banquet of the golden witch; chapter 13 (warning of sacrifices)

[endlesswitch]

Sun, Oct 5 1986 11:00AM
"..................zzzzz..."
"...............Whew. ...Looks like she's finally calmed down..."

Hideyoshi wiped his own forehead.
...For a time, Eva had seemed to be having a very painful nightmare, but it appeared that she had finally fallen asleep.
As promised, he still gripped Eva's hand.
...He had thought it might be alright to let go pretty soon, but he faithfully continued to hold her hand.

Every once in a while, his hand would get tired, and he would switch between his right and his left, but even so, as promised, he didn't let go of her hand...
At that time, there was a heavy knock.
Eva had finally been able to fall asleep, so Hideyoshi grimaced for just an instant.
"......Aneki, Hideyoshi-san, sorry. Is Rosa there...?"

It was Rudolf's voice. ...What could it be?
Hideyoshi headed for the door, hiding his footsteps so that he wouldn't wake Eva.

......It was definitely Rudolf's voice, but just in case, he opened the door without removing the chain.
"What is it? Somethin' happen to Rosa?"
"We can't find Rosa or Maria-chan. I thought they might be with you."
"...I heard her scolding Maria-chan in the corridor. They got quiet afta that, so I thought they had returned to the lobby, ......but did they...?"
".........That idiot..."

Rudolf clicked his tongue.
Other people could be seen in the corridor.
Rosa hadn't returned for a while after going out into the corridor, so they had begun to worry.

Near the front door, Natsuhi pointed at the removed chain.
"......The chain isn't set. They must have gone outside to see the rose after all."
"Going out and leaving the door unlocked, that's just too careless. What a troublesome person."
"...More importantly, now I'm worried about Rosa-san and Maria-chan themselves."
"Right. ......Hey, brats. Where was this rose of Maria's?!"
"I'm pretty sure..., it was in the flower bed right in the middle of the rose garden..."
"If those two are there, we should be able to tell quickly if we go."
"......Dad, shouldn't we bring them back as soon as we can...?"
"Of course. We'll bring them back and spank them on the butt. I'll dash out there and come back. Lock the door as soon as I go out."
"...Dad, I'll go with you."
"Don't talk stupid. It's obviously the brats' job to watch the house with Mama."
"............What is it...? Did something happen......?"
"Sorry, did I wake ya up...? ...It seems that Rosa-san took Maria-chan outside. ...How reckless of her."
"Rosa and Maria-chan are, ......outside...? In the rose garden......?!"
"Thass right. ...Oh, did ya hear? Maria-chan was causin' a ruckus 'cause she wanted to see a rose."
"......Th, ......they mustn't, ......they mustn't go to the rose garden...! Tell Rosa to stop...!"
"Th, there's no tellin' her to stop now, it looks like they left a while ago. ......Seriously, how reckless of them."
".........That's not it......Not the rose garden......There's a witch there..., ......and she's waiting for a sacrifice...! Rosa, you mustn't go..., ......ooooooooooohhh..."

...Eva cowered again, holding her head.
......Her complexion looked very bad.
"What is it? Did the fever make ya dream somethin' bad?"
"............It's a dream, ......yes...............In the rose garden, the witch, doing that to Rosa...... .........That's right. ...It's a dream, ......yes..."
"Calm down. I'm also in this room. The chain is also set. The shutter is closed on the window, 'n there's even a gun. This room is just like a fort. There's nu-thin' to be afraid of."
Hideyoshi beat his chest, trying to calm her, but Eva's insecure expression didn't change.

