Whose youth romance story begins with a witch's trial?!

Kurobe Nanoka pried open the door and gestured for Chang Rong to come in. Chang Rong smiled and nodded, preparing to enter the room. Then she stopped and turned to look at the black-haired girl with twin tails.

"Hmm? What's wrong, Chang Rong?" Kurobe Nanoha Kaori tilted her head and put the 'sewing kit' she used for picking locks back into her waist pouch in response.

"No, no, no, this is my bedroom! Why are you so skilled at picking locks, Kurobe-kun, and so welcomingly inviting me into my own room?!"

Chang Rong pointed at the door lock and complained loudly. Although he was already somewhat numb to the strange things that had been added to the bedroom, Kurobe Nanoha's behavior was still too outrageous for him to handle.

"Because I don't have a key?" After thinking for a few seconds, Kurobe Nanoha tilted her head and asked innocently in response.

"..."

—Her answer was so perfect that I couldn't find any point to refute it...!

"Forget it, you shouldn't pick locks anymore. I'll give you the key—wait, what?" Chang Rong reached into his pocket and found that there was only one key to the study.

"What's wrong?" Kurobe Nanoha Kaori skillfully took off her hat, untied her fanny pack and put it aside, then plopped down on the sofa bed and asked curiously.

"No...it's nothing. And Kurobe-kun, never mind, it's nothing either."

Although I vaguely remember that there were two keychains at the beginning, it is possible that I misremembered the number from the start.

And if you think about it carefully, for Kurobe Nanoha Kaori, opening a door with a key might not be as fast or skillful as picking a lock.

As for Ye Xiang's reaction—being even more relaxed than in her own cell—Qi Chang'er Rong felt it was completely unnecessary (complaining). She managed to sneak in late at night and fall asleep on the table, so what could you possibly say to her?

It's best to accept the sad fact that your bedroom is essentially the same as a public restroom...

Chang Rong sighed and sat down at the desk next to the sofa. At the same time, she took out the to-do list from the drawer and added "Find the Great Witch" and "Confirm the 'Forbidden'" to it. After thinking for a moment, she added another line: "Control everyone's witch transformation progress".

After pondering for a moment, Chang Rong directly crossed out the (裠鸠霖瘤是六霓吧2紦【换七门锁）) instrument. At this moment, the master learned to reconcile with 'impossible things'.

A murder occurred in this room a few days ago, and just the day before the murder, I had chatted with the victim here.

The reason why Xia Ermu An's death was largely due to the fact that Sawatari witnessed An's murder in the first timeline, which was orchestrated by Emma because Emma had violated a taboo. Therefore, he also had the same preconceived notion that An was the murderer who wanted to kill him.

If we can find each other's 'taboos' and be mindful of them, can we avoid the outcome of fighting each other?

Rhea-sama voluntarily told me about her taboo. Can I pass it on to others? Does her sharing her taboo mean she has actually overcome this trauma?

Speaking of which, what are Kurobe-kun's taboos? According to Coco's information, she was murdered in a basement freezer while searching for clues, and was even brutally dismembered...

A sense of panic and dread washed over Chang Rong. Just imagining the scene of 'everyone being killed' made Chang Rong feel dizzy and nauseous.

Looking at myself now, I realize I'm not as strong as I thought (as I imagined myself to be...)... No matter what, I can't accept any more sacrifices. If anyone else leaves, I probably really will—

Chang Rong turned her gaze toward Kurobe Nanoha Kaori as if seeking help, only to find that this self-proclaimed 'lone wolf fighting alone' had fallen asleep again in the blink of an eye.

Nanoha Kurobe leaned back on the sofa, her body slightly tilted to the right, her head drooping on her right shoulder. Her chest rose and fell with soft breaths, the rhythm steady and soothing, which at least proved that she was not having a nightmare.

—I always felt that Kurobe really liked sleeping here... even though it was a murder scene just now.

However, considering that Nanoha Kaori is still 'wanted by the warden', she probably doesn't have many opportunities to rest peacefully when she's alone.

In other words, Kurobe can feel 'safe' in this small room, and it is because she can relax her tense nerves that she always falls asleep drooling.

But... can I really reciprocate the Kurobe's trust? Can I really end this 'torturous dog shit drama'? I don't even know what happened to me...

Chang Rong got up and gently walked to Kurobe Nanoha Kaori's side, looking at the girl's peaceful sleeping face with a myriad of thoughts.

Tsk... What a fussy person! What's the use of overthinking? Get to work, Chang Rong, you need to do something big!

Wasn't I personally chosen as an 'accomplice' by Kurobe-kun? Wasn't I Coco-chan's chosen 'number two favorite'? In that case, I have to uncover all the secrets hidden in this prison!

Right, Kurobe-kun?

Chang Rong tried to reason with herself while looking at Kurobe Nanoka.

As he looked at her, Liu's gaze gradually focused and converged, finally settling on the girl with black hair and twin ponytails leaning against the sofa, her chest rising and falling.

"...Mmm..."

My throat involuntarily swallowed saliva, and even my breathing became rapid.

Chang Rong carefully closed the distance with Kurobe Nanoha, afraid that this 'wildcat' who liked to roam around in the jungle would be startled and scared away.

Gently raising his right hand, he slowly touched it towards Kurobe Nanoha, and could even feel that 'pulsation' becoming more and more obvious.

And just as Chang Rong was about to touch it—

"Hmm...hmm?"

