"Human, what gift are you giving me?"
The werewolf miss ultimately couldn't resist her curiosity. She bent down and peered behind Natsuki's back.
Smack.
Natsuki lightly pressed his hand against the werewolf miss's shoulder.
The "evil-sweeping duo" technique hadn't switched targets yet. The werewolf miss's name was still Zhang San—100% subject to apprehension.
"Human, what are you doing?"
The werewolf miss's eyes swiveled, glaring fiercely at Natsuki. She'd already sensed the boy before her had no good intentions.
Natsuki said nothing. He brought his right hand out from behind his back.
In his hand was none other than the black collar he'd just removed from Kaguya's neck.
Click.
The collar fastened with a light snap.
Successfully equipped.
"What is Amamiya-kun doing?"
Kotoriyū Rokka asked in confusion, her expression blank.
"I don't know."
Chika shook her head, then looked at the humiliated miss beside her and whispered close to her ear: "Kaguya-chan, what's Amamiya-kun doing?"
Kaguya: "..."
Obviously, he was bullying the werewolf.
"Human, what is this thing?"
The werewolf miss reached up and touched the collar around her neck, wrinkling her nose. Her tone was thoroughly displeased. "It's covered in the scent of another woman. You're actually giving me something another woman didn't want as a gift?"
"Not 'didn't want.'" Natsuki corrected. "It's a secondhand item."
"Isn't that the same thing?"
"..."
At that moment, a low gasp suddenly rang out.
"That looks so familiar... it's a pet collar!"
"..."
The air fell into abrupt silence.
Everyone turned in unison to stare at the stranger player who'd spoken.
The stranger player flinched in fright, quickly clamping both hands over their mouth. Face pale, they bowed in apology: "I-I'm so sorry!"
"A pet... collar?!"
The werewolf miss's voice dropped to a low growl. The corners of her mouth pulled back, revealing two rows of bone-white fangs. Her fury gauge skyrocketed.
"You didn't come back to give me a gift at all—you came back to humiliate me?!"
"I didn't, I wouldn't, let me explain." Natsuki delivered the triple denial, his expression grave. "Collars nowadays have long since become ordinary accessories. They have absolutely nothing to do with pets."
"That's right." Chika quickly jumped in to explain. "Collars are very common. Marin-chan loves wearing collars. There's no leash, so it's definitely not a pet thing."
Thud.
The moment Chika finished speaking, a leash dropped from Natsuki's person and landed on the ground.
"..."
Looking at the leash on the floor, the werewolf miss erupted on the spot. She swiped her claws at Natsuki: "Human, I'm going to eat you!"
Smack.
The 100% apprehension effect triggered once more.
Realizing she couldn't harm Natsuki, the werewolf miss quickly switched targets and glared viciously at Kaguya: "You like that girl, don't you? I'm going to eat her!"
"L-like..."
The humiliated miss pressed her right hand over her chest. A vivid crimson flush suddenly surged across her pretty face—as though she'd suffered some kind of psychic attack. She momentarily fell into a dazed state.
Hey now, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and dodge!
Natsuki pulled out the remote and pressed it hard.
"Nngh... ahhhhh!"
The werewolf miss's body trembled sharply. She clutched at her neck, a voice of unbearable anguish escaping her mouth.
"Eh eh eh?!" Chika quickly pulled Kaguya back two steps, looking shocked. "What's happening?!"
It's electrotherapy.
Kaguya snapped back to clarity immediately, her emotions complicated.
No wonder she herself hadn't been able to resist. Now that it was such a large werewolf being subjected to the electrotherapy, she likewise couldn't endure it.
"Damn human, take this collar off right now!"
The werewolf girl dropped to one knee, body trembling. She yanked hard at the collar around her neck—but it was completely useless. The collar had been made from who-knows-what material. The quality was exceptionally high.
"The wind and snow outside are too severe. Travel is difficult." Natsuki spoke with sincere earnestness. "As long as you take us halfway up the mountain, I promise I'll remove the collar."
"Fine. I agree."
The werewolf miss bared her bone-white fangs. Her thoughts were written clearly across her face.
If I can't eat you, then I'll eat your companions. This grudge must be repaid!
Natsuki could naturally see the look in the werewolf miss's eyes. He pointed with his hand:
"Not just me. You're taking all of us."
"Impossible." The werewolf miss's gaze was fierce. "There are so many of you. I can only carry one person at a time. I can't possibly take that many."
"You're right—you can't carry us all at once." Natsuki bent down and picked up the leash he'd dropped earlier. "But if you pull a sled, there's no problem. I'm sure with Werewolf Miss's strength, pulling all of us at once is definitely doable, right?"
"Of course I can!"
The werewolf miss tilted her chin up slightly—then suddenly came to her senses. Her eyes flew wide, her fur bristling with rage: "You actually want me to be a sled-pulling dog?!"
"To be precise, it should be 'sled dog.'" Natsuki corrected. "You've seen Barge Haulers on the Volga, right? Humans can be haulers pulling boats. A werewolf pulling a sled is perfectly normal, isn't it?"
"Werewolves will never be enslaved!"
The werewolf miss clearly wasn't listening to reason. Her head was filled with nothing but thoughts of revenge against Natsuki. She stood and lunged at him once more.
