Romantic Troubles of Duanmu-kun

The warm glow from inside the room spread across the blurred-colored window panes, while the rain from the depths of night violently beat against the glass, creating a watery sheen. The pitter-patter showed no signs of stopping.

…I had managed to contact Yayoi and Miyagi-san at Amazu Manor via email. After sending the address, Yayoi said she would send someone to pick us up tomorrow.

The Novelist slid his finger across the screen, drained another cup of hot tea, and following the two girls’ example, burrowed into the blanket with a long sigh.

To be honest, he had been quite nervous earlier. Given the time constraints and having just received the notebook with resident information, coming up with a story that fit the game rules had not been easy. So while narrating, he had simply circumvented the issue of character backgrounds—

“…What’s wrong?”

The Novelist only now noticed the strange atmosphere in the room. Whether to call it a silence ruled by complete stillness or a concerning heaviness… either way, the girls’ expressions were not looking good.

“Are you alright? Are you feeling unwell?”

Perhaps due to lingering emotions from narrating the story, he failed to realize he was the cause of Misao and Maho’s current unsettled mood, speaking like a dense light novel protagonist.

“N-nothing. Um… Liang-kun, is your story finished?”

Class Rep’s expression was somewhat pale, looking a bit frightened.

“Uh… yeah.”

The Novelist quickly understood Class Rep’s feelings and could not help but give a wry smile. The murder story he had just narrated had probably pushed the limits of their psychological endurance. As expected of me, my ability to ruin the atmosphere has not weakened at all despite knowing more girls.

“I’m sorry, if you don’t want to solve it, that’s fine, we can skip this one…”

It was just a game after all.

“No, I think Liang-kun’s mystery is interesting. It’s just that while you were narrating, your expression… became a bit scary.”

“Mm-hmm, exactly! Your attitude was just like a serial killer confessing their crimes, so scary!”

Misao’s response was more straightforward.

“Besides, while the atmosphere was well-crafted… the clues were even more vague than before, weren’t they? There are many possible answers.”

“In that case…”

Class Rep quickly calmed down. It seemed she had grasped the technique of this game, and like the Novelist had done before, began listing necessary clues in the notebook.

“The killer, motive, method, none were provided… Come to think of it, even the identity and number of dismembered victims are unclear, right? As for possible suspects, it includes eleven residents from six buildings.”

“We’ll have to consider it from another angle.”

Misao took the pen from Class Rep’s hand and circled “all residents.”

“Except for ‘me’ and the missing mother, everyone else appeared. And from the description of their expressions, they all appeared distorted—meaning they were experiencing extreme emotional fluctuations.”

Under what circumstances would such dramatic emotional changes occur?

“Um… for example, that… when they’re about to be killed?”

Class Rep thought for a moment before reaching this conclusion.

“That’s right. No, that’s probably the most likely possibility. If so, the victims weren’t just one person, but all the residents. And the killer could only be…”

‘Fujishima,’ who was not satisfied with simply observing the people through the window, ultimately descended into madness, her mind becoming unhinged.

“The story hinted at it several times, right? ‘Fujishima’s’ view could not have been obtained through a telescope, she must have witnessed the murder scene up close.”

“More crucial than that are the ‘sounds.’ ‘Even if you can see their actions and expressions, without being able to hear their conversations, it’s often difficult to guess the truth and full picture of events’… That’s what ‘Fujishima’ said at first. But in the end, she clearly heard the sounds of bones and flesh being chopped during dismemberment. This shows that ‘Fujishima’ must have been at the scene.”

In that case, ‘Fujishima’s’ identity was obvious—she could only be the killer herself.

The moment they reached the answer—

A wry smile appeared on Class Rep’s pretty face.

“Ah-haha, I see.”

Fujishima Misao smiled kindly at him, but her pupils held no trace of warmth.

“So in Liang-kun’s story, I’m a psychotic killer? And what’s more, a monster girl who killed nine people in one go while wearing a cast on her leg…”

The room’s temperature suddenly dropped. Even the thick blanket offered no protection!

“Wait—that was just a story setting! No need to get so angry!”

The Novelist tried to defend himself.

“Unfortunately, I’m the type of player who seeks immersion. Otherwise, I would not have suggested using real neighbors as ‘material’—”

Fujishima-san rose from her seat with a cold smile, placing one foot on the low table. Her long legs extending from beneath thin shorts gleamed with an ivory-like luster in the room’s light. Sadly, he was in no mood to appreciate such beauty right now.

“Even if it’s just a story, I finally got to break down and become a killer. Ah, why don’t I try getting a taste of it right now?”

“I’m sorry!”

I might have gotten too carried away with the performance—!

If he did not apologize sincerely, the Novelist himself might become the “tenth” victim (lol).

Class Rep desperately held back Fujishima-san, who was determinedly trying to execute a roundhouse kick to his head, but she continued persistently extending her leg.

Despite being injured, her sharp movements remained so powerful that there was no doubt a direct hit would knock out several teeth… She was truly a woman not to be underestimated.

“Maho-chan, move aside! I can’t kill him like this!” And she was shouting things like this. What kind of yandere little sister are you!

Just as Fujishima Misao’s toes were mere centimeters from the Novelist’s nose, his resolve greatly wavered—he was even considering giving up.

However, at that moment came a knock at the door. The ever-smiling blonde woman entered the room with light, floating steps.

“Would you like to try some?”

Kaori-san smiled at him.

You’ve got to be kidding, I’m not going to lick—oh, she meant the cookies in her hand.