The Witch Trial Begins with the OO Buckethead Zombie

However, that truly marks the moment the plan begins.

Sure enough, it was at the moment when everyone seemed to be rejecting her invitation and her companions, leaving her alone, that she happened to meet Nikaido Hiro, who had also been rejected and left behind.

As an equally abandoned 'unpopular group,' their information sharing began with the simplest and most direct question: 'Are you a witch?'

This is the starting point of the plan.

She is not a witch, nor is Nikaido Hiro.

So, who is most likely to be the witch?

Is it the flustered Meruru on Ice, dragging Noah Kinosaki around trying to hide from Hoshino Utsunomiya? Or is it Noah Kinosaki letting Meruru on Ice drag him around everywhere?

Nikaido Hiro thought it was Tachibana Sherry and Sakuraba Emma.

Ryota Hasumi chose to trust her intuition.

Logically, it makes sense.

The only man, the only girl of the opposite sex, who would revolve around Utsunomiya Hoshino so much, is naturally the girl most suspected of being a witch.

Ryota Hasumi believed that there was a reason why Hoshino Utsunomiya was in this prison.

From the warden's words and from the traces found throughout the prison, one can glean that this prison's past was once inhabited solely by these 'prospective witches'.

Then the existence of Hoshino Utsunomiya becomes quite intriguing.

It can't be said that it was specially prepared for these aspiring witches...

In short, there must be a reason for Hoshino Utsunomiya's existence.

Ryota Hasumi felt that she could find the reason in the changes that had occurred in this prison.

It is known that this prison was created to house these aspiring witches. From the toilets to the showers, no male presence was considered. Although the cells are individual rooms, there are beds that seem to serve as bunk beds, suggesting that they were originally shared by multiple people.

Nikaido Hiro went to the infirmary to confirm that there were no family planning supplies in this prison.

Given that the existence of men is inherently abrupt and illogical, to find the reason for their existence, we must examine the changes that occurred alongside their emergence.

For example, the no-longer-held witch trials were clearly different from the 'witch kill' game with different rules in the past.

The prison's schedule should not have been modified, and all the rules that can be seen in the witch encyclopedia are consistent with the characteristics of an 'all-female prison'.

The entire mansion showed no signs of recent renovations and was filled with a decaying, old-fashioned smell.

The only thing that changed was not only changed, but was also repeatedly mentioned by the warden.

It refers to the witch trials that were no longer being held, and the witch hidden among them.

Hasumi Ryoa had no idea what a witch was. In fact, before she was imprisoned, she didn't even know that she was a prospective witch.

Although she knew she did possess special powers, she had no idea that witches existed before she went to prison, let alone witch transformation and remains.

It sounds scary.

Therefore, Hasumi Ryoya did not know any witches.

Nikaido Hiro was the same; she didn't know any witches either.

Since none of them have any connection with this so-called witch, it seems rather meaningless that the witch gathered them together to play this witch-killing game.

A reasonable explanation is that they were not the witch's target.

It just so happens that he was originally going to be arrested and put to play the witch trial, but the witch intervened and borrowed him, so he ended up playing an alternative witch killing game.

So here's the question: if they weren't the witch's target, why did the witch play this game with them?

It can't just be about killing people and enjoying the daily life of hiding among them, pretending to be someone else and interacting with them, right?

Is killing one person a day even remotely relatable?

No need to think about it anymore.

The extra men and the extra witches—these are the only changes that remain before us.

The answer then becomes clear.

This dead witch must have come for Utsunomiya Hoshino.

Although I don't know what she wants to do, she is the person I care about the most, miss the most, and want to be closest to Utsunomiya Hoshino, closer to her than anyone else.

She would then be the most likely suspect of being a witch.

That is, Tachibana Sherry and Sakura Emma.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Noah Kinosaki and Meruru Hikami are innocent suspects, but it certainly makes us need to focus our attention on these two.

As for how to focus?

......Um.

Of course, it was an honorable act of tracking them.

Hasumi Ryoa is a prospective witch.

As is well known, prospective witches all possess their own unique magic.

She didn't know about Nikaido Hiro's magic, but she knew very well what her own magic was.

'Gaze guidance'

It is possible to subtly and imperceptibly manipulate and divert the attention of others.

In the past, she liked to use this magic to attract the attention of the audience and make everyone focus on her.

