Chapter 9: Betrayal
When I reached the study, the door was slightly ajar, and I heard a voice from inside.
“Come, Len, you know it’s forbidden to take her into the library. Won’t she find out?”
Those words I overheard without even attempting to made my right hand freeze on the door handle. That was the Mistress’s voice. And she said something I shouldn’t have possibly heard. Had I misheard it? The voices in the room echoed off the tell ceiling, wood walls, and floor, reaching slightly outside as well. I brought my face near the gap in the door and peered into the room. The seven had already gathered. They were scattered around the room, keeping their distance from one another. The room was dim, so I didn’t think they could notice me.
The Mistress stood next to the fireplace on the far left side, the Lady sat in the big sofa in front of the fireplace, and on the right was the Butler gazing out the window. Sitting in two armchairs closest to the door were the Doll Twins. Right and ahead from the door was the Maid sitting in a chair pulled out from the desk. And in the center of the room, under the extravagant chandelier, stood the Master with arms crossed. Everyone’s faces were stern.
“Don’t be rash. Focus on the performance, all right? It’ll be bad if she opens those coffins.”
“I just thought it might have some interesting "effects” to tell her. And there were some things I wanted to ask her directly…“
"And what if that put her on guard, hm?”
“…Look, I said "my bad.”“
"Geez! Len, are you reeeally sorry? I was listening to you two talk outside the door. You told her some pret-ty risky stuff, you know… You nearly spilled all the beans!”
“…Thought there was someone there. It was you, huh?”
“Yep! AlWAYS have to KEEP my eye on you!”
“There’s been so little excitement… Why not cut loose a little from time to time? There’s no way she isn’t going to notice we’re all getting tired of this. This… silly play business.”
“That’s cutting it a little too loose. We’re all taking this seriously. I’m glad Rin at least refrained from following up on what you did. But on the off chance something happened…”
“Meiko’s right! I was passing through the hall, and I thought something was up with you two upstairs, so I just went to take a peek! And then what do you know…”
“…If you’re going to preach, there’s way more valid targets than me this time. Like you there - all gloomy by yourself, not taking part in the discussion. Getting so flustered… That was one convincing act.”
“…”
“…Miss Lukaaa? Are you okay…?”
“…Eh?”
“Everyone’s reports will influence the course of things. Luka, I’m sure you’re exhausted, but you’re a dear friend to us. Won’t you tell us what’s wrong?”
“Kaito’s right, Luka. Keep your head up! What’s that gloomy face about? If you have concerns, we can talk them out.”
“…It’s nothing, really.”
“…You’re just depressed about your crude performance, aren’t you? "Maybe this is the afterlife”… If I were in charge there, I would’ve instantly made my exit after such a dangerous line. But isn’t it fine that you managed to fool that idiot anyway? Of course, I would have easily seen through such a novice act…“
"W… What did you say?! Len… Who do you think you’re talking to, here?”
“…To our star actress. But I have the better resume, don’t I?”
“Yes, Mr. Len does have more experience than Miss Luka, and quite a lot of talent! And good looks, too…”
“…Meg, are you trying to pick a fight with me too? Don’t get so cocky, you big-headed slowpoke!”
“W-What does that have to do with this?! You’re terrible!”
“You’re always the most useless one of us, even when we were chasing her! You’re just a pokey turtle! Is your head too heavy with all that useless knowledge?”
“Now, calm down, everyone! This is no time to be fighting. We still don’t have the letter, after all…”
“Yeah, guys! I can understand your haste, but… Well, there isn’t much time left, either…”
“…Isn’t your blunder the reason we’re all hasty, Rin?”
“Wha…”
“It was your job to steal the letter, right? If you can’t do that, how about passing the job to me?”
“I-I can…! Just, that time I… the timing was… not the best…”
“And wasn’t it the same thing the time before that? Failed because of "bad timing.” If you can’t handle it, I’ll do it. We can’t have you dragging us down.“
”…!“
"Hey, Len, cool it. Rin’s tired, too. Girls are more delicate than you might think, you know…?”