...Under the covers, Eva kept praying that the grotesque nightmare she had just had was only a dream...
"In the center of the rose garden, Rudolf confirmed the corpses of Rosa and Maria. After that, he returned to the guesthouse, called for help, and carried both of them into the guesthouse.
If we can trust Nanjo's autopsy, the cause of Rosa's death was a stab to the medulla oblongata with the pointed gate of the fence. It is thought that Maria's death was due to strangling with bare hands. However, due to the 'Devil's Proof', we cannot discount a misdiagnosis."
"......I will say it in red. Rosa and Maria died. The cause of death was as Nanjo diagnosed. ......She wasn't eaten by a spider, nor was she crushed by a mountain of cake. Don't worry."
".........So you argue that even though you toyed with their death so much, it's all okay because the corpse is clean... I definitely won't forgive you.
...I definitely won't forget all of that brutal treatment you gave Rosa oba-san, so I won't forgive you..."
"...L, like I said, that wasn't me.........I think I gave them a much more peaceful death than the way she treated them..."
"Shut the hell up. I don't want to listen to you.
.........It was stated that there are no more than 18 people on this island, and now that eight people are already dead, there are 10 people to press as suspects. One of them probably killed those two.
...Or could it also be an accidental death? Like Maria was having a tantrum, and when Rosa oba-san tried to stop her crying, she misjudged how much power she was using and accidentally killed her. Then she was so upset that she slipped and fell, landed on the fence, and unluckily, died.
......How's that? That way there's no need for a witch or magic."
"......Well, that's not true. Actually, Rosa and Maria..."
"Shut up. Didn't I say that I didn't want to listen to you? You're an eyesore, so disappear. You monster."

Battler said that without rage, ...but with a horribly cold voice.
...Beato had also felt something out of place since the beginning.
In a fight, both of them could go at each other without restraint.

However, he wouldn't even step into the ring. She could feel that coldness.
Beato didn't find that interesting.
...She thought about flaring up, but she held back.

Maybe even though she was innocent and childish, she had enough sense to realize that she shouldn't fight.
"........................Is that so? Then I will hide myself. ...Ronove, continue for me."
"Certainly. ...Will that be satisfactory, Battler-sama?"
".........There are no problems with that proposal. If Battler-kun says that he doesn't want to see Beato's face, that is alright."
"Do what you like. ...If I can live without seeing that monstrous face, I don't care about anything else."
"......Hey, wait a second. ...You keep saying monster, monster, but isn't that a mean way to speak of me? ......Why do you instinctively hate me so much, Battler? Even though none of that was me, even though it was all the work of my disciple..."
".........It's not like I'm only mad about what happened just now. It's from the very beginning."
"Hey, Battleer. Don't misunderstand, alright...? Aren't we just a pair of players confronting each other through a game? ...We look for moves to make things painful for each other, but..."
"Don't get the wrong idea. I don't hate you because you're my rival in this strange game about whether I accept you as a witch or not. ......No matter what happens, I won't forgive how senselessly cruel you are."
"That's because a serial murder is part of the game... It's probably impossible to avoid a little cruelty..."
"I'm not just talking about what just happened. The last time, and the time before that too. ......Tearing everyone's stomachs and stuffing them with sweets, plowing their faces, what was the point of all that?"
"............That's, ...well..."
"All this stuff about closed room murders and tricks and alibis, I'm willing to give you a pass on all that. You want to claim that this is a murder done by magic, so I'll grudgingly accept that those complicated crimes have to occur.
......But what exactly are all those grotesque murders supposed to mean?"
"............Well, umm, ............nothing much..."
"That's right. They don't mean anything. You're just fooling around by mangling the corpses for fun. That has nothing to do with whether you're a witch, or whether it could or couldn't be done with magic.
You're just exploring the depths of cruelty for fun. That's not because you're a witch, or anything like that. There's just some things I cannot forgive as a human."
".........Wh, ......what do you mean, as a human...?"
"For example, ......the six people of the first twilight for this game. ...Well, other than Grandfather being burned black, the other corpses were killed in a normal way, without any unnecessary shaming of the dead. ...It wasn't clear whether the weapon was a spear or a gun, but anyways, as far as killing goes, that was permissibly better. It was much better than the nonsensical grotesqueness and cruelty from the first twilight last time, or the time before that."
"And this time, there were six closed rooms tied together to make a closed room chain. ......That was sort of interesting.
When we were going back and forth with each other that time, to be perfectly honest, I thought it was just a little fun.
...You were frantic to make me accept your existence, and I was frantic trying to deny it. ...We were both frantically doing all we could."
"This may sound weird, but I've felt a faint sense of sportsmanship between the two of us. ...We exist in conflict, but I faintly thought that we might not be completely unable to understand each other's existence.
.........But just now, that feeling has been blown away without a trace."
"Th, that's where you're misunderstanding...! That wasn't me-"
"That's not it. That's not what I'm talking about! ......You watched Rosa oba-san being killed horribly over and over, and you sneered at it like it was an interesting show."
......When I saw that, I was deeply disappointed.

