Chapter 56: Invitation
I stood where Lucien had left me, my eyes fixed on the doorway long after the crowd had swallowed them.
Recognized.
The word echoed in my head louder than anything the system had shown me since I arrived in this world.
Not identified.
Not encountered.
Recognized.
That implied history.
A connection.
Something that should have been impossible.
"...Adrian."
I blinked.
Noah was standing beside me with a clipboard tucked beneath one arm.
"You’ve been staring at the hallway for almost a minute."
"...Sorry."
He followed my gaze toward the corridor before looking back at me.
"That guest?"
I hesitated.
"...Something about them felt familiar."
"Have you met before?"
"I don’t think so."
Noah frowned slightly.
"You don’t sound very certain."
"I’m not."
He studied my expression for another second before letting the subject drop.
The line outside the club room had started moving again. Another group of visitors stepped inside, looking around with the same mixture of curiosity and excitement we’d been seeing all morning.
Ryan immediately slipped back into his self-appointed role as host.
"Welcome, detectives."
He spread one arm dramatically toward the evidence board.
"A terrible crime has taken place."
Marcus sighed.
"You make it sound like you’re proud of it."
"I’m proud of the presentation."
"That’s... slightly better."
The visitors laughed, and the atmosphere returned to normal almost instantly.
I tried to do the same.
For the next hour I focused entirely on helping visitors through the mystery. I answered questions, reset clue cards, replaced notebooks that had been filled with theories, and quietly watched as different groups approached the investigation in completely different ways.
Some divided the clues between themselves.
Others argued over every tiny detail.
One elderly woman immediately spotted the forged receipt before even reading the witness statements.
Ryan looked genuinely impressed.
"...You’re scary."
She laughed.
"I was a police officer for thirty years."
Ryan slowly turned toward Marcus.
"...That explains a lot."
Marcus nodded.
"It does."
Despite the steady flow of visitors, my attention kept drifting toward the hallway.
Every unfamiliar face made me look twice.
Every shadow passing the doorway caught my eye.
Lucien never returned.
The afternoon moved quickly.
By three o’clock the Mystery Research Club had become one of the busiest attractions in the older section of the academy. Students from other clubs dropped in during breaks just to see what everyone had been talking about.
The Photography Club took pictures.
The Newspaper Club interviewed Noah for nearly fifteen minutes.
Ryan somehow managed to get himself interviewed as well.
"...How did you do that?" Daniel asked after the reporters left.
Ryan looked confused.
"They asked for comments."
"They asked Noah."
"I was standing nearby."
Marcus nodded slowly.
"That sounds about right."
"I gave excellent comments."
"You compared detective work to finding the last slice of pizza."
Ryan pointed triumphantly.
"Exactly."
Daniel burst out laughing.
"It somehow made sense when he said it."
"It always does," Ethan replied.
Later that afternoon, Noah finally called for a short break.
"We’ve been standing since this morning."
Ryan didn’t even pretend to argue.
"I vote food."
"You always vote food."
"Because food always wins."
Marcus looked toward the cafeteria map.
"We’ll take turns."
"I’ll stay first."
"No," Noah replied.
"I’ll stay."
"The rest of you go."
Ryan immediately shook his head.
"We’re not leaving you alone."
"I’ll be fine."
Daniel looked between the two of them.
"How about pairs?"
That earned several nods.
In the end, Marcus and Noah remained behind while Ryan, Daniel, Ethan, and I headed toward the food stalls set up near the central courtyard.
The academy somehow looked even livelier than it had in the morning.
Music drifted from the performance stage.
Students walked around carrying colorful drinks and paper trays filled with snacks.
Families gathered beneath temporary tents while younger children ran excitedly between exhibitions.
For a little while...
It genuinely felt like a festival.
Ryan stopped in front of the Culinary Club booth.
"I’ve been waiting for this all day."
The student behind the counter smiled.
"What can I get you?"
Ryan looked at the menu for nearly thirty seconds.
"...One of everything."
Daniel sighed.
"I knew he was going to say that."
The girl behind the counter laughed.
"We’re limiting purchases."
Ryan looked devastated.
"My dreams..."
"...Are being responsibly managed," Ethan finished.
We eventually found an empty table beneath a large tree overlooking the main courtyard.
