"Boastful speeches are the first sign of weakness, and those who are capable of great things keep their mouths shut."
-Marcus Tullius Cicero
~~~~~
~Stephanie's POV~
Everything worked out as planned.
I played nice towards Jillian and it all worked out in the end. I was right to target her since she's the most gullible person in the group. She's so imbecilic she still thinks that I'm a good person. It's laughable.
All I had to do was act as if I were a concerned mother and pretend that I care in other's feelings, and then, they will relinquish trust in me.
This approach I did on Jillian was the unorthodox way of pretending. I usually pretend to be kind and keep the act without showing my true intentions. I never reveal my true color to anyone. I just slowly devour those peasants without them even knowing that I'm taking advantage of their ignorance. I used them for my benefit. The icing on the cake in this trick is I stayed friends with those who I manipulate—and I can use them at my disposal.
But in Jillian's case, I let out my true nature and let my real personality take control over my body. Ahh~ it sure feels nice to let loose for once. Jillian bought my lie and now she'll be the sacrifice. This test is easier than I thought. All I need is influence, then the strings will be on my fingers and I can control those puppets on my free will. It's as if I'm a puppeteer.
My day has been going smoothly as usual. I'm totally gleeful about it. I just hope no one will ruin my mood.
Ella and I had exited the toilet compartment and left Jillian there to do her thing. Ella returned Jillian's beret and eye-glasses undamaged.
The glass wall was blurry since the door was closed, but despite the insides being concealed, I'm certain that she's crying.
It's truly fulfilling to hear someone cry. Even though her howling is inaudible from here, the thought of knowing that she's crying still makes me feel pleased—especially when I'm technically the one that brought her to tears.
"Do you think she's crying, Stephanie?" Ella asked.
Yes, she is. But I suppose I have to lie on that question to showcase my optimism.
"Probably not." I said. "Anyways, do you get the recording?"
"Yes, Jillian's voice acting sounds real, it's as if she had experience on it. She was so dedicated and acted very well."
"That's great. We already discussed how this will play out. You'll initiate first, Ella, you have the scripted recording so it's reasonable that you take the credits."
"Yes. Jillian seemed obedient too. Nothing could go wrong from here onward."
"Mm-hmm, our victory is secured." I said, smiling elatedly.
"By the way, Stephanie, why went to such trouble to coerce Jillian? I mean, Leo seemed like a mediocre guy, it'll be easier if we went after him."
I was totally cool and having a wonderful day until I heard that idiotic opinion.
The gleeful grin on my face quickly vanished and my eyes broadened in fear as my adrenaline pumped.
"Do you know what you are saying?" I said as my voice turned raspy.
"Yeah, as I see it, he's a weakling."
"Weakling, you say? Are you stupid." I grumbled. "If there's a person in this flight that you must be wary of, then that's him."
"Your voice... Stephanie, do you really fear him that much?"
"Listen to me carefully, Ella. You don't wanna mess with the subjects of the Independent Human Project—they're dangerous."
"Independent Human Project?"
"It's a secret corporation that everyone shall fear. Every outcome of that association was crafted to be a monster—they never repent."
~~~~~
~Leo's POV~
Stephanie and Ella forced Jillian to record a scripted voice recording using Ella's speaker. That's all I heard from my own speaker before I exited the lavatory.
I suppose that scripted recording is what they'll use to made Jillian appear to be the Rat.
On my own understanding, Jillian isn't the imposter. The imposter is probably the one who is 20-years-old that was revealed on the secrets' bulletin since it's impossible to enroll in the academy with an age higher than 18. But, the day when I talked to the registrar at the dorms, she provided me Jillian's basic information and I learned that she's indeed a 17-years-old—exactly what she said when she introduced herself earlier.
Speaking of the Rat, it could be Stephanie since there's no reason for her to do this when she's not the imposter.
However, there's still a high chance that it's not her.
And also, there's one more person that's been suspicious since the very beginning. I'm pretty sure that it's her, but before I jump into conclusions, I need to get at least one more reason to support my assumptions.
At any rate, I'm already standing outside the lavatory, waiting for the girls to come out.
Eventually, they finished their thing and went out to meet me.
"Oh, Leo, how long have you been waiting?" Stephanie asked with her usual pretender-smile.
I looked over to Jillian before acknowledging Stephanie's question.
Jillian was looking down to her feet as always. She doesn't seem to be hurt, and it doesn't look like she was touched by these girls' harmful acts either. But no matter how good they are at hiding what happened inside the female's lavatory, I already heard everything I need to know.
I walked past the two girls, completely ignoring them as I treaded to Jillian.
I reached out to her collar and pretended to fix it again, but this time, I secretly took away the surveillance mic I planted under her collar.
