The theft of Professor Čapek's office quickly became the hottest topic in the entire academy.
Although the mere fact that someone dared to steal in such a heavily guarded place was already unbelievable, what people cared about even more was how it was done—
the entire safe had been taken. What the hell?
Some students who had been to Professor Čapek's office even used their mathematical knowledge to estimate that the safe was over one meter tall and weighed around 180 kilograms.
So the question was—
who could possibly remove such a safe without anyone noticing?
For a time, all the students in the academy were discussing this. Some believed it was done using a vehicle—but any vehicle would have had to pass through the guarded gate.
However, neither the guards nor the surveillance cameras recorded any vehicles entering or leaving that evening.
What was even more baffling was that such a large safe should have left traces no matter how it was moved.
And yet—
apart from the mark where the safe had originally stood, there were no traces at all in the office.
Even the police were scratching their heads.
It was as if the entire safe had simply vanished into thin air.
This immediately sparked curiosity among both students and faculty. Everyone tried to come up with explanations—even professors.
Some even went so far as to create a dedicated research group titled:
"Study on How a 180kg Safe Could Disappear Without Being Noticed or Leaving Any Trace."
…If you have too much research funding, maybe give it to other groups.
Of course, the victim—Professor Čapek—was in no mood for any of this.
After the safe disappeared, he seemed even more neurotic than before.
He stayed locked in his office, clutching his ever-present briefcase like a frightened hamster hiding in a corner, refusing to see anyone…
As for Professor Čapek's condition, Duanmu Huai naturally knew nothing about it.
At this moment, he was standing in front of the safe.
Or rather—
what remained of it.
The thick metal door, once tightly shut, had now been violently torn open like a piece of thick paper.
It looked less like a safe and more like a delivery box ripped apart because the recipient was too lazy to open it properly.
Well—
to Duanmu Huai, it was basically the same.
However, what was inside the safe was… unexpected.
"…Love letters?"
Looking at the stack of letters written in sickeningly mushy language, Duanmu Huai felt physically uncomfortable.
The wording was so overly sentimental that it almost made him want to cry…
Then again, maybe that was because he had never written a love letter in his life.
However, these letters weren't addressed to Charlotte.
They were written to a woman named Mariabell.
Of course, Duanmu Huai had no interest in love letters—nor in other people's romantic affairs.
Fortunately, aside from hiding his love letters, Professor Čapek had also stored some useful materials and photographs in the safe.
Among them—
were records related to his research society.
According to the documents, the Čapek Research Society originated about a year ago, after a séance conducted by Dr. Čapek.
…Of course.
European nobles always loved this kind of ridiculous nonsense.
Honestly, Duanmu Huai couldn't understand why these nobles had nothing better to do than hold séances and spirit gatherings all day.
If it were like Japanese horror movies—some clueless girls summoning fox spirits for thrills—that would be one thing…
But you're all grown adults. Why are you still obsessed with this garbage?
Is tobacco not good enough? Alcohol not good enough? Women not good enough? Or are your drugs not strong enough?
So you just have to court death out of boredom, huh?
Although it was unclear what revelation they received during the séance, after it ended, they made a decision—
to open the Gate of Tartarus and obtain supreme power.
The Gate of Tartarus—
the legendary gate to the underworld controlled by the goddess Hecate.
…Yeah.
Definitely a group of people tired of living.
Then, Duanmu Huai saw a familiar name again.
Professor Čapek, aside from being a professor at the academy, was also a patron of the Silver Twilight Lodge…
…Of course.
The Silver Twilight Lodge again.
Now it all made sense why these idiots were so eager to get themselves killed.
Honestly, the fact that the Silver Twilight Lodge—a secret cult—had been able to grow within high society was largely thanks to fools like Professor Čapek.
At this point, everything was clear.
Seven lunatics affiliated with the Silver Twilight Lodge held a séance.
After receiving some kind of "revelation," they decided to open the Gate of Tartarus.
Through the séance, they formed a contract with the world where the Gate existed—
Charonos—
which was the dark city Duanmu Huai and Mary had previously entered.
Through this contract, they obtained monsters that acted as counterparts to their souls.
Next, it seemed that whoever could fully cultivate their monster would be able to reach and open the Gate of Tartarus.
As for the girls murdered on the streets—
they were sacrifices devoured by these monsters.
Their bodies were torn apart, their souls consumed, used as offerings.
Now I finally understand why they're so obsessed with the Golden Eye…
To them, Mary's Golden Eye is like Tang Monk's flesh—eat it and you gain immortality.
No wonder those monsters kept chasing Mary.
If he were a monster, he'd chase her too.
After all—
this "Tang Monk" didn't have Sun Wukong protecting her.
That said, these guys were oddly polite—just like the demons in Journey to the West.
Instead of attacking all at once, they came one by one to get themselves killed…
Isn't this just the Calabash Brothers saving Grandpa situation all over again?
Of course, during their exploration, they weren't without losses.
The woman Čapek had been obsessed with—Mariabell—had died because of it.
The group of seven disbanded.
But their pursuit of the Gate of Tartarus did not stop.
Then, in the second year—
Charlotte Brontë approached Professor Čapek and joined his research society.
Which meant—
She had also joined the exploration of the Gate of Tartarus.
And according to Čapek's records—
Her soul had already successfully entered the Gate.
What remained here was only her physical body.
