The news of the genuine Vase of Mercilli being confirmed inside the transport case had passed to the museum lounge. 

“That’s some great news,” Moraka said to the museum’s manager after taking a sip of her herbal tea. The manager, an old man, nodded.

Hatoru, however, wasn’t fully satisfied with the story. He stirred his tea one more time and let the swirl rest. 

So, someone spent all this effort to hack the camera, get inside, unlock the case, replace the actual vase with a replacement one, and then place it inside the storage — all of these look like an out-of-proportion prank. 

So who benefits from all of this? Hatoru thought. 

He looked at Moraka, then at the museum director, and finally at the female police officer relaying the news. 

On the surface, there is a reason to suspect the museum staff behind all of these, even if all of this sounded absurd, Hatoru thought. 

After all, they are the ones who knew there were two vases with similar appearance in the museum. Since there was no visible sign of forced entry, it would mean someone within the museum might unlock all these doors, and even more so, be able to have access to security cameras and modify all the footage to look like nothing happened. 

Hatoru glanced at the museum manager one more time. 

But why? 

That was the question Hatoru still couldn’t answer. 

This isn’t some private gallery, and claiming insurance or subsidies for the damage wouldn’t really work here. More importantly, something like the Vase of Mercilli being stolen would surely damage the reputation of the museum, even if the artifact was eventually found. 

Unless … it wasn’t about the vase at all.

Hatoru turned toward the female officer. 

“Madame,” he said while pulling out his own press badge, “First, as a civilian, I understand my role of not interfering with an ongoing investigation. Still, as a journalist, I would kindly inquire about the progress of narrowing down the suspects?”

The female officer turned to Hatoru, and said: “Detective Yushi is currently working on the case. As I relayed earlier to Ms. Moraka and Mr. Lin (凌), we have secured the original vase, and since SAIR is handling the technical part, we are still trying our best to figure out what happened last night.” 

Hatoru nodded.

“Thank you.”

The female officer bowed and then walked away. Hatoru didn’t wait. He turned to Mr. Lin, the museum’s director. 

“Mr. Lin,” he said and displayed his press badge to Mr. Lin, “If I may, I would hope if you can share some of your thoughts and insights on this case.”

Mr. Lin put away his tea cup and looked at Hatoru. His eyes remained calm.

“To be fair, it is a great relief that both vases were secured by now,” he said, then he lowered his voice and continued, “Though, even I am not sure what exactly happened last night — the whole thing looks like a prank that’s aimed to humiliate our museum.”

“If I remember correctly,” Hatoru continued, “This museum just underwent some renovation earlier to improve its security, right?”

Mr. Lin nodded. “Especially in the Sakashi Hall where the Vase of Mercilli was exhibited. The overhaul was completed days before the decision about the exhibition was made.”

“So the Zakatarin delegation knew about the renovation?”

“Very much so,” Mr. Lin said, "Before the shipment came in, the delegation of the artifact transportation service and security personnel also visited our museum and went over a checklist of protocols.”

“Mr. Lin,” Moraka, previously thinking, now returned to the conversation, “if I remembered correctly, Ms. Miya also showed us the model of an embedded tag that would set off the alarms if the vase was moved beyond any of the exit, right? That should have worked even when the place was out of electricity?”

Mr. Lin nodded. “Miya had also demonstrated that to the Zakatarin delegation — a series of Chromonium powered sensors that are independent of the conventional power supply of the museum.”

“And the tags were still there, right?”

Mr. Lin nodded. “This is something that was attached to the upper inner rim of the vase, which unless someone breaking the vase, they couldn’t be removed unless they have specialized equipment.”

Hatoru remained silent.

So the thieves understood there were two copies of the vase, had access to all parts of the museum without setting off alarms, and more importantly, knowing that bringing the vase outside of the perimeter would set off the alarm — that is something remarkable.

Or…

“Just one more question, Mr. Lin.”

Mr Lin nodded.

“I’m curious, if there’s anything worth noting during the delegation’s visit. Like, if they stopped in front of a collection and inquired about it more extensively than it should be.”

—

In the storage area, the actual Vase of Mercilli had already left the room for the Sakashi Wing. 

“It’s a great relief,” Yushi said while looking at the cart carrying the vase moving away, “at least this didn’t become a major diplomatic incident.”

