I'll kill you after I finish this game!

"Then, what if we divide this positive and negative into two parts? The [core] that hopes to rush forward eternally, and the [core] that only seeks the end of all things. Of course, the body you currently possess can only house one of the two cores."

"If you had to choose, which one would you want?"

The snake gazed joyfully into the future, watching its beloved dancers perform to their hearts' content on stage, and whispered:

"The latter is—the final curtain (Michel), while the former, well…"

Does this refer to the present or the past? What was the original Fujii Ren like? And what is the current Fujii Ren like?

The choice was already made, wasn't it? Comrade—

[I...I...the answer I chose was...]

They wanted to uncover the answer they had chosen, but their consciousness had already fallen back into reality.

"Well---!!!"

Fujii Ren suddenly opened her panicked blue eyes. The feeling of suddenly falling from a great height in her consciousness or dream almost made her scream.

His vision, which had gradually stabilized, swayed back and forth for a moment, confirming that this was the reality after waking up from the dream. Fujii Ren frowned, slapped his head, and finally came to his senses.

It seems she had fallen asleep earlier; the girl was still sitting in the chair when she reflexively woke up just as she was about to fall off.

That way I won't have to worry about all the weird things in my dreams, right?

It felt like I was having some ominous dream from nowhere; I was covered in sweat, moving very quickly, with a headache and a feeling of nausea.

It wasn't a dream about Mary and her senior.

It must be from accumulated fatigue. Even though I'm already a superman, I haven't been eating or sleeping well lately, and my mental state has been quite unstable.

After fighting Reinhardt last time, I collapsed from exhaustion when I got home and lost consciousness. I also had a strange dream, a dream I couldn't understand at all.

"...Mary?"

Thinking of Mary, Fujii Ren called out, then looked around; Mary wasn't nearby.

Perhaps because she fell asleep, the girl felt bored and went for a walk?

Just don't do anything weird...

"Go look for it."

Talking to himself, still worried about the other person, Fujii Ren lost his mood to sit any longer.

Stand up, stand up. Although I feel a little dizzy, now is not the time to say anything discouraging.

Looking around, this was the hospital, the Honjo General Hospital where Fujii Ren had stayed during his previous life.

Perhaps, perhaps this is the home of Honjo Erii, or perhaps it's the hospital run by her father or grandfather.

Before she interacted with Fujii Ren, she had a line that showed she had a lot of knowledge about medicine.

There's also the setting that she doesn't like being called by her surname, so... if she's the daughter of a big hospital director, then everything makes sense.

If that guy is a hospital employee, then it's not hard to see why he's connected to Silang, who frequently gets into fights with gangsters.

They probably met somewhere in the hospital, and that guy Silang slept with her?

So the saying that women prefer bad men isn't entirely a joke.

"Damn it, that presumptuous guy!"

Fujii Ren said with a heavy expression, and then began to reflect on herself and feel disgusted with herself, realizing that she couldn't put all the blame on Shiro.

Ultimately, it all stemmed from my own naiveté and stubbornness.

He knew perfectly well that there were eight dangerous areas on this street that could become battlefields, but he didn't want to control them all.

Hoping that her senior could protect the other places, she focused on the one she cared about most, only to find herself empty-handed.

Honjo, Silang, what are you two thinking?

Despite knowing the difference in combat strength, they still pounced on him.

He left me a message and then left...

Fujii Ren silently took out her phone and looked at the last email left by Shiro.

He says he'll come back, but who can believe that guy who always disappears?

Damn it, where did you all go? Are you alive or dead? If Shirou is still alive, Fujii Ren will definitely beat him up, so you must come back as soon as possible.

Fujii Ren already knew about the opening of the third altar.

The club incident reported on television probably happened after that guy sent that email.

That night, a horrific incident occurred at the club frequented by Silang and Bencheng.

There was no body, but the murder scene was covered in blood... Only Kasumi lay there.

The police investigated the scene afterward, but things beyond common sense were things they couldn't solve.

However, based on the large amount of blood left in the dance hall, and the pieces of flesh and blood scattered in the VIP room, the judicial authorities determined that this was a murder.

As the sole survivor, Xiang Chun was taken in at the hospital. Whether it was lucky or unlucky, it's said that she didn't have a single scratch.

