Time passed.
Night finally arrived.
Everyone gathered once again in the hall.
"Alright, it's nighttime. Please return to your rooms. No matter what noises you hear tonight, you are not allowed to come out."
Everyone understood — the real show was about to begin.
Without further words, they rose and headed toward their respective rooms.
"Wait."
At that moment, Herta suddenly spoke up.
Seeing the confusion on everyone's faces, Herta curled her lips into a smug smile.
"I will now exercise the Young Lady's authority."
The others were startled.
Only Jing Yuan gave a bitter smile — he already knew what she was about to do.
But was she really going to ignore everyone else's safety like this?
"Tonight, Xiao will guard outside my door. He is not allowed to leave."
Xiao's entire expression darkened.
He had planned to patrol at night to search for the killer.
Now he had to stand guard at her door?
His entire strategy was ruined.
Herta didn't care whether Xiao was comfortable or not.
She was the Young Lady. What she said went.
With that, she headed up to the third floor.
"…Sigh."
Helpless, Xiao followed her to stand guard.
The others' expressions grew unpleasant — except for Jade.
Herta's room was Room 5, the middle room.
Jade was Room 4 — right next door.
Xiao was Room 6, but since he had to guard outside Room 5, it effectively meant he was guarding her as well.
Arriving on the third floor, Jade smiled at Xiao, who stood with arms crossed outside Room 5.
"Please take care of things tonight."
She then entered Room 4.
Livestream Chat
[Keqing: So selfish. She only cares about herself.]
[Hu Tao: Making Adeptus Xiao guard her door? Too much.]
[Xiangling: Being protected by Xiao must feel so safe!]
[Yun Jin: I'm jealous.]
[Asta: I'm jealous of Ms. Herta.]
[Boothill: Y'all ever think Xiao might be the killer?]
[Gepard: That means… Ms. Herta is in danger!]
[Topaz: Heh. If Xiao is the killer, this gets interesting.]
[Ruan Mei: No. Herta is the safest of all.]
[Dr. Ratio: Indeed.]
[Screwllum: Correct. Regardless of who the killer is, Herta will not be targeted.]
[Yanqing: Why is she the safest?]
[Shikanoin Heizou: If Xiao is the killer, he won't strike Herta first — suspicion would immediately fall on him. If he isn't, the killer won't target someone under guard.]
[Yanqing: That makes sense…]
[March 7th: So if Xiao is the killer, Jade is in danger?]
[Welt: Not necessarily. The same logic applies. If the killer strikes, it will likely be among Rooms 1, 2, or 3.]
[Sushang: Th-Then who?]
[Kaeya: Isn't it obvious? Jing Yuan. Bennett-certified.]
[Diluc: Hard to refute that.]
[Fuxuan: ...…]
[Qingque: ...…]
[Yukong: ...…]
[Jingliu: ...…]
The Xianzhou side collectively began praying for Jing Yuan.
Getting eliminated first would be… awkward.
The livestream screen faded to black.
Inside Room 1
Jing Yuan sat by the window desk, holding a photograph he had discovered earlier.
The photo showed three people.
A young-looking Herta sitting in a chair.
A man and a woman standing on either side.
"A family photo?"
He couldn't determine its meaning, but since Herta appeared in it, he kept it.
"Since Herta is the Young Lady of this castle, these two must be her parents."
He flipped the photo over.
A date was written on the back:
January 1, 2000.
He looked at the calendar on the wall.
The current date read:
April 5, 2003.
"So this was taken three years ago."
His brows furrowed.
He had explored the castle all day and found no traces of other residents.
It seemed Herta had been living here alone.
"Looks like I'll need to question Herta tomorrow."
If he could find traces of her past, she must know something.
If she answered honestly, fine.
If she concealed something…
That would be interesting.
He glanced out the window.
There, he saw Furina cautiously sneaking toward the garden shed, constantly looking over her shoulder.
"Lucky her. She can change positions at night."
He couldn't help feeling slightly envious.
As Doctor, he had a medical room — but couldn't use it as a nighttime refuge.
Furina, as Gardener, could leave the castle entirely.
He wouldn't mind having that role.
"Identity!"
Suddenly, Jing Yuan's heart began pounding.
He had felt something missing earlier.
Now, thinking about their identities, connections formed in his mind.
"Oh my… the killer isn't—"
Click.
A sharp sound came from the door.
Jing Yuan looked up—
And locked eyes with the person entering.
"Wait — you can unlock doors with a key?!"
He was shocked.
That wasn't how this was supposed to work.
Seeing the gleaming knife in the intruder's hand, there was no doubt.
This was the killer.
Without a word, the figure rushed forward.
The blade plunged cleanly into Jing Yuan's abdomen.
"So… it really was you…"
As life rapidly drained from him, Jing Yuan gave a bitter smile and collapsed.
"Heh. Surprised?"
The killer's voice was distorted, impossible to determine gender.
Stepping over Jing Yuan's body, they pushed open the window.
Then, using a blood-covered hand, they pulled the door open and left calmly.