The trio ehe hiddeion of the arcade. Risebelle seemed to shiver while looking around at the familiar yet haunting surroundings. “This pce... it’s where I saw Rosebelle for the first time. And it’s where we got trapped, too. How do you know about this part of the arcade, Sadie?”

  Sadie’s mencholic gaze remained fixed on the surroundings. “I’ve been here before, iigating simir is. It seems that this pce holds some secrets reted to the doppelgangers. But don’t worry, I’m here to help you both make sense of it all.”

  “Listen carefully, because what I’m about to tell you is crucial. There’s a sinister anization called Shadowcroft, and they operate uhe guise of a lending pany. Iy, they’re nothing more than soul harvesters. Once you fall into their trap and sign a tract, they own you, and they ge the terms at their will, making escape nearly impossible.”

  She paused before tinuing, “Retly, Shadowcroft has shifted their focus. They’re not just ied in lending anymore; they’ve taken up a more sinister agenda. They’ve started abdug and repg people, and I’ve been trag their activities. My iigation led me to you, Roselle and Risebelle, and that’s why I’m here today.”

  “I don’t know why they want you, but if Shadowcroft gets their hands on you, you’ll vanish without a trace. We have to find out their motives and put ao their sinister operation.”

  Roselle and Risebelle exged a gnce of .

  Sadie’s somber look firmed their worst fears. “And about Rosebelle... Rosebelle is inteo be the rept, the merging of both Roselle and Risebelle into one person. It might seem impossible, but Shadowcroft has an uny ability to manipute events and orchestrate circumstahat make the impossible seem pusible.”

  Risebelle’s eyes widened. “I thought those events were just isuandings, but now it all makes sehey were setting us up to be their arget.”

  Roselle was ihe idea of being merged with Risebelle or anyone else was deeply uling. “We ’t let that happen. We have to find a way to stop Shadowcroft and protect ourselves and our identities.”

  Sadie leaned in. “I’ve been watg you for a while, Roselle, which is how I know about your friends. At least three of them are ected to Shadowcroft. They’ve infiltrated your life, and they’re rep everything back to the anization. You ’t trust them.”

  Roselle’s eyes widened in disbelief. “H-How do you know all of this? Why have you been watg me?”

  Sadie remained solemn while answering. “I told you that I know you, Roselle, but you don’t know me.”

  Sadie spoke further, “In the game Epic Quest: Realm of Shadows, the story follows a simir pattern. Pyers find themselves in a world filled with doppelgangers and mysterious disappearances, much like what’s happening now in real life. The characters in the game are being maniputed and repced by these doppelgangers, and the same thing seems to be in our world.”

  Roselle’s mind raced. “So, you’re saying our lives are mirr the events of the game? And those doppelgangers... Are they ected to Shadowcroft?”

  Sadie nodded. “Yes, exactly. It’s as if Shadowcroft is following a script, and it’s our job to ge the ending of the story. In the game, the pyers o uhe truth behind the doppelgangers and put ao their sinister pns. I believe we have the power to do the same in real life.”

  Risebelle nodded, “You’re right, Sadie. This is incredibly informative, and it’s important that our friends know about this. Hardy and the Detective Club might be able to help us.”

  Risebelle went to dash to the detective’s club. Roselle, however, was relut to let Risebelle leave. She reached out to grab her arm with . “Risebelle, please be careful. We don’t knoe trust anymore, so… watch your back out there.”

  Risebelle gave her a smile. “Eh, don’t worry about me Roselle. I’ll be cautious and discreet. We’ll figure this out.”

  With that, Risebelle hurriedly left to inform Hardy, leaving Roselle aloh Sadie. Roselle turned her attention to Sadie and raised her hands up to her chest. “What else did you want to tell me, Sadie?”

  Sadie’s gloomy faow held some level of . “The reason I’ve been following you is because I’ve seen glimpses of your incredible potential. In the game Epic Quest, there’s a unique character with the ability to unlock secrets and reveal the true iions of others. I believe you possess a simir ability in real life.”

