...07/09/2009 Monday; Afternoon...
The distant sound of bells echoed softly, filling the air with an enigmatic touch.
It was a sound that reverberated through the atmosphere, as if something was about to begin... or perhaps come to an end.
Lying beneath the heavy blanket, Minato felt his feverish body burning, as if a flame were consuming him from the inside.
His breathing was short and labored, but it wasn't just the fever that troubled him.
He found himself inside a strange dream, an almost lucid vision.
In his dream, he watched as a member of S.E.E.S. was executed coldly with a precise shot right in the middle of the forehead.
The spear he was holding slipped from his hands, falling to the ground with a muffled sound.
Minato felt his heart race.
Suddenly, a mysterious voice—cold and distant—echoed in his mind.
It wasn't a normal sound; it was as if it were being whispered directly into his soul, carrying a heavy warning.
"Do not let the Herald awaken... or he will kill you."
Minato woke up suddenly, gasping, his eyes fixed on the ceiling of his room.
He could still feel the echo of those words reverberating in his head. He trembled, but not out of fear—it was the cold consuming him.
Feeling a light pressure on his shoulder, he turned to see Aigis sitting beside his bed, holding a pillow wrapped in a towel.
Behind her, Fuuka carried a small medical kit, her expression filled with concern.
"Ah... it's you two..." Minato muttered, slowly sitting up in bed.
Sweat still dripped from his forehead, but he felt some relief upon seeing his friends there.
Fuuka stepped closer, opening the kit with quick and precise movements. "Kirijo-senpai asked Aigis and me to take care of you today. Hiro and Yukari are busy investigating Strega. How are you feeling?"
Minato wiped the sweat from his forehead, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "A little better... but I still feel like my body is burning from the inside."
Aigis, maintaining her usual calm demeanor, placed her hand on his forehead.
Her scanners activated instantly, analyzing Minato's condition.
She observed the readings displayed in her internal vision, showing the state of his body.
A slight improvement in the infected areas was visible.
"The Shadow Arcana infection has diminished slightly, as well as part of your temperature. Even though it hasn't caused major damage to your body, an ordinary person would have died."
She removed her hand from his forehead and gently replaced his pillow with a newly chilled one. "Use this pillow—I kept it in the fridge. It should help."
Fuuka, sitting beside the bed, began preparing a syringe with an antibiotic solution, focused on the task.
"I didn't know we could be infected by Shadows... and we don't even have an antidote. The only thing keeping us alive is the power of our Personas," Fuuka said, a hint of worry in her voice.
As she drew the liquid from the vial, Minato looked at Aigis and extended his arm toward Fuuka. "By the way, did you guys find out what's wrong with Hiro's Persona?"
Aigis shook her head. "No. Hiro-san mentioned that it was his theurgy that made him use Mitsuru-senpai's ability."
Fuuka, carefully injecting the needle into Minato's arm, seemed uneasy. "But... is that really all? Sometimes I feel like Hiro might lose control. He faints out of nowhere, and now we know he can communicate with his own Persona."
Minato pulled his arm back when Fuuka finished administering the shot, reflecting on her words. "Maybe there's something in the files on the command room's computer."
Aigis tilted her head, curious. "What do you mean?"
Minato looked at both of them, his mind clearing. "I saw President Shuji messing with some files... I think they contained information about our Personas. If there's something we don't know, it might be there."
Aigis, capturing the idea, nodded firmly. "I'll check the computer. Fuuka-san, can you stay with Minato-san?"
Fuuka, finishing up by placing a small bandage on Minato's arm, answered calmly. "Of course. Once I'm done here, I'll go to the command room to help you."
The command room was immersed in an unusual silence, the sound of Aigis' mechanical steps echoing through the empty space.
As she entered, her metallic eyes landed on the computer monitor, which was strangely still on.
"Strange... Kirijo-senpai always instructs that the computer be turned off after use," she murmured to herself as she approached the terminal.
Sitting in front of the screen, Aigis began typing with robotic precision, opening folders and files related to the Shadow Arcana.
The known information quickly appeared, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary so far.
Upon finding the folder containing each member's records, Aigis selected Mitsuru's name.
Her detailed profile appeared on the screen: age, height, blood type, along with a photo from her student ID.
With a precise tap, Aigis opened the section about Penthesilea, Mitsuru's Persona.
Everything seemed normal—her immunities, weaknesses, resistance to ice.
The energy levels were within expectations, nothing indicating a problem.
"Nothing unusual here..." she murmured. "What about Hiro-san?"
Aigis closed Mitsuru's profile and searched for Hiro's.
His file initially looked normal, with the same basic information and a student ID photo.
However, when she tried to access the data on Lucifer, Hiro's Persona, the screen flickered, and a simple message appeared:
"File deleted."
Aigis blinked, confused, and tried reloading the page several times. The same message repeated.
There was no way to access Hiro's Persona information.
"File deleted. No backup available."
"What?" Aigis exclaimed, her robotic voice carrying an unusual hint of emotion. "How was this erased?"
At that moment, Fuuka entered the room, carrying her medical kit, now sealed shut.
Noticing Aigis' worried expression, she set the kit on the table and approached.
"Aigis? What happened?" Fuuka asked, tension clear in her voice.
Aigis pointed at the screen and opened Mitsuru and Hiro's files side by side for comparison. "Hiro-san's information... has been deleted. There's nothing left about his Persona."
Fuuka's eyes widened. "Deleted? But only Kirijo-senpai has the password to erase files!"
Quickly, Fuuka placed her hands on the keyboard and attempted to delete Mitsuru's file as a test.
When she pressed the delete button, the computer let out a soft beep and requested an authorization password.
Aigis frowned, her concern deepening. "This is not normal. Someone in S.E.E.S. is trying to betray us."
Fuuka crossed her arms, her expression serious. "You're right. Kirijo-senpai would never delete only Hiro's files. Something is really wrong. Someone is hiding information from us."
Aigis looked at Fuuka with firm determination. "We need to inform Mitsuru-senpai and the others. Call everyone."
Fuuka nodded and ran off to grab her phone, urgency clear in her steps.
Aigis remained in the command room, her eyes fixed on the computer screen.
The password prompt still glowed in white letters on the dark background, almost as if mocking her inability to access the truth.
"I will find out who did this... for everyone's safety." murmured Aigis, narrowing her eyes with determination.