Sirius and Neriah left the garage, now in possession of what they had come for—a list of potential culprits. Sirius held the list and examined it closely while Neriah walked beside him, also inspecting it and noticing something odd.
"Mira Kavik? She's a girl. There's no way Jarod would let her in. Even if he hates his job, he at least does the bare minimum to avoid getting fired," Neriah explained, convincing Sirius that his point made sense.
"Alright then, that leaves only four. Let's visit them one by one," Sirius said, mentally crossing off Mira Kavik's name.
"Or maybe tomorrow, because I want to sleep," Neriah said seriously. To his surprise, Sirius nodded in agreement. After all, everyone must set their priorities wisely.
Elsewhere, after Sirius and Neriah had left the garage and disappeared from view, Derek arrived in front of it carrying a wide bag. He stood before the door and saw Andrew sitting at his desk.
"Oi, Andrew," Derek called, catching Andrew's attention. He looked like he was busy with another strange project.
"Hm? Oh, Mr. Miller. It's been a while since we last met. Are you here to buy something?" Andrew asked curiously, greeting Derek respectfully. He stood from his chair and gestured for Derek to come in.
"No, thank you. I came to return this," Derek replied, following Andrew's gesture and stepping inside the garage. He approached Andrew and pulled a nearly empty paint sprayer from his bag. Andrew took it from him.
"Didn't like my products?" Andrew asked with a faint smile that masked a deeper irritation and annoyance.
"No, don't get me wrong... It's just that I can't dispose of it anywhere. As you know, the university is absurdly clean. They clean it every night. If someone finds an unauthorized item on campus, a lot of people will get into trouble—yourself included, right?" Derek explained. He knew that leaving a misunderstanding unresolved could land him in serious trouble. Angering the richest student on campus was dangerous.
"Ah, I see. Well, thanks for your thoughtfulness and for buying from us," Andrew replied, his friendly smile returning once he understood the situation.
"No need to thank me. Anyway, see you later," Derek said as he turned and walked away, waving goodbye.
"Wait a moment—" Andrew called out before Derek could leave.
"What is it?" Derek turned around, curious and a bit anxious at being called back.
"…Some students were here and knew you were among those who bought paint sprayers," Andrew said in a cautionary tone.
"W-What? What did you say?!" Derek responded in shock and mild panic.
"Don't worry. They won't report you to the university or anything—they've bought from me before. But I think they're investigating you all… the ones who bought the paint sprayers. That's why I wanted to ask: did you do anything that hurt someone with what you bought?" Andrew asked with guarded suspicion and a hint of irritation. Before purchasing anything, every buyer had to sign a document with certain rules—such as not using the item to harm others. Violating that could get Andrew into serious trouble or even expelled.
"N-No, I didn't! I swear!" Derek said, slightly frantic, a little scared. He knew the fate of those who crossed Andrew's rules—rumors swirled around the mysterious group backing him.
"No need to panic. I'm just asking… but—" Andrew continued, his tone shifting into a threat.
"No! No 'but'! I really didn't do anything, don't worry!" Derek exclaimed, raising his hands in a placating gesture to calm Andrew's potential wrath.
"…Alright then," Andrew said, his voice returning to a neutral tone.
"G-Good…" Derek responded, anxious yet relieved. He turned to leave but hesitated and turned back to Andrew.
"B-By the way, who are the students who know about me?" Derek asked nervously, seeking an answer.
"…For that information, do you want to pay now, or should I write your name in the debt book?" Andrew asked with a professional smile, rubbing his hands together to capitalize on the moment.
"…Put it on my tab," Derek answered hesitantly, visibly nervous—you could almost hear him swallow.
"Good choice… They're Sirius Soren and Neriah Grey," Andrew answered, grabbing a pen and sitting back down.
"Sirius Soren and Neriah Grey…" Derek whispered to himself, not recognizing either name.
"A-Anyway, th-thank you," Derek said with a fake friendly smile. Andrew returned the same smile, and Derek exited the garage.
Andrew opened the notebook in front of him and wrote "Derek Miller" among a list of names. While other names were crossed out, Derek's was the only one that remained.
