The Final Act

"Damn that Natsu...!" Kylee tried ringing Nathan once again but she couldn't get through.

After she got cut off, Nathan rushed into the scene without explaining what he discovered. Because of that, Kylee became worried about his situation and tried contacting him. But she couldn't. His phone wouldn't ring and Kylee couldn't connect.

I should've asked him about that topic! Why would he keep us in the dark if he knew something already?

Doubt began to form inside Kylee's mind. She was aware of Nathan's ability to discern keen details about the case but he didn't say anything. And the fact that even the President was unaware of what he was doing shows that Nathan is hiding something beyond their knowledge.

Kylee went inside the building to report what she discovered. Turning around the corner, she accidentally passed through Ayumi.

"A-Ah! President!"

"Kylee?"

Both of them stopped in their tracks and stared at each other. Both of them know something and this was the perfect time to update each other.

"Kylee, did you hear something from Nathan?" Ayumi asked.

"No, he cut me off when I asked him. It seems like he discovered something when I passed him the information about the nightclub," she answered. "What about you, President?"

"I'm not sure but, Nathan said Angelica was kidnapped..."

"What?!" Kylee widened her eyes. "What do you mean...? Kidnapped?"

"Yes. He specifically asked me to call the authorities at this address and dispatch a stakeout team. He said he knows where to find Angelica and there's a high chance that the culprit is with her." although Ayumi was calm, deep inside she was really worried about the two.

"I want you to listen to me very carefully..."

Nathan's tone a while ago was different. It almost feels like Ayumi was talking to another person. She knows that Nathan wouldn't play a prank like that, especially with her, and that deep tone of his made her shudder in fear.

"No way... it's not true, right? Maybe he's just playing around?" Kylee's doubt wasn't misplaced either. Since she doesn't know anything about the case, it's natural that she wouldn't consider Angelica being abducted.

All of them know that the problem was just Angelica secretly working in a nightclub and that it caused several misunderstandings and a fallout with her brother. They don't know anything about what Nathan is solving under such a thick veneer. 

"No. Nathan was serious when he called me for help..." Ayumi nodded.

"Hah, that guy... how did he know everything? It's just so strange that he knows something about Angelica yet he didn't bother telling us..."

"That's because Natsu doesn't want you to get involved..."

Ayumi and Kylee instantly turned around to see who joined them. The man approached them with a serious face while he is carrying a printed document.

"You're... Harry, right?" Ayumi tried to recognize him.

"Yes, President." Haru nodded.

"Haru? What do you mean he didn't want us to get involved? Do you know anything about this?" Kylee prompted him to spill any information that Nathan left out.

"Unfortunately, even I don't know what Natsu is thinking. He just asked me to investigate a case one year ago for him so I helped him gather information." Haru lent them the document.

As they took it, Ayumi and Kylee skimmed through the whole case file.

"This is... the Infinity Syndicate case, right?" Kylee asked.

"Yes. Natsu asked me to find information about this case. They've been all over the news since last week and to be honest with you, I actually find them really dangerous..." Haru replied.

"Do you know any reason why he would ask you to get this?" Ayumi asked.

"I have no idea at all. But if I have to make a guess, Natsu probably investigated this in secret because it is somehow connected to whatever he is trying to solve right now."

The girls know what Haru meant.

"Wait, I'm confused. Does that mean that this syndicate is somehow connected to Angelica's case?" Kylee turned to him.

"If that's what Nathan thinks then Angelica being kidnapped makes sense now..." Ayumi answered.

Both of them hung their heads while thinking about the connection. All of the information they received right now came out of nowhere. And Nathan is the only one who knows about the case.

"I have a feeling that Natsu would do something alone that's why I came here..." Haru brought something and gave it to them.

"Wait. This is...!"

"It's a tracking device that I invented to know his location. I already put one through his phone and you can see his status through this app. If something happens to him, we'll be able to track him down." Haru installed the apps on their phone.

"I see. This is convenient..." Ayumi thanked.

"Well, this is just a precaution but I don't think that guy will easily break down..." Haru sneered.

