Favorites, into battle! - 11.

Well, there's no need to completely abolish draws. If players can secure a higher position for themselves through a draw, it's their legitimate right, as they performed better in the previous rounds. However, awarding a draw when both opponents haven't played is absurd; they should receive a 0:0 score, and nothing else.

There are two extreme viewpoints here. You expressed one.
The opposite view is that it's absurd to force people to come up with a report about a draw (in a broader sense, to pay any attention to it at all) if a draw suits both of them. They'll come up with something because you, as the judge, demand it. Does this change the essence of the matter? It's a pre-arranged draw without any actual play.
Come on, either put your pants on or take off your cross.
In other words, either abolish pre-arranged draws or don't ask people to perform some kind of ritual around them.

If we're talking about missing players, I also don't understand what the problem is. They'll be disqualified from the tournament – what difference does it make whether it's 0:0 or 1:1?
Then you start discussing something that doesn't determine the final result.
Disqualification will determine their position, and the position of the one who ends up in the "Merlin's" sixth place (and rises to fourth again), not the number of points for a draw.