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THE AUDITORIUM FALLS SILENT as Max returns backstage where Red was waiting for him. After his supposed speech, no one was able to say a single word. Max actually wanted to say more, but he knew that it's best if he stops now before things turn to the worse.
"Max..." Red calls out as soon as he spots Max, but Max ignores him and proceeds to walk towards the exit.
Red curses underneath his breath and follows behind him, grabbing his arm to stop him. "Max, where are you going?" He asks, but as soon as he got a hold of him, Max immediately pulls away and says, "We're leaving this godforsaken house."
"W-What? But the ceremony hasn't even started yet. How can we just leave? We were personally invited to attend it," Red insists, making Max look at him angrily.
"Personally invited? You saw how they treated us. We are not welcome here. We were only invited because they wanted to see how superior they are to us; they wanted to see us fail. And come on Red, you're a duke for Pete's sake but they didn't even—"
"Enough," Red immediately says, making Max stop midsentence.
Red takes a deep breath and looks at Max who was still panting heavily because of the adrenaline rush. He knows why Max is angry and where his emotions are coming from, but leaving now isn't the way to go.
"This has always been your problem, even before Mr. Brains & Brawn. You always think purely out of your emotions and not with your head. So what if things don't go your way? When you experience something like this, you'll just leave? Is that the kind of president you'll become?" Red sharply questions, and that alone made Max clench his fist in anger, not at Red but at himself.
"Max, you will lead the House of Kings. You will be the face and the foundation that will hold us together. If you are weak enough to crumble just because of a few stares then you don't deserve such a position," Red finishes, and Max finally calms down.
Max doesn't say anything for a while and looks down on the ground in defeat.
"I'm sorry," he finally says. "I did let my emotions get the best of me. I shouldn't have acted too childish."
Red stares at Max and sighs before patting his head to comfort him. "Now you're making me feel guilty," he says, making Max chuckle this time.
"Look, our duty is to finish what we came here to do. After that, we can leave. But if it would make you feel any better, your speech earlier was very...you. As I was watching backstage, I felt immense pride, like you held our House's flag high. I almost bowed honestly," Red then says, and Max finally looks at him to give out a small smile.
"Well, now that you've calmed down, let's go back," Red says, and Max nods his head and got ready to head back. But just when he was about to take a step...
"Mr. Sinclaire," a voice calls out.
Max and Red turn around and see the Elites vice president, Veronica Stilton, standing just outside the exit. Max was about to say something, but the vice president cuts him off and says, "Our president would like to have a word with you."
The request made Red and Max look at each other with shock, but then Max looks back at Veronica and tells her, "Alright. Lead me to her."
...
Max doesn't even look at the vice president as he walks beside her to the president's office. Despite what Red said, Max was still mad at how they were treated. It might not have been the Elites directly, but they could have at least done something with the White Uniforms, considering how they're said to have the most power here in their house.
"Mr. Sinclaire, your speech earlier was a bit of a...surprise," Veronica suddenly opens up, making Max chuckle, but he didn't say anything to defend himself. Call it petty, but he wanted her to know that he did it on purpose.
"As the vice president, I would like to apologize," Veronica says next, and that finally made Max look back at her.
"Our students have always been confident, and that's because of how our president portrays herself. But of course, that is not always a good excuse. I hope you know that we'll work on it to become better."
Max doesn't say anything, but Veronica stops walking and faces the heir. She then takes a deep breath and suddenly bows to Max, showing him both her respect and her sincere apology.
"I apologize for how our House has been treating you so far. I am deeply ashamed," Veronica says as Max continues to stare at her.
"Stand," Max commands, and surprisingly enough, Veronica did stand.
"I am not a member of the House of Queens so I don't really know the situation here," Max honestly says. "Though I was not happy with how we were treated, I would also like to apologize. What I did should not have happened if I didn't let my anger get the best of me."
To Veronica's surprise, Max bowed to her too, leaving the vice president speechless.
"You..."
"We might not be the best school, but I hope the next time we visit, you avoid giving us weird looks. The House of Kings is named kings for a reason. All of us, from the gaffers to the serfs, have worked hard to be enrolled in that school and to survive in that house. We deserve our much-needed respect," Max then says as he stands properly to face Veronica again.
Veronica was supposed to comment about how he doesn't have to apologize, but she takes a deep breath and nods her head instead.
"You are more of a vice president than I am. It made me realize how much I still have to learn," Veronica says, and Max couldn't help but chuckle.
