A Detective and a Middle School Student Work Together to Defeat Lupin

I hung up the phone, my heart racing. Rose wasn't messing around. And Lupin's message... I had to move fast. I looked at my watch. It was 4:30 PM. Ryan-senpai and Stella-senpai went home at 5:00 PM. That meant I only had 30 minutes! I had to find Kalet's and Chestina's items, return them to Ryan-senpai's and Stella-senpai's lockers, and get out undetected. All before they realized.

I immediately darted towards the location Rose had sent: an old, abandoned movie theater. The building looked haunted, with broken windows and torn old movie posters flapping in the wind. As soon as I arrived, Rose was already standing in front of the slightly ajar main door, her face serious.

"On time," she said curtly, without preamble. "I understand your situation, Arez. We'd better hurry."

I was a little surprised... just a little, perhaps because I was already used to this. We went inside. The cinema corridor felt dark and cold. The stale, dusty smell stung my nose. The projector screen in the main hall was tattered, and the audience chairs were covered in white sheets.

Suddenly, a familiar robotic voice echoed throughout the room. "Welcome back, Arez and Rose. This time, you won't be as lucky as before. This riddle will test your limits. Remember, every mistake has consequences."

The broken projector screen suddenly lit up, displaying an image. Not an ordinary image, but a map of this very cinema, complete with red crosses at several points, and text in the middle:

———————————————

Where laughter and tears unite,

Among deceptive shadows,

Seek the staircase that never leads up,

But leads to an unrevealed truth.

But beware, a rumbling sound will greet you.

———————————————

"A staircase that never leads up?" I mumbled. "You mean a staircase that goes down, right?"

Rose glanced at me. "Perhaps. Or perhaps a language trap. 'A rumbling sound will greet you'... that's not a good sign."

I looked at the clock. 4:35 PM. Time was ticking! I checked the map again. There were several crosses in the stage area, behind the screen, and in the basement.

"Rose, we have to go underground," I said. "Maybe there's a staircase there."

"Go ahead," Rose shook her head. "I'll keep watch from here and look for other clues. Remember, Arez, be careful because Lupin surely has unexpected surprises. I'll give you a signal from here."

I grunted, knowing she meant she wanted me to be independent. I wanted to argue, but I didn't have much time left. I immediately ran towards the back of the stage, following the path I thought matched the map. It was very dark there. I fumbled along the wall and found an old iron door. I opened it with difficulty, and behind it, there was a rusty staircase descending into darkness.

I went down slowly, my steps cautious. The air grew colder and damper. The sound of dripping water echoed in the distance. Once I reached the bottom, I saw a narrow corridor. On the wall of the corridor, there was a large red button.

As I approached the button, a loud rumbling sound suddenly came from above, followed by a suspicious "click." From the cracks in the walls and ceiling of the corridor, a green gas began to spray out!

"Damn it! Gas trap!" I panicked. I immediately covered my nose and mouth with my hand. The gas had a pungent, foul odor that made me nauseous. I immediately ran down the corridor, trying to find an exit or ventilation.

I looked at my watch. 4:40 PM. Time was running out! The gas grew thicker. I started to feel dizzy.

Suddenly, Rose spoke from a small walkie-talkie attached to my ear, which she had apparently put there without me noticing. "Arez! Don't breathe the gas! It's a hallucination-inducing gas! Try to find a symbol on the wall, a symbol that's opposite to the entrance!"

With watery eyes and a dizzy head, I searched for the symbol. The walls were dark and dirty, but faintly I saw some scratches. I saw a circle symbol with an upward arrow. Then next to it, a circle symbol with a downward arrow. "Opposite direction... upward arrow?" I mumbled. Would that take me back up, or deeper down?

I forced myself to think. "A staircase that never leads up..." That means going down. But here, the symbol is an upward arrow. This contradicts it. Is this a trap?

I looked at the clock again. 4:43 PM. I had to make a quick decision.

"Rose! There's an upward arrow symbol here!" I yelled through the walkie-talkie. "What does this mean?"

"Lupin likes to reverse logic, Arez! Think paradox!" Rose answered, her voice sounding urgent.

Paradox. Upward arrow, but the riddle says a staircase that doesn't lead up. So... the upward arrow actually leads down? Or should I ignore the upward arrow and look for something that literally doesn't exist?

My head throbbed. The gas made me even dizzier. I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to focus. A staircase that never leads up... but leads to the truth...

Suddenly, an idea came to me. Not an actual staircase, but something resembling one. I looked down at my feet. The floor was slightly sloped, forming a kind of ramp. And there, at the end of the ramp, was a small hidden door, almost invisible because it was covered in moss and fungi. The door seemed to "descend" even though I was walking on a "flat" slope.

