"Only the countdowns differ..." Chika adjusted her glasses in a classic Detective Conan pose, murmuring to herself, "The key must lie in the countdowns."
Amamiya sighed.
"You're stating the obvious."
Everyone already knew that the countdowns, ticking down every second, were important. The real problem was no one knew what they represented.
"Could it be the time remaining in the game?" a passerby player speculated. "Maybe if we survive until the countdown hits zero, we can leave?"
"That's possible."
At this, everyone turned to glance at a player sitting quietly in the corner.
The boy was thin, with pale skin that suggested he rarely saw sunlight. His hair was unkempt, and he exuded a quiet, introverted air. Of everyone in the group, his countdown was the shortest—just a little over two hours.
When his time runs out, they'd know whether his theory was correct.
"By the way, we haven't introduced ourselves yet," Chika said, her sociability shining through. "My name is Chika Fujiwara. What's yours?"
The quiet boy hesitated for a moment before responding, "...You can call me Izumi."
"Amamiya-kun," Chika whispered, giving Amamiya a sly look.
Understanding the signal, Amamiya introduced himself. "Amamiya Natsuki."
"Kaguya Shinomiya."
"Rikka Takanashi."
"Yukino Yukinoshita."
"..."
People are naturally inclined to follow the lead once someone takes the initiative. After a round of introductions, the five previously unfamiliar players finally shared their names, and a small sense of trust was established within the group.
"The countdowns only last a few hours; it'll be over before we know it," Chika suggested. "Why don't we all stay in the hall and wait until the time runs out?"
Kaguya immediately crossed her arms and said, "I object."
"Huh?"
Chika turned to her, puzzled. "Why not, Kaguya-chan?"
"Because it's too cold," Amamiya cut in. "Haven't you noticed? The temperature keeps dropping. If we don't do something, we won't last until the countdown ends."
Chika hesitated. "Is it really that serious?"
"It is." Amamiya pointed toward the entrance. "Look at the door. Frost is already forming on it."
The group of players turned to look at the wooden door leading to the castle and, sure enough, they saw a light layer of frost beginning to form.
"Was there frost when we first got here?" one of the players asked, a little uncertain.
"No," Yukino answered calmly. "If there had been frost inside, the frost outside would have been even thicker. But there's none on the exterior."
"That makes sense."
"If we don't act, we'll freeze to death."
"There's a fireplace over there. Let's find something to use for warmth," someone suggested.
"..."
Realizing the temperature was dropping steadily, the group quickly sprang into action to save themselves.
"Everyone, stick together!" Chika warned. "In horror movies, the characters who split up are the first to die."
There was no need to say more. No one in their right mind would wander off alone in a place like this! Only in horror movies do people make such foolish decisions.
As expected, no one had any intention of separating. They all stuck together, keeping no more than a few meters apart as they began to explore the castle.
The place had all the hallmarks of a European medieval castle—stone walls, pointed spires, and narrow windows. The interior was adorned with sofas, long tables, candelabras, carpets, and murals, all lending the space an air of elegance and grandeur.
Unfortunately, the castle was eerily empty, filled only with silence and a growing sense of dread.
Amamiya and Chika walked at the back of the group. In horror games, the last person in line was often the most vulnerable. Walking together at the rear gave them the chance to activate their "defense against evil spirits" skill at a critical moment, protecting them from being silently picked off by any lurking entities.
As they moved forward, Yukino, the girl with long black hair leading the group, suddenly stopped. She stared at a mural on the wall, her pupils shrinking slightly.
"Yukino -chan, are you alright?" Chika asked, concern in her voice.
As expected from a social expert—she was already calling her by her first name after only knowing her for a few minutes!
"I'm fine," Yukino replied, shaking her head and tearing her gaze away from the mural. "Don't worry."
Amamiya glanced at the mural that had caught Yukino's attention.
It was an oil painting of a noblewoman, her hands clasped demurely in front of her chest. Her posture exuded grace and elegance. However, only the woman's pointed chin was visible; the rest of her face was a blur, completely obscured.
"A painting with an indistinct face..." Chika whispered, her expression growing serious. She tugged on Amamiya's sleeve. "Amamiya-kun, let's walk along the opposite wall. What if the woman in the painting suddenly steps out and drags us into it?"
Amamiya closed his eyes briefly and sighed. "Please stop imagining the worst-case scenario."
"I didn't say that—it's just what happens in horror movies."
Still, there was something undeniably strange about the painting.
As Amamiya stared at it, a notification appeared before his eyes:
'[Upon closer inspection, you notice something odd about this painting].'
Indeed, it was strange, but the real problem was he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was off about it.
The castle's owner seemed to have a flair for art—or perhaps they were simply attempting to appear artistic. The castle was filled with murals, scattered along the walls at regular intervals.
Each painting varied in content, yet they all shared one odd trait: parts of them were blurred, unclear.
As she continued walking, more prompts appeared in front of her:
'[Upon closer inspection, you notice something odd about this painting].'
By this point, Amamiya had grown accustomed to it. Clearly, every painting in the castle held some kind of strange peculiarity.
"We can't find any firewood," said the boy leading the group, his tone tinged with frustration as he halted.
"There's plenty of firewood," Amamiya replied casually. "That wooden door over there looks like a good option."
"That's going too far," the boy replied, exasperated. "No one's Steve from Minecraft—we can't just break down a wooden door with our bare hands."
True, the castle was full of wooden furniture, but dismantling it by hand was out of the question.
Luckily, they soon found a source of warmth.
A library.
Bookshelves lined the walls, packed with volumes of every kind.
"How about we burn the books to keep warm?" One player's eyes lit up with inspiration. "In 'The Day After Tomorrow' movie, the characters were stuck in a library and they used books to make a fire."
Amamiya nodded in agreement. "Seems like a solid plan."
The suggestion was quickly accepted by the group.
As the saying goes, books are the ladder of human progress—but in this case, they could also serve as a means of survival.
"Let's gather the books and take them to the fireplace," Chika said, taking the lead.
Amamiya moved to a nearby bookshelf, preparing to grab a stack of books. His eyes skimmed over the title of one, and his eyebrows shot up in surprise.
"'A Manual for Raising a Loyal Boyfriend'''... What kind of book is this?"