One hour later…
Syd Barrett wore a satisfied smirk, leaning back with his arms crossed and leg bouncing like someone ready to explode at any second.
Across from him, Autumn sat calmly in his seat.
Jody sat beside Syd. Eventually, he couldn't hold it in anymore.
"I don't get what the hell you were doing, Jody… except going around telling everyone I'm some raging maniac."
"You heard that?"
"I wish I hadn't."
"Don't be mad at me just yet."
She turned to Sally.
"Sally, did you scan everyone for weapons already?"
"...Mm-hmm! Besides Mr. Autumn and the police officers, no one else has any weapons."
"And did you check everyone's body temperature—the ones I talked to?"
"I did..."
"Did any of them show sudden temperature spikes?"
"...There were a few..."
"Tell me. Who?"
Sally walked up, cupped her hands over Jody's ear, and whispered. Only the two of them could hear—Jody even motioned for Syd to stay out of it.
"...Mhm... got it."
She sat back in her seat.
"You were setting bait, weren't you, Jody?"
Jody nodded at Autumn. The CIA agent had caught on.
"Yes. And I think the enemy's starting to sweat."
"And you're the only one who knows what the bait is," Syd muttered.
"Don't be like that, Syd~ I said not to be mad," she cooed, patting his back affectionately.
"But will it even work? You're trying to catch a liar by tracking temperature spikes? Everyone's under stress right now. Anyone would be sweating bullets."
"You're not wrong… but even so, it tells me a lot."
"Then who is it? Who are you suspicious of?"
Autumn asked.
"I can't say yet."
"...Then how about just telling me who you think it is?"
Syd tried, but got shut down.
"I can't tell you either."
Syd made a face. "What the hell?! Why not?"
"Because right now it's just a hunch. I don't have proof. If I told you now, you'd go punch them in the face, wouldn't you?"
"..."
"And if it turns out you're wrong? Then you just beat up an innocent person. They'd end up in the hospital, even if you didn't mean to kill them. Am I wrong?"
"....."
Syd had no comeback. She had a point. He'd just have to wait.
Autumn used the moment to ask more.
"You seem to know this place pretty well. This 'Vivie' you mentioned—who is she?"
"She owns this place."
"You know the owner?"
"I do."
"....."
So that's why she's so confident, Autumn thought. Among all of us here, she's probably holding the best hand...
Just then, a loud stomach growl came from Sally.
Grrrrgle...
"..."
The little girl held her belly, clearly embarrassed. But she hadn't eaten anything since the bread they bought had sunk into the floor.
"Ah... damn kid... I totally forgot."
The smell of warm bread must've been torturing her.
"It's okay. I'll order something for her."
"...Look at you, Mr. Senior Brother. How noble," Syd said sarcastically.
Autumn ignored him and raised a hand to signal Amy.
She noticed and began heading over.
As they waited, Autumn continued the conversation.
"So... where did you get your intel on Sally?"
"Whoa, hold up—didn't we already agree not to ask each other that kind of thing? We're all just doing our jobs."
"True... but I need to be sure you're not working for terrorists or anything... because otherwise—you know what comes next."
"..."
"We're not terrorists, okay? We're not some Bin Laden cell you've been hunting down or whatever."
So they're really not willing to exchange any intel...
"Hmm... I figured. You don't act like that type. And the girl doesn't seem scared or brainwashed. You're probably affiliated with some organization too. Just as I thought… multiple parties involved in this mess..."
Autumn glanced at Sally again. She looked up at him with sparkling eyes, his mysterious aura reminding her a bit of Toshi.
"Right, Sally? Have they been treating you badly?"
He still wasn't 100% sure she hadn't been coerced. He read her expression, posture, and body language carefully. So far, she didn't seem scared or depressed. In fact, she clung to Syd like a shadow. Still, better to confirm.
"...N-No… they're nice..."
"Good. Sounds like you've found the right people then."
Autumn gave her a soft smile. Sally blushed and looked away—only for Syd to bop her gently on the head.
Bap!
Syd: "Flirting with any guy who gives you a smile, huh?"
