The Serial Disappearance of Young Girls Case—or rather, the Serial Murder of Young Girls Case would be more accurate. It was a kind of human experiment in which Vacher sacrificed young girls in an attempt to resurrect his lover, a Snezhnayan woman who had melted away. I had always known that I would have to meet that man someday. After all, the only places I remembered where Primordial Sea water existed were the Fortress of Meropide and Vacher’s workshop.
But there were several restrictions that kept me from simply storming in. Since I had been trapped in the House of the Hearth, I rarely had opportunities to go outside. And even if a mission came in, I suspected that unless it was someone obedient to my wishes like Capitano, they would simply drag me along. More than anything, though, there were plenty of ways to die besides Primordial Sea water, so I had neglected the matter until now. As long as no one close to me got caught up in it, I had intended to stay quiet.
Yeah... as long as no one close to me got caught up in it...
"Elena has disappeared? Given her age, it reminds me of the Serial Disappearance of Young Girls Case..."
"What?! Not a single person ever came back from there! We need to report this to the police immediately...!"
"Yes. I’ll go with you. Let’s explain the situation to the professor first and then leave."
"Right!"
Marco and I rushed to the police station and reported Elena’s disappearance. News that a Judicial Training Institute student had gone missing soon spread throughout Fontaine.
Friday Morning Edition of The Steambird
[Judicial Training Institute Student Elena Missing for Second Day; Not Even a Single Clue Found...]
[Missing Woman’s Parents Break Down in Tears... Please Find Our Daughter]
[Judicial Training Institute Suspends Classes Today, Prays for Her Swift Return]
Marco and I sat gloomily in a café, sipping coffee.
"How did Elena end up getting caught by that thing...?"
"Her luck was just terribly bad..."
"Do those bastards even have brains? Maybe they would take an ordinary person, but kidnapping a Judicial Training Institute student? Does that make any sense?"
"They still haven’t been caught... They must be confident they never will be."
"Damn it... her... If this was how her life was going to end... I should’ve gone to Lady Furina’s performance with her at least once..."
Marco vented his frustration. She had been the first friend he made after entering the Judicial Training Institute, so it was only natural.
"Should we at least visit Elena’s house?"
"There’ll probably be police tape up. Do you think they’ll let us in?"
"We’ll say we knew her. Besides, I’m here, aren’t I?"
"Yeah... Your name is pretty well-known now, so all the police officers will know you."
The two of us headed to Elena’s house. As expected, police tape had been put up, and officers stood in front of it.
"This area is off lim—What? It’s the top-ranked student?"
"Hello. I came to speak with Elena’s family."
"What’s your relationship with the missing woman?"
"She helped me settle in at the Judicial Training Institute. Since she’s someone I know, this really pains me..."
"Hmm... If it’s you, I suppose it’ll be fine. Go on in. Is the man beside you an acquaintance too?"
"Yes. We’re classmates."
Elena’s House
It was a small house tucked away in a corner of the Court of Fontaine. It seemed Elena lived with her father, mother, and a younger brother who was quite a bit younger than her.
"Our daughter loved Lady Furina’s performances. That was why she worked so hard to become a lawyer or prosecutor, someone who would have many chances to see Lady Furina..."
"So she really did love Lady Furina..."
When I had looked into her room earlier, there had been a lot of Furina merchandise. She had simply been a diehard Furina fan.
"Our son saw how diligently his sister studied and followed her example. He was accepted into the Sumeru Akademiya on a scholarship. Our family doesn’t have much money... Without scholarships, we would struggle to get by..."
"Then how did Elena manage to watch Lady Furina’s performances? Tickets must have been quite expensive..."
"She worked part-time jobs so she could afford even a seat in the farthest corner. On the rare lucky days when a front-row seat was listed cheaply, she would jump for joy. She was such an innocent child... But... but..."
Elena’s father soon began to cry.
"Now that... that child... is gone... I don’t know what to do... Could you please help us...? You are Fontaine’s famous top-ranked student, aren’t you..."
"I’m an orphan... so I don’t have many connections. If I hear any news, I’ll make sure to let you know."
"Please... I just want our daughter to come back alive... Sob..."
Her mother began crying as well. That bastard Vacher... He had already been infamous when I only saw him in the story, but seeing his victims’ families weep like this, I couldn’t let it slide. I needed to go in there and smash the place to hell at least once.
