She is not an investigator.

If Igris didn't have such a strong ability to see in the dark, it would probably be difficult to spot her. But right now, in this absolutely dark environment, she can see even more clearly than in the sunlight.

At least she won't be forced to squint because of the sunlight.

"You're really unprofessional."

The mirror was indeed an ordinary mirror, but at least the things inside seemed anything but ordinary.

After realizing that Igris had noticed it, it did not hesitate to try to climb out of the mirror. However, as soon as it had climbed out halfway, Igris had already pressed a pistol against its forehead.

"Is it fun?"

The figure in the mirror was slightly stunned, but under the watchful gaze of Igor (Lis) and Izaki (one) [)sa〈nErII 2 2, Xiaoling still carefully climbed out of the mirror and tidied her clothes.

It looked exactly like a second Igris, with almost no difference. But perhaps only in this way could Igris see just how casual her usual attire was.

After all, she really isn't very good at styling her hair.

“There are many anomalies that can disguise themselves as other people, whether it’s a thousand faces or a faceless person, but they can’t come out of a mirror, so what are you? If you can’t speak, then I can probably shove this gun into your mouth.”

Igris wasn't worried that the gunshots would cause panic among the people in the castle. This pistol wasn't a traditional gunpowder weapon at all. Even if there were still gunshots, they wouldn't be as loud as the sound of a bullet hitting its target. At least in the basement, it would be difficult for people upstairs to hear the gunshots.

Moreover, the other party is undoubtedly an anomaly. In such a situation, regardless of whether the other party is good or bad, if it is not clear that it will not pose any threat, such as a faceless being, Igris will first completely annihilate it rather than leave it to complicate matters further.

"Cough cough... What am I to you? That's a good question. In your eyes, what am I? Of course, I am you."

It first cleared its throat, then produced a voice almost identical to that of Igor S. Lisbeth, and revealed a faint smile.

“Eingris Sagelina, I am you, and you are me! There is no difference between us. The only difference is that you come from your world and I come from mine.”

Are you speaking the same language as me? I can't understand what you're saying.

Igris waved the pistol in her hand impatiently, making it clear that if it wasted any more time, she would blow its head off at any moment.

"Let me put it simply... In your world, your father died in a mining accident, your family was ruined, and you were forced to wander alone, almost driven to despair. But in my world, none of that happened. You are still that young lady, your family is still happy and complete, and all disasters and pain will never come near you again..."

Seeing Igris's increasingly furrowed brows, it hurriedly went to the mirror and waved its hand.

“I know you don’t believe it, but you can look at yourself in the mirror. Everything you’ve been looking for is right there in the mirror. Such opportunities don’t come around often.”

Igris glanced at the mirror, but the reflection was no longer of herself. Instead, it showed a vast manor, a middle-aged man drinking tea and reading a newspaper in the garden, and a young girl who looked almost exactly like Igris, only more elegantly dressed and with a more delicate demeanor, gently stroking the fat orange cat in her arms.

"Look, I'm not lying to you. This is the life you deserve. You can enjoy happiness and beauty. You can have this kind of life, without having to suffer now. This is an opportunity, an opportunity that countless people are pursuing. Don't you want to give it a try?"

It patted the mirror, looking expectantly at Igris, its excitement and anticipation almost palpable.

"This is not the life I want."

"Stop deceiving yourself! Igris, you've never been able to escape that shadow. No one can be your support. Your heart is forever lonely and sad, just like the countless times you've tried to end it all to escape this world that makes you sad... Come on, it really looks so happy, doesn't it? No one can take your life away anymore. Just get close to it, touch it, and everything you've ever dreamed of will be..."

"I told you."

Igris raised an eyebrow and, without hesitation, shoved the pistol into its incessantly chattering mouth.

"This is not what I want."

"...Lami wants to spare the gods and demons."

With its mouth gagged by the gun barrel, it could only make these strange sounds, but Igris could still barely understand what it was saying.

"You seem to be very good at creating the illusions that people most desire and yearn for? But don't you think it's too fake? With just a little thought, basically no one would fall for this kind of trick, let alone go near that mirror... Your acting skills are even worse than that giant centipede."

Igris was referring to a giant centipede with a thousand faces, though she might not recognize it.

"What deception? I've never lied to you about anything."

It pushed Igris's gun barrel aside and said sincerely.

"Isn't this the kind of happiness that people yearn for? I've never hidden the fact that all of this is a lie, but so what? There will always be people who willingly face this lie, at least in their final moments, they can truly experience that longed-for warmth and happiness. Igris...aren't you one of them? You've tried countless times to end your life, just to escape this world, but now, this opportunity is right in front of you. You can not only leave this world, but you can even enjoy the happy life you deserve. Why are you hesitating? You shouldn't hesitate."

“I didn’t hesitate, because this isn’t everything I wanted.”

Igris paused for a moment, then continued.

