Haori slammed the door shut and opened her hair which was tied up into a ponytail with a ribbon. She adjusted her and tied it up into a top knot bun, putting the ribbon inside the pockets of her green trackpants. 

She walked past the stairs, making her way towards the far left side of the 2st floor and stopping in front of a silver, thick, and metallic double door. 

'Phew...' She exhaled and composed herself before tapping on her UII which was in her pocket. 

After a series of blue holograms appearing directly on the door, a whirring sound came and the door lay open. 

A dark room, the only lights were hung on top of what seemed to be another door. There were many objects inside the room. 

On the wall the following was displayed with a yellow hologram, [Artifact Grades 1-3] 

She didn't pay much attention and went on. The door opened, revealing yet another room, looking the same as the previous one, only this time, the hologram displayed, [Artifact Grades 3-6] 

Once more, another door opened. 

This time, there were two figures inside. 

A blonde man with peridot-green eyes, wearing a white shirt tucked into his black trousers, and, a jet-black haired man with deep, black eyes.

She made her way towards the large curved screen in front of the two. 

"Haori, you're here." Xianye who'd sat on a long-back chair spun around.

"Yes, may I ask what you need my help in?" 

"Well, it's a missing-items case. A Grade 7 Self-Defense Artifact was stolen." Xianye first gave a brief description of the case and added, "While looking around, I found a cufflink. That's why I called you, since it has a strange symbol on it and you're the best one to deal with symbols." 

'A symbol, huh. Here? On Earth... It most-likely isn't related to Fragmented tongue or the Fragmented Army.' Her eyes narrowed as her voice became deepened as she replied accommodatingly, "I'll help, please show me the cufflink."

Xianye turned around and picked up a paper sachet from his desk. He handed it to Haori and gestured at her to sit on the chair stuck to the wall behind. 

She strolled away and sat down. "Can I have a glove? Since this is most-likely evidence from the scene." 

"Yes." Xianye replied as he handed a fresh glove to Raphael who then handed it to Haori. 

'A hexagon...' She began remembering about everything she knew about the Resistance. After a while, she came to a conclusion that it wasn't related to the Resistance at all. 

Her initial hunch was proven to be incorrect. After thinking for around two minutes, she gave up on tying the symbol to Resistance. 'Perhaps the Fragmented Army...? They do have hidden meanings for everything normal.' She began tapping her feet rapidly as she became lost in thoughts. 'A hexagon... Strength? And, the 6 in the middle, balance.... Harmony... Too many meanings...' 

As she lost herself in a sea of thoughts, Raphael and Xianye discussed other things about the case at hand. 

"What'd you think, Raphael? Why did, whoever this is, steal this artifact?" He asked as he stared at the map displayed on the screen. 

It showed the entire map of Sector Six. The map was in double dimensions and colored in blue. There were many places with a green marker, then, there were some with marked with a blue marker. While only one, and only one place was marked with a red marker, The Squad 8 Headquarters.

At the very right of the map was a legend that explained what the markers meant. 

Raphael thought for a while before replying indifferently, "Might I propose question to you, first?" He asked, to which Xianye nodded. "Why do you think that this is different than the usual missing items case?"

"Heh heh." Xianye let out a self-deprecating laugh as he too wondered why he thought it was different. "Well, I thought it wasn't a normal one, was because it was a Grade 7 artifact. The apartment building was very normal, but I suspect that there are special security measures placed there. So, it definitely didn't feel like a normal missing items case."

"And, the artifact. It was manufactured by Imugi. The only ones which have a deal made, allowing them to not have trackers attached to what they make." He added. 

Raphael nodded thoughtfully. "Your explanation does seem plausible. What artifact was it that was stolen?" 

"A Micro-M9."

"Micro-M9... So it's components would be a Art-09 for the body, then a 9 millimeter barrel, a rubberized grip, a Elsa-X03 for the firing mechan- Ah." He thought for a while and stated his own theory. "Well, there are three possibilities now, it'd seem."

Xianye sighed and pulled out his phone to check the time. 

He asked indifferently, "And, what are they?" 

"The first would be, it's just a simple case of missing items overcomplicated because of the points you'd stated." He explained. "The second would be, it was stolen for the purpose of constructing something else. An entirely different artifact, since it is possible, especially with the artifact containing an Elsa-X03. The most commonly used component for weapons and artifacts. And, the third possibility would be..." 

Raphael slowly turned and looked at the Haori who'd drawn closer to both and had come to a stop near them, right as he'd finished speaking. 

"It's either... a group emerging, maybe? Or something related to the Fragmented Army, since I don't have enough information, I do not know which one it could be." Haori explained what she'd come up with and looked at both awkwardly. 

"That... That is the third possibility." Raphael smiled indiscernibly and shrugged. "Maybe some people came together, or perhaps even a single person did and decided to do... illegal things. Maybe they're planning to use an Elsa-X03 for something."  

"That does seem possible." Xianye nodded. "Well, for now, go back to what you were doing. I'll keep on surveying, looking for any other missing items case." 

The two, Raphael and Haori, nodded obediently and walk out of the room and past the three doors. 

---

Squad 8 Headquarters, Second Floor, Library.

"James Holmes had found a clue! 

He trudged away to his friend, Sebastian Watson and informed him of it." 

He'd pulled out a small piece of blank paper and folded into a makeshift bookmark. He put it inside his book and walked back to his room on the first floor.