Chapter 5. A Senior's advice

His shadow could hardly step outside of the circumscribed space that its bearer had chosen, a premeditated move taken exactly when the sun was overhead.

His footsteps as soft as feathers cautiously advanced towards his destination, while his eyes kept a close watch on all the happenings in the surroundings like a hawk. 

He held his breath to avoid making noise. His well-honed senses helped him quickly move aside and hide behind a pole.

Being it Saturday, the classes were closed and everyone was more than happy to stay inside their dormitory than get burnt by the scorching heat of the sun outside.

But for our dear little detective, it was the perfect opportunity to execute his plan. 

To find more clues, he needed to test the samples that he had managed to collect painstakingly after sneaking out from the dormitory.

Yet, the main bio lab was located on the first floor of the senior wing and he being a first year couldn't simply barge in without valid permission.

Moreover, the fact that he had been socially banned from Wonavilla turned out to be a legit call further complicating his situation. 

It seemed Asterix had some sort of influence to back her words up.

But that was completely fine with Max. After all, it was all the more fair for him to face these hurdles right now than later. If he couldn't handle such a simple thing, he wouldn't be much of a detective, would he?

After immense research, he found the bio lab on the corner of the first floor near the classrooms. 

So by climbing the drainage pipe affixed to the wall of the senior wing's building, he could get inside the bio lab through a window.

The only problem was that the entrance to the senior wing was being watched by two guardsmen and it wouldn't be hard to notice him running towards the pipe and climbing it, as it laid only 60 meters away from the entrance gate.

 So Max had already walked as far as he could, starting from the central park in the laid at the middle of the whole campus, and as a consequence, was now diagonally 20 meters away from the destination, on the right thus his movements were hidden by the big wall of senior wing.

According to this method, he would manage to grab the pole and would only risk beings seen if even possible for a mere second and would allow him enough time to hide his presence or either escape into the lab. 

With that expectation in his mind, he fastened his pace with full alertness, his legs attempting to make as little sound as possible while passing through a garden full of overgrown grass.

He took a gentle breath as he found himself one foot away from the pole and with fierce alacrity like a newborn cat grabbed the pole.

It was at that moment, he knew he had made a grave mistake. An unaccounted variation would mean an inevitable violation of the most fundamental principle of his investigation i.e. not leaving a shred of noticeable evidence behind. 

His hands knew the very moment they felt the cold metal, the rust had already settled in deep, deep enough to give its way with a single strike and he having climbed it, had just fulfilled the untold prophecy.

'No use crying over spilled milk. Might as well make it worth it at least.' With that realization, he jumped inside the lab briskly taking out the soil sample as the pipe a loud creak fell on the ground with a light thud. 

 He wasn't sure whether the sound would have reached the guard as the sound would have been absorbed to an extent by the bed of flowers below. Even if it had, there was no turning back now.

With incredible deftness, he put the sample in a test tube, bringing the microscope closer to his eyes through a transparent plastic covering.

After a few minutes, he was blessed with the fruit of his labor: it was clear as day. It was unmistakably Gerard Schrader's dreaded invention, the killer of thousands: sarin gas, one of the organophosphorus inhibitors.

No cleaning process would require this gas,' he realized.

'Someone must have used it intentionally to sabotage the match.' He tried to think of a way to neutralize the gas, but couldn't come up with anything.

He hesitated to leave but decided to take the test tubes with him as he heard people approaching. 

Going back the same route was risky as one might think he had broken that pipe if he gets caught. Granted that was true but he wasn't ready to sign up for a confession just yet. 

If Asterix come to know about the incident, she would utilize it to her leverage and surely succeed in expelling him.

He was in a fix until a sly idea came into his mind. 

Council Office, Topmost floor, Senior Wing

Agnes was just getting ready for a little nap time after having sent other council members to their rooms for rest when he heard a knock on the door.

No, it would be more fitting to say that someone was rattling on the door.

He couldn't help feeling exasperated but opened the door anyway.

A familiar young boy with a face that seemed hardly better than wilting daffodils stood before him with a cheeky smile plastered across his face. "Max Ryder."

"So you managed to figure out my name. Good for you, President." He smirked helping himself onto the chair without waiting for permission. 

'To go through such a change in a matter of two weeks! What in the world happened?' 

Closing the door, he turned his gaze, hoping to unravel the mystique enveloping the boy.

"So what brought you here?"

"Nothing much. Just an uncontrollable impulse to not get in trouble after having done something prohibited ." He fondled his hair, eyeing different aspects of the office. 

