Bam bam bam!! The hurried sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor. The door to the great hall was thrown open roughly. It was the servant, Kanon. "——G-Guest! A boat has arrived at the pier! The next guest is here!" At that voice, I—Ushiromiya Battler—stopped my hand, which had been reaching for a playing card. (Next guest…?) The Seven Sisters all exchanged glances. "Oh my, is it that time already?" "I wonder who it is. Hopefully not another troublesome one." Beatrice snapped open her fan and hid her mouth. "[gentle]Hmm. So you've come." What was with that tone? It was as if she already knew who was coming— Before I could even tilt my head in confusion— Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!! This time, much smaller and far more intense footsteps came running straight down the corridor. "——Lady Beatrice!!" Bam!! The door to the great hall flew open with even greater force this time. Standing there was— A slightly brownish-black bob of hair. Large, sparkling black eyes. In her hands, a thick, handmade book—the notebook full of scribbles and stickers that Maria called her "grimoire." Ushiromiya Maria. Nine years old. My cousin. "[excited]I'm here! Maria made it here properly! I rode the boat, ran from the pier—ah!" The moment Maria spotted Beatrice, her eyes went wide. The next instant— "Lady Beatrice!!" She dashed forward and threw herself at the witch's waist. "Whoa there." Beatrice stumbled slightly. But immediately, she gently stroked Maria's head. "[gentle]You've come well, Maria. Was the boat not frightening?" "Not at all! It rocked a lot, but a butterfly followed me the whole way! It's a sign of magic!" Maria shouted happily, burying her face in the witch's dress. "[laughing]Oooh-ho-ho-ho! I see, I see. That is good indeed." Beatrice laughed, looking genuinely happy. Watching that scene, I— (…What's with that face?) It was far gentler than when she'd been arguing with us just moments ago. It was the kind of face you'd make meeting a much younger sister. Maria reluctantly pulled away from Beatrice, then turned toward me. "[excited]Ah! Battler-oniisan! It's been a while!" "Hey, Maria. You been doing okay?" When I raised my hand lightly, Maria approached with a beaming smile. "Yeah! And you know, a butterfly followed me all the way here. It's a sign of magic." "A butterfly…? Oh, those golden butterflies." I looked up at the ceiling of the great hall. Since earlier when Beatrice had been talking, several golden butterflies had been drifting gently about. "Yes! And so, today Maria is going to cast magic on everyone!" Maria held her grimoire high with both hands. "Huh?" My voice cracked a little. (I've got a really bad feeling about this…) The last time Maria said she was going to "cast magic," the entire room had been filled with colorful smoke, and the smell hadn't gone away for three days. "[excited]Uu-! It's magic time! Everyone, watch!" Maria flipped open the pages of her grimoire with great enthusiasm. "[serious]Let's see… 'Magic to Make a Tea Party Lively'… Found it! This is the one!" "W-Wait, Maria—" Ignoring my attempt to stop her, Maria pulled a small golden horn from between the pages of her grimoire. It was a toy-like plastic horn. "When you blow this, lots of butterflies are supposed to come! Lady Beatrice taught me!" "[laughing]You remembered well. Now, everyone, shall we see this display?" Beatrice tapped the table with her fan. "[excited]Here I go! Poooooo!!" Poooooooooooo!! The sound of the horn echoed throughout the great hall. The next moment— Fwoooosh… From the ceiling, from the walls, from the gaps in the windows. Dozens, hundreds of colorful butterflies came flooding out. Gold, red, blue, purple, green—iridescent wings sparkled, reflecting the light of the chandelier. "W-Whoa!?" A butterfly landed on my head. On my shoulder. On my arm. "[excited]Uu-! Amazing, amazing! The magic was a huge success!" Maria clapped her hands and bounced up and down. "This is not the end." Beatrice snapped her fingers. At that moment— Floating gently. The macarons stacked on the cake stand rose into the air on their own. Pink, yellow, and green macarons began drifting around the room like little balloons. Next, the fruit tart. The tart with its sparkling strawberries and kiwi slipped smoothly off its plate and flew into the air. "[scared]Th-The macarons! The macarons are flying!!" "The scones too! My scones!!" "[laughing]Ahahaha! This is fun!" The Seven Sisters all burst into an uproar. Some tried to leap at the floating sweets, others just stared up in bewilderment— "[angry]Hey, stop! Don't fly! That's food!" Brushing the butterfly off my head, I lunged at a macaron drifting through the air. But—whoosh! The macaron dodged me gracefully. "Why!? You're just a macaron, don't get cocky!" I jumped again. This time I tried to catch the fruit tart—but. Floating softly. The tart slipped right through my hands and escaped toward the ceiling. "[angry]Daaaaah! Why!!" "[laughing]Oooh-ho-ho-ho! That is magic. Even sweets have a will of their own." Beatrice was clutching her stomach, laughing heartily. "[excited]Battler-oniisan, do your best! The butterflies are cheering for you!" As for Maria, she was just waving her hands in encouragement, surrounded by butterflies. The screams of the Seven Sisters echoed through the great hall. "The macarons! My macarons are getting away!" "Give back the scones! No one's even eaten them yet!" "[whispers]Hah… Chasing sweets is such a drag…" "[angry]It is not a drag! My tart!" The great hall was pure chaos. Butterflies and sweets, furniture and humans and witches chasing after them— Covered in butterflies, I was desperately chasing the macarons flying through the air. (Why am I the only one going through this!?) "[angry]You damn witch! Do something about this!" "[laughing]Do