Braig’s i piqued, though he masked it with a look of feigned . “Subject X? That’s serious business. If she’s gone, we’d better figure out who decided to py kidnapper.” He paused, rubbing his thoughtfully. “How about we check the cameras? Maybe they caught something.”

  Ansem hough his expression was still troubled. “Good idea. Let’s not waste any time.”

  The two made their way to the castle’s trol room, where Ansem accessed the surveilnce system. Braig, standing just behind him, discreetly used the sub-at access he’d been granted long ago for his other “tasks.” Ansem was he wiser as Braig subtly directed the interface to filter out the secret b’s feeds.

  They scrolled through the security footage, but the images of Subject X’s room showed nothing—just static where there should have been vide tilted his head, feigning surprise. “Well, that’s odd,” he said, leaning in slightly. “Looks like someone’s gone aed the footage.”

  Ansem’s face hardened, anger fshing in his usually posed demeanor. “Deleted?” he repeated, his voice rising. “Who would dare tamper with the security systems? This is uable.”

  Braig kept his expressioral, though inwardly he was intrigued. Whoever had taken Subject X had covered their tracks well. He could think of a few suspects, but now wasn’t the time to specute openly. “You wao call the others, your majesty? Maybe one of them knows something.”

  “Yes,” Ansem said firmly, his voice carrying the authority of a mao being obeyed. “Call everyoo the trol room immediately. I want answers.”

  Braig nodded, stepping aside to use the castle’s unication system. Within mihe other apprentices had assembled in the trol room. Even, Din, Aeleus, Ienzo, and Xehanort all stood in a loose semicircle, their expressiing from fusion to mild annoya the abrupt summons.

  Ansem wasted no time, his sharp gaze sweeping over them. “Subject X is missing, and someone has tampered with the security footage. I demand to know who is responsible.”

  The apprentices exged gnces, surprise and unease evident in their expressions. Even was the first to speak, his tone defeampered with? None of us have touched the security systems. That kind of a requires direct access to the trol room.”

  Din nodded in agreement. “And we’d have no reason to interfere with the cameras, especially in regard to Subject X. Her tai has always been your strictest order.”

  Ansem’s eyes narrowed, his frustration mounting. “Then expin why the footage is missing.”

  Braig stepped forward, his usual smirk tempered into something more thoughtful. “Maybe it wasn’t one of us,” he said, his tone measured. “What if it was… the irregur?”

  Ansem’s gaze s, fusion flickering across his face. “Irregur? What are you talking about?”

  Braig shrugged, his demeanor casual as he expined. “There’s been some weird stuff happening around town tely. Disturbances, sightings of some shadowy figure causing explosions. We’ve been calling them ‘the irregur.’ Could be that they’re the ones behind this.”

  Even frowned, crossing his arms. “That seems highly unlikely. Whoever erased the footage would he access code to do so. And as far as I know, those codes arely publiowledge.”

  Xehanort, who had been silent up until now, finally spoke, his tone calm and authoritative. “That assumes the irregur hasn’t already infiltrated the castle.”

  The room fell silent as his words sank in. Xehanort’s golden eyes swept over the group, his expression unreadable. “If this individual is skilled enough to evade our security and erase footage without dete, it’s not unreasoo assume they’ve been watg us for some time. They could have observed the access codes and used them to cover their tracks.”

  Ansem’s frown deepened, his mind rag as he sidered the possibility. “If that’s true, then this irregur poses a greater threat than you initially realized. To bypass our defenses so thhly…”

  “Not to mention,” Braig added, “if they’ve got Subject X, we’re dealing with someone who knows what they’re after. This wasn’t a random break-in.”

  Even adjusted his coat, his expression pensive. “Assuming this irregur exists, we’ll o reevaluate our security measures. But that still doesn’t expin how they mao extract Subject X without tripping any arms.”

  Ienzo, who had been silent until now, spoke up, his voice quiet but firm. “They might have a way to move to different pces we haven’t sidered. I’ve just looked through the recs and have noticed that only certain areas had deleted footage. It’s possible they accessed the room without physically passing through the castle.”

  Ienzo, who had been silent up until now, finally spoke, his voice calm but resolute. “I’ve been reviewing the recs, and I’ve noticed something peculiar. The footage is missing only from specific areas—Subject X’s room, this chamber, and the master puter room. Other feeds are untouched.”

  Auro him, his brow furrowing. “What are you suggesting?”

  Ienzo met his gaze steadily. “It’s possible they didn’t physically pass through the castle. I’ve also just noticed dark energy readings that suggest they might have used shadows and darkness as a gateway to access the room directly. If that’s the case, they could have bypassed much of our security.”

  Ansem’s expression darkened further, his frustration giving way to a grim determination. “This is uable. We’re dealing with a powerful and resourceful enemy.”

  Xehanort stepped forward, his voice steady. “Then we must act quickly. We o determihe irregur’s identity, their objectives, and, most importantly, how to ter them.”

  Ansem nodded, his resolve hardening. “Din, Aeleus, I want increased patrols around the castle and town. Even and Ienzo, focus on analyzing the dark energy readings—find anything that could lead us to this irregur. Braig, I want you to tinue iigating. Find out who this irregur is and where they’ve taken Subject X.”

  Braig gave a mock salute, his smirk returning. “You got it, your majesty. I’ll track ’em down, no problem.”

  As the apprentices dispersed to carry out their orders, Braig lingered behind for a moment. Whoever this irregur was, they had outmaneuvered the castle’s defenses, erased their tracks, and spirited Subject X away—all without leaving a trace. It was impressive. And dangerous.

  As he made his way out of the trol room, his smirk deepened. “Well, well,” he muttered to himself. “Looks like this little game just got a lot more fun.”