(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
(A/N: DO NOT READ THIS UNLESS YOU HAVE READ "STAR-CROSSED" FIRST.)
1. Accuse Tyler
2. Keep denying
Despite his fear, Seto swallowed down his objection. No, it wouldn't be right to frame Tyler. He couldn't take advantage of his trust like that. Besides, who knew what MonoWither would do if Seto wasn't the one everyone voted for? It was too risky for everyone else.
Everyone looked around, panicking wildly.
"Wait, it can't be Slotty! It can't be!" Seto insisted.
"But who else could it be?!" Bodil countered.
"The Puppetmaster themselves! They're the one who put on a disguise and killed Jason!"
"Wh-What?!" Bonks cried out. "Why would they do that?!"
"The Puppetmaster's framing me! They want me to die so that I can't find out who they are and stop them!"
"Do you expect us to believe that?!" Annie yelled.
"Please, I'm telling the truth!" Seto shouted. "I'm begging you, please believe me! If I die here, you'll never escape this place!"
"If we vote for Seto, he'll get killed!" Tyler pleaded. "We can't vote for him!"
"And if we don't, the rest of us will!" Annie shouted back.
Seto slammed his hands on the podium stand, sweat covering his face. His usually-composed voice had risen into a desperate, hysterical shriek. "It's not me, I swear it's not me! This is a set-up, this whole trial's been strange from the start! The Puppetmaster put the time limit so you'd all vote for me! Please, trust me!"
"15 seconds left!" MonoWither called out.
Before Seto could continue, everyone except for Tyler pulled their levers and cast their votes.
"No!" Seto cried out, horrified.
"Ahh-!" Tyler shrieked before looking around, terrified out of his mind. "It's not Seto, it's not Seto! You all voted wrong!"
"The clock is ticking, Tyler!" MonoWither mocked. "You'd better make your vote, and fast! You've only got 10 seconds left!"
Tyler glanced at Seto, his eyes welling up with tears, before he shut them tightly and pulled the lever, making his choice.
Suddenly, the familiar golden slot machine emerged from the center and its three spots spun wildly before stopping at Seto's face. Confetti burst from the machine as the words "GUILTY" flashed on top of the machine.
"No... no way..." Seto whispered, backing away slightly as he stared at everyone. None of them could meet his gaze. In fact, they all looked guilty, even Annie.
"Congratulations!" MonoWither whooped, spinning around. "You've done it again! Fifth time in a row! Well, not Tyler, unfortunately... What in the world were you thinking, voting for yourself?"
Tyler's eyes were wide open in terror. "It's not... him..."
"Your denial, as always, is entertaining to watch! But you're wrong. Slotty is the one who murdered Jason, and Seto's the unlucky bastard who has to pay for this crime as well!"
"No! You're lying!" Seto shrieked, abandoning all composure. "You're a coward, you framed me so that you could stop me from helping everyone!"
"Why do you keep saying that?!" Bonks cried out.
"Tsk tsk, Seto, you're the one who's lying!" MonoWither sneered. "You can't keep hiding the truth from everyone! Face it, you lost control of Slotty and let him kill one of your friends!"
"It's not true! Where's your proof? I won't accept this unless you show proof!"
MonoWither's three eyes gleamed. "Proof? No need to ask any further... Here's your proof!"
The television screens flickered on to show the dance room, where Jason was lying on the floor and holding his star to his chest, staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly, he sat up with a jolt as the doors opened and MonoWither flew through, chased by Annie.
"Hellooo, Jason!" MonoWither called out, making Jason scramble to his feet and back away from the machine. "What are you doing up so late, huh? Are you having a secret dance party without us?"
"Get out!" Annie shrieked. "Leave him alone!"
"But we wanted to join in his grieving moments! After all, we miss Husky too! Too bad he totally failed to keep his promise to Jason, hahaha!"
"Shut up! You've said enough! Get out right now!"
"Hmph, fine! You're all big meanies anyway..." MonoWither complained, leaving the dance room.
"Jason, I don't want to rush you, but..." Annie looked around. "I don't know, I have a bad feeling-"
"Just a little longer, please?" Jason begged.