When I realized that your decision to kill them in a slightly better way this time was nothing more than a little whim, ...and that nothing had changed in your cruel character, I was deeply disappointed.
And that's not all, you were even genuinely enjoying a brutal death.
You weren't just acting as cruel as you could to bully me.

...You truly, genuinely enjoy cruelty.
Your character lets you enjoy it.
You said that I'd probably think Rosa oba-san being brutally killed over and over was fun.

That wasn't sarcasm. You enjoyed it from the bottom of your heart, wanted me to sympathize, and said that I'd probably think it was fun.
......In that instant, I was disappointed, and I realized the truth.
"The problem isn't whether you're a witch or not. ......I will not forgive that cruelty of yours. And I can't understand it! I can't forgive it, either! Still, I'll continue this game of whether to accept or deny witches. I won't step down and accept my own defeat."
"However, your pointless cruelty is absolutely not needed for that game. So I've decided that I won't accept you as my opponent. Ronove is a hundred times better. He doesn't have the same cruel hobby you do. Even if he does, he doesn't have the awful taste to show it off in front of me.
......That's right, you have awful taste. You're heartless and cruel, so you can't understand. That's unpleasant in an opponent. So I don't want to see your face again."
As Battler went on and on by himself, Beato was shocked into silence for a long time.

Maybe she couldn't understand what she was being told, and this was a sign that she was doing all she could in an effort to understand.
For a while, she kept switching between angry expressions, frustrated expressions, bold expressions, ......as though she didn't even know herself what attitude she should take.
In the end, she made her face into a candid expression, as though she had come to her senses, and shrugged her shoulders as though she was tired.
"...........................In that case, do as you like. From now on, I will continue this game through Ronove. ......You have no complaints as long as I don't show myself, right?"
"......For the time being. But I definitely won't forgive all of your cruel actions up until now. So I definitely won't accept you. For that reason as well, I won't back down from this fight you've picked. And I definitely won't lose. ...That's all there is to it."
"............Beato. No matter how many more excuses you give, his impression will not waver. ...I have something to talk about later. Until then, stay back."
"...............H, ...hmm......Understood. ...Then I'll hide myself until you call..."
Looking lonely, Beato turned her back to them, and hid herself.
...Battler watched, a slightly displeased expression on his face.

He thought his argument had been valid, but for some reason, his mood didn't clear up.
"......She's, ...an idiot."
".........That's true. An idiot, and honest."
"That idiot watched Rosa oba-san be killed horribly with me, and turned around with a huge smile on her face. ......She really believed that she could laugh with me at that cruel show. ...She really believed that I could sympathize with that emotion...
Looking at that innocent smile, I felt just horrible. ......It would have been much better if she had said it with her normal bullying face......Damn it..."
"Milady has never had the experience of having a friend. ......In addition, she has probably never had something spoken to her that strongly.
Madam and I are her attendants. No matter what we say, it will not reach her ears. For Milady, this is also-"
"Don't screw with me. I don't remember ever becoming her friend."
"......That is true. My apologies."
"........................There is one thing I would like to thank you for. ...Thank you for not backing down from that child's game."
She spoke words of gratitude, but for some reason, Battler made a displeased face.
Then as though hating himself, he chuckled.
"Now that I've even got witches and demons thanking me, I'm screwed. ......Let's resume the game. Of course, I don't intend to go easy on you."
"I wouldn't have it any other way. Unlike Milady, I do not get agitated."
"......I've already made my move. If we suppose that Rosa oba-san is the culprit and died in an accident, I can deny the witch. ......I don't want to suspect Rosa oba-san, but I think I can withstand that premise if it will beat the hell out of Beato."
"I will deny it with red. Rosa and Maria were killed by other people."
"Alright. ...Why don't we start from there. ............Damn, I'm just not getting fired up."
Since Rosa and Maria had been killed, it had become clear that the culprit was still hiding somewhere, trying to add even more murders to this chain.

