A half-hour break.

  Reo soak i springs to rex his body and mind, washing away the exhaustion and dust from earlier.

  The girls also headed to the hot springs. It was clear they o mentally prepare themselves to hear the story about the back mountain.

  After both sides were ready, they gathered in the living room again.

  "Alright, let's go over the situation at the back mountain iail."

  As he spoke, Ren handed his phoo Hayasaka.

  Hayasaka swiftly retrieved a projector, ected it to the phone, and began projeg the images onto the s that had bee up in the main hall.

  The proje appeared on the s.

  The image was taken from a high vantage point, capturing the drug b that the special forces had raided.

  The facility was quite rge, just from a rough estimate, it spanned several thousand square meters.

  Its exterior looked simple and unremarkable.

  The walls were made of white pstic with an iro roof on top.

  However, sidering that it was a drug produ and research site, the simplicity made se was clearly a temporary setup desigo be quickly dismantled and relocated if discovered. There was o i in a more sophisticated structure.

  Soon, the footage showed fully armed elite troops surrounding and st the base.

  The footage was exceptionally clear.

  Even the moments when the drug dealers were shot were captured in sharp detail.

  The grim reality of a drug raid pyed out in front of them.

  "…"

  The room fell silent as everyog felt the weight of life slipping away before their eyes.

  People who had been moving just moments ago lost all signs of life after being struck by a few bullets.

  It all happened so suddenly.

  It all happened so naturally.

  They knew drug dealers didn't deserve sympathy.

  But knowing that didn't mean they were ready to watch a life vanish right in front of them.

  This was something they had to face sooner or ter.

  Because the world they were about to step into was far more dangerous and unfiving than the ordinary one.

  The loss of life was something they o accept.

  Ren didn't interrupt them. He didn't tell them to stay indifferent or to harden their hearts.

  There were some things people o process on their own.

  Sihey had chosen to watch, they o find the resolve within themselves.

  The footage tinued as the special forces cleared the base, methodically eliminating the remaining drug dealers.

  The s froze there.

  "This was just the beginning," Ren said.

  "The Metropolitan Police Department's raiding team is highly petent. They showed ation when dealing with the drug dealers."

  "My guess is that someone senior in the department gave them specifistrus beforehand."

  "Otherwise, they would've likely left one or two survivors to interrogate."

  "But from how they operated, it was clear that eliminating these drug dealers was their primary objective."

  He expihis while gesturing toward the frozen image on the s.

  The video resumed, shifting to the interior of the boratory.

  The b was lined with thick pstic sheeting, most likely to tain chemical odors and minimize the risk of acts during produ.

  Everything was designed with effi mind.

  But now, the boratory was littered with corpses.

  Uhe earlier long-distance shots, these ses were much closer and more vivid.

  The grotesque crity turhe girls' faces pale.

  "All of these drug dealers were addicts themselves," Ren said, his toeady.

  "They got into the trade for money… and to feed their own addis."

  "So, none of them were i. They chose this path knowily what it meant."

  "In pursuit of wealth and indulgehey were willing to do anything, no matter how cruel or inhumane."

  "Hayasaka, pause it here."

  "Uood." Hayasaka stopped the video.

  Ren exhaled and turoward the group.

  "What you're about to see is the darkest, most depraved side of the ordinary world."

  "Are you sure you want to tinue?"

  This was Ren's final warning.

  Kaguya's expression was grim.

  She had never witnessed such a se in person before.

  As a sheltered young dy who grew up in a privileged enviro, she had always bee away from such brutal realities.

  But now, it was happening right in front of her eyes and even more horrifying ses were yet to e.

  Still, she gritted her teeth and stood firm.

  "Amamiya, this is our collective decision."

  "Maybe the ses that follow will push us beyond our limits, but this is something we have to face."

  "Siepping into the mysterious world, we've gained more knowledge about reality... and sooner or ter, we'll enter situations like this again."

  "That's why, no matter what, we have to accept these truths we've never faced before."

  Ren reized Kaguya's resolve.

  Her rationality had guided her to this decision. She uood that this was a necessary experience, and she repared to e.

  But what about the others?

  His gaze shifted to Sonoko and Ran.

  When Sonoko noticed Ren looking at her, her face turned pale, but she straightened her bad met his gaze.

  "Ren-kun, I'm the same."

  "I made this deyself, and I have to accept the sequences."

  Ran, who was usually the most timid when it came to these things, hugged her arms tightly.

  "I feel the same way as Sonoko."

  "There'll be more situations like this iure. If we 't accept it now, it'll only beore dangerous ter."

  "So... I won't be left behind."

  Ren gave a slight nod, aowledging their determination.

  Finally, his gaze nded on the you of the group—Nagi.

  "You don't o—"

  "You don't have to say it," Nagi interrupted, raising a hand to stop him.

  Her face ale. The sight of so many real, lifeless bodies had shakehis wasn't a horror movie with fake props, everything she saw was real.

  "My mom chose this path."

  "Maybe she was lucky... but I know I don't have that same luck."

  "If I 't even ehis, I'll never be able to move forward."

  Everyone had made up their minds.

  The atmosphere was heavy with determination.

  And then—

  "Ughhh... Amamiya, I'm scared!"

  The tension shattered in an instant.

  Fujiwara's fearful voice broke the silence.

  The others turoward her, their expressions bnk as they processed the sudden shift in mood.

  Ign the collective stares of death, Fujiwara scrambled to sit beside Ren.

  "So... please let me hold onto you!" she pleaded.

  "I'm scared I won't be able to ha otherwise!"

  "…"

  You know you 't ha, yet you're still insisting on watg?

  Ren sighed.

  "If you're that scared, you don't have to watch."

  "No way!" Chika immediately refused.

  She tried to stretch her ned act brave, but her body trembled so much that it was impossible to take her seriously.

  "Kaguya's watg it, so I 't back down!" she decred.

  "If I give up now, how I call myself Kaguya's best friend?"

  Hearing that, Kaguya was momentarily touched.

  But when she saw Fujiwara ging to Ren's arm like a frightened child, her entire body practically glued to his side that fleeting warmth disappeared without a trace.

  Annoyance surged through her chest for reasons she couldn't quite expin.