Annie looked like she wanted to object, but sighed. "All right, just a bit longer." With that, she left the room as well, shutting the door behind her.
Jason exhaled deeply and closed his eyes, relaxing a little. However, he tensed once more when a reddish glow covered the walls. "Wh-What's going on?" he asked shakily, looking around. "Annie?"
That was when he appeared in front of him. Morphing out of thin air, so it seemed, Slotty raised a magical staff and grinned at him. "Hey, Jason!"
"H-Hey... Slotty..." Jason gulped and started to back away. "How did you get in here?"
"Aw, I don't really think that's important. What's really important is that Master asked me to do something!"
"Oh- Oh really? What's that?" Jason's eyes darted to the door, which was unfortunately behind Slotty, who kept approaching him. "Hey! Stay back! Stay back or I'll get Annie to come in here!"
"Don't you think she would have heard you by now?"
Jason's face paled as he realized why the walls were glowing red now. "Why are you doing this? I didn't do anything to you! I was nice to you, wasn't I? I saved your life!"
Slotty's face wavered somewhat. "Mmm, that's true... You showed me mercy back then... N-No-! How dare you distract me!" Slotty pointed the staff and glared at him. "It doesn't matter how nice you were to me; Master gave me an order and I have to carry it out! Now just stay still and it won't hurt as much! Don't you want to see Husky again?"
Jason finally pushed him aside and bolted for the door, screaming in terror. "HELP ME! HELP-!"
Slotty pointed the staff at Jason and hoisted him up in the air before twisting his neck in one movement. There was a terrible cracking sound before Slotty let the body collapse to the floor. The star tumbled from Jason's outstretched hand and rolled for a bit before coming to a stop.
Slotty's red eyes gleamed in triumph as he knelt down beside the corpse. "I hope Master is pleased with this..."
"Is that enough proof, Seto?" MonoWither asked cruelly as the screens turned off.
Seto felt like his whole world had stopped. "N-No... That has to be fake..." he whispered faintly, tears streaming down his face. "I don't remember any of this happening... I always remember what Slotty does... This doesn't make any sense..."
MonoWither cackled and flew over to him. "How can you still be in denial?! Obviously, you were wrong! It seems like you had less control over Slotty than you thought! And because of your foolishness, another one of your friends is dead! Not only that, but guess who's been the despair spy and a member of the Three Despairs this whole time?"
"...What...?"
"Still don't believe us? You really are insufferably stubborn! We guess you'll just have to hear it from the killer himself!"
Before Seto could react, MonoWither opened their mouths and shot at him two small electrodes, much like that of a Taser, electrocuting him. Seto screamed and collapsed to his knees, closing his eyes.
A few moments later, Slotty stood up, removing the hood from his head and grinning. "Hello, everyone!"
The others merely stared at him in shock, and Annie with hatred.
Slotty's smile wavered somewhat. "H-Hey, why are you... why are you looking at me like that?"
"Doesn't matter, Slotty!" MonoWither exclaimed, returning to their throne. "Why don't you tell them why you killed Jason!"
"Oh! You don't know?" Slotty laughed. "I did it to please Master, of course! Master wanted me to kill Jason, so I did! That's all there is to it!"
"H-How dare you?!" Annie shouted.
Slotty flinched and drew into himself. "Wh-What do you mean?"
"You killed Jason!" Bodil shrieked. "You murdered him!"
"What else was I supposed to do, disobey my master?" Slotty shook his head. "I was just doing what I was ordered to! Don't blame me!"
Bonks suddenly burst into heartbroken tears. "I can't believe I actually felt bad for you!"
Slotty whimpered like a kicked puppy. "Why are you so angry at me? I thought you accepted me!"
"You don't understand?" Tyler asked softly. "You killed our friend... And you somehow managed to spy on us for MonoWither..."
"Because Master told me to! Why don't you get that?!"
"We've been so nice to you! How could you do this?!" Bodil demanded.
"That doesn't matter!" Slotty glared at all of them, tears streaming down his face. "Why don't you get it?! It's not my fault! I have to please Master no matter what, that's my entire purpose!"
"Who gives a shit about what your master thinks?!" Annie yelled. "They don't give a shit about you, clearly!"
