Right after Noah and Lucien leave Max's house, he stretches out on his sofa, procrastinating on getting ready for lunch. Looking at the crushed beer can still in his hands, he tries to toss it into the kitchen trash can.
He hits the bin without difficulty, slowly rubs his eyes, and stares at the chandelier on his living room ceiling.
"So boring..." he murmurs in a tired tone.
His attention is stolen when he sees Catarina entering the room and notices that she has changed from the lingerie she was wearing before into an outfit for going out.
"Hm?" grunts Max.
"I'm ready," the girl replies, holding up her purse.
"Okay, I'm coming," Max replies, resting his head on his arms, still lying on the sofa.
"When we get back, can I invite my friend to come over?"
"Which one?" Max replies, now looking at Catarina.
"The redhead from yesterday."
"Hm, sure," he replies, indifferently.
The two pause, and then Catarina curiously observes the hallway through which Noah and Lucien had left.
"Who were those two who just left? What class were they from?"
"Two kids who might end up doing us a favor in the future. The one with black hair had some pretty interesting notes. I have no idea what class they're from, couldn't care less."
"Did you tell them everything?"
"I helped with what I could..." he replies, unconcerned.
"And what if they try to interfere with the investigation?"
"If that possibility existed, I wouldn't have told them. I know who I'm dealing with."
"But you didn't even ask how they both knew where you live..."
Max sighs, interrupting what she was saying as he understands her concern.
"I've already told you that as long as I'm here, no one will be able to invade our space," he replies.
The girl is somewhat relieved, relaxing her shoulders.
"I'm worried about what might happen if this situation continues... You know, no police, no government. If people start to realize they can do whatever they want, this will turn into anarchy," comments Catarina.
"I wouldn't let that happen," Max replies, getting up from the sofa and observing his knuckles, still a bit scraped from the events of last night. "If necessary, I will be the justice."
[...]
As Noah and Lucien walk away from Max's house, both continue to look to the sides and behind them, impressed by the structure of the neighborhood's mansions.
On the way to the market to get something for lunch, the two continue talking.
"Did you see all those trophies?" asks Lucien, still enthusiastic.
"Yes. Of all sizes," Noah replies, thoughtfully, though more focused on what Max said about Thomas.
"Now do you understand what Class A is all about?"
"I think I understand a little better. But even so, Max is human; he has flaws."
Lucien falls silent and thinks for a few moments.
"Noah, do you mind if I review your notes on the case?"
"Um, sure, you can take it," Noah replies, handing the notebook to Lucien.
Lucien opens the notebook and begins to read the page that was already open.
October 20, 2025
Case Revisions
Sentence A:"Don't believe Class A. They are responsible for this": Fake sentence created by Thomas.Barbara was his accomplice.Real sentence unknown (erased by two unknown students).
Sentence B:"The result of the actions Thomas took today will prove that he is the stupidest one here": Fake sentence created by Max."The fallen angels of Class B swear vengeance."Fallen angels: those who fell from Class A (according to Max).Thomas is one of them. Who would the other(s) be?
Sentence C:Real sentence unknown (erased by two unknown students).Asian student suspected of erasing it.
Sentence D:"There is a demon in Class D."No clues as to what it might mean.
Hypotheses:Was Thomas planning to find the real sentence to erase it and write his own over it, but got the floor wrong?How did Thomas know about the sentences?
Note:Max suspects Thomas is behind the sentences, but is not directly responsible.
"There's a contradiction here, Noah," comments Lucien. "How could Thomas be behind the sentences if he himself got the floor they were on wrong?"
Lucien, noticing that his friend is concentrating and seems not to have heard his comment, starts flipping through the notebook, curious, and sees older notes without Noah noticing.
September 15, 2025
They announced a trip to a mountain next month, and apparently all the classes will be together. Strange.
Novak called me to his office to give me the medal from the physics olympiad. My dad insisted I hang it on my bedroom wall.
Lucien skipped class again.
More of the same.
I think I'm getting better at anatomy drawings, I'll do one on the next page to test what I've learned.
July 31, 2025
We finally did it.The answer was to create a Morse code with the length of the words we got from the book's pages. Then we made an anagram, reorganized the letters, put in the password with the combination we already had, and it finally worked. There we were on the leaderboard: Noah and Lucien - sixth place.
We could write a message on the winners' panel, so I wrote: "When the path seems to make no sense, the biggest change is not in the problem, but in the perspective. Sometimes, the only thing needed is to observe from another angle or with a new pair of eyes. Today, the sixth chair is mine, but I will wait to share the table with the next winners."
To celebrate, we gave a name to the swings in the park where we were when we got the idea. Lucien wrote the name on the swing set's frame with a marker, but I doubt it will last long.
