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"ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE not going to school today?" Gavriil asks, his eyes glued to the road in front of him while he was driving. 

     Max, who was sitting beside him on the passenger seat, was reading something on his phone when he answered, "I have no choice, I only have less than three days left before I could complete the tasks for the banquet. Keigo and I have to talk to this Abel guy now or we might never get the chance. Who knows, he might know things about the past that would greatly help us." 

     "Okay okay, just be careful. If anything happens, call me," Gavriil says as he continued driving.

     Max takes the sunglasses in his pocket and puts them on before looking at what he's currently wearing. Max was wearing Gavriil's clothes since he didn't have anything to change with, and he didn't want to go back home either. The two of them are almost the same size, but since Gavriil is taller, Max had to fold his pants a couple of times just so they could fit.

    Gavriil, on the other hand, was wearing his uniform since he was going straight to J.S High as soon as he drops Max to his destination.

     "By the way, does anyone else know where you and Keigo are going?" Gavriil then asks him.

     "I sent Étienne the location. I also sent my brother a message just to make sure. I just didn't explain it in depth, but he said he needed an update if things get weird," Max explains, and Gavriil couldn't help but be relieved.

     After making a turn, Gavriil arrives at the destination and parks in front of a tall building. He looks out of the window first before looking back at the man sitting beside him. "This is the place," he says, and Max quickly took his bag from the back seat. "The area doesn't look suspicious so I think you'll be fine, but do you have the money I gave you? I can't believe you left your wallet in your car. What if there's an emergency?" Gavriil then tells Max, and Max couldn't help but laugh.

    "You sound like my mom," Max teases. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I have the money you gave me, my phone is fully charged, and if anything happens, Étienne knows where I am and is probably heading here at this very moment," he then says, and Gavriil finally lets it go.

     "Alright, I'll write notes on our lessons today so you wouldn't miss anything," Gavriil says. "I'll see you when I see you."

    Max smiles and leans toward Gavriil to give him a kiss on the lips. "Thanks, Gav. I'll see you when I see you."

     Gavriil smiles back and was almost tempted to pull Max in for another kiss, but he just clenched the steering wheel and controlled himself as Max removes his seatbelt. Max opens the door and steps out of the car, but before closing it, he looks back at Gavriil and tells him, "Drive safely okay?"

    Gavriil nods his head, and Max finally closes the door. As soon as Gavriil drives off, Max takes a deep breath and looks at the building in front of him. This was the address that Keigo sent him earlier. He said that this was the place where they'll be able to meet Abel, so Max decided that they meet with him today before doing anything else.

     "Now, where the hell is my assistant?" Max asks as he pulls out his phone to call Keigo. Keigo's phone rings, and after a while, he finally answers. "Good morning Mr. Sinclaire," Keigo greets on the other line, obviously delighted that Max called him this early in the morning.

     "Don't sound so happy. I'm still pissed that you hacked into my profile just to check my phone number. Who on earth fucking does that?" Max angrily says, but Keigo just laughs it off, acting like getting someone's private information wasn't a big deal at all.

     "How else am I going to contact you?" Keigo defends. But before Max could get even angrier at him, Keigo quickly says, "Well, I was able to find that Abel guy for you so you should at least give me some credit."

    "I would, but you're late. You told me to meet you here at 7:00 but you're still not—" Max pauses when he spots a familiar man walking towards him.

     "Sorry, had to buy you some coffee as compensation," Keigo says on the phone as he walks in front of Max, happily waving at him while he showed Max the coffee he was holding.

     Max sighs and ends the call before approaching Keigo.

     "The line was a bit long, but here. It's hard to interrogate someone with an empty stomach," Keigo says as he hands Max the coffee that he bought.

     Max sighs but takes the coffee anyway. "I already ate breakfast, but thank you."

    Keigo was surprised that Max actually thanked him, but before acting all happy, he clears his throat and quickly changes the subject. "Anyway, looks like we're just on time. After some research, I found out that Abel Henedy is working in this company as an intern. Apparently, his father is an executive director here so he probably got the internship thanks to him," Keigo explains as the two of them started walking toward the building.

     Max takes a sip of his coffee first before looking back at Keigo. "So do we just go in and ask to meet with him?"

     "There's a possibility that he'll decline to meet up with two complete strangers, that's why I checked his schedule and found out his work starts at 8:30 AM. He usually arrives during this time so we'll just ambush him," Keigo reveals, making Max give him a strange look.

     "Your hacking skills are way too terrifying," Max comments.

     "Well thank you," Keigo replies, and Max just rolls his eyes and takes another sip of his coffee, letting Keigo carry out his master plan without any complaints.

     "Alright, let's just wait near the entrance. I already know what he looks like so when we see him, we'll block him and force him to come with us," Keigo suggests as the two of them hid behind a bush.