Slotty's eyes widened and his face paled. "What did you say?!"
"You're going to be executed!" Tyler shouted. "Didn't you realize that?!"
To everyone's surprise, Slotty grinned again as he wiped his eyes. "Upupupu! Of course I did! That was the whole plan! Seto's been a thorn in Master's side for too long, after all, but too bad Seto had no idea I was spying on him since the beginning! Yes, even before this whole show started, I helped Master prepare so much! And Seto had no clue whatsoever! Haha, that's honestly the biggest reason why I blew up that portal! Not only did I want to hurt Seto, but I also couldn't let my beloved master's participants escape and end the show early! Now, by killing Jason, you'll all vote for me, and Seto will be killed too!"
"You're going to die after killing someone who didn't deserve it, and you're just okay with it?!" Bodil cried out, horrified.
"Of course I am! I'm so happy I could carry out Master's plan with perfection!" Slotty clasped his hands together reverently, giggling under his breath as he gazed up at the ceiling. "Oh... To die for my beloved, precious master... That's the best thing a lowly, dirty, no-good servant like me could ever do in reciprocation! My master cares about me and loves me like no one else does... They are the only one who ever forgave me for my countless flaws and accepted me out of the kindness of their heart... Despite the fact that I don't deserve to even be a speck of dirt on their shoulder, they valued me... They gave me a second chance to serve someone... For my master, I'm going to fulfill my duty to the very end! That's what love is all about!"
"You're crazy..." Annie whispered. "How can you still be happy after all you've done? This is why Jason and the others died? Why all of us are in this hellhole? Just so you could pretend you're actually loved by the Puppetmaster? You're crazy!"
Slotty lowered his gaze and faced her, tilting his head curiously. "You still don't get it? I pity you all... None of you have any purpose in this world. You're not anyone's master. You're not servants, either. You're just wastes of space, doing nothing useful for anybody." Slotty giggled again, resonating with pure bliss. "Unlike you all, I've been given purpose. I was created to serve my master, and it's true that I didn't do a good job at first, but at least with my new master I've redeemed myself! I've proven my utter loyalty with my sacrifice! They gave me value and love, and in return I've given them my complete devotion and life. I really am sorry you're all so ignorant of how good it feels to serve someone, to give yourself up completely to them... It really is a wonderful, heavenlyfeeling... a feeling that justifies everything I've done..."
"You're wrong!" Bonks shouted, crying bitter tears. "All you've ever done is hurt innocent people for no good reason! Nothing can ever justify that!"
"Shut up SHUT UP!" Slotty shrieked. "You're the one who's wrong! Pleasing my master is the perfect reason for doing anything! Whatever Master says, I must obey. If Master tells me to believe that 2 plus 2 equals 5, I must. If Master tells me to torture someone, I must. If Master tells me to strip the flesh from my bones, I must. If Master tells me to kill myself, I... I must! Whatever I think or want doesn't matter... all that matters is that Master approves of what I do for them... Master's the only one I love in this world... No one else, nothing else matters, not even me... In this cruel world full of horrible, wasteful people, Master is the only one worth a damn... None of you could understand!"
"I do," Tyler murmured.
"You- You do?" Slotty asked hopefully.
"I understand your thinking at least... and I think that's what's fucked up about this. You can't even see how you're just being used."
"Of course I'm being used, that's the whole point of my life-"
"No, it's not!" Tyler shouted. "No one should live only for someone else! That's just wrong!"
"Gah! You don't understand, after all! I was made to do this! My previous master created me for this sole purpose!"
"No one's 'made' to do anything!" Tyler countered. "You're a human being and you should be free to do whatever you like as long as it doesn't hurt anyone!"
Slotty clamped his hands over his ears. "LIAR!" he screamed. "THIS IS WHY YOU'RE ALL USELESS!"
"I don't know what your previous master did to make you believe that so much, but it must have been horrible. Don't you ever feel like you deserve better?"
