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WHILE SITTING AT ONE of the desks that Xander kindly cleared for him, Max looks through the files that President Justice gave him earlier so he'll know what to do before classes officially start. Just like his first day in J.S High, Max was already reading the rules and regulations both for the white uniforms and the brotherhoods. He has also memorized his schedule, as well as the names of all their professors. It also looks like he's still in Class A, which was something Max was relieved about.

     "This is quite interesting," Max says while his eyes are glued to the student handbook. "In J.S High, gaffers, dwellers, and serfs are just titles for your specific rank. But here, they're referred to as Divisions. That really gives a sense of separation. And I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

     "Wait, yours aren't?" Xander asks, and Max shakes his head in reply.

     "By the way, are you and Keigo close friends?" Xander asks while readjusting the alarm button that Max accidentally stepped on earlier,

     "We're not just friends. We're best friends," Keigo suddenly answers, making Max chuckle.

     "Ari and the others might not agree with that," Max teases, but Keigo just brushes it off.

     "Anyway, it must be strange that you two are serfs again after everything you've done in J.S High. I mean, I heard the system there is harder, and students literally have to do everything they can to survive. I'm not saying it's not hard here, of course, but the House of Kings must be a different level, right?" Xander wonders, making Max look away from the handbook he's reading before turning to look at Xander who's sitting on the edge of his bed beside Keigo.

     "If you asked me this same question a few months back, I would have agreed with you. But after everything that had happened to our house, some students of J.S High started to treat each other as healthy competition. Our titles still hold merit, which is important, but students are becoming unified when needed, and that's the ideal school that I want. Of course, there's still a long way to go, but at least change is slowly starting," Max explains with so much dedication and confidence that Xander couldn't help but look at him with awe.

     Max isn't even the president yet, but there's no denying that he has the charisma to influence others. It's still not as strong as President Ian's, but Max is truly on his way there.

     "Besides, I can't really compare J.S High with St. George Academy yet since I've only been here for a couple of hours. But if I were to make an observation, serfs here really feel like they're serfs, especially with their living conditions. In J.S High, serfs are looked down upon. But after the bell rings and when everyone leaves the campus grounds, they're back to becoming the heirs that they are. But here...there's no escaping your titles," Max explains next, and Xander couldn't help but sigh and nod his head in agreement.

     "You just hit the nail on that one. And seeing how you talk about J.S High, I can't help but feel jealous. Only the very best are chosen to enroll in the House of Kings, so I expected it to be a nightmare. But after hearing you, I can tell you genuinely love your house, which students in our house wouldn't be able to relate to," Xander says with a sad expression.

     "The hierarchy here is intense, especially when you're a serf. How we're treated is very different from others, but that's also the very reason why there aren't a lot of serfs that are in a higher year, which makes the council conclude that this way is effective," Xander explains.

     "It's effective because you're being forced to live like this if you don't rank up. Students aren't encouraged to rank up because they want to. They rank up because they need to," Keigo replies, and Xander nods to agree to it.

     "That's right. Most of the serfs are also freshmen because they haven't earned enough points. That's why freshmen serfs are treated better than serfs in higher years," Xander explains further, which intrigued Max even more because in J.S High, whatever your year is, it wouldn't matter. Everyone judges you by your rank regardless.

     "So it's been harder for you," Max then says since Xander is a second-year serf, and Xander sighs and adjusts his glasses before looking at the failed inventions he made that are scattered around the room.

     "Even before I got invited to enroll here, I wasn't the achiever type. My dad owns a robotics company, so that's the only skill I've really learned. The problem is, I'm not even good with that compared to the other students in my club. And even with my mediocre skills, it's not enough to rank me up," Xander says with a sad expression, making Max and Keigo look at each other before turning to look at him again.

     "You know, Xander, I have a friend who's like you before. He thought his skill wasn't useful, but after finding his true calling, he was offered to fix the entire merit system in our house. Can you believe that?" Max exclaims, and Keigo blushes this time because he never expected Max to praise him like that, even though it was supposed to be a blind item.

     "So I just have to find my calling?" Xander asks, and Max smiles and nods his head in reply.

     "I mean, we can always—" Before Max can finish his thoughts, a low chilling bell suddenly rings throughout the campus, startling Max. It wasn't like the bell you'd here in J.S High. This definitely came from a large church bell.

     "Shit, it's lunch break," Xander says with a worried expression.

     "What's going on? Is it as chaotic as our lunch breaks in the Great Hall?"Max asks, standing from his seat since Keigo and Xander quickly get up as well.

