♰

THEY CAN FINALLY LEAVE. After everything that happened, the students of St. George Academy can finally leave and end their suffering. They never knew that this was even an option, but now it was. With how things were going you'd expect that the students would start running out of the atrium in excitement, but why was no one moving at all?

     "Sinclaire is right," President Justice suddenly says, taking a step forward so that the white uniforms can now look in his direction this time. "We are giving you this one chance. Once the bell rings for the second time, the gates will be open. You will be able to leave by then."

     The students started talking among each other, and then they started waiting for someone to stand and leave first.

     This was the Saints' final plea. They wanted change, and if the students aren't happy about that, then they're welcome to leave. But while they were planning this out, they only had two outcomes in mind. One, the students will gladly make their way to the exit and never look back. And two...

     No one would dare do it because of shame.

     No one would dare do it, which will force them to follow and agree to whatever will happen to the school since they "chose" to stay instead. Like what Étienne said, if you want a stubborn person to follow you, make them think like it was their idea in the first place.

     "Well, anyone?" Justice asks again, but as expected, not a single student stands from their seats to leave. For them, leaving is like giving up, and they'd rather stay in this hell than be known as someone who ran away like a coward.

     "Looks like no one wants to—" Before Justice can even finish his sentence, the doors to the atrium suddenly open, revealing Reverend Father Lucas Ivory with two high priests following behind him. Others were surprised to see him, but for the Saints, his appearance was expected and highly needed.

     "He's finally here," Stefan whispers under his breath before looking at Max and nodding his head towards him, giving him a signal only the two of them understand.

     "What is this absurdity?!" Father Lucas shouted, anger and annoyance present in his voice. "How dare you all pull such a stunt on this holy ground!"

     Everyone couldn't say a thing as they watched three members of the Ministry make their way to the middle of the atrium where Max, Keigo, Stefan, and the rest of the Saints were waiting. Father Lucas stopped in front of the Saints' president, and without any warning, he raised his hand and slapped Justice Thorndyke on the face, making everyone gasp in complete shock.

     Max and his friends were also surprised, but Justice didn't even react. His cheek started turning red, but he ignored the pain and looked back at their school president, staring straight at him without a single fear in his eyes.

     "You heretics snuck inside the convent, kidnapped one of our tax collectors, stole private records of a previous student, played the said private records on campus for everyone to hear, and now...mutiny?!" Father Lucas shouted while Justice continued to stare at him.

     When it looked like the bishop had more to say, Justice took a step forward and simply asked him, "Where's your proof?"

     "What?"

     "All the allegations you just thrown at us...where's your proof? Where's the evidence that points out that we're the ones who snuck inside the convent, kidnapped one of your tax collectors, stole private records of a previous student, and even played it for everyone to hear?" Justice asks back, which is something that surprised Father Lucas and the rest of the Ministry.

     Justice wasn't the type to answer them back like this. He was always carefree and aloof, yes, but never like this, which is why the bishop couldn't even say anything back. He realized that Justice and the rest of the Saints had followed them with no question. Something was definitely going on.

     "W-Well I...we..." While the dumbfounded bishop tried to think of a fitting response to what the Saints' president just said, one of the high priests suddenly leaned close to his ear and whispered something to him. Lucas had his brows furrowed for a second, but then his face lit up, almost like he just had a brilliant idea.

     "Of course, I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about...the brotherhoods!" Lucas then reveals almost making Max laugh out loud because of how quickly the narrative changed.

     "Have you all not noticed? They have ruined everything," Father Lucas continues as he turns around to face the divisions this time. "They started the chaos and have tainted our paradise. The brotherhoods have always wanted power. They've always wanted to take over this school, but we weren't letting them, that's why they made us all suffer!"

      "He's right!" one of the gaffers shouted, which didn't even surprise Max and the others anymore. Lucas Ivory just gave them someone else who they can blame and they're running with it.

    "We were all fulfilling our purpose in this house. Those who suffer deserve suffering because that's how the world works. You will not appreciate heaven if you do not know what pain feels like," Father Lucas continues to say as more gaffers begin to agree with him. For a second, Max would have called this bullshit, but instead, he ended up realizing something.

