The group agreed with Rossweise's suggestion.
After the emergency meeting ended, they gathered in the first-floor main hall. Rossweise did not hesitate; she immediately used her [Detective] card on Leon.
A moment later, a line of text appeared on her Memory Stone:
"[The King's Old Friend] has not killed any players in the past six hours."
Although Leon had known he was innocent, seeing the confirmation finally allowed a wave of relief to wash over him.
He turned to the others and shrugged. "See? I didn't kill Aurora."
"If it wasn't you... then the situation is even more serious," Claudia stated, her expression grim. "As you said in the meeting, if the wolf who killed Aurora isn't you, then it's someone else among us. Someone with a long-range attack ability. There's no way for us to defend against that."
"The most troubling thing is—" Isha began, picking up where Claudia left off.
She crossed her arms, her cool red dragon eyes slowly scanning the group. "The wolf with that long-range attack is one of us. It could be Claudia, Little Rose, or even me."
She then looked directly at Leon. "So, how do we go about finding this wolf?"
Leon thought for a moment. "Let's keep completing tasks. I think everyone has noticed that as the game goes on, more useful information is revealed. The only way to help the Princess retrieve the Black Sacred Stone is to quickly gather clues about the lone wolves."
"Should we pair up?" Helena suggested. "That way, the wolf wouldn't dare to kill so easily."
If one person in a pair was killed, the other would instantly become the prime suspect.
"But if this lone wolf truly has a long-range attack, pairing up would just let them eliminate us one by one, making it harder to identify them," Noah countered logically.
Helena nodded in understanding. "That makes sense..."
"Let's carry on as usual," Leon concluded. "If the wolf really has that power, there's no hiding from it. And as I said before, a powerful ability like that must have limitations for game balance—probably a cooldown period. So let's not panic. If we stay calm, complete tasks, and gather clues, we'll find this wolf eventually."
Leon's morale-boosting speech didn't sound much like a [King's Old Friend]; it sounded more like a [Princess's Loyal Hound].
But he had no choice. If his fellow lone wolf had a killing ability that he lacked, he needed to stick close to the good side for support and protection.
"Alright, we'll proceed like this for now. Everyone should be cautious, especially if you do pair up," Isha said, taking charge. "If there's no emergency meeting, the next one is scheduled for 8 PM."
"Understood. Everyone, stay safe."
With that, the group dispersed.
Leon returned to his floor, with Isha walking just ahead of him. They reached their respective rooms and opened their doors at nearly the same time.
Yet, neither of them entered immediately.
After a few seconds of silent standing, Isha turned to look back at Leon. A faint smile played on her lips. "Do you have any clues about the lone wolves, dear brother-in-law?"
Leon shrugged. "None. Do you, Sis?"
"None here either."
"It looks like we'll have a busy night ahead," Leon mused. "We're halfway through the game, and we haven't found a single wolf, let alone retrieved the Black Sacred Stone."
Isha nodded. "Yes, let's get to work."
After this brief exchange, Isha pushed her door open. Just as she stepped inside, she paused at the sound of Leon's voice behind her.
"Sis, you seem to remember the meeting times quite well."
Isha stopped. "Is there a problem with that?"
"Not at all. I just admire your memory. With so many meetings in a day, it's impressive that you remember the next one so clearly," Leon replied, his tone sincere.
Isha offered a modest smile. "It's nothing special. I remembered the schedule after glancing at the rules twice."
"Mm."
They exchanged a polite nod and finally entered their rooms.
With Aurora eliminated, Muen was left without a teammate. She reluctantly decided to seek help from Noah.
Initially, she had considered going to her parents, but she worried about intruding on their time together. That's what Aurora had told her before—despite their constant bickering, their parents always found opportunities to stick together and get cozy!
So, Muen chose to team up with her big sister instead.
Noah was delighted to have Muen join her. Muen's dragon tail and the little tuft of hair on her head wiggled with happiness.