"What do you mean?" Ayumi narrowed her eyes.

"Let's just say that he's... a very special man."

What Haru said didn't make any sense to any of them. They couldn't possibly know what he meant either.

"Go on, we're wasting time here. I'll help you contact the police..."

And so the three of them made their way to the police station and inquired for assistance for a stakeout. Haru has some evidence prepared so they easily persuaded the force and now they're on their way to the address Nathan gave them.

***

I knew this place was unordinary when I first came here. Establishing the party in an inconspicuous place already seemed unnatural especially if you're trying to run a business. I could understand if the excuse for that is to hide it from the public but a nightclub that is made for people's leisure time won't do that.

I scanned the place for some other traps but I couldn't find one. These guys are probably hired as a precaution that someone might break in. I'm pretty sure they'd expected the authorities but jokes on them, only a teen arrived to end this mess.

"How...?" Raymond stepped away from Angelica. He had the knife on her cheeks earlier but my arrival shook his composure to a certain degree and he's now pointing it at me.

"I thought something was wrong when I met Angelica the first time. I like to stroll around during the evening and this is the first time I've learned that there's a nightclub hidden on the backside. Surely this will incur someone's curiosity." I began.

When I first stepped in into the nightclub, I already noticed the strangeness looming around the place.

"First of all, the Pink Rose nightclub always starts at 8:00 PM. But even though it has a predetermined schedule, the nightclub doesn't follow the standard preset. It almost looks like the establishment itself was deliberately doing it because it's hiding something beyond the pretense of entertainment. Isn't that right, Sir Raymond?" I stared at him.

According to establishment rules, the Pink Rose nightclub should've been open on Friday nights but the erratic schedules made it suspicious.

After I asked him, the Manager finally removed his mask, and bingo... I was right.

This man, pretending to be timid and frail, was hiding in the shadows for a long time while operating the syndicate as the new leader.

I thought it was just a coincidence that I happen to stumble upon the nightclub and then the news about the Infinity Syndicate suddenly appeared in this region.

"I see... as expected of the former brain of that group, you're really perceptive and sharp, Nathan Sumirez..." he scoffed.

"Hou, so you know something about me?" I asked in return.

"Of course. Who wouldn't know the face of that infamous troublemaker..."

"Unlike you, I did a great job hiding my real identity. You should worry about yourself, teach." I replied.

"I'm surprised that you're staying in that school. Did that incident turn you into a decent man?" Sir Raymond sneered. I know that he's trying to aggravate me by subtly bringing back the past but that won't work anymore.

"So how'd you know about me? There's no way you could've figured out everything by yourself. I did a good job acting like a teacher, you know?" he asked.

Unfortunately, that acting skill wasn't enough to fool me...

"I already had my suspicion from the start when the President asked you about Angelica's parents. Sir Raymond, you told one lie about her condition and that led me to think that you know more." I answered.

Fuyumi asked Raymond back then to try and contact Angelica's parents so that they could fix it efficiently. However, Raymond said that initiating contact with them would be hard because they're overseas.

Angelica's parents are not in abroad right now.

And for a timid teacher like him who's scared of everything, he couldn't possibly dig that information from Angelica who's completely stubborn and stingy.

"If Angelica's parents are abroad, they shouldn't have been experiencing such a drastic crisis financially. It's too far-fetched for you to know that kind of information as well because you just started working as a teacher not too long ago. Angelica wouldn't land on such a place if they're sending money overseas." I added.

When a person says that their parents are working abroad, people would naturally think that their pay is more than what the country's giving them. Although it's true that Angelica and her family went on a business trip last year, the fact that they're here means that the job already ended.

"I see, you've done a good job figuring that one. Did you ask the co-workers?" Raymond asked.

"No, I just clarified it with Angelica herself..." I looked at her and she nodded in my signal.

"That's right! I never even told anyone about my family going abroad up until Nathan asked me. There's no way you could've known that my parents worked overseas, Sir Raymond..." Angelica was able to express her voice calmly even though she was under pressure.

