Quest for Hikari - Episode 16: Final Clues (Edited)

Author's Commentary: Edited the last part because of plothole and inconsistency. I forgot to make Rance take Sill with him just like he wanted to in the earlier chapters.

Legend:

" " = Talking

' ' = Thinking

(" ") = Flashback/Misc.

[ ] = Spells/Specific Items

[ ~ Chapter • Start ~ ]

This room I recently entered was... normal in a sense except there was dust everywhere.

The room also had a bed, a nightstand and tightly covered windows. Curiously, I approached the bed and searched around it.

Obviously, the only thing I found was dust, and dried blood under the bed. It seemed recent, as if it had been there for a week or more.

Somebody died here, and that probably was Lavender, but how?

I tilted my head to look at the nightstand, and began searching around it, and opened it's drawers.

I found nothing but expired Ibeprofun, drugs, and painkillers. The smell of these drugs had me convinced that they can no longer be used.

Nothing good here, unless something important was carefully hidden around.

Then, I glanced at the bed again, and immediately pulled off the blanket covering the bed, and making me cough due to the dust it had.

"Right.... let's see...." I searched the bed for a while until I recovered a book that has no title on it from the bed.

It looked plain and uninteresting, yet only foolish, stupid people would think that as there was a lock that prevented it from being opened.

Remembering the key I found earlier, I carefully took it out due to how easily breakable it looked. I could probably destroy it with enough force.

Carefully sheathing the key to it's respective lock, I opened the lock, and opened the plain book.

It's contents were written for a long time, and based on the handwriting, a girl had written it.

It's a diary created by somebody.

("Day X/X/01. I don't know the weather. I didn't think I'd be writing this in my new diary as the other was found destroyed and I was punished even more severely. I don't know why this is happening to me and I don't know how much I can take. I've decided to make this secret diary.... to help me stay sane.")

("My name is Lavender. I'm a first-year student at Paris Academy. I decided to write this down first, so I don't forget.")

These were the first two pages of the diary, plus there were noticable spots where water had dropped that had dried long ago, meaning that Lavender was crying while writing this.

So Lavender was a student from Paris Academy, like Hikari mi Blanc, huh.... that could be a clue.

I turned the pages once to further read it's contents.

("Day X/X, I don't know if it rained or if it was sunny outside. They came to torment me again. They whipped me and put me on a wooden horse, insult me while I resist, and that monster laughs like a madwoman while I scream. She hits me if I react, she hits me if I don't just because of that. She enjoys it.... it's not normal.")

..... I have to... no, I need to read more.

("Day X/%. Nails. Needles. Spikes. Piercings.... The bleeding doesn't stop, the pain I feel doesn't stop. Thinking begins to feel painful, I need to sleep..... yet I'm afraid of what comes tomorrow.")

I kept reading.

("Day X/∆. Several days passed without me noticing. She injected me with a drug that did something to me before a white furred monster pinned me down to the ground. I don't know what happened next, but I was told that I enjoyed it.... That hurts more than the torture I felt.")

I felt like it was a horrible thing to imagine what happened back there, though I think that the Guy Monster I killed earlier was the one who did... something to Lavender.

("Day O/X. My time of hell begins again. I remember that everytime the clock strikes 9, I become their plaything until the clock chimes 11 times. Help isn't coming. There's no end in sight, either. I wonder if there is a way I can remain human. Any serious wound that would cost me my life was healed by that green haired woman. That means.... that means... ")

.... That was the end of the diary. The next pages were empty, so I have no other choice but to return somewhere, and after a while I arrived to the hall with the grandfather clock.

By staring at the clock, I remembered that the clock was always around 9:00, so I broke the glass protecting the clock and began turning the minute hand clockwise until the hour hand reaches 11:00 and the minute hand reaches 12:00.

And then, as the diary explained, the grandfather clock chimed 11 times.

Once again, probably for the last time, the ghost appeared soundlessly. Right now, her expression had softened and she was no longer crying.

"Thank you.... for understanding.... for ending this...." She said mournfully.

".... You're Lavender, aren't you? You have a grudge against the two people who did this to you, right?" I asked her, as she did not once hesitate.

"Yes.... I've been kidnapped, and after that, I was being tormented just for the sake of tormenting. It's horrible..... nobody will come save me, not even mother or father..... I couldn't take it all, and ended my life." She explained, rubbing her arm as she shook her head. However it seems like she still has some things she wanted to speak.

".... But that didn't end it, not yet.... she abducted different girls to take my place. She treated them all as playthings, and when one dies, that girl is treated as nothing but a broken toy....Nothing more. I hated her, I always thought so many times "why me?" I couldn't forgive her... the princess...."

Princess?

"Princess Lia Parapara Leazas? Her? Hrmmm.... I always thought she was pretty suspicious just as I first met her... and Paris Academy, huh..."

After this, I need to check up on Sill. I hope she's okay....

But for now, I focused on Lavender's spirit, who nodded.

"I don't know how many more will suffer because of her... But I'll stop her from torturing other girls, and to do that, I will punish her by myself!" I declared as a grin showing my confidence slowly appeared on my face.

".... Thank you...." Lavender spoke, looking like her emotions were about to burst out.

Before I touched her cheek, I coated my body with mana, just so that I would be able to touch ghosts like her.

My hand was about to touch her cheek, but she suddenly moved forward and hugged me tightly.

"WAAAAAHHHH!!!" Lavender's spirit began to cry and let out her emotions, sobbing on my chest as she cried and cried for a while.

....

Without needing to react more, I patted her back.

"Everything's fine now.... there is no need for you to suffer, and soon, all of this will be over." I spoke, just before I let go of her and she floated a few feet back, glowing a little brighter than how she was supposed to be.

"Once again, thank you, whoever you are..."

"My name is Rance."

"... err, Rance..... and before I leave, there is a girl at the kitty room, her name was Hikari. And also.... your body is so warm, maybe as warm as when I was first hugged by my childhood friend, I even hoped I could meet you sometime...." She spoke, for the last time ever in her life as she slowly vanished into particles of light that were absorbed by my body for some unknown reason.

.... But enough of that, I have something important to take care of.

[ ~ Line • Break ~ ]

Menad was minding her own business, as she was currently in patrol duty at this day. Harry Schwart was replacing her duties until noon, but while she was patrolling, a person carrying an unconscious girl approached her.

Looking at him closely, she figured out who this man was.

"Rance!"

Unlike the earlier encounters with him, he looked serious, and wasn't even happy about something. Once she strode towards him, she looked at the girl he was carrying and realized that she was the one he was looking for.

".... Menad, please take her to the hospital, now." He spoke, as if commanding her to do that right now while he put the unconscious Hikari on her arms.

"What happened to her, anyway?" Menad asked, worried not just about him, but about the girl on her arms.

"..... Don't ask." His reply was blunt, and serious as he turned to the east, where Paris Academy was located and began to run.

Before Menad could say something, she grumbled.

"Haaaa... Guess it cannot be helped. A Leazas guardsman's duty needs to be focused upon first." She said, dashing towards the direction where she knew the hospital was.

[ ~ Chapter • End ~ ]

Investigation Progress: 100%

Mission Update:

• Royal Chaser

- Find/Rescue Sill at Paris Academy

- Punish Lia (And Maris.... even Kentou.)