  Sadie lowered her speech, “It’s not just you, Roselle. Your mother, Mrs. Magenta, also possesses these unique abilities. I’ve been her for some time. She has the power to foresee events and uhe hidden truths of this world. This is a gift that runs in your family, and it’s the key to unraveling the mysteries surrounding Shadowcroft and their doppelganger scheme.”

  Roselle’s eyes widened in surprise and a touch of fear. “How do you know so much about us, our abilities, and our e to Shadowcroft?”

  Sadie leaned in closer. “I have my sources, Roselle. I’ve been iigating Shadowcroft for a while, and I believe that individuals with these unique powers, like you and your mother, have the potential to uhe truth and disrupt Shadowcroft’s pns. But we have to be cautious, and we have to act quickly before it’s too te.”

  Roselle’s eyes narrowed. “You know an awful lot about us, Sadie. I only just discovered my mother’s abilities, a you seem to know everything about her, about me. How is that possible?”

  Sadie remained somber. Her eyes flickered with disfort. “My knowledge es from extensive researd observation. Shadowcroft’s reach is vast, and I’ve been trag their activities for a long time. Your mother’s powers and your own potential are ected ter pattern I’ve been trying to decipher.”

  Roselle took a step back with fear ing towards her face. “It feels like you’re telling me what I want to hear. How do I know you’re not w for Shadowcroft yourself?”

  Sadie’s gaze softened, “I see why you’d think that. I assure you, my iions are genuine. I’ve been fighting against Shadowcroft’s influenot aiding it. My goal is to expose their schemes and protect those who are at risk. Your hesitation is uandable, but right now, we o focus on what’s at stake.”

  Roselle’s mind raced. “And why should we trust you? roof do you have that you’re on our side?”

  Sadie let out a sigh. There was a hint of vulnerability in her eyes. “I’m not anyone particurly special, Roselle, but I have a unique ability of my own. When I toueone, I know things about them, their past, their thoughts, and their secrets. It’s how I’ve gathered all this information about you and your mother. I want you to trust me because I believe we work together to stop Shadowcroft and protect you and your family.”

  Roselle was taken aback by Sadie’s revetion. The idea of someone having su intimate and invasive power was both intriguing and uling. However, there was a siy in Sadie’s eyes and words. Roselle did not feel deception, but the sadness on her face was ing.

  Sadie extended her hand towards Roselle. “I know this might sound strange, but I o touch you to update my information. It won’t be invasive, and it’s essential for our iigation. Trust me.”

  Roselle hesitated for a moment before speaking. “I have a strange question, Sadie. Are you always this sad?”

  Sadie nodded slowly. “I am. I’m someone who could never smile again.”

  Those words hurt Roselle’s heart. “That’s nonsehere has to be a way for you to smile.”

  Sadie’s gaze remained fixed on Roselle. “Shadowcroft has hurt me deeper than you could ever imagine.”

  Roselle’s resolve hardened. “In that case, we’ll take care of Shadowcroft. I…I’ll choose to believe you, Sadie.”

  When Roselle and Sadie’s hands met, it was as if energy was being released between them. A bright fsh of light engulfed the entire room, momentarily blinding both of them. After the handshake, Sadie dropped to one knee, breathing heavily. Roselle remaianding, still i what had just happened.

  “What was that?” Roselle asked.

  Sadie struggled tain her posure. “I saw duality within you, Roselle. Two sets of memories exist inside you. It should be impossible, unless... unless you’re currently traveling ba time. But nobody has that type of power.”

  Roselle’s eyes widened. “Traveling ba time? How could it be?”

  Sadie shook her head slowly. “I don’t know. But this duality—it’s as if two versions of you are coexisting in the same timeline. Shadowight be involved in maniputing time, or maybe there’s something about you we haven’t discovered yet…. Maybe part of you is here and not here at the same time…. And then there’s Dr. Kintovar…”

  “I don’t uand,” Roselle said with fusion and a growing sense of unease. “What do you mean, a part of me is not here? And who is Dr. Kintovar? I’ve never heard of any of this before.”

