Silence spread throughout the classroom, as if time itself had been stretched.
Marinette fidgeted, watching the doorway; Jaden and Lila had been gone for several minutes, yet they had not returned.
"Alya, why haven't they come back yet?" she asked her worried best friend.
"It'll be fine."
Alya kept her eyes on the gossip news on her phone, answering without looking up, "Jaden is so reliable, there's definitely no problem."
However, before she finished speaking, a short, piercing scream suddenly erupted from the silent hallway outside the classroom.
"Ah—!"
The sound came quickly and vanished just as fast, as if something had abruptly cut it off.
The entire classroom's atmosphere froze, and everyone halted what they were doing.
Soon after, a few more overlapping screams came from different directions, each equally brief before sinking back into dead silence.
An indescribable sense of oppression began to spread throughout the classroom.
"What's happening?"
Marinette sprang to her feet, rushing to the window to peer outside.
The campus was empty, only the rustle of leaves in the wind, but that eerie silence was more unsettling than any noise.
"Jaden is still out there!"
She turned back, worry etched on her face, "Could something have happened to him? I have to go out and check!"
With that, she barreled toward the classroom door, shouting, "Hey, Marinette!"
Alya, seeing this, immediately put away her phone, but she didn't follow right away,
instead quickly tapping her phone a few times, apparently sending a message, before getting up to chase after her.
The other students in the classroom exchanged glances, hesitated for a few seconds, then most of them stirred and ran out together.
After all, the unknown danger and concern for a friend outweighed the fear of staying put.
In an instant, the once lively classroom was left with only three people.
Chloé still sat on her "throne," arms crossed, a displeased expression on her face.
Her faithful follower Sabrina sat obediently beside her, not daring to speak.
Kagami sat alone in the back row, merely glancing at the students who had rushed out before lowering her gaze again, as if nothing outside concerned her.
Sabrina leaned cautiously toward Chloé's ear, speaking in a voice only they could hear, Her tone tinged with excitement as she guessed:
"Chloé, do you think... Hawk Moth sensed your recent negative emotions, so he sent an Akumatized Person to vent your anger and eliminate those who were in the way?"
Chloé's eyebrows lifted at the remark, then she fell into thought.
The idea sounded tempting.
That Hawk Moth, indeed, fits the bill.
However, she felt something was off.
After all, the last time she had a "private conversation" with Hawk Moth, he promised to give her a heads‑up before any trouble arose around her.
She pulled out her phone and checked—no messages.
"Strange..." she muttered softly.
"Then... could Mylène's disappearance be linked to the Akumatized Person that just appeared?"
Sabrina offered another possibility, "Also… Jaden is still out there; could he be in danger?"
"Danger?"
Chloé's mind sparked at those two words.
She looked at Sabrina's worried expression, but a cold, confident smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
She said leisurely, "Danger? Isn't that just perfect."
Her voice carried a hint of schadenfreude.
"Consider it… his punishment for constantly ignoring my invitations.
Let him taste a bit of hardship, get caught in a minor peril, and then…"
She imagined the scene, her gaze turning dreamy and fierce, "I will burst onto the stage like a true hero, rescuing him from the flames."
I'll make him understand that I'm the only one qualified to save him.
He'll be grateful, become dependent, and eventually… belong to me."
Meanwhile, Kagami stayed inside because she felt everything happening outside resembled a cheaply made horror movie.
The opening scream, the protagonists' reckless rush, were the most classic tropes.
She could almost foresee that the eager students who sprinted out would soon either scream back in panic or never return at all.
She scoffed at such futile effort. Moreover, the movies she'd seen told her this place was safe… Marinette rushed downstairs in a single breath, only to be stunned by the empty, eerie courtyard.
Not a single silhouette was in sight, just a lone leaf swirling in the wind.
In the middle of the courtyard path, she saw a puddle of pink, jelly‑like slime that was still faintly writhing.
"What is this?" she crouched, too afraid to touch it.
At that moment, Nathan and Marc huffed their way over.
They scanned the surroundings, confusion written on their faces.
"There are no signs of any fight, nor any blood."
Marc whispered.
Nathan nodded, meeting Marc's gaze. A shared, unspoken calm flickered between them.
(Nathan & Marc's inner monologue: Looks like the Akumatized Person is behind this.)
The earlier screams were so frequent; many must have been taken.
Upon hearing it, the victims were likely terrified the instant they saw the Akumatized Person's appearance, which is why the screams were so brief.
Such an effect suggests the creature's appearance is truly terrifying.
No damage marks indicate it isn't a brute‑force attack but rather a kidnapping or teleportation method.
Jaden… was probably just taken, and isn't in immediate danger.
We must stay calm and not lose our footing.)
Adrien arrived right after, sharing Marc and Nathan's thoughts, though he also carried an extra worry for Jaden's condition.
"My God! This is the perfect horror‑movie opening!"
The last to come down, Nino, seemed unusually excited.
At that moment, Max stepped forward, taking on the roles of the team's 'brain' and 'leader.' He pushed up his glasses and said in a calm, composed tone,
"The most critical thing right now is to go to the principal's office immediately! We must inform the principal of this incident and use the emergency broadcast system there to warn all teachers and students!"
Then, we ourselves will organize and search for the missing classmates!"
"Right! Max is right!"
Kim responded instantly; seeing Max already stride forward, he hurriedly followed.
"We're coming too!" Nathan and Marc, as if they'd found their backbone, immediately followed.
"Adrien, hurry up and keep up!"
Nino was still filming and called out to the isolated Adrien.
