Chapter 76: Discussion
The scene inside made him freeze. His eyes widened, pupils dilated and trembling in their sockets. His face was like ice; his right hand still rested on the doorknob, unmoving.
Inside, the setting remained the same. It was no different from the original house Takeshi had been brought to, not a single detail out of place.
Airi, Ayaka, and Elyssia were standing there…
But the most horrific thing was that inside, there were 4 other Takeshis, identical in every detail.
It was unclear what they were discussing. But when the original Takeshi stepped in, 7 pairs of eyes turned and looked at him.
8 pairs of eyes stared at each other for a long time in silence. Confusion was clearly etched on everyone's faces.
Let the Takeshis be labeled A, B, C, D. The Takeshi who just entered is called the original.
Takeshi A immediately pointed at the original Takeshi, his eyes frantic.
Takeshi C was also frantic. Their tones were identical:
"W-Why are there... so many? Is this a joke?"
The original Takeshi slowly stepped inside amidst the confusion. He felt a sense of safety, simply because he wasn't alone here; there were many of him.
With quiet footsteps, his voice trembled:
"W-What... r-really... is... going... on...?"
All 5 Takeshis stood facing each other in the same place. They only knew how to stare. They didn't know what to do.
The original Takeshi raised a trembling hand, pointing at each clone one by one, his eyes unable to believe what was happening before him.
Elyssia stepped forward. She was very surprised, but she had composed herself. Her voice was steady:
"Everyone, calm down. The current situation is quite confusing. For now, sit down and let's talk."
She took a step closer and pointed at the chairs, signaling the original Takeshi to sit.
"You sit, then we can talk easily."
The original Takeshi nodded, swallowing hard. He stepped forward. The chair was already occupied by Takeshi A. Takeshi A shifted to one side to let the original Takeshi sit. The original Takeshi gave a slight nod as a simple thank you and sat down slowly, carrying a sense of alertness.
The original Takeshi sat with Takeshi A. Surrounding them from the right were Takeshi B, C, and D.
The three girls stood silently behind them observing, their eyes flickering over every gesture of the 5 Takeshis.
At this moment, no one escaped the confusion.
On the table, each Takeshi had a different object in front of them for easy identification, despite having assigned seats.
Airi went to the stairs, grabbed the staff with the glowing stone, and snapped it hard. She took the short staff and walked over, tossing the glowing stone aside. She handed it to the original Takeshi.
"Here, take it."
Takeshi was a bit bewildered but still took it.
Currently, the original Takeshi held a staff. Takeshi A had a plate. Takeshi B had the glowing stone. Takeshi C had a spoon. And Takeshi D had a small bowl.
The original Takeshi frowned, observing each item on the table. He understood what they wanted to do.
"Is this complexity necessary? We already have assigned seats."
Airi sighed, a bit helpless.
"Even with assigned seats, from now on, wherever you go, take that item with you. Earlier, we almost misidentified someone because we weren't paying attention."
The original Takeshi nodded, realizing it wasn't redundant; better safe than sorry.
The original Takeshi scanned the surroundings.
"So, what are you all doing here?"
Takeshi D on the left sighed in helplessness, his eyes closing for a moment before opening again.
"We haven't been able to say anything yet. Earlier, it was total chaos. We only just settled down and sat in these chairs. That was the moment you walked in."
The original Takeshi nodded in understanding.
Takeshi C: "Then now, let's everyone recount how they ended up here. I think there will be clues."
It seemed the original Takeshi was too shocked after seeing so many of himself in the house—and being able to communicate with them—that he had forgotten to ask for the paper record from earlier.
The original Takeshi spoke: "Alright, then I'll tell my story first, okay?"
"Everyone and I restrained the man who wanted to kill the boy who entered the house. We restrained him, but we didn't have enough strength to kill him. We decided to run. But when I ran outside, I didn't see anyone. The child in my arms also vanished at some point... That's how it was."
Takeshi B slammed the table and stood up. The objects on the table bounced. Everyone was slightly startled.
"I'm quite similar to you, except I wasn't carrying the boy."
Takeshi A sighed and said calmly:
"I was curious so I went outside, then I couldn't find the house anymore."
Takeshi C: "I was kicked out of the window by the man when I broke into his house."
Takeshi D: "I'm the homeowner. Suddenly, a guy with a glowing stone rushed into my house."