When Aurora was around, Muen never had a legitimate reason to seek out Noah, relying solely on items like the [Unbreakable Seven-Day Lock of Love] to bind herself to her sister. But now, with Aurora out, she had a very, very legitimate reason to team up with her sister!
If you did the math: One sacrificed Aurora was worth ten [Seven-Day Lock of Love] cards.
"Superhero Aurora, sacrificing herself for Muen!" she thought gratefully.
Although she missed Aurora, the chance to stick close to her sister made Muen feel like her game experience was practically perfect.
With Muen joining, the three young dragon girls sped through their tasks much more efficiently. After some searching, they entered a new room.
In the center was a table with several empty cups and a bucket of water. The three of them approached, and Noah picked up a card explaining the game's rules:
"Use your mouth to hold the cup, transferring the water to the next person. Work together to fill the leftmost empty cup to complete the task."
"Oh, this seems easy enough. Let's start," Noah said.
"Yes, big sister!" Muen agreed eagerly.
The little dragon girls lined up. Muen made sure to squeeze herself into the middle position. That way, she could stand between her sister and Helena, ensuring they wouldn't accidentally get too close during the mouth-to-mouth water transfer.
Did anyone think Muen's goal in joining the [Princess] group was only to cling to her sister? Of course not! Little Muen also wanted to keep a close watch, ensuring that the sneaky sea dragon, Helena, didn't take her sister away!
After positioning themselves, they began. Noah, standing on the right, filled her cup with water, carefully gripped the rim with her mouth, and slowly turned to face Muen. Then, rising on her tiptoes and tilting her body, she gently poured the water into Muen's cup.
Throughout the process, Muen's soft, chubby cheek was pressed snugly against her sister's.
"Muen, you don't need to stick so close," Noah mumbled, her words muffled by the cup.
"No, no, sister. We have to avoid spilling water, so we need to stay close," Muen said, her face a mask of pure innocence.
"Good point."
The sisters worked well together, but their first transfer was slow and messy. By the time the water reached Muen's cup, only half remained.
With the water secured, Muen immediately turned to Helena. Because of the height difference, Helena had to bend her knees deeply; otherwise, Muen wouldn't be able to reach even on tiptoe.
Noah watched nervously, fearing another slow, spill-prone transfer. But to her surprise, her sister, who had been so slow and careful with her, completed the transfer with Helena at lightning speed.
"So... you were totally faking it earlier, Muen!" Noah couldn't help but laugh inwardly.
This silly girl, just wanting to press her cheek close—did she think no one would notice?
The first round ended, but the target cup was still far from full.
"Let's go again~" Muen urged, eager for another round.
"Hold on a second." Helena suddenly paused. "I think our lineup could use some adjusting."
Muen blinked, worried that Helena wanted to take her precious middle spot.
But Helena clarified, "If I stay at the end, whoever passes to me will lose a lot of water because of the height difference. So, I should go first, Muen stays in the middle, and Noah takes the last spot. How does that sound?"
Noah nodded. "Sounds good to me."
As long as Muen got to stay in the middle, she had no objections.
After rearranging, they resumed the game. As Helena had predicted, the new lineup minimized water loss. The transfer between her and Muen went smoothly. And when it was Muen and Noah's turn, despite Muen's deliberate cheek-to-cheek maneuver, they still managed to retain a good amount of water.
After several rounds, they finally filled the empty cup.
"Yay~ Big sister's the best!" Muen clapped her hands in joy, before quickly adding, "Helena's pretty awesome too."
Even as a dedicated sister complex, Muen remembered her manners.
Helena smiled warmly. "Thank you, Muen~"
As the task was completed, a hidden compartment on the table slid open, revealing a card inside.
Noah picked it up. It was an item card.
- [Cycle of Desperation]
- Effect: When only two players remain on the field, using this item card forces a 1v1 mini-game with the other player.
- Victory in the 1v1 mini-game equates to winning the entire game.