Jillian lifted her head up as I was flapping her collar. But then, she immediately brought her gaze back down.
She seemed normal. She's acting as shy as always, but this time around, I can feel that those shy blushes appearing on her cheeks are mixed with melancholy.
"It's fixed." I said as I shuffled back.
"Wow, Leo, that's so sweet of you." Stephanie gushed.
"You guys sure took your sweet time relaxing in the lavatory." I said in a neutral tone.
"Yeah? What do you expect?" Ella huffed. "Girls usually took longer time in the bathroom than boys."
"Come now, Ella, let's not make this a big deal." Stephanie said.
"Whatever. Let's just head back. I can't stand this perv any longer."
With that, we all head back to cabin 42.
I know for myself that this test is already over. So I didn't bother confronting Stephanie and Ella even though I know what they've done to Jillian.
The thing is, if I get involved, then their focus will return to me and I'll most-likely be eliminated.
I'll let this scheme play out for now and avoid meddling in Stephanie's goal. As long as I won't get involved, I'm safe.
I feel no guilt that Jillian offered herself to save me.
Having said that, does this mean that I relied on Jillian for my survival? If so, then the concept of being independent will be violated.
~I don't think I've gotten independent since my parents' demise. Nothing has changed.
The four of us returned to our seats and Audrey immediately started up with a suggestion.
"While the four of you guys were out, the rest of us brainstormed to come up with some measures."
The other students seemed to be cooperating well. I suppose they came up with a great idea where everyone gets along.
"Really, Audrey? Did you come up with something?" Stephanie inquired.
"Yes, and it's the best course of action we could take."
"Let's hear it."
"When you look at the hologram right above us, you can see that it's just a selection of our secrets. But look closely, there's a secret that says one of us is 20 years old. One of us lied about their age, and also, the average age for a Clubs student is 16 to 18 years old."
"I get it, Audrey. But do you have an idea on how we could figure out who that 20-years-old Heart student is?"
"Yes. To make this work, all we have to do is to admit our own secrets, and eventually, the secret about the age will be left out; by that time, the person who doesn't have admitted a secret is definitely the Rat."
That's a pretty normal strategy in this kind of situation, but it has some flaws.
"That's a great suggestion, Audrey. But doesn't that seem subjective? These secrets could be confidential. We might win this test, but, at the cost of our dignity." Stephanie said.
"There's only 16 of us in this room. We can keep the secrets to ourselves. I'm sure that everyone here is trustworthy, and plus, all of us already agreed with this resolution."
Audrey said that all of them agreed, but it seems like someone doesn't like this approach.
Lyn looks distressed on her seat and is constantly wiping the sweats on her forehead.
She's trying to hide the fact that she's opposed to this resolution. Come to think of it, Lyn has matured looks.
However, there's no purpose in going any further with that plan. Stephanie and Ella's show is about to boom any second now. I'll just keep my eyes open and be entertained with the deceitful acts that they're about to perform.
They also coerced Jillian to cooperate in the act. This should be interesting.
"Audrey's idea sounds great. If the majority agreed with this measure, then I'm down." Stephanie agreed.
"~There's no need for that." Ella joined in the discussion. "I already know who the Rat is."
Everyone's eyes turned to Ella. She gathered their attention in a heartbeat.
"Really?" Stephanie asked, pretending to be innocent.
~So their act has already started.
"The thing is, I hid my speaker in Daniella's room immediately after they went to the lounge."
Ella draws out her recording device in a pink rabbit case; the same device she uses in the first meeting.
"Wait?" Daniella uttered. "Does that mean you captured what happened in my room when the Rat tried to frame me up using the PE uniform?"
"Yes, but only the audio." Ella answered. "Even though it only records the audio, the Rat still speaks and I instantly recognized her voice."
"So you anticipated that the imposter is going to do this? That's impressive, Ella." Stephanie said.
"I saw it coming from a mile away." Ella smirked as if she was some kind of genius who predicted the Rat's course of action.
The other students were taken aback by Ella's perceptiveness. But Ella isn't the one to create this fake story… It's actually Stephanie.
When I looked at Ella and her group of friends, Ella appeared to be the leader of their friends since she's the most dominant and has the fiercest appeal.
However, the leader behind closed doors was Stephanie. She lingers in the shadows and uses those who're around her to accomplish what she wants without getting her hands dirty.
Stephanie is a dangerous opponent. I must avoid making enemies with her.
Ella then clicked the play button on her speaker and skipped it on the part where the Rat infiltrated Daniella's room.
Then, the speaker sounded a soft voice of a girl mumbling to herself. The voice was weak, but because Ella's speaker was high quality, the voice was clean and it's obvious to all of us who's the girl talking in that speaker.
