When the trip was done in a vehicle with four wheels, especially with a driver and a maid ready to go at any time, the afternoon heat went unnoticed. Aidera decided to travel with Clara and Paul, her two bodyguards. Their vehicle moved gradually, crossing the abandoned streets. Without a doubt, they headed towards the northern harbor area of Grimoir.
"Miss Ai, is this the right direction?"
"Don't worry, this is the correct direction," Clara replied.
Paul was busy driving while asking for directions and confirming their destination. Meanwhile, Clara, looking at the digital map application, guided them to a seemingly specific location. Their sole objective was to retrieve an item.
"Sigh~ How did you even think of getting your laptop fixed there?"
"Well, right in front of the shop, there's a sign saying, 'PC Repair Service Available', even though the writing is too small," Aidera replied, annoyed.
"I understand, but... why does it have to be there?"
It was unexpected that a few days ago they happened to stumble upon an affordable laptop repair shop, which they discovered by chance. This was certainly because Aidera's laptop suddenly encountered an error due to overworking.
Clara was initially hesitant about her plan to have the laptop fixed in an unknown location. In her opinion, electronic devices should be repaired at official service centers according to the chosen brand. However, Aidera took the initiative to stop at some random place and chose it to repair her laptop. The reason was simple: she believed that all repair shops were the same.
"Alright then, I'll go down to collect and pay for the service fee. Miss Ai can just relax in the car."
"Okay, I'll leave everything to you," Aidera remained indifferent as she continued to listen to the podcast playing through her Tws earbuds.
After 10 minutes, they finally arrived in their metallic white SUV at the cafeteria with a sign that read "Julius Photocopy" located across the beach. They parked their car in a spacious empty lot.
"Alright, I'll be back."
Clara requested permission to enter the cafeteria alone, leaving the two of them inside. Aidera, on the other hand, took off her Tws earphones and let out a relaxed sigh.
"Hey, are you bored in the car?"
"Huh? What's up, Miss?"
"Let's get out. Since we're near the sea, it seems more enjoyable to see the ocean rather than just staying here."
"O-oh, ok then."
Aidera preferred to wait outside with her driver and enjoy the seaside view. Paul was also fine with it, especially since the idea was not too bad.
* * *
After about 5 minutes, Clara finally emerged from there, accompanied by the store owner. He expressed his gratitude for visiting the shop. Of course, the two individuals standing by the beach also prepared to return to the car. However, Aidera, observing from a distance, became slightly perplexed. She looked at Julius from head to toe, feeling like she had seen him before. She closed her eyes, trying to remember something.
"That man is..."
Consumed by an overwhelming sense of curiosity, Aidera finally decided to follow them. She wanted to confirm her thoughts directly. With a nonchalant demeanor, she crossed over, leaving her bewildered driver behind.
"Miss Aidera, where are you going? Uh..."
On the other hand, Julius also noticed someone approaching him. Finally, he recognized the other girl. After all, yesterday it was only Clara who came into the shop and discussed the problems. He could only catch a glimpse of this girl with sapphire-blue eyes inside the car yesterday.
"Oh, is this your friend?" Julius asked.
"Yes, sir, this is... um..."
"Yes, we are friends. Close friends hehehe." Before Clara could answer, Aidera promptly answered on her behalf. "There's something I need to ask."
"Oh? What is it? I'll answer any question from two beautiful girls like you without hesitation," Julius responded.
"I just want to know... what actually happened to my laptop yesterday?"
"Hmm,"
He had just proclaimed that he would answer any questions without hesitation. However, the problem arose when it came to electronic devices; he didn't understand anything about them.
"I... don't really understand. My son is more knowledgeable about such matters, and he was the one who fixed your laptop yesterday. If you still want to know what went wrong... um... he's currently busy with personal matters and isn't here," Julius explained.
That reaction right away made Aidera frown, her blue eyes loaded up with interest.
"Excuse me, if I may ask... is your son a Grimhour student?"
"Yes, he is a student at the Grimhour Institute. He just started this year."
