Chapter 715: Debate II

"What is your stand on the accusation about your close friend and partner in crime, Basil Evermont?"

Eleanor Tempest asked straightforwardly, without mincing her words.

The question immediately caught the attention of the students gathered around the Mix Arena.

Below the stage...

"She’s going really direct with the questions."

Gareth Ashenlocke said in a low voice, looking towards Tristin.

"Don’t worry. I already prepared the Prince for a situation like this."

Felix Ashenlocke replied calmly.

He folded his arms as he watched the Prince, his expression carrying a simple smile.

His attention remained on the podium, following the exchange between Tristin and Eleanor.

Desmond Derlis, on the other hand, simply stood nearby, watching lazily.

Back on the podium...

"Well, my stand on the accusation is that until he is proven guilty or innocent, Basil will still receive my support. That’s how much I care for my comrades and the people who follow me. But that doesn’t mean I won’t offer help with the investigation."

Tristin answered with a calm and composed expression.

He kept one hand on the podium while looking towards the students.

His response was measured, and he didn’t appear to be in a hurry to finish speaking.

"The incident occurred during one of our usual night parties. So, I will act as a man and a Prince and take responsibility by helping with the investigation, either to prove his innocence or, if at the end of the day... Basil is found guilty, then I will scold him myself."

He said with a firm expression.

A few students in the crowd immediately began discussing what Prince Tristin had just said.

"Why does he sound so mature today?"

"What are you on about? The Prince has always been mature, and he carries himself like a true Prince of this Kingdom, unlike Prince Charles Aethelmont."

"This is Prince Tristin Aethelmont’s time to speak, not Prince Charles Aethelmont’s, so why bring him into this?"

The low voices of the students overlapped.

Many found Tristin’s answer appealing, while others weren’t buying his words.

Some students nodded in approval, particularly those who supported the Royal Blue Faction.

Others exchanged doubtful looks, still remembering the claims made in the morning’s news.

Tristin looked at the crowd of students with a faint smirk.

He glanced towards Felix.

Felix nodded once.

It was a small gesture, but enough to show that the Prince had delivered the response they had prepared.

With the situation surrounding Basil Evermont, the Royal Blue Faction had held a quick meeting that morning to discuss what to do about the debate session the Student Council would be holding.

However, Felix hadn’t been able to sleep even before that meeting.

The previous night, he and Gareth had discussed the matter for quite some time.

None of what was happening had anything to do with their faction, at least not originally.

They had already planned their own moves against the other factions and how to put pressure on them during the Faction Wars.

Their attention had been on the candidates, their supporters, and the different ways they could use the upcoming events to their advantage.

But this attack was far beyond what they had expected the other factions to hit them with.

A false accusation.

It was actually the first recorded incident in a long time at the Royal Academy in which a student had accused another student of assault.

The matter had already attracted the attention of the Student Council, and the news had spread throughout the Academy before the day had even properly begun.

It was no longer an ordinary disagreement between students.

The accusation had placed Basil, Tristin, Felix, Gareth and Desmond’s close friend, directly under public scrutiny.

And because of their connection, Tristin’s own reputation was now being dragged into the matter.

That was why, before the program began...

Felix had put Prince Tristin through the way he should answer each question.

But that wasn’t all.

He had also shown him how to use the situation to his own advantage.

Felix had spent the previous night considering the possible questions and the reactions they might cause.

He knew the Student Council wouldn’t simply allow Tristin to avoid the matter, especially with so many students waiting to hear his response.

They needed an answer that would protect their position without making it seem as though they were trying to shield Basil from the investigation.

A difficult position.

But not an impossible one.

After all, a chess player didn’t need to prevent every attack from reaching his side of the board. Sometimes, allowing an opponent to make a move was the best way to create an opening.

And if the opponent believed they had gained an advantage, even better.

I can still control the chessboard.

Felix thought to himself with a pleased smile.

He had already lost badly several times.

He knew what it felt like to have his plans fall apart, to watch an opponent make a move he hadn’t expected and force him to reconsider the entire board.

But that was precisely why he wasn’t going to make the same mistake again.

He glanced at Vera, then at Ezra.

Those two had been troublesome pieces in the previous encounters.

Their actions had disrupted his expectations more than once, and he hadn’t forgotten the setbacks they had caused him.

His smile widened slightly.

But in this Faction Wars, I’ll show you two what a true chessmaster can do when he controls the board.

He wasn’t planning to win through a single move.

A chess player who focused only on the piece directly in front of him would eventually lose sight of the rest of the board.

Felix understood that much.

Every faction had its own interests.

Every candidate had people supporting them, and every public statement could affect how the students viewed the others.

He only needed to position the pieces correctly.

A move against one candidate could create an opening against another.

A disagreement between factions could become an advantage, provided he knew when to use it.

And now, the situation surrounding Basil had given him an opportunity he hadn’t expected.

Felix’s pleased smile remained on his face.

"Okay."

Eleanor adjusted her sitting posture elegantly before looking at Tristin.

"Then tell us, exactly what will you do if Basil is found guilty? I’m very sure all the First-Years will like to know how their possible future general representative will handle a matter like this before the Student Council intervenes."

She asked the next question with a serious expression.

The question was more direct than the previous one.

A few students leaned forward, waiting for Tristin’s response.

Others looked towards one another before turning their attention back to the podium.

"I will make sure to uphold justice."

Tristin raised his voice and tightened his right fist.

His expression became firmer as he looked over the crowd.

