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Italics when not in emphasis or thinking = Blue

Bold and italics = Gold

3

"Gaah!" cried out Lambdadelta while pounding her fists on her chair in the meta-world. "How could he do that?! How could he? I'm the one who made her a witch! I'm the one who says if she stays or not! How...could...he...he had no right! We should have him drawn, hung, and quartered!"

"Actually," said Bernkastel, looking up from her cup of tea, "he had every right to do what he did."

Lambdadelta's jaw dropped. "Bern..."

"Think about it," said Bernkastel. "When Virgilia asked if you held any responsible over Beato, what did you say? You said 'I hold no responsibility over the dead'. Therefore, you surrendered all responsibility for her, giving Battler every right to do as he pleased."

"That—that meanie!" burst out Lambdadelta. "She tricked me! She tricked me, she tricked me, she tricked me!"

"Now stop your whining, Lady Lambdadelta," spoke Virgilia as she appeared in a burst of gold. "You have to admit, it was a clever tactic on my part, no? It enabled Battler to not only bring Beato back to life, but also to revoke her powers. Because you gave up holding all responsibility over her, Battler could do whatever he liked and not be punished for it."

"That's right," said Battler, who showed up exactly one second later in a similar burst of gold. "Beato no longer remains on the chessboard. It's just us now."

Lambdadelta opened and shut her mouth for a minute and a half before saying, "That's right—I hold no responsibility over her, hence I am not the one who made her suffer so I have nothing to feel guilty over, unlike you. Oh, I know what witches go through to become mortal, all right—it's a slow, agonizing process. She must be hurting soooo bad!"

She giggled in a manner that made Battler clench his fists even tighter. 'Keep it together', he mentally reminded himself, gradually unclenching his fists. 'She's trying to make you mad so you can't concentrate. Beato's not going to be in this pain forever. She'll be herself again in just a week. Now focus!'

"Where's the rest of your team?" said Battler coolly. "Shouldn't they be here showing their utmost support?"

"If you are talking about the Furudo girl," said Bernkastel, "she is temporarily out of the game until she can get her act together. She," Bernkastel smiled, "had a bit of a breakdown upon learning of what you had done."

Battler smiled. "Did she, now?"

"If you thought I had it bad just now, you should've seen Erika!" laughed Lambdadelta. "She started screaming about how it was our fault and she was working with incompetents who knew nothing about the detective genre!"

"So I gave her a bit of time to cool off," said Bernkastel. "She'll be back...eventually...when I decide she is fit to participate again. In the mean time, let's get down to business." She tilted her head and looked at Battler curiously. "This new strategy of yours...just how do you plan to go about doing it?"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Battler, leaning back in his chair casually and crossing his legs. "I set back time to one week before the murders begin so I can figure out which of my family is trying to kill everyone and stop them from doing it."

"And how do you plan on stopping them from doing it if or when you catch them?" challenged Bernkastel. "If you figure out who it is before the actual date, what do you plan on doing? Do you plan on telling everyone in your family they're going to get killed when nothing out of the ordinary has happened yet? Do you plan on confronting this so-called 'murderer' by threatening to turn them over to the police before they've had a chance to do anything wrong or even thought about doing anything wrong? Or do you plan on waiting until something has happened, until someone in your family dies, and then confronting an already deranged lunatic, who may see you as a threat and put you at the top of his or her list?"

Battler uncrossed his legs, feeling less confident than he had just a minute ago. "I haven't figured that out yet," he said calmly. "What I am going to do, though, is flip the chess board around, try seeing it from each family member's perspectives and figure out what possible motive they would have for murder. Right now, I am going to rule out George—he would have nothing to gain from the murders. Take the murder of Shannon in the first case: Even if he never truly cared for her, even if he were just using her to get closer so he could kill her without suspicion, what would he have to gain? The matter of the family fortune is between Kinzo and his children, not between Kinzo and his grandchildren."

"Well done." Bernkastel mused. "Is there anything else you wish to say?"

"Yes, actually," said Battler, gaining a bit more confidence. "I would like to state that it would be virtually impossible for any of my cousins to sneak out of the guest house without waking up even one person. Therefore, it is unlikely they could have committed murder."

To his dismay, Lambdadelta replied, "Everyone sleeping in the guest house was out like a light. Nothing could have woken them up. Not even the sound of a door opening or closing."

Battler argued, "Maria can be eliminated because she does not have the physical strength required to commit half of these brutal murders, nor does she have the motive."

"Anyone can pick up a scythe and go wild with it," fired Lambdadelta. "Children are not automatically innocent. Hee-hee-hee-hee!"

"I hate it when they laugh in red," muttered Battler before declaring: "Jessica would have nothing to gain from the murders either. This is between Kinzo and his children; all cousins can stay out of this."

Lambdadelta yawned and swung her feet against her chair. "Bern," she said lazily, "when are we going to get that Furudo girl back in the game? She made things so much more interesting."

"Patience, Lambdadelta," said Bernkastel calmly. "We can still fight back. We just need to, as Battler puts it, 'flip the chessboard around'."