"So that little mistake made you think I'm already a suspect? My my, you're such a great detective, Nathan..." he sneered again.

"B-But... Why? Why's my dad in here? I don't get it. Why did you hurt my dad?" Angelica asked.

"If you want to know why then you should probably ask your father!" Raymond barked.

"..." her father didn't say anything. He hung his head in despair.

"The reason why Angelica wasn't getting enough budget to sustain themselves is that Raymond has been extorting money from your father," I answered in his place.

"Extorting money...? Why?"

"Angelica. Do you know anything about the Infinity incident that took place a year ago when you and your family went abroad?" I asked to confirm. Her father suddenly turned at me with a horrified expression.

"Infinity syndicate? I don't know... what are you talking about?"

I see, so she's not aware... that's a good decision to make, old man. But I apologize in advance because she needs to learn the truth.

"If you recall, one year ago, a branch of the Infinity Syndicate led by Marco was infiltrated by the FBI thanks to a certain journalist—your father."

"What?" Angelica widened her eyes but the one who was more surprised is her Father.

"How...? How did you know?" he asked me in a raspy voice.

"It was through the static email that you send to your daughter," I answered.

Angelica looked at me, asking for an explanation. I'm pretty sure her father already knows what I meant.

It was thanks to that randomly generated email that I managed to know her father's identity.

"That day, the Infinity Syndicate ceased their operation because the transaction was thrashed by the authorities. And your father is the reason why that happened. He solved where the deals are going to be taken thanks to a code that he received." I explained to them.

There's a reason why the three emails were sent in that kind of weird way.

The first email return address was: fkcfkfqv_08@bankapp.com
The second email return address was: fkmfkh_08@emvil.com
The third email return address was: olpb_08@mailcuk.com

"And he purposely recreated that kind of action by sending you these strange letters..." I stared at him.

"You mean, there's a code in those letters?" Angelica asked and I nodded.

"In order to solve it, we need to use Caesar cipher to decode the jumbled arrangement of letters in the return email address..."

In cryptography, a Caesar cipher, also known as Caesar's cipher, the shift cipher, Caesar's code, or Caesar shift, is one of the simplest and most widely known encryption techniques.

"By shifting the alphabet a few positions in either direction, a simple sentence can become unreadable to casual inspection. this was enforced through the random letters that you can see on the email."

The first word was: FKCFKFQV

Shift it by 3 letters up and you'll get: INFINITY

The second word was: FK MFKH = IN PINK

The third word was: OLPB = ROSE

FKCFKFQV FK MFKH OLPB = INFINITY IN PINK ROSE

"Meaning, the whole organization was hiding in the Pink Rose nightclub establishment. You purposely sent this code to Angelica because you're trying to contact the authorities in secret. You predicted that they will eventually know that you're missing and if they inspect the emails that you sent, the authorities will be able to figure out"

And that's what happened a year ago during the Syndicate's fallout.

According to the case file that Haru sent me, the journalist got the code from a spy that they sent to infiltrate the Syndicate's hideout.

By solving it with the Caesar Cipher, they were able to track down the location of the deal, and then the incident happened which led to many innocent people getting killed.

I wouldn't know how to decipher these codes if Kylee didn't contact me about the condition of the nightclub. It just so happened that I remember the case one year ago and it overlaps with the current event right now.

"That's... right." her father finally admitted. "I didn't want my children to know that I'm in danger. That's why I sent that out, hoping that someone would decode it. I didn't expect that to be you though... you've found a good and smart friend, Angelica..." he turned to her.

"Dad..." she looked at him solemnly.

"However, that bastard betrayed me... You said you wouldn't involve her in this!" he turned to Raymond who has been listening for a while.

"That would be impossible..." I replied.

"What?"

"Even if this bastard didn't betray you, Angelica getting dragged on your problem is already set in stone..." I turned to Raymond "That's because he already planned this from the start in order to enact revenge. He's planning on using Angelica as a catalyst to divert the authorities' attention out of sight. Isn't that, right?"

