Chapter 178: I Trust Her

We hurried down the dormitory stairs, nearly bumping into a few students who were rushing up to see what all the commotion was about. The moment we stepped outside, the cool morning air hit my face, but it did little to calm the unease growing in my chest.

Students from every direction were already gathering around Pix.

She was crying.

A couple of girls supported her by the shoulders while another wrapped an arm around her waist, keeping her steady. Someone had draped a blanket over her despite the clear weather, and her clothes were covered in dirt, leaves, and dried mud. Scratches lined her exposed skin, and her hair was tangled as though she had wandered through the wilderness for days.

"Pix!" one of the girls cried, throwing her arms around her. "You’re alive!"

"We thought..." another whispered before breaking into tears.

Ken and Jayden hurried ahead of me, weaving through the crowd with everyone else. I followed behind them, gently pushing my way between students until I finally reached the front.

Our eyes met. For a brief second, I waited for recognition. Fear. Hatred.

Anything.

Instead, she only looked at me with confused, exhausted eyes before looking away again, as though I were just another worried student in the crowd.

The reaction looked genuine.

Either she was the greatest liar I’d ever met... or she truly had no idea who I was.

"T-they..." Pix whispered, her voice shaking. "I..."

"Someone bring her some water," the girl supporting her said, looking around frantically. "And call the teachers! We need healers over here!"

While everyone crowded around Pix, I lifted my head and looked farther ahead.

Captain Sora stood near the entrance with several guards, speaking to a broad-shouldered man dressed in rough traveling clothes. Judging by the dirt covering his boots and cloak, he’d probably just arrived from outside the city.

I quietly slipped away from the crowd before Ken or Jayden noticed and walked over.

"Thank you for bringing her back," Captain Sora said, offering the man a respectful nod. "We’ll contact you again if we need anything."

"Uh-huh." The man scratched the back of his neck. "Just glad she’s alive."

He gave a small wave before walking away.

I approached Captain Sora. "What happened?" I asked. "Who was that man? And... how was Pix found?"

"Ace." She acknowledged me with a nod. "That man found Pix wandering inside the Circle."

I frowned. "The Circle?"

She nodded. "According to Pix, she was kidnapped the day before Jelda was murdered and thrown into the Circle."

My stomach tightened. "What?"

"Do you know how the edges of the Circle work?" she asked.

"The edges?"

"Yes." She folded her arms. "If someone walks too deeply into the white mist surrounding the Circle, they don’t simply leave. They reappear somewhere else entirely. The Circle is enormous, and the mist scatters people randomly across it."

"So..."

"Whoever kidnapped her forced her into the mist." Captain Sora sighed. "She spent days trying to find her way back. The man you just saw stumbled across her while traveling near one of the outer roads and escorted her back here."

I stared at her. "But then... the Pix that..."

She nodded slowly. "We believe someone used an illusion spell and impersonated her."

"An illusion?"

"It’s the only explanation that fits." She rubbed her forehead. "Pix claims two men kidnapped her. We’ll have her identify the bodies of the two dead men recovered from the cave and see if they’re the same people."

I let out a slow breath. "So... why?"

Captain Sora shook her head. "We don’t know yet. The investigation isn’t over." She glanced toward the crowd gathered around Pix. "Right now, I’m just thankful someone found her before the monsters did. From what she told us, it took nearly days to make it back after escaping."

I looked past Captain Sora toward Pix again. She’d been kidnapped. Which meant the woman I’d killed... wasn’t Pix. She had been an impostor.

But why? If their objective had been to replace Pix, why keep the disguise going after Jelda’s death? Why stay at the academy instead of disappearing the moment the job was done? That didn’t make any sense in the slightest.

Something about this entire case had stopped making sense.

"You look pale," Captain Sora observed, studying my face. "Are you alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost."

Right. Ghost. She had no idea.

"I’m fine." I nodded. "I’m just... relieved she’s alive. Anyway, I should get going. I don’t want to be late for first period."

Captain Sora gave a small nod. "Go on. We’ll handle things here."

I turned away from the crowd, but my thoughts refused to settle.

Shit.

This case wasn’t over after all. There was still a piece missing, and I had every intention of finding out what it was.

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The morning lessons finally gave way to break, and the academy corridors filled with students stretching their legs, chatting with friends, or heading outside for some fresh air.

I sat beneath the great elder tree in the academy’s main corridor, resting one elbow on the stone table built around its trunk while my hand rubbed against my forehead.

The girl I’d killed wasn’t Pix.

I replayed everything in my head for what had to be the hundredth time. The real Pix had been kidnapped before Jelda’s murder and thrown into the Circle. Whoever I had spent time with afterward had been someone else entirely. Someone wearing her face. Someone who had fooled every student, every teacher, and me.

None of it made any sense.

If the whole point had been to get Pix out of the way while Jelda was murdered, why had the fake Pix stayed afterward? The job was already finished. She could’ve disappeared without anyone noticing, yet she lingered around the academy for days, speaking to people as though nothing had happened. Every extra day only increased the chance of being exposed.

So why risk it?

"Shit..." I muttered, rubbing my forehead again. "What’s happening here?"

I looked up and noticed Eselin walking through the corridor with her usual calm pace.

I got to my feet and quickly caught up to her. "Eselin. Hey."

"Ace."

"I’d like to ask you something."

She didn’t answer, simply continuing toward the double doors. I followed beside her until we stepped into the front courtyard. Only then did she stop, cross her arms, and look at me.

"Ask."

"Pix," I began. "Did you notice anything different about her?"

She shook her head. "I wasn’t friends with her. Jelda was."

"Yeah, well, I can’t exactly ask Jelda now, can I?" I said. "It’s just... something doesn’t add up. I’m trying to make sense of all this."

She studied me for a moment before speaking. "You mean why the fake Pix stayed instead of disappearing after the job was done?"

"Yeah."

"Captain Sora will figure that out." She gave a small nod. "I trust her."

"I know, but I can’t stop thinking about it."

"You should stop." She looked me straight in the eyes. "Don’t involve yourself in this anymore, Ace. The thing with Jack was a one-time exception."

"I just want to know how or why..."

"No." She calmly cut me off. "You helped solve one case. That doesn’t make you an investigator. You should keep that in mind, Ace. Really keep that in mind."

I let out a quiet breath. "I just want answers."

"So does Captain Sora." She uncrossed her arms and started walking again. "Leave this to the guards. They’ll find out why the fake Pix stayed. You don’t need to. We’re done here."

I watched her walk away until she disappeared among the other students crossing the courtyard.

Yeah, whatever she thought, this wasn’t over. Something about the whole thing still felt wrong, and I wasn’t going to ignore that feeling.

"Hey," I called out.

Esme stopped, glancing over her shoulder.

"I’d like to see Pix’s room." I said. "Please."

Her eyes met mine, then she kept looking at me for a few seconds. Then she closed her eyes and exhaled. "Fine. When the last class ends, find me."

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