10 Interfering

"My word is final and my will unbreakable on this matter! Akemi Sensei's decision to exclude her student, the Cifer, from this lecture is fully justified!"

Oji turned to see a crowd staring at a group of three people. Oji sized them all at a glance. The speaker was standing with his back to Oji, dressed well if not richly and had a Cultivation that was higher than Oji's own by a few Stages. He looked like a cripple, as non-cultivators are normally called, would in his 30s so this apparent Elder of the Aoi Kani Clan was something like 60 or 70 years old at the least. Exactly the kind of self righteous bully that Oji hated most.

A hideous boy, face pale as death and completely void of any visible health, was facing the Elder in defiance. Based on his age Oji figured he was this Cifer. Oji liked the look in the kid's eye, a sort of internal pride and confidence that said he knew his own worth in spite of anyone else. This was a kid Oji could have at least a minimum starting respect for until the young man proved himself.

A young woman on her hands and knees before the Elder who sought justice for the kid. Oji couldn't make out her feature of the fine details of her shape, but it was already enough to say that she was a rare beauty for sure. A woman like this would always be able to ask a favor from Oji.

All this takes time to read or explain, but these impressions were formed by the end of Elder Naoki's tirade. Ever impulsive and seeing an easy way to intercede, Oji spoke up firmly and clearly, taking control of the situation directly. "Excuse me? Who gave you or this Akemi Sensei the right to interfere in the matters of my Crimson Sect?"

Oji hoped that the Elder would try to fight him on this. When he saw the man's face after he turned to Oji he knew that he could get a fight if he played his cards right. This Elder was only beyond angry and clearly had a personal stake. "We do not require the assistance of the Crimson Sect to deal with our own internal matters." The Elder said, barely polite.

Oji smiled, walking calmly away from the Elder and towards the red headed teacher. "I assume you are the one called Akemi Sensei?" She nodded and blushed, though for what reason Oji didn't care. In any case it wasn't the right emotional response in this situation, and it made things easy. If she was any kind of warrior she aught to realize that Oji's approach was extremely dangerous, but the dumb lass only tried to move away when the Elder shouted a warning to her.

She was quick for a Low Origination of any Stage, but not enough to match Oji's footwork. He grabbed her cruelly by her hair and took her to the entrance of the lecture hall and in front of the crowd. He looked straight at the boy that he'd deduced was the Cifer. "Is this your teacher kid?"

The boy started, having been staring the whole time but having been far too shocked by the unexpected help to act. He recovered quickly with the prod and answered decisively. "Yes Sir. That's my teacher, Akemi Sensei. She threw me out of the class earlier today because, in her words, I was trying to teach her class. The fact was I only gave a proper answer to her question." He spoke clearly and projected for the crowd to hear him plainly.

Oji felt himself seeing red as his aura seeped out. Of all the blatant, ridiculous, underhanded excuses that someone could use to surpress a mere student who hadn't even begun to cultivate! The Elder protested in outrage. "This is nothing but slander from a completely incompetent and hateful student who refuses to accept the Clan's judgement. Please, release my daughter and let this matter come to an end Sir. I have already looked into this matter properly and to full depth, and his claims have not the slightest basis in reality. Surely your great Crimson Sect has more important matters than a small student-teacher squabble in a small Clan like ours?"

Oji felt enlightened, and also felt his hate for the Elder increase several fold. That explained his personal stake in this. Akemi was his daughter, and had abused her power to hold back Cifer and now her father wanted to cover up the crime by abusing his even more overwhelming power.

The kneeling girl stood up. "Please Sir, while Cifer is telling the truth and Akemi Sensei deserves punishment, this is in the end a matter of our Clan. There is no need for you-"

"Who the fuck's side are you on? The old man's or the kid's?" Oji broke in ruthlessly. Then stared in shock, feeling his heart stop for a moment. She was drop dead gorgeous! Oji could count on one hand the number of women he'd seen who were in the same league as this girl, and all of them had a cultivation that was more than an entire Realm above hers! Other details sank in moments later. Her dress was even nicer than the Elder's was, and the crowd had been paying her special attention even for how beautiful she was. As if she was actually a key player. She had to have one hell of a standing in the Clan.

Oji looked at her with rapture, his attention now entirely on the gorgeous girl. He'd started to forget about the rest of the world around him as he considered her eyes and the shape of her neck before his gaze started to wander downwards. Akemi chose that moment to interrupt him, reminding him of her existence as the teacher tried to beg for her freedom. "Sir, I apologize if my actions have offended you. If you will please release me for just a few moments I can explain everything to your satisfaction I'm sure."

Oji laughed. Akemi had brought his attention back to the matter at hand just when he was getting sidetracked enough to think about letting her off if the beautiful woman insisted on it. If she'd kept her mouth shut she might have had a chance, but now that she'd broken the spell. Pulling himself together to focus on his objectives, he tossed her on the ground like she was a sack of bricks. "In that case, tell me if the boy is telling the truth or not."

The Elder swiftly interposed himself between Oji and Akemi. "Please Sir, this is a matter of our Clan. Why must you insist on-"

Oji slapped him. The crisp sound rang through the area like a meaty gong had been sounded. In the stillness and silence that followed, while the Elder was still stunned by the blow, Oji set the record straight. "This woman decided on her own to hide a student from my sight. To the boy, that meant missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime in a pissant Clan like this. To your Clan it means disobedience to the orders of the Zhou Royalty. To my Sect it means the possibility of overlooking a true gem of a genius. You can deal with me and my judgement on this matter, or you can take it up with your King for insubordination after I report my reception and treatment."

The Elder's face turned red, then white, then started to crumple in the face of Oji's overbearing assault of words. He'd just realized that this was no longer anything close to a matter that his influence could begin to contain. If the lecturer never even became aware that another student existed, than all was well and it remained a matter of the Clan. But at this point the best he could do was try to keep the punishment as light as possible. After all, how seriously could the Crimson Sect really take the Cifer? He stepped aside. "Answer his question Akemi."

So very disappointing. Oji thought that would provoke the man into action. Still, the more he was learning about this situation the more it was pissing him off. "So, is the boy's accusation true?" Oji already knew how he'd verify if she tried to deny it. There was an entire classroom of 24 students behind him who could act as witnesses, and she knew it. If the Elder had time to pressure them all, Oji knew he'd probably never get the facts from them. But here and now, after watching their mighty Elder back off when Oji literally smacked him across his face? They wouldn't dare lie to Oji right now.

He decided to raise the stakes when he saw Akemi hesitate and looked to the class behind Oji. "Lie to me, and I will make the punishment far worse. Sensei." The demonic, wolfish smile that Oji gave Akemi in that moment was a perfect match for his Essence of Evil that was caressing her as it enveloped the entire platform. Almost as if both were begging her to dig her grave just a little bit deeper.