As he shed tears, Rudolf scolded Rosa's corpse for being reckless several times, but Rosa would never respond to that again.
They had decided to place the two corpses in one of the guest rooms, and to seal it until the police arrived...

The second murder, ...no, the murder of the second twilight, had delivered a heavy blow to everyone.

Because it had blown away the optimism that some of them had held, the thought that 'actually, a crime didn't occur, and it was all a game or a farce by Kinzo and the servants'.
Trying to distract themselves from the loss of the people they liked, George and Jessica had spent the whole time since morning talking about every possibility.
......And, they had distracted their hearts by supposing that these murders might actually have all been an act, and that Shannon and Kanon were only pretending to be dead.
When the next murder occurred, it destroyed that thought, ......and they were once again struck by the fact that the person they liked had most definitely been killed...

The tears that they'd thought had died away began to drip down once more, and Battler couldn't think of anything to say to them...
After that, all of the adults checked that all of the rooms were safe and locked, just in case.

They made certain that shutters on all of the windows were down and locked, and they checked that no one suspicious was hiding anywhere.
On top of that, they checked their weapons once again, and made sure that each other's hearts were prepared, so that they wouldn't hesitate to fire off a preemptive shot if they saw the shadow of a mysterious person.
Furthermore, the gun Rosa had been holding had been left near the place she had been found.
Someone had gone out of their way to leave it there, so everyone suspected that it was some kind of trap, but when Hideyoshi skillfully used a fire iron to fire off a test shot, it was definitely able to discharge.
As a result, since all five shots that had been loaded had discharged without any problems, they reloaded it with bullets and handed it over to the only adult male who wasn't armed, Hideyoshi.
However, the fact that it had been able to fire off five shots gave rise to a certain paranoia.
This short barrel Winchester could load five shots.
In other words, Rosa hadn't fired even once.

And yet, the two had probably been killed by someone with their bare hands.

This meant there was a possibility that the crime had been committed by someone whose face they knew...
"......When the first murder occurred, I privately thought of the possibility that it was all an act. ...My apologies to Doctor Nanjo, but if he had actually been an accomplice, I thought that there was a chance that the deaths of all the servants could have been some massive, elaborate act by Father.
......After all, unless we assume that the closed room situation they were in was all a charade, it couldn't have been created in the first place."
"...We also, ......suspected that. ...No, ...I still want to believe that's the case."
"............My apologies, ......but that is not so. ...I am quite old. There may be a chance that I made a misdiagnosis. ......However, I would never mistake whether they were alive or dead..."
"I get it! Don't go out of your way to say it out loud, Doctor Nanjo...!"
"......My apologies..."
They couldn't know about it, but Beato had already proclaimed the deaths of the six, ...no, this time the deaths of all victims so far, in red.

That faint dream that it was all a farce, and that the victims were actually alive, ......it's a shame, but that's impossible...
"......In that case, it's more natural to think that there's someone hiding around who's acquainted with the mansion, carrying out a well-polished crime. In other words, from the time that the typhoon came to this island and sealed it off from the outside world, there were more than 18 people on this island."
Of course, there was no way for them to know that.

