"Eveline Cain," Aren repeated the name under his breath. "Sound familiar to you?"

Miu shook her head in silence.

"Hmm, alright. Thanks, Elias."

"You’re welcome, now that we’re even, please don’t call me again."

"Right..."

The call ended just as quickly as it began.

Aren lowered the phone slowly, his gaze lingering on the darkened screen for a moment longer than necessary. He tried to make sense of the timeline, of what happened in the past.

Three years ago...that was before even the Sun City attack. And if what Elias said was true about her sponsor being ’killed in an accident’ 2 years ago...

How come I didn’t hear anything about it?

Aren exhaled quietly, leaning back in his chair as his eyes drifted toward the window. Yet, that was when he realized something.

He dug into his bag before pulling out the small folder that Stella had handed to him on the train toward Misarck—the case folder that contained Shen’s information.

His eyes widened as he connected the details.

That’s right! Shen’s original restaurant closed three years ago as well! These cases were connected after all.

Is the time period itself important? Or was this just another coincidence?

He must’ve been spaced out, as when he came to, Miu was next to him, tugging on his sweater. "Aren? Hey, you with me?"

"Huh?" He blinked, then shook his head quickly. "Oh—sorry. Just...thinking about something."

Miu tilted her head slightly, still watching him.

"...Say, Miu," Aren continued after a moment, a quieter suspicion forming beneath his words. "It might be a bit personal, but...remember the story you told me? About how you got picked up as an idol?"

Miu froze.

"The one where you said you were singing to the stars—"

"Hey!"

Both her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment as she got up from her seat and practically threw herself over the table to cover his mouth with her hands.

"Don’t just say that out loud!"

Aren let out a muffled sigh before gently pulling her hands away. "Alright, alright. My bad."

"...Anyways," he continued, more serious now, "I just wanted to ask...how old were you when that happened?"

Miu blinked at the question, clearly caught off guard. "...How old was I?"

"...Yeah."

She leaned back a little, thinking. "I think...fifteen? That’s when I signed with my old company."

"...Fifteen," he repeated under his breath.

Miu nodded. "Mhm. I didn’t debut until later though. Around eighteen."

Aren’s eyes widened instantly. A three-year gap!

His gaze lowered slightly, thoughts beginning to align on their own. "...What about in between?"

Miu tilted her head. "In between?"

"Yeah," Aren continued, "After you signed and before your debut. What were you doing?"

"Oh." Miu blinked once. "Training, I guess?"

"...Training what?"

Miu paused for a moment, brows furrowed as she bought a hand up to her chin. "I mean...singing? Dancing? All the training an idol would do, no?"

"Why are you asking me?" Aren said, eyes narrowing as the suspicion grew larger.

Miu’s expression shifted completely. Her gaze dropped as if she were trying to search desperately for an answer that should’ve been there but wasn’t.

"I..." she started. "I don’t remember...!"

Another three-year gap in between.

If Miu was a confirmed subject of Aetherion Research...that means everything is related to them!

The Ghouls...Shen, and that Eveline girl. Were they also...subjects of Aetherion?!

Fuck... Aren leaned forward, resting his elbows against the table as his fingers pressed lightly against his temple.

...I might’ve just dug myself into a rabbit hole that I can’t get out of.

Aren spared a glance at Miu, who was now back to her pastry-consuming duties. She didn’t look particularly bothered that she had lost her memories.

Guess Professor Voss probably dealt with the emotional wreck of breaking the news to her already...

But something in him refused to let it go. Whether it was his concern for Miu...

Or something else entirely.

Because if his hunch was correct...this would lead him to some more of Aetherion’s hidden secrets, to finally find the drake...and secure a cure for Luna.

Aren pushed himself up from the table, sliding his chair back into place.

Miu blinked before quickly standing as well, brushing the crumbs from her hands as she followed his lead.

"Where are we going?" Miu asked from behind him.

He pushed the door open, stepping out into the daylight as the city noise washed over them once more.

"To confront a ghost."

***

Aren dialed another call, but this time to his favorite, and frankly, only MLE agent that he knew.

"Stella, you busy?"

"Sort of," she replied. "What’s going on? Got a lead?"

"Yeah. At least I think I do. Could you look for someone in your database named Eveline Cain?"

But even as Aren said it, he felt that it wasn’t correct. Someone like her whose been missing since three years ago wouldn’t use her old name again.

"Actually, search for similar names. Aliases, variations, and records that match the profile. Tell me what you got."

"...Alright, give me a second," Stella muttered on the other end.

Aren leaned against the wall, eyes drifting across the street as people passed by, unaware of anything out of place.

Before—

"Huh...?"

Aren’s eyes narrowed slightly. "What?"

"There’s something," Stella said slowly. "Not exact, but close enough to raise a flag."

"Evelyn Kayn..."

The name settled a bit awkwardly in his head, but alas it could be close enough to the original.

"...Say that again?"

"Evelyn. Kayn," Stella repeated. "Spelled differently, but—honestly? It could pass."

"Where is she?"

There was a brief pause as Stella checked. "Apparently, she’s employed at a local business."

"A pastry shop..."

"..."

"What?"

"Yeah," Stella said, tone shifting slightly now. "Pastries and coffee. Looks like a normal part-time job, seems pretty normal to me."

But by this time, the words Stella was speaking barely registered in Aren’s brain. Because his eyes had already moved...slowly, back toward the café behind him.

"...Stella?"

"Yeah?"

"Send back up."

WHOOOP.

The space around him distorted. One moment, he was on the brightly lit street. The next, he was standing on the ground floor of what looked like an abandoned building.

Aren’s skin crawled as he looked around. The place was completely dark and lifeless.

And that’s when he heard it.

"Best not to put your nose..."

"Where it doesn’t belong."