Recap: The silence stretched heavy, broken only by the fluorescent buzz. Each of them nodded once, reluctant but resolved.
The System whispered approval in my skull:
> [Objective Updated: Protect Witness (Aika).]
[New Thread Unlocked: Nakamura-sensei.]
[Emotional Sync: 12% → 15%.]
I closed the folder in front of me, the clap of paper against wood final enough to feel like a vow. "We don't let her get swallowed the way Saki was."
We left the archive in pairs, shadows thrown long against the hall walls. The night was sharp, cool, almost too quiet.
Aika's small figure was already disappearing at the far end of the hall, her hood tugged low, her steps quick.
I almost called out to her but then I saw it.
Another shadow peeled itself from the corner near the stairwell, a fraction too deliberate, too smooth. A shape followed her at a measured distance, keeping to the edges of light, head low.
The hairs on my neck prickled. Whoever it was, they'd been waiting for her.