"Your room seems pretty comfortable to live in. Maybe I think about running for Council ..."

One stare from Agnes and even Max knew that no matter how long he kept up the act, this man wouldn't bat an eye and simply wait for the only answer he sought. 

Adopting such a strategy meant letting others derail themselves, which could be seen as wish fulfillment but considering the calmness in those green eyes, it wasn't hard to gauge the reality that Agnes was accustomed to.

"Fine. " He sighed as Carthage sat down in his seat facing him with an expressionless face. "I may have broken a drainage pipe running along the senior wing by accident while attempting to carry out a secret investigation in the bio lab to test out a hypothesis for confirmation regarding the presence of a mystery."

Agnes twitched his eyebrows before an unexpected grin spread across his face.

"Do you ever think about taking a breath while speaking? I suppose not." He rolled his eyes seeing the puzzled look on Max's face.

He authoritatively crossed his arms "Well, that pipe had it coming sooner or later so I don't see it as any offense worth punishing you. As to the matter of breaking in, I will be lenient this time and let you go scot-free as you might have wanted. "

"Seeing Max's look of disbelief, Agnes smiled. "Oh, you weren't expecting that, were you? You must have thought that there would be some silly little strings attached to your release. Well, wake up to reality, little sunflower. The sun has already set for you and you have been unable to realize it being mesmerized by the false glory of the moon. "

"Huh, what does that mean? Are you implying that something far more perilous has taken place and I am clueless about it?"

Max stared at him expectantly, his mind seeping with his primal instinct, an innate curiosity.

'As the devil thirsted for the throne, his eyes drawn to its resplendent splendor, they shied away from the utmost brightness at the essence of his soul.'  Agnes rolled his eyes, peering at the latter intently"You are no different, Max. You are incredible at finding logical fallacies, exploiting them to your end, cherishing the thrill of being entangled in a predicament and scrutinizing people. I can see that lucidly in you but your eyes willingly either chose to ignore or underestimate the emotional consequentialism within your calculations. "

"Can you stop talking in riddles already? If there is something worth my attention, why ...not tell me as it is? " Even though Max's face retained a calm composure, the concern in his voice was discernible to Agnes.

"So you expect a straightforward answer. Your naivety befits your age truly. My dear junior, next time, makes sure to have no such delusions when you come to me for help.

Before claiming any pride in being an investigator, did you understand the essence of such a responsibility? It is easy to shoulder responsibility, harder to maintain it dutifully, and much harder to understand its weight fully." With those words, Agnes flicked his hand, gesturing for Max to make his exit from the back door.

"Go to the ground floor with this lift. You will find yourself in front of a secluded entrance, where you can make your gate safely. "

"President.." Max began but stopped seeing the look on Agnes's face. "First become something more than a mere calculating machine. We already have A.I. for that and don't need an inferior version under the guise of a human in this world. Don't make self-evaluations and come running to me. We will meet again once you rise to my expectations.

It was the first time in Max's life that he had ever listened intently to anyone's words other than his uncle's.

A person who appeared far more ruthless than his face allowed him to be with his tongue and yet ...yet as bitter as his words sounded, it bore the same soothing effect as Sulfadiazine on an open wound.

He must take these with an open mind and slowly work on them.

Despite his age, the maturity to accept his flaws was something that had helped Max evolve over the years. 

Over the next three days, he was able to unquestionably see the reality prophesied by Carthage that had enveloped his life.

The aftermath of being socially banned was finally getting to him now. It wasn't just the student body that had refused to interact with him in any manner; rather, even the staff had also started to change their behavior towards him.

 Since the dinner staff was partially composed of a few volunteers from the senior wing, his access to food was restricted completely.

The students who paraded under Asterix made sure to guard in groups outside all canteen to prevent him from getting food and drinks by alternative means. 

The group also made concerted efforts to prevent him from getting any sleep by disturbing his sleep through various means in the dormitory as well.

He wasn't used to experiencing this kind of warfare. He was prepared for isolation but never even considered the net impact of concerted efforts to isolate him.

Since it only had been three days, his energy hadn't been depleted completely. But this couldn't go on for long.

Besides the obvious impact of falling sick due to lethargy and energy deficiency, there was also a danger of the rising intensity of social banning.

Right now, they were ensuring mere deprivation of his energy, but it wouldn't be far-fetched to think that he might also be subjected to violence in secret.

And he knew better than anyone else, just how much his fighting skills lacked compared to most people having only focused on mental activity in his life. 

To be put in short, his life was right now in a real fix for sure.