"When someone already has pre-formed facts in their mind, it will be difficult to change them no matter what happens next."
Ayanokouji spoke calmly, but it felt like he was delivering a eulogy.
"Everyone has seen that video, and they already believe it to be a fact. Even if you destroy all the evidence, it will be useless. Moreover, everything in the video is indeed a fact. The power of public opinion is very strong, now you are done, and the pressure you put on others has disappeared."
"Kyotaka, you seem a bit self-righteous."
His father's expression turned very cold.
"I can imagine the reporters who were harmed because you destroyed the evidence will consider it a breakthrough in the incident after learning about Matsuo-san's existence, and connecting it to ask about the White Room Project. It has become the center of public opinion, and this whirlpool of public opinion can be his protective shield. You wouldn't even dare to seek revenge against Matsuo-san right now."
Ayanokouji intentionally paused for a moment. He knew that his father had come to see him at this moment, probably because the situation was already quite bad.
"You are very anxious now to the point that you are sweating without realizing it. You have bodyguards who are always with you even when you go to the toilet. But there are no bodyguards at school, is it because your authority cannot penetrate this school? Your bodyguards are busy dealing with people who are ready to take this opportunity to seek revenge on you or both."
Currently, his father sitting in front of him was very angry, and sweat was clearly visible on his forehead.
"Do you want me to return to the White Room, right? The White Room that you built with your own hands?"
"That's right."
His father almost gritted his teeth and said, "You should surpass me and become the one who changes this country. Why don't you understand?"
"Sorry, I am not ready to accept your offer."
Ayanokouji responded lightly, not leaving room for negotiation in his words.
"Why do you want to stay here? This is just a gathering place for commoners, a group of people in the lower layers of society."
"You really underestimate the people below? Bad statement."
"That's the way it is."
"Excuse me."
As the dispute between Ayanokouji and his father continued, a man in his forties entered. Ayanokouji had never seen this face before, but judging from the change in his father's expression, this man was not an ordinary character and he definitely was not on the same side as him.
"Although we just spoke on the phone a while ago, I haven't seen Sakayanagi in a long time, maybe seven or eight years ago."
"Long time no see, Ayanokouji-sensei. It's been a long time since I inherited the position of chairman from my father, right?"
Chairman Sakayanagi said with a smile. His words contained respect for Ayanokouji's father, but he also seemed to ask with a hint of mockery.
Ayanokouji had never met this man before, but he remembered that at his current age, there was a female student with the same last name as him. It was not surprising if there was a connection between the two.
"You are Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, this is our first meeting. Please give me some advice."
Chairman Sakayanagi smiled, then turned to Ayanokouji's father, as if he was a teacher concerned about the growth of his student.
"Ayanokouji-sensei, let's talk now as parents."
"I am in a hurry."
His father didn't say much, he looked at his phone and left in a hurry, rejecting Chairman Sakayanagi's offer to escort him without exchanging polite greetings.
Although he trained Ayanokouji not to have emotions or feelings, he couldn't do it himself.
He left the teaching building, wearing a mask to cover his face, then got into a black car surrounded by guards standing outside. With public opinion in turmoil, his plan was to act as low-key as possible and wait for the public opinion to pass before taking further action.
"Darn it, because of that instigator Matsuo, my things have turned against me!"
His father clenched his fists tightly, and sharp cracking sounds could be heard from his joints.
He used to believe that emotions could only affect the minds of politicians, but now he couldn't suppress the anger in his heart.
"I have heard a lot about you."
After Ayanokouji's father left, Chairman Sakayanagi smiled and looked at Ayanokouji with a hint of warmth in his eyes.
Although Chairman Sakayanagi respected Ayanokouji's father very much, he did not support the White Room plan of the other party. He believed that children should grow under the care of their parents, so when he heard that Ayanokouji's father came uninvited, he came to save Ayanokouji.
With his social status, the man could not settle it easily.
Moreover, the man was now in a difficult situation. This sudden broadcast of the video to the world disrupted all his plans for a comeback that suddenly became known to the world. He not only had to endure the public opinion pressure from the masses, but also be wary of covert attacks from political opponents and pressure from other countries on human rights grounds.
He came to Ayanokouji today precisely because he was impatient to recycle his most prominent works before the situation truly spun out of control.
"Thank you very much, Chairman Sakayanagi, may I ask about Class A..."
Ayanokouji responded.
"She is my daughter."
Chairman Sakayanagi said with a hint of pride in his eyes.
"It makes sense indeed."
Ayanokouji nodded. In his impression, Sakayanagi Arisu was a very special existence.
"By the way, Ayanokouji-kun, we just received news that my former head servant Matsuo has been interviewed by various media and announced the incident in the White Room."
"Mm."
Ayanokouji answered. This could explain why his father left in a hurry now.
With public opinion pressure, Matsuo should be protected now. Even his father had no way to seek revenge against Matsuo at the moment, and the schools might do so for the same reason as his son's reason for enrolling in school.
