Chapter 84: Interrogation

Arriving at the Student Council building, Adam furrowed his brows. They would be going into the building through the front entrance. But there was just one problem.

"Must we use the front entrance?" Adam asked through clenched teeth, looking at the squad captain.

"It’s a tradition, pretty boy." Captain Calls replied with a smirk and grabbed the sliding door. "It’s for character development."

She winked at him and then slid the door open.

"Molester!"

"Pervert!"

"Expel him!"

The cacophony of screams slammed into Adam first. He looked at the crowd and swallowed. Students were gathered at the entrance of the building, screaming and cursing his name.

Other members of the Disciplinary Division lined up on either side of the staircase leading to the entrance. They stood at ease with hands behind their back, while serving as a barrier to hold the students back.

"Come on. We don’t have all day!"

Adam was tugged to step out. Exhaling loudly, he stepped out of the car and faced the crowd, his eyes roaming the faces of those gathered. Some he recognised, others he didn’t. The crowd of students continued cursing and calling him names.

"All that power... and for what? To take advantage of others?!"

"You don’t belong here!"

"Expel him!"

"Sexual predator!"

Aurelius came to stand to his left and grabbed his arm. His right arm was grabbed by the other male of his escort. Adam looked at the hand grabbing his left arm and then at the boy.

Feeling his gaze, Aurelius looked at him and said flatly. "Don’t let it get to you."

Adam scoffed and looked away. Guided by the two, he was led into the Student Council building. Had there not been a rule against throwing stuff, he would have received a face full of stones, fruits and vegetables.

The squad guided Adam through the sleek building of the council, taking several turns along the way. Gazes followed them as they led Adam to the interrogation room.

"Get comfortable."

Put into a chair, his cuffs were removed. The interrogation room looked no different from the one he vacated. Bleak grey walls surrounded him, with the only light source coming from the lights overhead.

"How long is this going to take?"

Adam asked them before they stepped out.

The captain paused and turned around, smirking.

"For as long as it takes, pretty boy." She answered. "But don’t worry. We’ll get to the bottom of this. Someone will be here to interrogate you shortly."

Adam did worry.

How was he supposed to know they wouldn’t be biased? The looks he received from the others were more than enough to reveal what most students thought of his character.

The squad left him alone, closing the door behind them.

Adam let out a sigh and lowered his head. He was already getting stressed by the entire situation. No one had offered him anything to eat or drink since his arrest.

The captain had mentioned ’shortly’, but Adam had to wait for almost an hour before the door opened. Stepping in was a male student with a tablet in hand. He wore the red of the fourth-class type and the band denoting his status as a member of the Disciplinary Division.

Two other students stepped in with him and went to stand at the corners facing him, their purpose evident.

"Sorry for the wait, Adam." The lead student said, taking a seat opposite Adam. Clasping his hands on the table, he flashed a small smile at Adam and continued, "I hope you’re comfortable."

Adam did not reply, calmly staring at the smug smile on the student’s face, his arms crossed. The boy had a slightly muscular frame, his biceps visible through his suit jacket.

When Adam did not reply, the boy’s smug smile widened. "No matter."

Grabbing the tablet and digital pen, he got to work. He looked at the data on his tablet and then at Adam.

"My name is Lancelot," the boy introduced himself. "Let’s start with something simple. State your name and ID."

"Adam Highstein," he replied, adding his ID.

"Mm. Do you know why you’re here?"

Adam shrugged. "You tell me. I’m just as confused as you are."

Lancelot smiled. "You’re going to have to cooperate if you want to clear your name, Adam."

Letting out a tired sigh, Adam answered, "I’m being accused of taking advantage of a girl I was trying to help."

"Mm." Lancelot nodded, noting something down on his tablet. "Why don’t you take me through your side of the story?"

Adam recounted his side of the story, beginning from when he left the Microbiology Department. He described what he saw, the number of students who had been harassing the girl, and how he had tried to calm the girl down afterwards.

"That was when the security officers showed up."

"I see..." Lancelot muttered as he continued writing. "So you haven’t had any interaction with this girl before?"

"I can’t say for certain," Adam replied, causing Lancelot to raise a brow.

Understanding the look on the boy’s face, he explained.

"There are thousands of students on academy grounds. You don’t expect me to remember every one I ran into, do you? Besides, I don’t even know anything about her."

"I see what you mean."

Adam watched as the boy continued jotting down his story. Truth be told, he had thought the boy would be prejudiced. So far, however, the boy had done nothing out of order.

"What has the girl said about me? Has she changed her statement or is she still accusing me?"

Adam’s question made Lancelot raise his head from the tablet, pausing.

"I can’t disclose anything right now. You’ll have to wait until we conclude the investigations."

"So I’ll be kept here until then?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Lancelot replied with an apologetic smile. "We can’t have you tampering with the investigations or influencing potential witnesses."

"So I’m stuck here while that girl roams free?" Adam gritted his teeth.

"I didn’t say that..." Lancelot shook his head. "The girl is currently receiving psychological support. But she is being watched. Like you, we can’t have her interfering with the investigations. You’ll have to bear with us, Adam."

Although he felt wronged, there was nothing he could do but cooperate.

"Is there anything else you’d like to add?" Lancelot asked a moment later.

Adam thought for a moment before recalling something. "My car... It should have the log of the previous night’s drive. It would reveal the discrepancies in the time of the incident."

"Thank you for cooperating, Adam," Lancelot said as he rose to his feet. "The Disciplinary Division will make sure to get to the bottom of this." ℴ

Saying that, he and the other students left, once again leaving Adam alone. Whether they would actually do a proper investigation was another story entirely.

At the very least, however, his interrogator seemed unbiased.