" Young Master Malfoy... I confess." Captain Smith confessed his guilt in full. "It was my fault for poor command."
"I was overconfident and never personally verified during the voyage whether the lookout tower equipment was in optimal condition, nor did I emphasize the potential dangers and urgency of the North Atlantic Ocean ice conditions."
"As captain, I failed to exercise due caution and decisiveness, and my judgment in that critical moment was fatally flawed. The safety of over two thousand people on board rested on my shoulders; I bear primary responsibility, and I am willing to accept any investigation and disciplinary action."
Smith's confession was like a sharp blade, instantly piercing through the last bit of wishful thinking and psychological defenses of the others.
After the captain took the initiative to assume the core leadership responsibility, they knew that further silence or sophistry would only make things worse, especially when facing this young nobleman.
The lookout was the first to give in; he collapsed to his knees with a thud, not so much to Draco, but more likely because his legs gave way.
His voice trembled, and he spoke incoherently before speaking:
"I was seriously negligent! Last night... last night was my shift, and I was a little distracted and didn't pay close attention... I thought it was nothing, so I didn't dare report the disturbance to the control panel... I'm willing to accept punishment!"
The radio operator followed closely behind, his face deathly pale.
"I received the ice situation report, but I felt the signal was a bit blurry, maybe inaccurate... I was afraid of getting scolded for reporting something wrong, so... I thought I'd wait for the next clearer one... It was my negligence, my dereliction of duty! I didn't deliver the information in time!"
"After the collision, during emergency operations... I panicked, and the instructions I gave may have been wrong, delaying precious repair and evacuation time... It was due to my lack of experience in on-site command and my misjudgment!" The first mate was the third to confess.
Finally, the designer and the technical director exchanged a glance, both seeing despair in each other's eyes, and simultaneously confessed.
"There are some design flaws in the hull... that might not be entirely reliable. The steel replacement... but... we didn't dare say anything, afraid of affecting the construction schedule, afraid of taking responsibility... We knew but didn't report it..."
Although these guys confessed, they infuriated Trillian, as they all gave vague and ambiguous answers!
Just as Trillian was about to tear off these guys' fig leaves completely and unleash a torrent of abuse, Draco stopped her:
" Trillian."
Trillian swallowed back the rebuke that was on the tip of her tongue, and looked at Draco with a questioning look in her eyes.
However, Draco didn't explain to Trillian; he knew, of course, that these people were avoiding the real issues to lessen their guilt.
Since the ship is still at sea, the current personnel are needed to maintain basic operations such as navigation, engine management, damage control, and evacuation command. Pushing them to the brink and tearing off all pretenses will not help stabilize the situation.
"Let's go," Draco said calmly, walking straight towards the door. Hermione followed silently. Although Trillian was full of questions, since her young master had spoken, she could only glare at the few hunched-over guys before following the two.
The three left the captain's office, and the moment the door closed, half of the tense atmosphere inside seemed to dissipate.
"Thump!" Captain Smith, who had been struggling to stand, could no longer hold on; his legs gave way, and he collapsed onto the floor.
The others were also limp as mud, drenched in sweat.
Afterwards, Trillian was still puzzled by Draco's decision. "Why didn't the young master just convict them directly?"
"Now that they've been convicted and arrested, who's going to steer the ship?" Draco glanced sideways at Trillian.
"Once the cruise ship docks, there will naturally be maritime courts, insurance companies, investigation committees, and angry families of the victims and the media to deal with them. We are just passengers; getting too involved will only affect our mood and bring no other benefit."
"Then what was the point of us going all that way to confront them, hold a trial, and listen to their hypocritical confessions? Was it just to scare them?" Trillian was still indignant.
"Isn't it funny to see them so scared they're running away and shifting blame?" Draco retorted with a smirk.
Hearing this, Hermione shook her head helplessly and gave this guy with a speechless look.
This guy is always so childish!
After thinking about it carefully, Trillian realized that it was indeed somewhat fun? And quite satisfying! An excited smile appeared on her face, and she nodded vigorously. "Fun! Extremely fun!"
At this moment, Hermione remembered another question, "Then why did you specifically name these few groups of people to hold accountable? There are many people on the ship involved in this matter, but you only picked these six."
"Wife, you've asked the right question. It's very simple: a massive maritime disaster is never the fault of just one person; it's a complete breakdown."
After praising her, Draco patiently analyzed the situation for her:
"The shipyard's management was negligent, cutting corners and reducing costs, leading to inherent safety hazards in the cruise ships."
"The hull designer and technical supervisor made a terrible design, knowingly concealing structural defects and allowing hidden dangers to persist,"
"The captain was negligent and derelict in his duties, disregarding safety regulations,"
"The first mate's poor handling of the situation caused him to panic and mismanage, missing the last chance to mitigate the damage; the radio operator's poor early warning delayed intelligence, cutting off any possibility of early evacuation; and finally, the lookout's poor lookout skills ensured that all the final warnings failed to materialize."
"From top to bottom, from decision-making, design, and management to execution, early warning, and monitoring, everyone in the entire chain was negligent. Holding them accountable is only because they are the epitome of the loopholes."
These words completely won over Trillian, whose eyes were practically overflowing with admiration. "Young Master, you can see through everyone's negligence and loopholes. Did you secretly use some kind of magic again?"
"Wow, I didn't expect you to be so clever." Draco glanced at Trillian with some surprise.
"Hehe!" Receiving an affirmative reply, Trillian smiled brightly and lively, "You can always learn something from following the young master!"
Draco smiled, not pursuing the topic further. He looked at the gradually clearing outline of the coastline in the distance and said:
"Alright, we'll be docked in one more day. Stop thinking about these upsetting things and enjoy the last day of the journey."
"That's right!" Trillian's attention was immediately diverted, and she suggested, "How about we go play fencing!"
"I'm not going," Hermione shook her head and said, "Fencing is too competitive, fast-paced, and aggressive. I don't really like these kinds of intense sports; they're too noisy. I'm planning to go back to my room and read a book, and have some peace and quiet."
Trillian had anticipated Hermione's response. She turned to Draco expectantly and said, "That's perfect! It's alright if Hermione doesn't go, young master, just the two of us will go!"
Hermione, who had originally intended to go back to her room to read, immediately felt alarmed when she heard that Trillian was going to go out and play alone with Draco...