The drool dripping from the corner of her mouth onto the back of her drooping hand woke up Kurobe Nanoha, who was only in a light sleep.

The girl blinked her light gray eyes, which still held a hint of confusion, and met the gaze of the white-haired boy who also had light gray pupils.

More precisely, their eyes met those of the white-haired boy who was aiming at the chest with his right hand outstretched.

"——" "——"

Chang Rong sensed that his omen of death was flashing incessantly, like a beloved ring.

"[False Evidence]: Kurobe-kun, you have a pom-pom on your other clothes that looks like it's from a bottle of ramen. I can easily remove it for you—" "Okay."

Chang Rong and Kurobe Nanoha spoke in unison, and Chang Rong's eyes widened instantly upon hearing the words from the girl in front of her.

"Um... what did you just say, Kurobe-kun?"

I must have been hallucinating.

Chang Rong blinked and asked Kurobe Nanoha to repeat it, and the girl in front of her did not object or resist.

She merely glanced away slightly, raised her bandaged left hand to half-cover her mouth, and a blush appeared on her cheeks.

"Sure... if it's you, Chang Rong."

"Is it...?" Chang Rong felt her breathing quicken.

"Hmm—since you're already my 'accomplice,' I... don't mind dragging you down even further... into depravity."

Nanoha Kurobe's tone sounded ethereal, but even so, the girl mustered her strength to suppress her burning cheeks and spoke to the white-haired boy.

"Since you've put it that way, Kurobe-kun—"

Chang Rong finally made up her mind.

He continued to reach forward with his right hand, which had been fixed in mid-air, and finally touched the pocket on Kurobe Nanoha's chest.

Carefully unbuttoning the breast pocket, cautiously reaching inside with two fingers, and carefully picking up the half-bag of cookies that had been confiscated earlier—

"Hehehe, I'll just take one sip, just one gulp!!"

"Chang Rong, are you... are you really an idiot...?!"

Chang Rong, who had just gotten his hands on 99% pure high-quality goods, didn't even have time to make a run for it before he was knocked to the ground by Kurobe Nanoha, whose blush had turned into a warm red, and half a bag of cookies was snatched back from him.

"Kurobe-nee, I really only want one bite... wait, when you said 'okay,' weren't you referring to the cookie—?"

"Drown while hugging your cafeteria porridge...!"

Thump! Kurobe Nanoka slammed the door shut and left.

Nanoha Kurobe opened the door again, grabbed her fallen hat and waist bag, and then slammed the door shut again.

Click!

"Oh, right, you...you lost my spear, and we haven't settled that score yet...I'll remember you...I'll always remember you..."

Nanoha Kurobe made a gesture to Chang Rong that said, "You'll always be under my watchful eye," then took the blanket from the sofa, closed the door again, and disappeared.

"..."

Chang Rong could only stand there dumbfounded, like a helpless husband, watching as Kurobe Nanoha Kaori once again snatched away her intimate partner.

Years later, Chang Rong still recalls that moment when, as a true Sigma man, he chose "caramel cookies" over "breast massage".

"Ugh...!"

Chang Rong, feeling as if she had lost something, began to wriggle on the ground.

------

After leaving the study, the humanoid rice dumpling, Kurobe Nanoha, skillfully navigated the castle's secret passages and returned to her hidden warehouse hideout.

Thinking back to how I had just realized I had become completely complicit in the whole affair, and how I had accepted the invitation from the white-haired rabbit to become an accomplice, it turned out that it was all just a one-sided misunderstanding on my part...

"Ugh...!"

Kurobe Nanoka collapsed onto the bedding and began to writhe and twist.

"—"

"...!"

Just as Kurobe Nanoha was burying her head in the blankets, trying to strangle them, a terrifying and eerie guard suddenly emerged from the corner.

Nanoha Kurobe was startled at first and instinctively wanted to escape through the ventilation duct, but after noticing the headband on the 'guard's' head, Nanoha Kurobe breathed a sigh of relief, and her tense body instantly relaxed.

"Big sister..."

Nanoha Kurobe got up from the bedding, walked to the 'hairband guardian', and said a name that no one would have expected to this monster—'older sister'.

"..."

The headband guard seemed to truly understand Kurobe Nanoha's words. It did not attack her because of her 'forbidden behavior'. In fact, the headband guard even put its terrifying giant scythe aside, perhaps to prevent accidentally injuring Nanoha.

This is a secret that Kurobe Nanoha has been hiding from everyone, and it's also the reason why she can break the prison rules and get away with it.

That's right, prison life isn't about fighting and killing, but about interpersonal relationships and social interactions. No matter how good you are at fighting, you're still just a glass cannon with high damage output from both sides. If you break prison taboos, you'll still have to obediently go to jail.

But what if you've won over the guard, or the guard is actually your family member?

So even if you stay out all night, even if you cause a scene at the execution ground, someone will still find a way to save you.

This is the dark truth of Prison Island, another side of the witch's trial and magic cheese.

"Big sister... I... I was... dumped—"

Kurobe Nanoha sat beside the guard, dejectedly talking to herself.

"It's not even fair to say I was 'dumped,' Chang Rong never even saw me that way..."

"—"

The headband-wearing guard raised his tentacle-like, twisted arm and gently stroked it on Kurobe Nanoha's hat.

The once terrifying guard, capable of taking down Hiro Nikaido with a single strike, now seemed like an ordinary older sister to Nanoha Kurobe, listening to her younger sister's troubles.