Natsuki pressed the remote with leisurely composure.
"...Ahhhhhhh!"
Whatever company had produced this remote series, the effect was absolutely stellar. Even a werewolf's constitution couldn't withstand it.
After several rounds, the werewolf miss knelt on the ground, ears flattened. A hazy mist had appeared in her eyes.
"Stop... stop pressing it..."
The electrotherapy effect was simply too terrible. The werewolf miss ultimately chose to submit.
"Amamiya-kun is being way too mean." Chika muttered quietly, her tone sympathetic.
Kaguya folded both arms across her chest: "She's a werewolf. Not a person."
"..."
Natsuki looked at the other dumbstruck players and spoke: "Go dismantle the chairs. Tie them together into simple boards—we can make snowboards and set out."
The others finally snapped out of their daze and hurried into action.
They dismantled chairs, strapped wooden planks to the bottoms of their feet to create ultra-simple versions of snowboards, then followed behind Natsuki as they headed out of the castle.
"If we can make snowboards, why do we still need the werewolf to pull us down the mountain?"
A stranger player asked in confusion.
The moment they stepped outside the castle, the stranger player instantly understood.
The wind and snow were too severe.
Skiing against the wind was simply impossible for ordinary people.
"We can set out now."
Natsuki squinted to keep the wind and snow out of his eyes. He tied the rope around the werewolf miss's waist. The others lined up behind him one by one.
"Human, once we get halfway down the mountain, if you don't remove this collar, you're dead!"
"Please rest assured. I guarantee it on my honor."
"You have no honor whatsoever!"
"..."
The werewolf miss raised her head and let out a long, aggrieved howl toward the heavens. Then she powered forward with all four limbs, kicking up countless snowflakes as she raced down the mountain.
"Ahhhh, so fast!"
"Werewolf Miss is amazing!"
Playing a sled racing game inside a horror game—it was extraordinarily novel and thrilling. At first, some people shouted and screamed—but after the biting cold wind blew into their faces, they quickly shut their mouths obediently.
The journey passed without incident.
In less than ten minutes, the werewolf miss had pulled the sled all the way down to the halfway point.
"You can stop now." Natsuki shouted against the wind and snow.
The werewolf miss's ears twitched slightly. She began decelerating and braking.
Natsuki caught the humiliated miss, who'd crashed into him due to inertia, and let out a quiet breath. He asked:
"How much time do you have left?"
Kaguya pressed her pink lips together, her pretty face frozen pale. She answered in a low voice: "Ten minutes."
"That should be enough." Natsuki extended his right hand. "Just to be safe, better to be cautious."
"Mm."
Kaguya gave a soft sound of agreement and was about to take Natsuki's hand—when she suddenly caught herself.
Wait.
This was a boy's hand. How could she just grab it so casually?
Wouldn't that be way too shameless?!
"So cold. I'm freezing to death." Chika wrapped both arms around herself, sidled over, and latched onto Natsuki's arm. "Amamiya-kun, hurry and warm me up—I'm dying here."
Kaguya's pretty face hardened. She looked at the completely oblivious pink-haired girl.
With so much body fat, her cold resistance had to be exceptionally high—there was no way she'd freeze to death!
Of all the girls here, your countdown was the longest. No matter how you looked at it, that was all thanks to your layer of insulation!
"Why is Kaguya-chan staring at me?" Chika tilted her head. "Amamiya-kun is so warm. Are you going to hold on or not? If not, let Rokka-chan warm up instead."
Even if he's a portable heater, he shouldn't be shared publicly like this!
"Human! I've already pulled you all halfway down the mountain!" The werewolf miss's expression was fierce. "Hurry up and take this collar off me!"
Natsuki nodded: "No problem."
With that, he used the key to unlock the pet collar from around the werewolf miss's neck.
"You actually didn't trick me?" The werewolf miss was utterly shocked.
Natsuki put on a grave expression:
"I told you—please believe in my honor."
"You despicable human have no honor whatsoever!"
"..."
"Amamiya-kun, what do we do now?"
The other players looked at him, shivering. Having the werewolf miss pull the sled had indeed saved a massive amount of time—but it hadn't done anything to prevent the cold.
"Follow me."
Natsuki's tone was resolute. He stepped forward into the forest.
The others exchanged glances, then followed one after another.
At this point, trying to return to the castle was already impossible.
[This forest is deeply suspicious]
A prompt appeared before Natsuki's eyes once more.
This time, Natsuki finally understood what was strange about the forest.
The heavy snow had toppled many trees. The reason these trees had been crushed was because they weren't the needle-leaf trees common to cold climates—they were broadleaf trees, incompatible with the environment.
The extreme cold at the beginning.
Gradually feeling less cold afterward.
Feeling hot all over during the Last Supper.
And the bizarre death with a smile on one's face...
Natsuki held the humiliated miss's hand, the other players following behind. After walking for a short while, they arrived at a natural cliff shelter in the forest—and there, lying neatly in a row, were the bodies of all the players.
"Everyone, look!"
"Under that cliff—those people look just like us."
At the same time.
A game notification sounded simultaneously in every player's ears.
[Scenario: Wilderness Survival—Cleared]