"Brother, did you know? I heard that people have been going missing around here one after another lately."
"So I've heard. There are even students from the academy whose whereabouts are unknown, right?"
Fee, having brought up the subject of the recent string of disappearances, nodded solemnly at his older brother's reply.
Though it wasn't a pleasant topic, it was clearly weighing on him. He continued with an anxious expression.
"I feel like strange incidents have been on the rise lately. This city wasn't like this before..."
"Is it really that unusual? For this many things to happen?"
Fee nodded once more at the question.
Even as a reincarnator from another world, Yugo felt a sense of unease regarding the current state of the city. He wore a grim expression as he muttered to himself.
"First the Tunnel Incident, then that man transforming into a Magic Armor Beast at the care facility... and now these frequent disappearances. It’d be more strange to call any of this normal."
"Yeah... it’s scary. One weird thing after another just keeps happening."
"Dammit! If only I’d caught the culprit back then..."
Still frustrated by his failure to capture the Crab Kaijin, Yugo slammed his clenched fist into his palm.
The man had vanished like smoke while unconscious. Where was he now, and what was he doing? Was it possible he was the one behind the disappearances? As Yugo turned these thoughts over in his mind, Fee spoke up again.
"Brother... to tell you the truth, I overheard Father talking. Apparently, they found parts of a monster among the things that man left behind at the scene. And it seems they were from a particularly vicious species."
"A monster's? What do you mean?"
"I don't know for sure. But when I looked into it, I found that those monsters aren't supposed to live anywhere near here. I can't rule out the possibility that the man defeated one in some far-off land and brought the parts back with him, but..."
"But if those monster parts were what transformed him into a Magic Armor Beast, it's more natural to assume someone else gave them to him."
For the third time, Fee nodded. He affirmed his brother's words, seeing that Yugo had reached the exact same conclusion.
While it was still purely speculation, it suggested that someone might be operating in the shadows.
If so, what was the objective of the person pulling the strings? Yugo spoke up to reassure Fee, who was visibly growing more uneasy.
"Don't worry. The current head of the prestigious House of Clay—the old man—is on the case, right? If he's involved, it'll be fine. Even Marcos and I managed to beat that guy while we're still students. A professional Magic Knight won't lose to him."
"Yeah, you're right..."
"Besides, we're still taking turns guarding the facility, aren't we? Melt is helping, and even Marcos is pitching in one way or another. There’s no need to worry so much."
Ever since the Crab Kaijin had appeared, Yugo and his friends had been visiting the care facility almost every day.
They checked for anything unusual and watched for suspicious individuals. They knew the Security Force was sending patrols, but out of a sense of responsibility for letting the culprit escape, the three of them rotated shifts to keep an eye on the place themselves.
"Melt and Marcos are there today, but I think I'll drop by for a bit too. I've got nothing better to do."
"Then I'll go with you. I’m still a little worried, after all..."
Yugo hoped the culprit would be found soon and the cases resolved so the ominous cloud hanging over the city would finally lift. Just as he started to stand up, he sensed several people approaching from behind.
Turning around, Yugo’s expression clouded with suspicion as he saw a group of students with vaguely familiar faces walking toward them.
"What is it? You guys have business with me?"
"...Is it you? Are you the one pulling the strings?"
"Huh?"
The students had swarmed his living area only to spout complete nonsense. Yugo stared at them, baffled.
His attitude seemed to trigger a surge of emotion in one of the boys. The student lunged forward and grabbed Yugo by the collar, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Was it you?! You’re the one kidnapping everyone, aren't you?!"
"Whoa, easy there! What are you talking about? I seriously have no idea what you mean. ...Wait. Come to think of it, weren't you one of the guys following Rush around...?"
Yugo pried off the hands of the hysterical student and realized the boy was part of the inner circle of Rush, the student he’d dueled recently.
Now that he looked closer, the others were also faces he had seen during that duel. As Yugo wondered why they had come to him to scream gibberish, the student who had grabbed him spoke again.
"Don't lie! It has to be you! Our friends are going missing one after another! One day they're just gone, and they never come back to the dorms! It’s happened over and over! You're doing this as revenge against us, aren't you?!"
"Are you serious? Look at me—I’m basically living in a camp outdoors. Where exactly would I kidnap and hide people? Besides, I won the duel against your leader. It would make sense for the loser to seek revenge, but why would the winner bother with something like that?"
"But there’s no one else who would do this! Even a girl from the Middle School Division disappeared the other day!"
"Actually, it's the other way around. I don't know anything about your social circle. How would I even know that some middle schooler I've never met was friends with Rush? Look, I get why you want to blame me, but I've been spending a lot of time at the nearby care facility lately. The staff and the kids there can provide an alibi if you need one."
"...Then who is it? Who’s attacking us...?"
Whether he realized his logic was flawed or was simply deflated by Yugo’s confident demeanor, the student who had accused him looked down, muttering in a daze.
He and the other students were all deathly pale. Their faces were masks of pure despair and terror.
"So, every student who vanished was an acquaintance of Rush? That’s strange..."
Judging by their behavior, Yugo didn't think they were acting or playing a joke. Finding it suspicious that all the victims of the disappearances were linked to Rush, Yugo turned to Fee for his input.