Marco looked deeply troubled too. Naturally. Honestly, standing expressionless in an environment like this was no different from being a psychopath.
"I’ll search around Fontaine as well. The institute is closed today, and we have the weekend too. I’ll find some trace of your daughter somehow."
"Thank you... Truly... thank you..."
Her mother clasped my hand and thanked me. When she did that, I couldn’t help feeling conflicted too...
After leaving Elena’s house and parting ways with Marco, I returned to the Bouf d’ete Residence. On the way back, Citra and Cravie came running toward me.
"Avrora! We have a big problem!"
"W-What? What happened that you two came running out here?!"
"A strange person in black clothes came to our house! He says he’s looking for you!"
"He’s super tall too! He looks even more like the Great Demon King than the Great Demon King does!"
A tall person dressed in black? Don’t tell me...?
"Let’s hurry back."
When I arrived at the Bouf d’ete Residence and opened the door, an extremely familiar figure was seated at the dining table. The person I could call my martial arts master, the Number One Fatui Harbinger...
"You... where have you been until now?"
Capitano was in our house.
"I went to the House of the Hearth and mentioned your name, but Arlecchino irritably told me that you were not at her house and to get lost. So I stopped by here. When I opened the door, your white-haired younger sister attacked me. I used a little force on her."
Peruel was sprawled face-down on the first-floor ground, completely unconscious. Citra and Cravie poked at Peruel with twigs, but she did not so much as twitch. It was my first time seeing her like that too...
"I’ll put my sister in bed first. We can talk afterward."
"Go ahead."
"I see. An inspection was launched into the House of the Hearth, and Arlecchino tried to get rid of you?"
"Yes... Then Kujavina killed the two Fatui members who were our guardians, and we severed ties with the House of the Hearth and have been living here ever since."
"I see... A great deal happened while I was away. That woman... Trying to kill someone with the potential to become a great asset to the Fatui. She is unfit to be a Harbinger."
"Capitano, I’m hesitant about joining the Fatui."
"Hmm? Why is that?"
"The people who killed our guardians were Fatui, and the people who warmly took us in were Fatui as well. That is why I’m conflicted. Whether this is the right path or not."
"Follow what you believe is right. I do have the authority to make you a member of the Fatui, but if you yourself do not wish it, how could I force you?"
"Yes... I understand."
"By the way, you have accomplished something remarkable. I hear you became Fontaine’s youngest top-ranked student on the bar exam. Her Majesty has taken an interest in your future as well."
"Of course she has... It was all over the newspapers. Someone even came looking for me from Liyue."
"Hmm? It seems the news has spread as far as Liyue."
"Yes. I’m starting to think I may be receiving too much attention."
"Attention can only be harmful to the Fatui, especially when carrying out missions."
"That’s right. And Capitano, I have a few favors to ask of you."
"What are they? Go on."
"First... you two! Stop eavesdropping on us and go upstairs!"
"Eek!! Okay!"
Citra and Cravie had been eavesdropping on us. Until now, we had not said anything particularly important, but that was about to change.
"Capitano, there are two people I became close with after entering the Judicial Training Institute. One man and one woman."
"There must be quite an age difference between you, but fortunately you became friends."
"Yes. Thanks to them, I was able to live well at the Judicial Training Institute without being ostracized. But one of them, the woman, was taken away. By a lunatic."
"A lunatic? That is a strong word."
"He is a lunatic. He killed more than dozens of women just to bring back one lover of his. He’s the man I told you about when we met before. Someone close to me was taken by him."
"Someone like Dottore, then. So what do you intend to do with him?"
"For now, I’ll keep him alive. Because if I kill him already, things will not proceed according to plan."
"That is unlike you. I would have thought you would punish the wicked..."
"He will die on his own. In a manner worse than death. So, Capitano, could you lend me a Fatui Debt Collector uniform and a large-capacity water bottle?"
"The clothes, you mean? What do you need them for?"
"If my identity is exposed, Fontaine will be thrown into turmoil. I need to rescue my friend quietly."
"Handling it quietly. I like that. But I have one condition."
"A condition?"
"I will come with you. I would like to see the face of this Dottore-like man for myself."
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