The Witch Trial Begins with the OO Buckethead Zombie

There appeared to be seven numbered tags on the dozen or so witnesses, corresponding to the numbers of several people in the Witch's Encyclopedia.

Yes, as 'prisoners', they are numbered, and the wardrobes in the shower room are also divided according to these numbers.

It can be said that there are small details everywhere that reinforce the perception that they are prisoners, as if whispering in your ear repeatedly, "You are a prisoner, and there is no possibility of regaining your freedom."

Although Meruru is dead, her number is still affixed to one of the seats.

The six people found their seats one by one, and everything was ready.

The guard who led them there stopped at the entrance, guarding the only exit.

With a series of fluttering sounds, the owl who called himself the warden finally arrived late, flying in through the door, grabbing the railing with its claws, and landing on it.

“It seems everyone is here.” Owl glanced at the witnesses in the witness stand and said, “Then let’s briefly explain the ‘Witch’s Trial’.”

"Actually, if we follow the normal witch trial process, from the discovery of the dead body to the start of the trial, we will give everyone a certain amount of time to search, confirm the death scene, collect evidence, and then debate, argue, and reason in the courtroom. Finally, we will reach a consensus to decide the murderer and then vote to execute him."

I don't know if it really misses its old, normal witch trials, but before explaining the current situation, the owl would always say this in a low voice, as if afraid that everyone wouldn't know, or as if afraid that it would forget it itself.

Perhaps in its eyes, all of them will eventually be killed by the witch. After everything is over, after the witch gets tired of the role-playing game, this place will return to the way the witch's trial should be, which it is used to.

"But as I said before, this time, it's to vote for the 'Great Witch' you all believe in, and end this 'Witch Kill' game."

"Therefore there is neither trial nor punishment."

"As long as everyone has fun, that's the most important thing."

The owl said something that made Nikaido Shiro and Hasumi Rhea clench their fists.

Have fun?

Do we look happy?

What kind of person would be happy because someone died?

"Of course, given the short timeframe and the fact that everyone needs time to process and understand the news of her death, although there will still be no search process and no clues about Lady Meruru's death will be provided, we will still allow everyone to have a one-hour debate."

"Everyone can share their testimonies based on their memories of yesterday, and find the differences in the testimonies. This might help you confirm the identity of the Great Witch."

"Of course, they can also confide in each other about their trust and use the process of elimination to decide which dissidents they want to exclude."

The owl spoke in what seemed to be a rather casual remark.

Just as the owl seemed to have finished speaking and was about to announce the official start of the witch's trial, it seemed to remember something and added:

"By the way, since the remaining number of people is an even number of six, in order to avoid a tie and delay in deciding the witch, Mr. Hoshino, although I am very sorry, you do not have the right to vote in this witch trial."

"After all, no one will vote you as a witch, so please understand that if you vote, it will have too much influence on the situation."

The owl raised one wing.

"Of course, you are not forbidden to speak. You are free to share the information you see with other girls."

"...That's about it."

The owl folded its wings.

Then, a clanging and rattling sound rang out.

Amidst the varied expressions on everyone's faces, a mechanism was activated with a resounding vibration.

Then, the sound of gears turning came from somewhere.

The central base trembled slightly.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, a hole was made in the floor.

The base slowly descended.

Then, a new base appeared, replacing the original base.

Large-scale installations have appeared.

Along with the new base came a huge clock, made of stone, tilted, like a sundial, placed sideways on the base.

Sharp hands protrude from the center of the sundial, and grooves, seemingly designed to guide airflow, trace patterns on the hands.

The timekeeping device on the sundial also has a similar design, suggesting that the measurement of time is not driven by sunlight.

Instead, time is filled by liquid flowing into it.

Once the water overflows, it will flow to the next mark.

"Hmm, I originally intended to use it to keep track of time for everyone; after all, might as well use it." While everyone was still reeling from the device's appearance, the owl spoke up quietly:

"But I'm really sorry, I forgot that as an execution device, its timing effect only works if a witch hangs on it."

"Never mind, let's use water."

The owl waved its hand.

"Although it might be a little faster than blood flow, it should be enough for you to reach a conclusion."