“Ahahaha… Very funny. From that harsh look, I thought you might have a put-down like that, mister "feminist.”“
”…Um, Len…“
”…We all fall to exhaustion sometimes. It’s got nothing to do with gender, Kaito. If there’s any reason for it, it’s being in this crazed night.“
"Len…”
“Crazed… Yes, it certainly is, isn’t it. Len, you weren’t so talkative in that world, were you? You were always putting on that cool pretense. Well, but I couldn’t usually tell what you were really thinking. But you really fit right into the role of that ill-speaking doll, don’t you, cute little doll boy? Have you just turned into the real thing? Hahaha…”
“Luka, you settle down too. You two never used to fight like this… Look, we can’t be blaming and finding fault with one another. Let’s have your reports first. One after another, everyone.”
“Sigh… All right! I’m getting pretty tired of it, too… Sure, it’s for real world intervention, but I’ve made the same royal milk tea more times than I can count. It’s aaaaalways the exaaaaact saaaaame thiiiiing. I could make the same flavor with my eyes closed!”
“Ah, that’s right, Gack. You left her alone instead of keeping watch, didn’t you? Once your intervention was done, you were supposed to bring her back here. But because you left her, she went to the hall first, and Rin’s preparations were delayed. That much could be predicted from this world’s laws - if you leave her alone, she’ll surely be drawn toward that place. You have to keep an eye on her…”
“I’m sorry, Miss Meiko. Indeed, it was rash of me. However…”
“…?”
“…I know I’m not the only one who feels these methods are lukewarm.”
“…”
“What… You too, Gack…?! Len, what have you said to him?”
“Like I’d bother with that. I just did what I wanted to do.”
“Len, Gack, don’t disturb our teamwork. There’s a risk of everything going to waste with a single misstep. Until each of us produces results…”
“Haven’t I gotten results? I’ve experimented with those stairs again and again. And this time, the timing was perfect! I feel we’re almost there.”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Luka. We can’t speak with certainty yet, even if we are gradually getting results. If we can’t see it through to the end… there’s no point.”
“Don’t you see all that excruciating overprudence would go out the window if she happened to notice? Len, Gack, you’re being a bit more forceful, aren’t you? It irritates me, but I have to praise Len for that. Not that I intend to cooperate…”
“Mr. Len, Miss Luka, and Mr. Gack on Team Force, versus Mr. Kaito, Miss Meiko, and Miss Rin on Team Calm… A three on three, huh! And they’re pretty evenly-matched… This is shaping up to be a good game!”
“Meg… There you go again…”
“Miss Meg, that’s a bit forceful of you to put me "Team Force.” I just thought I’d try something a little different…“
"Of course the mystery nerd would act like a detective and take a moderate position… Must be nice to be so carefree. Like Gack says, I wouldn’t go that far. We were just experimenting. Better than the rest of you, huh?”
“Mr. Len! I’m doing my part too, you know? I’m watching all of you in the most neutral way I can! A play needs a part like that, doesn’t it?”
“It certainly does… if this were merely a detective story. But if we all want to cooperate together, we don’t need a neutral party.”
“That’s naïve, Miss Meiko! It’s impossible to ask this many people to all be thinking the exact same way!”
“Meg! Have you forgotten everything we practiced? We’ve always worked together…”
“That’s right, Rin. Meg and Len have been throwing off our teamwork lately.”
“Speaking of "everyone” and focusing on the whole… certainly, there’s a point that it disallows making use of our individual talents. The assembly of individuals may appear magnificent, but when it becomes a group, it can lose the ability to demonstrate its full potential…“
"To think I’d hear that from you, Gack… Look, can we all just take a break? We’re starting to go mad here.”
“I’d love to do so, but… unfortunately, we don’t have much time for it. We’ve less than a third of the time left. How worrying…”
“Hey, Kaito… What are we going to do? Guys…! Hey… Is this my fault…?”
“It’s not, Rin. In this play, we can’t speak of whose fault anything is.”
“…Oh, can’t we? Seems far worse to keep up that pampering. Sometimes a scolding is in order.”