Huashin, unlike Yushi, didn’t seem to relax. 

Something still wasn’t fully answered. 

“Instructor Huashin?” Araka channeled a message to Huashin, checking what she was thinking.

Huashin still didn’t respond.

Araka turned away and looked at the crate one more time. 

She too found it confusing.

Who did all of these? She thought. What was even the point of going this far by hacking the whole security system, placing a toy lock on top of the actual lock, and then … all for nothing?

Then, another question rose up in her mind 

Why steal the Vase of Mercilli? 

If they sell it on the black market, most buyers wouldn’t even risk the scrutiny for possessing this — it is a world famous vase, and if it went lost, every party involved would try the hardest to find it — even knowing it might be destroyed. 

It’s not something you can pretend as some private collection transferred between rich families, Araka thought.

Then, another question followed.

How did the thieves know there are two vases?

It was supposed to be a secret that was kept away from the public. Even Araka had no idea until Miya explained to the SAIR and the police about the existence of such hours ago. 

Before Araka could share her thoughts, Huashin spoke.

“Detective Yushi.”

“Yes?”

“Did you notice something was a bit odd about the whole heist?”

Yushi raised his eyebrows.

“Like, the Vase of Mercilli isn’t something that could be easily sold on black market…”

“Well,” Yushi said, “I don’t think this is particularly surprising. We know that there have been cases of high profile artifacts being stolen in museums around the world.”

“But,” Huashin said with her hand rubbing her chin, “Think about it — it’s still different from an oil painting. One artist might make multiple copies of it, and someone could theoretically acquire a copy even if there’s another one on display in the museum.”

“But we have two vases here.”

“And they were found in an archaeological site, well documented — which in many ways is different from finding it in a private collection,” Huashin said. 

“So you mean the vase isn’t the target at all?”

Huashin nodded slowly. “And I still believe a major heist still happened, so big that they need this move as a distraction.”

Before Yushi could respond, Sayanaka rushed from sideways and approached Huashin. 

“Instructor Huashin.”

Huashin turned.

Sayanaka rushed in, hand held out the phone: “The Zakatarin ambassador is on the line.”

Huashin blinked. “Already?”

Araka looked at Sayanaka’s phone.

“Wait, Sayanaka, that’s a personal line.”

Sayanaka nodded. “He asked to speak directly with whoever is handling the incident.”

Araka looked toward Huashin.

Huashin looked toward the phone.

 “…But shouldn’t you relay all the updates to Toruyo all the time?”

“Instructor Toruyo told me to pass the call to you — something the ambassador specifically asked for.”

Huashin sighed and accepted it. 

“You wanna put me on the grill, Toruyo? You know I couldn’t even speak that much Endosian,” she muttered.

She straightened herself, then attempted to recall what she remembered of formal Endosian.

“Hej, ja eis Hua—”

“Mazzia!”

A dramatic voice exploded from the other end of the call. 

Huashin froze. 

Then, to her surprise, the ambassador immediately switched into fluent Shinari.

“What happened to our beautiful vase!?”

Huashin pulled the phone slightly away from her ear.

“The Vase of Mercilli! How could someone ruin our beautiful relationship with Great Chin with this?”

Araka and Sayanaka stared. 

Yushi didn’t say anything.

Huashin cleared her throat.

“Mr. Ambassador, I can assure you that the vase is still in Bakju.”

A brief silence.

“Where, exactly?”

“In the museum.”

“Is it damaged?”

“No.”

“Is it properly protected?”

“Yes.”

“Has it been hidden somewhere?”

Huashin glanced toward the opened transport crate.

“No, like it’s still —“

“…In a manner of speaking — ” The ambassador continued before she could explain. “I have already arranged a special visit to the museum two days later with my delegation!”

“Mr. Ambassador—”

“I need to know whether the artifact is safe!”

Huashin spoke more firmly this time.

“It is — in fact, both of them are.”

Another silence.

“You mean both?”

“The primary vase and the reconstructed vessel — they’re both still inside the museum.”

The ambassador’s voice abruptly lost some of its theatrical urgency.

“So… it isn’t lost?”

“No.”

“Then why did someone from your agency inform me that it was stolen?”