After Julius answered the question, the atmosphere in the cafeteria became somewhat quiet. Clara, who was previously confused, finally realized why Aidera had asked such a question. She remembered that some time ago, they found a wallet left behind in the cafe. She also felt familiar with this man's face. More precisely, through a photo she found in the wallet. The only difference was that in the photo, Julius' face appeared slightly younger.
"Why are you asking? Could it be..."
"Alright, sir, thank you once again for fixing my laptop. We'll take our leave now," Aidera said.
"Oh, okay. You're welcome and thank you for visiting my store. Take care on your way."
They turned around and headed back to the car, intending to go home. Clara glanced at Aidera, who was still smiling to herself. It was a smile that hinted at a sense of pride. A feeling of joy because her guess turned out to be correct. It turned out that the man was Zeyn's father.
"What kind of coincidence is this?" Clara wondered aloud.
"Pft~ Who knows? It's just a coincidence that the things on my mind were answered. At least now I know more about the personal details of one of the students at Grimhour Institute."
"Huh? Why are you so curious about that? Besides, isn't Zeyn a student from the Faculty of Cultural Studies, majoring in History Education? What's the point of knowing personal details about a student outside of our faculty?" Clara questioned.
"Well, expanding our network is fine, isn't it? In addition, there is a question I would like to ask Zeyn."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"You know... I'm still curious about that strange sighting I had. Maybe he knows something."
"Ugh, are you still obsessing over your own unreal hallucination? Are you planning to ask him some strange questions?" Clara responded, sounding exasperated. "Are you accusing him of something?"
"Why are you suddenly being so serious and jumping to negative thoughts?"
Aidera pouted in annoyance. But whatever the reason, the three of them continued their journey. They were heading to the girls' apartment, as there was no other destination in mind. As for the car, Paul would continue the journey on his own and park the car at the Chana family mansion later on.
* * *
The SUV stopped again at a convenience store near the port area. The place was quite large and equivalent to most convenience stores in West Grimoir. Fortunately, there was a public facility there that could serve as a temporary stop. The reason for their stop was actually quite simple. Firstly, one of them needed to use the restroom.
"Pardon. I won't take long," Clara hurriedly said as she exited the car.
"Me too. Excuse me, miss."
The second reason was that Paul, who happened to be a smoker, took the opportunity to visit the convenience store and buy cigarettes.
"Ahh, those two."
Aidera decided to open her laptop to check its condition after the repair. As soon as she opened the device, a facial recognition feature read her face quickly, allowing her to log in instantly. Aidera was amazed because the laptop had never been this fast since she first bought it. The repairman was truly skilled to not only fix the laptop correctly but also make it twice as fast.
"Wow, it's so fast now?"
She decided to give it a try outside. There happened to be a small cafe inside the convenience store, so she decided to go there. There's nothing wrong with just sitting around and checking the laptop further. Besides, it would definitely be more comfortable there than operating it inside the car like this.
Unfortunately, out of nowhere, someone wearing a black hoodie approached her just as she stepped out of the car.
"Hey!"
"Huh?" Aidera responded, taken aback.
"You better hand over your belongings quickly before something bad happens," the person warned.
Before the girl could even react, she was threatened. Someone held a knife to Aidera's throat from the front, ready to stab her.
"What is this? Who are you?!"
"Shut up!"
With trembling hands and unsure of what to do, the girl slowly walked to the side, intending to escape. Unfortunately, the thief was aware of her intentions and grabbed her shoulder tightly, preventing her from running away.
"Don't run! Hand over your belongings quickly! Before your two friends come back, or do you want this knife to stab you?"
"Unm..."
Dread grasped Aidera as the person continued to threaten her, pressing the sharp knife against her skin. The mention of her two friends earlier indicated that this person had been targeting their car since their arrival. Aidera was left with two choices: either surrender the laptop she was holding or buy time until one of her two companions returned. However, in her panicked state, she couldn't think clearly.
Should she scream? But the surroundings were eerily quiet.
"Quick!" the thief urged, increasing the pressure with the knife.
* * *