Outside, Derek walked briskly, hands in his pockets, gritting his teeth so hard it made an irritating grinding noise.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it… Not only does Andrew know I broke his rules, but he also put my name on the debt list… Damn it. And what's with those nobodies anyway? They're looking for people who bought paint sprayers… Do they know I trashed Noah's room? Are they his friends or what?! Damn it, now I have to deal with those pests too!" Derek thought, stressed and scared he'd get into serious trouble. Things were going badly. He stopped in place, biting his lip so hard it bled.
"FUCK!!" Derek screamed at the top of his lungs, so loud it strained his throat.
———————
In Sector 1, outside the university campus entrance, Noah sat alone near one of the towering white pillars that connected to the building's roof.
"It's been hours of standing… I can't feel my legs anymore," Noah thought, his face showing exhaustion and drowsiness from standing too long without a break.
Noah noticed Luo Yan emerging from the trees in the nearby garden, walking toward him. When she reached him, she stood silently by his side without saying a word.
"Well, this is awkward," Noah thought, glancing at her from the corner of his eyes.
"Noah…" Luo Yan whispered softly, though her expression was serious, grabbing Noah's attention.
"What is it?" Noah asked, confused and left in a vague situation.
"I looked into the background of the deceased while I was gone. Her name was Erika Bennett, just a normal student. She had a roommate and lived in Sector 6, Building 4, on the third floor, Room 201," Luo Yan explained clearly in a soft, audible voice.
"So?" Noah asked, unsure of what she was getting at.
"So… you'll go. There are still hours left before nightfall and before the plan starts. I'm heading back to the room to keep watching the body closely without revealing myself to the killer in case they're watching. As for Livia… she'll do Livia things," Luo Yan explained. It sounded like there was more to it, but Noah didn't care.
"According to what you told me a long time ago, I can't enter the girls' dorms unless I have an invitation from one of them," Noah pointed out, clearly feeling too lazy for a side mission.
"Coincidentally, that girl and I live in the same dorm, same floor. We're even neighbors. It's surprising I haven't seen her before… Anyway, I'll give you an invitation. Just tell them you're visiting me, then stop by the girl's room and interrogate her roommate to see if she noticed anything strange," Luo Yan said, pulling out a piece of paper and pen, leaning the paper against the wall like a table, and writing: 'An invitation from Miss Luo Yan requesting the presence of student Noah Grace'.
"Your paper's a tissue… There's no way the staff will fall for this," Noah said skeptically. If Luo Yan thought the staff would be fooled by a tissue, it was insulting.
"Don't worry. The last thing the staff here cares about is doing their job. They might let you in without even checking," Luo Yan said with a tone full of disrespect. But Noah understood, thanks to Jarod.
"Alright, go now," Luo Yan said, her tone rushed and nearly commanding—to the point where Noah felt like…
"Is she kicking me out? Asking me to leave?" Noah wondered as he pushed himself to move, his legs sore from all the standing. He put his hands in his pockets and walked away toward the train station, waving goodbye.
"See you later", Noah said Given his past full of exclusion, Noah felt a bit estranged because of what Luo Yan had said, even though he knew deep down that he was overreacting.
While Noah was leaving, Luo Yan climbed up to the lecture hall where Erika Bennett had died. She opened the door slightly and stood before it. She calmed herself a bit and closed her eyes. Then, a transparent, white, rippling aura surrounded her, spreading its waves through the room and its surroundings. She was using Mana Sensitivity to make sure there was no one in the room and no traces or remnants of mana left behind.
"Damn it… not even a trace of leaked mana. Did he maybe kill her without using mana at all…?" Luo Yan thought to herself, sighing in frustration. She then tried to imagine what had happened based only on her own knowledge and what she could see—excluding anything from Livia or Noah.
The girl enters the meeting room for some reason. Then, she turns around in confusion, scanning the room and looking toward the window in front of her. At that moment, the killer enters through the door—which had been open from the start—then stabs the girl, causing her to bleed out massively. She collapses to the ground, dead. The killer grabs her by the wrists and drags her toward the window to either hide her somewhere or place her in plain sight as if trying to send a message. But he is interrupted, so he leaves the body and flees using some ability that allows him to teleport instantly.
But this gave Luo Yan no meaningful information that might lead to solving the mystery. She sighed again, her patience worn thin, and grabbed her hair in irritation.
"…Ignorance… how I hate it!"