Huashin rubbed her forehead.

“We initially believed the Vase of Mercilli was the target. There was a confirmed security breach, and the artifact displayed this morning wasn’t the one that had been there on Sunday.”

“Then somebody did take it!” The theatrical tone returned. 

“They moved it… but they didn’t remove it from the museum.”

“…Why?”

“That’s what we’re investigating,” Huashin continued. “We now believe the vase may have been used as a diversion. The actual target could have been something else.”

The ambassador went silent again.

Then—

“Chata!” 

The word came with such obvious relief that even Araka understood its meaning without knowing a single word of Zakatarin.

“But…” The ambassador’s tone immediately became serious again. “How do we know these thieves simply decided to spare the vase?”

Huashin frowned. “We don’t yet.”

“Exactly!” His voice rose again, “How do we know your museum is safe?”

Huashin opened her mouth, but her words were immediately suppressed by the urgent tone of the ambassador. 

“If this happened once, what prevents it from happening again?”

“Mr. Ambassador—”

“And our other artifacts?”

Huashin closed her mouth.

“What about the seven small rings?”

“The rings?”

“Yes, the rings! They are small!” The ambassador continued. “Someone could put one in a pocket!”

Araka, nearby, glanced toward Sayanaka while trying to hide the chuckle. Sayanaka looked away, visibly trying not to laugh.

Huashin rubbed her forehead.

“I understand your concern— ”

“We loaned these objects because we trusted the security arrangements.”

“— And we are investigating the breach.”

“If there isn’t a satisfactory explanation for what happened, we will have to reconsider the duration of the exhibition.”

“You’re considering withdrawing the collection?”

“Or shortening all our exhibitions throughout Great Chin.”

The words from the phone changed the atmosphere. Even Yushi’s expression became more serious. 

Huashin nodded, despite the ambassador being unable to see her.

“I understand,” She looked toward Yushi and then back. “We’ll do our best to determine exactly what happened, how the intruder entered, and what they were actually targeting.”

“Good,” The ambassador paused. “And please.”

“Yes?”

“Protect the rings.”

“…We will protect the rings.”

“Chata.”

The call ended.

Huashin slowly lowered the phone. Nobody spoke for several seconds.

Then she handed it back to Sayanaka.

“…I’ve never heard anyone speak Shinari like that,” Huashin sighed and said, “Every sentence sounded like he was performing traditional Shinari opera.”

Araka and Sayanaka finally chuckled. 

“Huashin, so that means we should investigate if there were other missing artifacts in the museum?” 

Huashin nodded.

“Especially something that could easily be traded on black market.”

“Alright,” Yushi adjusted his earpiece and relayed his new instructions: “Team A, work with the museum staff to check if there were other missing artifacts in the museum. Team B, report back once you have concluded your investigation on all possible routes of entry.”

—

In the Sakashi Wing of the Bakju original Museum, the Vase of Mercilli had returned to its supposed display case. However, with Yushi’s change of direction on the investigation, the museum remained busy. Bakju Police officers, along with the museum staff, were checking through all three storage areas of the museum. 

Meanwhile, Huashin, Araka, Weimin, and Yushi were watching from the overarching glass window.

“Didn’t realize we need to do it the long way,” Weimin shrugged and said.

“Well, we’re already on the shortcut thanks to Araka’s new ability,” Huashin smiled and said, while patting her shoulder, “otherwise we’re chasing a vase that had never left the museum.”

“But we still don’t get much time,” Yushi said, “the ambassador said we need to give him a satisfying explanation of what happened before his upcoming visit.” 

“Ah, Detective Jin,” Miya, who was previously assisting in locating the inventory, came to the group from a door nearby. “We may have something.”

Everyone turned and shifted attention to her.

“There’s an inconsistency in the inventory from one of the shrine collections.”

Araka’s smile disappeared.

“Ms. Akamoji, what kind of inconsistency, may I ask?” Huashin asked. 

“There is this item, a gem-mounted plate, that went missing from the inventory — something we labeled as an artifact of high risk following the patterns of recent museum heists. I’ll guide you to the location, where currently a replica was displayed.”

Huashin and Araka exchanged a glance.

“So something indeed went missing,” Yushi murmured, “and we managed to catch it before it’s too late.”