Unable to regain consciousness, that's why Fujii Ren appeared at the hospital, watching over Kasumi as she unknowingly fell into a deep sleep.

"..."

As Fujii Ren stuffed his phone into his pocket, he recalled the image of the unconscious Kasumi.

The other person's drowsy expression was exactly the same as that of someone who had slept until noon on their day off after staying up all night the previous night.

Xiangchun had no external injuries. The doctor said that the reason she could not regain consciousness was likely due to severe mental stress.

Fujii Ren had always wanted to be with her, but... it seemed like he couldn't even do that anymore.

Although she cannot be called a suspect, Kaori is the only important witness who knows the truth of the case.

Fujii Ren isn't family, so I can't be with her.

It's almost a miracle that I haven't been detained yet.

"hateful......"

Filled with a sense of powerlessness, Fujii Ren bitterly cursed himself for being unable to do anything right!

Without Skadi's help, I can't do anything.

Really useless.

Being women doesn't prevent them from being outstanding and strong.

"Crack——!"

Having opened the door in front of him, Fujii Ren was trapped by this helpless anxiety. He went up to the roof and finally spotted Mary's figure.

"So you are here."

On the empty rooftop, Mary gazed up at the star-filled sky.

This reminded Fujii Ren of the lonely figure of the other person wandering on the beach at dusk.

Her image is of dusk, but now it's night, which could also be described as a fresh combination.

But for Ren Fujii and Skadi, Mary was most charming during the day.

Fujii Ren unconsciously recalled his feelings about Mary at school.

It was more like morning than noon at that time.

What would she look like against the backdrop of the rising sun, in contrast to the sun itself? Fujii Ren wondered curiously.

As I looked at it, I quickly came to my senses, and my previously turbulent heart calmed down without me even realizing it.

Approaching Mary, drawing near and feeling her gentle presence, Fujii Ren smiled and said:

"Mary, what are you doing here?"

Perhaps because of Mary, Fujii Ren spoke in a gentle and calm voice that surprised even himself.

“You’ll catch a cold… I don’t think you’ll, but there’s no point in staying here.” Fujii Ren looked into Mary’s emerald green eyes and asked, “Is there any scenery you’d like to see?”

The last time Mary visited Suwahara Tower, she seemed quite happy with the view from the top.

"Ah."

Mary smiled and nodded; she understood the question perfectly.

After all, the way she tiptoed was cute and playful, and her expression of wanting to gaze into the distance was even more endearing.

Mary turned her head to look into the distance, a hint of reminiscence in her eyes, and said, "The rooftop, because Titi and Lian both like high places."

"Senior...and me?"

Upon hearing this, Fujii Ren scratched his head in confusion.

She couldn't quite remember those words, but what exactly was the same as Skadi-senpai's?

“Titi said that standing at the highest point where no one is around can calm her down, while Lian said that everyone always stays together on the roof.”

Mary smiled and pointed to the chairs not far from the rooftop, looking at the somewhat stunned Fujii Ren, and said:

"Didn't I say that? I want to join Ren's world, so I'm practicing to better understand Titi and Ren's feelings and to get along with everyone."

Yes, that was indeed said.

Fujii Ren never expected that something like this would concern Mary so much.

"What will we say here? What will we do here? What will happen here? Just thinking about these things makes me feel very interested."

Mary's healing smile, and the other's clumsy description of the fantasy that Fujii Ren loved.

On the chair in front of her, it was as if a fantasy had appeared, with figures that only existed in Fujii Ren's imagination appearing like a mirage.

Himuro Reia, who eats strange sandwiches and is cunning; Ayase Kasumi, who is noisy and clumsy; Yuza Shirou, who is a jerk and mischievous; Mary, who is awkward and naive; Skadi, who is strong and reliable; Tohka, who is gluttonous; Yoshino, who is shy and introverted; and Nanami, who has a light and airy demeanor...

Ah, it truly is a scene that can only exist in beautiful fantasies, a dreamlike scene that Fujii Ren yearns for but knows is unattainable in cruel reality.

And finally, only one dreamlike puzzle remained before them: Mary's clumsy and innocent smile. The twilight maiden smiled at Lian and said:

"The rooftop is such a great place."

"...It's a place where trouble is unlikely to happen."

Mary's words were so direct that Fujii Ren couldn't help but say something awkward.