The comments section all think I'm a really good person.

After killing their master, these mindless monsters once again slipped into the shadows.

However, it was not Ms. Mikiko Kobayashi Chiho, who was living with the animal trainer, who discovered all of this.

In fact, Chiho Kobayashi was also included in the list of missing persons. Her blue hair was found at the scene, and blood splattered everywhere was also found to be mostly from Chiho Kobayashi. There was even a half of her little finger that had been severed and was covered in blood.

None of the surrounding cameras captured the trainer or Chiho Kobayashi, raising the possibility that Chiho Kobayashi herself might have been eaten by the shadow beast.

There are more ills than good luck.

This is the final conclusion reached by those involved with the tower.

"...But how is this possible!" Before Koizumi Saki and Kita Kirihara even stepped into the room, they heard Kobayashi Ryo's suppressed voice, trembling, "Chiho's ability..."

The ability to see the future is both complex and quite simple.

Her abilities are close to prophecy, but she has almost the same level of transparency as a game guide when it comes to "how to get closer to the predetermined future".

To give an analogy, prediction or observation of the future only allows you to see a certain point in the future and know that a certain outcome will be achieved.

But the future vision is different.

Her ability is like a game walkthrough, turning life into a text-based adventure game, allowing you to directly determine the correct or incorrect outcome from the choices.

It is also very similar to certain question-solving software, magic conch shells, or magic mirrors. As long as you ask yourself questions like "How can I achieve that goal?", you can be guided to take action and achieve the goal.

However, such an ability is quite cheating and cannot be used at all times.

Could it be that they were caught off guard precisely when they weren't using their abilities...?

However, Chiho clearly said that by following the beast tamer, her deadlock would finally see a glimmer of hope...

...It's just a glimmer of hope.

Ryoko Kobayashi's mind was in chaos. She leaned against the wall, staring subconsciously at the half-dried bloodstains on the ground, feeling dizzy.

Chiho...

Suddenly, a soft blanket was placed over her shoulders.

Kobayashi Ryo turned her head with red eyes and saw Kita Kirihara's concerned face. Seeing that she was dressed lightly, he knew she must have rushed over from home, so he asked the others who were busy for a blanket and draped it over her.

"Miss Kitagiri? Senpai?" Kobayashi Ryo felt a sense of relief when he saw her and Koizumi Saki behind her. As soon as he opened his mouth, two tears fell down his cheeks.

Feeling embarrassed, she quickly wiped her face and forced a smile, saying, "You've come."

She didn't ask why Kita Kirihara was brought along, since she had learned about Kita Kirihara's special qualities from Koizumi Saki.

And it must be said that the appearance of these two people did indeed put her at ease.

The tamer's body had been carefully moved out.

Since the animal trainer had no family, the Tower had to organize her funeral.

"...I was originally planning to notify the orphanage where Miss Jun came from. But in the memo she left behind, she instructed that if she were to die suddenly one day, if possible, we should not tell the ailing headmistress."

When Kobayashi Ryo said this, he felt as if a brick was stuck in his throat.

“Miss Jun Furuhashi…is a very good person.” Saki Koizumi said in a heavy tone.

..

"Furuhashi Jun... you son of a bitch." Kobayashi Chiho rarely swore.

She lay miserably in a deserted alley, her body covered in wounds, in excruciating pain, with a long trail of blood trailing beneath her, and half of her finger bitten off by this guy.

Unable to resist, and with excessive blood loss gradually blurring her consciousness, she still mustered all her strength to curse the giant monster dragging her.

The enormous monster was over two meters tall, like a small mountain.

Its long, reddish-brown hair and its entire body covered in a jet-black, bio-armor-like keratin layer outlined a vague human shape. A huge, gleaming white bony tail grew from its back, leaving deep furrows in the ground as it moved.

It looks like a ghost.

Chiho Kobayashi was being dragged along the ground by this bony tail.

The monster heard Kobayashi Chiho calling what sounded like its own name and let out a low, mournful groan, seemingly somewhat innocent.

"Stop whining!" Kobayashi Chiho was too exhausted to be angry anymore; getting angry only made her body ache. But she still vented her anger on her partner. "I'm injured, can't you be a little gentler?"

This was the first time in Kobayashi Chiho's life that she had been so disheveled, and she had rarely been so rude.

But the current situation really made her furious.

During his rampage, Jun Furuhashi managed to repel the strange guy, but he nearly lost control afterward, biting off half of Chiho Kobayashi's finger and almost killing her as well.

Fortunately, she still retained some rationality and knew to get herself away from that dangerous place.

However, the way they're dragging the injured person right now... is really unpleasant.

