The Third Letter: The Missing Plaster Statue
We headed to the outdoor track field, where the Track Club was in the middle of practice. Students were sweating through warm-ups on the wide expanse of the track or sprinting through the wind. As I scanned them, wondering who to approach first, one student came panting over to us. He brushed back his sweat-soaked hair and asked,
"Are you... here for the Track Club, by any chance?"
"We're looking for a student named Muchia Leoporte," I replied without hesitation.
Muchia Leoporte. He'd been tangled up in both the Recognition Craving Monster ghost story and the festival ghost story. Ironically, he always seemed to skirt the center of these incidents without being truly uninvolved, getting dragged into them unjustly. For some reason, I kept crossing paths with him.
Fortunately, Muchia was at practice. At my summons, he quickly left the track and jogged over to us. Like the other Track Club members, his whole body glistened with sweat from running laps moments before. Puzzled that I was looking for him, he still asked politely,
"What brings you here?"
I gave him a brief rundown of the Art Club incident.
"We're here about the plaster statue that vanished from the Art Club a few days ago. We have some questions."
As soon as I mentioned the plaster statue, Muchia nodded and began recounting what he'd seen that day.
"Yeah, I remember. It was Monday after school. I was in charge of putting away equipment for the Track Club, so I was heading to our storage shed near the old building."
His account matched what Art Club president Gain had said.
"As I passed the Art Club warehouse in the old building hallway, I glanced through the small glass window in the door and saw the plaster statue right there. I'm sure of it—I'd seen it so often it was familiar. The door seemed locked. I didn't think much of it and kept going, but the next morning, when I heard it had disappeared, I was shocked."
"But if you're so used to seeing it, couldn't it have been a mistake? Maybe it was already gone that day, and you just assumed you'd seen it because you always do."
Muchia hesitated at my words before continuing.
"No, that's not possible. Because... that day, the statue looked weirder than usual, so I paid extra attention."
Rone, Elaine, and Aurora's faces clouded with unease again at his words.
"W-Weirder how?" Rone asked in a frightened voice.
Elaine bit her lower lip, her expression stiffening. Aurora's eyes wavered.
"Did its pose change or something?"
"This has to be a ghost story..."
Muchia waved his hands, denying our suspicious stares.
"No! It wasn't moving or anything like that. The position and pose were the same."
He furrowed his brow, digging through his memory.
"The unease I felt was... the pose and position were identical, but it felt like the statue itself had been swapped out. And the warehouse seemed a bit messier than usual..."
"Did you tell the Art Club president about this?"
Muchia answered weakly.
"Yes. The rumor going around the Art Club that 'the plaster statue moves' probably started from what I said. I didn't mean for it to happen, but I feel bad that it soured the atmosphere because of me."
That was the extent of Muchia's testimony. Honestly, I hadn't realized it before because his impression from the Recognition Craving Monster incident was so strong, but he seemed like a decent guy. Why was a nice fellow like him hanging around those two princes?
Anyway, after hearing Muchia's account, I pondered deeply. If he was right, it seemed impossible for Art Club students to have stolen the statue. Plus, his comment about the statue looking different lent weight to the idea that it had come alive due to a ghost story.
Guess it's time to treat this as a ghost story incident and prepare accordingly...
"Mr. Allen!"
Just then, a voice called my name. It was none other than Art Club president Gain.
"Mr. Allen! I brought the two students!"
Apparently, when the Art Club heard I'd come to investigate, they'd proactively summoned the two suspects.
"Please use this chance to get to the bottom of this once and for all!"
Gain looked at me with eyes full of expectation. But for me, who was already half-convinced this was a ghost story, his hopeful gaze wasn't entirely welcome. If a real ghost story was involved, involving ordinary people was something to avoid.
I wasn't expecting much, but since it was a rare chance to face the suspects directly, I figured I might learn something. With Muchia seeing us off, I headed back to the Art Club to meet them.
...
The Art Club room hadn't changed since we'd left it moments ago—of course it hadn't. The smell of paint and plaster dust still lingered faintly, surrounded by paintings and sculptures. The only addition was two female students who hadn't been there before.
They didn't look comfortable with the situation. One huddled with her head down, while the other wore a stiff expression, openly displeased.
Art Club president Gain pointed them out and introduced them.
"Sir, this is Lily and Dollorens."
I approached them gently.
"Hello. I'm Allen Jest from the Paranormal Investigation Club. I'm here to ask you a few questions."
The shy-looking Lily shrank back and mumbled in a tiny voice,
"L-Lily... that's me..."
Her eyes shook with anxiety. In contrast, Dollorens introduced herself boldly, her face hard.
"I'm Dollorens. I don't know what I've done wrong to be dragged here."
Her voice dripped with blatant irritation at being suspected.