"The low class like me doesn't deserve better!" Slotty shrieked. "I'm perfectly happy with my given role in this world! All I want to do is please Master! I want nothing else! Besides, I've never felt better than when I was serving Master and earning their satisfaction! Not a second of my life goes by where I don't think, 'I have been blessed a million, gazillion times to meet and befriend my beloved master!' Even though I didn't deserve it, even though I'm so pathetic and flawed, Master was the only one who never hurt me, yelled at me, or got mad at me..."
"So you'd kill an innocent person to please your master?"
"Yes! I've done it many times before and I'd do it again!"
"Even if that person treated you nicely?"
"Yes!"
"Even if it gets you killed?"
Slotty flinched. "Y-Yes!"
"Really?"
"Of course!" Slotty glared at Tyler. "If it pleases my master, I'll let myself die gladly!"
"But you'd think that a master who's pleased with their servant wouldn't want them dead, right?"
Slotty looked like he had been stabbed in the chest. "Wh-What?"
"I mean... I would never use a servant... But if I liked what they did for me enough, I wouldn't want them dead..."
Slotty swallowed nervously, shaking his head. "N-No- You're lying!" He whirled to face MonoWither. "M-Master, you're pleased with my service, right? You aren't trying to punish me?!"
MonoWither laughed. "Of course not, Slotty! We're eternally grateful for what you've done! We wish we didn't have to kill you, but there's no way Seto can be killed without taking you with him. Still, we'll never forget what you've done for us! We will never meet another servant like you! You can never be replaced in our hearts, rest assured!"
Slotty smiled shakily. "I- I knew it! Thank you, Master, for your kind words! I deserve this execution just for doubting you!"
"Oh my god, they're obviously lying!" Annie shouted.
"H-Huh?"
"Yeah, there's no way you can trust them!" Bodil stated.
"They'll do whatever it takes to get what they want!" Bonks said angrily. "Even if it means taking advantage of people, manipulating them, and killing them!"
"You can't listen to them, Slotty!" Tyler said. "Please trust us! I'm sure you've seen what they're really capable of!"
Slotty kept looking back and forth between MonoWither and the group. "Wh-Why...? Why do I feel sick?" Slotty whispered, clutching his chest. "It feels like... like my stomach is twisting in knots... Like how I feel when I accidentally disobey Master..."
"Oh Slotty, why would you listen to these useless people over us?" MonoWither asked. "What have they ever done for you?"
"N-Nothing! They've done nothing!" Slotty shouted. "That's right, you're all just trying to trick me! You're- You're tricking me into betraying Master so that stupid Seto can live!"
"We're not tricking you, we promise!" Bodil pleaded.
"Why should I listen to you?! None of you care about me like Master does! Master is the only one in this world who ever cared about me! All I need is Master's love and satisfaction, and I don't care if I killed Jason or spied on you all! This is why none of you understand what real friendship is! After all, I'm not afraid to die for my beloved friend!"
"Really?" Tyler asked quietly. "You're not afraid at all? Not even a little?"
"I'm- I'm not!" Slotty screamed, tears streaming down his face. His legs quivered where he stood. "I'm not scared- not at all! As long- as long as I have Master's satisfaction- I don't have to be afraid of anything! Master is the reason why got a second chance at life! Without Master, I would have still been trapped in Seto's mind, all by myself! That's why... That's why-!"
He slammed his fists against the podium stand. "SHUT UP! SHUT UP, ALL OF YOU! THIS IS WHAT MASTER ORDERED ME TO DO! MASTER IS MY ONLY FRIEND IN THIS WORLD, AND I'LL OBEY THEM UNTIL THE VERY END!"
The red-eyed boy grabbed the sides of his head and hunched over, crying out, before standing straight again. Seto opened his eyes and stared at the group, drawing into himself. "N-No..." he whispered, his eyes welling up again. "I'm so sorry, everyone... I didn't want this to happen... I didn't mean to let him hurt another person... I didn't mean to let him spy on us... I didn't mean to get Jason killed... I didn't know, I... Oh god, I'm so sorry... This is all my fault..."
Everyone stared back at him, horrified, unsure what to say.
"Let's get this over with!" MonoWither exclaimed. "After all, we've prepared a very special punishment for Seto, the Super Duper Minecrafter Level Sorcerer, and Slotty, the Super Duper Minecrafter Level Slaughterer! We're very sorry to see them go!"