With that, Jillian confessed that she's the imposter.
She was looking down, trying to avoid any eye contact as she admitted that she's the Rat. There's no denying for her with this concrete evidence, so everyone believed that Jillian is the Rat. She says she's sorry and the group decided to eject her in the final meeting.
"Now that we figured out that Jillian is the Rat, how're we supposed to vote her out?" Pauline asked. "Jillian is also the King. If all of us vote her out, she may vote herself and we'll be the one to get ejected. The table might turn in a blink of an eye."
"I already have plans about that," Ella said. "You know the mechanics of the voting right? There's only two buttons, one is for objecting to the King and the other is for supporting the King. So here's my plan; Jillian will choose me to be ejected whilst all of us will vote to object to the King. If all of us vote on objecting to the King, then the King will be eliminated."
"That's quite a complicated approach, Ella." Audrey said. "But just like what Pauline said, we could get eliminated when Jillian voted for herself."
"It's fine. Jillian wouldn't do that. Right, Jillian?"
"Y-yes~" Jillian stammered. "I already lost. There's no reason to keep fighting."
This was all part of Stephanie's plan. First, it's her idea to force Jillian to talk to herself while Ella blatantly records her voice. It was a nice act. If I weren't aware of what happened inside the lavatory, I'd probably believe that Jillian was the imposter too. Then next, Stephanie manipulates Ella on taking the credits, therefore Ella bears the risk.
The group's plan was that all of us would vote to object to the King, but the King must vote for one of the Pawns in order for this to work.
Ella offered herself to be voted by the King. It was a risky or rather a stupid mistake for Ella. After all, I could save Jillian by voting to support her. All she needs is a single vote and Ella would be the one who'll lose this test.
However, just like I said earlier, I must avoid making enemies with Stephanie. Ella is under Stephanie's control, so I must not touch Ella either.
I suppose I'll let Jillian lose. That damsel in distress is utterly hopeless.
We wrapped things up and headed back to our own rooms for lunch. The group has decided to call it a day and just wait for the final meeting where the voting session will take place.
There's no hope whatsoever. Jillian has to accept that she will be expelled from the academy, and thus, she won't see me again after this flight.
~~~~~
12:40pm.
Despite the fact that Jillian knows that I think she's the Rat, I still walked over to her and initiated a conversation.
"The meeting is over. You said you'll be staying in my room, let's go have our lunch together."
"Mm-mm." she shyly nodded.
We then walked through the hallway side-by-side. The other students had already got back to their own rooms whilst Jillian and I were the only ones who were still on our way back.
As we walked slowly without hurries, it appeared like Jillian was trying to cherish this last moment of us to the fullest.
She deliberately clung onto my arms without making it look obvious.
This could be the last physical contact we made, so I let her have it without trying to get out of her grip.
We eventually reached my room. I opened the door for her and she took the window seat without my consent.
I sat at the other side of the seat, far from her.
She's swinging her feet back and forth and is playing with her shoes.
I grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. I then handed it to her and said, "You can pick any movie as you pleased."
She happily took the remote from my hands and began digging through the sections of the movies.
As she was contemplating at the TV screen, three knocks sounded from the door.
Couple of seconds after knocking, Charles entered my room, carrying a tray with a plethora of exquisite edibles.
He froze to where he was standing when he saw Jillian in my room.
Pressing on to his duty, Charles proceeded and pulled the table to its full extent. He then placed the tray on the table and asked, "Is Lady Jillian planning to dine in here?"
"Yes." I answered.
"Sir, while this seat can fit two people, the table is only designed for solo dining. There's a bigger room on the second floor of this plane—the two of you could move there if you wish."
It's quite difficult to breathe without longer space. I suppose it'd be better to move to a bigger room.
"If that's possible, we'd love to move there."
"As you wish, Sir." Charles carried the tray he placed on the table and moved the pullable table back to its originated position. "I'll guide the way, sir, follow me."
We followed Charles to the walkway and reached a dead end. Charles pulled a lever, then a stair gently dropped down from the ceiling.
In the plane's layout that Charles handed me in the beginning of this flight, I noticed that there's indeed a second floor in this plane. However, there's not much information that indicates about it.
I held on to the silver railing and headed up the stairs.
On the second floor was a path with several rooms. We walked on the red carpet until Charles opened one door.
He gestured with one of his hands to come in.
We get in the luxurious room; it's thrice bigger and wider than the previous one.
There's a king-size bed right around the corner and a dining table on the other corner. There's also a mini seat near the window where a person can gaze out the enormous porthole.
It's complete with appliances that a passenger needs in a flight. The placements of the apparatuses are strategically scattered across the room—the design is just pleasing for human eyes.
