Edwin Lunar Chapter 81: The False Betrayal

Read chapter 81 of Edwin Lunar by MananTayal on NovelPedia.

The next morning, Orion gathered in their private meeting room. The atmosphere was tense. Edwin had spent the entire night studying Wingard's recording. The others listened carefully as he explained everything. When he finished, nobody spoke. Finally Carl broke the silence. "So..." "History is fake." "Basically." Iris replied. "Great." Carl leaned back. "I liked it better when our biggest problem was giant cosmic monsters." "Those were simpler." Lucien agreed. Edwin activated the recording again. The hologram of Wingard appeared above the table. Everyone watched silently. Particularly the final sentence. Follow Groader. And never trust appearances. The message felt important. Deliberate. As if Wingard knew exactly what Edwin would discover. Then Iris activated another collection of files. "I found something else." Dozens of Great War records appeared. Every single one connected to Groader's supposed betrayal. At first glance they looked convincing. Then Iris highlighted the inconsistencies. Dates changed. Witness reports altered. Locations modified. Entire mission records rewritten. The pattern became obvious. Someone wasn't recording history. Someone was manufacturing it. Carl stared. "They actually built a fake story." "Yes." "And everyone believed it." "Yes." The room fell silent. Because that realization was terrifying. Entire generations had accepted the lie. Without question. Edwin looked toward one specific document. The official accusation against Groader. The event that supposedly started everything. His eyes narrowed. Something felt wrong. Very wrong. The report described Groader destroying an Orion fleet. Yet the attached evidence was incomplete. Large sections were missing. Almost deliberately removed. "Can we restore it?" Edwin asked. Iris smiled slightly. "I already did." A new file appeared. The original version. Everyone leaned forward. Then froze. Because Groader wasn't attacking the fleet. He was protecting it. The original recording clearly showed enemy vessels surrounding Orion forces. Groader's ship entered the battle. Destroyed the attackers. And saved hundreds of lives. The room became completely silent. Carl blinked. "That's..." "Not betrayal." Lucien finished. "No." Edwin agreed. "It isn't." For the first time, actual anger appeared inside him. Someone had stolen Groader's life. His reputation. His legacy. Someone had turned a hero into a villain. And the entire galaxy had accepted it. Suddenly the room door opened. Everyone turned. Headmaster Humming stood there. Silent. Watching. No one had heard him enter. The old headmaster's gaze moved across the holograms. Across the documents. Across the restored evidence. Then he looked at Edwin. For a long moment nobody spoke. Finally Humming sighed. A tired sigh. The sigh of someone carrying secrets for far too long. "You found it." Not a question. A statement. Edwin slowly stood. "You knew." Humming closed his eyes briefly. "Part of it." The room froze. Because that answer changed everything. The old headmaster looked older than ever. "I spent decades believing Groader betrayed us." His voice was quiet. "Then I started finding contradictions." The same contradictions. The same lies. The same impossible records. "But every answer led nowhere." Humming looked toward the restored recording. "I wanted to believe he was innocent." Silence filled the room. Because this wasn't the headmaster speaking. This was Humming. The last surviving member of the Original Orion. A man who had lost his friends. Then his expression darkened. "There is something else." Everyone immediately paid attention. "The person responsible..." For the first time in the entire conversation— Humming hesitated. As if speaking the thought aloud was dangerous. Then he finally said it. "The evidence points toward someone impossible." Edwin already knew the answer. The Observer. The name hung unspoken between them. And somewhere deep beneath the academy— The Red Box glowed brighter than ever. Only