Gift

Hesta pushed the door open and stepped out. The instant she did, the entire corridor went dark, leaving only the lamp directly above her head lit.

The surveillance cameras at both ends of the corridor turned toward Hesta in unison. The same twisting sound as before arose again—the sound of the cameras focusing.

At the thought that Shawn's eyes might be behind those cameras, Hesta's entire body tensed once more. Fear and anger drove her to clench her fists, but her face remained expressionless.

She refused to let him see her fear or impotent rage. After steadying her breathing slightly, she knocked on the Assistant Teacher's door as usual.

However, there was no response.

"Jane—?" Liz's voice came from downstairs. Hesta involuntarily shuddered.

"...I'm here."

As soon as those words were exchanged, the lamp above her head went out.

In the absolute darkness, Hesta heard Liz's footsteps hurrying closer until Liz tightly grasped her hand.

Liz was panting. "Are you all right? Why did the power go out here...?"

Before Hesta could answer, they suddenly heard pounding on a door from the restroom nearby. "Is someone out there?"

Hesta quickly recognized the voice. "...It's the Assistant Teacher."

"Is anyone there? Anyone? I think I've been trapped in the bathroom by the automatic door."

"Please wait—" Liz reached for her master key. "I'm coming."

On the way back to the apartment, Hesta told Liz about what had happened that night and asked why Liz had sent that message.

Liz's expression was complicated. "Two weeks ago, Ms. Moly said she was going to discuss a restraining order against Shawn with Chiba Masaki... Do you remember?"

"Yes, I remember."

"This afternoon, Ms. Moly received a response. Chiba directly rejected the proposal—she demanded that all existing restrictions and punishments against Shawn be lifted. She believed it was merely an ordinary dispute between trainees and didn't need to be blown out of proportion."

"...Is that so?"

"Ms. Moly was furious. She had a video call with Chiba this afternoon, and they parted on bad terms. The current result is that the measures involving Shawn's rating adjustment and compensation through stipend deductions are internal disciplinary actions of the base. Chiba has no authority to interfere, and Ms. Moly will insist on them. As for restricting Shawn's movements, we can think of another solution..."

"I understand."

"...Jane?" Liz looked at her worriedly. "You look exhausted."

"It's nothing." Hesta reached up and lightly tugged at her hair. "What I learned today was too difficult for me."

All the way home, Hesta silently turned over everything that had happened that night.

Clearly, it had to be Shawn's doing. During the past two weeks, when she had believed all was calm, Shawn's gaze had probably never truly vanished. He had been watching her casually from behind some screen all along; only today had he made his presence known in such an overly dramatic way.

And his choice of today was likely related to the news that the restraining order had failed to take effect. Liz had been right: Shawn truly feared punishment from the base. But that punishment only deterred him as long as there was a chance his crimes would be discovered.

After a brief shiver, a heavy stone suddenly dropped from Hesta's heart.

Yes, her judgment had been correct. She had recognized the storm.

Liz analyzed the situation beside her. "Tonight's blackout was very likely related to Shawn as well. He has remotely controlled some smart appliances in the old building before.

"Once we get back, I'll report what happened tonight to Ms. Moly. Even if we can't immediately upgrade the firmware of every facility in these buildings, we can move your daily classes underground. Down there, Shawn's little tricks will never—"

"Liz." Hesta softly interrupted her. "I... my mind is a little muddled. Can we talk about this tomorrow?"

"Of course..." Liz looked at Hesta with concern. "Sorry."

Hesta shook her head. No matter what, you're not the one who should apologize.

The two pushed open the apartment door and entered the lobby one after the other. Mrs. Lavette suddenly opened her window and waved at Hesta with a smile. "Miss Fletcher, Miss Hesta, you came back together?"

Hesta stopped. "Good evening, Mrs. Lavette."

Mrs. Lavette said gently, "There's a package for you. Come sign for it."

"For me?" Hesta was somewhat surprised. "Who sent it?"

"Hmm, let me see..." Lavette picked up her handheld gold-rimmed glasses and narrowed her eyes at the large cardboard box beside her.

"Chiba Masaki."

After returning to her room, Hesta placed the package on her desk.

She quietly stared at Chiba Masaki's name on the package for a while. The name left her with mixed feelings.

After a moment's hesitation, Hesta picked up a pair of scissors and began opening the package.

It was a forty-centimeter square cardboard box. She used the scissors to cut through the tear-strip tape on the upper layer, only to find a smaller box inside the larger one. A handwritten postcard lay on top of the small box, bearing Chiba's handwriting:

"I heard that my ward, Miss Hesta, has recently encountered some difficulties. After careful consideration, I specially prepared a small gift for you. I do not know under what circumstances you will open this package, but please try to be alone. Even if someone is nearby, please control your expression and do not appear too surprised.

"Can you do that? If you are ready, then open the package.

"The solution lies within."

Half-skeptically, Hesta set the postcard aside and used a knife to cut through the seal of the smaller box. When she opened the lid, she found it packed full of white plastic foam rods as thick as fingers.

Hesta reached into the box, trying to find what had been placed inside. Just as her fingertips nearly reached the bottom, her expression suddenly froze.

Although she had been prepared, her breathing still caught slightly when she touched the object at the bottom.

Hesta slowly raised her hand. A Beretta 92 pistol was suddenly in her grasp.

Then she noticed that another postcard seemed to be tucked among the disturbed pile of white foam. Hesta immediately picked it up and saw several lines written in the same handwriting:

"If you do not approve of this solution, simply reseal this cardboard box and return it to where it came from.

"If you are interested, go see Sophie Moly tomorrow and arrange an appointment with her for my time this Thursday. We will speak in person."

In the lower-right corner of the postcard was Chiba's rather wild signature, along with a self-portrait of her grinning broadly.