"You've been in a really good mood lately."

I had just finished pouring the tea and serving the rice when my sister woke up.

I felt like having Japanese food today, so I had already made miso soup and tamagoyaki.

"Sister, could you please do something about how you're dressed?"

She was wearing a black tank top and soft fabric shorts. Way too revealing.

"Is my charming body making your heart race?"

She got down on all fours on the living room floor, striking a pose like a gravure model.

"I'm not some hormone-crazed teenager. You're too old for this. It's not even summer yet, you'll catch a cold."

"Oh, how pitiful that my charm doesn't come across to you."

"What character are you even trying to be right now?"

"Just because we don't have partners and we're lonely doesn't mean we can cross that forbidden line."

Our mother, dressed in warm sweats, jumped into the conversation.

Honestly, the two of them are polar opposites in both personality and clothing.

"Mom, stop making things more complicated."

The two of them sat down at the dining table, and I took my usual seat across from them. A familiar scene.

"But your sister's right, Kaname-chan, you've been unusually cheerful lately. You're usually all sullen and grumpy after work, but the past few days you've been smiling. ...Could it be you got yourself a girlfriend?"

"What? No way!? You traitor! I will not accept a unilateral termination of the single-for-life alliance!"

My mom watched with sparkling eyes full of hope, while my sister lunged over the table and grabbed me by the collar with a terrifying expression.

"You're wrong! And I don't remember forming any such alliance!"

"You swore we'd stay single forever and die alone together!"

"What kind of awful vow is that!?"

I managed to shake her off and rubbed my stretched-out collar.

"I don't have a girlfriend, and I haven't broken any alliances. It's a game, a game."

"You fell in love with a game character... for real?"

"I understand you, I really do," my mom said, wiping tears from her eyes with a tissue as my sister looked at me in utter disgust.

"This conversation is going nowhere! And look at the time! Ugh, I missed breakfast. I'm off!"

I at least drank the now-cold miso soup before dashing out the door.

The usual commute. The scenery unchanged.

The train was surprisingly empty, and I even managed to get a seat. Just a little thing, but it made me happy.

Lately, I feel like luck has been on my side. I hit the jackpot on a vending machine and got an extra drink. Got the last one of a limited-edition product. Got into a popular restaurant without having to wait in line. And so on.

"And I even found that amazing game. Feels like my luck's finally turning around."

In high spirits, I arrived at work, changed into my uniform, and went about my tasks.

During lunch break, I brushed off my coworker Naoi and let my thoughts drift to Death Parade TD Online (Provisional).

Just thinking about the game made time fly, and it was soon time to go home. No overtime today either, so I headed back.

After spending time with my family and taking a bath, everything was ready.

I put on my VR goggles and lay down on the bed.

"Alright, let's begin the game."

"Right, it starts from here."

A breeze carrying the scent of greenery blew past as I stood atop a cliff.

Below lay a fortress that looked incredibly sturdy.

Surrounded by a dense forest, with a fast-flowing large river to the east. There's a magnificent stone bridge spanning the river, but no bridge near the fortress.

Normally a drawbridge would be lowered to allow passage, but it's currently raised.

The enemy can only approach from across the river, making this a tough fortress to conquer.

While I was pondering my next move alone, three beams of light erupted nearby.

"Looks like I wasn’t the first one here today. You’re early, Kaname-san."

"Good evening... or rather, good morning, I suppose."

The twins greeted me in unison.

Blonde hair, blue eyes, great figures, and simple but high-end brand clothing (sponsored) worn with effortless style.

I hadn’t known, but apparently they’re popular high school model twins known among the youth as the Haitate Twins.

"Good morning, Seiya-kun, Yukine-chan."

Just standing side by side, they looked like a scene from a painting.

They squinted against the wind and lightly held down their fluttering hair—a motion that looked like something out of an ad.

"Ahh, what a treat for the eyes. If I had my phone, I'd take a picture and brag about it!"

The one grumbling with a relaxed face was Fuka Kusazuri. Unlike the twins, she wore a pink and black tracksuit. She once said, "It’s the perfect loungewear that’s just barely acceptable to wear outside."

With a voluptuous figure—especially in the chest and hips—she has a different kind of charm compared to Yukine’s slender beauty.

Apparently, she crashed at her older brother’s place and now enjoys the life of a shut-in NEET.

"Oh, right! You’ve gotta hear this. I told my brother about the game and he was super jealous. He said, ‘You better survive! If you die, no allowance!’ Isn’t that horrible!?"

Pouting her cheeks, she stomped her feet furiously like a child throwing a tantrum.

She’s twenty-two, right...?

I took a deep breath and made a firm declaration.

"Not horrible at all."

The twins echoed me in perfect sync.

"N-no one understands my suffering... I’m the tragic heroine..."

Fuka stumbled dramatically and collapsed to her knees.

The twins walked up to her and placed their hands on her shoulders.

"You’re going to comfort me?"

She looked at them with hopeful eyes, but the twins smiled sweetly and said:

"Big sis... get a job."

"Labor is a citizen’s duty."

"Nooo, I don’t want to hear such sound arguments! I want to live an easy, parasitic life forever!"

Fuka violently shook her head at her own dreadful declaration.

The twins circled around her, chanting: "My annual income is..." and "This month I bought with my own money..."—bombarding her with reality.

