Meanwhile, inside the unused storage room, a uniformed police officer arrested and handcuffed Brandon, who was still unconscious and hadn't managed to buckle his belt. The middle-aged man, apparently a detective, spoke with Heather and Oliver, scratching his head.
"So you're saying Mr. Oliver just rescued you?" the detective asked Heather.
"Yes, sir, that's right. Mr. Oliver came out of the locker, and I immediately ran behind him," Heather replied.
The detective stared at Heather, whose eyes showed no sign of lying, then turned to Oliver.
"You came here after getting a message?" the detective asked.
"That's right, Mr. Paul. I was shocked and asked a teacher to call the police, then I rushed over here with two male teachers, just in case. But when I arrived, Mr. Brandon was already on the floor, and Heather had collapsed near him," Oliver answered.
"May I see the message, sir?" Paul, the detective, asked.
"Go ahead," Oliver replied, handing him his smartphone.
"Excuse me, just taking a look," Paul said, examining Oliver's smartphone in his hand.
Paul scrolled from the top. He saw all the police report data about Brandon, the video, and the audio of Heather's statement. Then he saw a cat head symbol at the bottom with the text "Please follow up... Phantom Cat." After that, he saw the sender's number, which was a private number. Paul immediately smiled.
"Phantom Cat again... this is the third time this name has come up in the last week. We recently had a laptop and a smartphone delivered to our office... looks like he's really back," Paul said.
"Huh... you mean the Phantom Cat, the ghost thief who's considered an urban legend?" Oliver asked.
"Ah... so you know about him too. That's understandable; our ages probably aren't that far apart," Paul replied.
"That's right, sir. That name was famous but also infamous when I was a kid because he often appeared in the newspapers," Oliver replied.
"Phantom Cat, huh?" Heather murmured.
"We'll investigate whether he's truly back or if there's an imitator using his name, but judging from what Heather just went through, it's possible he's really returned. Alright, can you come to the police station with us, Heather? I need to make a report for your case. We'll discuss everything at the station," Paul replied, placing a hand on Heather's shoulder.
"O-okay, sir," Heather said, nodding.
"Mr. Oliver, you should come with Heather as well. Come on... let's go," Paul urged.
"Very well, sir (turning to look at the other teachers), I'll go with them briefly. For today, the vice-principal is in charge," Oliver replied.
"Understood, sir," the teachers responded.
After that, they brought Brandon, who was now semi-conscious and handcuffed, and left the storage room to head for the police car parked in the schoolyard.
***
Meanwhile, half an hour later in class, Dylan, who had changed clothes, was sitting in his seat. Ellie, Lena, Maya, and Amy, still holding their cans of drinks, sat clustered around Dylan and stared at him intently.
"What is it now?" Dylan asked.
"Why didn't you want to play basketball?" Ellie asked.
"Too lazy," Dylan answered briefly.
"Why were there cops just now? What happened?" Maya asked, having seen Paul come out with Brandon walking past the gym door.
"I don't know, but it looked like they were taking away that flirty new teacher... and some 10th-grade kid was walking with Mr. Oliver," Lena said.
"Yeah, what was going on?" Amy asked.
"Nothing important. Don't worry about it," Dylan replied casually, resting his head on the desk.
"Ugh... you sound like you don't even care," Lena said, nudging Dylan's shoulder.
"I really don't," Dylan replied with his forehead on the desk.
Suddenly, whispers started among classmates who had just come in from outside.
"Hey, Mr. Nelson said that perverted Mr. Brandon got arrested, right?" one male student asked.
"Yeah, looks like it. They walked past the front of the building," a female student replied.
"Ms. Nora said the person who helped the 10th grader and beat up Brandon was... the Phantom Cat," another female student added.
"Phantom Cat? Never heard of them," one male student said.
"Just try searching for it online. A strange, foreign name like that is bound to be on the internet," another male student replied.
"Oh, here it is... look... turns out the Phantom Cat is an old urban legend in our city," a female student said, showing her smartphone to the others.
"Seriously? That's awesome," another male student said.
"A benevolent ghost thief who robs criminals and exposes their crimes at the same time? But is mysterious and has never been caught, driving the police crazy, which is why they labeled him the Ghost Criminal Mastermind... wow... seriously cool," said the male student next to the female student who was showing her smartphone.
Dylan, listening to all of this, was completely unfazed. Ellie, Lena, Maya, and Amy started to chime in on the classmates' conversation, their curiosity overpowering what was on their minds before, and leaving Dylan alone.
"Oi CATS... did Grandpa also use the name Phantom Cat back then?" Dylan asked in his head.
[That is absolutely correct, sir.]
"No wonder. I never knew about it," Dylan answered.
[Of course you would not know, sir. When your grandfather was in his prime, you were not yet born... not even conceived.]
"Did both my parents know who Grandpa really was?" Dylan asked.
[They did not know. In fact, no one in the family knew, including your cousins you just met.]
"Hmm... is that so? So Grandpa really did pass you on to me," Dylan said.
[That is correct, sir. Besides, I am a good match for you, both physically and mentally. Your grandfather was also very poor and his life was miserable before I was passed down to him.]
"Huh... so how long have you been around?" Dylan asked.
[For a very long time, sir.]
"Really? And all this time you've just been moving from one generation to the next?" Dylan asked.
[That is correct, sir, but not every generation. If there is someone who is a good match for me, I will immediately enter their body. Otherwise, I will remain in the eyeglasses, which are your family heirloom.]
"I see. So you've been lonely all this time? I'm sorry, I didn't know," Dylan replied.
[It is quite alright, sir. I have not been lonely at all.]
"One more question, then: did Grandpa's wives know he was the Phantom Cat?" Dylan asked.
[Of course they did, sir. Your wives will also know very soon.]
"What?! Don't joke around! I'm not going to tell them," Dylan replied.
[We shall see, sir.]
"Look, just please don't let them find out, do you hear me?" Dylan said a little louder in his head.
[I cannot promise that, sir.]
"Ugh... seriously? And one more thing... this enemy you mentioned, the one you said is still out there, what and who is it?" Dylan asked.
[You will know in time, sir. The most important thing now is that you must prepare yourself and protect your family.]
"Grrr... why don't you just tell me? How hard can it be... you cheapskate," Dylan grumbled in his head.