“Len, you’ve been going too far lately. You should…”
“Ahh, at a standstill again! Always goes like this lately. Maybe Team Force is right, we should change up our methods? Besides, even if no one said anything, if one of us really showed her the lett…”
“Meg, enough. And the rest of you. Enough of this discord. …At any rate…”
“AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”
Suddenly, Luka burst into laughter. The quarrel came to a halt, and everyone stared at her. Giving off a momentary aura that monopolized the audience’s gaze, she had a deranged smile. I felt the illusion that a spotlight was fixed on her. Such overwhelming charisma… Just as her laugh was making me wonder if it would go on forever, it came to a sudden halt, and she fell silent like a wind-up doll stopping.
“Luka…?”
“Ahh, how funny…”
“…”
“…I hate this play… I HATE it!!”
She stood up and swung her left hand at a vase of roses on the table in front of her. The glass shattered with an ear-splittingly shrill sound and water pooled by her feet. The blue roses slept painfully on a bed of scattered glass shards. Silence lasted for a while. Finally, with a slight wheeze, she slumped powerlessly to the wet floor. Her trembling hands went to cover her face, and she screamed painfully.
“Putting on this same night… again and again… this play that no one’s watching!! I’ve had it, I don’t CARE anymore! …I want to go back to reality, now! To my stage, where the audience is…! You all want that too, don’t you?! DON’T you?!”
No one opened their mouths, and hard-striking rain echoed through the room. If the rain was pouring harder, then the clouds should have thickened too, yet for some reason the moonlight was brighter than before. A large branch outside the window would sometimes be slammed into the window by the wind, making an irregular sound like someone knocking from outside. I put my hands tight to my chest, as if to silence my pulse pounding amid the silence.
“Luka… What are you saying? See, we really ought to rest. I’ve said it again and again, but you’re surely tired. Don’t push yourself…”
Meiko spoke worriedly to break the silence, approached Luka as she stared hollowly at nothing, and held out her hand. Luka continued to gloomily stare dumbfounded into space, and looking as if she didn’t understand why there was a hand there, spoke.
“…What? I just honestly said what I was thinking. The thing that everyone is thinking deep down… I said it for you, as a representative…”
“…A representative? Well… I would be lying to say I didn’t think that too, a little. I can’t help but pine for the beer I had on the foyer. And sometimes I have such a craving for those cheese sandwiches we often had for dinner. I’d love to have one of those fun nights drinking cheap beer and partying again. But… Not alone. Onceeveryone returns together, I want to do that with all of you.”
“Meiko… I agree. Listen, Luka! Did you forget that vow? We’ve all worked hard together. We’ve finally made it this far…”
“Of course I haven’t forgotten that abominable night… Even if I wanted to, it sticks in my head like it only just happened. It makes me just want to forget it all at this point… like her. And just go mad… A crazy night… Just like the title says!”
“What?! No, what I meant is…”
“Looking at it as an overall play… the decadent beauty of such an ending could be considered a perfection of the art form. Quite magnificent.”
“Hey, stop it! Don’t say that, Mr. Gack… Hey, Kaito!”
Rin stood up, ran to Kaito in the center, and clung to his left arm. A common sight… I always saw her clinging to his arm, like a child clinging to a parent. In her small doll body, she could barely even reach his arm. He stooped down slightly and patted her head, saying it would be okay. His hand nearly covered the Doll Girl’s head. Rin had the same scared look as when she showed me the stray cat she picked up.
“Miss Luka, you’re pretty weak-minded, huh? Giving in to something like this…!”
“Because I’m not a dunce like you. I bet you could get on just fine by yourself, trapped in a place like this. Shameless… You love it, don’t you? This crazed world…”
“It’s not like I like this at all! Sure, I enjoy reasoning and making up stories in my head, but really…”
“…"When they actually become reality, then no thanks,” hm? Well, you seem to get quite a kick out of it, considering. …I’ve been thinking. Could it be that you…You…“
"I tell you, I’m not having fun at aaall! I just know it’s a necessity to put on a droll character in such a gloomy situation…”
“…Droll character, huh… More "oddball” than anything, aren’t you?“
"You too, Len?!”