     "I didn't really want to say anything but...What the fuck are we, kidnappers?!" Max angrily asks, but Keigo just shushes him as he starts squatting down, which was pointless since people could still see them from behind.

     Max sighs and just stood beside Keigo while finishing his coffee. He doesn't know why he's even in this type of situation, and honestly, after everything he's done, this was the strangest so far. Max was just glad that he was wearing his glasses or he would have died in embarrassment.

     The two continued to hide behind the bushes while waiting for the ex-club leader of Omega Society. After a couple more minutes, Max eventually finished his coffee. He was about to ask Keigo if they still had to wait long, but then Keigo suddenly grabs his arm and tells him, "There! That's him!" Keigo points at a guy who just stepped out of a black car, wearing a navy blue suit while holding a suitcase. Keigo was about to run to where he was, but Max quickly pulls him back and says, "Stop, someone's approaching him."

     Keigo stopped as Max commanded. The guy they were waiting for, Abel, walks towards the building with a serious expression, but then an older-looking man approaches him, and the two of them went inside the building together.

     "Damn it, we missed our shot," Keigo complains.

     "Well, there goes your genius plan," Max sarcastically tells him.

     "What now?" Keigo then asks, and Max takes a deep breath and throws his empty coffee cup inside the bin. "Alright, we did your plan so now it's my turn," Max says as he removes his sunglasses, surprising Keigo. Max then starts walking inside the building with no care while Keigo followed behind him, unsure if it was alright for two teenagers to just enter a company like that.

    Keigo was a son of a CEO too, but he grew up in the shadows because of his family's greed. Unlike Max, Cindy, and the other heirs in Crème de la Crème, Keigo wasn't exposed to the public eye. Since his family used his computer skills when he was young, Keigo was more exposed to a computer screen than he was to people.

     Unfortunately, because of that very reason, he's not quite aware of how much power an heir like Max actually has outside J.S High.

     "Max, what if security sees us," Keigo whispers, but Max ignores him as he continues to walk inside the building without any care. When they got inside, Keigo instantly noticed the employees staring at them. It was a strange experience for him, but he eventually realized that the people who were staring at them are actually staring at Max.

     "Mr. Abel Henedy!" Max bravely calls out, startling Keigo because he wasn't expecting Max to just call out to him like that.

     Abel, as well as the man who was walking beside him, stopped walking when they heard Abel's name being called. Keigo and Max approached them, and when Abel saw who called out to him, he furrows his brows in confusion and asks, "I'm sorry but...can I help you?"

     Max was about to introduce himself, but then the older man beside Abel suddenly points at Max, his face showing his complete surprise. "T-That's...that's Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire."

     Abel's eyes widened from shock when he heard the name. "Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire? You're Max Sinclaire?" He asks because he couldn't believe that someone like Max would be standing right in front of him, calling his name.

     "I apologize for coming on to you like this, but we really wanted to meet with you," Max says right after bowing his head to properly greet him.

     "N-No, I'm sorry I wasn't able to recognize you. Your clothes are a bit...casual...so I—" Abel was suddenly cut off when the older man standing beside him showed Max his hand suddenly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Sinclaire, I'm director Choi. Abel here is my intern. Did your father send you here? Would you like to meet with me instead?" The man who was apparently named Choi asks.

    Max stares at his hand but doesn't shake it. He then looks back at Abel, completely ignoring the director as he says, "I want to discuss something important with you. It's regarding an article that you posted four years ago."

     Abel was surprised by what Max said, but then he clears his throat and moves closer to Max. "Are you guys from J.S High?" He whispers.

     "Yes," Keigo answers.

     Keigo looks around the area like he was making sure that no one spotted them. When everything was now in the clear, he moves even closer to the two of them and continued to whisper, "There's a café just across the street. I'll meet you guys there. Make sure no one sees you, is that understood?"

...

"I don't know why but I feel a bit iffy about this. Do you think we can trust this guy?" Keigo asks while sipping on his milkshake. "Like, why was he so secretive?"

     "You're the one who looked for the guy, but now you're doubting it? Why didn't you just check his background too? You already checked his entire schedule anyway," Max complains, but Keigo doesn't say anything and just finished his shake.

     "Shit! Brain freeze!" He then shouts, making Max sigh and rolls his eyes in annoyance.

     After a while, the man they were supposed to meet with finally arrives, making Max kick Keigo's feet under the table so he'd be alert.

    "Sorry to keep you waiting," Abel says as Keigo offers the seat beside him.

    "Would you like some coffee?" Max then asks as Abel took his seat, but Abel shakes his head, declining the offer.

    The three of them awkwardly looked at each other. After a couple of seconds, Abel then takes a deep breath and says, "Wow, I can't believe I'm talking to someone of your standing. I think I saw in the news that you enrolled in J.S High, but I had doubts if it was real or not. I guess I just didn't want to believe that another Sinclaire decided to join the House of Kings."