That claim of Rudolf's had also been denied in red.
There are no more than 18 humans on this island...
"Maybe it's fairly consistent if you think of it that way. ......In other words, this person who's hiding is actually someone who shouldn't be on this island right now. And yet, there's the possibility that it was someone whose face was known by Rosa-san, and with whom she would let her guard down."
"......S, so, for example, could it be, a servant whose shift doesn't lie on these two days...?"
"Hmm.........It's hard to argue with that one. When they finished their service and left the island, it isn't as though we made sure by punching their ticket or anything. If we suppose that a servant on a shift from a few days ago only pretended to leave the island, and actually stayed here, that would be hard to deny..."
"......Rosa-san sure is a fool. Normally, if a servant that wasn't supposed to be there suddenly showed up in front of ya, ya'd be at yer most cautious..."
"............I have a problem with even labeling this as a crime by an acquaintance. ...They suddenly attacked Rosa from the darkness, and were about to steal her gun. Then Rosa fell, hit her head against the fence, and stopped moving. The guesthouse was nearby, so they wanted to avoid the sound of a gunshot, and they killed Maria-chan with their bare hands..., perhaps."
"......There's also that possibility. ...Still, even if that is the case. Would they intentionally leave Rosa's gun at the scene of the crime? We don't know what the culprit is armed with, but they must feel an element of uncertainty about our guns. ...Wasn't that a perfect chance for them to thin out our supply? Why would they intentionally leave it at the scene of the crime?"
"At first, I thought that gun was a trap. ......That's what chessboard thinking says it would be. By purposefully leaving it, they wanted to make one of us touch it. And they must have wanted to make us pull the trigger. ...I was sure that it would have some dangerous device to make it explode and cause massive injuries."
"But, it's actually alright. ......The culprit was probably in a hurry. I'll bet that right now, they're regretting that they missed their chance to steal a gun...!"
".........I don't like it. It ticks me off, 'cause it's like a message from the witch, saying that she isn't even scared of guns."
"...However, in any event, this is a fearsome opponent. Even from the outside, they should have realized that Rosa was holding a gun. To think that they attacked her despite that. ......We should not neglect the fact that they are unafraid of guns."
"Hmm... It's as Natsuhi says. ......We should probably be even more cautious than we have been."
"This is just for peace of mind, but... .........at the time we think Rosa-san was attacked outside, where was everyone...?"
"Natsuhi and I were here, along with Rudolf and Kyrie-san. I can guarantee their alibis."
"Eva and I were together. I can guarantee that."
"George-aniki, Jessica, and I were together. ......When Rosa oba-san yelled at us to return to the second floor, we retraced our steps back to the cousins' room, all dejected."
"......That time, ...if we hadn't let Maria go..."
"Saying that isn't going to change anything..."
"............Doctor Nanjo?"
"I, I was reading a book in a room on the second floor. ......I was by myself, so no one can verify my alibi, but I believe everyone saw me return to the second floor with the children."
"...Once I say this, it'll never end, but what if you jumped out the window, attacked Rosa, then climbed back up using the rain gutter or something...?"
"D, d, don't be absurd... How could I perform a feat such as jumping down from the second story or climbing up with this old body..."
"......Let us stop...suspecting each other...It's more important that we trust each other, and, for the children's sakes as well, defend this place until the very end."
"You're right......It's like Natsuhi-san says. .........For now, let's stop doubting each other."
"That's right. We may be useless as far as searching for the culprit is concerned. ......We can only stay alive until tomorrow, inform the police, and follow their instructions. Because the police will definitely expose who the culprit is."