I tried to calm them first.
"No need to be so tense or upset. We're just here to uncover the truth about the missing plaster statue. We want the facts, so we won't force anyone into the role of culprit or interrogate unnecessarily."
I continued, trying to reassure them.
"Please just tell us comfortably what happened that day and everything you know."
With that, I started with Lily, asking about Monday.
She flinched in surprise but stammered through her story.
"Th-That day... Art Club ended early for me, but... I had paintings to tidy, so... I stayed late in the classroom. I locked the warehouse door just before dismissal... and went home."
Her paint-dusted fingertips trembled as she testified.
"When I left... the statue was still in its spot."
"Were you alone in the classroom?"
"Y-Yes."
"Nothing unusual in the warehouse?"
"N-No, nothing."
I nodded after hearing Lily out. Staying alone late without an alibi made her suspicious, but Muchia's sighting cleared her. It was information I already knew.
Next was Dollorens.
"Now, Dollorens, tell me about Tuesday morning when you were on duty."
She masked her displeasure and spoke.
"Since it was my turn, I went to the Art Club warehouse before dismissal on Tuesday. As I went to open the door... I heard a faint thud. Like it came from inside."
She narrowed her eyes.
"When I went in, I couldn't believe my eyes. The statue that should always be there... was completely gone. I called the other members to confirm it was missing... That's all I saw."
"You didn't check the warehouse before dismissal?"
"No. We only go twice a day unless there's something special—once at the start of club to get supplies, and once before end to return them. That day, Lily forgot to put some away by mistake, so we didn't need to open it at the start."
"I see. Any other oddities when you found it gone?"
Dollorens paused, as if remembering something.
"Oh, one weird thing. Around where the statue should have been and near the entrance, there was plaster dust scattered like it'd been dumped there."
As Dollorens testified, murmurs rose among the Art Club students that the dust proved the statue had moved itself. That must've been what Muchia meant by the warehouse being messy.
...
After hearing from Lily and Dollorens, we headed to the Art Club warehouse last. It was behind the Central Club Building, off to one side of the old annex. Before opening the door, I peered through the small glass pane.
As expected, the interior testified to the Art Club's long history—numerous paintings and small sculptures neatly displayed. Amid the densely packed works, one spot stood out: plaster dust scattered messily, just big enough for one statue. Unnaturally empty.
Right in view from the outside window. No wonder Muchia and Dollorens noticed first.
A student soon arrived with the key and unlocked the rusty padlock. With a dull creak, the door swung open, and we finally stepped inside to examine it closely.
The club members immediately fanned out to investigate.
"No other items missing besides the statue," Elaine said after scanning meticulously.
Rone stared at the empty spot, puzzled.
"But it's weird. With all these sculptures and paintings, why only that one?"
"Any special legend or ghost story tied to it? If it was unique..." Aurora asked the president, who shook his head.
"No. It was just a work by one of our alumni. Not famous, and few remember the artist. If anything, it's only getting talked about now that it's gone."
An ordinary plaster statue, no different from the others. Yet only it vanished. Why that one? And if a ghost story made it move and leave, how did it escape this warehouse?
Even if it was possessed, escape seemed impossible—just like stealing it. The key was unraveling the secret of its disappearance.
I pondered as I examined the scattered plaster dust—from the original spot to the entrance, where it was heaviest. Only two areas had it; elsewhere was surprisingly clean for a warehouse.
The students were still mulling over the remaining sculptures or the empty spot. I focused on the entrance dust, avoiding the crowd.
Then I noticed it wasn't just on the floor—plaster dust clung elsewhere too. Right on the door itself, in the center, scraped white like something plaster-made had rubbed against it.
I asked a club member,
"Was this plaster mark here before?"
"Oh, that? No... it appeared when the statue vanished. Some think it's proof it opened the door itself."
"...I see."
But that was odd. Even if it could move, how did it open the door? Notably, no dust on the handle—only near the center. It looked less like it opened the door and more like it leaned against it.
During the inspection, I spotted heavy dust on the windowsill. Fine particles piled like dust.
Something's off.
I leaned in closer. That's when I saw it—not dust, but something else.
"Huh? This is..."
I picked up a white fragment from the floor.
"...A plaster shard?"
It was a tiny piece near the door corner, too small and dim to notice easily.
At that moment, I caught sight of Lily's face—she'd gone pale upon seeing the shard I'd found. Color drained from her cheeks, her eyes trembling in terror.
The intuition honed by my Gift "Observation" whispered to me.
This pile of dust at the entrance. The mark on the door. The heavy dust on the windowsill. The shard I picked up. Lily's reaction.
All of it was the key to solving the case. And every clue connected to one truth.
Puzzled by her response, I looked at the shard again.
And all the riddles unraveled.