The Witch Trial Begins with the OO Buckethead Zombie

Utsunomiya Hoshino: "...?"

Does that mean I'm the one who pirated the product?

Each aspiring witch possesses her own unique magic, with varying degrees of intensity. The witch encyclopedia states that these spells are greatly amplified during witch transformation.

Currently, it is known that Meluru on Ice possesses healing magic, while Sherry Tachibana possesses superhuman strength magic.

I know nothing else.

Let's put the matter of magic aside for now; Hoshino Utsunomiya is still thinking about Meruru.

Although Meruru was dragged into the shower by Tachibana Sherry, we can't give up yet.

Hoshino Utsunomiya felt a great sense of urgency.

It's not that he was really, really eager to die, although he was indeed quite eager to die.

It's not that missing today's opportunity means there's no way to die again. After all, there are so many potential witches around, and sooner or later someone will become a witch.

Rather, it means...

If the witch doesn't attack me soon, someone's going to die!

People I know, people I don't know, familiar girls, distant girls.

'The witch kills one person randomly every day.'

If the witch doesn't kill herself, then someone else must die.

It might be him, Hoshino Utsunomiya, or it might be some other person.

Even if I die at the hands of the witch now, it doesn't necessarily mean that the witch will stop killing people today, but at least this way I won't see anyone die in front of me.

This was something I had already thought about before my last death.

That's why he set the plan to complete it in one day, and why he continues to dwell on his past success even now that he's getting a second chance, instead of thinking about anything else.

Even if it's Tachibana Sherry who might die.

But things you don't want to do, you just don't want to do.

I must be the first one to die.

So, taking a deep breath, Hoshino Utsunomiya decided to confront Sherry Tachibana.

Can't delay any longer.

But before he could get up...

"—Are you here to spy on me?" A smiling girl suddenly darted up in front of him. "If you're here to spy on me, then I can let you take a look, okay?"

"?!"

Utsunomiya Hoshino was startled and instinctively tried to back away to create some distance.

But behind him was a wall, the protective barrier that had once concealed his figure, which now became an obstacle preventing him from getting away from the villains.

Unable to retreat, Hoshino Utsunomiya tried to sidestep and dodge.

But the next moment, as if anticipating his thoughts, a fair, lotus-root-like arm suddenly blocked his path with considerable force.

"Sizzle..."

The sound of the wall cracking rang out at that moment.

Out of the corner of her eye, Hoshino Utsunomiya noticed that the wall the girl was pressing against had obvious cracks spreading outwards from the center of her palm.

"Varied--"

Before Hoshino Utsunomiya could finish speaking, the sight of the girl's face that he saw when he turned his head made his breath catch in his throat.

Without a doubt, the person standing in front of him at this moment was Tachibana Sherry.

But, this...

What rendered Hoshino Utsunomiya speechless was Sherry Tachibana's current attire.

...No, saying it's dressed up isn't quite accurate.

There's really nothing to dress up for.

The vest draped over her shoulders was nowhere to be found, the buttons on her shirt had long been undone, and her blue plaid skirt had disappeared. Only the contrasting socks on her feet still covered the girl's legs.

What catches the eye most is the pointed lotus that the disheveled shirt could not hide, like half a piece of soft jade that can be grasped in one hand.

The folded collar and bent shirt reveal most of the body while concealing the most crucial parts.

--wrong!

Wake up, Hoshino Utsunomiya! Don't let this kind of thing blind you!

The crossbow bolts still lodged in his chest were still there, their sharp points still faintly pricking him.

"I won't look." Hoshino Utsunomiya took a deep breath, averted his gaze from the girl's body, and met Tachibana Sherry's eyes. After hesitating for a moment, he gently placed his hand on Tachibana Sherry's shoulder.

The girl's body trembled slightly.

"Please, I'm begging you, don't stop me. I have something very important to tell Meruru alone, and it's getting late."

