One day after the initial investigation on the Vase of Mercilli, on Thursday morning, the lecture room at the SAIR Central Division 2 Complex in the eastern suburbs of Bakju was considerably fuller than usual.

Huashin stood in front of the main screen, while Araka sat with Jun, Tenka, Sukeo, and Okuri.

On the screen was not the Vase of Mercilli.

Instead, it showed a decorated ceramic plate with a hexagonal blue stone mounted at its centre.

Huashin tapped the desk lightly.

“Alright. We have a new assignment.”

She looked across the room.

“And this time, I expect some of you to help.”

The five immediately sat straighter.

“Our objective is to identify and track down whoever broke into the Bakju National Museum and stole this plate.”

Tenka raised her hand.

“Instructor Huashin?”

“Yes?”

Tenka looked toward the screen.

“I thought what went missing was the Vase of Mercilli,” she said, “Leana told me the museum even closed the exhibition because someone switched the vase.”

Huashin shook her head.

“That’s what everyone thought, and in fact, they did switch the vase.”

“So what’s this plate?” Tenka said, eyebrow raising.

Huashin switched the screen to a photograph of the Mercilli exhibition.

“Actually, what eventually happened was that the vase was never actually removed from the museum.”

Tenka blinked her eyes. 

“It’s not yet disclosed to the public, of course, but someone moved the genuine artifact into storage and substituted a reconstructed one.”

“So… nothing happened?”

“No,” Huashin changed the slide again, and the plate returned.

“Thanks to Araka’s help, we now believe the entire thing was a diversion. While everyone was expected to focus on the Vase of Mercilli, the intruders took this from another part of the museum.”

Sukeo raised his hand. “Instructor Huashin.”

“Go ahead.”

“That doesn’t make much sense.”

Huashin smiled faintly. “Continue.”

Sukeo looked toward the photograph and continued his reasoning: “The Vase of Mercilli must have been one of the most valuable objects in the entire museum at the time. Plus, the exhibition in Bakju was one of the few occasions when it was outside Zakatari.”

“Correct.”

Sukeo leaned forward. “So if the intruders already managed to get close enough to physically move it, wouldn’t that have been their best opportunity to steal it? I mean, no plate would match the value of a national treasure of Zakatari.”

The room became quieter.

Okuri, the red haired guy, thought for a moment.

“Maybe the vase was too difficult to carry.”

Everyone looked toward him.

“I mean, it’s quite large, isn’t it?” Okuri continued. “If they tried moving it a long distance, they might damage the surface. Plus, for something this well known, stealing it wouldn’t fare well in black market if every authorities were actively searching for it.”

Sukeo backed down.

Then, Jun raised his hand: “Instructor Huashin, if the thieves knew there were two vases in the museum, I think it’s reasonable to assume that they must have some exclusive access to the details of this exhibition — which I would think is a reasonable way to narrow down the suspects.”

Huashin nodded. “That’s a good catch, Jun. In fact, that’s what we had concluded as well from Tuesday’s investigation.”

“So someone inside the museum staff informed the thieves?" Okuri, the one with spiky red hair, said.

Huashin nodded slowly. “That could be the case, though that would need further investigation.”

However, for Araka, this sounded a bit uneasy. If someone from a major museum, especially the one has strong connection with my own family, was actively working with the thieves, it wouldn’t look good for anyone involved, including my mom.

While Araka was thinking, Jun raised his hand again: “Instructor Huashin, there is still something that bothered me about this plate.”

“Go ahead, Jun.”

“I mean, the surveillance was still heavily compromised, and the fact that they switched the vase showed they have both the knowledge and a detailed plan. But … Why would someone go this far for a plate that probably has little value to the broader black market? I mean, their target could be one of the local porcelain pieces, which has considerably had more demand among international collectors.”

“Wait, Jun, how did you know that?” Tenka turned to Jun and said.

Jun whispered back: “You know, you have AI, right?”

“Jun, I like your logic here,” Huashin continued, "however, a Setakushi piece like this does have a demand on the black market, at least according to the recent assessment by the International Joint Policing Committee.”

