Risebelle marched over and grabbed Jess by the wrist. Jess barely had time to react before being yanked forward. “Whoa—hey! What’s the big idea?”

  Risebelle didn’t stop. “Never mind that. Just come with me.”

  Jess groaned but didn’t resist as Risebelle pulled her through the hall, weaving between students until they reached a secluded spot behind one of the school buildings.

  Jess leaned against the wall with a smirk creeping onto her face. “Ohhh, I get it,” she said while tilting her head. “It’s one of ‘those’ things.”

  Risebelle narrowed her eyes. “What?”

  Jess tapped her chin. “You pulled me all the way out here, somewhere private, looking all serious…” She leaned in slightly and dropped to sultry whisper. “If you wanted me all to yourself, you could’ve just said so.”

  "Tch. Keep dreaming. That’s not why we’re here." Risebelle exhaled sharply while crossing her arms.

  Jess chuckled. “Suuuure.”

  Ignoring her, Risebelle took a deep breath. ‘I have to be smart about this… ‘She needed the truth and from her experiences with this girl, she knew that Jess wasn’t going to give it up easily. Lying was the only way to get her talking.

  So, with a casual shrug, she said, “You’ll never believe it—I ran into my ‘look-alike.’”

  Jess’s smirk vanished. “…What?”

  “Yeah, we actually talked. Turns out she’s pretty interesting. Even told me her name.”

  Jess stiffened. “Y-you didn’t.”

  Risebelle tilted her head. “I did. Oh, and she also showed me her phone. She told me what’s happening tonight.”

  Jess took a shaky step back to the wall. Her face went pale. “D-don’t hurt me, Risebelle,” she stammered. “I can’t do anything about my ex-boyfriend’s connections to this… this Shadow Gang or whatever.”

  That was the confirmation Risebelle needed. ‘So that’s it…’

  Risebelle took a step forward, watching Jess’s reaction carefully. “Then why is your name on the list?”

  Jess’s breath hitched. Her pupils shrank and for a split second, she looked like a deer caught in torchlight. “Oh… oh no…” she whispered. Her hands trembled as they gripped the sides of her uniform. “No, no, no, no—”

  Before Risebelle could react, Jess turned on her heel and bolted—only to slam into a wall behind her. She let out a small, pained gasp before stumbling back.

  “Running’s not gonna help you.” Risebelle took another step closer. “Calm down and tell me the truth. What happened?”

  “I—I didn’t—” Jess swallowed hard, then shook her head frantically. “I wasn’t supposed to be involved! I swear!”

  “Jess…I lied. I’m not actually friends with that bitch, but I did see what was on her phone accidently.” Risebelle’s softened her tone just slightly. “So if you don’t tell me now, I can’t help you.”

  Jess squeezed her eyes shut. Then, finally, she whispered, “It’s because of him…”

  Risebelle’s face darkened. “Your ex?”

  Jess nodded weakly. “He… he made me do things. Said it was ‘harmless.’ Said I’d be ‘protected.’” She let out a bitter laugh. “Guess that was a lie, huh?”

  The “brick wall” that Jess slammed into shifted. Jess spun around upon catching it. The figure before her was no wall—he was a young man with neatly combed hair. His clear green eyes gleamed with quiet curiosity.

  Jess staggered back. “Wha—?!”

  The young man spoke softly. “Oh. My apologies. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  Risebelle’s breath hitched. She knew this guy. But from where?

  Her mind raced, combing through countless memories until one clicked into place. A chessboard. Meticulous strategies. Endless checkmates.

  Harty.

  Risebelle’s gaze sharpened. ‘The undefeated one.’

  “Who the hell—?!” Jess sputtered. “Who are you?!”

  Risebelle exhaled and rose one hand. “Relax. His name’s Harty. He’s in my chess club. Though…” she glanced at him with lowered eyes, “…I didn’t take you for an eavesdropper.”

  Harty smiled nervously. “A-Ah? That would be a misunderstanding.” He gestured lightly with one hand. “I was already here before your conversation began. You simply didn’t notice me.”

  Jess swallowed hard. “That’s… so much worse!”

  Harty gave a slight bow. “Again, my apologies.”

  Risebelle studied him carefully. He was calm. Despite some nervousness in his body movements, the calmness on his face was like someone who was always being five steps ahead.