     "During regular days, we eat at the main cathedral with the rest of the student body, but when it's Monday, we eat somewhere else," Keigo reveals. And without even explaining it in detail, Max already understood what his dear friend meant.

     "Are you telling me—"

     "And I suggest you change your clothes first. Don't want your white uniform to get stained on the first day," Xander then interrupts, confusing Max even more.

     He didn't really know what was going on, but he quickly changed his clean and ironed uniform into a black t-shirt and black jogging pants. He also places his brooches inside a container with a lock in case someone tries to steal it. Afterward, he hides it inside a locker that Xander and Keigo helped clean so he can have a place for his personal belongings.

     After changing clothes, Keigo went in front of him and started ruining his perfectly waxed hair this time so it could cover his face.

     "W-What are you doing?"

     "Just trust me," Keigo defends.

     "And wear this too. You'll need it," Xander then says, offering a pair of glasses to him. Max honestly didn't want to wear it, but Keigo forced him to, so now Max has no choice.

     When Max was now transformed into his new look, Keigo smiled satisfyingly like he just did the best makeover he's ever done in his life. "We knew you were coming today because President Justice told us you're going to be our new roommate. But it seems like they haven't announced that to everyone else yet. Just in case the Tax Collectors visit again, at least they won't recognize you."

     "T-Tax Collectors? What on earth is that now? And here I thought J.S High used weird terminologies," Max complains, but Keigo ignores him and finally opens the door.

     As soon as the door swung open, Max was surprised to see a hoard of lifeless students walking down the hall like zombies. Everyone looked practically dead, and some were groaning and yawning and even scratching their butts without care. Max couldn't help but look at them with his mouth wide open. He's not the one to judge, but he can't believe that this is the state that everyone is in.

     "These are the serfs? What the hell is going on?" Max asks in disbelief.

     Now he's starting to think that President Ian purposely wanted him to hide his rank and become a serf in St. George Academy so he could witness this firsthand.

     "Follow us and make sure you don't get separated," Keigo instructs.

     "Wait, Keigo—" Before Max could even say anything further, Keigo finally joined the crowd of zombie students. Max hesitated at first, but he was left with no other choice and just followed behind Keigo. Thankfully Xander was right behind him as well to make sure he didn't get separated from them.

     While being sandwiched by dozens of serfs, Max couldn't help but cover his nose as the stench from the clogged toilets, as well as everyone's body odor, was almost unbearable. But after following the wave, they finally got to the basement floor, which was apparently the cafeteria. Max had to cough it out so he could breathe again.

     "Welcome to the Hell Sanctum's cafeteria," Keigo says as the crowd finally disperses.

     Max takes a deep breath and finally looks up to see what the cafeteria looks like. He wasn't really expecting much, but as soon as he saw the state of their cafeteria, Max was once again left speechless. And here he thought nothing else could go wrong.

     "This can't be real," Max says as he looks around the cafeteria in disbelief. The walls were stained with who knows what. The floor was wet and sticky, and all the trash bins were overflowing. Since this is the basement, there weren't windows either, so the humidity was so thick and almost suffocating. There was no way these heirs allowed themselves to eat in such a condition.

     The sleeping area can be excused, but a dirty cafeteria? A place where food is served? That's unacceptable.

     "Keigo, you've been eating here the entire time?" Max asks, obviously concerned.

     Keigo laughs it off and just scratches the back of his head, afraid to admit that he became a victim of such mistreatment. "I mean, we only eat lunch here on Mondays. Breakfast and dinner are served here as well, but Xander and I usually eat in our room," Keigo then explains while still laughing, but when he saw how serious Max's expression was, he immediately looked away.

     These students...

     They're not even treated as students at this point.

     "Hey, there's no point crying over spilled milk," Xander suddenly says when he notices the tense atmosphere between the two friends. "We should just grab our lunch so we can head back. We only have an hour and a half before we're called to the atrium for the assembly."

     Max looks at Keigo again before looking around the cafeteria for one last time. Even though it was not his obligation, he couldn't help but feel guilty. Max has been excited about transferring to this school without knowing how his friend has been living. But since they can't really do anything about this situation, Max can only sigh and agree to Xander's suggestion.

     "You're right. We should eat now so we can leave as soon as possible," Max says, and the three of them finally go in line to grab their food.

     While holding onto a tray, Max looked at the food that was being served. The students were only given two small sausages and a side of green peas that aren't even green anymore, and mashed potatoes that looked way too wet to be considered mashed potatoes. He hasn't even eaten yet, but he already lost his appetite.