Airi stood behind Takeshi D and said: "For now, I also find this quite confusing, but does anyone have useful information for this trial?"
Takeshi A sighed.
"I don't know. I just came downstairs but curiously went outside."
Takeshi C stroked his chin, lost in thought.
"So what do we need to do now?"
The entire room fell into silence. No one knew what they should do now.
Takeshi D leaned his hands on the table: "This is hard, isn't it? Now we don't know what to do at all."
Ayaka: "I think you all should help us. Now that we have many people, we might find clues more easily."
Elyssia nodded.
"Yeah, what do you all think?"
Takeshi C: "Help with what? This house has so few items. Even if we flip everything over, we won't find any decent clues."
Takeshi A countered: "How do we know if we don't try?"
Takeshi A turned to Airi.
"So, have you checked this place thoroughly?"
Airi nodded.
"Very thoroughly, but found nothing that helps."
Takeshi D: "If you all came here from the outside, then surely the remaining clues are outside. You all see there's nothing in here, right?"
The original Takeshi sat in silence, thinking and observing everyone as they spoke:
-"It seems they aren't attacking. For now, just trust them."
Takeshi B shook his head, slightly disagreeing.
"But what if going out makes us like you? One step out and you lose everyone."
Takeshi A tapped the table, considering.
"Then only we will go. Airi, Elyssia, and Ayaka stay in the house. That's fine."
"Outside is full of my houses. I think we should just go look in each house; maybe we'll find something."
The original Takeshi rubbed his jaw: "But don't you think the houses all have us in them? I even got beaten up."
Takeshi A: "But we're going together. There will definitely be better trust than being alone."
Takeshi B nodded: "That makes sense too."
The original Takeshi frowned.
"Huh? So when you went outside, you didn't see anything but the houses?"
-"Are they trying to hide something?"
All the clones simultaneously turned to the original Takeshi, looking at him with confusion.
Takeshi C: "What do you mean by that? Did you see something else?"
The original Takeshi nodded naturally.
"So you all really didn't see it?"
Takeshi A shrugged and shook his head.
"No, we saw nothing when we went out. Just house after house."
The original Takeshi grimaced in confusion.
"Huh? That's weird."
Takeshi D's eyes flashed with seriousness. His voice dropped low with gravity.
"So you saw something?"
The original Takeshi nodded.
"Yeah, I saw it. I saw many of us wandering around outside."
Everyone in the room was bewildered by the original Takeshi's statement.
Elyssia was constantly writing on the paper, not looking up, only listening.
Takeshi A still found it hard to understand: "What do you mean? Can you explain more clearly?"
The original Takeshi replied nonchalantly:
"Yeah, I saw a series of our clones walking outside. I even walked right through them. You guys really saw nothing?"
Airi frowned, as if realizing something.
"All the Takeshis here can't touch each other either."
Elyssia turned to Airi: "But he said when he was outside, he could see the other clones."
Takeshi C: "When I went out, I didn't see anything at all."
Takeshi B: "Me neither."
Takeshi A: "Me neither."
Takeshi C nodded: "See? We didn't see them. Only rain and houses. No clones at all."
The original Takeshi grimaced. He was very confused.
"But I saw them. That's why I'm telling everyone."
Takeshi D: "So what is it after all?"
Ayaka tucked her hair behind her ear and said:
"Is it possible that the Takeshi with this staff is the original Takeshi, so he can see? And all of you are clones, so you can't."
Airi glanced at the 5 seated Takeshis with a bit of pity.
"That sounds so heartbreaking."
Takeshi C scratched his head in frustration.
"Huh? So I'm his clone?"
The original Takeshi shook his head, indicating he didn't know.
Takeshi B ruffled his hair into a mess: "This sounds so surreal."
Takeshi A: "I still have everything from before until now. I remember it very clearly."
Takeshi D: "Me too."
Elyssia: "But if you are clones, you must be identical. I think you all have the same memories. I don't think it's different."
Airi frowned in annoyance.
-"What kind of damn trial does that ghost Vilkel want? This is too chaotic."
-"It was already hard normally, now it's even harder with these damn clones and originals."
Ayaka: "So what should we do?"
"Maybe the Takeshi with this staff was lucky enough to see, like a certain type of clone. Maybe the trial is some confusing form. For example: if you know who the original is, you could fight each other or something."
