly switch to body fitness competitions!

It’s also a necessary process for the program’s development.

The first season can be somewhat niche, but starting from the second season, it must be closer to the public.

If there’s anything genuinely without entry barriers, it’s definitely games involving physical fitness.

It’s all about personal performance, regardless of men, women, elderly, children. As long as they have the courage, they can participate, and perhaps even achieve results.

Today is the second season’s final.

With more participants in the second season, this final is expected to last around three hours, with a total of eighteen contestants involved.

The one with the best final score will exclusively win one million Federation Sol.

From the moment the show starts, it firmly secures the viewership rating championship for this time slot.

Other TV stations also avoid it. It’s not that they have a good relationship with Lynch but because they genuinely can’t compete!