Chapter 59; A traitor among us

...07/09/2009 Monday; Night...

The atmosphere in the command room was heavy.

All the S.E.E.S. members watched Mitsuru, who seemed increasingly frustrated with each failed attempt to find traces of the deleted file on Hiro's Persona.

Ken, sitting on the couch, broke the silence with a question: "Kirijo-senpai, did you find anything?"

Mitsuru let out a deep sigh, crossing her arms with a concerned expression.

"Nothing. There's no trace left of the document on Lucifer. Whoever did this knew exactly what to delete… but who?"

Hiro, with Koromaru lying on his lap, looked calmly at Mitsuru.

"Did you tell anyone the password?" he asked, his voice sounding more curious than worried.

Mitsuru shook her head firmly, her gaze scanning the group. "No. Only my father and I know the password."

Yukari ran a hand through her hair, clearly trying to think of a solution. "What if someone hacked the system?" she suggested.

Fuuka, standing next to the computer, shook her head with a serious expression.

"I don't think that's possible. This computer's system is isolated, and to access any data, you'd have to be inside the system itself or use a physical device, like a USB drive."

Minato, leaning against the couch with a damp towel on his forehead, let out a resigned murmur: "Looks like we're at a dead end."

His comment made everyone turn to him. Yukari, Junpei, and the others only now realized that Minato was no longer resting in his room.

Junpei, surprised, blurted out, "Minato… since when have you been here?"

Hiro, still petting Koromaru, answered casually, "He asked me to bring him here. He just wanted to listen to the conversation."

Yukari looked at him with concern. "But he should be in bed."

Aigis intervened, her voice calm.

"I checked Minato-san's condition. He can leave the room, but only if accompanied. Hiro-san brought him along with me."

Fuuka smiled reassuringly. "I gave him the antibiotic earlier. He can stay here for a while."

That's when Shinjiro, with a thoughtful expression, crossed his arms, intrigued by something. "Hold on. I just realized something…"

Mitsuru turned to him, curious.

"What exactly?"

Shinjiro looked at each team member, considering the situation.

He was thinking about when the data was erased and by whom.

"Mitsuru, you mentioned that Lucifer's file has no backup. But what if there's a record of when the file was deleted?"

Shinjiro's insight caught everyone off guard.

Akihiko, in particular, smirked in disbelief, patting his friend on the shoulder.

"Shinji, you're actually using your brain today, huh?" he joked.

Without hesitation, Shinjiro flipped him off, keeping his usual composure.

"I just thought of a possibility."

Mitsuru immediately turned to Fuuka. "Yamagishi, could you track something like that?"

Fuuka stepped closer to the computer, determination in her eyes.

"I can try. I'm not an expert in recovering deleted data, but let's see what I can do."

She began typing at an impressive speed as encrypted data quickly filled the screen.

Junpei, stunned, watched Fuuka's hands dance over the keyboard.

Images of Tartarus, corrupted calculations, and other fragmented files appeared as Fuuka attempted to reconstruct the lost information.

Aigis, standing beside her, provided support by organizing the data as it was retrieved.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group waited anxiously.

Every second felt like an eternity as they waited for Fuuka to find something.

Until Fuuka finally pulled back from the keyboard, her expression confused and frustrated.

"Well..." she began, looking at the others. "From what I managed to restore, Lucifer's file was deleted last month. But… I couldn't find the exact day or time. Sorry."

Yukari offered Fuuka a gentle smile. "It's okay, Fuuka. That's already enough for us to start investigating."

Fuuka let out a relieved sigh, and Mitsuru fell deep into thought, her eyes fixed on the computer screen.

She closed her eyes, mentally mapping out possibilities.

Her mind searched for patterns, schedules—any clue that could lead her to the exact moment the file was erased.

"This person wouldn't delete the document while everyone was in the dormitory," Mitsuru's thoughts echoed in her mind as she focused.

"He would have to leave through the front door. Because the windows are sealed… except for the ones in the rooms. So he probably entered during the night…"

Opening her eyes, Mitsuru finally spoke, her voice firm. "I have a hypothesis."

Akihiko, always attentive to Mitsuru's ideas, turned to her with curiosity. "And that would be?"

Crossing her arms, Mitsuru brought a hand to her chin, her gaze fixed on a distant point, as if visualizing the scenario.

