Today was a holiday.
It was still early in the morning, but Arkhan didn't see anyone at the dining table. He remembered seeing Levan leave last night—maybe his friend hadn't come home yet.
"Pretty sure Sandy stayed up late last night. Bet he's still asleep," he muttered while reaching for a piece of bread on the table—only for it to be snatched from his hand.
"Hehe, sorry. I'm in a rush," said Sena after grabbing the bread from Arkhan.
"Where are you going?" asked Arkhan.
"To school," Sena replied shortly before hurrying off.
"But it's Saturday..." Arkhan was confused but quickly remembered. "Oh, right. Karate club's been super busy lately."
He walked to Sandy's room and found it still locked. It was probably true that his friend wasn't up yet.
Arkhan headed to the porch and found Jio watering the plants.
"Hey, Ji. Have you had breakfast?" Arkhan asked casually.
"Yeah, I have," Jio replied.
Arkhan stayed silent, watching Jio continue with his task. He wanted to ask something, but hesitated, afraid he might offend him.
"What's with that puzzled look?" Jio noticed Arkhan's unusual expression.
"I wanted to ask something… about Joan," Arkhan said.
"You're seriously looking into this case?" Jio asked.
"Not really. Just casually. I'm like the rest of you—waiting for updates from the police," Arkhan answered.
"Oh."
Jio turned off the hose, then sat beside Arkhan on a stone bench.
"So, what do you want to know about Joan?" he asked.
"You and Joan are step-siblings, right? Do you know anything about her mom's family?"
"Yeah. My dad married Joan's mom when we were still kids. From what I remember, Joan's mom didn't get along with her own family. It's like they cut ties completely."
"Oh," Arkhan nodded in understanding. "Sorry for bringing it up."
Arkhan felt bad seeing Jio look so sad, almost on the verge of tears.
"Before my mom passed away, she told me to love my new family if Dad ever got remarried. But now I've failed to protect—"
His sentence was cut off by a soft sob.
"It's okay, Ji," Arkhan said, putting an arm around his friend to comfort him.
His eyes then caught sight of a cracked window.
"Ji, I'll get you some water, okay?" Arkhan offered.
"N-no, no need," Jio replied, looking a bit calmer.
"Alright then. I think I'm gonna grab some tools," Arkhan said.
"For what?" Jio asked.
"Sena probably hasn't noticed that his window's damaged," Arkhan replied, walking toward it with Jio following.
"Oh yeah, the hinge is about to fall off. Looks like this window's been opened and closed a lot," Jio noted.
They both headed to the storage area to get some tools.
******
"Good thing I managed to secure some important stuff, including the clues my cousin left behind," said the figure in the black cloak, staring at the journal in his hand.
He looked annoyed by the police visit that had left the house slightly messy.
"If they had found those items, the case would've probably been solved and all your targets arrested," said his partner—the figure in the red cloak.
"You think money doesn't have power?"
The two of them were now cleaning up the house again.
"If it were that easy, why would I bother plotting revenge? My punishment is far worse than prison," the black cloak continued.
"I want to witness their suffering firsthand. The look of fear on their faces will be entertainment for me."
"So, what's your next move?" asked the red cloak.
"I want to go after Levan. But I think I need to figure out what Arkhan has uncovered first."
He paced around, deep in thought.
"I'm sure sooner or later he's going to find a clue that leads to us."