"Ah... I... I left something in the classroom, I'll go get it first!"
Adrien thought quickly and came up with an excuse.
"Oh, then hurry up!" Nino, not suspecting anything, ran with the group toward the principal's office.
Now, only the girls remained in the courtyard—Juleka, Rose, and Elli—who were all a bit at a loss, and they all turned to Alya.
"Alya, what do we do now?" Elli asked.
"What else can we do? Should we just wait and fall out of touch with everyone?"
Alya was also a bit overwhelmed. Though she was worried about Jaden, she couldn't figure out what those boys were up to, especially Nathan and Marc's over-the-top acting, which made the whole situation feel eerie.
Those two were Jaden's best friends, and now that Jaden is missing, they aren't worried at all—instead, they're putting on a show here?
Just as she was thinking that, Nathan and the others had already run far away.
"Marinette! Hurry up!" Alya could only call out to Marinette first.
Marinette was also extremely worried about Jaden, but she knew that in this situation it was likely an Akumatized Person causing trouble.
She couldn't transform here; she had to find a hidden spot first.
Going to the principal's office sounded like a good option.
She planned to wait until everyone entered the office, then slip away with an excuse and contact An Marinette to handle the situation.
So she responded with a yes and fell in step with the main group.
Adrien, watching everyone walk away, immediately turned and ran back to the classroom.
Just as he entered the classroom and tried to call Plagg, he saw that there were actually three other people there, all staring at him in unison.
Chloé, Sabrina, and... Kagami.
The word "Pa" that was about to slip out of his mouth was abruptly twisted.
"Uh... sorry, there's a situation outside right now,"
He scrambled up a flimsy excuse, and Plagg, who was about to emerge from his clothes, heard his altered call and was forcefully shoved back inside by his hand.
"Adrien? How's the situation outside? Why are there screams?"
Sabrina asked concernedly.
"Right now... there might be an Akumatized Person outside," Adrien replied vaguely.
"Then why did you come back alone?"
Kagami spoke up, her voice flat but her question was razor-sharp.
"Uh... this..." Adrien was at a loss for words, not knowing how to answer.
At that moment, another chilling scream echoed from outside the window.
"I have to go check!" He seized the opportunity, turned around, and sprinted out of the classroom.
Kagami watched his departing back, looking thoughtful. She got up and ran to the classroom doorway, casting a glance outside.
The hallway was empty; there was no sign of Adrien at all.
Adrien, hiding around another stair corner, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Phew... that was close."
Plagg burst out from his lining, still shaken, and said, "Why didn't you just notify Adrien to come over?"
"Sigh, I just messaged him earlier."
Adrien looked helpless and said, "He said... he's filming the latest perfume ad at Versailles Palace, no time to come."
"What?!"
"So now, we have to rely on ourselves," Adrien clenched his right fist, His gaze turning resolute,
"Plagg, go!"
...Meanwhile, the group jogged along and finally reached the principal's office.
However, when they pushed the door open, it was empty inside. On the principal's desk lay a puddle of that pink slime.
"Even the principal's gone!" Nino exclaimed.
Marinette saw the situation and realized her chance had arrived.
She quickly slipped into a dim storage room nearby and shut the door,
"All right, Tikki, now there's no one around."
She had intended to transform right away, but after thinking, she took out her phone and dialed An Marinette.
"Hello, An Marinette, something's happened at school—there's an Akumatized Person, many people have disappeared! Can you come over now?"
On the other end, An Marinette's voice sounded apologetic: "Huh? What bad timing, Marinette, the bakery is swamped right now, so many customers, I really can't step away."
"You handle it yourself by transforming; I believe in you. It's no big deal—it's just an Akumatized Person!"
"But..."
"Good luck! Bye!"
Before Marinette could finish, An Marinette hung up.
Marinette listened to the busy tone on her phone, feeling speechless. It seemed she had no choice but to rely on herself.
Just as she was about to transform, a panicked voice from Nathan suddenly echoed outside the office.
"Everyone, look outside!"
Everyone inside the office looked toward the window.
Outside the glass window, a thick, semi-transparent pink liquid cascaded down like a waterfall, quickly covering the entire building.
Immediately after, everyone's phones emitted a faint "beep" and then lost signal completely.
"The signal's been blocked!" Max said immediately.
"Everyone, get out of here quickly!" Nino sensed something was wrong and hurriedly urged the group to run outside.
As they reached the doorway, Kim, who was at the back, suddenly felt a light tap on his shoulder.
"Stop messing around," he thought, assuming a friend behind him was joking.
His shoulder was nudged again.
"I told you not to..." Kim turned impatiently, but the words got stuck in his throat.
Behind him, there was no one.
Then he felt his ankle tighten as a massive force dragged him backward.
"Ah—!"
A piercing, warped scream echoed throughout the building.
Those at the front turned back and saw that Kim's figure had vanished.
"Kim!"
Elli shouted out.
Everyone was terrified and at a loss by this bizarre and horrifying scene.
"Monster! There's a monster!"
Nathan, Marc, Max, and Nino all suddenly let out extremely terrified screams, as if they had coordinated.
They fled in exaggerated, almost comical poses. Nino even dropped his beloved phone.
"Hey! You guys!" Alya couldn't understand why those boys reacted so dramatically.
She looked around; only the girls were left, and she suddenly realized someone was missing.
"Wait, where's Marinette?"
She asked Rose and Juleka, "Did you see Marinette?"
Before they could answer, not far away came a succession of short, mournful screams from Nino, Nathan, Marc, and Max, echoing the same fate as Kim.