The night was not over yet.
As the police tightened the perimeter and the cuffs closed around Ryoji's wrists, other eyes were watching… from corners no one noticed.
Glober saw the cameraman.
He wasn't close to the heart of the clash,
nor far enough to be just a bystander.
He stood at the edge of the street, half of his body swallowed by shadow, his phone held steadily, recording the scene.
Not with confusion,
but with the focus of someone who had been waiting for this exact moment.
At first, Glober did not judge him.
What was happening was enough to make anyone pull out their phone.
But something was wrong.
The confrontation hadn't lasted more than half an hour.
And yet…
This young man was here—
in the right place,
at the perfect time.
With disturbing precision.
"How did you know?"
That question alone was enough to ignite suspicion.
Glober did not hesitate.
He sent his human replica.
The one he had prepared in advance.
Dressed in black clothes bought earlier,
moving lightly,
merging with the shadows,
like a dark thought that had detached itself from reality.
The replica slipped in behind the cameraman.
The young man was drunk on adrenaline.
His breathing was rapid,
his fingers trembling with excitement,
the phone's lens never blinking.
He didn't feel it.
Didn't hear a step.
Didn't realize anything—
Until it was over.
The replica moved fast.
A precise, sharp strike—
the edge of the hand to the side of the neck.
Shuto Uchi, a karate technique,
designed to disable consciousness without noise.
The body collapsed instantly.
The phone slipped from his hand,
and the cameraman crumpled to the ground, motionless.
The replica picked up the phone.
Took the cameraman's hand
and pressed his thumb against the screen.
Unlocked.
The moment the files appeared,
Glober's suspicions were confirmed.
The video was there.
Clear.
Stable.
Shot from above.
The forest.
The cliff.
Koichi's fall.
"…So it was you."
He began scrolling through the files.
Photos.
Videos.
Not just of Koichi.
Girls.
From the school.
From different classes.
Hidden recordings.
Unethical angles.
Short clips, categorized, carefully stored.
This wasn't curiosity.
It was blackmail.
A filthy means to satisfy his desires.
Glober's conclusion was cold—and absolute:
This person was just as dangerous as Ryoji.
He ordered the replica to reveal his face.
The cap was removed.
The medical mask pulled away.
And then… he recognized him.
Not from Koichi's class.
Not from his circle.
But—
From Mizuki's class.
The name surfaced instantly in Glober's mind:
Haruto Kagami.
Glober thought for a moment.
The replica stood silently over the fallen body.
Glober watched through its eyes,
then a final possibility crossed his mind.
"What if…"
He gave a calm order:
"Check the phone. Make sure it didn't capture anything that shouldn't be there."
The replica reviewed the footage frame by frame.
Camera angles.
Lighting.
Smoke.
No sign of his insects.
No shadow.
No reflection.
No mistake.
Perfect.
"Good."
He ordered the phone returned to Haruto's pocket,
then ordered the replica to withdraw.
It returned,
fading quietly…
As if it had never existed.
Glober sat alone in the darkness.
A slow, sick smile spread across his face.
"Tomorrow…"
"…will be the worst day of your life."
After a short while,
Haruto stirred.
A faint groan.
A throbbing headache.
He opened his eyes in confusion.
"What the…?"
He sat up quickly,
checked his body.
No blood.
No obvious bruises.
He checked his pockets.
The phone… was there.
His confusion deepened.
"Strange…"
He opened the phone eagerly.
The video was still there.
Untouched.
He smiled.
All doubt vanished.
"Hah… I must have just passed out."
He raised his head, his eyes gleaming.
"This video…"
"…the press will pay a lot for it."
He didn't know—
That he would be the one paying the price.
The next morning, an unusual whisper spread through the school corridors.
Students gathered in corners, sharing a single piece of news:
The arrest of Ryoji and his gang, the Black Hand.
Some spoke in shock.
Others with fear.
And some with clear schadenfreude.
The name alone was enough to cast tension over the school,
as if a heavy shadow had passed over it.
Haruto Kagami entered his classroom as usual.
But…
Something was wrong.
Silence.
No casual chatter.
No laughter.
Only stares.
Stares of anger.
Disgust.
Open contempt.
He stopped in his tracks.
Then he noticed—
The principal.
Standing beside the teacher.
His heart tightened.
"Kagami Haruto."
The principal's voice was rigid.
"Come here."
He stepped forward with heavy feet,
anxiety pressing against his chest.
The principal extended his hand.
"Your phone."
Haruto froze.
"M-My phone? Why?"
"Hand it over."
A tone that allowed no argument.
He hesitated. Then…
He gave him the phone.
The principal looked him straight in the eyes.
"We received a serious report."
Haruto swallowed hard.
"A report stating that you have been blackmailing female students from this school,"
"using recordings taken in private places."
His voice collapsed.
"T-That's a lie! I didn't do anything!"
The principal tried to open the phone.
Locked.
"Unlock it."
"No!" Haruto shouted unintentionally.
"There are personal things on it!"
The principal stepped closer.
"If you don't unlock it now… the police will."
Time froze.
Sweat ran down his forehead.
His breathing accelerated.
And finally…
He gave in.
He unlocked the phone.
The principal said nothing.
Didn't argue.
One look was enough.
He closed the phone slowly.
Then looked at Haruto—
A gaze devoid of any sympathy.
"Follow me."
Haruto left the classroom.
The hallway was long…
and cruel.
Whispers stabbed at him from every side:
"Pervert…"
"Disgusting…"
"I always felt something was off about him."
About an hour later…
In Glober's class.
"Did you hear?"
"Haruto Kagami was expelled!"
"They say he was a deviant…"
Glober sat in his seat.
Calm.
No surprise.
No emotion.
Just a result.
He noticed something else.
Mizuki… hadn't come to school either.
He turned his gaze toward the window and said coldly:
"It's over."
"Now… no one will bother me anymore."