Due to the elimination, we returned to the first floor. The truth questions were answered, and there was nothing unusual. We were seven people. I signaled Itsuki with my eyes. Itsuki understood my signal and moved toward the corridor. Daito had understood what he wanted to do and began running with all his strength, but when Daito ran, Itsuki also started running. Itsuki wanted to find the button.
"You son of a bitch, Itsuki, you're going to do the same thing, aren't you?"
"Ahahaha, yes! Come on, try to get past me!"
Meanwhile, we had watched and listened to their conversation during their chase. The others seemed to be gradually understanding the situation. Alice came next to us, and Ayame was also by my side. Alice looked at my face to fully understand the situation and asked a question.
"Rei, why are they running like that? Is it what I'm thinking?"
"Yes. Itsuki is going to do the same tactic again. He'll get in front of the button. After all, Daito will probably be the one who can't find a team."
"But the twins could also team up with Daito, couldn't they?"
"Why would they? Is Daito their dear friend? Eliminating someone they don't care about is to their benefit. Besides, Itsuki has immunity; he wouldn't be eliminated this round. Since they're aware that eliminating Daito is more beneficial for them, they must have teamed up with Itsuki even if they didn't want to. Since Itsuki is on a team, the same tactic will play out again, and Daito will be eliminated."
"I understand. So players left without a team are in danger, right?"
"Exactly."
At that moment, Ayame joined the conversation.
"Rei, wait a minute. Let's talk about something in the bathroom."
"Alright, let's go."
"Why am I not coming? Why aren't you talking here?"
"We're going to talk tactics, it's important. Only the two of us know."
"What, am I not on the team?"
"I've known Ayame for years. We happened to cross paths in the game; we know each other."
"Fine, alright. But come back quickly."
The system voice was heard. For the sake of fairness, it had to announce that some people had won rewards.
"Three players' foresights turned out correct; they will receive some rewards!"
After hearing the announcement, everyone hesitated for a short while. I also acted as if I was hesitating.
After nodding my head in approval, thanks to the excuse I had fabricated, Ayame and I had entered the bathroom together. I had told her to say this before Alice came next to me; I had arranged the bathroom conversation part just a very short while ago. Ayame was standing in front of me.
"I suppose you called me here for the thing you mentioned."
"Yes. Show me your phone; I'm curious what you obtained when your foresight turned out correct. Whether you have the same reward as me or not—figuring this out will allow us to gain information."
"Alright, I'll show you. But how did you foresee that Zei would be eliminated? It can't be just because he's stupid. And you also told me the correct prediction so I could understand and earn more rewards; this way we earned two rewards. Your prediction turned out correct, but how? I still can't be sure?"
"Could it be that you and Itsuki have been working together from the beginning, Rei? Was it all planned? There can't be any other explanation?"
"Unfortunately, that's how it was. From the very beginning, all the events were nothing but our plan. We were planning events to happen between game intervals. What we would do, or what I would do and how he would respond, and at the same time, things like him managing the other side while I managed this side—we were arranging all of it by secretly talking or through eye signals."
"You're not lying, right?"
"No. I already told you because you figured it out."
"Why didn't you mention it earlier?"
"I didn't want to risk it."
"I understand. This also explains why you partially created openings for each other to eliminate people or left players as bait in front of you. In the move you made against Hina, you left her weak for Itsuki to eliminate her in the end; you set the stage for him. In the same way, he set the stage for you to eliminate the old man by voting for him. This explains everything. So was it all planned from the very beginning?"
"It was."
"I can't believe it. So we weren't even playing a game from the start; you literally just created a fabricated plot for us. The entire game was actually nothing but something you two staged. So were the other moves like that too? For example, Itsuki's trap?"
"Yes. We talked about this in the corridor while you were gone. If you're going to ask how this happened despite him being my enemy, Itsuki isn't completely an enemy to me. It would take long to explain, but I was aware of this. So I promised him that we would fight one-on-one at some point, and thanks to that, he agreed to work together. We secretly arranged this at the beginning of the game. Of course, I was on guard in case he betrayed me."