"Oh, believe me, I'm not even close. Our vice president back in J.S High is far better in his job than I am. And besides, I feel like I fit the president image more, don't you think?" Max asks with a playful grin, and the vice president finally loosens up as she nods her head in agreement.
"Well now that that's settled, let's go to your president. I don't want to keep her waiting," Max says, and Veronica nods her head again as she finally leads Max to the office.
As soon as they arrive, Veronica stops in front of the room where the president is supposed to be in. She then opens the door for Max, and Max thanks her and finally makes his entrance.
The room almost looked like president Janus's office. It was only then did Max realize that their Elites' president actually has her own room, not like in the House of Kings where all the members are in one room.
"Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire," a voice calls out, and Max looks upfront and sees a woman sitting in front of the desk, signing papers that Max wouldn't even be able to understand even if he saw what they were.
The woman was wearing the same white uniform that everyone else was wearing, but somehow, she didn't feel like just a student. Her aura was strong and her presence was commanding. Max couldn't look away from her, and for a moment, he almost bowed to her. The fact that Max still felt intimidated is proof that he still has a long way to go to even face president Ian as an equal, let alone Viktor.
"Please, sit down while I finish reading this document," she says without looking at Max.
Max doesn't say anything and just nods his head as he takes a seat in front of the desk where the president is.
While waiting, Max couldn't help but stare. The president has long wavy hair that bounced whenever she moved. Her fingers were long and delicate, her eyes so elegant and fierce that when she looked back at Max, the young heir couldn't help but be stunned as her amber eyes pierced through him.
"Done staring?" She asks, making Max flinch.
"I apologize. I just have a habit of staring at people I find..." Max pauses and doesn't continue his sentence anymore, but thankfully the president doesn't find it offensive.
"Mr. Sinclaire, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am fourth-year gaffer, Alexandra Helena August, the Elites' president of J.S High," Helena introduces with a serious expression as she reaches out her hand so Max could shake it.
Max doesn't hesitate as he shakes her hand and replies, "The pleasure is mine."
When Helena pulled her hand away, she adjusts to her seat and directly looks at Max. The way she presented herself was really fitting for her position. There was no doubt that she really was the president, just like Ian does.
"I wasn't able to attend the ceremony that actually just started, but I heard about what you did from my other Elites members," Helena finally opens up. "You called the white uniforms of the House of Queens a bunch of assholes. It's the first time I've ever heard of that from anyone."
"Are you going to scold me?" Max asks, and the question made Helena laugh all of a sudden.
"Heaven's no. To tell you the truth, I'm thankful that you taught those bitches a lesson," Helena then reveals, surprising Max.
"As you already know...Mr. Maximilian Leigh Sin...can I just call you Max?"
"Y-yes, of course."
"Okay, as you already know, I am the Elites president, and I do not really have direct power to control the white uniforms. When I say direct, I mean I can sign rules that will keep them at bay, or make implementations, but the most power comes from the vice president, and for some goddamn reason, my vice president isn't doing a very good job. She's too stubborn; too prideful. Two qualities I absolutely hate," Helena reveals, and the sudden shift of attitude made Max speechless.
"You know Max, I am the president, and I hold great pride in such a title. But my achievements are my own. Just because I achieved so much does not directly translate that everyone in this school is amazing too, do you understand me? I became the president because I ranked up with my own efforts, and that is something that the white uniforms do not understand," Helena explains.
For some reason, Max wasn't expecting this kind of conversation with her. He thought that she was going to scold him or belittle him like the others did, but it's the complete opposite.
"I understand your point president Alexandra but—"
"Helena is fine."
"Y-Yes, Helena...but...why are you telling me this?" Max asks, and Helena smirks and leans close to Max before saying, "Didn't you want us to talk? Cindy said you wanted to speak with me."
"Cindy?"
"Why yes, Cindy, the queen. Since I am the president, it is important that I have a good relationship with the sisterhoods. How will they follow me if they hate me?" Helena asks, and Max couldn't help but chuckle, considering how his relationship with the other brotherhoods isn't exactly great.
"Anyway, I heard you're running for Elites' president. Do you want some advice from a president like me?" Helena then asks, and Max immediately straightens up in his seat and nods his head like an overly excited child.
"Yes, I would love to. I heard from the other members of Vixens that your system here is flawless. The students follow the rules and they rank up based on their achievements and not through bullying or fighting. How did you do it?" Max asks, and Helena couldn't help but laugh.
