"So the Council knows about you and that's why they went after you today," Isabella said slowly. "Knows you're breaking their plans for you. And they want you dead."

"Apparently. Though the interesting part is they also want Adrian dead."

That made everyone pause.

"Why?" Damian asked. "He's the hero. The chosen one."

"That's what I need to figure out." I pulled out my notes, spreading them across the table. "Either Adrian is going off plan for them somehow, or something else is happening here."

"What does that mean for us?" Marcus asked.

"It means the game just got bigger. We're not just fighting Adrian's faction anymore. We're fighting whoever's pulling the strings behind everything."

Silence fell as they processed that.

"So....easy" Marcus said. When everyone stared at him, he shrugged. "What? I'm processing through humor. Sue me."

Despite everything, I smiled.

"What happens now?" Lucille asked. "The Council tried to eliminate you both and failed. They'll escalate things."

"Probably. But we have something they don't expect."

"Which is?"

"Information. They don't know we know about them. As far as they're aware, tonight was just an assassination attempt by an unknown party. We have the advantage of understanding the real game being played."

"For now," Uncle Victor's voice came from the doorway. He'd been listening, apparently. "But that advantage won't last forever. Eventually they'll realize you're too informed and too prepared. Then the real problems begin."

He was right, of course.

But I smiled anyway. "Then we'd better make the most of our head start."

☆☆▪︎☆☆

Later, alone in my room, I finally let exhaustion hit me.

Today I was supposed to die.

Instead, I'd saved my greatest enemy's life and revealed a conspiracy that went far beyond academy politics.

Not a bad day's work.

```

[DEATH FLAG #4: OFFICIALLY CLEARED]

[REWARDS SUMMARY]

+5,000 Villain Score

+2,000 Bonus (Style Points)

+1,000 Bonus (Saved Enemy)

Total: +8,000 Villain Score

Villain Score: 13,000 → 21,000

[SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT: "THE HERO'S SAVIOR"]

Effect: Reputation becomes extremely complicated

Benefit: Some of Adrian's allies will question their loyalty

Drawback: Some of your allies will question your sanity

[ADRIAN CELESTIUS: STATUS UPDATE]

Fate Points: 8,000 → 6,000 (significant loss)

Trust in Council: Shaken

Debt to MC: Acknowledged publicly

Future Behavior: Unpredictable

[COUNCIL OF FATES: ATTENTION LEVEL]

Previous: Monitoring

Current: Concerned

Next Level: Direct Intervention

[WARNING: Situation Escalating]

[RECOMMENDATION: Prepare for increased difficulty]

[NEW QUEST CHAIN UNLOCKED]

[DISCOVER THE TRUE ENEMY]

[Phase 1: Investigate Council's local agents]

[Phase 2: Uncover their methods]

[Phase 3: Find their weakness]

[NOTE: You have done something unprecedented]

[A villain saved a hero]

[The narrative is breaking]

[Keep pushing]

```

I stared at the system message for a long moment.

Then I smiled.

The Council of Fates had been running their game for centuries. Creating heroes, crushing villains, harvesting the energy of completed narratives. But tonight, the villain had rewritten the script in front of hundreds of witnesses.

Tonight, I'd proven that the predetermined outcomes could be changed. Tonight, I'd shown that even the worst villain could do

I'd deal with the consequences another day. But tonight, I'd sleep knowing I'd done something no one expected.

☆☆▪︎☆☆

The next morning, I found myself in front of some very stern people.

The Academy Board meeting was held in a formal chamber I'd never seen before, all dark wood and serious atmosphere. The kind of room where important decisions were made and careers were ended.

I stood before the assembled board members, waiting for judgment. Five professors, the Headmaster, and several noble representatives who served as academy oversight.

Uncle Victor sat among them, his presence both comforting and concerning. If this went badly, it would reflect on him too.

The Headmaster cleared his throat. "Hadeon Ravana. You stand before this board to account for last night's... incident."

Here it came. The accusations and the suspicions. The....

"Your vigilance and quick action saved the life of a fellow student," he continued. "Adrian Celestius himself has testified that without your intervention, he would have consumed poisoned wine. The assassin's confession confirms this. The academy owes you recognition."

I blinked. That was... not what I'd expected.

One of the professors, a stern woman I recognized from Combat Theory spoke up. "While we cannot ignore that you possess detection charms suggesting you expected violence, the fact remains that you used that preparation to save a life, not take one. This demonstrates commendable judgment."

"Furthermore," another professor added, "your willingness to act despite personal rivalry shows character beyond your... previous reputation."

Oh. Oh. They were commending me.

The political implications crashed over me like a wave. By saving Adrian publicly, I'd forced the academy's hand. They couldn't punish me without looking callous and couldn't dismiss my actions without insulting their golden boy.

I'd accidentally backed them into a corner where acknowledging me was the only politically viable option. As I look at them, I couldn't help but wonder which of them is spies of the Council.

"Thank you, honorable board," I said, keeping my voice appropriately humble. "I only did what any student should, protect a fellow member of our academy community."

The Headmaster's eyes were sharp, seeing right through my careful words. But he nodded. "Indeed. Let it be recorded that Hadeon Ravana acted with distinction during the Spring Festival incident. This commendation will be noted in your permanent record."

That's loosely to we're watching you, but we can't touch you right now.

As the board dismissed me, the Headmaster gestured for me to stay behind.

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