In one of the crowded shopping districts, Mizuki was laughing with her friends inside a clothing store. Soft music, mirrors, and colorful fabrics… everything felt normal—too normal.
All it took was a single moment.
When her friends turned toward the opposite rack, Mizuki was gone.
No screaming.
No resistance.
A hand covered her mouth, another pulled her away, and within seconds she was shoved into a black car whose doors slammed shut tightly.
Inside the vehicle, her body froze.
Men dressed in black surrounded her from every side, their faces stiff and expressionless. Her breathing quickened, her eyes searching desperately for a way out that did not exist.
One of them spoke in a calm yet firm voice:
— Don't worry. You won't be harmed… as long as you answer our questions.
Mizuki swallowed hard, then nodded fearfully.
The car stopped in a deserted place—no buildings, no sounds, only the wind.
The door opened, and she was led out to sit in front of a single man who seemed different from the rest. His voice was steady, his gaze sharp, as if it were searching through her.
He took out a photograph and placed it in front of her.
— Do you know this person? Koichi.
Mizuki looked at the photo, then lowered her head.
— Yes… I know him.
— It's been reported that you tried to kill him with a group from the Black Hand gang.
She lifted her head abruptly.
— No! That wasn't the intention… it was an accident. We only wanted to… bully him.
The man slightly furrowed his brows.
— I'm not interested in the bullying. Tell me—did Koichi die that night?
She hesitated.
— I don't know… when he fell off the cliff, I thought he was dead. I panicked… and ran away.
— So you weren't certain he was dead?
— No. We left him there and fled.
The man wrote something in his notebook, then looked up again.
— After the incident, did his behavior change?
Mizuki took a deep breath.
— Yes… completely.
She paused for a moment, then continued:
— He used to be cowardly and weak. He accepted everything we did to him. But after the incident… he became cold. Different. When we tried to bully him again, he beat all the men around me by himself… and took them down.
Her eyes widened as she recalled it.
— And when he tried to approach me, I threatened to tell my boyfriend if he touched me… so he backed off and left.
The man slowly raised his head.
— Interesting.
Then he added:
— And after that, the gang fight happened, correct?
— Yes… about two days later.
He nodded thoughtfully.
— I see. Who recorded the incident?
— A classmate of mine… Haruto Kagami. But he was expelled recently.
— Expelled? Why?
— He took photos to blackmail girls at our school.
The pen paused for a brief moment.
— Was he expelled after the gang fight?
— Yes. Exactly.
The man closed his notebook.
— Very well. Thank you for your cooperation. You may go now.
The moment she was released, Mizuki ran as fast as she could, never looking back.
Inside the car, the man calmly said to his men:
— Bring me that photographer. Immediately.
The men moved without hesitation.
But what no one knew…
Beneath the man's chair, one of Glober's creatures — a Seraphex insect — lay perfectly still, having recorded every word, every tone.
Elsewhere, Glober sat in his dark room, his eyes gleaming at the screen.
A cold smile spread across his face as he murmured:
— I've found you.
He had sent the Seraphex in advance, knowing that Mizuki and Haruto would be questioned sooner or later.
One of the insects was tightly hidden beneath Mizuki's shirt, where no one could possibly detect it.
The game had begun to move…
And the threads were starting to intertwine.