"You came prepared with questions I see," she comments before clearing her throat to give a proper answer. "We're not a perfect school, and we are definitely not flawless. But if you want my advice then let me give you some. Making students follow rules is easy. They simply have to follow the Elites. They must be able to respect and fear them at the same time. Enough respect to make them look up to us and rank up, and enough fear to make them follow us."
"You make it sound so easy," Max states.
"Oh it is, it's very easy. And based on what I've been hearing, you're on the right path too. But you know what's really hard? Do you know where the real problem comes from?"
"T-The white uniforms?" Max answers, unsure of it as well.
Helena shakes his head to disagree as she says, "No, white uniforms are factors to the problem but they're not the real problem. The real problem..." Helena pauses and moves closer to Max as she whispers, "are the Elites."
"The Elites?" Max whispers back.
"That's right. They're the real problem. Before I became the president, when I was still a freshman, this house was as chaotic as the House of Kings. The girls were fighting, treating this school like their battlefield. They didn't care about what they achieved, they only cared about how high they'll rank, and that was a red flag. The sad part about it is that the Elites weren't even doing anything. It's as if they were encouraging it," Helena explains, and Max couldn't help but relate to it, especially when it's the exact same thing that's happening to his school.
"It's just like a fucked up country, you know? You can't really blame the citizens because they live based on their situation, and the situation is made based on how the government rules. You can't always blame a man for stealing bread, he's starving! He can't get a job because he doesn't have the right education, he doesn't have an education because he's poor despite his parents working their butts off for a salary that could barely pay for rent. And the cycle goes on," Helena explains further.
"How did you do it then? How did you break the cycle?" Max asks.
"Here's a secret Max. In the Elites, there will always be a rat; someone who will make sure the system is flawed so the hierarchy doesn't change. Someone in the student council will always have a mindset that the sisterhoods, the Elites, and the white uniforms can never be equal, so what do they do? They encourage chaos. Change is bad, and they will make everyone believe that this chaos is the only way to go."
"So it's either the vice president or the president, right? Since they hold the most power?" Max asks, and Helena shakes her head again.
"Oh no, it can be anyone. As long as you enter the Elites, you will have the power to change the system. You can be the Elites' school representative and still be able to influence the mindset of the others," Helena answers.
Max takes a deep breath and thought about what Helena just said.
The first person that came to mind was Heaven J. Carter who had just become the new Elites' treasurer. He even found out that Heaven betrayed Cj, so Heaven has to be the bad guy. But after careful deliberation, Max eventually dismisses the idea. Heaven only became a member of the Elites a few weeks ago, but the situation with J.S High has already been going on even before Max enrolled there.
So it only leaves to the three members who never left the Elites: President Ian Rothman, vice president Gavriil Alexeev, and secretary Richard Young. But who? Who among them is purposely making sure that the House of Kings falls?
"Trap that rat and remove him in the Elites. Only then will you be able to make actual change," Helena tells Max.
"How will I know who it is then?" Max then asks.
Helena smiles and then points at her Elites' brooch. "It's simple. Just enter the Elites. As soon as you start working with them, you will know who's the one that's betraying your house."
"Easy for you to say," Max says, making Helena laugh.
"Things don't always come in a silver platter after all," she says, and Max smiles and nods his head in agreement.
"So, anything else you want to know before you return to the auditorium? You are going back to the auditorium, are you?" Helena then asks.
Max remembers his conversation with Red earlier and nods his head. "Yes, I am going back. And I think that's all for now. Thank you, Helena. I will definitely keep your advice with me. And this might sound cheesy, but I hope to become a president like you someday," Max genuinely says as he stands from his seat to bow to her.
Helena was surprised, but then she laughs and says, "Cindy's right. You really are something. Until next time, Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire."
Max smiles and stood straight. He was about to take his leave, but then Helena remembers something and says, "Wait, how could I forget..."
Max stops and turns back around to face the president. Helena takes a small notepad and writes something on it. She then rips the paper off and hands it to Max.
"What's this?" Max asks as he takes the paper from her hand.
"Cindy said you wanted to know something about Siren, am I correct?" she asks, surprising Max even more because he wasn't expecting that the person who knew about Siren that Cindy was talking about was actually their Elites' president.
"It's too dangerous for me to say out loud, so just open it and read it. I hope that small information can somehow help you."
Max nods his head and opens the paper up. As soon as he read what was written on it, his eyes widened from shock. Because the words that were written on the paper were none other than the words Crème de la Crème: Rank 8.
- END -