I nearly thought that I was in a hotel. Just by looking at this room, it really feels like I'm in a 5-star hotel if the plane's turbulence isn't in the way.
Jillian wandered around the room as if she were some fascinated toddler.
As I was absorbed by the painting on the walls in the room, Charles continued to the dining table and laid out all the edibles from the tray to the table.
"I'll inform Lady Jillian's personal butler that she's staying in this room. Lady Jillian's meal will be served by her butler. Please enjoy your stay." Charles said.
I simply nodded and he went on his way.
I sat on the edge of the bed and reached for a book at the mini shelf allocated next to the bed.
"Leo…" Jillian called out my name. "don't look at this painting. It's a naked woman cuddling a child."
I looked over to her, then to the painting.
"Eek! I said don't look." she said, flustered.
She definitely doesn't understand reverse psychology.
At any rate, the painting seemed to have a deep meaning. But I suppose Jillian doesn't want me to see a naked woman.
~She's so innocent.
I averted my eyes and brought it back to the book I grabbed from the shelf.
"I saw nothing."
She sighed, "That's a relief."
Jillian seemed to be more comfortable and expressive to me than usual. Is it because our time together is now limited?
Jillian walked over to the other edge of the bed and sat there quietly.
A man and a woman on a bed. I must not let my intrusive thoughts overtake me.
But honestly, if Jillian were to push me down on the bed and try to do the deed with me, I wouldn't retaliate and just let her do as she pleased.
"Say Leo, are you mad that I'm the Rat… are you disappointed in me?" Jillian asked wistfully as she gazed at my back.
"No. Not at all." I answered coldly as I stared on the front page of the book.
"That's a relief."
Jillian then let out a soft, momentarily laugh.
That giggle was rare. My eyes dilated in an instant.
It was a sudden, unexpected, and brief laugh, it might get stuck in my head.
Someone then knocks at the door.
It was Jillian's personal butler. He stepped foot in our room and went over to the dining table. He laid down the tray he was carrying on the table and placed the plates on it one-by-one. He also left a set of golden cutlery before giving his regards and leaving the room.
With our meal ready, I put the book back on the shelf and went on the table.
Drawn by the scent of the exquisite meal, Jillian plopped down on the chair with her eyes eagerly glaring on the cheesecake. She took the plate of a slice of cheesecake and instantly devoured it.
I sat on the opposite side of the table and took the salad. I need to eat healthy to keep my physique, after all.
Jillian keeps stuffing her mouth with certain sweet without a break whilst I took my time ingesting the salad.
This could be the first and last time we'd eat together—this could also be her last meal in her life.
I eventually finished eating, and drank a glass of water afterwards. I then stood up from sitting as Jillian was still absorbed by the food.
"~Whmm you moim?" she said with her mouth full. (Where you going)
"I forgot something in my room. I'll be right back."
She forcefully gulped the stuff in her mouth and said, "Okay. Be quick..."
"I wish I could see you once more~" she mumbled inaudibly
"I'll be back in a minute." I said.
Jillian watched me leave the room.
I gently closed the door. But when the door hit closed, it made a loud thud in my head—a thud louder than my heartbeat.
I went on my way and got to the first floor.
I actually lied to Jillian. I'm not the person who forgot my things.
The reason why I lied is because I knew who the real Rat was, and I'm on my way not to confront her, but rather consult her.
I now stood right in front of the door of the real enemy, or an ally perhaps.
I took Jillian's hairpin out of my pocket and picked the lock of her door.
It's the same hairpin from earlier, I thought I might need it so I kept it.
I successfully unlocked the door and made my way inside the Rat's room.
As I entered her room, I found her sitting serenely as she was wistfully gazing on the clouds through the porthole.
She knew that I'm already inside her room, yet she didn't react.
She was sipping a cup of tea the moment I came in. She then put down the cup on the saucer with a clack.
"I was expecting that you'll figure it out by now. Is my acting not good?" she asked.
"It was above average. There's just some flaws that give away your identity." I said.
She patted an empty space of her seat right next to her. "Have a seat." she said, still looking through the porthole. "We'll be having a long chat."
I sat where she patted the seat, and we indeed had a long and fun conversation.
~~~~~
After getting things settled with the Rat, I went back to the second floor.
As I was walking peacefully on the carpet, I sighted our room in the distance, leaking thick fumes through the slit of the closed door.
I rushed over to the door and a thought promptly dreaded my mind.
This gas is carbon monoxide. There's no appliances in this room that could produce this much smoke. So this must be done purposely.
Carbon monoxide poisoning usually doesn't involves pain in the process, so it became popular nowadays on suicide attempts.
Remembering what I spotted on Jillian's wrist earlier, those scars on her pulse is definitely a suicidal signs.
~So could she be…