"Welcome! Fellow students of the Imperial Rune Art Academy of Runalond! I'm President Nathan Modernson. Truly, nothing could bring more joy to me than seeing how well you have been doing." Nathan declared powerfully in the great hall, where all the students of the academy barely fit inside. He now stood on the stage with the accompaniment of the other members of the new Student Council standing behind him in a line. Under the supervision of the senior staff members, such as Samuel Helix and a couple of faces even Nathan had never seen before, he was giving a speech about the new policy he had planned to establish.
The students below applauded in harmony but without much excitement. Just from the looks on Nathan's supercilious face, they could almost immediately tell that it was probably not something that benefited the greater good.
"With the deepest respect and grief towards the excruciating resignation of our beloved President Arthur Paradox, his hopes of a greater future for all of us were left behind for us to inherit. I believe that if he is still with us, what he hopes is not for us to be hindered by this disheartening sorrow, but a process of recovery and advancement on his behalf." Nathan sounded so solemn that a stranger would think this person called Arthur had passed away. Side note, Arthur's resignation from his position does not equate to dropping out. After a few weeks of vacation, he would still need to come back, take the exam, and receive his graduation certificate as an approved Rune Artist of the kingdom.
"You see, I am someone who despises inequality, and nothing disheartens me more than when tradition collides with my hopes for a better future for everyone, but I believe that changes are gradual, harmony is promised, and freedom among all is ultimately possible," Nathan's voice echoed in the halls magically, almost as if a Rune Art had been cast on him, "It simply requires a level of collaborative effort and supervision, and a set of laws to launch the genesis of a new era."
Nathan stepped aside and gestured towards the projector behind him with wide motions, revealing numerical sentences that were visible to everyone.
"The Ten Commandments"
"One: You shall not look down on others based on their origin."
"Two: You shall not integrate familial conflict into personal hatred."
"Three: You shall not engage in gang formation built upon negativity or hatred."
"Four: You shall help others when situations allow."
"Five: You shall not plot to hurt or humiliate others."
"Six: You shall not abuse your identity, even if you are a Representative Student."
"Seven: You shall not bribe others for personal benefit."
"Eight: You shall not forcefully order anyone around."
"Nine: You shall not oppose the Student Council."
"Ten: You shall report anyone who breaks the laws above."
All these laws, especially to people who knew Nathan Modernson as a person to an extent, were utterly and absurdly ironic. After all, they were mostly among the countless moral standards that Nathan himself had managed to break at some moments of his academic journey. This leaves the tenth commandment as the odd one out, and the one that disturbed people the most. Is even turning a blind eye to injustice a sin now?
"Unfortunately, I am nowhere near Arthur's ability as a leader and as a watcher, but you know what? Founder Gideon Runaria was also not known for his leadership skills, and that's why he got Adrian Paradox to assist him," Nathan continued as his voice rose, "I hereby introduce you to… The Students' Justice Knights."
The people underneath the stage looked at each other in uneasy confusion. The purely righteous-sounding title carried an underlying pressure that everybody could feel, but none could name. This feeling only intensified as Ash Robert led an entire army of students, marching onto the stage slowly and in strict formation. Even the air froze to pay its respect.
"One's powers are limited, but together, our powers are limitless." Nathan stepped forward and wrapped his arm around Ash's shoulder, standing to survey the students together, "Let's welcome Commander Ash Robert, leader of the Justice Knights."
"Do not fear. We are never supportive of violence. Anyone who breaks the Ten Commandments will only receive a warning and a strike recorded by the Knights. If these strikes accumulate to a certain point, consequences will follow," Nathan announced smoothly, "Not by us, of course," He suddenly turned his voice down and pointed upwards sneakily, "By those who are actually in control here."
Of course, Nathan meant Henry Nox and the other professors of the academy. This extinguished all hope for anyone who had to change their way of life if these commandments were applied. If even the professors approved it, there was really nothing they could have done.
