"I wonder what Amamiya-kun and Yukino are talking about." Chika watched the two of them standing in the corner and murmured quietly. "I'm super curious."
Kaguya folded both arms across her chest, her tone cool and unhurried: "I'm not curious at all."
"I don't believe you." Chika tilted her head and looked at her. "If Kaguya-chan isn't curious, why are you staring at them without blinking?"
Kaguya: "..."
In the corner.
"Anyway, that's the situation." Natsuki spoke in a low voice. "We'll each verify one direction."
A thoughtful expression crossed Yukino's face. She gave a slight nod:
"I understand."
The two conversed quietly for a moment, then quickly separated and each selected a book from the shelves.
"Amamiya-kun, what book did you pick?"
Chika's eyes went wide.
"It's a secret."
Natsuki tucked the book behind his back.
Chika raised her hand: "I can help you keep a secret."
Natsuki put on a grave expression: "I'm sorry. I refuse."
"That's so mean." The pink-haired girl puffed out her cheeks. "Amamiya-kun doesn't trust me."
As they spoke, the black-haired girl walked over, a book in her hand as well: "I've chosen mine."
Natsuki nodded lightly: "Let's go."
The group left the library and soon arrived at the hall on the first floor.
At some point, pale blue frost had quietly spread across the entire hall. The castle seemed to be descending into a frozen wasteland.
Natsuki walked up to the fireplace.
The books they'd thrown in earlier had long since burned to ash—yet the flames in the hearth continued to flicker with a ghostly glow.
Natsuki's expression remained calm. He held out the book in his hand toward the fireplace.
"Wait a moment." The stranger girl from the second floor couldn't help but speak up. "The monsters in the castle seem to be things we released by burning books... We're not cold at all anymore. There's no need to burn any more books, is there?"
Natsuki replied:
"We've already burned so many. One more won't hurt."
Stranger girl: "..."
Thinking it over carefully, she found she had absolutely no rebuttal.
After Natsuki finished burning his book, Yukino stepped forward and likewise tossed her book into the flames.
The fire surged.
Both books were consumed in short order.
"Oh right." Chika suddenly remembered there were three other players still missing. "Where are Mai and the others?"
Ten players total. The boy Izumi had already been eliminated. Three others were still unaccounted for.
"Those three guests mistakenly entered another guest's room." Mr. Billy's voice was low. He clearly knew the castle's situation inside and out. "They have not yet emerged."
"Amamiya-kun."
Chika turned to look at him.
Natsuki set Mr. Billy down and spoke bluntly: "Mr. Butler, take us there so we can apologize for the intrusion. I imagine the guest who was disturbed will forgive us."
And if they didn't forgive them... well, courtesy first, force second.
They could now more or less confirm Mr. Billy's neutral alignment. That meant the evil-sweeping duo technique could be deployed once more.
"Esteemed guests, please follow me."
Mr. Billy straightened his little suit, pulled out his handkerchief, and carefully wiped his palms and body. Then he stepped forward and soon led the group to a certain room: "The guests are inside."
Natsuki pushed open the door and immediately spotted three players huddled in a corner, shivering. Across from them stood a werewolf covered head to toe in thick, shaggy fur—wearing, inexplicably, a pair of stretchy athletic shorts.
When the three players saw Natsuki appear, delight flashed simultaneously in all their eyes.
The werewolf reacted with equal enthusiasm.
He turned his head to look. His eyes gleamed with an eerie green light. He quickly bared his teeth—rows upon rows of razor-sharp fangs on full display: "More food has arrived."
Natsuki spoke neither humbly nor arrogantly:
"Mr. Werewolf, have you by any chance seen my cousin?"
The werewolf froze: "...Who's your cousin?"
Natsuki said:
"She's a little girl, about seven or eight years old. A few days ago, Grandma got sick, so my cousin set off alone through the forest carrying food to visit her. But she suddenly lost contact in the forest and hasn't been heard from since..."
"You're talking about Little Red Riding Hood!" The werewolf couldn't help but shout. "Don't think I don't know!"
"Excellent. So you really do know my cousin's whereabouts." Natsuki remained perfectly composed and unafraid. "Mr. Werewolf, you're under arrest."
"Human, do you have any idea what you're saying?"
The werewolf stood up—nearly two meters tall, utterly imposing and intimidating. "I've decided. I'm eating you first!"
Natsuki shifted half a step to the side, revealing the pink-haired girl behind him.
"I'm going to call you Zhang San the Outlaw. Do you dare answer?"
Chika had long been prepared. She pointed at the werewolf.
The werewolf quickly felt his mouth lose all control: "I... I'm Zhang San!"
Taking advantage of the werewolf's shock and confusion, Natsuki stepped forward and seized him: "Zhang San, you're under arrest."
The moment Natsuki's hand made contact, the towering werewolf froze solid in place—as though someone had hit the pause button. Only his eyes could still move.
"Human, what have you done to me?"
"My cousin Little Red Riding Hood suddenly lost contact..."
Chika took the opportunity to wave at the three people huddled in the corner: "You guys—hurry up and get out!"
The three dumbstruck, unfortunate players finally snapped out of their daze. Scrambling on hands and knees, they bolted out of the room in a frantic rush.
Natsuki regarded the werewolf's stretchy athletic shorts with a leisurely air and pondered aloud:
"The Hulk has shorts, and you have shorts too... are your shorts from the same manufacturer?"
"Human, don't you dare touch my shorts!" Watching Natsuki reach his hand toward the shorts, the werewolf's voice suddenly shifted to a distinctly feminine pitch. "I'll eat you alive!"
Wait.
What's with that voice?
Don't tell me you're actually a woman!
Thinking it over carefully, it made perfect sense. In movies and TV, there were only male werewolves—that was textbook gender discrimination. Female werewolves deserved their place just as much.
That said, with fur this thick covering the entire body, it was genuinely impossible to tell male from female.
Natsuki said: "You were going to eat raw food anyway, weren't you?"
"Don't look down on monsters. Didn't you see I was working on a grill? Of course cooked food tastes better."
"..."
The three unfortunate players had already evacuated. Chika quickly said:
"Amamiya-kun, we can leave now."
Natsuki nodded slightly and let go of his grip. The werewolf girl immediately bared her fangs with a vicious expression, preparing to bite.
Smack.
Natsuki's right hand came down with a light slap.
The werewolf girl froze once more. Her courage may have fled, but her mouth kept running—still brimming with ferocity.
"Human, I'm going to eat you!"
Kaguya's dark brows drew together slightly. She murmured in a low voice: "I'll seal her."
She was about to manifest her bow and arrow, transform into a shrine maiden, and seal the werewolf.
"No need." Natsuki shook his head. "Since she's so enthusiastic, let's bring her along... We might need a food tester later."
Natsuki simply took the werewolf girl by the hand and led her out of the room. The group reconvened, and under Mr. Billy's guidance, they arrived at the dining area.
The dining hall's lighting was dim. A mural adorned the domed ceiling—it was Da Vinci's The Last Supper. Along the right side of a long dining table sat ten chairs.
Excluding the boy who'd been eliminated, the remaining chairs were exactly enough for one person each.
Natsuki and the werewolf girl sat at the very front. Beside them, in order, were Kaguya, Chika, and the rest lined up in a row.
"My apologies for keeping you waiting, esteemed guests." Mr. Billy placed his right hand over his chest and bowed slightly. "Then, let the dinner begin."