A Deliberate Score

After a long night without her grandfather by her side, Lindsey woke up that morning with a heaviness sitting deep in her chest. Her heart ached — but Ryuu, as he always did, made a point of stopping by before heading to work each morning, doing what he could to lift her spirits.

"What brings you here so early, Ryuu?" Lindsey asked, shuffling out of her bedroom with her eyes still half-shut, hair disheveled, still in her wrinkled pajamas.

"Dad told me to take you to your national exam today," Ryuu replied, sitting comfortably on the living room sofa with his legs crossed.

"I only agreed to this yesterday — and there's already an exam?" Lindsey muttered, raising both arms above her head and scratching the back of her head.

Ryuu gave a small shrug. "Probably because it's June. You need to get your certificate quickly since new student enrollment is already open," he said, as if it were perfectly obvious.

Lindsey shuffled toward the small kitchen. "So... I'll be starting middle school?" she murmured, wrapping both hands around a white ceramic mug she was about to fill with black coffee.

"That's right! Since you've never been to school before, you need to sit an exam first," Ryuu called from the living room.

"Fortunately, a lot of people are in the same boat. The government holds catch-up exams like this pretty regularly," he added, shifting in his seat.

Once the coffee had brewed and its warm aroma drifted through the small house, Lindsey disappeared back into the inner room. "Hm... alright, I'll go get ready," she said simply, slipping into the bathroom with her cup still firmly in hand.

After a few minutes of waiting, Lindsey emerged looking like an entirely different person. She had on a plain black dress with a neat white belt at the waist, and her hair — still slightly damp from the shower — fell softly over her shoulders.

"The clothes you gave me are a little big," she remarked, doing a small spin in front of the mirror to feel how the dress moved.

Ryuu went quiet for a moment, just looking at her. "You look amazing," he murmured, his face going faintly red.

They drove to the exam venue in Ryuu's sedan as usual. Inside the cool car, Lindsey sat silently in the passenger seat, her head leaned against the cold window, watching the scenery drift by outside.

"Hey — I heard you're a police officer, Ryuu," she said, glancing at him briefly with her usual calm expression.

"That's right," Ryuu answered, eyes steady on the road ahead.

"Does that mean you'll be investigating the missing capsules Dr. Rian mentioned last night?" Lindsey asked, propping her chin against her right hand on the window ledge.

"No. Dr. Rian refused to file a report, so I don't have authorization for an official investigation," Ryuu said plainly.

"I see..." Lindsey replied softly, her voice barely carrying.

"Don't worry though — my dad is looking into it," Ryuu added, glancing briefly at her.

"He's retired, so he can run an unofficial investigation. He also has a few loyal contacts and a pretty close relationship with Dr. Diaz," he continued, his eyes drifting back to the road, which was beginning to fill with morning traffic.

"Oh. Alright," Lindsey replied shortly, still looking out the window.

After a few more bits of light conversation, they arrived at their destination. Ryuu parked the sedan carefully along the roadside, then stepped out and opened the passenger door for Lindsey.

Lindsey climbed out with cautious steps. "I'm going in by myself?" she asked, eyeing the large three-story building in front of them.

Ryuu nodded confidently. "Of course. Would you like company?" he asked, a playful grin aimed at Lindsey's very serious face.

"No, thank you," she replied flatly, then turned and walked briskly toward the building, leaving Ryuu standing beside the car.

Not long after, his phone rang from his pocket. He pulled it out — it was his father. "Hello?" he answered.

"How's it going? Have you arrived?" Arion asked. He was currently at Roya Hospital with Dr. Diaz and Dr. Rian, standing inside the hidden room.

"We're here. It's just me now — she's already gone in," Ryuu replied, leaning casually against the warm hood of his car.

"How's the investigation going on your end?" Ryuu asked.

"Not great. Whoever did this left absolutely no trace on the security cameras. But I've managed to work out that there were likely three of them," Arion replied, pacing slowly around the metal table in the hidden room.

Dr. Rian approached as Arion was still on the phone. "Alright, I'll call you again later," Arion said, and ended the call.

"Well, Mr. Houdoug? Did you find anything?" Dr. Rian asked, his hands fidgeting restlessly in front of him.

Arion turned to face him. "Nothing useful, I'm afraid. All they left behind was a faint smear on the wall — likely from a cloth of some kind," he admitted.

"To be honest, this kind of investigation isn't really my area," he added, rubbing the back of his neck.

"But don't worry — I've already reached out to someone who might be able to help," he continued, stepping past Dr. Rian and making his way toward the exit.

Dr. Rian turned to follow his gaze. "Someone?" he murmured, tilting his head as he watched Arion walk away.

---
By midday, Lindsey stepped out of the exam building, her first stage complete and cleared for the next round. She walked out holding her exam paper at her side.

"Good. Not too high, not too low," she murmured to herself, glancing down at the neat row of scores — each one reading exactly '75'.

She pulled open Ryuu's car door, dropped herself inside, and swung it shut behind her with a heavy slam. "BANG."

Ryuu jolted awake from his nap in the driver's seat. "Wh— done already?" he croaked, rubbing his eyes.

"Done," Lindsey replied simply, clicking her seatbelt into place.

Ryuu started the engine, and they drove back toward the Houdoug residence.

When they arrived, Lindsey looked around, puzzled. "Why are we here?" she asked, staring up at the large, impressive house in front of her.

Ryuu startled. "Oh — right, you said you wanted to talk to my dad, remember?" he said, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

Lindsey studied him for a moment, then opened the car door and stepped out. "Oh, remember not to shut it—" Ryuu started — then "BANG." Lindsey had already slammed it shut. "— hard," he finished, shoulders slumping.

Ryuu climbed out after her and they went inside together. They slipped off their shoes at the entrance and stepped into the main room.

"Oh, you're back," Arion said, emerging from one of the ground-floor rooms.

Lindsey sat down on the living room sofa. Ryuu took the one across from her. "Has sister arrived yet?" Ryuu asked, looking at Arion.

"Not yet — probably tomorrow morning," Arion replied, glancing at his watch. "Actually, come with me. There's something I want to show you," he added, turning and walking back toward his room.

Lindsey shot a sideways glance at the door, then stood and followed. "Excuse me~" she said softly, knocking before stepping in to find Arion rummaging through a large wooden wardrobe.

He turned around slowly, holding something in his hand.

"Lindsey..." he said, his voice serious. "Did you write this?"

He held up a slip of paper — the same one he had found in Lindsey's room five years ago.

Lindsey didn't miss a beat. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said casually, lifting a shoulder.

"Don't try to dodge this. I've already compared it to your current handwriting — and it's a match," Arion replied firmly, holding up her exam paper in his other hand.

"And as for your exam score — I'm fairly certain that was intentional. Wasn't it?" he added, fixing her with a sharp, searching look.

Lindsey responded with nothing more than a small, quiet smile and a slight lift of her shoulders.

Arion held Lindsey gaze.

"If that's true... then you're the one who ended World War III five years ago," he said, his voice low and measured, eyes locked onto hers.