Chapter 64: Masquerade ball [3]

The floor was dyed red.

Two headless bodies limped onto the floor.

Nobody made a sound. All eyes fell on the bodies and then towards the host.

[Have someone clean this mess up. We’ll resume with the ball shortly after.]

"....."

Two headless people emerged from the entrance of the room and moved towards the corpses on the floor, dragging them away while leaving a long trail of red along the path.

I could only swallow silently while staring at the scene.

At the same time, I looked back towards the host who grabbed himself another drink.

’What is he going to make us do now? I... don’t think I can dance again.’

I couldn’t summon the Nightwalker anymore.

It had died.

This was already giving me a headache. I knew exactly what would happen if I summoned it again, so I couldn’t.

I just couldn’t.

[While we wait for the cleaners to handle those things... How about we switch things up a bit?]

Switch things up a bit?

My heart pressed against my chest.

What was this damn host going to do now?

[I’ve noticed something interesting, despite everyone wearing masks, some of you clearly know each other.]

[Your movements? Polished, yes, but they’re missing that spark of spontaneity, that flash of raw inspiration I’m after. So, for the next round, let’s shake things up. It’s time for a switch, find yourselves a new partner.]

’What? What did he say?’

’Oh my god... why are things changing again?’

Several whispers managed to reach my mind as the room stirred. Those from the Guild started to panic, seemingly taken by surprise by the sudden development.

I could imagine why.

’They are probably throwing away a lot of the preparations they had made in advance before.’

[Oh, right.]

As if suddenly recalling something, the host looked around.

His gaze swept everyone until it settled over a certain individual wearing a simple gold mask.

[I almost forgot.]

He shook his head while covering his face.

[We have one extra person. At this rate, one will be left out again. That can’t happen again.]

"....!"

It dawned on everyone pretty quickly what the host’s intentions were.

This was especially so for the one wearing the golden mask.

"Wait, wait, wait...!"

But...

[Goodbye.]

He could do nothing about it.

Bang!

His head exploded, and his body fell limply onto the floor shortly after.

Thump!

Blood began to seep onto the floor once again.

I felt breathless at the sight. My stomach churned more than ever before, and my body tensed.

Shortly after, several cleaners came into the room and began cleaning the floor, dragging the body away.

[We’re even now! Everyone will now have their own partner. Isn’t that great?]

The host looked all too pleased with himself as he raised his glass in the air.

He then settled his gaze on another person.

Wearing a long and elegant red dress, she had her face covered by a red mask that matched her dress.

Her entire body froze up when she felt the host’s gaze.

[You!]

"No, I... I don’t...!

The girl in the red dress shook her head rapidly, trying her best to reject whatever she was about to be asked to do.

Her half-exposed face was pale, and the trembling of her body didn’t betray the fear that she was currently experiencing.

[Yes, it has to be you.]

Her judgment made sense.

...But it didn’t really matter.

[You will be the one to play the piano. I hope you can play an amazing piece for all of us to dance to.]

The girl’s face turned even paler.

I looked around.

I could tell from her expression, alongside that of a few others, that this entire scenario was deviating from the norm.

’She probably knows how to play the piano, but after everything that I’ve witnessed, it’s clear that she’s afraid of making any mistakes.’

The entire scenario had changed in a way that just the subtlest of mistakes meant death.

Her head just wasn’t in it.

[...Are you not willing to do it?]

The host’s voice lowered, and the atmosphere changed.

It suddenly felt incredibly tense.

All eyes turned to the girl in red as she scanned the room in a fluster, her gaze finally locking onto someone in a striking golden mask, its edges flaring out in sharp, dramatic spikes.

Their eyes locked until he looked away.

Her face paled further.

[Alright, then. If you’re not going to play then—]

"I’ll play! I’ll play!!"

The woman hastily shouted as she cut off the conductor.

Her face was entirely face, and she settled her gaze onto the piano.

"I can play the piano. Yes."

She moved towards it, prompting the host to smile.

[That wasn’t hard, was it?]

"....."

Right.

The host was extremely sadistic.

It looked like he had already ranked everyone’s performances in his mind.

He was slowly picking on the ones that had performed the worst, looking for excuses to kill them.

Of the thirty that had originally arrived, twenty-seven were still—

Bang!

"....."

From the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a certain red dress.

[Did I say you could touch the piano? Can’t you see that we have a mess to clean before we can start dancing again?]

I pulled my gaze away.

My guess wasn’t wrong.

The host... He was just trying to find excuses to eliminate everyone in the room.

And if my guess wasn’t wrong...

[Oops, it looks like we’re one person too many. I guess one has to go.]

"No, no, no....!"

Bang!

Another head exploded.

The all too familiar red stain on the floor.

[Oh, my. At this rate, we might never get to dance. If people just followed the rules...]

The hall fell silent again.

Everyone was tense, and as I looked around, my gaze couldn’t help but fall on Zoey.

’Seeing how she hasn’t moved yet, I take it she isn’t strong enough to take on the monster?’

...That would make sense if the scenario had suddenly risen in levels.

Then...?

Did that mean that we had no other choice but to clear the scenario?

But how was that possible?

I had already done the best that I could. I didn’t see how I could do better than what I had just done.

[You, you will be the next one to play the piano.]

The host soon selected a new victim.

When I turned my head, I was surprised to see that it was the man with the golden mask.

I could tell with just one glance that he was different from the rest as he calmly walked towards the grand piano and took his seat, his crisp white suit a stark, elegant contrast against the piano’s polished black surface.

The room was also cleaned shortly after, as the host nodded.

[It looks like we’re ready to dance again. How wonderful!]

[You have one minute before we begin! Quickly find a new partner! There will be no surprises this time, right...?]

The host silently looked at me, and my stomach churned.

The room scrambled soon after as everyone moved to look for a new partner.

I felt a pit in my stomach as I looked around.

Who would partner up with me?

I turned my head—

And stopped.

A pair of emerald eyes met mine, steady and focused. As though I were truly the one she was looking at.

Then...

She stepped toward me and extended her hand.

"Dance with me."