Ryan immediately started eating.
Daniel took a bite of his sandwich before looking toward me.
"You’ve been quiet."
"So has Noah."
Ryan swallowed.
"You two keep doing that."
"What?"
"Thinking."
"I swear you both disappear into your own heads."
I smiled faintly.
"Occupational hazard."
"You don’t have an occupation."
"I do now."
Ryan nodded thoughtfully.
"...Fair enough."
For several minutes we simply watched the crowd.
Students laughed.
Teachers chatted with visiting alumni.
A group from the Music Club walked past carrying instrument cases.
It almost made me forget why I’d been nervous in the first place.
Then Daniel spoke again.
"Did anyone else notice that guest?"
Ryan looked up.
"The mystery speedrunner?"
"Yeah."
"They were weirdly good."
Ethan nodded.
"They solved everything ridiculously fast."
Ryan leaned back in his chair.
"I’ve decided they’re secretly a detective."
Daniel laughed.
"Or maybe they’re just smart."
"I reject that possibility."
"You reject intelligence?"
"No."
"I reject people being smarter than me."
Ethan blinked.
"...That’s a bold strategy."
Ryan grinned.
"It keeps my confidence healthy."
When we returned to the club room, Noah and Marcus had already handled another dozen visitors.
Marcus looked relieved to see us.
"Your turn."
Ryan saluted dramatically.
"Detective Ryan returns."
"You never left."
"Spiritually, I did."
Noah shook his head.
"I don’t know how you have this much energy."
"I ate."
"...Of course you did."
The rest of the afternoon passed without incident.
By the time the closing announcement echoed across the academy, everyone looked exhausted.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcement crackled over the speakers, "the first day of the Inter-Club Exhibition has officially concluded. Thank you for visiting. Activities will resume tomorrow morning at nine o’clock."
Applause echoed from several nearby buildings.
Ryan slowly lowered himself into a chair.
"I can’t feel my legs."
Marcus looked down.
"They’re still attached."
"Emotionally."
Daniel laughed.
"I think today went better than any of us expected."
"It definitely exceeded expectations," Noah agreed.
He looked down at the participation sheet.
"We had one hundred and ninety-four visitors."
Ryan’s eyes widened.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously."
Ethan whistled softly.
"...That’s incredible."
Noah smiled.
"It is."
"We should all be proud."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Instead, we quietly looked around the room we’d spent days preparing.
The evidence board was slightly worn.
Several clue cards had bent corners.
The cardboard victim now had a tiny coffee stain thanks to Ryan.
It wasn’t perfect anymore.
It looked... used.
Alive.
Daniel smiled.
"I kind of don’t want to take it apart tomorrow."
Ryan immediately pointed at him.
"Exactly."
"It feels like our room now."
Marcus nodded.
"I know what you mean."
As everyone began packing away loose materials for the night, I wandered toward the window.
Outside, the academy grounds were slowly emptying again.
Maintenance staff collected signs.
Visitors walked toward the gates.
The festival atmosphere gradually settled into quiet evening.
Then...
Near the fountain in the center of the courtyard...
I saw them.
Lucien.
Standing alone.
Not talking to anyone.
Not looking at the exhibition booths.
Looking...
Up.
Directly toward our building.
Toward our window.
Our eyes met across the courtyard.
This time there was no mistaking it.
They had been waiting.
Lucien raised one hand in a small, almost casual wave.
Then they reached into their blazer pocket, removed a folded white envelope, and handed it to a staff member passing nearby.
They said something I couldn’t hear.
The staff member nodded.
Lucien turned, walked toward the academy gate, and disappeared into the evening crowd without looking back.
"...Adrian?"
I turned.
A maintenance worker had just entered the club room.
"Are you Adrian Cross?"
"...Yes."
The worker held out the same white envelope I’d seen moments earlier.
"This was left for you."
"No sender."
"They asked me to make sure it reached you personally."
The room fell quiet.
Ryan looked over immediately.
"You’ve got mail?"
Marcus frowned.
"From who?"
I looked down at the envelope.
There was nothing written on the front except my name.
No address.
No academy seal.
Just...
Adrian Cross
Written in neat black ink.
For some reason...
I wasn’t sure I wanted to open it.