"Even without letting the Student Council intervene, I will use my own team to investigate and analyze the situation. And if I find any serious offender guilty of their offence, I will use my own power as a Prince of this kingdom to discipline not just the student, but his own family for not training their children well."

He said confidently.

His final words caused a few students to exchange glances.

Some seemed impressed by his willingness to take responsibility, while others appeared more interested in the part about disciplining the families of offenders.

"But isn’t Prince Tristin also part of the Young Nobles with a bad reputation?"

A Second-Year Young Non-Noble boy’s voice echoed almost loudly while he was discussing with his friends.

The comment was enough to draw a few gazes towards him.

His friends looked at him, seemingly surprised that he had spoken loudly enough for the people on the stage to hear.

A few nearby students also turned their attention towards the boy.

"Do you want to answer, Prince?"

Eleanor said calmly.

Even though the sudden voice was a disruption, she still used it smoothly as a question directed towards the Prince.

Tristin didn’t hesitate.

"This is why evidence is needed."

He immediately spoke, stepping forward from the podium.

His eyes settled on the upperclassman who had raised the question.

"Yesterday, my friend was accused of something he might not have done. Yet everyone was already treating him as a criminal, as if they had witnessed the assault themselves when it happened. This assault in question happened during our First Semester, and now, she wants to throw the accusation into the open?"

He looked directly at the upperclassman.

"Isn’t that very absurd? Yet you people all believed her claims and started talking shit. It really made my ears hurt. Even now, you are still doing the same thing. And now you want to accuse me of something you don’t even have evidence for?"

Tristin stiffened his expression as he gazed at the upperclassman.

The boy felt pressured by his stare and moved a few steps backwards.

The sudden exchange caused more students to pay attention.

Some looked towards the boy, while others returned their attention to Tristin.

The Prince had shifted the discussion from his own reputation to the way the students had reacted to Basil’s accusation.

"You know what I think about this accusation?"

Tristin spread his hands.

Below the stage...

Felix’s pleased smile widened.

He had been waiting for this part.

The questions were unfolding almost exactly as he had prepared for them.

Tristin had answered the first two without losing his composure, and the interruption from the Second-Year had given him another opportunity to turn the discussion towards the accusation itself.

The boy had made his move without realizing how useful it could be.

Felix watched Tristin closely.

Go on, Your Highness.

"A good player doesn’t need to force an opening. Sometimes, the opponent creates one for him."

Felix kept his attention on the podium.

Tristin’s next words would determine whether the move they had prepared could achieve what he wanted.

"I believe this accusation is a ploy!"

Tristin shouted firmly.

"A ploy?"

The students in the crowd began looking at one another in confusion.

A few frowned, while others whispered among themselves.

They had expected the Prince to defend Basil, but they hadn’t expected him to suggest that the accusation itself was part of a larger scheme.

Some could understand why the Prince had called it a ploy, considering what kind of week this was.

The Faction Wars had already created tension among the candidates, and the sudden release of the news had given the students even more reasons to question one another’s intentions.

"Yes, a ploy arranged and executed by a different faction, one that wants to get us in the Royal Blue Faction!"

Tristin continued speaking loudly.

"And the reason I’m sure it’s those people from that faction is because they want us to forget something very important and frightening that has happened within us."

He added.

The crowd grew quieter.

Some students exchanged glances, while others tried to guess which faction the Prince was referring to.

Felix watched the reactions from below.

There it was.

The discussion had begun shifting.

The original question concerned Basil and the accusation against him. But now, Tristin was directing the students towards the possibility of another faction being responsible.

It was a risky move.

If the Prince failed to convince them, the accusation could make him appear as though he was simply trying to escape responsibility.

But if the students accepted his argument, the attention would move away from Basil and towards the faction he intended to accuse.

A move with a clear target.

And Felix was waiting to see how far Tristin would take it.

"I believe this accusation was orchestrated by the Golden Circle Faction, all because they wanted to use this situation to hide the sins of Ezra Ashenlocke, so other factions like us wouldn’t use it against them to bring down their reputation. Yes, this is why they stooped so low and accused Basil of rape when, in fact, they are keeping a killer, a murderer, in their own faction, and no one is speaking about it!"

Tristin pointed at Ezra, shouting firmly.

The crowd’s attention immediately shifted.

A few students turned towards Ezra, while others began whispering among themselves.

Felix’s hands tightened.

His pleased expression grew even more excited.

Gareth glanced at him and laughed faintly.

This is close to checkmate.

Felix watched the stage, his fingers slowly tightening as the excitement inside him grew.

All my pieces have surrounded you, Ezra Ashenlocke. And the Golden Circle is caught in the same position.

He had been arranging the pieces for this moment.

Basil’s accusation had become the opening move.

Tristin had now placed the blame on the Golden Circle, and by bringing Ezra’s name into the discussion, he had given the students another subject to argue about.

Two matters had been placed against each other.

And in Felix’s mind, the board was finally taking shape.

Now, with this laid out...

We can go for both Willow Derlis and Vera at the same time.

His thoughts moved towards the two girls.

He had not forgotten them either.

The other factions weren’t the only pieces on the board.

Willow and Vera were important figures, and their positions could become troublesome if he allowed them to move freely.

But if he could use this situation to put pressure on them as well, then the advantage would be even greater.

His lips curled.

One move. Four targets.

He almost laughed, but held it in.

I’m a freaking genius.

Back on the stage...

Ezra plainly looked at the finger the Prince had pointed at him.

These people don’t get tired of bringing up the same old thing, huh?

Well, it’s better like this.

The third Party.

And this situation.

I will use this to close this whole story from now on.

He thought to himself.