However, the professors never even knew about these commandments or what Nathan was going to say. Everything Nathan warned about was all but a bluff that no one dared to expose, especially after seeing what happened between Nathan and his "murder" of Alisher Vester. Nathan made it almost sound like it wasn't his decision, and all the responsibilities were thrown upon the staff's hands.
"Now, Commander Robert, along with Watcher Whitedawn here by my side, hope that our ability together could match Arthur's greatness. Equality is far from us, almost not even visible in our restrained sights, but a journey will never end if no one dares to start walking."
Gasps and even shrieks escaped some students' mouths. Somehow, there was someone standing beside Nathan, whose other arm was hooked around, who had just appeared out of thin air. "Since when was he there? Was he always there?" they asked themselves. A controlled grin stretched Daniel's skin, receiving recognition on such a vast scale for the first time in his life.
"Commander. Watcher. Do you have anything to say to the students?"
Ash spoke up first, shaking off his distant fear and replacing it with solemnity, "I was once a subject of unjust treatment. I know just how despairing it feels, but under the continuous assistance of our President Modernson, I have waved farewell to my past. I hope that someday, everyone who felt like me before could feel like me now, and my actions will work towards that goal."
"Commander stands to uphold the light, and I will lurk in darkness where injustice rejoices most," Daniel Whitedawn added smoothly, his voice quieter but more authoritative, "I will be watching your actions, and thus you should be too."
"Together, a future where everyone has equal opportunities to enjoy a content academy life lies within the reach of our hands," Nathan concluded, "It may be difficult, especially for the kinds among you who have gotten used to inequality and privilege, but just because it's life, it doesn't mean it's correct, and it doesn't mean you should be condemned for it."
"Don't worry, we shall let the past pass, because it is the future that matters. Who you are does not matter; what you intend to become does."
With the words still echoing, Nathan lifted his arms parallel to his shoulders and bent his elbows, his straight palms pointing in the direction of his heart. With a swift motion, he slashed his arm directly in front of him.
"For our dream of a different tomorrow."
Daniel Whitedawn, Ash Robert, and many of the others behind them copied his motion. Unlike last time, their voices were so synchronised it almost felt like an echo of Nathan's quiet declaration.
"For our dream of a different tomorrow." They cried.
The students below looked at each other; some nodded, some wiped the sweat from their foreheads, some were yet to decide what to do, but some also shouted,
"For our dream of a different tomorrow."
Their voices were scattered and weak, but it felt like a wave that pushed anyone's hesitation to saturation, and before they could name exactly why, alas, they didn't even know what the sentence meant, they followed anyway, for the sake of following.
"For our dream of a different tomorrow."
After the speech, Nathan took a deep breath tensely and dismissed the students. It was the weekend, and there were tons and tons of assignments handed out by Clara Marshall. However, being the Nathan Modernson he is, of course, he wouldn't even touch any of them. With the excuse of "The Rune Art can only be cast when sketched upon a piece of specific paper," he denied anyone's request to perform his Personalised Rune Art again for anyone.
Jennifer appeared beside him all of a sudden, "Just how many students did you bribe?" she asked with furrowed brows. She sat at the foremost table that signified the superiority of the Representative Students the entire time during the speech, and she was one of the few who shouted following Nathan's voice in the first round. She had always been ambiguous about the plan; in fact, this speech did more harm than good to Nathan's reputation.
Nathan didn't even bother to turn to look at her; he shrugged lazily, "None."
"Then why did everyone imitate your stupid rally cry?"
"I don't know. I didn't expect this to happen." Nathan shrugged again and scratched his head, "Guess following the crowd is coded into our nature."
"What do you even want out of this, Nathan Modernson?" Jennifer asked. "Do people not hate you enough?"
"The more they hate me, the more they want to be on good terms with me," Nathan explained, "Because I'm stronger than them. This is also something coded into our nature."