Jody: "You know, Mr. Autumn... You're forty, but you don't look it at all."
"...Haha..." Autumn gave a polite smile.
"Your aura is your life force. Every martial arts practitioner ends up looking young. One day, when you master the art from him—" he nodded to Syd, "you'll be like me too."
"No. You look young because you're Asian. Asians age slower. She's white—once she hits thirty, she's gonna wrinkle like a raisin."
Syd interjected mid-conversation, making Jody shoot him a look.
"Which is why you have to train me."
"Shut up."
Autumn: "...So why did you choose to train her, Syd? Why break the sect's rules?"
"...Long story. Let's just say there were some...benefits. That's all you need to know. And if you're planning to use the sect's rules to blackmail me, forget it. Even if you blast it on the group LINE, I won't give a damn."
"You guys have a LINE group for your sect?"
Before Jody could follow up, Amy arrived at the table.
"Yes, sir?"
"....."
Amy looked stiff. She could feel Syd's gaze burning a hole through her, like he was ready to devour her whole. So she avoided him and addressed Autumn instead.
"This might not be the best time... but I'd like to order something for the kid. She's starving."
"...Ah... o-of course..."
As Amy turned to leave, Jody casually chimed in.
"Why not go with the house recommendation?"
"..."
Everyone—including Amy—turned to look at her.
"...The recommendation?"
"Yes. The usual favorite Vivie would recommend to customers. I'm sure you know what it is, Amy."
"....."
"..."
"..."
"....."
"Sir... we don't have a 'recommended menu' at this bakery," Amy replied firmly. "But if you'd like, I can suggest today's special. Would that be acceptable?"
"Sure... I'll take the daily special," Jody replied coolly.
Then Sally tugged on Jody's sleeve and pleaded softly,
"I want... I want hot cocoa..."
"You little brat—give an inch, take a mile huh?"
Syd gave her a light slap on the head again.
Then he turned to Amy.
"I'll have whatever the kid's having. If she eats it, I eat it. Got it?"
Jody chimed in, teasing:
"Aww, so you did want to try it too, huh?"
"I've been sitting in here for nearly three hours. Of course I'm hungry."
"I'll just have water," Autumn said.
"Understood," Amy replied.
As she finished jotting down the orders and turned to leave, Jody gently tugged on her sleeve again.
"Yes?"
"Sorry—one vegan sandwich, please."
"...Oh! Certainly."
"Thank you."
Jody let go, and Amy walked off to prepare their food.
Syd leaned over and whispered:
"A vegan sandwich? Seriously?"
But before they could continue chatting—
A sudden shout rang out from outside, drawing everyone's attention.
"I'm done with this shit! I'm outta here!!!"
It was a man's voice, loud and furious, coming from across the way.
Opposite the bakery was a bookstore, and people were trapped inside that one too—far more restless than in here.
"Sir, wait! Please don't—!"
"My mother is in the ICU! She could go at any minute! I have to get to her! You people don't understand!!"
The man shouted back.
"Sir! Calm down! Help is coming!"
"Calm down my ass! You're cops, right?! Then do something! It's been nearly three hours! This is an airport! Where the hell is the emergency response?! There's no signal—this is terrorism!"
The man wasn't listening. He and a few others jumped out of the bookstore, landing on the rippling ground, hoping to swim across the strange surface...
But the second they touched it, they were pulled under—swallowed whole by the malevolent floor before they even got a chance to flail.
"...Why does it feel like that thing's pulling stronger now?" Syd muttered.
"You're not imagining it..." Autumn agreed.
"No wonder the rescue team hasn't gotten through. Nothing can cross that thing..."
"Hey, Syd... why don't you try using your martial art to harden the floor?" Jody suggested. "Like you did with Director Collins that day. Transfer the properties of Object A to Object B, then have B touch Object C—so that C inherits A's properties..."
"...Oh, I see," Autumn jumped in. "So you're suggesting he transfer something solid to change the liquid nature of the floor?"
"Exactly. And he—or you—shouldn't touch it directly. Instead, throw an object that's already had its properties swapped onto it. That might work."