Elyssia turned to Ayaka: "But they can't touch each other, and what would fighting be for?"
Ayaka smiled awkwardly; she didn't know either.
"I don't know. I just gave a random example."
Airi pointed at the original Takeshi.
"For now, let's consider the Takeshi holding the staff as the original, and everyone else as clones. So, perhaps we need to help the original escape."
Takeshi A pointed at himself.
"Then what about us?"
Airi continued to explain.
"Well, he is the original. If he escapes now, you as clones probably will too."
Takeshi C: "So helping the original escape means the clones follow the original?"
Airi nodded.
"For now, that's all I can think of. I'll try to think more."
Takeshi B grimaced. He had an uncomfortable feeling inside.
"Something feels off about this. I feel like that's not it."
Takeshi D nodded: "I also feel it's wrong, but I don't know what to think either."
Elyssia: "For now, let's assume it's like that. But the problem is still only one. That is, how to find it?"
Everyone fell silent again at Elyssia's question.
Airi spoke up: "The inside of the house has been searched. But the outside hasn't. Most likely everything is outside now."
Ayaka: "So are we going with them? Or let them go outside while we wait inside for results?"
Airi shook her head, not knowing.
"I'm thinking about that."
Elyssia: "But these clones stepped out and nothing happened. So if we step outside, we might become a clone too. Or maybe nothing will happen to us, just like them."
Airi nodded thoughtfully.
"That means we might not be able to see each other anymore once we go outside. And if we are clones, we will have to act alone."
Original Takeshi: "But you guys can't see me when you're outside. Only I can see you. Plus, we can't interact with each other."
"In that case, how can we give directions or work together when we go out? And it's so hard to identify each other."
Airi nodded.
"If that's the case, you'll have to do it yourself. Still the same goal."
Takeshi A frowned and grimaced. He felt something wasn't right.
"But I still don't feel quite right about this. What if the purpose of the trial isn't that?"
Elyssia said nonchalantly but with a hint of reluctance:
"If it's not, we can still discover clues anyway. But right now, it's the only thing we've thought of."
Takeshi C pointed to the small gap at the stairs, where the door leads down to the tunnel and through the man's house.
"So have you checked the man's house yet?"
Takeshi D nodded, sighing at the same time.
"Checked it, but there's nothing."
Original Takeshi: "So did you all hear the knocking on the door?"
Takeshi D nodded.
"We did, but the writing under the table said not to let him in."
He pointed to the table in front of them, his eyes looking toward the door.
"So we pulled this table and blocked this door. After a long time, we didn't hear the knocking anymore. That's why we dared to move the table back."
The original Takeshi understood: "So that's it."
"What about the man?"
Takeshi D: "It's written in our papers too. We've been killed a few times. But after the knocking stopped, we haven't seen him until now."
Takeshi C stroked his chin thoughtfully: "Then the problem definitely lies with that kid. I'm absolutely sure of it."
The original Takeshi nodded and pointed up at the ceiling.
"It seems so. When we heard the knocking, we climbed onto the roof to hide and observe."
Everyone looked up at the ceiling where the original Takeshi pointed, then lowered their heads to listen to him. Everyone was a bit surprised he could climb up that high.
"After that, a kid ran into the house. Then the man chased him and wanted to kill him. We struggled with each other for a long time, then managed to run."
Takeshi D was a bit surprised. His voice showed clear astonishment as he said:
"So there's another kid? We didn't see him. It seems because we didn't let him in, that kid was killed by the man."
Takeshi B: "That sounds pitiful."
Takeshi A looked bored. He found it quite normal.
"Pitiful for what? This is just part of the trial."
Elyssia thought carefully.
"So there are differences in some actions."
Airi nodded.
"Different choices."
Ayaka interrupted the conversation.
"Alright, I think we've gathered enough information by talking. Let's act now."
Airi nodded decisively.
"Yeah, I think we should do it now."
Takeshi A was quite sure and wanted to ask more thoroughly:
"So there's no division of labor?"
Elyssia shook her head.
"The main goal is to help the original. How to help depends on you all."
Elyssia and Airi realized something was wrong. They both shouted loudly at the same time:
"Wait!"
Elyssia spoke urgently: "You all get lost the moment you step outside?"
Airi nodded, looking very serious.
