“Uoooooooh!”
The next one to move was Baka.
He knew what he had to do in this situation, without anyone telling him.
Baka kicked off the floor towards the statue, and then…
“Deyaaaaaahhhhh!”
He tackled the statue with full force!
The statue went flying. It slammed into the wall and shattered with a smash. Marble wasn’t that hard. At least, not harder than Baka. The broken statue still tried to move, but eventually, it stopped twitching.
…And then, the room became completely silent.
Venus’s corpse. Mina’s corpse. And the remains of the marble statue.
Those were the only things scattered around, and no one said anything.
“…How did it come to this?”
Only Kaito’s mutter echoed emptily in the room.
…Not just Baka, but no one could think anymore.
They didn’t even have the energy to lay Tsuchiya, Mina, and Venus’s bodies somewhere to rest. The four of them returned to the Great Hall and stayed there for a while, not saying a word.
It felt like a heavy atmosphere was pressing down on the room, and Baka felt like it was hard to breathe.
…But.
“Kabashima.”
Baka looked up when his name was called.
Then, Kaito was staring intently at Baka.
“There are a few things I want to confirm. Can we talk for a bit, just the two of us?”
After that, Baka and Kaito went together to the Sheep’s Dark Hotpot Venue. There was grass there, and the sheep were bleating, which made them feel a little better.
Still, Kaito was silent for a while, but eventually, he started talking.
“What I want to talk about is none other than your Unique Ability.”
“Huh?… Oh!”
That’s when Baka finally remembered.
That’s right! Baka could redo things! He could redo them!
He could undo this whole situation where Hibana, Amagi, Tsuchiya, Mina, and Venus had died, and start over!
“R-right! I can redo it! I can redo it and…”
“But the result of redoing it was the current you, wasn’t it?”
…But, Kaito’s words dampened Baka’s spirits, and he slumped.
That was right. Even if he redid it, this was the result!
Last time, many people died too.
Amagi died, Kaito and Hibana died, Venus died, and Yo also died.
And this time too, many people died.
Hibana and Amagi died, Tsuchiya died, Mina and Venus died… In the end, things hadn’t improved!
“What should I do… Is it really impossible? Are about five people going to die no matter what?”
“Well, wait. I brought you here to talk about that.”
When Baka looked like he was about to cry, Kaito patted Baka’s back as if to say, “Calm down,” and calmed him down.
And then.
“Okay? First… next time, it’s better not to take off anyone’s collar. At least, you absolutely can’t take off Hibana’s collar.”
That was the first thing Kaito said.
“Huh?”
“…Last time, Mina-san didn’t kill anyone, right?”
“Uh, ah, yeah. Probably.”
“And this time, Mina-san said, ‘I saw a snake tattoo on her neck.’ …This means that it was only because Hibana didn’t have a collar that she saw it, and that’s what caused the murders.”
Listening to Kaito’s words, Baka thought it through, and finally understood.
Part of this incident… the part where Mina tore off Venus’s head… was something that happened because Baka tore off Hibana’s collar.
“I-is it my fault… that Mina…?”
“It’s not your fault. It’s just that things happened that way, and if you had to blame someone, it would be Mina-san, or maybe Hibana and Venus. …So, don’t worry about it too much.”
Baka was very shocked, but Kaito patted Baka’s back as if to comfort him.
“But, maybe if Hibana still had her collar on, Mina-san wouldn’t think about killing Hibana or Venus. If that’s the case, then that’s a bonus. Right? Well… Venus is more of a problem than Mina-san. She… if we assume that the statue is her Unique Ability… she killed Tsuchiya and Mina-san.”
Baka nodded, confused.
That’s right. There were still so many things they had to think about. There were so many things that Baka had no idea how to deal with.
“In the first place, was it really Amagi who killed Hibana? If Amagi killed Hibana, what was his aim? Was the infighting an accident…? Was it the same motive as Mina-san…?”
“Old man Amagi died last time too…”
“I see… Hmm, no good. I’m even more confused.”
Seeing Kaito look up at the ceiling, Baka also looked up at the ceiling. If Kaito didn’t understand, then Baka wouldn’t understand either!