something? I am merely enjoying myself. Battler, you should enjoy it too." "Like hell I can enjoy this!!" Screaming, I jumped once more. This time for sure—smack! I caught a pink macaron in midair! "Alright! Got it!" At that moment— I suddenly noticed that the area around my pocket felt strangely light. (…Huh?) Still gripping the macaron, I slipped my free left hand into my pocket. —It wasn't there. (—It's gone!?) I searched again. I traced the bottom of the pocket with my fingers. Gone. That card with the red writing was gone. The card I'd kept on me at all times since the first episode. "Find the secret hidden behind the smile"—the evidence that contained the sole rule of this game. "[scared]The card… is gone…!?" At my voice, the great hall fell silent for just a moment. "[surprised]What's wrong, Battler?" "You had it just a moment ago." The Seven Sisters looked at each other. "[surprised]Huh? A card? What kind of card?" Maria tilted her head. "The one with red writing on it! I always kept it in my pocket—" I turned out my jacket pockets, my trouser pockets—everything—searching. It wasn't there. Nowhere. "[serious]Someone… did someone take it!!" When I shouted, all of the Seven Sisters shook their heads. "I didn't take it." "Me neither." "Satan-chan doesn't know either~" "…I don't know." "Me neither~. Though I did take some sweets~" "Oh my, I'd rather steal Battler's heart." Maria looked around restlessly, then— "[innocent]Maria doesn't know. Maybe a butterfly took it." "A butterfly!? How could a butterfly pull a card out of my pocket!?" "But they're magic butterflies. Maybe they can?" Maria was completely serious. "[cold]…There is no need to panic so much over a mere game piece disappearing." Beatrice took a sip of her black tea with a composed expression. (…This woman!) I figured it out immediately. During that chaos just now—the moment when butterflies flooded in, sweets danced in the air, and the Seven Sisters were screaming. Someone had pulled the card from my pocket. (I was targeted…) But who? One of the Seven Sisters? No, they genuinely seemed not to know. Maria? She was just innocently enjoying the magic. Then— I looked at Beatrice. "[cold]I will say this now: it was not me." "…How did you know what I was thinking?" "It is written on your face. You suspect me, do you not?" The witch's lips curled into a smile. But her eyes weren't laughing. "[serious]I am the game master. I would not resort to such petty tricks as stealing a card." (…Is that true?) But certainly, this woman was the type to set up rules head-on. Sneaking around stealing things—that was more like… "[serious]Who… who did it…" I clutched my head. The card was gone. The evidence with the rules written on it was gone. (In other words—have I completely lost the basis for this game?) The only one who knew the rules of the game was Beatrice. I had been relying on that card to challenge the witch's game. (This is bad… this is really bad.) For the first time, genuine panic clawed at my chest. "[whispers]Battler-sama." Suddenly. Someone gently tugged my arm. I looked and saw Lucifer standing right beside me. "…What?" Without a word, Lucifer led me one step, then two, toward a corner of the great hall. The other sisters were still making a huge fuss trying to catch the sweets drifting through the air. Maria was spinning around with the butterflies. Beatrice was watching that scene with a cheerful smile. No one was paying attention to us. "[whispers]…May I tell you something?" Lucifer lowered her voice. It was different from her usual proud head servant expression. Her eyes were serious. "What is it? Don't beat around the bush, just say it." Lucifer paused for a beat, then— "[whispers]Beatrice-sama intends to trap the entire island—and everyone on it—inside the Golden Land if no one finds the 'secret' by the end of this tea party." "…Huh?" I couldn't believe my ears. "The entire island? In the Golden Land…?" The Golden Land—the Meta World. An alternate space ruled solely by the witch, where the laws of physics from reality didn't apply. "[whispers]Yes. The penalty written on that card—'taking something precious.' That is—" Lucifer hesitated. "…What is it?" "[whispers]Your time on Rokkenjima itself." My mind went completely blank. "Your memories of this island—that is what will be sealed away." Seal away memories. In other words— (All the memories of this tea party… will be taken from me?) Maria arriving, the butterflies flooding in. The Seven Sisters fighting, Beatrice laughing. Even that witch's terrible black tea. Even that lonely-looking profile gazing out the window— (All of it, erased as if it never happened?) "…Why are you telling me this?" When I forced the words out, Lucifer stepped back smoothly. "[gentle]Because I… am enjoying this tea party." Saying only that, Lucifer immediately returned to the circle of the other sisters. "Now! Catch the scones quickly!" "Nee-sama, I was the one who spoke up first!" The usual sisterly squabbling resumed. I—stood there, rooted to the spot. (What I wanted to protect…) It wasn't victory in the game. It wasn't the rules on the card. I wanted to find the loneliness behind Beatrice's smile. I wanted to protect this time we all spent laughing together like idiots. "[gentle]Battler-oniisan?" Before I knew it, Maria was peering up into my face. "You look pale. What's wrong?" "…Nah. It's nothing." I patted Maria on the head. (A desperate situation with a time limit, huh.) Finding the culprit who stole the card. And discovering Beatrice's "secret" before the tea party ended. Two challenges now stood before me at the same time. I clenched my fist. (Like hell I'm gonna lose…!) In the great hall, the butterflies and sweets were still dancing gently through the air. Beatrice, watching that scene— Just a little. Smiled, looking lonely.