     "You're referring to Donato, right? Did you know him?" Max asks.

     "I obviously wasn't close to Don, but I knew him enough to know that he was a terrible king. Actually, all the first generations of brotherhoods were troublesome and ruthless. I guess that's the downfall of being in a group that's formed by the association," Abel explains, which surprised Max.

     "What do you mean by 'a group that's formed by the association'?"

    Abel looks at Max and furrows his brows in confusion. "Aren't you guys familiar with the first 30 brotherhoods that were ever created?"

     "I'm a bit familiar with it, but I don't think Max is," Keigo answers.

     "If that's the case then you better listen carefully..."

When president Janus Sinclaire decided to make his own school, he needed more people for the job, so he formed the association with his most trusted acquaintances, and that's how the other houses were born.

Houses under the Brotherhood Association (B.A):

House of Pawns (Thomas L. High School)

▸ Houses brotherhoods rank 30-23

▸ School President: Thomas Lionel, Vice President of B.A

▸ Student Council: Soldiers

▸ Motto: "Forwards We March."

House of Rooks (Roland's School for Boys)

▸ Houses brotherhoods rank 22-18

▸ School President: Roland Salvi, Auditor of B.A

▸ Student Council: Stewards

▸ Motto: "Look Straight Ahead."

House of Knights (D & F High School)

▸ Houses brotherhoods rank 17-14

▸ School President: Demetrius and Francis Beaumont, Treasurers of B.A

▸ Student Council: Nobles

▸ Motto: "Honor thy Virtue."

House of Bishops (St. George Academy)

▸ Houses brotherhoods rank 13-7

▸ School President: Lukas Ivory, Secretary of B.A

▸ Student Council: Saints

▸ Motto: "Faith is Strength."

House of Kings (J.S High)

▸ Houses brotherhoods rank 6-1

▸ School President: Janus Sinclaire, President of B.A

▸ Student Council: Elites

▸ Motto: "We Shall Conquer"

"President Janus advertised the school to CEOs, presidents, or anyone who made a name for themselves. Even your father, Denzel Sinclaire, helped advertise it too, which is why a lot of influential people decided to enroll their sons in the five houses. Even my father wanted me to be a part of it," Abel explains.

     "What happened after?"

     "The association grouped the first batch of enrollees and separated them into two: regular students, and those who will make up the brotherhoods."

     "You mean the white uniforms?" Keigo clarifies, but Able shook his head and answered, "No, the concept of the White Uniforms only started in late 2018. I know because my brother was part of the first batch of students. My brother said it caused major psychological effects. The students in black uniforms started feeling superior, and the white uniforms ended up becoming prey. It was a huge mess."

     "So what about the brotherhoods? How did they come to be?" Max asks next.

     "The association grouped together the toughest students with the strongest personalities. Those students were given some sort of test, and afterward, they were grouped into 30. Those 30 became the first batch of brotherhoods," Abel explains, surprising Max and even Keigo because this is the first time he's actually getting a more straightforward explanation about J.S High's history.

     "The Association thought they created the perfect brotherhood, considering how they put the most powerful students together. They were supposed to lead the regular students, but little did they know that they actually made the biggest mistake ever. They created a group of power-hungry heirs. They created monsters," Abel exclaimed.

     Max and Keigo briefly looked at each other. They didn't even have to ask to know who Abel was really talking about.

     "You're talking about Paradox, aren't you?" Max clarifies, and Abel sighs and nods his head, almost like admitting it was something he was greatly disappointed in. "That's right. All the members of Paradox were from very powerful families. Believe it or not, five of them were members of Crème de la Crème."

     Keigo was surprised, while Max couldn't believe what he just heard. The members of Crème de la Crème don't really know who's who. Of course, it's different between Max, Gavriil, and the others because they've known each other since they were kids, but just putting five together—who probably didn't even know each other before they enrolled in J.S High—could definitely cause chaos. What on earth was the association thinking?

     "So they were the batch before us; before the list was re-evaluated," Max explains.

     As a refresher, Crème de la Crème is a group of heirs who are predicted to make a huge impact in the business world. They consist of the top 12 most powerful and influential heirs in the entire world, and to identify them, they will have a symbol of the Fleur de Lis branded on their bodies. You will only be removed from the list once you are no longer an heir, which could mean your family stripped you away from the title, or if you already became the president or CEO of your family's company.