".........What is it, Eva? ...'s yer body still feelin' bad...?"
"M, Mother, what's wrong? Are you alright...?"
"...Sorry. ...It looks like my fever is still strong. I'll be fine, so leave me alone..."
When they looked, they saw Eva staring at the floor, her breathing harsh again.
...She had been able to act firm for a time, due to the urgency of their situation, but it seemed her body wasn't at its best after all...
"Yeah. I killed those two. Now, the only ones who know about the gold are us. I won't give up even a scrap to the other siblings."
"............What have you......! There was so much of that gold, right?! Giving Rosa and the others their share wouldn't have been a problem at all, right...?!"
"It would. ...That gold is to be passed on only to the head of the Ushiromiya family. That is because the whole of it is itself the honor of the head.
......To injure that even a tiny bit, will definitely not be permitted by me, the new Golden Witch, Beatrice. ......*giggle*giggle*giggle*giggle*giggle*!"
"...Do you plan to continue these murders according to the witch's epitaph...? Do you actually plan to become a murderer for five more people...?"
"Yeah. If I don't finish that annoying ceremony, it seems that my power as a witch won't become complete.
......Hey, 'me'. ...The power of the witch is really awesome. It really can make all of our delusions become reality. The power to make dreams more than just dreams...! Now that I've learned of this power, I can no longer stop being a witch. If I can complete the ceremony and make my power complete, I'm sure I'll be able to teach you that feeling too. *giggle*giggle*giggle*, *cackle*cackle*cackle*cackle*cackle*!"
"Stop acting like an idiot...! Haven't you played witch enough? We found the gold. And we've even been promised the position of the next family head. We'll probably need to tightrope walk just a bit, but by now, that's a dream that will definitely come true. ......Beyond that, what more could you wish for...?!"
"I wanted to become a witch."
"I don't know anything about that dream...!"
"That's it. Because I kept holding on to that dream, I've lived at this age forever. ......When you became an adult, you threw that dream away.
......No matter how long you wait, the rabbit holding a clock won't visit you, and you won't be able to meet Humpty Dumpty. Of course, you definitely won't be invited to the land of cards. Because you gave up like that, you became an adult.
So you don't want to become a witch or anything like that anymore. ...You've even forgotten that it truly was your own dream at one point."
"......Anyways, stop it! I've already gotten my hands on two dreams! The gold and the position of head. That's more than enough! So please, your dream has nothing to do with me! Be obedient...!!"
".........No wa-y. Magic's too interesting. ......Also, those two dreams of yours both came true because of my magic. It's not fair if my dream doesn't come true too."
"I am grateful for your magic, and I accept that you are a real witch. ......So from now on, be obedient and return to the inside of my heart! And never appear again!!"
"No wa-y. ......We're both misunderstanding each other, aren't we? That's right, I am not you anymore. You are Ushiromiya Eva. I am the Golden Witch Beatrice. So it's not my responsibility to go back to the inside of your heart. ......I guess I feel like a butterfly who has broken out of her cocoon, which is you."
"............Haah, ......haah.........urg, ......the fever, ...is making my mind cloudy......"
"My inexperience with my magic power is making me support it with your vitality. Until I finish the ceremony and become a full witch, you might have to bear the burden. I'll take that in exchange for making two of your dreams come true.
......It's alright, don't worry, okay? For the remaining five sacrifices, I'll avoid your family.
Let's see, Rudolf, Kyrie, Krauss, Natsuhi. ...After that, what about that old geezer Nanjo? Perfect, I'll kill those five people. *giggle*giggle*, could you call this a murder announcement revealed only to yoouu? *giggle*giggle*giggle*giggle*!!"
Eva finally crouched down. Hideyoshi rushed up to her, and lent her his shoulder...
"......Are ya alright? ...Let's take it easy and rest!"
"Are you alright...? Doctor Nanjo, Eva...!"