Jun narrowed his eyes.

“One primary reason, at least according to the assessment, is the rising popularity of the so-called ‘antique fragment art ,” Huashin switched to the next slide, showing pieces of art work made from fragments of artifacts, “basically, sometimes artists create pieces from a broken down fragments of artifacts that were originally discarded for different reasons. Initially started as a genuine art trend, due to its high market value, criminals started to use stolen pieces to create these works with false credits.”

“So sometimes an artifact could be more valuable after being smashed into pieces?” Sukeo said.

“That‘s right, especially for the ones with valuable gemstones. “However, if it’s just about some gemstone stolen, I wouldn’t call all of you guys here.”

Everyone straightened up.

“Because apparently, even the museum had made some mistakes in identifying the piece.”

Huashin then switched to another slide.This time, several close-up photographs of the original stone appeared alongside columns of laboratory results.

“Actually, the conservation laboratory finally gave us its preliminary examination records last night.”

Araka immediately recognized one of the photographs - the precisely lit catalogue image they had examined at the museum.

Huashin continued.

“With support from Weimin and Anawa, we compared those records with SAIR’s existing material on Shard samples, and here is what we found.”

Huashin picked up a pointer.

“The density is unusual for Setakushi. The surface structure is inconsistent with what the museum originally believed it to be. Several responses recorded during conservation testing also don’t fit the expected mineral.”

She pointed toward another section.

“And most importantly, several of those characteristics are consistent with samples we’ve previously identified as Shard material.”

Jun’s expression changed.

“So someone stole a Shard?”

“Most likely,” Huashin nodded. “Still, since we don’t have the stolen object anymore, I'm not going to call the identification absolute.”

She looked across the room. “But based on the records we do have, Anawa and Weimin agree that there’s enough evidence for SAIR to treat it as a Shard until proven otherwise.”

Tenka looked again at the photograph.

“But…” She raised her hand halfway this time. “Why is it blue?”

“During the examination, a residue surface was found on top of the gemstone that matched the characteristics of pigments.”

“So someone was trying to make it look like a Setakushi?” Sukeo said. 

“Very likely.” Huashin said, “and not only that, the reports said the pigment was partially made from powders of a genuine Setakushi.”

So that means someone, somewhere around 500 years ago, tried to make it look like a Setakushi, Araka thought. Yet that still didn’t answer Araka’s core questions.

“Still, before we are able to find the actual piece, it’s hard for us to draw conclusions based on these preliminary assessments,” Huashin said, “but that still gives us enough justification to get involved in the case.”

—

Right after the lunch, Araka, Jun, Tenka, and Sukeo were called upon to Huashin’s office — a small room with a simple desk, with two stuffed animals on top of the table

Jun knocked the door, and a few moments later, Huashin let them in.

“Instructor Huashin, why did you call all four of us?”

Huashin smiled and said: “Well, Director Ninfo hasn’t approved this part yet, so technically I’m getting a little ahead of myself.”

Jun raised an eyebrow.

“But I think the four of you might have access to some very useful information for this case.”

Jun thought for a moment.

“Instructor Huashin, do you mean because my mom sponsored the museum wing?”

Tenka’s eyes widened.

“Wait.”

She turned toward Jun and then Araka.

“Your mom actually sponsored the Sakashi Peni Wing?”

Araka sighed.

“Tenka, it was literally written in the name, and you know my mom is the matriarch of the Sakashi branch of the Peni clan.”

Tenka stared at her for another second.

“Right. How come I forget that.”

Sukeo adjusted himself to his seat.

“Still, that’s something I only confirmed just now. Maybe next time I visit the museum, I should actually talk with your mom.”

Araka looked at him.

“About what?”

“Give me free tickets,” Sukeo whispered.

Araka sighed again.

Huashin continued.

“Moraka could certainly make the museum side of our investigation easier. Plus, considering what happened yesterday, she could probably help reassure the Zakatarin ambassador as well.”

She paused.

“But that’s not actually why I called you four.”

Jun looked toward her.

Huashin brought the plate’s catalogue entry back onto the screen.