"He wouldn't risk entering the dorm while we were awake. Which means..."

Ken, catching onto Mitsuru's train of thought, completed with an intrigued look, "He would enter at dawn, while everyone was asleep."

Mitsuru nodded firmly. "Exactly."

Hiro, leaning against the couch, pondered the idea for a moment. "It's a solid theory. But… is there any way to find out who it was?"

The room fell into silence once more.

Everyone was lost in thought, trying to figure out how to determine who had deleted the file and the exact moment it happened.

Minato, with visible effort, began to rise from the couch.

Hiro, noticing the movement, gave Koromaru a few light pats on the back, prompting the dog to jump down so he could help Minato stand.

"What is it?" Hiro asked, concerned, as he supported Minato.

Minato looked around the room, his gaze stopping on Yukari. "Yukari… do you remember that time you told me the computer kept beeping nonstop?"

Yukari furrowed her brows for a second before suddenly standing up, as if a lightbulb had gone off in her mind. "Yes! I even forgot to ask why that happened."

Loosening himself slightly from Hiro's grip, Minato walked over to the computer and started typing, his body clearly still weakened. "That beeping… was the computer recording something on the cameras."

Mitsuru looked at him, surprised. "Recording? But the dorm's cameras were programmed not to record anything..."

"I don't understand why either," Minato replied as he continued typing. "But it seems like the Dark Hour sometimes interferes with the cameras, and they start recording on their own for a while."

Even with great effort, Minato managed to open the camera footage tab on the computer.

He searched through the files until he found the random recordings made over the past few weeks.

"It doesn't seem like there are many during the nigh—" he tried to say but was quickly interrupted by a violent cough.

His condition was visibly worsening, the Shadow Arcana infection affecting him more than he wanted to admit.

Hiro, noticing the severity of the situation, quickly stepped in and caught Minato before he collapsed. "Shit. Aigis, take him back to the couch. I'll handle the cameras."

Without hesitation, Aigis helped Minato walk back to the couch while Hiro turned to the screen, his eyes scanning the recordings.

Confusion was evident on his face, as he wasn't sure which file to open.

Junpei, always ready with a comment, stepped closer and pointed at a specific file. "Why not try this one?"

Hiro checked the file's description. "It says it was recorded around 1:30 in the morning. This could be it."

Mitsuru, arms crossed and gaze serious, nodded. "Open it. Let's see what we can find."

Hiro pressed play on the recording.

^^^Recording made on 08/06/2009,^^^

^^^Time: 01:38 AM^^^

The video began with a view of Mitsuru's room.

The camera displayed two luxurious sofas, a neatly organized desk with some books, and a bookshelf filled with volumes.

The atmosphere had a noble and elegant air, a reflection of the S.E.E.S. leader's personality.

In the background, the sound of running water could be heard, signaling that Mitsuru was taking a shower.

"My God..." Mitsuru's muffled voice echoed in the recording, "I can't stop thinking about it... Why did I get so nervous? He only helped me so I wouldn't fall on the ground."

The sound of the shower stopped, and something was knocked over onto the floor.

"Damn it... I dropped my clothes in the water," she sighed in frustration. "Besides… Hiro, Takeba, Arisato… they got hurt so badly. How can I consider myself a leader if I can't even keep S.E.E.S. safe? Ah… I need to get some sleep."

Suddenly, Mitsuru's figure appeared in the recording, wearing only a towel.

Time seemed to slow down.

Realizing what was about to happen, Hiro swiftly raised his arm and slammed his fist onto the keyboard, closing the recording.

"Why the hell are there cameras in our rooms?!" Hiro exclaimed, both shocked and furious.

Fuuka jumped, startled. "Hiro, why did you close the recor—"

"It was to keep Mitsuru from being embarrassed," Hiro replied, still visibly irritated. "She was about to appear in just a towel."

"Wh...What?!" Mitsuru instantly blushed, surprised.

Yukari, also blushing, stood up. "Wait a second… Does that mean that, besides having cameras in our rooms, they can record us changing clothes?!"

Akihiko, looking uncomfortable, swallowed hard. "Not just that… but also whatever we do without realizing."

Shinjiro narrowed his eyes and looked directly at Akihiko, intrigued. "Why were cameras installed in the rooms?"