When Nanjo and George tried to approach, Eva made a gesture to stop them.
"...Thank you. I'm fine, Doctor Nanjo. I'm taking medicine. ......I apologize for saying this in such an extreme situation, ...but let me rest a little longer..."
"Mom..., I'll lend a hand too..."
"Thank you, but I'll be fine as long as your father watches over me. ......Go back to the second story cousins' room, and don't come out no matter what. ...Understood...? No matter what happens, you must not leave the guesthouse.........Outside, ......that, witch is......, uuuu..."
"Don't talk anymore...! Sorry, everyone, but I'll be watching over Eva in the room. Call if something happens."
Hideyoshi and Eva retreated from the lobby.
...However, Eva wasn't the only one who wasn't feeling good.
They hadn't gotten a wink of sleep since the previous night, and had been pressed by tension since that morning.

...They were mustering their energy to protect the family, but if they relaxed even a little, surely everyone would be down and out...
"......Everything has gone as planned until now, but from here on out, it will become difficult, you see?"
"Difficult, you say...?"
"Hmm. In the average situation, as the ceremony progresses and the victims increase, they begin to tighten their guard, and in most cases, they hold up in one place and stop moving. That is extremely inconvenient for us."
"...Are you saying that we witches are inferior to a bunch of humans in a group...?"
"Witches are not inferior to humans... However, perhaps you could say that times change, and that humans have gotten their hands on a poison.........This wasn't a problem long ago, during the period that witches were believed in, but just like that annoyance Battler, people in the current era fundamentally deny magic.
In other words, their existence itself is anti-magical. As a result, at some point, they grew to possess a toxin inside their bodies that denies magic."
"In other words, you're saying that the more humans there are, the stronger that magic-resisting toxin gets, and the greater the disadvantage is for us witches?"
"......The combined amount of power in their hearts that denies magic, in other words, their magic resistance power, becomes the denominator in the power of the magic... Understand? Is that a bit too difficult for you...?"
"You're joking. Actually, I understand it easily. ...In other words, you're saying that the more people there are that don't believe in magic, and the stronger their will is, the greater the dramatic division in the effect of the magic is. ......I see, if it's so formulaic, I'll have to rethink my method of attack."
Fundamentally, magic possesses a vast power.

It can even make a rain of fire fall from the heavens, divide a sea, and reviving a lost life isn't impossible either.
However, that power is extremely weak against the toxin that rejects it.

And that toxin started piling up in humans since the time they forgot to respect things sacred, ...until finally, this earth was covered with enough toxin that the miracles of magic could not be displayed.
Thus, witches from across the world were chased from their dwellings.

...They had been forced to choose whether to throw away their magic and live as humans, or live in hiding in remote areas where the toxin of humans didn't reach.
In that sense, Rokkenjima, with its population of only a few dozen humans, was extremely favorable for witches.

And even more favorable was the existence of the ghost story, about the witch who lived in the Rokkenjima forest.
...In other words, by permeating the island with the fear that a witch might exist, the magic-resisting toxin from the humans was weakened.
A small population, and a margin which made it possible to accept a magical being.
In other words, minds that were only weakly anti-magical.

...Only in the valley where those two converged, could a witch live in modern times...
"I see.........So by this formula, we can make several rules about how a witch can use her power efficiently.
The first one is creating a scene. Create a murder scene that you couldn't imagine was done by humans, decorate it with occult ornaments, make it look very much like a witch exists, and by permeating the people with fear, make them believe that witches exist, and as a result, the anti-magic power and the denominator for the power of the magic will be decreased. ......I see, so this is why the creepy magic circles of the first twilight were created?"
"Th, that's right, exactly...! The gaudy scenes for the first twilight each game are all for that reason. It's definitely not as though I like cruel things or am doing it for fun..."
"...In that case, Predecessor-sama, this time was a failure. You killed them in a very plain way. It doesn't look like anything more than a simple mystery.
.........I heard about last time and the time before that from Ronove. You should have damaged the corpses more grotesquely, like you did then, making it look like a fantasy and instilling fear in those people."
".........W, ...well, about that. ...I thought it wouldn't be artful to do that every time, see...? Don't think too deeply on it, it's just a whim...!"
Actually, it really had been her whim.
After hearing that from Battler, she couldn't say it out loud anymore, but she had decided her method of killing based only on a whim.
No, would it be better to say that she had halfheartedly let Ronove decide?
Because she had left the closed room of this game's first twilight to him.

But if Beato had gotten a cruel idea, then she surely would have explored the limits of atrocity even worse than the last game...
".....................For the methods of Rosa and Maria's deaths too, you told me to be prudent, but that wasn't a course of action beneficial to us witches either, was it?
In actuality, by now, none of them believe one bit that a witch actually exists. They're sure that it isn't a fantasy, but completely in the mystery genre. This turn of events is a failure for us witches. ......For some reason, you keep doing things in a kinda lukewarm way, Predecessor-sama."
"Aah..., l, like they say, things you learn when you're young will definitely help you out in the future...! This is a test passed on from my predecessor to you. Challenge it with respect. Wah-hah-hah-ha...!"

