CHAPTER 130: CH 130: ENJOY THE VACATION? - PART 2

Kana stood frozen in front of her room, her hand hovering over the door handle. The corridor was quiet, the only sound being the faint hum of the overhead lights.

Her gaze lingered on the door lock, scanning for any scratches or signs of tampering—but there were none.

Even so, her gut told her something was wrong.

She hesitated, chewing her lip as her thoughts spiraled. Was she overreacting?

Maybe she just imagined the rustling sound earlier... but the figure she’d seen running away from the corridor was real. There was no mistaking that.

Just as she was about to force herself inside, a familiar voice called from behind.

"Kana? What are you doing out here?"

Kana turned and saw Emma approaching, her light steps muffled against the carpeted floor. Emma was dressed casually, her long hair tied back loosely, and it looked like she’d been out for a nighttime stroll.

Kana hesitated for a moment, then exhaled sharply and walked toward her.

"Emma... someone tried to enter my room."

Emma stopped in her tracks, blinking in confusion.

"Huh? Someone tried to...?"

Kana nodded, lowering her voice.

"I heard something rustling outside my door when I came back, and when I rushed over, I saw someone running away from the corridor."

Emma frowned, crossing her arms.

"...That shouldn’t be possible."

"I know. But I saw them. I just... don’t know who it was."

Kana replied softly, glancing at the lock again.

Emma’s lips pressed into a thin line, clearly troubled. The resort was known for its flawless security—breaches like this weren’t supposed to happen.

At first, she seemed skeptical, but after a moment, her expression softened.

"Alright. I believe you."

Emma said finally.

Kana blinked, a little surprised.

"You... do?"

"Of course. You’ve helped us so much already. I’d be an idiot not to trust you on this. Let’s go check the security footage. If someone really tried to enter your room, we’ll find out who."

Emma sighed, rubbing her forehead.

Kana felt a bit of relief at Emma’s decisiveness and nodded quickly.

"Okay."

The two of them made their way through the winding halls until they reached the security room tucked away behind a restricted-access door.

Inside, the low hum of machinery filled the cramped space, and the faint glow from multiple monitors lit up the dim area.

A lone guard sat at the console, head tilted back slightly, clearly on the verge of falling asleep.

Emma cleared her throat sharply, the sound slicing through the silence like a whip.

The guard jerked awake immediately, nearly knocking over his cup of coffee in the process.

"Ah! Miss Emma! I—I was just—uh—monitoring the—"

"Spare me the excuses. Rewind the footage from Kana’s corridor. Past hour."

Emma said flatly, stepping up beside him.

"Yes, ma’am!" the guard said, fumbling to grab the controls.

Kana leaned forward slightly, her gaze fixed on the screens as the guard cycled through the feeds.

At first, everything looked completely normal. The corridor outside her room appeared untouched, the timestamp showing steady recordings without interruption.

But something didn’t sit right with her. Her eyes narrowed. Then, suddenly, she noticed it—something small, almost insignificant at first glance.

"Wait... stop there."

Kana said firmly, pointing at the timestamp in the corner of the screen.

The guard froze the footage, confused. Emma leaned in, frowning slightly.

"...What about it?"

"This isn’t today’s footage."

Kana said quietly, her voice cold.

The room fell silent for a moment as Emma’s head whipped toward her.

"What?"

Kana raised her finger and traced the date displayed on the recording.

"Look closely. This is yesterday’s timestamp, not today’s. Someone replaced the feed."

The realization hit Emma instantly, and her expression hardened.

"You’re telling me someone tampered with the system?"

Kana nodded slowly.

"Whoever was outside my room... didn’t want to be caught."

Emma’s fists clenched at her sides, and for a brief moment, her calm demeanor cracked, revealing a flash of panic.

Resort security was considered untouchable—flawless. If someone had bypassed it, this wasn’t just a random incident. It was a serious breach.

She turned to the guard sharply.

"Not a word about this to anyone. Do you understand?"

The man swallowed hard, his eyes wide as he nodded rapidly.

"Y-Yes, Miss Emma!"

Emma turned back to Kana, her expression softening slightly, though her jaw was still tense.

"...Thank you for catching that. If we hadn’t noticed this now, things could have gotten a lot worse."

Kana shook her head slowly.

"I’m just glad we found out before... something happened."

Emma exhaled deeply, regaining some of her composure.

"Alright. I’ll handle this. For tonight, I’ll arrange for a guard to be stationed near your room. No one unauthorized is getting anywhere near you."

Kana hesitated, shifting uneasily.

"Are you sure it’ll be enough?"

"It’ll have to be. Don’t stress over it, Kana. I’ll make sure you’re safe."

Emma replied firmly, though her eyes betrayed her worry.

Kana stared at her for a moment, then nodded faintly.

"...Okay. I trust you."

Even so, as the two of them left the security room, Kana couldn’t shake the unease growing inside her.

Someone had gone out of their way to tamper with the cameras and lurk outside her door. That wasn’t something a normal guest would—or even could—do.

And if the resort’s security had already been compromised once... there was no telling if it would happen again.

She followed Emma silently through the quiet hallway, her mind spinning with possibilities.

The soft, polished floors reflected their steps, the once-cozy resort atmosphere suddenly feeling heavier, darker.

By the time they reached her room again, a uniformed guard was already waiting by the door, standing tall and alert.

Emma exchanged a few quick words with him, ensuring he understood his role, before turning back to Kana.

"Get some rest. I’ll handle everything else."

Emma said softly, placing a reassuring hand on Kana’s shoulder.

Kana forced a small smile and nodded.

"Thanks, Emma."

Emma gave her a final glance before walking away, leaving Kana alone in the quiet corridor.

Kana lingered for a moment, staring at the door to her room.

Even though the lock was untouched, the memory of that rustling sound—and the shadowy figure slipping away—wouldn’t leave her mind.

Finally, she stepped inside, locking the door behind her. The room looked exactly as she had left it, pristine and undisturbed.

But even as she sank into the bed, Kana couldn’t shake the feeling that someone, somewhere, was still watching her.

And this time, she wasn’t sure she would be ready when they came back.