The next day, I turned my attention to the more pressing matter at hand - solving the case as quickly as possible. My first step was to check Leila's alibi. The first two people I spoke with were able to confirm everything she had said, but they had no information about the mysterious symbol from my vision. The third person on my list was Leila's roommate. As I knocked on the door, Leila answered.
"Oh," she sighed, "it's you again."
"Don't worry, Ms. Damica," I reassured her. "I'm not here for you. Is your roommate home?"
"Yeah, she is." Leila turned around and called out, "Elise! There's someone here for you."
As Elise walked out of the room, my eyes were immediately drawn to her striking resemblance to Colette. Her long, blonde hair flowed down her back, framing her delicate features. I couldn't help but wonder if Colette would look the same with her hair down; it was a captivating thought that distracted me for a moment. It wasn't until I glanced at my list of names that it finally clicked – Elise's last name was Winnr. It all made sense now; Colette must have a sister who shared her stunning looks.
"Who is it, Leila?" Elise asked.
“Good morning, Ms. Winnr. I am X,” I greeted her with a smile under my mask before turning to Leila. “It might be best if you leave while I conduct the interview.”
“The hell!” Leila protested. “You think you can just kick me out of my dorm?”
“I assure you that I am not kicking you out,” I replied, raising my hands to show my peaceful intentions. “I'm simply asking you to leave. If I wanted to force you, I wouldn't even have to try.”
Leila was practically growling at me, but eventually relented and left, claiming she needed to get lunch anyway. Elise and I sat across from each other, her on the couch and I on a chair.
“I apologize for Ms. Damica's outburst," I said. "I had no idea she would react that way."
“It’s okay,” she replied with a weak smile. “What do you need?”
“I just have a few questions for you regarding the night that the wands were stolen," I said. "Firstly, can you confirm your whereabouts the night of the incident?”
“Me, Leila, and some friends were playing board games in the dorm.”
“Did you notice anything suspicious that night?”
“No, not that I can think of.”
I handed her the piece of paper with the symbol on it. “Do you recognize this symbol?”
She thought for a moment. “Oh! This is the logo for the book club Leila is a part of!”
“A book club, you say,” I said, feeling a sense of progress. “Are these other friends of yours a part of this book club?”
“Yeah, I’m the only one in a friend group who isn’t in it.”
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“I see,” I began to think back to my vision. “This may seem like a strange question, but I assure you it is imperative to answer truthfully.” I took a deep breath. “Have you ever seen Leila’s bare back?”
“W-What kind of question is that?” she blushed furiously.
“Please, it's very important. Has she ever been in a crop top around you? Or in an open-backed dress? I need to know if she has any sort of back tattoo.”
“Um,” she pushed her fingers together and looked down. “I’ve never seen her in any outfit that reveals anything like that. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more help.”
I thanked Elise for her cooperation and left to report my findings to Mr. Moon. With Elise's testimony and the symbol's connection to Leila's book club, Leila had become my primary suspect. Despite her seemingly airtight alibi, I couldn't discount the possibility that she had used her Tier 6 Illusionist abilities to create a convincing replica of herself.
When I entered Mr. Moon's office, I found him dozing off at his desk. I banged my hand against the desk, jolting him awake.
"Mr. Moon, Leila Damica is now our primary suspect," I declared without preamble. He started to respond, but I cut him off. "I need all the files you have on her, and I need them now. Time is of the essence, and I may need to infiltrate a few places to get to the bottom of this."
Mr. Moon quickly retrieved the information I needed, and as he handed over Leila's file, my eyes darted over to the extracurricular activities section. After a few moments of scanning, my eyes locked onto the information they needed.
"Moon, can you sign someone up for a club?" I asked with urgency.
"If I know the club sponsor, I can certainly try. Why do you ask?" Moon replied, a hint of confusion in his voice.
"I need you to get my sister into the next meeting of this book club tomorrow." My gaze was unwavering, "Can I trust you to make this happen? If we fail now, we may lose our chance to solve the case."
Mr. Moon saluted at me, "You can count on me, X."
"Good." I exhaled. "If everything goes as planned, we will soon have the answers we need."
The next day, Mr. Moon successfully signed me up for the club. As I entered the clubroom, I scanned the area for any signs of suspicion. To my surprise, there was no trace of the strange symbol. However, most of the members kept stealing glances at me, which made me even more suspicious. I had a gut feeling that this was more than just a book club.
The meeting commenced with a discussion about the book they had just finished reading. It sounded peculiar to me. The book was about a group of farm animals who revolted and took over the farm they worked on. I couldn't understand the relevance of such a story until one of the members claimed it was a metaphor for how we shouldn't trust the Beastmen. My suspicion grew as I realized that the book club might have a more profound purpose than just discussing literature.
Eventually, the teacher running the club spoke up, “I believe we are going to cut it short today,” and I noticed a few people exchanging relieved glances.
Curious, I asked, “Why are we cutting it early?”
“Well, it’s not against you Quinn,” the teacher explained, “It’s just that most of these students are uncomfortable doing the second half of our meetings with someone they don’t know.”
Feeling confident, I replied, “If that’s the case, you can just pretend I’m not here. I won’t say a word.”
The teacher hesitated for a moment, then said, “Well, the people here want to make sure you share our same ideals. So, it would be best for you to leave for now if you're that concerned.”
Determined to prove myself, I challenged him, “Okay then, test me.”
“Very well,” he said, “How do you feel about Beastmen?”
I already knew the answer from sitting through the meeting, “I hate their guts. They can die for all I care.”
“And the Elves?”
This question was a bit more challenging, but I decided to take a leap of faith, “They suck. No one should be more powerful than us humans.”
The teacher smiled and turned to the group, “What do you guys think? Did she pass?”