Angelica has the power to conjure a wall. She has the ability to entertain people through her magnificent singing and acting. If she did her role perfectly, people wouldn't notice anything strange in this nightclub.

And in order to hide their darkest secret, they used Angelica to control the crowd.

This was proven to be true because those men in black I saw last time were having a deal while the party is blasting all over the place. No one noticed them except for me, who has been wandering around in secret.

That's how Raymond was able to save this organization from the police. The clever leader behind the scenes was this man pretending to be an English teacher. His ways of thinking are beyond what a standard criminal has. He is truly a scum.

"Hahaha! That's right! In order for me to continue our operation secretly in this place, I used your daughter's talents as a camouflage to hide our transactions. I'd say it's totally worth it because we've fooled them..." he mocked her father.

"You...! You've been using her as a tool! So that's what you intended from the start..." he glared at him.

"You got me there, Nathan. You knew all along that I was just using this girl but you didn't act fast..." he then turned to me.

It's true that I didn't act fast. Because if I did, then she wouldn't be in here. My realization on this case was far too late and I have to reflect.

"...And because of that, we're here now. Hey, Nathan. What are you gonna do? Are you going to report me to the police? Do you have evidence that I abducted them? I could just pretend that I found them earlier you know?"

"..." I didn't answer. It's true that even if I report this to the police, I don't have enough evidence to point him out. Raymond could just walk out of his way and tell that he beat all of the criminals and get rewarded for his actions.

He's a mastermind so it's easy for him to devise a way out of this turmoil. He could twist the truth all he wants and then it's game over for us.

At least, that's what will happen if I wasn't prepared...

"Are you sure...?" I grinned. Raymond finally took me seriously.

"What?"

"Why don't you show me your wrist then..." when I said that, Raymond widened his eyes. His overwhelming confidence was shattered in a mere second.

"If I remember correctly, every member of the Infinity Syndicate has a symbol ∞ on their body. Marco, the original leader of this organization has one on his wrist. And you, Sir Raymond, you have a mark on your wrist as well, right?"

"Tsk!"

"When Chesca tried to bandage your wrist in the council room, you immediately swat it away and told her that you're alright. The reason why you always such long-sleeved clothes is because you're hiding that mark. Am I wrong?" I narrowed my eyes to intimidate him.

He's pretending to be weak and undignified in order to hide his real personality. That's pretty common. But when you suspect someone and it turns out that your suspicions are making sense, all of the common views you have will instantly melt.

"You knew all along...?"

"I didn't have that much evidence until I checked the case file but now it was clear. You're confident that you will get out of here but you made one mistake... And that's making an enemy out of the Brain of that group..." I glared at him.

"You freaking bastard..."

Everything was thanks to Haru though. If I didn't receive that unpublicized information, I wouldn't be able to discern the secret of the syndicate.

And the identity of this man as well.

"Raymond Deradia. Real name—Desmond is what I've seen in the case file last year. You forged a new identity and traveled all the way back here to follow Angelica's father. You started attending SASMNHS in order to scout Angelica and investigate her family. After that, you coerced her father to pay because he's the Journalist who destroyed Marco's criminal activities."

It was an indirect plan to have Angelica work a part-time job. By cutting off their financial activities, he perfectly lured Angelica into the nightclub to act as a diversion while the dealings are happening.

I relentlessly pointed out all of the things that I know based on my previous assumptions powered by Haru's personal investigation.

dno-msed, this was the word that I discovered from one of the images taken in the incident.

Apparently, it was smeared in blood so I couldn't read it properly but when I inverted the photo—desm-ond appeared on the list.

Desmond / Raymond was the co-leader of the Infinity Syndicate—in other words, Marco's accomplice that managed to escape.

"You restarted a deceased nightclub after moving out in this region to carry out your next operations as the new leader. And since you don't want the place to be any less conspicuous, you hired Angelica as a performer and a Hostess." I said.

"I see! So that's why you didn't hesitate to accept me even though I'm underage!" Angelica finally understood what happened.

"So? How did you know that the nightclub was a fake company?" Raymond asked.

"It's because this particular nightclub already ceased its operation last year," I answered him.

