Chapter 140: Guilty Game

Chapter 140: Guilty GameThe silence that followed Eratz's declaration was deafening. It was as if the entire world had frozen, every sound swallowed by the weight of his words.

In the shadows, Lisa's smile vanished, replaced by a look of genuine shock. She appeared stunned, her eyes searching Eratz's face as if she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing.

Gabriel, standing a few steps behind, raised an eyebrow, his expression a mixture of disbelief and curiosity.

Crystal, who had been staring directly at Eratz, frowned deeply. She blinked several times, as if trying to make sense of a puzzle that had suddenly become unsolvable.

"What..." Crystal finally managed, her voice tinged with disbelief. "What are you saying, Eratz?"

Eratz didn't flinch. He held her gaze, unyielding.

"You heard me," he said, his voice calm. "There's no need to look for a culprit, because it's me."

Crystal's frown deepened, her eyes narrowing. She took a step closer, her expression now a genuine confusion.

"What does that even mean?" she asked. "A culprit... like... you could have prevented it? That's not..."

Eratz cut her off, his tone icy.

"No, not like I could have prevented it," he said sharply. "Culprit as in, I did this. I'm the one who cheated. I even admitted it back then. So why are we still looking for someone else to blame?"

A murmur of disbelief swept through the gathered teachers. Rowan stood up slowly, his face pale, his eyes wide with shock.

"Eratz," he began, his voice trembling. "What are you saying? We know it wasn't you. We've come here because we believe in your innocence."

Eratz tilted his head slightly, a bitter smile playing on his lips.

"And why is that?" he asked, his tone mocking. "Why do you believe that now? I admitted it was me. And I'm not saying this out of anger, or as a joke. I took the Karinite-4, and I used it. I'm a cheater, and I deserved to be expelled. The one who doomed me wasn't anyone else, it was me. So I should be the one to pay the price."

Another silence fell over the group, heavier this time. Crystal's eyes widened, her confident facade cracking for the first time.

She hadn't planned for this. This wasn't part of the script she had written in her mind. Her voice came out shaky, almost pleading.

"You're talking nonsense," she stammered. "Why are you trying to protect him? We all know Kenny framed you. Everyone knows it."

The director stepped forward, her expression severe.

"We investigated the case thoroughly," she insisted, her voice strong. "We found evidence pointing directly to Kenny. Eratz, you did nothing wrong. Why are you trying so hard to take the blame?"

Eratz's smile softened, almost as if he were amused by the entire situation. His eyes flicked toward Crystal, and for the first time, she saw a familiar glint in them, one she didn't realize she feared, the same look he had in the arena, the gaze of a predator playing with its prey.

"What are you doing?" Crystal murmured, her voice barely audible.

Eratz shrugged, still smiling.

"Does your opinion matter the moment I've admitted my guilt?" he asked, his voice light, almost teasing.

Rowan couldn't stay silent any longer. He stepped forward, grabbing Eratz by the shoulders. His grip was firm, almost desperate.

"You're not the culprit!" Rowan said, his voice raw with emotion. "You're the victim in this story, Eratz! Kenny framed you! I want to do what's right this time! Don't make the same mistake you made before, please! Don't take the blame again. Help us punish Kenny and clear your name!"

Eratz let out a soft chuckle, gently removing Rowan's hands from his shoulders.

He looked at them all, his gaze sweeping over the teachers, the director, Crystal, and finally back to Rowan. His smile didn't falter, but there was a sadness behind it now.

"That's exactly why I can't forgive any of you," he said quietly. "You're all so eager to end the life of a student instead of guiding them."

The words hit like a physical blow. Several teachers flinched, their faces paling. Even the director took a step back, her eyes widening in shock.

"You keep talking about doing what's right, about cleaning my name," Eratz continued, his smile never leaving his face. "But look at you. It's all about ending Kenny. Punishing him, making him pay. Are you that obsessed with seeing your students crumble?"

Rowan opened his mouth to object, his face contorted with anguish.

"No, Eratz, it's not like that," he began, but Eratz shook his head, silencing him.

"Last time I checked, Kenny swore he didn't do anything," Eratz said, his tone mocking. "And here I am, confessing that I cheated. So why are you all convinced that I was framed? Or let me guess, my opinion doesn't matter? You've decided I was innocent because it's more convenient for you now? You don't need a confession, you just needed a narrative that fits." The teachers exchanged glances, their faces a mix of shock and realization. Even Crystal seemed taken aback, her mouth opening slightly as if she were about to speak, but no words

came.

"You know what this reminds me of?" Eratz asked, his voice dropping to a near-whisper. "The time I was accused and no one listened. Back then, you all decided I was guilty without proof. Just a word from a 'victim,"" he said, casting a pointed glance at Crystal. "And now you're getting a confession from a culprit. It's not as clean, but it should at least be more credible."

The alleyway was plunged into silence once more. No one moved. The teachers looked at each other, their expressions filled with disbelief.

Crystal's face had gone pale, her eyes wide as if she were staring at a ghost. Lisa, from her place in the shadows, watched with an unreadable expression, a flicker of something like admiration or sadness crossing her face.