No... This isn't happening... I failed...? MonoWither won...?
"Yaaahooo! Despair always wins in the end!" MonoWither laughed cruelly before slamming a wooden gavel on the red button.
(A/N: Execution music: watch?v=80S6PUvVvoc )
SHOW'S OVER: SETO AND SLOTTY HAVE BEEN FOUND GUILTY. TIME FOR THE PUNISHMENT!
Tyler stood there, paralyzed, before running over to Seto and reaching his hand out towards him. "Seto!" he shrieked desperately, tears running down his face. "Seto, wait!"
Before Seto could respond, a metal claw emerged behind him, latched around his neck, and pulled him back. He shrieked as he reached his arm out desperately towards Tyler before he was dragged through the dark hallway, his body skidding across the floor. The door slid shut, blocking the courtroom from view.
The claw dragged him for awhile before letting him go. Immediately, four other claws grabbed his wrists and ankles and stretched him out in a spread-eagled position, cuffing them to a hard surface. Seto writhed desperately to no avail as he felt the surface he was on rising up a certain height. A light turned on and Seto stopped as a figure emerged from the shadows, a figure none other than the masked individual who was still donned in their heavy monochrome garments.
"Y-You..." he whispered. "You're the Puppetmaster, aren't you...?"
The person's mask still had its huge grin as the person approached the table and raised a black piece of cloth, reminding Seto of a pall. Seto's eyes widened as he struggled again. "You'll never get away with this!" he shrieked desperately in an attempt to hide his overwhelming terror. However, the figure seemed unfazed. Starting from his feet, the figure draped the cloth over Seto's body and stopped when they reached Seto's neck. Seto breathed deeply, trembling where he was as he stared up at the eternally-grinning mask.
The figure seemed to stare at Seto for a few long moments before reaching out and gently touching his forehead. Seto cringed and shivered as he felt the cool leather of the figure's gloves against his skin, shutting his eyes tightly as he tried not to feel sick. The figure brushed aside the hair on Seto's forehead, tucking away a few stray locks behind Seto's ear. Then the figure brought their hand to their lips and blew a mocking kiss to him before grasping the cloth again. Seto gasped wildly for breath as the cloth was finally draped over his face, blocking everything from his view. The table he was on moved quickly, to where he had no idea...
I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I don't want to die I-
Suddenly, the cloth was pulled off of him in a flourish and Seto squinted as multiple spotlights were flashed in his face.
The Magician's Super Duper Grand Finale
Seto blinked rapidly before turning his head from side to side, trying to catch his bearings. His table was sitting on a tall platform that was right above the center of a huge, seemingly bottomless pit.
Above him, a horrible whirring sound filled the air. Seto's eyes widened as he saw a long metal pole with a large, razor-sharp, spinning saw blade attached to the end swinging down towards him. The saw blade was painted in a black-and-white hypnotic swirl as it spun wildly, cutting through the air as easily as a knife through butter.
Seto's entire face drained itself of blood. Against his will, his mind brought back the memory of the video he had seen, the horrible and gruesome fate of those members of the Order. He vividly remembered their anguished screams of agony and the way their bodies had contorted in tortured suffering during their final, painful moments. That was going to be him! He was going to meet the same fate!
The pendulum descended at a rapid pace as drums started to pound to the same rhythm as Seto's heartbeat, which felt like it was going to hammer its way out of his ribcage. He couldn't stop looking at the rapidly approaching buzz saw. All of the sounds were deafening, only heightening the anxious tension. Seto's chest started to heave faster and faster, and his pale face turned a dark shade of red before purpling.
This was going to hurt... This was going to hurt so much... He was going to get ripped entirely in half if he couldn't get out of this... Just like those people... And his death wasn't going to be fast and painless for sure...
He thought of the friends he'd left behind in the courtroom. They were definitely watching this right now. They would be forced to see him die in this horrible way and remember it until the end of their days, unless...
Seto struggled to summon his magic, but only managed to emit small purple sparks from his hands. This wasn't good. MonoWither had made sure he had taken whatever magic-repressing potion that dart had. If he could only get these stupid cuffs off...!