"I joined the dorm in ninth grade..." Akihiko explained, still uneasy. "And I remember some agents from the Kirijo Corporation installing cameras in the hallways. But I don't remember if they put any in the rooms."

As everyone processed the situation, Mitsuru approached Hiro, her voice low and embarrassed. "Thank you for stopping the recording in time."

Hiro, slightly flustered, whispered back. "You're welcome. I didn't want to see anyone in just a towel either."

That's when Aigis, always attentive to details, noticed something was wrong. "Wait a moment… a hidden camera…"

She began scanning the command room, her sensors sweeping every corner.

Suddenly, her eyes locked onto a spot in the corner of the room.

She rushed over, pulling back the wallpaper and revealing a broken camera.

Ken, curious, asked, "Aigis-san, what is it?"

Aigis carefully reached into the damaged camera. "I found the camera from here. But it was destroyed… seems like it was shot."

She pulled out the camera's memory card, which was completely unusable, with a bullet still lodged in it.

"This is a nine-millimeter round. The bullet destroyed the camera's memory."

Shinjiro frowned and stepped closer. "Does this camera have any identification number?"

Aigis examined the camera's body. "5A. That's the identification for this set. Fuuka-san, check if there are any recordings starting with 5A."

Fuuka quickly returned to the keyboard and began searching through the recordings.

After a few minutes, she looked at the others. "Found it. The recording happened… around three in the morning."

Akihiko, arms crossed, nodded. "Play it. Let's see if there's anything useful."

Fuuka pressed play on the recording.

^^^Recording made on 08/12/2009,^^^

^^^Time: 03:12 AM^^^

The video started slowly, with the darkness of the early morning dominating the scene.

The only sound breaking the silence was the occasional beeping of the computer, echoing eerily in the empty room.

Then, the sound of light footsteps began filling the space—distant at first, but growing louder and clearer.

The command room door slowly opened, revealing a figure dressed entirely in black, each piece of clothing carefully chosen to conceal their identity.

A long overcoat, leather gloves, a balaclava beneath a mask, and a fedora hat gave the intruder a complex and enigmatic appearance.

They moved with an almost unsettling calm toward the computer, typing the password with precise keystrokes, as if they knew exactly what they were doing.

From the coat's pocket, they retrieved a USB drive and inserted it into a hidden port.

"Alright. Now… where is his file? Here."

The voice was muffled by the mask, making identification impossible.

They opened Hiro's file, searching through the section containing information about his Persona, Lucifer.

The screen displayed a series of details—weaknesses, resistances, energy levels.

With a swift motion, the figure initiated the transfer of the file to the USB drive.

While the transfer progressed, the intruder checked their watch, displaying a methodical patience.

Then, they opened a file—something stored only on the USB drive—but the contents weren't visible in the recording.

The transfer was finally completed.

The intruder removed the USB drive and tucked it back into their coat.

They then returned to the keyboard, attempting to delete Hiro's Persona file.

The computer beeped, requesting a password to confirm the deletion.

"Hmph, it's pointless, Takeharu. I will bring about his rebirth myself."

The figure typed the password with unnerving confidence, and after a few seconds, Hiro's Persona file was erased.

"File successfully deleted!" the computer announced in a cold, mechanical tone.

The intruder turned off the computer and began walking toward the door—but something made them stop.

They slowly turned back, their eyes locking onto the camera that had been recording their every move.

The tension in the S.E.E.S. command room grew thicker.

Slowly, the figure approached the camera.

From the inside of their overcoat, they pulled out a handgun and calmly attached a silencer.

"Hello. I hope I'm confusing you. I love attention on myself, but that would risk my desire to awaken him."

They spoke with a strange familiarity, as if they knew everyone personally, as if they were an old acquaintance.

The silence that followed was suffocating, as if the air in the room had grown heavier.

Every word, spoken with a tone of disdain and serenity, sounded like a warning.

With the silencer firmly in place, they pulled back the slide of the pistol, producing a low, ominous click.

Even through the balaclava and mask, the grin they gave made everyone's blood run cold.

It was as if, somehow, they could see that twisted smile—feel the eerie presence the figure emanated.

"I hope we meet on the final day, S.E.E.S. I will always be watching you… your movements, your choices. Well, now I must go. Until next time."

The last sound was the gunshot—the silenced bullet hitting the camera.

The screen distorted, then turned to static.