"That's right."
-"If you just run out, you can come back. How can you get lost so easily?"
The original Takeshi nodded.
"Yes. I just ran out, and when I turned back, instead of the house, it was this road."
Takeshi B nodded: "Correct. The moment I ran outside and turned back, the house was gone."
Airi frowned, her face grave.
"Originally, I planned for you all to return here and review the collected information together. but it seems that's not possible."
Ayaka nodded thoughtfully, the words slipping out of her mouth: "It sounds like once you're out, there's no coming back."
Elyssia snapped her fingers.
"Exactly. But we can enter other houses. This means we have to keep searching and work alone."
She took a light breath, her voice lowering.
"If so, it seems helping each other is impossible."
Ayaka pointed down at the items on the table. Everyone followed her finger.
"But they can just carry an item with them. When they enter a house, they'll recognize each other."
Elyssia nodded, as if enlightened by Ayaka.
"Even though an item might disappear when carried outside, once inside a house, we can find and carry that object again."
She glanced around, scanning the area quite quickly.
"Every house has these items in front of you anyway, so there's no need to worry much."
Airi: "Then everyone can only meet by chance when in a certain house. As for this house, it's likely impossible to return to. Basically, it's very hit-or-miss. If you're lucky, you meet; if you're unlucky, this meeting and discussion are as good as wasted."
Ayaka: "It's not entirely wasted."
Elyssia: "Alright, let's begin."
Takeshi D jumped up. The table shook slightly; the chair behind him was pushed back. His eyes were determined.
"Alright, let's go."
All 5 Takeshis stood up and nodded, everyone's eyes filled with determination to succeed.
BOOM!!!
Thunder still rolled, making everyone flinch. Lightning flashed like their own hope. As for the rain, it was as if it would never end. The "shush-shush" sound echoed steadily, never resting for a moment. It felt as if the sky was wailing.
All 5 Takeshis moved toward the door simultaneously. Their footsteps were firm, carrying great hope of escaping.
Airi, Ayaka, and Elyssia stood behind watching the five.
Ayaka: "I'll go outside, okay?"
Airi nodded reluctantly.
"Yeah, you can go."
"I was also thinking that when they go out, I'll go outside too."
Elyssia smiled.
"Just like me. I was about to inform you two."
Airi smiled.
"It seems it'll be hard to meet again."
Elyssia: "What's to worry about? Just do your best. And if we're unlucky, we'll be stuck in here forever together."
Airi was a bit surprised. She turned to Elyssia and stared.
"You only just came with us."
Elyssia smiled.
"Initially, we were just stuck in the mist and couldn't escape. You two were the same. Going together was to find a way. Who would want to be stuck forever?"
"And this is the trial for us to get out of the fog."
Airi and Ayaka smiled at Elyssia.
Airi turned away.
"I don't want to die yet."
Elyssia: "Who would want to die when we're still young?"
Ayaka: "I'm a human, so I regret it even more than you. I don't live that long, yet I'm stuck in this place."
Airi shook her head.
"That's wrong. We have plenty of time but haven't enjoyed it yet. Generally, when we die, we are equal. What matters is how we enjoy life while alive."
Elyssia sighed.
"Anyway, being stuck here is as good as dead."
Airi: "Besides, if Ayaka becomes stronger later, you could be immortal like us."
"I'm not sure, but if you absorb energy extremely well, age is no longer an issue. But you can still die from a slip-up."
"Our tribes are full of dangerous monsters. Especially some dangerous ones in the forest or anywhere in a tribe—they can kill even the strongest."
Elyssia sighed.
"Alright, let's go to them, Airi."
They stepped up and watched the 5 Takeshis standing in a circle with each other.
Takeshi A: "Alright, good luck."
Everyone shouted in unison: "Understood!" Everyone had eyes of strong determination and the hope of meeting again.
Takeshi B was closest to the door. He turned and faced the door. He reached out his right hand and pulled the door toward him.
Outside, the sky was still pitch black and the rain poured. Lightning flashed, blinding the whole sky, then faded like a weak, dying life.
Takeshi B turned back and looked at everyone.
"I'm going first. Everyone, remember to be careful."
Everyone inside nodded together.
Takeshi B stepped outside without hesitation. Following immediately was the original Takeshi, then the others. They followed that order and stepped out from under the house's awning.
But then....