“For now… well, what I mean is. There are four things you should do next.”
When Baka was at a loss, Kaito said that and started counting on his fingers.
“First, go to the Great Hall with the collars. Second, open the safe and make sure you take your Unique Ability explanation with you. Third, don’t take off Hibana’s collar. And fourth…”
“Fourth?” Baka looked at Kaito, and Kaito, looking very awkward and averting his gaze… muttered.
“…In the next loop too, make me your ally.”
“…I see! That’s right! I became friends with Kaito, so things will go better next time!”
Baka suddenly became energetic!
That’s right! Baka wasn’t alone! And things were going in a good direction! Because Baka had become friends with Kaito!
…But.
“No, wait! But if you redo it, I’ll definitely be in a state where I don’t know you!?”
When Kaito said that, Baka realized, “Ah…” and then, he slumped again!
“…Kaito, are you going to forget about me?”
“It’s not that I’m going to forget. I’ll just be back to a state where I didn’t know you.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?! I’m a Baka, I don’t know the difference…”
Baka became like a withered plant.
“…I’m lonely…”
That’s right. Baka was lonely.
He had finally become friends with Kaito. They had cleared the Game together, they had shared a hotpot together… Last time, they had barely talked, but this time, they had talked a lot. They had become friends. They had even made a promise to lend each other Pokemon. That made him happy.
But… but, in order to redo this sad reality, the happy reality with Kaito would also be redone!
“…I see. That’s an honor. Really…”
Kaito said, “Oh dear,” while striking a pose, but still, he seemed somewhat pleased, and his lips curved into a smile.
“Well, even so, you still want to redo it, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Then, don’t be so worried. There are many things you need to think about and remember. Listen carefully.”
“…Yeah.”
Kaito patted Baka’s back again, and Baka regained a little bit of his energy.
And he also regained the will to move towards the ‘next time’.
“Then, there are roughly three things you should investigate next. One is the truth of Mina-san’s words. Did Hibana and Venus really… well, were they involved with the yakuza and the death of Mina-san’s acquaintance? And what is the wish that Venus wants to fulfill?”
When Baka regained his energy, Kaito said that.
“Anyway, as long as there is someone who wants to kill people to fulfill their wish, this Death Game won’t become the ‘peaceful Game’ you want it to be.”
“Eeeeh… no way.”
“So, either you tie them all up and leave them there, or you find out the details of their wishes and look for a way to solve them without relying on the devil… That’s about it. The former seems like something you could do… but since this is a Death Game with Unique Abilities, honestly, I can’t say anything for sure. So, you should investigate their wishes.”
Baka didn’t really understand what Kaito was saying. But he understood that there were indeed wishes that could be fulfilled without relying on the devil.
In a way, Cutie Lovely Angel Construction was also like that. Cutie Lovely Angel Construction was a company that existed to fulfill people’s wishes. They fulfilled various wishes, like, “I want a big house!” or, “I want to turn the stairs into a ramp!” or, “I want to eat delicious natto!” or, “I want you to find my lost cat!”
So… maybe Venus’s wish was like that too. Maybe there was a wish that Baka could fulfill, not the devil.
“Got it! I’ll try talking to Venus and Hibana too!”
“Yeah. Do that. Anyway, you should investigate each person’s wish. If you know their wishes and each other’s backgrounds, maybe you can avoid some of the murders. If you can’t avoid them… then you’ll have to give up and think about which one to prioritize… and I’ll help you think about that.”
Baka immediately became energetic.
A goal has been set, and what’s more, I have a friend who will help me achieve it! There’s nothing more reassuring than that!
“Ah.”
“W-what is it?”
But then, Baka suddenly realized something. He noticed, and stared intently at Kaito.
“…What’s Kaito’s wish?”
“Huh?”
“Kaito, you have a wish you want to fulfill too, right?”
That’s what it was supposed to be! Baka leaned forward, and as Baka leaned forward, Kaito subtly pulled back.
“…Well, it might be considered utterly ridiculous, but…”
Kaito averted his eyes, and then, looking apologetic towards Baka, whose eyes were shining, he said,
“…I want to win an award. For my novel.”