Classes start again tomorrow. Wish me luck.
July 1, 2025
Found an interesting game that might be useful for passing the time this vacation. The first levels are pretty easy, but I heard it gets quite difficult later on. The ranking says only five people have managed to reach level 100 and beat it in the eight years since its release.
Level 26 requires musical knowledge. I think I'll call Lucien to help me with this one.
He managed to pass the level in three minutes... no fun.
We agreed to continue the game together.
May 22, 2025
Boredom, boredom, boredom.Same places, same classmates, same teachers, same food.Boredom, boredom, boredom.
Sometimes, I wish something would happen that would completely change the way we live. An apocalypse, or if suddenly all the people disappeared, maybe. I think I could manage well.
Found some ways to make money online; they seem promising.
April 22, 2025
My dad found out about my job and made me quit. He says I have to focus on my studies and socialize.
Novak apparently became the town's mayor. They asked him if he plans to open other schools around the country, and he denied it, but said he intends to elevate the students to levels never seen before. He said: "Elias planned to draw the patterns of the new generation. I will follow his legacy and create the new global leaders the world will know. One only reaches their true potential when they transcend their own humanity."
Who knows what he means by that.
March 23, 2025
Found a job to try to help my dad with his debts. He's more stressed than ever.
Lucien actually seems like an interesting person. I saw him reading one of the Sherlock books and we ended up talking for hours.
Mr. Port instructed me to sign up for the physics olympiad. I still don't know if I will; for me, it's more like a hobby.
February 27, 2025
Met a strange boy who seems to stand out among the other students in the class, but in a bad way, according to the teachers.
He just sits at the back of the class listening to podcasts on his headphones, that is when he's not hiding that he's sleeping behind his red glasses. I've never seen him writing anything down. Despite that, he always seems to get good grades and ask interesting questions to the teachers.
Sometimes, he tries to make jokes with the students who sit near him, but people seem to find him inconvenient.
February 1, 2025
First day at Grand Four. I ended up in Class D.
When I heard about this school, I knew it would be something modern, but when you're inside, you notice it's really ahead of the curve. I realized that even the tones of the classroom lights are controlled to regulate our energy and concentration levels throughout the day.
At first glance, the other students are disappointing. They all seem more worried and frustrated about being in the worst class than in trying to take advantage of the quality education. They're busy trying to fulfill certain social roles and behave as they think someone from a higher class would behave.
Maybe I'm being judgmental, and they're the ones who are right. After all, I don't care that much about moving up a class, and maybe that's even one of the reasons I'm in Class D. You can't know for sure what the principal expects of us.
About the new town, it's actually quite interesting. It has a circular shape and was built around the school fifty years ago. It's not very big, enough to take an hour to go from one end to the other on foot. Doing the math, I think it would be about 30 km² in area.
Our new house is a bit simpler than the last one, but I don't mind that much.
My dad keeps trying to work as much as possible to pay off the debts. I wish I could help in some way.
December 15, 2024
We're moving to another city so I can attend Grand Four.
I don't know what to expect. I suspect that many of the things they say about the school are sensationalized.
It seems the city is much smaller than mine. I certainly won't miss the noise of the cars.
I don't know where my dad got so much money for this to happen.
"Um..." grumbles Noah. "I think hunger has finally hit."
Lucien, noticing that he had been flipping through Noah's notebook for too long, discreetly turns back to the page he was on before handing the notebook back.
"Lucky you," Lucien laughs. "We just arrived at the market and you didn't even notice."
"I think I lost track of time while thinking about the new information," Noah replies, smiling.
As they open the market door, they look around and realize there's almost nothing left on the shelves.
"What the...?" comments Noah. "Where did everything go?"
"It seems the students have already started to take precautions for the worst-case scenario," replies Lucien, indignantly.
"Are they starting to hoard food in their homes on the second day?"
Lucien sighs.
"At least there's some fresh food left," comments Lucien, grabbing an apple from the shelf and taking a bite.
The two boys begin to look around the market, still surprised to see the number of empty shelves, which resembled an apocalypse movie.
"We can make some sandwiches," comments Noah, opening a bag of bread. "At least, for now, we won't go hungry."
"Good idea, I'll get the supplies!" replies Lucien, trying to get excited about the precarious situation.
A few minutes later, Lucien returns with some tomatoes, lettuce, cheese, and ham. Noah grabs a knife from the shelf and begins to assemble the sandwiches for the two of them.
While they eat, Noah gets Lucien's attention.
"So, what did you notice in my notebook?"
"Um, what do you mean?" Lucien replies, afraid that Noah saw him flipping through old notes.
"What did you think of the review of the information so far? Do you think anything was missing?"
"Ah, actually, I noticed a contradiction while reading the review."
