Free Web NovelChapter 17: Speaking to Grown ups
Leo and Jennifer spoke for hours inside the hall, every word they said being recorded across different devices scattered across the room. The officials asked them the most wild and outright questions none of them expected to hear.
From how cold or hot it felt when the Knight arrived, to the exact patterns on the Knight’s armor.
Every inquiry was made to throw them off their game or make them nervous enough to spill out something they were hiding.
Luckiky, leo caught onto their tricks quickly and kept his composure solid.
"So you are awakened right now?"
One of the officials asked even though he knew the answer , sounding more like an employee interviewing someone for a job.
"Yes, I am."
Leo replied without hesitation.
At that moment his mind raced rapidly. He already knew the follow-up question would be about his awakened skills, and he had no idea what he was supposed to say.
Should he tell them the truth? That he somehow had both darkness and fire affinity?
Or mention the goddess he met, but that would mean they would find out that he didn’t get into Valoria in proper means. Which would instantly make everyone turn against him after what she told him about destroying humanity?
All in all he had a hunch that the officials had someway of tracking If whatever they were saying was the truth.
One of the officials pulled out a paper and read through it.
"And it says here that your affinity is fire.
"Yes, it is."
Leo continued with his pattern of short straight answers.
Relief filled his insides, now that the official had talked about the fire affinity he didn’t have to lie about not having another one.
Out of nowhere silence flooded the room, almost like the officials were waiting for confirmation from someone else in the room.
"Their story checks out with the other two."
A rough familiar voice from the east dark side of the room confirmed it. It sounded exactly like the general who had given the speech during their affinity testing phase when Leo first arrived on Valoria.
’So they questioned Jake and Sabrina too. I guess that’s why they separated us. They wanted to see if the story matched.’
"And they aren’t lying either. If they had said any lies, my technique would’ve blown off their heads immediately in front of us."
One of the masked officials sitting infront proudly muttered, almost sounding disappointed that nobody lied so that he could use his ability.
The nobleman who seemed to be driving the whole case leaned toward the microphone.
He took a deep breath before speaking loudly like a judge.
"The case now is figuring out what to do with you. The news of a Floor 17 beast appearing on Floor Two has and will spread quickly like a disease, causing fear among the citizens that maybe one day beasts from the Floors could finally appear on the surface."
"They will be alot of damage caused with that, so someone has to take the blame for all of this!"
Another official chipped in.
In a matter of seconds, the entire room suddenly teamed up against the two teenagers like they were about to rip them apart using only words and consequences.
Leo swallowed repeatedly as his body began trembling from fear.
Running into the Knight had never technically been their fault in the first place, but somehow the entire disaster was now crashing down on them as if they intentionally caused it.
The master of ceremony grabbed another paper from the pile beside him before speaking loudly again.
"Here is your verdict. As you may already know, tomorrow is the Breaker graduation ceremony. Therefore Ken will be remembered during the ceremony as a brave candidate who gave his life protecting others."
He paused for a second.
"Jake, Jennifer, and Sabrina will be given the chance to graduate."
Then his eyes locked onto Leo.
"Leo, on the other hand, starting from tomorrow, has been suspended from becoming a Breaker and will be deported to the lowest district Valoria has to offer."
Leo’s eyes widened instantly while the veins around his neck cramped tightly like he was fighting for air.
"Wait... what?!"
"That’s our only choice here. Jake lost an arm during the fight. By the information you provided, Sabrina at least tried fighting the Knight even if she failed, and she also had connections with Ken. Jennifer healed everyone. Without her none of you would’ve survived."
The master of ceremony pointed at Leo like he was trash.
"That leaves you Leo... who did nothing."
The others nodded their heads in agreement.
"But he cleared the Third Floor by himself!"
Jennifer screamed at the officials, desperately trying to change their minds while Leo lowered his head, sorrow written all over his face.
But no matter how much she pleaded, none of the men or women responded to her. They had already made up their minds. Leo would take the fall for everything. And the worst part wasn’t even the punishment itself. freeweɓnovel.cøm
No.
It was the fact that deep inside his soul, Leo believed they were right.He knew he deserved punishment for not helping them. So Leo gently held Jennifer’s left arm, trying to calm her down.
"It’s okay, Jennifer. I’m just glad you still have a chance to continue."
Leo muttered convincingly, almost like he had already accepted his fate.The moment reminded him of his mother telling him she would sacrifice herself for his safety. I guess that’s what people do to those they care about.
Jennifer wanted to keep fighting for him, maybe scream at the officials until they changed their minds. But one look into Leo’s sad eyes completely shut her down. The fire burning inside her heart vanished instantly.
"If there is nothing else, you may leave. There are far more important matters we need to attend to."
Just like that, the two stepped down from the podium with their heads lowered in sorrow.
Leo’s eyes immediately became somber, thoughts about the rough world waiting for him rattling through his mind.
After awakening inside the Floors, he thought maybe life had finally gone his way for once. But somehow that wasn’t true at all. The universe gave him hope only totake it away hours later.
He really wanted to live a good life, just like his parents had wanted for him, but it didn’t seem like destiny ever planned that for him.
’Maybe I was simply made to suffer... and the faster I accept that, the easier it’ll be to live with it.’
He pondered silently while Jennifer stared at him with sadness. The moment Katelyn saw their faces she immediately realized something had gone terribly wrong.
Luckily she had experience with how people looked when they came out of a meeting with the officials. The best thing to do in that scenario was to avoid asking questions.
She escorted them downstairs while her technique stayed activated around them to give them their privacy until they reached the fancy car where the Horsemen stood outside waiting.
After a few more seconds of pity waves and sympathetic smiles, the two finally began their journey back to Argon City.