Seto strained some more, shutting his eyes tightly as he tried to both pull at the cuffs and summon magic that would break the metal bonds.
Why are you struggling? a part of his mind asked. Your existence led to Jason's death. All you've ever done in your life is hurt and kill others. Why don't you just accept your punishment? What have you ever done to deserve to live?
Seto ignored those thoughts. They were wrong. He had to escape! If he died right here, none of his friends would be saved! He didn't want to die like this! He didn't deserve to die like this! He wanted to live, he deserved to live!
Suddenly, Seto felt a burst of energy flow through him as his purple magic brightened into a brilliant shade of magenta. This magenta aura surrounded him completely as the cuffs started to give way...
The buzz saw was so much closer now, so close that Seto's hair and clothes were blown side-to-side by the wind. Seto continued to squirm on the table and strain at the cuffs, panting heavily from all the energy he was using. He was so close, just a little bit more and he would be free...!
During the last possible moments, Seto shut his eyes tightly, and the cuffs shattered.
Seto rolled off the table, plunging downward into the abyss, all of his consciousness fading rapidly as he fell.
His whole face emotionless and his mind numb with shock, Tyler collapsed to his knees, his eyes still fixated on the black screen.
No one knew what to say. How could they? After everything they had just witnessed, words failed them.
"Wh-What the- What the hell?!" MonoWither shouted, trembling with anger. "What the hell just happened? How the hell did he have enough magic to escape like that! Those cuffs were magic-proofed! And we shot him with that dart, too!"
"Seto... lived...?" Bodil whispered, barely believing it.
MonoWither laughed. "Oh yeah, about that, he definitely didn't. That's a long, long fall! There's no way he could have survived that! Even if he somehow did, that pit leads to a huge mob grinder! And even if he managed to escape the mob grinder too, like some pesky monsters do, we have ways of taking care of that! So goodbye, Seto! Goodbye, Slotty!"
"So- So he's still dead?" Bonks asked, her eyes wide. "No!"
"Goddamnit..." Annie cursed, looking away. "This is so fucking unfair..."
"Well, that's life. But hey, look on the bright side, at least he didn't get torn apart! We wish we could have seen it, but beggars can't be choosers! After all, his punishment was still served in the end! Plus, you've finally gotten rid of the despair spy, aren't you glad about that? Now there are no more participants on the side of despair in your midst! How do you feel about that, Tyler?"
Tyler didn't respond as he continued to stare at the screen emptily.
"Whatever, anyway, that's the end of the fifth Show Trial! Come on, you know the drill! Everyone back to the elevator!"
Annie, Bodil, and Bonks approached Tyler and knelt down beside him.
"I'm so sorry Tyler, but we have to go," Bonks murmured.
"There's nothing else we can do," Annie said.
"Y-Yeah, at the very least... he didn't get hit by that saw, right?" Bodil asked tentatively.
"He died on his own terms..." Bonks tried to point out.
Tyler showed no signs of having heard them at all.
Annie sighed before grabbing Tyler's shoulders and pulling him up. "Come on, Tyler. Don't make me carry you out of here."
Tyler weakly allowed himself to be guided by the three towards the elevator. The four of them got inside and the doors slid shut. The elevator rose after a few moments.
"...He's not dead..." Tyler whispered, his voice barely audible above the rumbling of the elevator.
The other three looked at each other.
"...Tyler..." Bonks said quietly, trailing off.
"He's not."
Bodil swallowed. "I know it's hard to believe. But trust me, it'll be better if you accept-"
"I'm not in denial. I just know he's not dead."
Annie sighed. "Tyler, I hate to say this because I don't want him to be dead any more than you do, but how could he have survived that? You heard MonoWither..."
"I don't know, I just... know. I can feel it. I can feel it right here..." Tyler curled his hand into a fist and pressed it to his chest.
"I know Seto's still alive somehow..."
PART 05- BLEW DOWN THE DOORS / and boxed us in
END
STILL ALIVE: 6 - 2 = 4 PARTICIPANTS (?)
ITEM GET! You acquired the present "Glittering Star"
(Didn't choose Option 1? Read what might have happened instead in the previous chapter...)