  Harty adjusted his sleeves. “So, I did overhear your conversation,” he admitted smoothly. “And before either of you decide to kill me over it, I have a better idea.”

  Risebelle arched an eyebrow. “Oh? And what’s that?”

  Harty clasped his hands behind his back. “I’m not a full-fledged detective, but I am one in training and good at solving puzzles.” He smiled. “This looks like a puzzle that needs solving!”

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  Risebelle’s eyes lowered further. “So, what? You expect us to just trust you?”

  Jess, however, perked up with a wicked grin spreading across her face. “I’m starting to like this guy,” she said with a spin around to face Risebelle.“You know what? Let’s take him to my Evil Lair.”

  Harty’s composed demeanor faltered for a brief moment. “Your… what?”

  Jess wiggled her fingers. “Oooooo~ my Evil Lair,” she repeated in a villainous tone.

  Risebelle took a second to process what Jess had just suggested. She recalled the place vividly. The ‘horrifying’ entrance, the grand theatrics of the name, the ominous way Jess always spoke about it.

  And then—she thought about the actual room.

  A battered old desk, a computer on life support, a bed shoved into the corner and a general atmosphere of… disappointment.

  A laugh burst from Risebelle before she could stop it.

  Jess looked at her in mock offense. “Excuse me?”

  Risebelle shook her hea and quickly composed herself. "Sorry, sorry. Just… I forgot how underwhelming your lair actually is."

  Jess scoffed. "You wound me, Risebelle."

  Harty glanced between them. "Should I be worried?"

  Risebelle smirked. “Not at all. Anyways, Harty, you and I have chess club today, so…”

  Harty shook his head. “How about you stick around after chess club, and we’ll meet up. I know you don’t trust me yet, but I do want to help Jess out.”

  Jess crossed her arms. “…Why?”

  Harty eyed her with a serious look. “If I’m being honest… I don’t like seeing people backed into a corner.”

  Risebelle raised an eyebrow before glancing at Jess. “Well, look at that. Miracles do happen. You’ve actually got a guy willing to help you.”

  Jess rolled her eyes but couldn’t completely hide the flicker of relief on her face.

  Harty smiled slightly. “Then it’s settled. I’ll see you two later.”

  With that, he moved past the girls and walked off, leaving Risebelle and Jess standing in the secluded spot.

  Risebelle found herself in the chess club moments later. She was adjusting the pieces on the board for her first match.

  ‘I hope Jess is fine waiting outside…’ she thought, though doubt quickly crept in. ‘Then again, it’s Jess. She never just ‘waits.’’

  Her lips pressed into a thin line. The girl was injured. If anything, they should have been somewhere she could rest, but—

  A sudden commotion near the entrance cut off her thoughts.

  Jess stumbled into the room, but instead of acting like an injured person, she twirled—like some overly enthusiastic cheerleader.

  “Ta-da~!” she chimed.

  Risebelle’s eye twitched. ‘This damn…idiot….’

  Some students turned to stare. A few exchanged puzzled glances, while others just went back to setting up their boards.

  Jess continued her little performance and flipped her hair for good measure.

  Risebelle grabbed Jess by the wrist and yanked her down to her level. She whispered harshly, “I thought I told you to wait outside!”

  Jess grinned. “You did.”

  “Then why are you here?”

  “Because waiting is boring.”

  Risebelle let out a slow, deep breath.

  Moments later, a game was in full swing. A small crowd had gathered. They were drawn by the sight of an injured Jess squaring off against Risebelle.

  Jess, for her part, was putting on a show.

  She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand with half-lidded eyes. She also wore a playful smirk. “Oh, Risebelle~” she purred like a love-struck fool. She lightly tapped a piece and traced slow circles on the board. “Are you sure you want to make that move?”

  Risebelle didn’t even blink.

  Jess’s fingers danced around her queen. She made moves that weren’t just strategic, but seductive, both physically and on the board. She laid out traps that subtly coaxed Risebelle toward them.

  But Risebelle didn’t take the bait—at least, not the way Jess expected. She made bold moves that Jess thought, for sure, she was falling into her strategy.

  The game reached its peak. Jess leaned in with a grin. “Aww look at you, Risey. Your pawns are almost gone…I feel bad for you.” She slid a piece forward with a confident smirk. “You walked right into my trap and--”

  Risebelle calmly placed her next piece and interrupted Jess.