"No..." Syd shook his head. "Not this time."
Autumn elaborated,
"It's true the theory works. But in this case, the surface area is too large. The swap only affects a limited radius—it's not wide enough to cover a path out."
"...What do you mean?"
Syd: "Have you ever seen me swap a tissue's properties with an entire highway?"
"...No..."
Autumn: "Our art has limits. You can only swap the properties of bounded objects—a clump of dirt, an eraser, a chair, a table, a person, even a car or a plane if you're good enough. But unbounded substances—like seawater, the atmosphere, a street stretching into the horizon—we can't do anything with those."
Jody turned back to Syd.
"But... didn't you once swap the property of spilled liquor with Sera's body? Liquor's a liquid too—and unbounded, isn't it?"
"No, Jody. Who said it's unbounded?"
"..."
"When it spilled, it formed a puddle. That is a boundary."
"...Oh... so the puddle was the boundary..."
Seeing her still confused, Syd explained further.
"If something doesn't have a boundary—you make one. Break it off, scoop it, contain it. It works. Like that ocean Autumn mentioned—he's talking about a whole sea. But if you scoop some into a glass? That's a boundary right there."
"...So the glass is the boundary."
"Exactly. Dirt on the ground? Can't do it. But scoop it into a pot or hold it in your hand—bam, boundary."
"...So that's the catch... the limitation of your martial art is..."
"Yeah. We can only swap properties of things with clear boundaries."
Autumn confirmed, then looked at Syd.
"You didn't tell her that yet?"
"Not yet. I was going to once she got to the swapping stage... but oh well."
"What stage is she on now? Aura control?"
"Yeah. And you know that stage takes the longest."
Autumn didn't argue.
"Here's your food."
Amy returned with the tray and began distributing items to everyone—except for Jody's special request.
"I'm very sorry, ma'am... but it looks like we're out of vegan bread."
"...Oh... is that so?"
"Would you like... um, something else instead?"
"Nope."
But just then—
"Aaaugh!!! HEY! WHAT IS THAT!?"
Shouts and shrieks erupted from outside the bakery, followed by the sounds of panic.
"What was that?" Syd muttered.
He turned toward the noise, and so did everyone else in the bakery. One by one, people abandoned their seats to crowd around the windows—and their faces paled in unison. Even the two police officers, Harvey and Joy, looked shaken.
Sally was just about to take a bite of her bread, but her arm was yanked backward by the zip tie as Syd suddenly stood up.
"Eh—"
"Don't be greedy. Come here."
"Okay..."
Syd led Sally to the window, joining the others, and what they saw made them freeze.
Thick white smoke was rising from the rippling ground outside, quickly enveloping the entire area.
It was so dense that it looked like a full-on fog had rolled in.
"Hey... smoke? What the hell is that?!"
Rachel shouted in alarm, hand over her forehead.
"Tear gas!!"
Joy called out to everyone, and both officers immediately rushed to slide the main door shut to prevent the gas from leaking into the store.
Everyone instantly shifted into high alert.
The core group jumped up from their table and ran to help seal up every possible entry point.
As the chaos unfolded—with everyone fixated on the tear gas outside—another event occurred simultaneously.
A figure seized the opportunity, creeping toward the food tray left behind on Syd, Jody, and Autumn's table. They pulled a syringe from their jacket pocket and discreetly injected a few drops of green liquid poison into each of the drinks.
The green substance melded with the drinks seamlessly—no visible trace left behind.
The figure then calmly rejoined the crowd, helping them seal off the space like everyone else.
—
Syd brought Sally to a nearby window and worked with Rachel to close the panes quickly. On his left, Amy approached to help him lock it in place.
"Here, press this," she said.
That allowed him to secure the panel.
Autumn and Jody were also helping Joy and Harvey reinforce the door. Now only the bakery's windows remained as a visual connection to the outside world—though all they could see was a thick white haze of gas.
Autumn stood beside Harvey, Jody beside Joy. All four of them sealed off the door as tightly as they could, but a small amount of gas still leaked through—thankfully, it wasn't severe.
