Point of View: Jessica Jones Vilma
Smart people are always asking so many questions.
And ever since I arrived in Manila, there has been one person who hasn’t stopped keeping a close watch on me.
Ressell Vargas Monteverde.
The worst of the lot.
Ever since Sophia Wilson died, I’ve felt his eyes on me in every corner of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.
Hallways.
The library.
Classrooms.
It didn’t matter where I was; he was always watching, analyzing—as if I were nothing more than a case file.
And that… was what unsettled me the most.
That afternoon, rain lashed against the library windows.
The sound was constant, almost hypnotic.
I was reviewing old files from the Lisbon Masked Ball.
Dates.
Names.
Photographs.
Until I saw it again.
The symbol.
A dark circle crossed by a red line.
The same one from Lisbon.
The same one Sophia saw before she died.
The same one Loki discovered.
“I know you’re investigating something.” The voice came from behind me.
I immediately closed the folder.
Ressell.
Dark glasses, files in hand—far too calm for someone who just appeared out of nowhere like that.
“You shouldn’t just pop up without warning,” I said.
He sat down across from me—unhurried, unafraid.
“Then don’t act so suspicious.”
The air between us suddenly grew tense.
“Who are you really, Jessica?” My body went rigid.
There was that question again.
—I already told you my name.
—No— he replied.
—You gave me the name you wanted to use.
His eyes remained motionless—cold and calculating, just like Loki’s.
In a split second, I remembered the video call:
«Loki left a secret note.»
Ressell placed a photograph on the table.
It was me.
I was staring at the symbol on the school wall.
—Haruki saw this on the security cameras.
I took a slow breath.
—Are you investigating me?
—I am protecting this school.
I looked up.
—Or are you investigating Loki’s death?
Silence—that silence was answer enough.
His expression shifted when he heard his cousin’s name.
Pain.
Anger.
Guilt.
—Loki and I were investigating something before the dance— he finally said.
—And now… it’s happening again.
A chill ran down my spine.
—What does that mean?
Ressell opened an old file.
On the cover:
*According to Choi Parker*
—Seventeen years ago— he continued— there was another case at this school.
A student disappeared after investigating a secret organization linked to powerful families.
My breathing slowed.
—And what happened?
—They never found the culprit.
The rain began to pour harder.
And for the first time, I grasped something terrifying: Loki might not have been the first.
I had come home with my head full of noise.
Linda Villanova was brewing coffee; Jeremiah Jones was reviewing documents; Christian Reyes was quietly looking through files.
Everyone seemed tense.
My phone vibrated.
“Mom,” I answered.
“Bella?” Josefina’s voice sounded anxious.
“Where are you?”
“At home.”
Another voice cut in.
Luisana Morales.
“She can’t get any closer to Ressell,” she said firmly.
“If the killer finds out who she really is, Bella will be in danger.”
The air turned cold.
Jeremiah looked up; Christian closed the file.
“Mom… what’s happening?” I asked.
Silence.
“Bella… we should have told you this sooner.”
My heart pounded.
“Loki left something behind before he died.”
Everyone froze.
“What?”
“A secret letter.”
Jeremiah stepped forward.
“We believe it contains important names linked to the murders.”
Christian added:
“And there are those who think you know where it is.”
My hands trembled as I recalled my last conversation with Loki.
“In case I’m gone… look where the masks never stop looking.”
I looked up.
Cameras.
Hallways.
The symbol.
Everything was starting to make sense.
Meanwhile…
Elsewhere in Manila, the night was darker.
Ressell was examining Ji-segun Choi Parker’s file in a quiet room.
Luis walked in behind her.
“Are you still thinking about Jessica?” Ressell closed the file.
“She knows more than she’s letting on.”
“Do you think she’s involved?”
Silence.
He recalled her face.
No trace of guilt.
No visible signs of lying.
There was something more dangerous, though:
pain.
“No,” he finally said.
“I think she’s being watched, too.”
His phone vibrated.
An anonymous message.
“The woman who just arrived will be the next to disappear.”
Ressell didn’t move, but for the first time… she wasn’t analyzing a he is reacting to a real threat.