Chapter 19: Club
The television mounted high in the corner of the locker room usually blended into the background. Most students only paid attention when there was a football match or an important announcement from the academy. This morning, however, every local channel seemed to be broadcasting the same story. A female reporter stood beneath a black umbrella while police officers worked behind her, blue and red lights flashing across the rain-soaked crime scene.
"...authorities have confirmed this is the third victim discovered in the past four months. Police continue investigating what the media has begun calling the ’Frankenstein Killings.’ Citizens are advised to avoid isolated areas at night and report any suspicious activity immediately."
Ryan glanced at the television before looking back down at his phone.
"They’re still covering that case?"
Marcus nodded.
"It’s been all over the news since this morning."
"My dad watched the report before leaving for work," Daniel said. "Another body."
"My uncle works at City Hall," Ethan added. "He says the police don’t have a single suspect. They’re questioning the same people over and over."
The conversation slowly faded into the background as I continued watching the report.
The Frankenstein Killings.
The name alone made my stomach tighten.
How did I forget about this?
Out of everything I remembered from the game, this should’ve been one of the hardest things to overlook.
The Frankenstein Killings weren’t just another headline scrolling across the screen. They were one of the biggest unresolved mysteries in Sinners Academy. Every few Chapters another report would appear. Another body would be discovered. Another press conference would promise progress that never came. Detectives changed. Witnesses came and went. Rumors spread through the city. Nothing ever led anywhere.
Even after clearing every route—including Nightmare Mode—the murderer was never revealed.
The protagonist never solved it.
The police never solved it.
The player never solved it.
For years the community argued over who the killer might be. Every suspicious character became somebody’s theory. Players replayed routes looking for hidden clues, translated developer interviews, and searched through unused files hoping something had been overlooked.
Nothing.
The murders simply remained unsolved.
One of the biggest mysteries in the entire game.
Ryan suddenly looked up from his phone.
"You know... speaking of creepy stuff."
Marcus groaned.
"Here we go."
"No, seriously."
Ryan pointed toward the television.
"My uncle told me something a few weeks ago."
"The one working at City Hall?" Ethan asked.
Ryan nodded.
"He said there’s an old cemetery behind the City Hall. Hardly anyone goes there anymore."
Daniel looked interested.
"I’ve heard about that place."
Ryan leaned back against the locker.
"My uncle swears the security guards hate doing the night shift there. He said people keep reporting lights moving between the graves after midnight."
Marcus snorted.
"Flashlights?"
"That’s what they thought."
Ryan shrugged.
"But every time security went to check, nobody was there."
Ethan folded his arms.
"I heard a different version."
"What version?"
"My uncle said maintenance workers refuse to work near the cemetery before sunrise. Apparently they keep hearing footsteps behind them."
Daniel laughed.
"Footsteps?"
"I’m serious."
"So am I."
Marcus shook his head.
"Every old cemetery has stories like that."
"Maybe."
Ryan grinned.
"But it’s still creepy."
The conversation drifted naturally from ghost stories to urban legends around the city. Marcus insisted every haunted location had a perfectly reasonable explanation, while Daniel argued that some stories were simply too strange to dismiss. Ethan sat somewhere in the middle, admitting he didn’t believe in ghosts but also refusing to visit abandoned places at night if someone offered him money.
I barely heard any of it.
Part of my attention remained on the television.
The other part was trying to remember whether the cemetery behind City Hall had ever appeared in the game.
It hadn’t.
Or at least...
I couldn’t remember it.
The report eventually ended, and another news segment replaced it. Ryan was still arguing with Marcus about whether haunted places existed when the locker room door opened.
"I’ve been looking for you guys."
Noah walked inside carrying several sheets of paper tucked beneath one arm. He waited until the conversation died down before placing the papers on the bench in front of us.
Ryan looked down at them.
"What’s this?"
"Club approval forms."
Marcus frowned.
"I didn’t know you were joining a club."
"I’m not."
A small smile appeared on Noah’s face.
"I’m starting one."
That answer immediately caught everyone’s attention.
Ryan picked up the first page and read the description aloud.
"’Research and investigation into unresolved mysteries, criminal cases, urban legends, unexplained incidents, and supernatural phenomena.’"
He lowered the paper and looked at Noah.
"...You’re actually serious."
"Completely."
Noah nodded.
"I’ve always liked detective novels, crime stories, and old urban legends. While I was staying with my grandmother, I had a lot of time to think. We have clubs for sports, music, literature, photography... but nothing for people interested in mysteries. So I decided to start one."
Marcus scratched the back of his head.
"So what exactly would you do?"
"Look into strange stories around the city, collect urban legends, discuss unsolved cases, visit places people claim are haunted... anything people can’t explain."
Daniel smiled.
"I’d actually join something like that."
Ryan laughed.
"So basically a detective club."
"You could call it that."
While they continued asking Noah questions, I quietly picked up one of the approval forms lying on the bench.
The academy seal was genuine.
The faculty signatures were real.
Everything about the document looked official.
My eyes settled on the title.
Mystery Research Club.
I read it once.
Then again.
Something wasn’t right.
There had never been a Mystery Research Club in the original game.
I had completed every route, unlocked every hidden event, collected every CG, and read every side story the developers had released. If a club like this had existed, I would’ve known.
It simply didn’t.
I slowly looked up at Noah, who was still explaining his idea while Ryan and the others listened with growing interest.
Until now, every major event had followed the original story almost perfectly.
This...
This was new.
For the first time since arriving in this world, I found myself wondering whether my transmigration hadn’t just changed my own fate.
Maybe it had started changing the story itself.