     Now he understands why the gaffers think the way they do.

     It's because their school president is someone like Lucas Ivory.

     It all made sense now.

     Once again, the adults have overpowered the kids and gaslighted them into believing that this was all normal. Max isn't even mad anymore. At this point, he's just disappointed.

     "That's why we should all band together and restore our house!"

     "That's right!"

     While Father Lucas was trying to gain the gaffers' support back, someone suddenly started slow clapping for the bishop's wonderful speech. The Saints thought it was one of the gaffers, but to their surprise, black uniforms started appearing from the entrance, immediately making the white uniforms at the bleachers stand in complete panic.

     "They're here!"

     "They're out to get us! I should have known they were coming!"

     "Everyone, settle down! Do not let them overpower us!" Lucas Ivory shouted while Stefan quickly instructed the serfs to help calm the others down to avoid a stampede.

     "Settle down! These are just mere black uniforms! You shouldn't be scared! Don't be—" While Father Lucas was trying his best to control the crowd, someone suddenly appeared behind him. It was a tall man whose shadow practically devoured him. The bishop didn't even have to turn around to know who it was. All he could do was shut his mouth and swallow the lump in his throat.

     "H-Hedeon," one of the high priests then says as Busters' third strongest, Hedeon Stallion, towered behind the bishop who could no longer move a muscle.

     "Wow, you just tried to pin the blame on us when the Ministry has been fucking us in the ass since we got here," Elijah Memphis Valor, Red Tigers' leader, and Crème de la Crème's rank 6, says with a grin on his face as he walks inside the atrium with the rest of his brotherhoods rallying behind him.

     "Adults always like to blame everything on the kids when they don't want to admit that they're wrong," Ruby Rose, rank 8 brotherhood, Scarlet Letter, then adds.

      The rest of the brotherhoods made their way inside the atrium. It's been so long to see them all gather like this so seeing them all again makes one's hair stand. It's like seeing chaos in its physical form.

     "I've always been quiet about the Ministry, but openly blaming all the shit on us? That's gone too far," Uchdryd Rease, leader of rank 7 brotherhood, says as he and his brotherhood were the last to enter the atrium, PHD and the Clan just right before them.

     Uchdryd glances at the terrified white uniforms before standing in front of Lucas Ivory and staring at him from head to toe. Unfortunately for the bishop, Uchdryd was way taller than him, so he had no choice but to look up at the leader who was asserting dominance.

     "You're way too brave for pulling such a stunt, don't you agree? After all, we know something about you that your precious white uniforms aren't even aware of yet," Uchdryd tells him.

     "Are you threatening me, boy?" Lucas Ivory asks back.

     "No, I'm not. But if I were to threaten you then I would have said something like..." Uchdryd touched his chin and pretended like he was thinking of something. But then he grinned, and after a ten-second pause, he finally revealed, "I'll tell everyone that you never registered St. George Academy as an official school and that you sold the House of Bishops to an unknown buyer who uses heirs like it's a business venture."

     "W-what?" one of the gaffers asks in confusion.

     "I should have said that if I was threatening you, but as you can see, I'm not. Oh wait...I just said it out loud, didn't I? My apologies," Uchdryd then teases as Father Lucas takes a step back.

     "What is he talking about?"

     "This isn't a school?"

     "We were being exploited?"

     "So we've been wasting our time here?"

      All the white uniforms start talking amongst each other, shocked, confused, and angry at the same time. And the only hope Lucas had of gaining the gaffers' trust instantly crumbled before him.

     "You tricked us?!" a gaffer angrily shouted.

     "You've been using us all this time?!"

     While the gaffers, as well as the lower divisions, were shouting at President Lucas Ivory, Lucas turned to the two priests who couldn't even defend him anymore. So when Father Lucas realized that he was alone in this, he pushed Uchdryd away and shouted back, "These are all lies! They're trying to make me the bad guy! They don't even have any evi—"

     Before Lucas could even think of another way to escape the situation, Levi, who had been holding a folder since they arrived, walked toward Justice and handed it over to him. The Ministry stared at Justice as he pulled out the documents that would support their claim.

