"The statements made in that article… were complete lies."
My voice rang out, calm but ironclad, across the gathered courtyard, the sound echoing faintly against the academy walls behind me.
"The Academy has never allowed just anyone—especially not those who haven't made it into the Gold Class—to become Magic Knights. That article, with all its baseless claims and fabrications, was nothing more than an underhanded attempt to smear the name of Milham Academy of Magic Knights."
I paused for a moment, letting my words settle in the silence that followed.
Dozens of eyes were fixed on me... every face a different mix of curiosity, suspicion, or unease.