Beato tried to laugh heartily, but it was obviously a fake laugh trying to cover something up, and the new witch shrugged, sighing.
"........................At this stage, it's probably too late to reduce the anti-magic power by creating a scene. ...In that case, there's another move. Having the humans split up should work."
"Hmm, that is probably the most effective way. The smaller the number of humans, the more the denominator shrinks. As a result, the magic power becomes instantaneous. In other words, it all begins from one point: how to destroy this barricade situation and have them split up into small groups.
However, they are already very cautious. The barricade won't be destroyed easily, right...? Both the barricade in Kinzo's study two games ago and the barricade in the parlor last time were very stubborn. Furthermore, most of the cunning adults have been left this time.
The situation is more difficult than all the ones before it, correct? ......If you wish, I could give you some special advice..."
If the first murder case occurred in a closed circle, the survivors would definitely hole up, gathering together to observe each other and ensure their safety.

......It's almost laughable that not only do mystery authors and murder culprits probably worry about how to break that situation apart, but witches, who supposedly exist at the other end of the spectrum, share in that exact same worry.
For a while, the new witch poked her cheek with her pointer finger, and after acting as though she was planning something, she spoke.
".....................No, I'm fine. After all, it is a test. ......I won't borrow your moves."
"Mu, ...really...? ...Still, it will be pretty hard to defeat this barricade, right...?"
"I've already made my move. I'm pretty sure it will work. If that person's smart, then it definitely will."
"I, is that so...... You really are excellent... I am pleased that my disciple isn't hard to deal with."
"My motto is to study things myself before asking other people. ......Then, if you would excuse me. I have to wait for my prey to get nonchalantly lured out."
"Hmm. ...Well then, handle it with care."
As the new witch lowered her head, her face blank, she turned into gold butterflies and hid herself.

......Beato looked as though she didn't find this interesting at all.
It seemed she was lonely since she hadn't been relied on at all.
"............Every one of them, they don't bother themselves with me. .........Hmm. You witch apprentice, acting so smart......I'll bet she makes some painful mistake and starts crying.
Then, without a doubt, she'll finally realize my greatness and follow my teachings! *cackle*, until then, I shall watch from above."
She laughed loudly on the outside, but a laugh no one can hear is completely pointless.
Beato gave up, and quickly stopped laughing.

...Ronove chose that time to show himself.
"Excuse me, Milady. ......The game of the second twilight with Battler-sama has ended."
"......Mu, I see. Good work. What was the result?"
"My sincere apologies. I was forced to resign. ......By saying in red that 'both of them were killed by others', I made Battler-sama revise his claim of 'Rosa strangled Maria to death, then died in an accident', ...but I could not repel his chain of moves placing Eva as the principal offender."
"Wasn't Eva sleeping in her room the whole time as Hideyoshi cared for her?"
"...He put forth the possibility that Hideyoshi was an accomplice, and that the two worked together to create an alibi."
"He even suspects Hideyoshi...?! Couldn't you have struck back by saying in red that he was in the guest room at the time of the murder?"
"......I also thought of that, but, in any event, several important pieces might have been taken several moves later. ...And, because there is a possibility that this move was part of the preparations made by the new Beatrice, I acted out of respect to her. ...My apologies."
"Preparations, you say. .........Her mind does seem to be sharp. ...Hmm, we can let her do as she likes. It will be quite a show to see how far she can go."
"Pu kukukuku. I thought you would say that. ......Your disciple isn't cute, so I can understand your mood."
"That's none of your business. I wonder how that one plans on destroying this barricade from here on out. I shall keep a close eye on her. ............Oh, and......h, ...how was Battler's mood?"
"It appeared as though he had calmed himself down. He did say that he couldn't get fired up without you as his opponent after all."
"R, really, that's no surprise, no surprise at all! If I don't return for the fourth twilight and after, Battler will probably be lonely himself...!"
"Pu ku ku ku... And with that, if you would excuse me. ...I must bake some delicious cookies. I must at least enliven the discussion between you and Battler-sama, Milady."
"Hmm! That guy really was munching your cookies, wasn't he? It's no surprise that a boy can eat so much. Make a lot of them...!"
"Certainly. I shall make enough cookies to bury the table."
"That sounds good...!"
"......What's up, what's going on? What did you want to talk about...?"

Kyrie called Rudolf out into the corridor.
It was obvious that she wanted to talk about something that she didn't want the others to hear.
"Umm, I..."
"Yeah?"
".........want to go outside."