Part 14: Far From Found

“You saw?” I asked in shock.

Cherry nodded a yes with her head while beginning to start the conversation off regarding three files she also started to pull from out of her backpack. She spread them onto the table like the books in The Labyrinth Library.

“Before we do anything, I want to ask you something… Do you know someone named Styra?”

I was extremely confused by this question.

“No… It sounds like you know her though…”

“Believe me, I want to know who she is as much as you do,” she said while opening the first file to my left. Inside, it revealed a worn out illustrated page with a lot of mysterious documents behind it. I recognized it almost on impulse.

“You read Tales Of The Time Keeper? That book was said to—”

“I know. I heard about the Frightening Five stories too. Most people know it exists in-game thanks to that. However, as you were going to clarify it is an impossible find. Even hackers couldn’t uncover it.”

“It was only recorded once. How did you manage to do that?”

“Well, like you, I had an affinity for the Candiere’s Cafe game. It inspired me to apply as a waitress maid for Dream Academy’s Library Cafe.”

“You’re going to become a maid? I wanted to be one so badly when I heard about that. Sadly, only sophomores and up can apply for those summer jobs. I heard they pay really well.”

“Yes they do. Anyway, Haniki-chan, the reason I bring this up is because there is something no one has told you about concerning the game.”

“What would that be?”

“When I was in freshman year, they had a limited time offer for 30 days last Christmas to buy the game in the library’s cafe. It was very interesting to say the least.”

“Is that how you got introduced to it?”

“It was. Although… I remember studying after school next to the windows of the cafe. Every day, when I was done with all of my homework, I could use the window’s reflection to look back and see the tapes on that shelf. At the time, the buzz generated from its popularity caught my attention a little.”

“Ohh…”

“Then there was December 16th. The day they held a festive charity event in the library to celebrate Dream Academy High students that volunteered to participate in a toy drive at one of the largest malls in the convention center. The Ulunar Shopping Center. I was still studying at the time. With mostly everyone’s attention being directed at the host speaker who led the event, I had finally finished when I took notice of the window and—”

She paused, as if something about remembering that moment made her feel this exact way when it happened.

“What happened Cherry?” I asked, trying to help her focus on what she was attempting to tell me.

“Haniki-chan, Candiere’s Cafe may be just a game on the surface, but the iceberg is much deeper than I initially thought. It’s a real place with hidden ties to an organization.”

Suddenly, she took an ultraviolet flashlight out of her backpack and handed it to me.

“Shine it on the drawing,” she said with a quick back and forth glance that was looking at me and then the ancient illustration. When I did as she told me to do, one word appeared that I couldn’t see until I flashed it on the paper.

UVOCA.