Chapter 49: Preparations
The afternoon classes passed in a blur.
Professor Haynes continued his lecture with the same calm, measured tone as always, filling the blackboard with notes while students copied them into their notebooks. Normally Ryan would have whispered at least five jokes before the period ended, but even he seemed more interested in sketching ideas for the exhibition on the corner of his notebook.
I couldn’t blame him.
The Inter-Club Exhibition had quietly become the center of attention for the entire academy. Every hallway we walked through, every conversation we overheard, every notice board we passed seemed to revolve around it. Even teachers had started reminding students that representatives from outside organizations would be attending.
By the time the final bell rang, nobody rushed toward the front gate.
Instead, students scattered across campus, heading for their respective clubs.
The academy had transformed into a giant workshop.
Paint, cardboard, wooden boards, banners, extension cables, and boxes filled with decorations were being carried from one building to another. The Sports Club had begun setting up obstacle courses on the field, while members of the Music Club tested speakers outside the auditorium. Every few minutes the sound of a microphone echoed somewhere across campus before dissolving into laughter.
Ryan looked around with obvious excitement.
"I love this atmosphere."
Marcus adjusted the strap of the box he was carrying.
"You love free food."
"I can love two things."
Daniel laughed.
"He’s got a point."
Ethan balanced several rolls of colored paper under one arm.
"I still don’t understand why the Cooking Club gets the biggest budget."
"Because people get hungry," Ryan answered immediately.
"They’re carrying an industrial oven."
"They’re committed."
Noah unlocked the club room while the rest of us carried our supplies inside.
Compared to the activity outside, our room still looked disappointingly empty.
A few desks had been pushed against the wall.
The evidence board Ethan had made leaned near the window.
Daniel carefully placed a box filled with fake fingerprints, numbered evidence markers, and transparent plastic bags onto one of the tables.
Ryan looked around and frowned.
"...It still feels too clean."
Marcus sighed.
"Please don’t destroy the room."
"I’m brainstorming."
"That’s what worries me."
Noah set his notebook on the desk and clapped his hands once.
"All right."
"We have less than two days."
"So today we’ll focus entirely on construction."
Nobody argued.
Ryan immediately grabbed the evidence board.
"I call decorating."
"I expected that," Noah replied.
Daniel opened the prop box.
"I’ll sort everything."
Marcus rolled up his sleeves.
"I’ll move the furniture."
Ethan looked toward me.
"What about you?"
I glanced at the outline we’d written yesterday.
"I’ll start writing the clue cards."
"Perfect."
For the next hour, everyone settled naturally into their work.
Ryan somehow managed to make decorating look like a life-or-death mission. Every few minutes he’d step back, stare at the evidence board, make a thoughtful face, then add another red string connecting photographs that didn’t actually mean anything.
Marcus watched him in silence for nearly five minutes before finally speaking.
"...Ryan."
"What?"
"Why are you connecting the victim’s picture to the coffee mug?"
Ryan didn’t even look embarrassed.
"It feels mysterious."
"It isn’t evidence."
"It could be."
"It literally says ’Academy Cafeteria’ on the mug."
Ryan crossed his arms.
"Exactly."
Marcus blinked.
"...Exactly what?"
"What if that’s what the culprit wants you to think?"
Daniel nearly dropped the fingerprint kit because he was laughing so hard.
Even Noah quietly smiled without looking up from his notes.
"I’ll decide later whether those strings stay."
Ryan grinned triumphantly.
"You see?"
"I’m not removing them yet."
"I choose to interpret that as victory."
While the others argued, I concentrated on writing short descriptions for each clue.
A broken watch.
A muddy footprint.
A torn photograph.
A receipt with an incorrect date.
Nothing supernatural.
Nothing impossible.
Just enough information to reward careful observation.
The more I wrote, the more I realized how much fun I was actually having.
For the first time since arriving in this world, I was creating something instead of merely surviving.
"Adrian."
I looked up.
Noah was standing beside my desk.
"Can I see what you’ve written?"
I handed him the pages.
He read them quietly, occasionally nodding to himself.
After a few minutes he looked back at me.