But now, this magic has a new use: it deflects the gaze of Utsunomiya Hoshino and the other two, making them unaware that they and Nikaido Shiro are following them.

Although I don't really want to admit it, but...

It works surprisingly well.

Perhaps even if she doesn't become a stage actor, she has the potential to be a private investigator.

The pursuit continued throughout the afternoon.

Wandering through every corner of the mansion, eavesdropping on the whispers of the girls as they pause at the cafeteria door, cautiously peeking through the crack in the door to watch them eat, observing the reactions of the two girls on an empty stomach...

If you really can't stand the hunger anymore, have Nikaido Hiro bring two plates from the cafeteria.

They were eating while they were following them.

With the magic of visual guidance at work, even if you eat behind them, they won't turn around and see you.

In short, the tracking continued for an entire afternoon.

Besides hearing Tachibana Sherry's unrealistic reasoning, I also deeply felt Sakura Emma's clinginess.

They seemed to have gained nothing.

Tachibana Sherry was like that silly detective, brandishing her broken magnifying glass, pretending to observe some meaningless things in a crack in the ground, and then turning around and leading her 'discovery' closer to Utsunomiya Hoshino, shouting about the new discovery.

Emma Sakura is a good girl, a good girl, completely different from that silly detective over there. She's very pleasant to look at.

To be honest, so far, both of their performances have been quite in line with their character portrayals.

Sherry Tachibana's persona is that of a foolish detective, so it's understandable that she would approach Hoshino Utsunomiya out of curiosity.

Emma Sakuraba is Hoshino Utsunomiya's best friend. In an unfamiliar environment, she subconsciously clings to the only one out of fear and nervousness... It seems she isn't the only one, but this reaction is understandable when facing a friend she trusts so much.

Therefore, even though the two of them probably already had a very clear inclination in their hearts, they still had some hesitation.

It wasn't until the afternoon curfew ended, until Hoshino Utsunomiya started chasing Meruru on Ice with all his might, until everyone gathered together in front of the courtroom door in response to the commotion.

Tachibana Sherry pushed open the door and hurriedly entered, squatting down to utter words of condemnation that completely contradicted her original character.

At this moment, she was probably no longer playing the foolish detective Tachibana Sherry, but the real witch herself.

Because without a doubt, Tachibana Sherry would not get angry, say those things, or show that expression just because Utsunomiya Hoshino was on top of Meruru on the ice.

Even if she disguised her suppressed anger as a moral condemnation of Hoshino Utsunomiya, even if she disguised her emotions as a protection for Meruru on Ice.

It was still completely wrong.

If it were the witch who played 'Tachibana Sherry' before, she would probably just laugh out loud.

He crouched down, reached out, poked the two of them, and repeatedly asked about their relationship.

Full of curiosity, they urged each other to answer, chattering on and on until either of them admitted that there was something between them, or until either of them blushed and bit their lip in embarrassment.

Instead of protecting Meruru on the ice, he even changed his previous friendly attitude and engaged in close combat with Hoshino Utsunomiya.

At this moment, the two of them had already decided in their hearts who the witch was.

They now have two choices in front of them.

[Kill the witch before she tries to kill them.]

[When the vote comes the next day, vote for the witch according to the rules.]

If you want to protect everyone, you should choose the former.

But......

The problem is coming.

Who made the move?

Will Hasumi Rhea commit the murder? Or will Nikaido Hiro commit the murder?

It's just that Lian saw Leia. Killing someone looks cool and handsome, but a qualified actor should never easily get blood on their hands, even if they killed a so-called witch, they should not bear such a crime.

Unless something had gone wrong with her brain, she had absolutely no reason to convince herself to kill someone.

For Hiro Nikaido, killing is inherently wrong, but killing the witch is also about erasing the wrong and guiding the world toward the right. This rather contradictory nature of the two sides makes it difficult for her to make a decision.

If something could damage her brain, she might overlook the wrongness of killing.

Even so, there is still the most serious problem facing them.

How to kill him?

Murder weapon, physical killing.

Drugs, traps, physical killing.

Lacking a suitable weapon, the former spent a day tracking the three and exploring the mansion, finding only one that could barely be used as a murder weapon.

The crossbow and its matching bolts hanging on the wall of the reception room.