'Nothing too serious, just gotta investigate anyone. I was hoping the culprit would be found out when I suddenly said that someone is trying to kill us, but everyone was surprised by it. Whoever it is, they're good at acting dumb.'
Isamu cleared his throat, his voice steady yet heavy with the weight of his words. "Yes, Astrid. Since Takumi and I were the ones attacked, we're the only ones who can be ruled out. I would like to hold a sort of investigation once everyone's done eating."
The room fell silent, save for the soft clinks of cutlery against plates. No one dared meet each other's eyes, tension weaving through the air like an invisible thread.
'Yuna and Haruka can be ruled out too, but I want to mislead our culprit by making them think that I'm not close to figuring it out. I only hope it's not Astrid, but I can't give her any special treatment. I'll have to depend on Takumi's opinion for her, and I'll do the same with Yuto.'
The time finally came. Isamu and Takumi set up in the next room, the air thick with anticipation. The dim lighting cast long shadows on the walls, the single desk and chair in the center of the room looking more like an interrogation setup than a simple investigation.
Takumi leaned back against the desk, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on the door. Isamu stepped into the hallway where the others waited, their backs pressed against the wall, shifting uneasily.
"Who wants to go first?" His voice cut through the stillness like a knife.
Denji stepped forward, his usual relaxed demeanor replaced with a quiet seriousness. "I'll go."
"I'm sorry to do this, Denji, but everyone gets the same treatment."
Denji offered a faint smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. "I understand, Isamu. Don't stress it."
One by one, the questioning began. Each answer was meticulously noted, though the monotony of their explanations soon became frustrating.
"Where was he at this time? … Where was she when you were doing this?"
But nothing seemed out of place. Everyone's movements overlapped or scattered just enough to create plausible deniability. It could have been any of them—or none of them.
Later, the room was empty except for Isamu, who stood by the window. Lightning illuminated the horizon, casting stark, fleeting light across his face. Thunder followed seconds later, low and menacing.
Astrid slipped into the room, quietly closing the door behind her.
"I need to talk to you… This window thing on the first floor—it's kind of similar to what happened in the cafeteria, don't you think?" she said, her tone both thoughtful and cautious.
Isamu turned his gaze away from the window, his expression unreadable. 'That took a little long for you to catch up. I'm pretty sure everyone else will connect that as well.'
"Yeah, I already thought of that."
Astrid raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "You did? Then why didn't you bring it up?"
"That would alert whoever did it that I'm connecting the dots. I wanted them to think they could still squeeze their way out."
Astrid chuckled softly, but it was strained. "Why? If we know it's connected, that rules out people, like Yuna and Haruka."
Isamu finally met her gaze, his eyes sharp. "You're forgetting me and Takumi are also ruled out. That leaves you, Denji, and Yuto. One of you did it."
Her expression didn't falter. "I'm on your list, huh?"
Isamu scoffed, a half-smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Only fair. I was in yours—and that was a one-person list, if I remember correctly."
"I'm… I'm sorry about that," she said, her voice quieter now. "I was scared and just connected the only two dots I could see, I guess."
Isamu ran a hand through his hair, sighing. "It's alright. Actually, I'm glad you were at least trying to figure out what happened."
'Which I guess in a way should rule her out, but everyone would just assume I did it because she's my girlfriend.'
"So what's the plan from here?"
Isamu huffed. "I have no idea honestly. We have no way of figuring out who it could be. We should all sleep in one room tonight, whoever it is shouldn't get the chance to pick us off one by one."
Astrid nodded and left the room.
The investigation yielded little, but Yuna later approached Isamu. "Could I talk to you Isamu?" she asked.
'Can't I just have some time to myself?'
Isamu gave her a nod. "What is it Yuna?"
She took a seat, her eyes looking down. "I think there's a way we can know who the person trying to kill us is."
Isamu raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Please, continue."
"Do you remember last year there was a bunch of fights happening in school and people betting on them and stuff?"
"Yeah."
"Well, if you can recall, the school set up cameras around the school to catch the students who were involved. I'm not sure if they record what happens but if they do we can look back and see who opened the window."
The revelation sent a spark of hope through Isamu. He grabbed her shoulders, his urgency almost startling. "Do you know where the surveillance room is?!"
Yuna hesitated, then nodded. "I think it's on the fifth floor."
"Okay, I'm gonna need you to do me a favor Yuna, don't tell anyone else about this. I'm gonna go and check it with Takumi, if anyone asks why went up there tell them we went to check if the barricade is still holding up. Okay?"
Yuna gave him a silent nod... He quickly went to the other room, Takumi was alone in the room, lying back on the floor and tossing the ball again and again.
"Hey Takumi we have to go upstairs, we may have something."
...
Later, Isamu and Takumi slipped away to the fifth floor under the guise of checking the barricades. The old, abandoned corridors creaked with their every step. Finally, they found the surveillance room, a small, dusty space with three monitors and a battered desktop computer.
...
Yuna walked into the science lab where everyone was and sat down.
"Where are Takumi and Isamu?" Denji asked her.
"Oh, they're on the 5th floor, said they want to check on the barricade." She replied nervously.
Denji softly chuckled. "Those just worry about everything."
Yuto squinted his eyes at her, skeptical of what she had said.
...
The system whirred to life, its grainy footage displaying views of the school grounds and found a camera that barely panned to the fire escape. Slowly, they rewound back until they saw anything suspicious.
"Wait—I saw something!" Isamu's voice broke the tense silence.
Takumi carefully slowed the footage. They watched as a hand—a single, fleeting silhouette in the dark—raised the window.