Currently, the known members of Crème de la Crème are:

Rank 1: Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire

                  Viktor Alekovich Stepanov [FORMER] (Leader of 'the king' brotherhood, Busters)

Rank 2: Cindy Lin (Leader of 'the queen' sisterhood, Vixens)

Rank 3: Gavriil Ivanovich Alexeev (Elites' Vice President)

Rank 4: [UNKNOWN]

Rank 5: Maria Rosalia Ortega (Member of 'the queen' sisterhood, Vixens)

                 Matthew Grey Cullen [FORMER]

Rank 6: [UNKNOWN]

Rank 7: Hans de Vries (Leader of 'the duke' brotherhood, BND)

Rank 8: [UNKNOWN]

                 Serenity Karlsson [FORMER]

Rank 9: Scarlet Romano (Leader of the 'duchess' sisterhood, La Séptima)

Rank 10: [UNKNOWN]

Rank 11: [UNKNOWN]

Rank 12: [UNKNOWN]

     "That makes sense since Donato was previously ranked 7 before he became an executive director in our company. He's the first son in our generation in the Sinclaire Family so if I was never born, he would have inherited the family's riches," Max reveals, surprising Abel this time because he couldn't even imagine Donato being the heir to such wealth and power.

    "Five members of Crème de la Crème in one brotherhood? That's fucking crazy," Keigo says out loud, and the mere thought of it made him shiver.

     "Hey Keigo, weren't you able to meet Paradox?" Max then asks since he's heard that Keigo's supposed to be a year older than them.

     "No, when I enrolled in J.S High, Busters were already the kings. Of course, I stopped for a year because my father got sent to prison, but when I got back, they're still rank 1," Keigo explains.

     The mention of Busters made Abel's expression turn soft this time, almost like he remembered something remarkable about his past. "Busters? Damn, I remember them."

     "You do?"

     "Yeah, they were the rookies who changed the entire system. I remember how Viktor and the others defeated the Royals and acquired the power to rule the House of Kings. This was also the time when the Elites were born and sir Janus made Matthew Grey Cullen the president. Grey created the White Uniforms Protection Code, and we were all saved," Abel explains next.

     "Wait, Grey was just chosen to be the president of the Elites, just like that?" Max asks in shock because from what he knows, the members of the Elites aren't simply chosen. They rank up and become the best of the best.

     "The same year the White Uniforms were implemented, the Association introduced the merit points system. That was back in 2018, just a year before I was invited to enroll in J.S High. Since it was a new concept, the students didn't care about it much, which would make sense since the points didn't mean anything to the white uniforms in the past."

     "So my uncle just picked someone to be the president of the student council?"

     "Well for what I know, president Janus needed to do something that would make the white uniforms take the merit points seriously, so he gathered five of the most outstanding students and made them the Elites. They became the symbol of excellency, and that's when everyone started wanting to rank high because it was then revealed that the top 5 students would make up the future Elites. The titles: gaffer, dweller, serf, were later added."

     "Wow, that's pretty impressive," Keigo comments, and Max couldn't help but agree.

     One of the reasons why the white uniforms are working hard to rank up is because they want to be a part of the Elites. The Elites are the symbol of their school's excellency, being a part of that group is the greatest achievement anyone in J.S High can ever achieve.

     "And how did Paradox react? I'm pretty sure they weren't thrilled about it," Max says.

     "Believe me, they weren't. They hated the concept of the Elites. Having the Elites made it look like there were two rulers in the castle, and they didn't want that."

     "So what happened?"

     "That's when shit started to go downhill. Paradox hated the Elites so they targeted the president, Matthew Grey Cullen. President Cullen was a student in Class I-A, so his class stepped in to help him fight Paradox. That class was composed of Viktor and the others. They created their own brotherhood, and that was taboo at that time. White uniforms don't just randomly decide to want to become a brotherhood. It's almost impossible," Abel explains to Max and Keigo.

     "Brotherhoods are a group of students who follow the same ideal or belief. To officially be a brotherhood, you have to form your group and join the Annual Brotherhood Reranking. A lot of brotherhoods are created during that event, but that can take time as this only happens in the middle of the school year. So the fastest way to form a brotherhood is by defeating two brotherhoods from a lower house, and then defeating one brotherhood in the house you are in."

     "I'm guessing Viktor and the others chose the latter part," Max says.

     "That's right. They couldn't wait for the annual reranking. They had to defeat the Royals no matter what, so they created their own brotherhood and defeated all odds. It seriously changed history," Abel excitedly shares, almost standing from his seat because of great pride.

     "So that's how Busters was formed. I guess they were really born to rule," Keigo says, impressed by the story. But when Abel heard what he said, he furrowed his brows and clarifies, "Oh you got it wrong. The brotherhood who defeated Paradox wasn't Busters at all."

     "Wait, what?" Keigo asks in shock.

     "What do you mean?" Max asks back, confused now too.

    "That wasn't the start of Busters. Busters were formed after Paradox was defeated. Because the brotherhood that was born during such chaos was called C1A, a brotherhood that consisted of Viktor, Tanis, Hee-joon, Killshot, Hans, Cj, and Krist. They were the ones who defeated Paradox. They were the original conquerors...they were previously J.S High's seven kings."

- END -