The smoke withdrew from his eyes, and he found himself in the fabled white hall of the witches. He heard many stories about this place. The legendary battleground for human against witch, the ultimate arena for the rational against the irrational, for the truth against the illusions. There was already a table, as white as marble, placed directly in front of him, as if beckoning him to sit. He walked forward cautiously, and took a seat. Despite the chair's sharp looking contours, he found it surprisingly comfortable. Another surreal factor in this crazy place.

He waited for a full minute, tapping his foot against the floor. The sound bounced off the lonely walls and returned to him untouched. It was silent, as silent as nothingness. He frowned. It was just like Bernkastel to keep him waiting. He sighed, and called out.

'I'm here,' his voice echoed around the halls. A few second later, a witch appeared in a cloud of blue, floating down gently to sit on the chair opposite him. And, just as he turned his gaze back to the table, he saw a chessboard that certainly wasn't there before lying quietly on the white.

'Willard H. Wright,' Bernkastel said, her voice perfectly flat.

'That's me. Why did you call me here?'

'Did you read what I sent you?' Bernkastel said, idly tugging at her blue hair. She wasn't even looking at him.

'Yeah. The games between Battler and Beatrice, right? I read them all.'

'And your opinion? Is it a mystery, or a fantasy?'

'I wouldn't know. I didn't have much time to think.'

'Aah, you're really disappointing, you know?' She finally bothered to slide her eyes towards him, briefly, and what he saw in them was dark and cold.

'Why did you call me here?' he repeated.

'Beato was being boring, you know? She had so much red at her disposal and she didn't even bother to use it...it's almost if that kid wants to lose. Things were getting dull, so, I took over her game for a bit.'

'Where's Battler?'

'Wandering somewhere in the seas of Oblivion,' Bernkastel gave a brief shrug. 'Or something like that. The last time I saw him, he was screaming and shouting, curved up in a little ball.' For the first time, something resembling a smile flickered across her face. 'He couldn't find the answer to my game, you know?'

Will had already figured things out. 'Battler gave up playing your game,' he said. 'And you want me to take over.'

'Of course. I'd be very, very interested if the great Willard H. Wright is as intelligent as he seems. So far, not so much.'

Will ignored the jibes, keeping his expression under control. 'It's the same game, right? Murders take place on Rokkenjima on October 4th and 5th, in 1986. Usually impossible murders, murders that seemingly can only be committed by a witch. And I try to find rational explanations for everything, and you try to deny me in red.'

'Correct,' Bernkastel said. 'But, it isn't exactly the same game.'

'Why so?'

'I told you before, Beato went easy on Battler. He took an anti fantasy stance, coming up with ridiculous explanations like small bombs, and Beato just took it all in without bothering to raise her red sword. What a stupid kid. I'm not such a pushover like her. I won't accept any answers unless they're a proper mystery.'

'Fair enough,' Will said. 'Is the culprit the same from the previous games?'

Bernkastel's eyes narrowed slightly. 'You know who the culprit is?'

'I think so. It's the servant called Yasu, right?'

If Bernkastel was surprised, she gave no sign. Instead she leaned forward slightly, putting her hands on the table. 'You're smarter than you look, Willard H. Wright.'

'Thanks.'

'I won't need to explain everything to you, then. I'll just give you the red up front now.'

And then she stared directly into Will's eyes. 'Red truth. There are two main differences between my game and Beato's previous games. Firstly, the culprit Yasu doesn't exist. Shannon and Kanon are considered seperate people.'

'I see. So the culprit is a totally new person, right?'

Bernkastel ignored the insight. 'The second difference is that Kinzo Ushiromiya is alive at the starting point of this game.'

'Got it,' Will nodded. 'Any other differences?'

'Sorry, but I'm a bit stingy with the red. You'll have to find that out on your own.'

'Hmph. You're a fussy witch aren't you?'

Her eyes seemed to grow bigger. 'You call me, a witch of the senate, fussy?'

'Yeah.'

She leaned forward further still, until her purple eyes filled Will's face. 'Know your place. You may be a High Inquisitor, but I am the Witch of Miracles. I could banish you to oblivion right now, and you'll be screaming along with Battler, without any hope for a miracle, you know...?'

'I know,' Will said, carefully measuring his voice. 'I'll play your game...mam.'

'That's better,' she was suddenly in her seat again. 'It's quite a hard game, but, I guarantee that it is possible to see this tale as a proper mystery. I'm interested to see if you can, Willard H. Wright.'

'Let's get started, then.'

Four sections of the wall around them, despite being sturdy as stone, burst into tiny little pieces of glass, forming four perfectly square windows which Will could see through into another world. He saw a island in the distance, planted firmly in the endless sea, growing nearer and nearer as a stern of a boat zoomed across the water.

'I'll start my game now,' Bernkastel said, and the faint smile played across her lips again. 'I've even given it my own name. Come, Willard H. Wright, let's see if you'll be able to solve The Legend of the Blue Witch.'