“It’s true that my brother didn’t go anywhere last night. But… I know he’s up to something. I’m sure of it.”
“What makes you think that?”
“…A little while ago, there was a time when he started sneaking out of the village to hide from everyone. I was curious about what he was doing, so I followed him secretly… and I saw him talking to a strange person.”
“A strange person? Was it a man in a black hood, by any chance? Or maybe a girl dressed in frilly clothes?”
Upon hearing Jasmine’s story, the first figures to cross Yugo’s mind were the masterminds, Lost and Drop. He suspected that one of them might have handed Gamba a tool to transform into a Magic Armor Beast, but Jasmine quietly shook her head.
“No, it wasn't either of them. I think it was just a suspicious-looking middle-aged man.”
“An older man? In that case—”
None of the masterminds Yugo knew fit that description. Of course, they could have changed their appearance through magic or a Magic Item, but considering their typical behavior, he saw no reason for them to go to such lengths.
(Does that mean a mastermind I don't know about was in contact with Gamba?)
It was the most likely possibility, but he couldn't be certain yet. Wanting more information, Yugo continued his questioning.
“You said he was meeting that man a while ago, right? Exactly how long ago was that?”
“It really wasn't that long ago. I think it was shortly before things started getting chaotic over at Luminous Academy.”
“And do you know what they were talking about?”
“No… I couldn't really tell. I was hiding, and they were speaking very quietly.”
Considering the timing, that man—who was almost certainly a mastermind—had likely planned to use Gamba for some purpose. However, before the plan could be executed, Dogma’s group had made their move. When they failed, the Gods had ordered the withdrawal of all masterminds except for Lost and Drop. That man must have been forced to leave this world as well.
As a result, only the object the man had given Gamba remained behind.
Normally, one would assume it provided the ability to transform into a Magic Armor Beast. However, that contradicted the testimony of Jasmine and the others, who insisted Gamba hadn't left the house last night.
(Did he deceive his family with hypnosis or hallucinations? No, if he could do that, he would have targeted me first to drive me out of the village. Besides, there’s one more thing that bothers me.)
Even as he struggled to accept that part of the story, Yugo realized that if Gamba truly were the culprit, another detail felt completely wrong.
He recalled the corpses of the Arachlaws he had inspected. The marks of violence left on their bodies had been devoid of any emotion whatsoever. He couldn't quite put it into words, but it was as if they had been killed by a machine. The bruises suggested the targets had been slaughtered with robotic precision, simply because they were things that needed to be killed.
If Gamba were the culprit, his fists should have carried the weight of his fear of taking a life, or perhaps his boiling rage toward the Arachlaws—the same kind of Magic Armor Beasts that had killed his mother.
Yet, the marks on the Arachlaws showed no such feelings. That was the detail he couldn't ignore.
(Is Gamba not the culprit? But he’s definitely involved in this somehow.)
Treating Gamba as the primary suspect created nothing but contradictions and a lingering sense of unease. While Yugo stood there with a grim expression, Jasmine spoke up again, her voice trembling with anxiety.
“Yugo-san? My brother hasn't done anything bad, has he? Like you said at the meeting, he was just trying to do something good, wasn't he?”
“…Yeah, it’s all right. Don't you worry. I’ll take care of the village’s problems, and I’ll look after Gamba, too.”
The answer remained out of reach, but there were still things Yugo could do. As a hero, he could offer comfort to a child paralyzed by fear. Deciding that was more important than chasing the truth for the moment, Yugo gave the tearful girl a reassuring smile and spoke with gentle, firm confidence.
“It’s okay, it’s going to be okay…! I can still fix this. Everything is going to be fine!”
Meanwhile, Gamba sat in his room, his leg bouncing nervously as he muttered to himself. He was consumed by an overwhelming sense of panic. No matter how many times he told himself to calm down, the words only seemed to fuel his anxiety further.
He thought back to Yugo’s warning that danger was approaching the village. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tight. Looking down at what he held in his hand, he whispered again.
“It’s okay… Don't worry. It’s all going to work out…!”
In his palm, held in a slightly steadier grip, was an object that resembled a black crystal.