"...These are good."
"They don’t give away the answer."
"But they’re fair."
"Thanks."
He returned the pages before lowering his voice.
"And..."
"I meant what I said earlier."
I knew exactly what he was referring to.
"I know."
"If you ever decide you’re ready to explain..."
He shrugged lightly.
"I’ll listen."
I smiled.
"I appreciate that."
Before the conversation could continue, Ryan’s voice echoed across the room.
"Emergency."
Everyone looked over.
"What happened?" Ethan asked.
Ryan pointed dramatically at a cardboard silhouette lying on the floor.
"...It doesn’t look dead enough."
Marcus closed his eyes.
"I don’t even know what that means."
"The victim needs more... victim energy."
Daniel laughed.
"I’m begging you to define victim energy."
Ryan walked around the cardboard outline with the seriousness of a museum curator.
"It needs drama."
"It needs tragedy."
"It needs..."
He paused.
"A scarf."
Silence filled the room.
Marcus stared at him.
"...A scarf."
"Yes."
"The victim deserves fashion."
Ethan covered his face with both hands.
"I’m surrounded by idiots."
Ryan immediately pointed at him.
"Correction."
"You’re surrounded by visionaries."
Noah quietly wrote something in his notebook.
Daniel leaned over to peek.
"...What are you writing?"
"’Never allow Ryan complete artistic control.’"
The room exploded into laughter.
Even Marcus couldn’t hide a smile this time.
Work continued well into the evening.
Little by little, the empty classroom transformed into something recognizable.
The evidence board stood near the entrance.
Suspicious photographs covered one wall.
A fake crime scene occupied the far corner, complete with overturned chairs and scattered papers.
Daniel successfully created convincing fingerprints using transparent resin.
Marcus built a sturdy display stand from spare wooden panels borrowed from the workshop club.
Ryan...
Ryan somehow acquired a detective hat from the drama club.
He proudly placed it on his head.
"...Thoughts?"
Marcus didn’t even look up.
"No."
"I haven’t said anything yet."
"I’m answering in advance."
Daniel laughed again.
"Honestly..."
"The hat suits you."
Ryan gasped dramatically.
"You hear that?"
"Validation."
Marcus muttered under his breath.
"One of the greatest mistakes of my life."
Outside, the sky gradually shifted from blue to shades of orange.
Sunlight streamed through the club room windows, casting long shadows across the floor.
Noah finally checked his watch.
"...Let’s stop here."
Everyone immediately relaxed.
Ryan collapsed into the nearest chair.
"I’ve worked harder today than during exam week."
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
"That’s because you barely studied during exam week."
"I was conserving energy."
Ethan handed everyone a bottle of water.
"Drink before you pass out."
Ryan accepted one gratefully.
"You’re a hero."
"I know."
Daniel stretched until several joints cracked.
"I honestly think this might turn out pretty well."
Noah looked around the room one final time.
"It will."
"We’ve still got plenty to finish."
"But we’ve made good progress."
There was quiet satisfaction in his voice.
Not pride.
Just relief that things were finally coming together.
As we packed away the remaining supplies, I wandered toward the window.
The academy grounds below were still busy despite the late hour.
Students laughed as they carried decorations between buildings.
Teachers spoke with club advisers near the central courtyard.
The entire campus buzzed with anticipation.
Anyone looking at the academy from outside would probably think it was preparing for a festival.
Maybe it was.
The only problem...
The system had never warned me about festivals.
A familiar blue window appeared near the edge of my vision.
______
[Main Story Progress]
Countdown Remaining:
43 Hours, 02 Minutes
Current Stability:
Normal
Participant Activity:
Increasing
______
I frowned.
Participant activity.
Still no name.
Still no explanation.
The window disappeared before I could ask another question.
"Adrian?"
I turned.
Ryan was already standing by the door with everyone else.
"You coming?"
"...Yeah."
I grabbed my backpack and switched off the club room lights before stepping into the hallway.
The door clicked shut behind us.
Tomorrow we’d finish preparing the exhibition.
Then all that would be left...
Was waiting to see what arrived when the countdown finally reached zero.