“Ahaha, you said it. All the scripts you write have characters like that, don’t they. They help keep a good balance. But don’t you think always striking a balance that way is a bit lukewarm… a bit boring? True art, you know, is much more piercing!”
“…!”
“…I favor that viewpoint, too. Going "too far” is just right. Any less, and nothing gets through.“
Meg bit her lip regretfully at Luka and Len’s comments.
"My, so you feel that way too, Len? Yes, we don’t like always thinking with our heads. Following intuition, our natural senses… that makes us feel alive. We’re simply not suited for something so dull as "working together to accumulate results” in the first place!“
Meiko grimaced and admonished Luka.
”…Luka, I know… no, we all know you’ve been cooperating with us. Please, don’t trample on those memories any more…“
”…True. Then we’ll all go mad together.“
"If we’re going on about this, we already have…”
“I kinda noticed at the point where Mr. Gack stopped chiding me for my slip-ups…”
“…Back in reality, I never once got into an argument with all of you. How bizarre this has become. But… it’s not bad.”
“Stop… Stop it… Guys…”
“Ahahaha! Yes, we’re mad! All of us, already! Ahh, how funny!”
“Hey, Luka! Stop this right here.”
“Say, Kaito, did you always have such a melancholy face? All your usual seducing has gone poof, just like that… You used to be so moonstruck year-round. But now, you’re the strict master of the mansion… Always with that bored, brow-furrowed face of grief. Maybe it’s become no longer an act. Or perhaps… you can’t fight your blood after all? It was the slovenly womanizer who was just an act to drop our guards… and this is how you really are?”
“…!!”
“…Oh my. Was I right? So sorry.”
Kaito’s right hand which he held out to chastise Luka came to a stop, and he stared as if caught in a lie.
“…Well, then it’s a good thing you have such a fitting role, Miss Luka. Your selfish attitude just got an upgrade, and you’re more malicious than ever. Now, you might be perfect for a lead villain!”
“…Look who’s talking.”
“A lead villain? Well, that’s just peachy. A villain is always in a powerful position. Why, villain or hero, it’s all the same! To play a part is to become someone who isn’t you… And to do that, you need to deceive everyone around you… even fooling yourself, yes?! For so, so long we’ve fooled ourselves… and long forgotten who we really are! Oh, the COMEDY!! AHAHAHAHA!”
Luka again opened her mouth wide and laughed loudly, her eyes filled with madness. A string stretched to its limits had snapped. That triggered everyone to hurl slander at each other; by the end, they even scorned, refused, and abused themselves. Lurking behind a beautiful and orderly facade was something that would never be shown on stage: their true faces, uncouth and human. How filthy and ugly it was. As I watched this repulsive scene, my eyes and ears were fixated on them, like I was bound to my seat.
“…You look pale. Luka, someone will take over for you, and you can get back to your room for tonight…”
“Oh, I’m fine. We’ll put an end to this now… Yes, we’ll put an end to all of this, this whole night!”
Luka yelled with eyes open wide. Everyone froze with surprise at the mention of “putting an end to this.” Silence fell again. Rin, who’d watched the fight anxiously while clinging to Kaito, slowly stepped toward Luka.
“…Hey. Do you really want to make all our effort go to waste? That’s just foolish. I misjudged you, Luka…”
Rin stood at the same height as Luka sitting on the floor, and met her deranged gaze directly. Unlike when she was afraid, her face now had a cold look, and emitted a threatening aura hard to imagine from her small body. The two stared each other down, and Luka was the first to turn away. As if readjusting her posture, she sighed loudly, stood up, and spoke looking down on the small Doll Girl.
“…Rin, always playing the good girl… But I know you can’t help feeling lonely either. I know you want to escape from here…”
“It’s been hard for me, and my body’s turned into this… Some of it’s more than I can bear. But everyone else is here, so I can’t give in yet, can I?”
The Doll Girl’s little hands moved to grab something hidden under her collar.
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login