Old Times, Corridor Corner
"Rei, I'm going to implement this trap. Are you going to inform the others?"
"Yes. I don't think they'll be stressed anyway, and we'll keep our agreement more hidden. Someone other than me might figure out the counter to that move, so distribute the votes one each instead of six. I'll make something up for the others. We need to create fake events. After a while, I'll set the stage for you to eliminate Hina. Let's keep playing our roles."
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"Alright, Rei."
Present Day
"So was that chain move you made also planned?"
"That wasn't an aggressive move. When I did it, I was aware that Itsuki would also figure it out, and he copied the same thing. There was only one thing we hadn't planned, and that was Itsuki's phone move. He didn't tell me about it, but his eyes were signaling to me that he was going to do something. Naturally, I wasn't expecting the phone move."
"What about your button-hiding moves?"
"In those, Itsuki was deliberately leading the others astray. With this move, I sent him a message so he could come up with the tactic of leaning himself against the wall. He understood the situation as I expected. Even the immunity vote—the logical steps I laid out were just logical fabrications; I had actually voted for Itsuki too. Other than that, as I said, Itsuki set the stage for me to eliminate the old man. We were agreeing through our eyes to stay in sync. After he set the stage for me, I eliminated the old man; he came up with the idea of eliminating the other woman with the tactic I mentioned. Before this, at the right time, I had told him to betray Daito's side, and he betrayed them at the right time. This is why Zei was eliminated, and Daito will be eliminated shortly. We had planned all of this."
"So really, as I said, we weren't even playing a game. You created fake events for us. You appeared to be enemies and built strategies against each other, but at the same time, you were secretly helping each other, planning things, and setting the stage for each other to eliminate people. I understand. Even I couldn't notice..."
"So if you're telling me this now, there must be a reason. What is it, Rei?"
"Show me the reward you obtained. If it's the same as mine, then Itsuki's is probably the same. The three of us will win the game directly. The reward I obtained is powerful; since foresight is difficult, they must have decided to give a powerful reward, or our luck was on our side. One of the two."
"Alright, I'll show you."
Ayame showed me the reward she had obtained on her phone. She had the same reward as me. She possessed the Aggression Right reward. Players who had this right could use the aggression right to eliminate one person among them. However, if that person had previously used their prediction right, the one who used the right would be eliminated themselves. If they hadn't used it, the player on whom the right was used would be eliminated. If this right was used on another person who also possessed this right, it would be considered invalid.
"I understand. It's the same as mine. Then we'll wait for Daito to be eliminated."
"I understand. After Daito is eliminated, we'll secretly use it on them, and the three of us will win the game, right?"
"Yes."
I checked behind the door to see if anyone was listening, but no one was. Then I turned my face back to Ayame. She didn't seem to be enjoying this much; she wasn't smiling. Her white eyes were the same; she just seemed to think she had to do this to win. She had understood some things beforehand. To win, you have to deceive, or else you yourself will be deceived.
"So what about Alice, Rei? Won't you care about her?"
"I don't care about the twins; after all, they had shown a little indifference toward me before. You remember, they formed a team instead of searching for the buttons. But Alice, you could say she helped me, so even if she loses the game, I'll make sure she doesn't fall into that old man's hands after the game. After all, I'm in the Superiority Club; their connections will be enough."
"I understand. I'm glad you thought of this. You care about the others."
"Yes, let's say I'm trying to care. That's what my friends would have wanted."
"Your friends?"
"Long story; you'll understand later. Let's continue the game; Daito needs to be eliminated."
"Alright."
Shortly after, we returned to the hall. The system voice was heard, and we all looked toward the sound. We could guess what was going to happen. Itsuki emerged from behind the room, and a shout came from Daito. Itsuki calmly moved toward the hall. The system voice began to speak.
"A player has been eliminated due to violence!"