But the question was—
How did Charlotte accomplish this?
Just as Duanmu Huai was thinking, a sharp telephone ringing suddenly sounded.
He picked up the receiver, and Mary's slightly panicked voice came through.
"Hello, this is Mary Clarissa Christie, may I—"
"It's me. What's wrong?"
"Ah, sir… thank goodness…"
Hearing Duanmu Huai's voice, Mary let out a sigh of relief.
"Just now, I received a letter—it's from Shirley! She sent it the day before she fell unconscious!"
"Oh?"
Duanmu Huai raised an eyebrow.
"Good. Come to me. I have something important to tell you as well."
Not long after, hurried knocking sounded at the door.
Duanmu Huai opened it to find Mary standing there, slightly out of breath.
"Come in."
"Yes, excuse me…"
As she entered the room and walked into the living room, Mary immediately saw the safe—
its door violently torn open.
"..."
She froze, speechless.
It was only Duanmu Huai's voice that brought her back.
"The letter?"
"Ah—here."
Mary carefully took the letter from her chest and handed it over.
Duanmu Huai lowered his head to read it.
"…What the hell is this??"
The text was completely incomprehensible—like random gibberish.
"Ah, it's Kadath script. Shirley and I transcribed its pronunciation into letters and wrote messages that way. It's something we use occasionally to communicate… like a secret code game."
"..."
Even your games in the history department are this hardcore. Impressive.
"You read it."
Duanmu Huai immediately surrendered.
"Alright."
Mary took the letter and read aloud.
[Dear Mary… when you read this letter, I may already be dead. Even if not, I certainly… will never again be able to enjoy afternoon tea with you and Ashe.
I'm sorry, Mary. You must be very confused right now, not even knowing what happened. I must have caused you great confusion.
I'm sorry. But this is for the best. It's better if you don't know.
So… please, if you… if you get involved in anything dangerous because you're too worried about me, then please stop.
Forget me. Forget me—along with all the unpleasant and terrifying things. Please forget me.
I'll be fine, I promise… please, Mary… study hard, stay good friends with Ashe, and live happily into tomorrow…
Please, please… my dear Mary, my most beloved Mary—don't cry. Always keep smiling…
Mary Clarissa, I wish you happiness…]
By the end, Mary lowered her head, trembling, tears filling her eyes.
Duanmu Huai looked at her, then at the letter.
You're telling me you're just friends?
Why am I getting the same vibe as Anne and Grea?
Don't tell me this is another "they say friends but actually…" situation?
Seriously, why are there so many of these around me?
Ann and Guleya, Hozel and Sezel… and now Mary and Charlotte?
Does it never end?
Still—
this letter completed the final missing piece of the puzzle.
"Perfect. What I need to tell you is related to this as well."
After Mary calmed down, Duanmu Huai spoke.
He took out the documents and explained everything in detail.
When Mary finished reading them—
she was completely stunned.
She had never imagined that her childhood friend—the one who had always been by her side—had willingly joined a cult.
And from the letter, it was clear that she had been in contact with Professor Čapek long before this year.
How… how was that possible?
Mary couldn't believe it.
Her instincts wanted to deny it—but reason told her it was true.
But still—
"Why? Why would Shirley do this?!"
"Even if you ask me, I don't know…"
Duanmu Huai spread his hands helplessly.
Though honestly… I do have a guess.
Anyone could tell that Charlotte's letter was basically a love letter.
Meanwhile, Mary seemed completely oblivious.
So… one of them swings that way, and the other doesn't?
Unrequited love?
And then she went off chasing the Gate of Tartarus out of despair?
Can the Gate even do that?
Of course, that was just speculation.
Maybe it was just because he was surrounded by too many girls like that lately…
Or maybe—
it really was just pure friendship.
Probably?
Fortunately, despite the shock, Mary maintained her composure and calmed down.
She tightly gripped the letter and documents, unable to speak.
Duanmu Huai gave Lorena a look, and she promptly brought Mary a cup of tea.
Strictly speaking, Duanmu Huai didn't have to reveal everything.
But he never did things that way.
In games, he often encountered choices about whether to reveal the truth to someone.
And he always chose to tell them.
The reason was simple—
it was their life.
No matter the truth, no matter whether they would despair or move forward after learning it—
that choice belonged to them.
Lying "for their own good" wasn't something he could do.
"Gentle lies" or "cruel truths"—those weren't his decisions to make.
If you haven't lived someone else's suffering, you have no right to dictate their path.
Likewise—
as an outsider, why impose your will on someone else's life?
That's why, even now, he told Mary everything—including Charlotte's involvement with the cult.
Because the one who was Charlotte's friend—
was not him.
"Thank you…"
After taking a sip of tea, Mary seemed calmer.
"I'm sorry… my thoughts are in disarray. I think I need to go back and think…"
"That's fine. Understandable."
"Then… excuse me."
As she stood to leave, perhaps to change the subject, Mary looked at the safe in the living room.
"Um… is this safe… Professor Čapek's…?"
"Yep."
"Uh… how did you bring it here?"
"I carried it back."
"..."
For some reason—
coming from Duanmu Huai, that sounded completely believable.
"So… what do you plan to do with it?"
"Probably dump it somewhere. I'm not returning it. Unless you want it? Is there a place here that buys scrap metal?"
"Uh… I appreciate the thought…"
(End of Chapter)