In the complex maze, proceed cautiously, carefully considering at each intersection which path leads to the exit.

However, just shortly after seeing the bright light of the exit, the next corner of the road revealed a dead end wall.

What happened?

Should one turn around and search for a different way out?

Were all the previous choices wrong?

As Ziongzong searched for the road to KogaMizuo, their heart was filled with uncertainty.

Mizuo's sudden disappearance once again made the situation confusing and unclear.

When Yuki and Mizuo went to the restroom together, Yuki never expected Mizuo to disappear just like that.

In retrospect, Mizuo must have already planned to escape.

Then, they happened to find an opportunity to be away from everyone else, and took the chance to flee.

In reality, using the term "escape" may not be accurate, but since no one knew Mizuo's state of mind at the time, it was temporarily used.

After learning about Mizuo's disappearance, everyone was initially panicked.

Did she run away on her own? Or was she abducted by someone?

If she was taken by someone, then the situation would be extremely serious.

Because of this possibility, upon hearing the news that "Mizuo is missing," Ziongzong, Uesugi Tano, and Dojou Kazuaki immediately sprinted around the entire funeral venue to search.

But they found nothing.

After the search yielded no results, everyone gathered together to analyze the situation once again.

The anxious feeling continued to burn brightly, not weakening due to the inability to find Mizuo, but rather intensifying.

However, because of this, everyone realized even more that continuing to run around like headless flies would be futile.

Dojou Kazuaki mobilized the police force and confirmed that there were no suspicious individuals at the funeral venue this morning, making it more likely that Mizuo left on her own.

"Why did Mizuo leave..."

Upon hearing the adults' speculations, Yuki weakly leaned against Yui, her hand sinking into his shoulder.

Until recently, she still believed that Mizuo was slowly recovering from her desolate state of mind.

"For now, everyone can relax a bit, the possibility of KogaMizuo being abducted by someone is very low..."

Dojou Kazuaki, standing in the center of the crowd, calmly made a concluding statement.

But contrary to his calm tone, his profusely sweating appearance clashed with it.

Upon hearing the news of Mizuo's disappearance, Dojou Kazuaki ran no slower than anyone else.

"However, this is only a speculative assumption, there are three possibilities for KogaMizuo's current disappearance."

Dojou Kazuaki paused and raised three fingers to illustrate.

"One, she left willingly on her own accord. That would be the best-case scenario."

"Two, she was coerced by something, and left without being kidnapped involuntarily."

"And the last possibility, her freedom of movement was restricted, and she was abducted by someone."

"The above is the conclusion of our analysis. Is there anything you find inappropriate or would like to supplement?" Dojou Kazuaki left a blank space for everyone to contemplate.

With furrowed brows, everyone remained silent.

"Alright, if anyone thinks of anything later, please feel free to bring it up. It would be greatly helpful in finding Koga Mizuo."

"Now, moving forward, I will mobilize as many people as possible to search for Koga Mizuo within the Kyoto City area. I know it's impossible to stop you all from looking for her, but..."

With a calm voice that suddenly turned severe, Dojou Kazuaki made his point without any mercy.

"Please make sure, I repeat, make sure to prioritize your own safety while searching. Understood?"

Through the repetition of "make sure" three times, it was clear that Dojou Kazuaki was emphasizing his attitude and professionalism.

Without any delay, the urgent search operation began.