"All right," muttered Lambdadelta. "Well, um...have you ever thought that maybe they have some sort of hidden motive you haven't uncovered yet?"

"I haven't out ruled that entirely," said Battler, still at the top of his game. "I just need to think about it some more." Then, "There's the matter of Kanon and Shannon. They serve as furniture to Kinzo, who does not give a second thought to them. They would not inherit anything from his death, or the deaths of the other family. Their past murders were conducted in such a way that they could not have faked it and then proceeded to kill the others."

"While it is possible for someone to have faked their death," said Lambdadelta, "you are overlooking the lengths to which they would have to go. How can someone fake having half their face torn off, hmm? Or how can they fake getting their stomach ripped out and stuffed with candy?"

"The first one could be handled with a mixture of mud and a bit of blood from the other victims," replied Battler. "However, no one faked their death in the first twilight of the second game. They all died for real. But it is still possible someone else faked their death later on."

"All these flying colours are making me dizzy," said Bernkastel, standing up. "Now that you have told us the people who are at the bottom of your suspect list—not those who could not be the murderer—tell us who is at the top. Of all your relatives, who would have the strongest motive? Who would have the means, motive, and opportunity?"

Battler looked across the room. "Possibly one of the adults," he said. "Not the servants—by that, I mean it could be one of my aunts or uncles."

"What about your parents?" Bernkastel asked while sitting up straight. "Can you imagine your father standing above your weak, defenceless relatives, caressing a knife in his hands before plunging it? Or can you picture your stepmother standing above your weak father, begging for mercy, a glint of malice shining in her eyes right before going in for the kill?"

Stay calm, Battler told himself in an attempt to stop trembling with anger. She's just trying to goad you into losing your temper. Don't pay any attention to what she says and you'll be fine.

"I'm not going to rule them out entirely," said Battler calmly. "I'll keep them in mind."

Bernkastel smiled. "My, this is like a comedy, isn't it," she mused. "Acting on impulse, you plunge right into an opportunity to save your family with absolutely no plan whatsoever."

"Yeah," said Lambdadelta, smirking. "Beato could come up with a plan better than that. If she wasn't busy being sick, that is."

"Stop it," said Virgilia suddenly, "Both of you."

"Let me guess," said Bernkastel, drumming her fingers on the edge of her seat handles. "The Game Master himself does not have a plan, yet his instructor does? Do tell us of this plan, Virgilia."

Virgilia looked Bernkastel straight in the eye. "The plan for now," she said, "is to lie low and remain inconspicuous until the time is right. Battler will ask fairly innocent questions in hopes of tricking someone into confessing their true feelings for the rest of the household. When he finds the person who is most likely the killer, then he will strike. Until then, he will act as though he knows nothing."

"Whoever said him knowing nothing was an act?" cracked Lambdadelta. She snickered until Bernkastel elbowed her. She glared at Bernkastel before sighing, "Oh, very well. Do what you like. Just don't trick us like that again, or it could be your turn to have your powers revoked. Who would win for Beato then, I wonder, hmm?"

Lambdadelta disappeared. Bernkastel looked at both Virgilia and Battler. "I hope the two of you know what you're doing," she said. "The probability of a miracle such as this was zero. It would be a shame to see you waste that miracle."

And then, Bernkastel vanished, leaving Battler and Virgilia. Battler sighed and put his head in his hands. "My God, what have I gotten us into?" he muttered. "It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now I'm in over my head. I have no clue where to start, or what to look for. And if I don't solve this by the time the day arrives...Ange might be killed." He lifted his head up. "Thank you for helping me back there, Virgilia."

"It is no problem at all," said Virgilia. "That should be your plan for the time being, anyway: Lie low for now. Play detective later. The clues will come naturally if you stop looking for them."

"Sounds wonderful," muttered Battler, although he could not begin to imagine how this was supposed to be helpful. "What should part of my plan to 'lie low' include?"

"It could be spending time with your sister," said Virgilia casually. "Or it could be taking the time to stop by to see Beato as often as you can. I'm sure that would speed up her recovery process."

Battler sat up straight. "Is she still asleep?" he asked.

"For now, yes," said Virgilia. "But she could wake up fairly soon. The amount of time she stays up for is getting longer. It's a slow process, but it does have its end. Keep that in mind, and do not let Lady Lambdadelta's taunting get to you. I can see the flash of anger in your eyes when she starts dangling your weaknesses in front of your face, and she can, too. Stop reacting to what she says, or else you will not be able to focus."

"I'm trying," sighed Battler. "But it's so hard."

"Oh, just think of her taunting as Beato's taunting from when she was the Game Master," said Virgilia, smiling. "Taunts full of hot air and nothing else."

Battler had to laugh at that, although he felt a bit guilty in doing so. "Well, then," he said, "shall we be off?"

Off... to a future of uncertainty…

Which curtain would be raised on the night of the murders—a curtain of comedy, or a curtain of tragedy?


At the first time, I do my best to try again
against the inevitable tragedy.

In the second time, I become disgusted
towards the inevitable tragedy.

The third time, disgust is overwhelmed into painfulness.
But by the seventh time, this all becomes a farce comedy.

--Frederica Bernkastel