"Tear gas for real..." Autumn muttered.
Then... he locked eyes with Sergeant Harvey.
...Hmm?
He stared at the sergeant for a few seconds before turning his attention back to securing the door.
"Just great... what's their next move gonna be?" Syd grumbled, dragging Sally back to their table.
When things settled down slightly, Jody and Autumn returned and updated everyone.
"Tear gas—no idea where it came from," Jody said. "But it's completely clouded our view."
"Judging by the amount, they must've hidden entire canisters underground..." Autumn added, sipping half his water. Sally took the chance to munch on her bread happily.
"Could be part of the enemy's powers..." Jody speculated.
"But the real question is—why do this?"
Just then, as Jody and Autumn discussed the situation, Syd calmly drew a pistol and held it under the table.
"So simple," he muttered.
Click!
Sally's eyes went wide. "Boss?!"
"The enemy's about to make their move."
"!?"
Autumn instinctively reached for his own weapon, just in case Syd was about to fire—on him or anyone.
Syd's confidence was unshaken.
"Whether it's tear gas or whatever—the point is, they're blocking visibility. No cameras. No phones. That's their setup."
Jody noticed a bead of sweat roll down Syd's forehead.
"The gas came from outside... they probably have backup out there. My guess? They're going to open fire on us. Bet they're already in gas masks and heavy suits, waiting."
Syd stood up. Sally clung tightly to him. Jody moved to join them.
"...You're right. If the glass breaks, we'll be choking in seconds," Autumn added as he stood too, pulling something from his coat.
It was a black fiberglass sheet.
A brown aura flared from his body as he swapped the sheet's properties with his skin, then prepared a second sheet for Syd.
"Consider this a gift from your senior, Syd."
"Whoa whoa whoa—put it on the table and slide it real slow. Just because you're my senior doesn't mean I trust you."
"Fair enough. I haven't betrayed you—yet," Autumn chuckled.
He obeyed and slid the sheet over. As soon as Syd touched it, Autumn activated the property swap with his aura—no martial art moves needed.
"Hey—?!"
Syd flinched slightly, but once he realized Autumn wasn't messing with him, he calmed down.
"Five hours."
"I didn't ask, jackass."
Syd snapped, then picked up the bread he'd ordered and scarfed it down before the chaos resumed, following it up with a sip of hot cocoa.
Autumn prepared another sheet for Jody. "And this one's for you, Jo—"
But before he could finish—
Autumn suddenly vomited blood.
It splattered across the wooden floor, turning it a shocking red.
Everyone froze. Conversations stopped. All eyes turned toward him.
Autumn's eyes widened as he clutched his stomach—an unbearable, tearing pain ripping through his guts.
He collapsed but managed to brace himself on one hand, refusing to lie down.
Then—a second wave of blood burst from his mouth, this time with chunks of pink internal organs.
He reached desperately for the edge of the table, trying to steady himself—but only managed to flip the whole thing over, sending everything crashing to the ground.
Syd instinctively pulled Sally backward.
Autumn gasped raggedly, eyes flicking toward Syd and Jody with panic—asking what the hell's happening to me? Then he spotted something.
His water glass.
"....!!!!!"
"Syd! The water—!"
Autumn could barely speak. Another violent wave of blood burst from his mouth.
But his broken sentence was enough—Syd realized the drink was the source.
He and Sally tossed their cocoa to the ground in perfect sync.
Thank god they hadn't touched it.
Then, as Autumn realized he might not survive, his brown aura exploded outward.
With his final strength, he pulled out his loaded pistol.
And aimed it—directly at Joy.
Then pulled the trigger.
BANG!
But at the last second, Harvey threw himself in front of her, taking the bullet.
Blood splattered. The sergeant fell to the floor.
"HARVEY!!!"
Panic reached a new high.
Joy drew her weapon, ready to shoot Autumn—
But she froze.
Because Jody Johansson was standing behind her, a spinning air bullet swirling around her fingertip, aimed right at the back of her neck.
Surrounded by a glowing blue aura and the cyclone symbol of her power.
"Drop the gun. Now." Jody ordered.