Suddenly, we moved to the second floor. After everyone briefly looked around again, the system voice was heard once more. Unless there was a move that would affect the next move, the game would end in an instant. Everyone turned their faces toward the sound.
"New rule added!"
"On the second floor, you can now form teams in pairs!"
After hearing the rule, we moved into a suitable position. The twins were looking around; they took their phones out of their pockets to team up with each other. Ayame and I came next to Itsuki. Itsuki could understand that I had told Ayame about the situation. Alice came up behind us.
"Rei, what happened? Why are you with Itsuki? What's going on? Are you going to form a team?"
Without answering, we all took our phones out of our pockets and opened the screens. With our eyes, each of us was indicating on whom we would use our right. Since they thought we were going to form a team, they were waiting for us to open our phones. So they wouldn't understand what we were doing, and to put an end to the game, we quickly used our rights on the three of them. None of them had the same reward, and they hadn't used their prediction right on themselves.
"Three players eliminated!"
"WHAT!"
"WHAT'S GOING ON? REI, WHAT DID YOU DO?"
The twins suddenly ran toward us with all their strength. With shocked faces, the three of them, along with Alice, were looking at us.
"WHAT DID YOU DO? WHAT DID YOU GET FROM THE REWARD? HOW CAN YOU FORESEE IN THIS SITUATION? NOTHING WAS CLEAR!"
We didn't answer their questions. As long as we didn't tell them, they would never understand the true face of the game. Normally, as they said, foresight was very difficult; what would happen couldn't be known. To avoid taking risks, they hadn't made a decision yet; after all, they could come to the second floor once more. But there was another method. If you arrange or stage the person to be eliminated, foresight is actually not difficult at all. We had obtained the reward by using this logic. By obtaining the reward this way, no injustice was created; since we had come up with the idea of staging it, we were the ones who truly deserved it.
"ANSWER US, YOU IDIOTS!"
"Because of the selfishness you two showed at the beginning, I don't really care what happens to you. But I'll help the other one. Don't worry, Alice; I'll make sure you don't fall into the old man's hands. After the game, go to the Superiority Club and say my name. They must be watching the game; they'll provide you with a place to stay for a while."
"Will you really help, Rei?"
"Yes."
"Alright then. I don't care about losing..."
"You bastard Rei! What about us? I should have known you'd do something like this after the Island Game!"
"Island Game? What's he talking about, Rei? Did you play before?"
"Yes."
"This bastard deceived the entire island! He's not trustworthy!"
"Is what they're saying true, Rei?"
"Things happened. Anyway, when will the end of the game be announced?"
The system voice was heard.
"Three players remain; the game has ended!"
WINNERS:
REI
AYAME
ITSUKI
CONGRATULATIONS!
When we won the game, the three of them slowly disappeared from the game area. Itsuki's facial expression was filled with an amused smile; it was clear he was enjoying the situation. Ayame was looking at both of us in turn; she seemed a bit hesitant.
"It was a good game, Rei. But was there really a need to stay this hidden?"
"It can't be said it was entirely necessary, but even if our opponents weren't strong, they could have been troublesome. It turned out well this way."
"Well, you know best. But you'll fight me afterward, right? Otherwise, I won't leave you alone."
"Alright, I promise. We'll fight."
"How long have you two known each other, Rei?"
"Since the Island Game, I think. He wasn't a player, but he had authority. Long story."
"You always say long story, though?"
"It's not the time; I'll tell you later."
"You're right, alright."
"I'm leaving, Rei. Have a good time with Ayame. Don't get eliminated by the other players; I want to face you in the next games. I only made a deal with you because it was a team game."
"Alright. We'll probably be teleported; I'll sleep the moment I'm gone."
"I'll sleep too."
Within a short time, we were all teleported. I found myself in the hotel room; I was tired. I quickly drank a glass of water from the kitchen, took care of my needs, then lay down on my bed and quickly fell asleep. I wanted to sleep for long hours; there was still much to do.