     Max couldn't help but feel sad and angry about their situation despite only being here for a day. How much more to those who have been here longer? They had to endure all this for the sake of...what? What's the point of even enduring this? Just to boast that you're a student of St. George Academy?

     J.S High has its own flaws, and serfs are treated badly as well, but the food they eat is the same as everyone else. Everyone has access to a clean restroom, and they're given the same opportunities to rank higher. Looking at the House of Bishops, Max can't help but realize how lucky they actually have been.

     "There's a water dispenser beside the door. But if you want hot water for your tea, you can request it from the cafeteria lady over there," Xander explains as Max stares at the food that's now on his plate.

     "Thank you," Max replies.

     While Max waited for Keigo and Xander to get their food as well, everyone in the cafeteria suddenly became quiet. Max didn't know what had happened, but when he turned around, he saw three students wearing circular gold necklaces near the entrance of the cafeteria.

     "Shit, they're here," Keigo whispers under his breath.

     "They? Who's 'they'"

     "The Tax Collectors."

     In J.S High, there are four distinct titles. The regular white uniforms, the members of the Elites, the brotherhoods, and the underlings. But in St. George Academy, there are actually five. The regular white uniforms, the members of the Saints, the brotherhoods, the underlings, and the Tax Collectors.

     Tax Collectors are students specifically chosen by none other than the school president, Father Lucas Ivory. These are made up of gaffers with exceptional skills, and their job is to make sure each division (Serfs, Dwellers, and Gaffers) is able to meet their merit quota. If they don't...well, hell will literally break loose.

     "Good morning Serfs Division!" One of the Tax Collectors wearing a gold necklace says with an unnerving smile. "I know you're all enjoying your...appetizing...lunch break, but we're here to check your merits for this week. Who has the student list?" He then asks, but no one says a thing. It was obvious they were terrified.

     "Come on now. I think I assigned someone last time. You don't want the incident that happened last week to repeat itself, don't you?" Another Tax Collector asks, and someone finally stands from their seat holding a tablet.

     The poor serf hands the tablet to the collector before running back to his seat. The collector checks the list and scans it, and then he starts shaking his head in disapproval.

     "Oh no, looks like you're short again. Your quota this week was supposed to be a total of 12,000 points. There are at least 200 of you here, and yet you didn't reach it. How disappointing," the collector says, obviously not disappointed at all.

     "We have no choice then. I'll have to take the ten students with the lowest merits acquired this week and send them to the convent. You know the punishments that await you there," he explained, instantly making the students shiver in fear.

     Not feeling an ounce of remorse, the tax collectors started calling the names of the serfs with the lowest merit points. Almost all of them started begging for mercy, while the others had no choice but to accept their fate. Max can only watch while clenching his fist in anger. It's been a while since he felt this angry over the school system. At least in J.S High, serfs aren't forced to acquire a specific number of merit points every week and get punished if they don't achieve it. If it did, Felix wouldn't have accepted that.

     "And lastly, Alexander McLurkin, please come forward and follow us to the convent," the collector suddenly revealed, immediately making Max and Keigo look at their roommate with their eyes wide open.

     Xander instantly drops his tray of food when he hears his name, obviously shocked to have been called.

     "T-this can't be. I earned fifty points this week. This can't...this can't be happening," Xander says, his body almost trembling. He then looks at Max and Keigo, but before the two of them can say anything, one of the collectors approaches Xander and grabs his arm, forcing him to come with them.

     "N-No...please. There has to be a mistake. I...I don't want to—"

     "Shut the fuck up and stop struggling!" The collector then shouted, pulling Xander even harder, making him stumble and fall towards the dirty floor.

     Max immediately puts his tray down and runs to Xander to help him, while Keigo curses under his breath before following behind his troublesome friend.

     "Xander, are you okay?" Max asks as he helps his roommate stand properly. The collector was about to grab Xander again, but Max immediately blocked him so they wouldn't be able to take him anymore.

     "What the hell are you doing? Do you know that interfering with us is a major offense?" The collector threatens.

     Max looks at the other serfs, who can't even look straight at him. The way they've been ignoring all this made his blood boil. But what angered him even more was that he couldn't even blame them for just giving up. And the hard truth is the House of Bishops doesn't encourage their students to rank up and become better versions of themselves at all. They force authority and power over them. They torment them like this, and no one seems to care.

     What kind of catholic school is this?

     What kind of school is this?

     How long has this been going on?

     Is there a deeper reason behind such cruelty?

     Why was Uchdryd and the others so desperate for Max to get transferred here?

     What did they want him to see?

     What storm were they even talking about?

     "Fifty thousand points," Max suddenly blurts out, his chest beating so fast he couldn't even breathe properly anymore.