     "When we found these documents, I took the liberty to copy them in case something like this happens," President Justice explains. "We were afraid for a long time. We were afraid of the truth. But someone reminded us that secrets will only destroy us. So I present to you these documents. These are documents that state that St. George Academy is not legally registered, and you can also find here that you sold the school to an unknown buyer. If you think I'm lying, I can bring an attorney with us. We can talk about legitimacy with them," Justice bravely explains, and this time, Father Lucas Ivory can no longer defend himself.

     "T-This...this is—" While Father Lucas tries his best to explain everything, the gaffers who practically idolized them like gods started shouting profanities at him and the rest of the ministry. Some were even throwing things at them, almost making it look like they were being stoned to death.

     Before Lucas and the two high priests could even think of running away, a bunch of brotherhoods blocked the exits, and then the gaffers eventually started running toward the middle of the atrium so they could circle the ministry.

     "You guys are fucking dead! My father is going to throw you in prison!"

     "You're never going to see the light of day again!"

     While the gaffers continued to shout at the Ministry, the Saints looked at each other and nodded their heads in satisfaction.

     Their plan was working. This was the first step to destroying the Ministry. If they want to take them down, they have to make the gaffers turn their backs against them. The gaffers are their biggest driving force and income. If they successfully remove the gaffers in the equation, then everything will come crumbling down.

     Now, their next plan is simple.

     And it will all fall on Father Lucas Ivory himself.

     "You're not going to get away with this!" a gaffer continued to shout.

     Lucas takes a step back, hoping that the two high priests would help him, but they couldn't budge either. So amidst the anger and the chaos, Lucas did what he does best, and that's to blame it on someone else.

     Just like Justice and the others predicted.

     "It was all Janus's idea!" Lucas finally shouted. And the moment he did so, the Saints, Max's friends, and even the brotherhoods who were aware of the plan couldn't help but hide the smiles on their faces.

     "Have you all forgotten who runs the Brotherhood Association? Janus just assigned me as the president of this house, but he's really doing all the work," Lucas explains, calming everyone down. "I was afraid of what he might do to us if we didn't follow his orders, so I kept everything a secret. We just blindly followed him because of how terrified we were. But now I'm thankful that this has come to light. Now we can all see what type of man Janus Sinclaire really is!"

     "And what type of man could that be?" someone then asks.

     Lucas Ivory slowly turned around and was surprised to see Max walking towards him. He completely forgot that Janus' nephew was standing right there, listening to his lies.

     "What type of man?" Lucas asks, his voice practically shaking.

     "That's right. Why not tell me about it?"

     "Well, I—"

     Before Lucas could even finish his sentence, he was suddenly interrupted when a loud sound suddenly echoed from a distance, startling everyone.

     "What was that?!" Lucas asks, looking around to check where the sound came from.

     "Fire! The convent is on fire!" one of the white uniforms then reported, instantly making everyone start panicking again.

     Before anything can even happen, Max nods to the Saints again who immediately start evacuating the other students. Lucas, on the other hand, ran out of the atrium with the two high priests, heading to the convent to see what was happening.

     At first Father Lucas thought this was all just a stupid gimmick, but then he saw black smoke coming from the convent, which instantly made him start panicking as well.

     "We have to head to my office immediately!" Lucas shouted, running to the convent where they found the nuns and the priests standing outside to stay clear from the fire.

     "What's going on? Where's the fire?" Lucas asks one of the nuns.

    "We don't know. We just heard a loud bomb and then smoke was everywhere. We had to evaluate everyone."

     "How about the files? Did anyone get it?" Lucas then asks. But when no one was able to answer him, he cursed and ran inside the building, covering his mouth as he made his way to his office, willing to risk his life for those papers.

     The smoke made it hard to see, but the bishop was still able to find his office. He went inside and ran to the cabinet that contained all his private files. He took out his rosary that actually had a key instead of a cross, opened the cabinet, and then grabbed a bunch of sealed folders.

