Elevation

Chapter 16

"Of course I can pick the lock, who do you think I am??" Souda scoffs as he kneels in front of the doorway, holding his tools up to the keyhole. "It's all about the tumblers, you know..."

"Thank you for doing this, Souda." Sonia frowns as she leans on you. "When Hinata told me about Komaeda-san, I knew we could not just wait around for them to come back...!"

"I'm really glad you see it that way, Sonia." You can't help but sigh. "I figured I'd need help at this stage of the game..."

"Of course!" She nods, her eyes wide. "No one has seen Komaeda-san since the funeral, correct?"

Kuzuryuu shakes his head. "Yeah... Peko and I searched all over the islands with Hinata for any sign of them, but there was just nothing. So we thought, maybe there was a clue inside their room..."

"It was the young master's idea." Pekoyama volunteers this information with an unmistakably proud look on her face. "I was surprised no one had thought of it sooner."

"Well, you know how I get when I'm panicking..." You grimace.

Kuzuryuu hits your arm lightly. "Oi, it's not your fault, Hinata. We all understand how you must be feeling right now."

"Thanks..."

"Ah! Here we go." Souda stands and opens the door to Komaeda's cabin wide. "...After you all!"

The five of you step carefully into Komaeda's room, one after the other. The room is cluttered and the air is stale, which seems unnatural, considering that it's Komaeda's room. "Is it just me, or is it... really messy in here? I would have thought that Komaeda would keep things neat..."

"Me too," Pekoyama agrees. "Look at the desk as well... Is that old food?"

Souda reaches the desk and leans down, sniffing at the food. "Actually, it doesn't seem old at all... I'm pretty sure it's still good."

"But he went missing a week ago!" Sonia wrings her hands together. "Surely food a week old would have gone bad by now."

"Then it's not a week old." Souda nods as if he's figured the whole thing out.

Kuzuryuu frowns. "Are you saying that they were in this cabin during the last week, even though they're not here now?"

He shrugs. "Maybe? How should I know, though?"

"Guys." You whisper hoarsely. "...Look."

Your friends turn to where you've crouched down on the floor, towards the bathroom. You point to a spot on the carpet with a shaking hand.

"Blood." You say hollowly. "That's dried blood."

They immediately gather around you to examine the spot for themselves. "Shit.... You're right." Kuzuryuu grabs your shoulder firmly. "It's okay though, Hinata; it's just a little bit, right?"

"Maybe..." You stand and slowly reach for the bathroom door.

You're not sure what you were expecting, but the bathroom looks normal. Then you peer into the shower area, and...

"Th-There's more!" You call out.

Sonia pushes past Souda into the bathroom, and peers down at the stain. "Yes... But there is really not that much blood at all."

"Still, what does this mean? What happened to them??" You survey the rest of the bathroom quickly, your frustration heightening. "I don't understand..."

"We should get Tsumiki, Hinata. Just in case..."

You nod slowly. "Yeah... Yeah, someone get Tsumiki. And let's split up... I want to find them as soon as possible."