The smiling face of Kihuno confused Kongou; there was something odd about this girl, but Kongou couldn't decipher it...
"Kongou-san?"
"Are you Wannai-san?"
Since she couldn't figure it out, Kongou asked, and the girl responded with a smile...
"What are you saying, Kongou-san? Of course, I'm Wannai..."
Kihuno's words deepened Kongou's suspicion. However, when she stepped back, she bumped into something that made her shiver. Someone was behind her, and the coldness emanating from their body made her tremble.
"Where are you going, Kongou-san?"
The voice was very familiar. When she turned around, she saw it was the other girl who had lost contact.
"Awatsuki-san?"
But unlike the Maaya she knew, Kongou's eyes widened in shock and fear. The girl in front of her had a terrifying expression that scared her deeply...
"It's not good to leave like this, Kongou-san; we've been waiting for you ~"
As if whispering like a devil, Kihuno suddenly appeared beside her, and like Maaya, her expression was demonic...
*Kyaaaaaaaa
The only thing heard was Kongou's scream, which made the remaining girls shiver uncontrollably...
"Kongou-san!"
Mikoto, who was frequently in contact with Kongou, recognized her immediately. Since they got separated, Mikoto had been searching for her but couldn't find her, as if this Convent wouldn't let her, leaving her very anxious. Now, hearing this scream, Mikoto felt depressed...
"It's not time to think about others, Misaka-san; we need to solve what we have now..."
As they were fleeing from the Demon, Misaki reminded her, and her brain quickly sought a solution, knowing that survival seemed unlikely...
Mikoto bit her lip; they didn't know how many contestants were still standing, but it was clear that most had been eliminated in this test of courage. This cursed Convent was literally the Achilles' heel of these Ojou-samas...
"Misaka-san, is this Demon immortal?"
"Yes, I've shot it many times and destroyed it, but it keeps reappearing."
Misaki sank into her thoughts. So far, according to her and Mikoto's experience, none of the specters in this Convent were immortal. Even the ghost children were eliminated, except for the Demon, which had been destroyed and brought back to life...
Something was wrong. There must be a condition to destroy the demon. Yuki would never give them an impossible mission.
"Mm?"
Suddenly, Misaki remembered the conditions to pass to the next round and the backstory of this cursed Convent.
(Demon pact...)
According to horror movies and fairy tales, every time a pact is made with the Devil, the latter won't die until the contract is complete. This is also why the Demon is immortal.
What if this situation were the same? Yuki was too bored to create such a clichéd scenario, so predictable that even they fell for it...
Misaki seemed struck by lightning; she now knew the answer...
Destroying the demon using violence is impossible, but it is possible to return it to hell by destroying the contract...
In short...
"We must destroy the contractor!"
"Huh?!"
Mikoto didn't know what she was thinking, but soon understood and couldn't help but mock the blonde.
"And how do you plan to kill someone who's already dead?"
The contractor gave her life to summon the demon; killing her makes no sense...
"Misaka-san, have you forgotten? Besides the Demon, the other specters can be eliminated..."
"!!"
Maybe due to the moment or some other anomaly, but Mikoto had forgotten. She had eliminated many nuns, the ghost child, and the faceless nurses, so there was a possibility the contractor was the same...
"But... Even so, if that's true... How will we find her?"
Even if it were true, identifying and finding the contractor would be very difficult. They didn't know what she looked like or where she was, unless they blew up the entire Convent, which would be useless. Not to mention the contractor might be hiding and refusing to come out.
"Misaka-san, use your head. Before we started, we were given the location..."
A smile formed on Misaki's face as she said that. Yes, from the beginning, the clue was in front of them...
According to the initial description, the female contractor committed suicide under the Peach Tree and was buried in the cemetery of the religious grounds. These two locations are key to killing the Demon...
If Misaki had been a bit more careful, then the number of victims in this Convent wouldn't have been so high, and the difficulty wouldn't be so great. But it was useless to cry over spilled milk...
"Do you mean the contractor is definitely in those two places? Do we have to split up?"
"No."
Splitting up now was a very bad idea, so Misaki shook her head.
Although there were two key places, Misaki ruled out the cemetery. The contractor's body was useless to the Demons, but her soul was another matter. After all, the Peach Tree was where the Demon was summoned, so...
"The contractor is under the Peach Tree."
Having made the decision, the trio didn't hesitate and headed to where Kongou's scream was heard.
--------------
"Hmm, I see they've figured it out."
Yuki, who was sitting at the judges' table, smiled under his mask. To be honest, this game of courage wasn't difficult at all. The Demon was immortal but very slow and could be avoided. If the Ojou-samas worked together, the Demon wouldn't be a problem.
Unfortunately, fear was something these Ojou-samas couldn't face easily, making it their Achilles' heel.
Even Misaki was no exception...
Now that they finally understood the game's pattern, it was only a matter of time before they passed the test. However, since most of the Ojou-samas had been eliminated, the difficulty increased...
(But this is what's fun ~)
Yes, Yuki was enjoying this. He wanted to see what surprises these girls would bring and if their potential could be unlocked. His sadistic side was also comforted by the screams of these Ojou-samas...
And of course, he wasn't the only one interested, as Kurumi and La Folia also smiled with amusement, imagining themselves in Mikoto's position and the possibilities of completing the Convent's mission.
"Touma, Touma..."
But although Yuki was in a good mood, Index was scared. She hugged the spiky-haired boy beside her while trembling slightly at what she was seeing.
The nuns were specters, embodying evil, leaving a bad taste in her mouth and showing how weak the human ego could be against temptation. The same was true for Stiyl, but the priest remained calm...
"Go on, girls, keep going!"
Saten was the opposite of Index. Her eyes sparkled, and Yuki was sure that if Saten were in the test, she would surely take her bat and hit a ghost. Fear seemed non-existent for this girl; her bravery and curiosity were at the highest level...
----------------
"We've arrived, Misaka-san, after you ~"
Extending her hand forward, Misaki urged the electric girl, who, seeing how shameless this blonde could be, gritted her teeth in frustration.
Even so, she took a step forward. Whether she wanted to or not, she was the only one whose attack power was the highest...
"Hm?"
Mikoto stopped. In front of the old Peach Tree were three girls whom Mikoto recognized...
"Kongou-san, Wannai-san, Maaya-san..."
It was the trio of friends from the swimming club. Mikoto was a little surprised to see them in this place and even wondered if they were here for the same reason as her. However, feeling the cold aura surrounding these girls, Mikoto didn't let her guard down, and Misaki also narrowed her eyes...
"Misaka-san, we've been waiting for you."
Smiling like close friends, Kongou placed a hand on her chest, her expression serene, but Mikoto didn't move forward...
On the contrary, her expression darkened...
The peach tree behind the girls slightly shook one of its old branches, and the darkness seemed to intensify.
"We're glad you finally came!"
-----------------
TN: This horror house seems fun wish I could be there