It was already past midnight.
Inside the Principal's Quarter, only one lamp was on.
A long list of student names lay open across the table. Several names were marked in red ink.
Vale leaned slightly forward, eyes narrowing.
"Why are these students marked?"
Adrian stood near the window, his injured shoulder stiff beneath the dim light.
"They're special."
Vale glanced at him. "Special… as in involved?"
Adrian's voice remained calm.
"Some explicitly. Some impliedly. Both categories matter."
Vale exhaled slowly and opened a tablet.
"I reviewed some clips from the security archive. There are inconsistencies."
Adrian turned. "Show me."
Vale tapped the screen.
The footage played.
A corridor. Empty.
Time stamp: The evening Adrian had been taken to the lockup.
Vale spoke quietly.
"That evening, classes were officially cancelled. But look."
He zoomed in.
Lights inside three classrooms were on.
Not flickering.
Fully active.
Adrian's eyes sharpened.
"And the AI system?"
"Automatically activated," Vale replied. "But no recorded entry. No access log. No door scan."
Adrian watched in silence.
Vale switched to another clip.
"Second day of your return. When those so-called professionals came to 'teach you a lesson.'"
Again — same pattern.
Lights on.
No recorded entry.
Same approximate time.
Adrian folded his arms.
"Anything recorded at all?"
"No. It's as if someone existed inside the building without existing in the system."
Silence stretched between them.
Vale finally straightened.
"I'll leave for now. Call me if needed."
Adrian didn't look away from the paused screen.
"You can stay."
Vale shook his head faintly.
"When you need me, I'll come. Just don't try to play hero again. And no surprises."
Adrian gave a quiet nod.
Vale hesitated for a second.
Then he reached inside his coat and pulled out a revolver. He placed it carefully on the table, along with a small packet of bullets.
The metal made a soft sound against the wood.
"Take it. For safety."
Adrian looked at the weapon. His injured shoulder shifted slightly.
"Not required."
"Your shoulder is compromised," Vale said evenly. "Someone could take advantage."
After a moment, Adrian picked it up.
He didn't holster it.
Instead, he walked to the cabinet and locked it inside.
Vale watched him — then turned and left.
---
Outside, the campus felt unusually still.
Vale reached his car.
As he opened the door, something in his peripheral vision made him pause.
Two shadows.
Moving toward the old storeroom at the backside of Hillcrest.
That building had been sealed years ago after an "incident."
Not students strolling.
Purposeful.
Slow.
Vale watched them for a few seconds through the windshield.
Then he sat inside, started the engine — and drove away.
Midway through the road, he sent a short message:
"Shadows started moving."
A few seconds later, his phone vibrated.
Unknown Number: "We know."
The number wasn't saved.
No caller ID.
No traceable source. Then the message disappeared: 'We know.'
Vale's grip tightened on the steering wheel.
They weren't just moving.
They were watching back.
---
Inside the Principal's Quarter, Adrian remained alone.
He replayed corridor footage for hours.
Pause.
Zoom.
Rewind.
Occasionally, he wrote small notes.
Patterns.
Timings.
Blind spots.
His gaze hardened slightly.
"Observers…" he murmured under his breath.
He opened a secure folder on his system.
A hidden protocol activated.
If someone had erased entries from the AI logs —
they had just triggered his countermeasure.
But he sent no message.
He made no call.
---
The next morning at eight, Keris stood inside the Principal's cabin.
He looked different.
Not confident.
Not arrogant.
Just… restrained.
Adrian studied him for a moment.
"I see you're trying to change."
Keris straightened. "Sir… I want to."
Adrian tilted his head slightly.
"On the surface."
Keris blinked.
"You didn't enroll in counseling. And you haven't apologized to Luther and Eden."
Keris shifted uncomfortably. "Sir, it's not like that—"
Adrian raised a hand lightly.
"Leave that. It's your choice."
A pause.
"Tell me something. Have you noticed any behavioral change in your old friends?"
Keris frowned.
"No, sir. They just stopped talking to me. Everything else is normal."
Adrian's gaze sharpened.
"You know your father prevented your arrest this time."
Keris swallowed.
"But next time… you may accompany me inside a lockup."
Keris's jaw tightened.
"I didn't torture anyone, sir. I accept that I bullied. But I didn't torture."
Adrian held his stare.
"Then why did the outsider trust you?"
Keris went silent.
The question lingered.
Adrian leaned slightly forward.
"You have observation skills. You notice what others ignore."
He slid a small folded chit across the desk.
