Act V - An Unexpected Guest: 

Inside the archive - 6:18 pm : 

The sound of the lock was sharp in the silence of the place. Yukiha immediately moved toward the door, trying the handle, but it didn't move. Locked from the outside.

"Cool." Sohara muttered as he put the files back. "We're trapped in the archives. I feel like I'm in a third-rate mystery story."

"I think it's more serious than that." Yukiha said as she turned toward him, her gaze focused. "Someone has been watching us."

"Or maybe someone who doesn't want us here." Sohara replied, then pointed to the shelves. "The files are missing, the door is locked, and I have a nagging feeling that this isn't just a coincidence."

Yukiha didn't answer. Instead, she began to look around the room for any other exit. The windows are small, tightly shuttered. There's only the main door, and now it's locked.

"We have two options." She finally said, standing up straight. "Either we wait for someone to find us, or-"

A light click.

Sohara turned immediately, and so did Yukiha. The sound came from the other side of the shelves.

"That's not the sound of footsteps." Sohara said in a low voice. "It's the sound of... something moving among the files."

Yukiha didn't wait. She moved quietly toward the source of the sound, her fingers close to the phone in her pocket. As for Sohara, he just watched her, his curiosity obvious but his expression still quiet.

When Yukiha looks behind the shelf...

Two brown eyes stare directly at her.

"Ah!" She took a step back, before narrowing her eyes. "You?!"

The person who emerged from the shadows was a student, no stranger to them, but seeing him here... wasn't expected at all.

"Takeru Shoji."

"Wow, I didn't expect to make you jump like that, Kurasawa." The messy-haired guy said with a small smile, raising his hands as if to show that he was unarmed.

Sohara put his hand in his pocket, looking at him expressionlessly. "Shoji, you were the last person I expected here. Should we be worried?"

Shoji tilted his head slightly. "That depends... you two should answer me first." He then looked towards the files, noticing the open file next to Sohara.

"You're looking for something, aren't you?"

"Interesting question." Sohara said, slowly closing the file. "But what interests me more... why were you hiding behind the shelf?"

Shoji smiled, but didn't answer right away. Instead, he pulled out a small key from his pocket and tossed it to Sohara, who picked it up with one hand.

"The door is locked, right? Try this."

Yukiha crossed her arms. "How did you get it?"

"I have my ways." Shoji said as he leaned against the shelf. "But, if you were smart enough to get here, I think you know that some of the doors in this school... are not meant to be opened."

"Nice." Sohara said, looking at the key, then at Yukiha. "We have a puzzle, and we have a key. Now the question is..."

He then looked directly at Shoji.

"Are you part of the problem, or part of the solution?"

Shoji laughed lightly, then turned and headed for the door.

"That depends on what you do now."

He stood at the door, waiting.

After a moment of silence, Yukiha and Sohara exchanged a quick glance. Then, without saying another word, Sohara stepped toward the door and inserted the key.

The sound of the lock opening was clearer than expected.