Nathan had seen it out in Lostburg. In his childhood, he always wondered why the meanest and cruellest of the thugs were usually leaders among gangs. Initially, he thought it was because cruelty walked together with strength, or perhaps fear was the fuel for submission, but as he grew older and older and saw more and more, he finally understood the reason behind it.
Humans are born as mild, social animals; if they can choose to like or be liked by someone, none would choose to hate or be hated by someone. The colder someone is to you, the more you want to please them. Not much provides more happiness than befriending a once-enemy. Let alone the fact that he was already the one in power; truthful or not, everybody wants to get as close to him as they can. Earning people's trust is absurdly easy if you know your tricks for controlling distance.
"Nice point, nice point," a voice appeared out of nowhere. Jennifer's pupils widened as she scanned around in hurried calmness. Nathan, however, was once again not disturbed at all.
"What's up, Daniel? Already something to report?"
It felt weird talking to nothingness, to not know where to point your words, but Nathan was used to it.
"Not about anything academy-related…" Daniel's voice lacked the usual mocking humour or confident authority, "It's about… that thing you asked me to go investigate."
"Is it something I can listen to?" Jennifer asked flatly.
"Ummm… I don't…" Daniel hesitated in silence before giving his response.
"Nah, she can hear it," Nathan interrupted with a dismissive gesture. "Did you catch the culprit already?"
"Not quite," Daniel started, "I don't even know where to get started, to be honest, so I snuck into the Edmonds Villa and tried to eavesdrop on some information. An unreasonable decision, now that I think about it, but I did find something suspicious."
"Suspicious?"
"The Edmonds Family has this base operating underground, where an army undergoes secretive training. I was too afraid to loiter for too long, but it seemed that they were creating an army of agents, like the Parasites, but with combative abilities added to their training routine."
Nathan looked around meticulously, only signalling Daniel to continue after he had cleared all the corners. Jennifer kept her head low in thought, murmuring, "This doesn't make sense in a lot of ways. How come no one knew about this?"
"Know about this?" Daniel repeated in resignation, "I sometimes doubt even the Edmonds Family knows about this, though that makes even less sense."
"Impossible," Nathan shook his head and laughed that suggestion off, "A base built under the villa, and Julius Edmonds doesn't know? Don't make me laugh. But since even you can find it, there's no reason the Parasites or the High Court Ministers can't, right?"
"Hold on to that argument," Daniel interrupted quickly, "I don't even know how I found it. A wall just disappeared before my eyes all of a sudden, then I never got to activate the entrance again."
"So many questions…" Nathan sighed, "I guess it doesn't matter that much to the RunaLine case."
However, his voice trailed off as he continued to think while he talked. Nathan gradually fell into dead silence before his mouth opened uncontrollably in utter surprise and disbelief.
"Hey, Daniel, there is a possibility no one has thought of."
"What?"
"What if the culprits who bombed the RunaLine Skyscraper were the Edmonds Family themselves? They can certainly prepare beforehand to remove any trace."
Jennifer almost instantly understood Nathan's way of thinking: "RunaLine is a corporation in charge of telecommunications. What if there is data that has to be destroyed? Perhaps about this secret base that nobody knew about."
"Why the whole building, though?" Daniel asked, "Why not just destroy the data centre?"
"To exterminate any risks," Jennifer answered coldly, "Every single potential one."
"Whoever is in charge of this… most likely Julius Edmonds. This guy is a character indeed…" Nathan gasped, shaking his head slowly.
"If we consider this to be true," fear now lingered in Daniel's voice, "Do I dig deeper into this? Right! It would be Julius Edmonds' 50th Birth Anniversary Banquet. Nathan, it's not like you can't…"
"Why didn't you say that earlier?" Nathan jumped in excitement, "What more needs to be said, then?"
"Is this really that important?" Jennifer asked in concern and disagreement, "You are risking your life doing so."
"How is this not important?" Nathan stretched in a relaxed smile, like a rock pressing on his chest had finally been crushed.
"It's a promise made to a friend. What in this world is more important than that?"