"Found it!" I shouted, my voice hoarse. I immediately headed towards that door.

"Good, Arez! But be careful!" Rose exclaimed. "The rumbling sound..."

I opened the door. Beyond it was a small, cramped room. And in the middle of that room, a large machine roared loudly, emitting a deafening rumbling sound. The machine looked like an old generator. And on top of that machine, a metal box lay.

I immediately took the box. Inside, there was Chestina's hair clip and Kalet's watch! Mission accomplished!

But, as soon as I grabbed the box, the generator machine below it suddenly flickered, and a small screen beside it displayed a countdown: 00:00:05... 00:00:04...

"Damn it! It's a time bomb!" I yelled in a panic.

"Arez! Get out of there now!" Rose's voice thundered in my ear.

I scrambled out of the room, my heart pounding. I ran back down the gas-filled corridor, though I now felt disoriented. As soon as I reached the stairs, a massive explosion shook the entire cinema!

BOOM!

The sound was incredibly loud, followed by the roar of collapsing debris. The entire building shook violently. Thick dust filled the air. The ceiling began to collapse, and the walls cracked.

"Arez! Jump!" Rose screamed.

I looked up. Rose was already on the upper floor, near a large broken window. She extended her hand towards me. I jumped, trying to grab her hand, but the gap between us was too wide.

Just as I was about to fall into the pile of rubble, Rose showed her prowess. She leaped from the window sill, swinging on an electrical cable hanging from the ceiling. With incredible agility, she swung towards me, extended her leg, and kicked the wall behind me. That gave me a push to jump further.

With one more swing, she managed to grab my hand. She pulled me with surprising strength, and we both swung together, tearing through the broken cinema window, landing smoothly on the ground outside.

Right after we landed, the entire cinema building collapsed with a deafening roar, leaving behind a pile of rubble and dust. If we had been a second late, we might have been buried underneath.

I coughed, gasping, staring at Rose with wide eyes. She was truly amazing. That's what I thought.

"That... that was close..." I gasped.

Rose just nodded, slightly out of breath. "Lupin never messes around. They love big traps." She pointed to my watch. "Time."

I glanced at the clock. 4:55 PM. Only five minutes left!

"Damn it! We have to get to school fast!" I exclaimed.

Rose and I immediately sprinted like lightning towards the school. The distance wasn't too far, but we had to be extra careful not to be seen. The school was still bustling with club activities, but most were on the field or in club rooms.

We sneaked in through the rarely used back gate. We passed through quiet corridors, avoiding crowded areas. I felt like a real spy. Rose, with her experience, led the way, glancing at every corner, making sure no one saw us.

We reached the locker area. It was quiet. Almost all club students were outside. I quickly opened Ryan-senpai's and Stella-senpai's lockers, which thankfully were unlocked. I placed Kalet's watch in Ryan-senpai's locker and Chestina's hair clip in Stella-senpai's locker. I hesitated a little, wanting to swap back their "original" items, but the deed was done. I could only hope they wouldn't make too much of a fuss.

"Done!" I whispered to Rose.

"Good. Now, let's get out of here," Rose nodded.

Just as all the seniors were returning home, we quickly left the locker area and sneaked out of school undetected.

　　　　　　　◇

5:21 PM. I was home, had showered, and changed clothes. I still felt shaky. The race against time and Lupin's traps had truly exhausted me.

I walked to the kitchen, made coffee to relieve my fatigue. With a ready cup of coffee, I sat on a sofa in the living room, then grabbed the remote to turn on the TV. Although there were no interesting broadcasts, it was just to fill my free time.

There was no food because my parents rarely came home; the reason was they were very busy with work abroad. But because of that, I still had plenty of money for my living expenses. There was actually some instant ramen in the fridge, but I was too tired to make it, so only coffee could I offer... to myself.

In the end... I turned off the TV.

I was still thinking about what happened at school earlier. My manipulative rhetoric worked perfectly. Ryan-senpai and Stella-senpai must have checked their lockers, found the items, and finally realized their "mistake." They must have thought they really did accidentally take someone else's items, even though they were their own items that had been swapped with Kalet's and Chestina's.

I knew I had covered the truth with a lie, even if the intention was good. There was a slight guilt gnawing at me. I had manipulated my friends and seniors. But, the problem was solved. Kalet's and Chestina's items were back, even if they weren't their own, and no one knew about Lupin or the danger we had just faced.

I ignored the guilt. After all, it was for everyone's good, right?