"Use that skill. Don't confront anyone. Don't ignore either."
Keris looked at the number written on it.
"You want me to find who the real torturer is?"
Adrian nodded once.
"But not alone."
Keris pocketed the chit.
"Okay."
As he walked out, his mind felt unusually calm.
A strange sense of relief filled him.
At least one person believed he wasn't a torturer.
And then—
A memory surfaced.
---
Flashback — Police Inquiry
Inspector: "Do you think Keris tortured Eden?"
Luther stood silent for a moment.
"Keris is a bully. But not a torturer. Not intentionally."
Inspector frowned. "He bullied you for years. Made you his personal servant."
Luther replied quietly,
"That's common at Hillcrest. The Devil Trio did worse."
The Inspector dismissed him.
---
Present.
Keris exhaled slowly.
"Luther…"
He had defended him.
Luther — the scholarship student. Intelligent. Observant.
What if—
Keris stopped walking.
What if he involved Luther?
But would Luther even trust him?
Or would he think this was another manipulation?
Keris clenched his jaw.
For once… he didn't want control.
He wanted truth.
He pulled out his phone and saved the number Adrian had given him.
He sent a short message.
No reply came.
---
The canteen was already crowded.
Students whispered in clusters.
Keris checked his phone again when it buzzed.
Not the unknown number.
A message from Professor Finch in the college group.
"Due to some reason , individual counseling sessions will begin from tomorrow. Interested students may register. Both offline and online modes available."
A file followed — list of counselors and contact numbers.
Nearby, a few students whispered:
"You know the Devil Trio hasn't come out of their room."
"Maybe they're scared."
"Or planning something bigger."
---
At the quiet backside corridor of Hillcrest,
Eden's father stood waiting.
Adrian approached calmly.
"What's the matter?" Eden's father asked stiffly.
Adrian stopped at a respectful distance.
"I came to ask something."
A pause.
"Why aren't you angry with this academy anymore?"
Eden's father frowned. "What do you mean? I'm still angry."
"If you were," Adrian said evenly, "you would have taken your son away."
Silence.
"You chose to stay."
Eden's father's expression hardened.
"Eden didn't want to leave."
Adrian's eyes didn't move.
"Who informed you that Eden attempted self-harm?"
Eden's father's jaw tightened.
"Why should I answer you?"
His voice lowered.
"And why are you questioning me? I'm not obligated to respond."
He turned and walked away.
Adrian didn't stop him.
Behind one of the corridor pillars — unnoticed — a shadow stood still.
Listening.
---
Inside Eden's hostel room, Eden looked up.
"Dad, where did you go?" Eden asked.
"Just took a call," his father replied.
Eden hesitated.
"I want to thank the Principal. He saved my life."
His father's expression darkened.
"No. Not until I confirm he isn't involved."
His fingers subconsciously tightened around his phone.
A message thread remained open.
Unsent
Eden stared at him.
"You still think Principal sir is connected?"
"I don't take chances," his father replied firmly.
"I didn't ask you questions because I don't want to pressure you. But I won't trust blindly."
Eden lowered his gaze.
"If I go to thank him, you'll come with me?"
"Yes."
"Okay."
Outside the room, footsteps echoed faintly in the corridor.
---
That evening, inside the Devil Trio's room, tension filled the air.
Ethan sat on the couch, unusually quiet.
Marcus paced restlessly.
Leon stared at his phone.
"When will Mr. Lee send the information?" Ethan finally asked.
Marcus grunted. "He said morning. It's almost evening."
Leon glanced at the screen again.
"Maybe in a few hours."
Silence filled the room.
Ethan leaned back.
"Who do you think it is?"
Leon sighed.
"If we look at recent years… maybe the previous principal. Or that professor who left because of us."
Marcus shook his head.
"It could be an outsider."
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
"What would an outsider gain from shutting Hillcrest down?"
Leon's gaze darkened slightly.
"If it is an outsider… then we're the real targets."
Leon's phone buzzed.
He checked it.
His expression changed.
Marcus noticed. "What?"
Leon showed them the screen.
A CCTV still image.
Timestamp: 2:13 AM.
A blurred figure entering the old storeroom.
Marcus whispered,
"That building was supposed to be sealed."
Ethan's eyes darkened.
"Zoom."
The image pixelated.
But one detail was visible.
Boots.
Not student boots.
Silence fell heavily in the room.
Outside their window, the campus lights flickered on.
And somewhere in the distance—
Someone was still watching.
---
End of Chapter 18.