     "What?" One of the collectors asked in confusion while the other serfs turned to look at him.

     Max swallowed the lump in his throat and turned to Xander before looking back at the Tax Collectors. "Give us one more week, and our division will produce 50,000 merit points," Max finally reveals, leaving everyone in the cafeteria speechless, even the collectors themselves.

     "Who are you to demand such a thing?" The collector who greeted everyone earlier asks, approaching Max with a serious expression. He stares at Max for a while, but then he snatches the glasses he's wearing so he can see his face better. As soon as the glasses were removed, Max bravely brushed his hair back to finally show his face. The moment everyone saw who he really was, they couldn't help but gasp in shock.

     "Well, I'll be damned. It's Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire. Why didn't the Saints give us any notice that you've arrived? That's quite strange," the collector says as he moves closer to Max until their faces are only inches away from each other. "But now what? Do you want me to bow to you and welcome you?" The collector then asks. 

     "For someone whose title is to be feared, you don't intimidate me one bit, Tax Collector," Max says while looking straight at him, leaving the other serfs speechless.

     The collector was about to grab Max for saying such a thing, but Keigo immediately went in between them to stop him. The other collectors were about to intervene as well, but when they saw Keigo, they immediately backed away. It seems like they're well aware that he's an underling of PHD. At least underlings still have weight here.

      "Fifty-thousand points? That's half the points Gaffers produce in a week," the collector says with a grin, contemplating what Max offered. "Alright. Looks like you escaped this week's collection thanks to your new dorm mate. Next week, we'll come back here to collect the tax. If you can't give us these numbers, well...we'll give you a fitting welcome, Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire."

     "But Matthias—"

     The collector, whose name was actually Matthias, quickly looks at the other collector, instantly making him shut his mouth.

     "Alright then. Enjoy your lunch, serfs. See you next week."

     The collectors looked at the white uniforms for one last time before finally leaving the cafeteria. As soon as they left, Max looked back at Xander again. He was about to ask if he was okay, but then one of the serfs suddenly pulled Max's arm and grabbed him by the collar, surprising both Keigo and Xander.

     "Hey! Let go of him!" Keigo defended, but another serf pushed him away, blocking him and Xander so they wouldn't be able to help Max.

     "What the hell have you done!?" The serf angrily shouted at Max. "How dare you decide for us when you're an outsider!" He adds, and the other serfs shouted in agreement.

     "You clearly saw how those serfs acted when their names were called. I don't exactly know what they do to them, but observing their reactions alone is enough to—"

     "What do you care? Huh, Sinclaire? You're only here for a month. It's so easy for you to decide on things when we've been doing fine before you came. Now you've given us more problems!" The serf angrily shouted just inches away from Max's face, finally making Max push him away.

     "Open your fucking eyes!" Max now shouted, instantly making the entire cafeteria fall silent. "You live in a fucking dump and eat in a cafeteria that's dirtier than a public restroom. The system obviously puts you at a great disadvantage, and what do you do? Nothing. And nothing is more disappointing than someone who has the ability to do something but decides to ignore it instead."

     "Don't you dare preach on us. There's nothing else to do because this is how things are!"

      "This is how things are because you all gave up!" Max shouted back, and the serf who grabbed him finally took a step back

      "Look, I'm not here to save you or act as a hero. I'm not a Messiah who will give you miracles. I'm an outsider, and like what you said, I'm gonna leave after a month and go back to a comfortable life and a school that actually treats me like a student. But you? You're gonna be stuck in the very same spot, living like a rat because you choose to ignore the fact that you're all mistreated," Max truthfully reveals, finally making the other serfs lower their heads in shame.

     "St. George Academy is supposed to be the second strongest house among the brotherhood houses. I expected so much...but I realized that I shouldn't have kept my hopes so high. No one here has the guts to do anything, and it's so fucking disappointing. St. George Academy does not deserve to be next to the House of Kings. No wonder you're all still serfs," Max blurts out before he can even stop himself.

     Xander looked like he was about to cry after hearing Max's truth, and Max thought he hurt him for what he said when in fact, the tears were for something else. Max still wanted to apologize regardless, but he stopped himself and clenched his fist before finally deciding to leave the cafeteria instead to calm himself down. 

     But as soon as the door closed behind him, Max stopped walking when a familiar figure stood in front of him with a menacing grin on his face.

     "Looks like you're already cooking something delicious when you've only just arrived. Reminds me of the time I met you on your first day. It seems like you never changed since then." The man says, making Max look at him with his eyes wide in shock.

     "Adachi Ren..."

- END -