"Eeeeeek... But... verbal abuse from two beautiful people... might not be so bad... Ohhh, to be tormented by two hotties at once... m-me... ahaha..."

She’s clutching hher head while grinning.

To be able to enjoy this situation by mentally reframing it—she’s quite the seasoned warrior.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough horsing around, all three of you. Let’s review our plan moving forward.”

““Okaaay.””

“Isn’t this more like one-sided abuse!?”

The twins sat facing me, while Fuka crawled up from behind and sulked next to me.

“Today’s plan. From here, we observe the area around the fort, and if we find an enemy we can take down one-on-one, we ambush and eliminate them. Got it so far?”

The twins nodded vigorously, and Fuka, a bit late, shook her head up and down with enthusiasm.

“But, according to the info from Seiya-kun and Yukine-chan... the guardians who protected that fort are split into two factions. After they regrouped at the fort, a battle began over the temporary quest reward. That’s the gist of it, right?”

When I turned to them, the twins exchanged glances for a moment before Seiya opened his mouth.

“That seems to be the case. I heard some people talking about it at the summit. Apparently, the two leaders don’t get along, and their factions are clashing as well.”

“One of the leaders apparently has charisma. The other one is very strong, and the rest feel more like followers than comrades.”

So, one gained allies through charm and virtue.
The other rules by displaying strength.

Since this is secondhand information, I shouldn’t jump to conclusions without more details.

“If that’s the case, then it might be better not to interfere and let them whittle each other down?”

“I agree with you, Kaname san.”

“I’m with Seiya too.”

The twins raised their hands smoothly.

Fuka remained with arms crossed, groaning with an “Ummm.”

“Fuka, you’re just pretending to think, aren’t you?”

“Wh-what are you saying!? I’ve been listening properly! I agree too!”

She shot her hand up with enthusiasm.

With that, everyone was in agreement.

“We’ll observe for now, but personally, I’d like to side with one faction to earn some favor.”

Looking to the future, it’s better to gain allies than make enemies.
Plans for the final battle royale should wait until there are fewer players remaining.

“I get it. We should crush the one ruling by force here.”

“Seiya, don’t you have it backwards? That one seems likely to collapse from the inside. Forcing things with power just breeds resistance.”

It’s rare for the twins to disagree.

Seiya tends to be more emotional, while Yukine is composed and capable of making calm judgments.

“That makes sense, I get it too~”

Fuka kept nodding repeatedly, but didn’t contribute anything constructive. Though she agreed, her eyes were darting around the whole time.

She’s just going along with the conversation.

Emotionally, she sides with Seiya, but Yukine’s view aligns exactly with what I was thinking.

“Since all we have is secondhand info about the leaders and the situation, it’s hard to make a firm decision. So, to get a better understanding... let’s start by capturing one of them.”

““Agreed.””

“Yes, me too!”

Fuka agreed a bit after the twins, so I proceeded with the plan.

『This is Yukine. I hear footsteps approaching, over.』

Her voice echoed directly in my head through a jewel.

This is a party-only communication function called Telepathy, which works like a long-distance phone call.

The key difference from a phone is that just by gripping the jewel and focusing, the message reaches directly into the brain and can’t be heard by anyone outside the party.

『Got it. Hold position. Give the signal when they get close.』

『Understood.』

Right now, Yukine is hidden inside a Pitfall she set up.

It’s placed on an animal trail that cuts through the forest, one of the routes toward the fort.

We found other paths, but those were wider and paved, usually taken by multiple guardians, which was riskier.

This spot has poor visibility and is narrow.

If someone’s moving solo to avoid being seen, this is the ideal spot.

We’re hidden in the forest but far from the trap’s location, so we had Yukine stay near it to monitor the timing precisely.

『Enemy approaching. It appears to be a single target.』

I peeked from behind a tree. Judging by the outfit, the target looks like a woman.

『She’s just about to enter the trap zone. Starting countdown. Five, four, three, two, one—now.』

At Yukine’s signal, I activated multiple Arrow Traps.

The arrows all converged toward a single point.

“Eh? Whoa, what the—!?”

Hearing the woman’s startled voice, I leapt out from behind the tree.

I could see her being forcefully dragged to the trap’s location.

『Hole-in-one.』

She was sucked into the gaping Pitfall below her feet.

“What the heeeeeeck!?”

『Follow-up attack!』

As Seiya’s voice rang out, a burst of light surged from the hole.

“Wha-wha-wha-wha, aaaaAAAAAAAHHHHH!”

The sound of crackling and flashing light filled the air before silence returned.

When we cautiously approached the Pitfall, we found the woman inside, eyes rolled back, twitching slightly.

She was still breathing, so clearly alive, but completely unconscious.

“Seiya, wasn’t that Electric floor a bit much?”

“Ah, well, I did tone down the power though...”

Seiya scratched his cheek awkwardly.

“Isn’t showing mercy in a battle royale a mistake?”

Yukine had a point, but seeing her like this did make me feel a bit guilty.

“Wait, this person... ahhhh! She’s the one I fought before!”

Fuka shouted while pointing into the pit.

Hearing that, I remembered too.

She was the one who got falsely accused of being the attacker even though she only retaliated after Fuka ambushed her.

This girl... really has no luck at all.