The crowd outside the museum had finally been brought under control and evacuated to a safer location.
However, the battle raging inside the building was approaching its climax, and Roxanne knew she had to do something if they wanted their mission to succeed.
By the time she arrived at the museum, the police were already escorting the remaining visitors toward the city park. The area was crowded with frightened civilians, many of whom were still struggling to comprehend what had happened.
She shouldn't be too far from here.
Roxanne scanned the crowd before making her way through it, searching for Ellen.
"Waaaaah!"
The sound of a little girl crying caught her attention. Nearby, her mother knelt to comfort her, gently reassuring the child that everything would be all right.
Roxanne watched them with tired eyes before continuing on her way.
I knew this would happen. There would always be people who ended up disappointed.
Vera once told me that this could make so many people happy. But how many, exactly? How many would leave here with smiles on their faces, and how many would walk away miserable?
Is there really no other way?
She continued through the crowd, unable to shake the questions weighing on her mind.
---
"Just as I expected! Something like this had to happen again!"
A student from Alcetra Academy slammed his notebook onto the ground and snapped his pen in frustration. Black ink spilled across his hand.
"What did you expect?" his bespectacled companion replied flatly, adjusting his glasses. "Did you seriously think an exhibition featuring Relics of this caliber would go off without a hitch?"
"Hooray! No more note-taking!"
Another student, this one from Etheria Academy, threw both arms into the air and laughed as though he'd just won the lottery.
The two Alcetra students turned to stare at him.
"That guy actually seems happy about this," one remarked.
"Well, you know what Etheria is like. I'm convinced their entire population has gone insane."
"Are we any better?"
"...Fair point."
Nearby, a man examined the ticket in his hand with a deeply dissatisfied expression.
"I came all this way for nothing."
"If I'd known this would happen, I would've stayed at the hotel and played video games," a young boy with short orange hair complained to his father.
The man tore his ticket in half and gave his son a weary smile.
"At least you've learned something about how valuable Relics are. Come on, let's head back to the hotel."
The boy sighed and followed his father. His Charmander trotted along beside him, occasionally glancing around at the dispersing crowd.
Watching them leave, the Alcetra student shook his head.
"Looks like he's given up on seeing the exhibition. That's a shame. He wanted to bring his son here before the boy began his journey."
His bespectacled companion smiled faintly.
"I'm sure there'll be plenty of more interesting things for them to see someday. Things far more memorable than this exhibition."
"Wait a minute. Are you saying something like this is going to happen again?"
"Maybe."
"Hey, speaking of which..."
The student turned toward his companion, as though a troubling thought had suddenly occurred to him.
"Do you know where Z is?"
His companion's expression changed instantly.
He turned toward the museum, his eyes widening.
"That damn kid! I knew it! He's still inside!"
He clenched his fists, as though he could sense something coming from the building.
"I can practically feel his presence from here!"
"He's been hit by Dream Craps and is still inside the museum? What is he doing, sleepwalking?" his companion asked incredulously.
"I DON'T KNOW!"
The student was beginning to panic.
"Should we go in and rescue him?"
"Are you insane?! We're talking about an entire squad of Esper operatives from Team Epitaph—and one of their branch leaders is there, too! Do you have a death wish?"
"Then what are we supposed to do?!"
His companion fell silent for a moment.
"...Leave it to the police."
Neither of them looked particularly satisfied with that answer.
---
Meanwhile, Roxanne finally found Ellen near the police cordon surrounding the museum.
Ellen noticed her approaching and turned around.
Roxanne walked with her head lowered, her steps hesitant. Something about her demeanor was different from usual. The girl who had once seemed so lively now looked utterly exhausted, her expression weighed down by doubts she could no longer keep to herself.
Recognizing the change, Ellen immediately approached her.
"Roxanne! There you are!" she exclaimed, her voice strained with worry. "Vera's still inside, and she's been captured. We have to save her!"
Roxanne slowly raised her head.
Her eyes were already brimming with tears.
"Senior..."
Her voice was barely audible.
She looked directly at Ellen, struggling to steady herself before asking the question that had been haunting her.
"I want to ask you something. What's our real objective in taking the Bad Night painting?"
Ellen fell silent.
"You said earlier that this was all because of Captain Alvion's selfishness. But I can't believe he'd send so many operatives here just to steal an ugly painting."
Roxanne's voice trembled.
"People are frightened. Some are traumatized, and others have had their hopes crushed. This has gone too far."
She swallowed hard, meeting Ellen's gaze.
"Tell me the truth. Why did Lord Alvion and the others really come here?"
For a moment, Ellen simply regarded her.
Then she smiled faintly, though her eyes remained serious.
"All right. It seems you're not as innocent as I thought."
She paused, glancing toward the museum.
"But things have gone too far for me to keep hiding the truth from you."
Ellen turned back to Roxanne.
"You understand that this isn't an ordinary art exhibition, right? There are ancient Relics, artifacts, and even historical inscriptions on display."
She let the words settle before continuing.
"But there's one particular artifact Lord Alvion wants."
Roxanne's expression tightened.
"...The Nexus Sapphire?"
"Exactly."
Ellen nodded.
"I already told you that the old man is incredibly selfish. Somewhere along the way, he must have realized something: why settle for stealing a painting when he could obtain a high-level artifact capable of making far more things possible?"
Her expression hardened.
"Compared to the Nexus Sapphire, taking the Bad Night painting alone simply wouldn't be worth the effort."
Roxanne lowered her gaze.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
She quickly wiped it away with the sleeve of her uniform, which was still torn and damaged from her earlier battle against Aron.
I knew it...
This mission was too much for me.
Ellen noticed her expression and stepped closer. Without another word, she drew Roxanne into a gentle embrace and stroked her hair.
"I know you're disappointed," she murmured. "And you have every right to be."
She held Roxanne for another moment before continuing.
"But we don't have time to grieve. Things have already gone too far, and we still have to save Vera."
Ellen released her and turned toward the museum.
Within the enormous magical dome, the building was beginning to crumble. The sounds of battle continued to reverberate from within, while cracks spread across the structure.
Ellen watched the collapsing museum, her expression growing tense.
Hang in there a little longer, Vera.
We're coming for you.