“There’s another name here that should sound familiar to all of you.”

Araka immediately understood.

“You mean the donor of the artifact?”

Huashin nodded.

“Nambu Omikare Construction Co.,” she enlarged the provenance record on her tablet, “Apparently, Omikare is a surname—and from what I could find online, not a particularly common one — historically heavily associated with Nan’en.”

Sukeo leaned forward.

“Right. We do have an Omikare in Vensan.”

Tenka raised an eyebrow.

“You mean Anikara?” she looked toward Araka, “The 100M sprinter from Vensan? Araka’s friend?”

Araka nodded.

“Omikare Anikara. I’ve known her since elementary school, and I've been to her house several times. And again, her family happens to own a construction contractor here in Bakju, which is a major federal contractor.”

Jun immediately caught the problem. “But not this one.”

“Yeah,” Araka pointed at the name: “Anikara’s family company is Omikare Construction Co. This donor was Nambu Omikare Construction Co., and it was based in Nan’en.”

“So it could be a bit of a stretch to say Anikara knew that,” Jun said, “I’ve never heard Anikara or her dad mention having a gem stone plate.”

“Could be,” Araka paused, “But I do think it’s beyond coincidence — after all, unlike Peni, there are few families bearing the Omikare surname, and considering it’s also based in Nan’en, which was Anikara’s ancestral home, I wouldn’t let that slip away.”

Sukeo finished the thought. “It’s worth checking.”

Huashin nodded.

“Exactly. Right now, we don’t know what that connection means—or whether there even is a connection.”

She looked toward the image of the plate again.

“But without knowing exactly what this object was, who preserved it, and why somebody disguised its central Shard as Setakushi five centuries ago, we don’t have many leads explaining why it eventually became the target of a heist.”

Tenka leaned back in her chair.

“Nan’en…”

Then something seemed to occur to her.

“Actually, my mom’s family has roots there.”

Sukeo turned toward her.

Tenka continued.

“And if we’re talking about major companies, Nan’en doesn’t have that many, at least not the old ones considering what happened during years of nationalization before unification.”

She thought for another moment.

“I could probably ask around. Maybe my mom knows somebody who could give us a connection.”

Sukeo’s eyebrows rose.

“Wait.”

“What?”

“That didn’t sound like you, Tenka.”

Tenka immediately crossed her arms.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“I… I never thought you have such a deep connection down in the South,” Sukeo thought, “I thought that was an Araka thing.”

Tenka pouted slightly.

“Well, if we’re talking about connections, I’m giving you guys mine. Sure, my mom runs a photography studio here in Bakju — but that doesn’t mean the whole Nanyun branch of Peni clan (南雲北依家) is just random families in Nan’en.”

Araka chuckled. “That’s very generous of you, Tenka.”

“Don’t make it sound weird, Araka-cha.”

Huashin gave a small nod.

“Good. Then here’s what I’m thinking.”

She switched off the screen.

“I want the four of you to work on tracing the Omikare connection. Find out whether Nambu Omikare has any relationship with Anikara’s family, and if it does, see whether anyone still knows how that plate entered their collection in the first place.”

She pointed toward herself.

“Meanwhile, the rest of us will work on the other leads — the museum breach, the surveillance manipulation, the research records, and anything that could tell us where the plate went after it left the museum.”

Then she looked toward Jun.

“And Jun, one more thing.”

“Yes?”

“If you can, could you make sure your mom and dad continue assisting the investigation?”

Jun nodded.

“Especially with communication to the Zakatarin ambassador,” Huashin continued. “The museum is under pressure to give him an explanation, and we don’t need a diplomatic deadline interfering with the investigation.”

“I’ll talk to them.”

Tenka looked between Jun and Araka.

“Right,” she nodded thoughtfully and said. “It’s pretty convenient that we happen to have Moraka and Minister Lon on our side.”

Araka immediately looked at her: “Well, it’s not like I got to decide who my parents were.”

There was a brief silence.

Then Jun laughed.

Sukeo followed.

Even Tenka couldn’t keep a straight face.

“Fine,” Araka sighed