She heard his opinion about his past once, so she knew better than anyone here about this kind of scenario.

Eratz took a deep breath, the smile fading from his lips. He took a step back, hands slipping back into his pockets.

"I cheated," he repeated, his voice soft but firm. "Kenny did nothing. So you have no reason to get my apology, and you can't use me to get rid of a student."

The silence stretched on, the streetlights flickered above them, casting long shadows on the ground. In the distance, the muffled sounds of the town could still be heard.

Crystal's entire body trembled as she took a shaky step forward, her eyes locked on Eratz. There was something wild and desperate in her gaze now, a frantic attempt to regain control

of the situation.

"This isn't how it works!" she almost shouted, her voice cracking. "You lied! They were mistaken because you lied, Eratz. You can't blame them for that!"

Eratz let out a soft chuckle, shrugging his shoulders as if the entire thing were a minor inconvenience.

"You're right," he said, his tone almost light, like he was agreeing with an old friend. "That's exactly my point. I'm the one who lied. I'm responsible, so I'm taking responsibility. I'm not blaming anyone but myself. They made the right decision getting rid of me."

Crystal's eyes widened in disbelief. She took a step back, her face pale.

"You can't mean that," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I did everything for you, Eratz. You can't resent me for pushing you to be expelled... You're the reason I had to do it!" Her

words faltered, her voice thin and pleading.

Eratz's smile grew, but his eyes were narrowed, sharp.

"That's also true, the only framing I took was your accusation," he said smoothly. "If anyone

deserves to be punished here, it's you, Crystal. You're the one who lied, deliberately and with

intent. You confessed it yourself."

Crystal flinched as if she'd been slapped. The color drained from her face, and she looked around, stunned. The teachers exchanged bewildered glances, the director's frown deepening as she tried to piece together what was happening.

Crystal's lips parted, a strangled sound escaping her throat.

"Eratz..." she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Eratz gave her a tired smile, but there was no warmth in it, only exhaustion and a hint of

mockery.

"You see?" he said, spreading his hands wide and shaking his head in a gesture of resignation. "You're refusing my confession of a crime, you want to punish someone who's claiming innocence, and you don't want to sanction someone who deliberately lied and admitted it. Why on earth would I ever want to listen to you?"

He turned away from her, slipping his hands into his pockets and tilting his head back to look up at the sky. The night was clear, the stars gleaming like tiny shards of glass in the darkness. He let out a slow breath, as if releasing the last of his tension into the cold air. "Don't worry, people," he said, his voice softer now, almost wistful. "I won't resent you. I

have too many things in my life now to waste time teaching you how to be decent human beings. Do whatever you want with Kenny, but leave my name out of it."

He took a step forward, ready to leave it all behind. But Crystal's voice cut through the night, S~eaʀᴄh the ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

loud and panicked.

"Wait!" she called after him, her voice breaking.

He stopped, his back still turned, but he didn't look back.

"You can't just leave like this," Crystal said, her voice rising in pitch, laced with a frantic desperation. She stepped forward, almost stumbling. "You don't understand, I did everything for you! I've always cared about you, Eratz. You're the one who pushed yourself away! You

refused to see what I was trying to do for you, and now you're throwing it all away? You're blaming me for everything when you've never taken responsibility for your own actions!"

Eratz slowly turned his head, just enough to look at her from the corner of his eye. His gaze was calm, almost pitying.

"Oh, I just realized," Eratz said softly, his voice laced with irony. "If he's not guilty of anything, then there's no reason to punish Kenny, right? He'll be there, waiting for you back at Genova. Tell me, Crystal, are you scared of facing him after lying about him too?" Her breath caught in her throat, her entire body freezing in place. She stared at him, her expression crumbling into frustration and something close to fear.

Eratz's smile turned colder, almost cruel.

"You could always lie again," he said, his tone deceptively gentle. "You're good at that, you

could convince a dead man he's alive. Tell him you saved him. Tell him you did it all for his good, just like you did for me."

Crystal's eyes welled up with unshed tears, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

"You don't understand..." she whispered, her voice shaking. "I did what I had to..." He interrupted her with a small, dismissive wave of his hand.

"One piece of advice, though," he said, his voice lowering. "I believe in karma. The more crap

you build, the more crap you'll receive. Life's fun when everything goes the way you want, but there comes a time when you need to know when to shoot yourself before karma shoots you."

Her eyes widened, glistening with unshed tears as she struggled to maintain her composure. "Eratz..." she choked out, her voice cracking.

He didn't respond. He turned away, walking past Gabriel without a second glance. Gabriel,

still standing there, looked at her, frozen in place.

As Eratz passed by, he slowed his pace slightly.

"Next time you want to talk to me," he murmured to Gabriel, "you'll eat the ground first."

Gabriel's eyes widened, his mouth dropping open slightly in surprise. Before he could

respond, Eratz had already moved on, disappearing into the shadows of the night. The silence that followed his departure was thick and suffocating. Crystal stood frozen in place, tears spilling down her cheeks, her entire body trembling as she watched him go. No one dared to move. The teachers, Rowan, the director, they all remained where they were.