Kylee's information was the last piece of the puzzle that I need. I was having doubts about the nightclub but then after knowing that they are already out of order, my suspicions came out to be true.

And it was powered by the email that Angelica's father sent. Infinity was indeed in Pink Rose.

"It's far too weird to have a nightclub opened at such a precise time when there's a dangerous organization lurking around. If this fake company is immune to it, then there's only one thing to consider..." I added.

"..." Raymond didn't speak for a moment.

He was cornered. If I submitted all of the information that I have and if I told them that he has a mark of infinity, he wouldn't be able to escape.

"Give it up, Desmond! Marco didn't want you to continue this legacy!" Angelica's father shouted.

"Shut up you freaking killer! You don't know anything about our dreams! It's because of you that Marco—my senior who saved me from the slums was killed! It's your fault for ruining our plan to eliminate the directors who banished us!" Raymond pointed his knife at him.

"What are you talking about? The news said that Marco killed himself and that it was a suicide after a police chase..." Angelica managed to notice it.

"It's not a suicide! It's a murder and your father killed him!"

"The media couldn't reveal everything that happened during that case because it wasn't released for public reference. They had to cover and make up some stories in order to connect the incident in a mild way for the viewers. But what truly happened is that someone shot Marco." I explained

According to the case files, there were two handguns on the scene. Marco didn't have the gun in his hand when he got killed and the bullet didn't land on points that would exude suicidal attempts.

If that's the case then someone shot him.

"I still remember what happened that day. Those dark embers of flame and blood being spilled everywhere... it was a complete nightmare. And now that Marco is gone, it affected our lives. That's why... I'm going to kill every single one of you who stood in our way that day!"

"Cut the crap, you delusional bastard... It's not Angelica's father who killed Marco." I said.

"What?!" Raymond dropped his jaw. "What are you saying, you brat?! It was clear that he killed him..."

"You're wrong. It's not me who pulled the trigger..." Angelica's father finally spoke. "It was my wife... Angelica's mother."

I closed my eyes.

The truth was finally here. All that's left is if Angelica could handle this untold story...

***

One year ago, Angelica's mother worked as a lawyer overseas. Angelica and Joey were with her when they moved out to live there.

Angelica remembered it very well. As they were trying to produce sessions of her singing, her mother was working on a series of tough cases involving a dangerous syndicate.

That lasted until she met a suspect named Marco.

She already had her suspicion that he was dangerous. And she's aware that Marco already knows that she's in law and that there's no doubt that he'll finish her and the whole family if she fights him.

However, the opposite happened.

As Angelica's mother was investigating Marco, he fell in love with her and he changed.

Her mother knows that there's no chance that his love would ever bloom. She used that strong affection as an opportunity to get to the bottom of Marco's life. And that is—the Infinity Syndicate.

On the day of the transaction, Angelica's mother acted as a spy on a covert mission to follow Marco. She then leaked the location of their hideout via email and sent it to her husband.

Angelica's father received the message and he solved it. He then called the FBI on the location and when the transaction failed, a shootout happened between them.

As her father was rushing into the scene, Marco and Angelica's mother got into a fight.

Marco asked why she betrayed him. The answer was already obvious. He can't do this forever...

"I'm sorry, it's your fate..."

The FBI was about to catch Marco but then he rushed into the lines. When he tried to escape, Angelica's mother pulled the trigger and shot Marco dead.

However, the shootout fell into their place and Angelica's mother was accidentally shot.

Her father lost his mind when that happened. They were at their wits' end. They tried to rush her to the hospital but...

...It was too late.

***

"It's... It's not because of a car accident...? Is that true, Dad?" Angelica questioned him.

Remembering what happened back then made him teared up. I'm not sure about the feelings that a husband has to bear when their wife is dead but I know that it's hard. He had to carry everything and shoulder it.

But... I know that it's not good for Angelica as well now that she knows the truth...

"That doesn't change anything! Your wife still killed him!" Raymond raged after that backstory.

At this point, it's time for me to shut this guy up.