"Hm?" asks Noah, while biting into his sandwich.
"The fact that Max thinks Thomas is behind the writings... that doesn't make sense, since we deduced that he got the floor of the sentences wrong."
"Um, yes, I agree," Noah replies, finishing his first sandwich. "Max's intuition must have been wrong. I wasn't sure if I should have told him that at the time."
"Do you think Max was really wrong?"
"I don't rule out the possibility. Let's keep gathering information, and I'm sure the truth will reveal itself at some point."
Lucien falls silent for a few seconds and goes back to eating his sandwich, thoughtfully.
"It's no use, Noah. Your sandwiches will never beat the ones your dad used to make for us," comments Lucien, with a smile.
Noah laughs.
"I hope he's okay..."
Noah cuts his own sentence short when he notices someone familiar entering the market.
"Get down!" Noah whispers to Lucien.
Lucien, startled, ducks down and hides behind a counter along with Noah.
"Hm?!" he asks, startled, holding the sandwich with his mouth.
"It's him. The drug dealer from the party that I told you about," replies Noah, pointing from behind the counter.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Black mullet, black jacket, toothpick in his mouth. It's him."
"What is he doing here?!"
The two begin to hear the sounds of products being moved. Noah tries to take a peek over the counter.
"He's holding a huge garbage bag while throwing the products he sees inside it..." replies Noah, while spying on the mysterious student.
"Damn it, Noah! The sandwiches were left in the aisle!"
The two hear the boy whistling in the distance as he grabs the products.
Noah, still staring at the student, tries to move out from behind the counter to grab the sandwiches that were still on the floor.
As Noah stretches out, the boy turns in his direction, and Lucien pulls him back as fast as he can.
"Are you crazy, man?!" exclaims Lucien, holding Noah's clothes and adjusting his own glasses so they don't fall.
"It's okay, he didn't see."
Noah tries to sneak out from behind the counter again, but Lucien pulls him back once more.
"Don't leave here!" whispers Lucien, widening his eyes at Noah.
The two remain behind the counter as they listen to the student's whistling and the products falling into the bag. Suddenly, they hear a different noise: a loud sound of a heavy metal object falling on the floor, and the whistling stops.
"What the hell was that?! Why did he stop whistling?"
Noah tries to look from behind the counter and sees something that makes him swallow dryly. His vision focuses, and he watches the student bend down to pick up a pistol he had dropped and put it in his waistband, covering it with his jacket.
Noah gets back behind the counter in a millisecond.
"He's armed," whispers Noah, frightened and trying to calm his breathing.
Lucien just furrows his brows and widens his eyes. The two continue to stare at the wall in front of them and concentrate on the noises, still holding the rest of the sandwich they were eating.
As they hear the footsteps getting louder, a few crumbs from Lucien's sandwich fall to the floor as he tenses his hands.
"We're done for!" whispers Lucien.
The two hold their breath. Now, only the footsteps and the breathing of the other student, who is right behind the counter, can be heard.
"Hm?" the student murmurs, curious.
A few seconds pass without any sound, until the sound of bites being taken from a sandwich can be heard.
Noah and Lucien look at each other, confused, and then look at the bread in their hands.
Then, the footsteps can be heard moving away, until finally the entrance door opens again, and the student leaves the market.
The two let out a deep breath and relax their bodies.
They stand up and look around.
"There's almost nothing left!" comments Noah, with his mouth agape and his hands on his head.
"Did he have to take the sandwiches too?!" comments Lucien, indignantly, raising his arms.
Noah, frustrated, picks up the paper he had left on the floor to rest the sandwiches on, crumples it in his hands, and throws it in the trash.
"Just great!" Lucien laughs. "Now we also have to deal with armed students!"
"Not just that, Lucien..." comments Noah, head down. "How are we going to get food now? If the main market is already practically empty, we can expect the same from the local shops."
"I hadn't thought of that..." Lucien replies, lowering his arms.
The two reflect for a few moments in silence.
"Um, if everything in the houses was left as it was before, we can expect to find food in them, don't you think?" comments Lucien.
"Invade other people's houses?" Noah replies, still with his head down.
"Yes, from the families that didn't have any students at Grand Four and are now unoccupied. It could save our lives if the situation gets ugly."
"That is, if the other students haven't already thought of that..."
"Yeah... there is that possibility..."
Noah sighs.
"What time is it?" he asks.
"It just turned three in the afternoon," Lucien replies, adjusting his glasses to read the time on the market clock. "Was there a time on the announcement board for the meeting?"
"It's going to start at five. We still have two hours."
"What are we going to do until then?"
Noah doesn't answer. A few seconds later, he laughs in an almost inaudible tone.
"I have a perfect plan," Noah replies, with a one-sided smile.