So the gatekeeper slowly brought over the iron bucket that was sloshing around in water and began to slowly pour the water onto the pointer.

"..."

Is it really that difficult to make a separate clock?

This thing isn't cheaper than a clock, is it?

Hoshino Utsunomiya really wanted to complain.

To be honest, from the moment the owl opened its mouth, it was full of things to complain about.

But he wasn't in the mood to complain anymore.

Because the moment the clear water begins to spread from the pointer towards the mark, the one-hour witch trial begins.

Looking around at the witness stand, the six people stood in staggered, non-adjacent seats.

The one relatively closer to Hoshino Utsunomiya's left is Sherry Tachibana, and the one relatively closer to her right is Emma Sakuraba.

Although he felt there was no real need to stand in positions assigned by number, since he was standing anyway, the current arrangement of having a seat between him to reduce the chance of sneaking closer for private conversations seemed acceptable.

"..."

"Shouldn't we start discussing this now?"

After blinking, Emma Sakura spoke first.

"Hmph, looks like it's finally time for me, the great detective, to shine." Tachibana Sherry said confidently, hands on her hips and back straight, "Let me lead you to see the truth!"

"...Noah doesn't quite understand, but as long as the witch is cast, no one else will die, right?"

Noah Kinosaki placed his hand on the table and said this.

Although the witness stand appears surprisingly high when viewed from above, the foothold in front of it seems to have been specially raised.

Even the shortest of them, Noah Kinosaki, wasn't completely obscured by the witness stand; he could easily expose half of his body and gently place his hand on the table.

"Sigh..." After a long silence, Hasumi Rieya sighed softly, "I want to trust everyone, I really want to believe in everyone."

"But the truth is, the witch really exists among us, and she even killed Meruru."

Listening to Hasumi Ryoa's words, Utsunomiya Hoshino suddenly remembered that at the very beginning of yesterday, Hasumi Ryoa's attitude seemed to be 'There is no witch, let's work together'.

Now it seems she was proven wrong.

Although she didn't show any particularly shameful behavior.

"So, although this is something I really don't want to see, I have to say, I won't hold back."

Ryota Hasumi made the announcement.

“Being a witch is wrong, impersonating someone else is wrong, and killing Meluru on Ice is a heinous crime.” Nikaido Hiro took a deep breath and opened his mouth: “It’s time to end this farce.”

"Life is not something to be trampled on so casually, and we are not a witch's toy."

All five girls spoke up.

Even Noah Kinosaki, who doesn't usually speak up, and Hiro Nikaido, who hasn't yet sorted out his thoughts and decided what to say.

They all opened their lips and teeth at that moment.

The reason is simple: everyone is talking, so the person who doesn't speak will naturally be the most conspicuous, the most likely to attract attention, and also the most suspicious.

"Then let's begin."

"Utsunomiya Hoshino said softly."

However, despite saying that, none of the six people present actually had any experience discussing such matters.

Without a central figure to guide the discussion and point out a direction for debate, it would be very difficult to move this trial forward.

Fortunately, the girls on the field were all very opinionated.

Sherry Tachibana is very opinionated, Rhea Hasumi is very opinionated, and Shiro Nikaido is also very opinionated.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this debate will likely revolve around the three of them.

If Hoshino Utsunomiya doesn't intend to get involved, that's probably how it will be.

...He really had no intention of getting involved.

Meluru on Ice is dead. Her death was quite unexpected, especially since she died as a witch, a fact that had already been confirmed.

The system's response was subtle, everyone's reaction was subtle, and the witch trial currently underway was even more subtle.

Yesterday, Hoshino Utsunomiya was very anxious and felt a great sense of urgency, as if something invisible was pushing him forward.

But today, Hoshino Utsunomiya seemed to have a bit more composure.

...Anyway, the person is already dead.

Meru on Ice is dead. The gentle and lovely witch who seemed like she could be squeezed and burst with water is gone.

The established facts immediately dispelled the initial sense of urgency, followed by an unexpected feeling of relaxation.

There is still a long time left until the end of today, and even the current voting period has a one-hour deadline.

That's why Hoshino Utsunomiya was thinking about it.

Should he protect the witch, or should he ask her to end this game today?

......

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