     "Why is this suddenly happening?! I shouldn't have gone to the atrium and just stayed here the entire time! Now the gaffers are turning their backs on me, and the convent is on fire. Those Saints are definitely going to pay for this!" Lucas shouted in frustration, his mind now filled with so many things at once.

     "Father Bishop!" Someone then calls out, making Lucas turn around to find his trusty tax collector, appearing from the entrance "What are you still doing here? We should head back!"

     "Matthias?! H-How did you...no, it doesn't matter. Help me carry these files. These are all original copies of St. George Academy's legal documents. Chapman will kill us if we lose all these!" Lucas says as he hands Matthias a bunch of folders before grabbing more envelopes from the cabinet.

     "Chapman? Laurence Chapman? Why on earth would he be mad? The convent is on fire so we should—"

     "Don't be fucking stupid, you useless rat! Laurence Chapman is the head of this whole operation! Who do you think planned this entire scheme? Janus? That mutt doesn't know how to use the resources he has, that's why he's stuck as a mere school president while his brother succeeds in life! Now carry these files out and don't let anyone else see," Lucas says, grabbing a box this time.

     When he turned around and saw Matthias still standing there, he looked at him angrily and shouted again, "What the hell are you still doing there?! Get out of here and—" But before Lucas can even finish his sentence, the smoke suddenly clears, revealing Vesper Cinna pointing a gun at the back of the tax collector's head.

     "C-Cinna?!"

     "Say cheese!" another voice adds, and when Lucas turns his head to the left, he sees the serfs' division's tech-wiz, Alexander McLurkin, taking a video of him.

     "W-What...what is the meaning of this?!" Lucas angrily shouted, and then two other figures went inside the office. This time, it was Max and Justice.

      "We'll have all that, thank you very much," Justice says as he snatches the files from Matthias's hands. "Looks like you became useful after all," Justice adds, patting Matthias's shoulder this time.

     Lucas then turns to Xander and points at the camera that's directly on his face. "What are you doing? Why are you filming me?"

     "We were having a hard time getting a word from you, but we're glad you went through in the end. The Saints were right. When you're pushed to the edge, you always deliver the final blow," Max says, to which Justice laughs in response.

     "What? But the fire..."

     "It was all fake," Xander explains with a proud smile. "You're welcome."

     "I hate to break it to you, but as much as we wanted to burn this whole place to the ground, we need this entire thing intact. We wouldn't have any evidence after all if that were to happen, don't you agree?" Vesper explains, still pointing a gun at Matthias who father Lucas now realized was covered in bruises from the supposed torture he went through with the students of the Serfs Division.

     "You...stop filming me!" Lucas continued to shout as he was about to push Xander away, but Justice stopped him before he could even lay a hand on Xander's precious camera.

     "You don't get to tell us what to do anymore, Lucas Ivory," Justice sternly says.

     "You stupid kids don't know what you're doing. Do you think a mere videotape would stop us? Illegally taking a video of me won't be approved in court! You've made a fool of yourselves!" Lucas then replies, making Justice and the others look at each other before looking back at the bishop with suppressed grins.

     "This isn't an illegal video," Justice says. "Have you forgotten, Father Lucas? Sunday masses are always recorded live," the Saints president then reveals, finally leaving Lucas completely speechless.

     "Every Sunday, these cameras automatically start recording. You consented to this, which means this is not illegal. Why do you even think we did all this today out of all the days we could have done it instead?" Justice asks back.

    "And besides, us kids aren't the only ones who the court would have to listen to," Max explains.

     Right on cue, the chair behind Lucas's desk suddenly turns to face them, revealing a powerful man who has been listening to everything since the students gathered at the atrium.

     "I spoke to Laurence Chapman yesterday. It took a while, but after finding some interesting facts about him, he was able to tell me the truth. Now all I needed was your statement," the man says as Lucas's eyes widen in complete shock and terror.

     "J-Janus?"

     Janus Sinclaire, the president of J.S High and the brotherhood association, stood from the chair and walked towards Lucas, towering over him while the poor bishop could only swallow the lump in his throat, hoping he'll still be able to get out of all this when everything has been said and done.

     "I have made my surprise visit as promised, my dear friend. Now, what type of man did you think I was again?"

- END -