Matsuo and his family's situation would undergo surprising changes.
'But it has nothing to do with me.' Ayanokouji thought to himself.
"Chairman Sakayanagi, maybe we can work together."
He raised his head and looked at the old man.
"Work together?"
Chairman Sakayanagi sounded confused.
"We must eliminate that person first."
Ayanokouji said, narrowing his eyes slightly.
He fled from the White Room and came to school, just because he wanted to experience what is called the secular world.
His father would definitely not stand out recently, but he would never let him go to school easily.
Trapping Chairman Sakayanagi to take control of the school or send his other works to infiltrate the school, these are all things his father could do.
To prevent this from happening, Ayanokouji finally decided to take the lead and exclude the person with a blood relationship with him, at least to make him lose any ability that might disrupt his life.
Previously, he did not take action because the school was almost isolated from the outside world, and it was difficult for him to communicate with the outside world as a student. In addition, his father held a high position and was too powerful.
But now, the situation was completely different.
He gently tapped the student terminal he held in his hand, and a video immediately played.
"You really underestimate the people below? Bad statement."
"That's the way it is."
"...."
"Do you want me to return to the White Room, right? The White Room that you built with your own hands?"
"That's right."
"..."
This was a video of Ayanokouji just talking to his father. He took out the student terminal under the pretext of watching the video, and secretly recorded all his father's speeches – and others even tried to take pieces of his terminal.
At the beginning of the conversation, Ayanokouji had already made a plan to get rid of his father.
Although there was a blood relationship between them, it was just a blood relationship.
His father never treated Ayanokouji as a son, or even as a human being. He was just a tool he developed to change the country.
Ayanokouji also did not see the other party as his father, but saw him as a stumbling block in his own way.
Because he was a stumbling block, he must be removed.
❰❱SKY SCREEN❰❱
After Ayanokouji left Emilia's room, he found Otto.
"Ayanokouji-sama, what's wrong?" Otto said eagerly.
He really wanted to do something to prove his abilities.
Moreover, he was saved from the underground dungeon of Russell by someone else. Otto was also worried that Ayanokouji would send him back if he felt useless.
"Please use your Divine Protection to let the animals in the Sanctuary gather information and investigate the surrounding situation." Ayanokouji gave a task.
Otto could communicate with animals. This ability was not very useful in big cities because there were not many animals there and humans occupied most of the area. But in places like the Sanctuary with vast forests, it was different.
There were various types of animals in the Sanctuary forest, which gave Otto a lot of room to maneuver. Each animal was equivalent to an important source of intelligence.
It had only been a day since Ayanokouji came to the Sanctuary. The scope of his activities was only in the village and the trial ruins. However, he noticed that the woman who called herself Ryuzu Bilma did not live in the village, but came from outside the village, which made him speculate that there was another facility in the Sanctuary, so he asked for Otto's help.
Otto's ability was more comfortable than Meili's ability to control Demon Beasts, and more efficient than Clairvoyance Ram's ability.
"Yes!" Otto nodded happily. The feeling of trust and being needed made him very happy, and then he rushed out.
Ayanokouji planned to walk around the village and explore the nearby area.
As he wandered, he could feel like there were eyes staring at him in the darkness, hidden in the forest around the village.
"There is something inside." He whispered softly, but did not reveal that he had noticed the other party, but continued to do his own business, leaving the rest to Otto.
"You are still awake until late at night. I saw Ayanokouji-sama doing something embarrassing." Ram's voice came from the side.
"Ram, why aren't you sleeping late at night?" Ayanokouji asked, and noticed that Ram was holding a basket in her hand, containing various medicinal ingredients, which seemed to be prepared for Roswaal.
"The medicinal ingredients are prepared for Roswaal-sama." said Ram, just as suspected, "Ayanokouji-sama, these things cannot be stolen."
"Sorry, I probably have no intention of stealing medicinal ingredients." Ayanokouji said calmly, "Why did you tell me 'Don't say things you shouldn't say' at night?"
"Not all residents support the liberation of the Sanctuary. The liberation of the Sanctuary is only led by strong factions like Ryuzu-sama and Garfield. In other words, there are still conservative people who do not want to liberate the Sanctuary." Ram said with a serious expression on her face.
Ayanokouji nodded. This situation made sense. After all, the Sanctuary had been isolated from the world for too long, and there were many people who did not want to contact the outside world.
But he felt something strange. Although Ram claimed that Garfiel was a strong faction that wanted to liberate the Sanctuary, he felt that the other party did not care about the liberation of the Sanctuary.
Did he really want the Sanctuary to be liberated?
If that was not the issue, then why did Garfiel do this? It didn't make sense to hold the villagers hostage and let Emilia participate in the trial.
The only explanation was that someone ordered him to do this – the only one who could order him was Roswaal.
"Ram, take me to see Roswaal."