“I understand what you’re saying, and I do know that many people don’t have any choice at all. They die in cold despair, never experiencing this so-called happiness and warmth. But you’ve come to the wrong person… What I want has never been my own peace and happiness, family, or kinship. Those are too far away from me and will not be my reason or desire to waver.”

Looking at the figure in front of her that was almost identical to herself, Igris finally put down her weapon.

"Because you got it wrong from the beginning. You are not me, and I am not you."

"Ha... This is complicated. I don't understand you humans. You're not the first person to refuse me. From now on, I'm at your mercy. Kill me? Or let me go back into the mirror?"

Hearing its words, Igris raised an eyebrow slightly.

How long have you been here?

"How should I know? There's no clock here, and it's almost always dark. You're the second person I've seen since I got here."

Who was the first one?

It adopted Igris's appearance, striking a thoughtful pose, and slowly raised its chin.

"Don't tell you."

"..."

Okay, now it's time for Igris' favorite part: persuasion.

I wonder if this guy can handle it.

The Gods' Fool's Play - The Castle's Invitation: Chapter Seventeen, A Sense of Disparity and Déjà Vu

"You really have the heart to do that... You're the one who's hurting yourself."

"But I'm not the one in pain."

After a period of friendly communication, Igris finally stopped and looked at her other self, who was sitting on the ground looking aggrieved.

Although she does appear to feel guilty, the other party is, after all, just an anomaly, and even if she kills her, Igris won't have any other thoughts.

"Can you tell me now?"

"I guess I'm just unlucky to have run into you..."

Seeing that Igris was starting to warm up again, it hurriedly waved its hand.

“Nanco! His name is Nanco Noval. The illusion he presents in the mirror is very ordinary. It's just a family living an ordinary life together. There's nothing special about it... no wealth, no dreams, just this kind of picture.”

"Southern University of Science and Technology...?"

It's possible that Nan Ke once fell into confusion and hesitation, and even tried to end his life? Perhaps his emaciated body is also closely related to this.

But what is his wish? To live a normal life with his family?

If there were no castles, no wealth or dreams, and not even anything about the Noval family in his fantasy, then what he really wanted was to completely shed all the glory of his family and live like an ordinary person.

Nan Ke wasn't indifferent to his family; on the contrary, he cared too much about it, too much about the constraints his family imposed on him, on his family members, and on his brothers.

In other words... what he might want isn't to pass the heavy responsibility of being the head of the family to his brother? Rather... to free everyone from this sense of mission that they have to bear?

"...But why did he reject you?"

"Because he told me."

Its body, which had just looked exactly like Igris's, transformed into Nanko in the next instant and spoke slowly.

"Everything there is indeed wonderful, but I can't give anything to everyone. The fate of the Noval family will not stop. As long as this name exists, no one can be freed."

After saying that, it turned back into Igris.

That's what he said.

"..."

Igris didn't speak, but then something suddenly occurred to her.

Nan Ke said that he had only recently graduated and returned to the castle. Before that, he had been studying in another city. So, if we calculate according to the normal timeline, Nan Ke must have come to the basement at most three days ago and encountered this mirror and all of this.

But neither the locked basement door nor the thick layer of dust on the stairs suggested that someone had been frequently coming and going in the near future.

Moreover, Nan Ke once said that he did not notice that the basement door was locked. Either the door was indeed locked recently, or Nan Ke lied and locked the door himself.

But if that's really the case, then what is his true purpose?

He had no reason to harm his own family. If he truly only wanted to rid everyone in the Noval family of that meaningless mission and honor, then as the head of the family, he would have been more powerful and capable of doing so.

Everything he did was so contradictory that Igris couldn't understand what he was trying to do at all.

But it's pointless; there's no doubt that Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) has problems.

More importantly, why did he insist on inviting Olivia to help? They are indeed friends, and if Nanko really intended to make a move at the birthday party, then Olivia would undoubtedly be in danger as well, which is the most inappropriate thing to do.

So, does that mean he might really need Olivia's help, or something else?

"May I leave now...?"

Just as Igris was deep in thought, another version of herself sitting on the ground interrupted her thoughts and said pitifully.

"Don't talk to me like that, it makes me feel a little disgusted."

"This is your own body, isn't it? Besides, isn't this how you usually are?"

After seeing Igris's warning gaze, it had no choice but to quiet down, hugging its legs and staring blankly out of boredom.

"Can you leave here?"

"?"

Seeing its puzzled look, Igris added.

"What I mean is, leave this basement and go somewhere else."

"That won't do. I'm a mirror image. What will I do without the mirror? Scare people?"

It shook its head, indicating its resistance.

"So you can actually do it?"

What exactly do you want?

"Since you can impersonate me, can't you also impersonate someone else?"

Hearing this, it probably understood what Igris meant and shook its head vigorously.

“I won’t do it. That would be deceiving others, but I won’t lie. Nothing I say will work. You might as well kill me.”

Igjulis has seen many anomalies, and among those anomalies there are some like this that defy certain rules. However, it is indeed rare for one to actively seek death, unless its death will have some special effect.

What would happen if I broke the mirror?