Chiho Kobayashi felt like she was about to die, and was being tortured like this by the mutated Jun Furuhashi. She felt like she was about to die on the spot.

Suddenly, the monster stopped dragging her.

In her hazy consciousness, Kobayashi Chiho vaguely felt a pair of familiar yet unfamiliar hands carefully wiping away the bloodstains on her face, and then trying to use her newborn claws to hold the fragile wounded person into her not-so-soft embrace.

...Really.

Who's the animal tamer, you idiot?

57. Do you need help?

Hibiki Tachibana felt pain.

This pain is not merely physical.

Although the fusion syndrome still affects her body, and because she is not truly human, her condition is temporarily frozen in this range, so despite the accumulating pain, it is not enough to kill her.

She had grown accustomed to this pain, knowing it was probably part of her atonement.

The suffering one must bear as a sinner who clings to life.

She knew this way of thinking was wrong, but she also knew very well that she couldn't stop this inexplicable thinking.

A crucial piece of her memory was missing, a fact that Tachibana Hibiki was acutely aware of.

Upon seeing noise again after so long, something seemed to loosen in her mind, and fragmented images flooded back. It was because of this that Tachibana Hibiki completely lost her mind and rushed towards the group of noise.

But when she came to her senses, Hibiki Tachibana couldn't remember anything.

She couldn't remember what had made her so angry and out of control, or when she had separated from her best friend, Kohinata Mirai, and even the memory of his smile and voice was gradually fading from her mind.

This can't go on.

I must get back to the future as soon as possible...

Both the body and the mind seem to be gradually heading in a strange direction.

Hibiki Tachibana doesn't dislike the Silver Garden; it's just that she sometimes feels there's something separating her from everyone else.

She has more important places to go back to.

Just like the gentle and considerate Nana Ohba, she never treats her current friends as co-stars. New friends are certainly nice, but everyone has their own more important people.

Even though I'm with everyone, I often feel lonely, like I'm all alone.

The loneliness is oppressive from all sides, like being in the deep sea. Even with corpses of the same kind submerged on the seabed around you, you don't feel that this is your final destination.

Hibiki Tachibana slowly walked out of the alley, raising her hand with a slightly bewildered expression, trying to make a fist.

These slightly pale hands, covered in scars, seem to belong to someone else.

But now, it's completely empty.

What exactly has been forgotten...?

Thinking this, Tachibana Hibiki, who was taking a walk outside the Silver Garden, heard a strange sound again.

It came from deeper into the alley.

There was a sound like something being dragged, and a faint smell of blood. Tachibana Hibiki frowned slightly, listened carefully, and caught the woman's weak voice.

What's going on here?

She immediately became alert.

There are no surveillance cameras around here.

The obvious entrance to the barrier of the Silver Garden is here.

In reality, Kita Kirihara could reclaim the character cards at any time if he wanted to.

However, for some reason, Kita Kirihara unlocked the autonomy of many character cards, allowing them to act as if they truly existed in this world.

Hibiki Tachibana was one of them.

Actually, she has been considering whether or not to move out of the Starlight Museum these past two days.

Aside from Nana Ohba, who was quite attached to that dormitory, the other members were actually indifferent. Some also wanted to have more contact with the outside world to avoid being too bored.

Hibiki Tachibana didn't know why she wanted to move out too. Perhaps it was because her fusion syndrome had made her head a little unclear, or perhaps she just wanted to clear her head a bit.

She came out today to look for a suitable place to rent and also to clear her head.

But it seems they've run into something not so good.

...Could someone be targeting innocent women?

Hibiki Tachibana hesitated for a moment between "meddling" and "turning a blind eye," then quietly followed after him.

Just as Tachibana Hibiki began her operation, Kita Kirihara noticed new information appearing in the comments section.

She was with Saki Koizumi, accompanying Ryo Kobayashi as they vented their frustrations by eating sweets at a dessert shop.

The latter was under too much psychological pressure lately. While eating the éclair on her plate, she couldn't help but shed tears, thinking that her younger sister loved this flavor of éclair.

Saki Koizumi also demonstrated remarkable emotional intelligence, sitting beside him without saying anything extra, simply handing him a tissue.

Meanwhile, Kita, who already knew from the comments that Future Vision and the Beastmaster were still alive, was drinking juice when he suddenly saw a comment scrolling by:

【？？？？？？？】

[You can even pick this up? Is Master Xiang some kind of professional pick-up artist? This is the second time this has happened.]

[Hilarious! They'd rather just pick them up than not keep them, right? The Silver Court has already abducted Tianjing, and now they want to abduct Future Vision and the Beast Tamer too.]

[Plus the freeze-frame retirement... Dude, how come your Tower only has three Special Grade members left?]