Hoshino Utsunomiya sighed and, after briefly weighing the power dynamics, decided to lay his cards on the table.

There's no time to continue the riddle. Since Tachibana Sherry has such a strong grudge against me, even if she knows I'm going to seek death, she probably won't continue to stop me.

The reason for the riddle was that he was afraid that if he revealed his true colors, Heero and Emma would be determined to stop him from dying.

But if it were Tachibana Sherry, she probably wouldn't have this problem.

"Listen carefully, the witch will kill someone today. Someone will definitely die. Your confinement period will be over soon. Today will be over soon, if—"

If Meruru doesn't kill him soon...

Before Hoshino Utsunomiya could finish speaking, Sherry Tachibana, as if she didn't want to listen anymore, raised her hand and pushed away Hoshino's hand that was on her shoulder.

She gently cupped Hoshino Utsunomiya's face in her hands, her expression one of disbelief.

Her eyes widened, her lips slightly pouted, and then transformed into a cold smile.

"—Then let's end today."

As soon as she finished speaking, the hand that had been cupping her face moved around to the back of Hoshino Utsunomiya's head.

Sherry Tachibana grabbed Hoshino Utsunomiya's head and forcefully slammed his forehead against her own.

"boom--"

The reverberating echo reverberated within Hoshino Utsunomiya's skull, followed by a wave of dizziness.

But he didn't faint; a simple attack with an iron head like that wouldn't knock him out.

Forces are reciprocal. Although Shirley's forehead seems hard, there's no reason why hitting her like that would only knock her unconscious.

So, swaying, Hoshino Utsunomiya tried to push Sherry Tachibana away.

"Huh? Aren't you dizzy? Can't you get dizzy like this?"

But Shirley Tachibana, seemingly realizing he hadn't fainted, let out a surprised sound.

Then, he delivered a heavy chop to his neck, followed by a knee strike to his chin while pinning him down.

It seems they tried every vaguely known method of inducing unconsciousness haphazardly, and it's unclear which one worked, but anyway...

Hoshino Utsunomiya's consciousness finally went blank.

'If you wanted to knock me out, you should have said so earlier...'

This was the only thought that remained in Hoshino Utsunomiya before he lost consciousness.

"...Hoshino has fainted."

"Huh? How did he faint? Hmm... He must have been thinking of peeping at me, this beautiful girl, while I was taking a bath, but he saw something too intense and accidentally fainted, right? Look, look, he's getting a nosebleed."

"Sigh, being too charming can also be a problem."

......

I feel cold, I'm shivering, my forehead hurts, my neck hurts, my chin hurts, I hurt everywhere.

Hoshino Utsunomiya woke up.

With a muffled groan, his gradually recovering thoughts began to piece together the memories from before the blackout.

He failed at the Meruru squat and was discovered by Tachibana Sherry, who beat him unconscious.

My memory ends here.

...They are really strong.

Slender hands, fair hands, yet an irresistible force.

I had this feeling that she might force herself on me on the spot if we disagreed.

Fortunately, she only knocked herself unconscious.

...Did he just knock himself out?

His sluggish thoughts finally snapped out of their daze. Just as Hoshino Utsunomiya realized what this meant and fumbled for his phone to check the time, he realized what was going on.

"Zizi..."

With a slight crackling sound, the screen on the wall lit up again, and the familiar owl appeared on the screen.

"Ding-dong—"

Following a stolen announcement tone, the owl coughed lightly, spread its wings, and spoke:

"Alas... what follows is very heartbreaking news."

"Although I believe everyone was already mentally prepared, many people probably woke up today feeling their bodies, thankful that they had survived another day..."

"But this is still heartbreaking news."

"Well... no, in a sense it could be good news."

"After all, there is one less witch who was prepared to become a witch and endanger everyone's safety.

The owl flapped its wings like applause, paused for a moment, and then spoke again.

"Back to the main topic, those who died last night..."