"Marco deliberately got himself killed..." I said.

"What?!"

"Don't you remember? There are two handguns on the scene that day. Supposing that their position is still the same, Marco could've used his other gun to shoot Angelica's mother..." I paused and stared at him. "But he didn't do it, do you know the reason why...?"

I asked a simple question with a simple answer. Surely someone like Raymond could answer it easily.

"N-No way..." Raymond dropped to his knees as he realized it.

"It's because Marco didn't want to cull the life of the woman he loves despite getting used as a tool. It was okay for him to die at her hands instead of getting punished. He already accepted his fate and he didn't want to drag Angelica's family into the mess." I answered for him.

"No! That can't be true! We had a dream!" he snarled.

"That dream already ended when he met Angelica's mother. That was his wish and you disrespected it. You revived this case and dragged everyone on this foolish theatrics of yours because of an act of revenge that Marco didn't even want." I replied.

"NO! YOU'RE WRONG!"

"Surrender already, Sir Raymond. You've lost..." I prepared myself.

"IF THIS IS HOW IT ENDS THEN I'M JUST GOING TO BLOW ALL OF YOU!" he raised his arm and I saw the remote control in his hand.

I already know that there are plastic bombs installed on the corner of this warehouse so that must be the signal.

Everyone braced themselves for the impact.

However...

Bang!

Using the handgun that I snagged earlier from one of the goons, I shot Sir Raymond's arm.

"AAAAA!!!" he dropped the remote control on the floor as he wriggled in pain.

Too late...

He tried to pick it up again but I dismantled him by pulling his body and crushing him to the floor. A loud thud echoed inside the warehouse and everyone was astonished.

As I locked his body on the ground, the sound of multiple sirens pouring in into the place became louder.

The police breached the main entrance of the warehouse. "Freeze! Everyone, don't move!"

They were all well-equipped. Fuyumi probably relayed the information to them and since this is connected to the Infinity Syndicate, they had to prepare a lot of things to seize everyone.

Sadly enough, I already took care of them. All that's left is to untie Angelica and her father.

I approached the princess and untied her.

"Nathan!"

"Woah—!"

Angelica embraced me so hard that I fell to the ground. She was sobbing so hard, that her face was a mess but I don't blame her. She almost got killed and this is probably going to be a traumatic experience for her.

"It's okay. Everything's going to be fine now..." once again, I caressed her hair smoothly while she tightened her embrace.

"Nathan! Angelica!" soon enough, Fuyumi and Kylee came into the scene and approached us. "Are you two okay?!"

"Ah... Hahaha, well... we're fine..." I said while looking at Angelica.

"Jeez! Please don't do that again, I beg you!" Fuyumi cried out. For some reason, her tone seems to be different. I never saw her being this much worried for someone. She was always calm and composed but this is the first time that I saw her shed that much emotion.

"S-Sorry... haha." I chuckled in response.

"Nathan...? Who are they?" Angelica asked as she sniffed.

"Ah, let me introduce you. This is President Ayumi, she's the Student Council President and this is Kylee, the stupid mongrel—AHHH!!"

"You got some nerve introducing me like that, huh?!"

"I give! I give!" I tapped out.

"T-Thank you so much for the help, both of you... My name is Angelica, I'm sorry if my brother caused you trouble..." Angelica introduced herself.

"It's not a problem, Miss Angelica. We're glad that you're not hurt..." Fuyumi smiled.

"Y-Yes...! U-Umm... it was thanks to Nathan. He saved us..." Angelica looked at me. Her cheeks got red as she bashfully snuggled in my front.

"Get away from her, you creep!" Kylee pulled us away from each other.

"WHY ARE YOU HITTING ME?!"

After that, we were questioned by the police and I told them the series of events that led up to this point and it was a hassle.

I also told Angelica to go to the hospital with her father and have herself get checked. I'm sure both of them need some privacy for some talk.

Anyway, I didn't expect this kind of case to blow up inside the council. I'm just so glad that I didn't quit. Angelica might've gotten herself killed if I didn't notice it.

"Oh well, time to go home..."