  Sadie shrugged “I wish I had all the answers, Roselle, but there’s much we still don’t know.”

  The memory within Roselle’s mind began to fade. She felt a sense of being drawn back to her own sciousness. Sadie’s sounded distant, as if it was fading away. Roselle’s surroundings shifted, and the vivid memories she had witarted to blur and dissipate.

  “It’s going to happen any minute now, I’ll leave you at a hospital.” Sadie’s words reached Roselle’s ears, but it was a mere echo of what it had been.

  Roselle wao respond, to ask more questions, to uand the mysteries that had been unveiled, but Sadie’s presence began to fade.

  “Wait!” Roselle shouted, but Sadie couldn’t hear her. The world around her grew darker, and the memories dissolved into the recesses of her mind, leaving her in the quiet solitude of her own thoughts.

  Roselle’s sciousransitioned from the vivid memories back to her owy, a sense of loss and fusion washed over her. She felt like she was on the verge of unc something profound, yet it slipped through her grasp.

  In the midst of her internal turmoil, a bold, digital presence suddenly appeared, interruptihoughts. The System, with its stoic demeanor, decred, “Memory Fragment has ended.”

  The abruptness of the System’s annou left Roselle disoriehe System spoke once more, “Project Mage Data colle has grown signifitly.“The System’s annous tio echo in Roselle’s mind,

  “Project Mage Data colle is now at 35%.”

  Roselle uood that this was a substantial increase from the previous 20. “This memory fragment brought Project Mage closer to Project Mage transformation level. You will be stronger.”

  Roselle shook her head, trying to process everything. “That was strange. I didn’t know that I knew about Dr. Kintovar in the past.”

  The System’s voice was calm and precise. “Your memory fragments tain knowledge that you have fotten about.”

  Roselle frowned, still feeling uled. “Is it okay for it to end like that, though? I still feel like I o know more.”

  The System responded. “Memory fragments are events of the past which may hold an abrupt ending due to having a tai limitation. To put it simply, they are like digital files. Some are rger, taining more data, while others are smaller. The fragments you experienced are like megabyte files, taining signifit but limited information. Larger events or revetions are akin to gigabyte files, holding more prehea.”

  Roselle sighed, uanding the analogy. “So, there’s a lot more I o uncover, piece by piece.”

  “Correct,” the System affirmed. “While we don’t have trol over what is ihe fragment, we found this oo be particurly iing.”

  Roselle raised an eyebrow, “Did you see the fragment too?”

  “Yes,” the System replied. “I view the memory fragment at the same time you do, sharing the same experience. Project Mage was not in development at the timeframe of the memory fragment, which is why it is particurly iing.”

  Roselle’s eyes widened as she processed the information. “That means there’s a good ce I really was a real girl before being Project Mage.”

  Memories of her defeat at the hands of Dark Whirlwind flooded her mind. The vilin had taunted her, calling her a fake who had no real life before this. The words had cut deep, pnting seeds of doubt in her heart. She had begun to question the reality of her memories, w if they were just fabrications.

  But now, this memory fragment suggested otherwise. There was a good ce that Dark Whirlwind had been wrong all along. Tears welled up in Roselle’s eyes, and she let them flow freely.

  “I was real,” she whispered, a smile breaking through the tears. “I was really real.”

  The System remained silent. Roselle wiped her tears. “Thank you,” she said softly. “For showihe truth.”

  The System responded, “The System should not be thanked. It was you, Project mage, who ultimately decided to view the memory fragment. You rejected it at first due to Dark Whirlwind’s taunts and your disbelief in yourself, but you came to the decision to view it.”

  A deep curiosity g Roselle. She couldn’t shake the image of Sadie and the revetions from the memory fragment.

  “Sadie…I wonder if she exists in the present world…”