  “Checkmate.”

  Jess’s smirk froze. Her gaze darted to the board. She retraced every move—“How? How?!”

  Her jaw dropped.

  On the other side of the board, where she wasn’t paying enough attention, Risebelle’s remaining pieces had already lined up.

  Jess let out a strangled sound, somewhere between a gasp and a groan. She collapsed onto the table.

  Risebelle smirked. “You always take the bait.”

  The other chess club members applauded Risebelle's victory. Jess, though surprised ended up laughing. "Well, you got me there, Risebelle. I’m not really that much of a chess player.”

  Risebelle shook her head. “Chess requires patience and—”

  “Yup, that’s why it’s so hard,” Jess interrupted with a loud sigh. “Sitting still? Thinking for minutes? That’s like, my worst nightmare.”

  Risebelle lowered her eyes. “Shocking.”

  Before the conversation could continue, a voice chimed in.

  “Nice game today.”

  Harty stood up from where he had been sitting, watching the match. “That was the last match, by the way. Everyone else is finished.”

  The sounds of students shuffling out filled the room. Conversations overlapped with snippets of chatter carrying through the air.

  “Man that was intense.”

  “Yeah, but did you see that new member with the short skirt?”

  Jess perked up. “Oh? I’m famous already?”

  Risebelle raised a hand under her chin. “That’s not the takeaway here, Jess.”

  With a quick glance around the chess club room, Harty began rearranging the desks and setting up the chalkboard. He pinned up several pictures and notes.

  Once everything was in place, Harty gestured for Risebelle and Jess to take a seat. "Alright, ladies, let's get down to business. I believe I can help you with your situation."

  Risebelle and Jess exchanged curious glances before turning their attention to Harty.

  Harty began by displaying a series of photographs, documents and notes on the chalkboard. Risebelle and Jess exchanged surprised glances.

  Risebelle's eyes narrowed while taking in the photographs pinned to the board. There was one of her, one of Jess, and then—her so-called look-alike.

  Her gaze snapped to Harty. “Where did you get these?”

  Harty hesitated. “I… kind of… took them.”

  Jess arched a brow. “Took them?”

  “For research,” he clarified quickly while adjusting his collar. “Strictly business.”

  Risebelle folded her arms. “So if you had these pictures before this meeting, that means you already knew about this ‘double’ situation, didn’t you?”

  Harty exhaled. “I can’t deny it.” He glanced at the board, then at them. “I planned to meet both of you. And, as luck would have it, you just happened to come to me first, despite the way things went down...”

  Jess blinked. “Wait—what?”

  Risebelle's jaw tightened. “You mean to tell me you already had theories about this?”

  Harty nodded. “And now, thanks to you two, I have the missing pieces.”

  Harty clapped his hands together. "Alright, let's go over what we know."

  He pointed to the board. "From what we've gathered, Jess' ex-boyfriend is involved. They tried to get something out of Jess before, but they failed. Now, they're planning something at 7 p.m. The problem is, we don’t know if Jess is directly involved in whatever’s going to happen."

  He checked his watch. "It’s 5 p.m. That gives us two hours to figure this out."

  Risebelle leaned forward. "First, we need to find out where this meeting is happening."

  Harty nodded. "Exactly. Jess, do you know anything that could help us?"

  Jess scrunched her nose. "Not really… buuut I could kind of call up my ex."

  Risebelle shot her a glare. “Confronting him directly is probably not the answer."

  Jess shrugged. "Fair, fair. Then… there are a few girls he was close with. Girls I know. They really don’t like me, but maybe I could get something out of them."

  Harty smirked. "That’s a plan. A little risky, but as long as she’s not planning to start a catfight in the middle of a conversation, we might actually get somewhere."

  Risebelle sighed and rubbed her temples. “So basically… we have no leads to start with, which means it’s actually up to Jess.”

  Then it hit her.

  Oh god.

  ‘It’s up to an idiot.’

  She exhaled sharply and glanced at Jess who was already stretching her arms like she was about to put on the performance of a lifetime. Risebelle felt a sinking feeling in her gut.

  Jess grinned. “Don’t worry, I got this.”

  Risebelle shut her eyes for a second. ‘That’s exactly what I’m worried about.’

  Project Mage