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

This place stands in stark contrast to the lifeless castle, with signs of life everywhere.

"Hey Watson, there really are rabbits!" "If we could catch them and braise them, it would be delicious..."

"There are birds over there! Not those disgusting birds like the warden owl, but real little birds!" "They would be delicious if we could catch them and barbecue them..."

"And there are sunflowers too!" "If we could pluck them and roast the seeds, they would be delicious..."

"Hehehe, there are beetles here too!" "If we could catch them and deep-fry them, they would definitely taste better than the cafeteria food..."

"Hey, Mr. Hua, remember I'm going to grit my teeth and punch you to death?" "Master! Why? President, why!"

On their grand investigation, the blue-haired detective girl cheerfully offered her innocent and adorable observations about everything she saw. Meanwhile, the white-haired boy beside her was drooling and lost in all sorts of culinary hallucinations until Sherry threatened to punch him in the head, bringing him back to his senses.

"I'm starting to wonder which of us is the 'fake' one. Is it really possible for someone to be like that in this world, having nothing but wilderness survival recipes on their mind while hiking with such a beautiful, intelligent, reliable, and earnest girl?"

Shirley Tachibana, hands on her hips, complained to Chang Rong with dissatisfaction.

"I'm more curious about why you club presidents and others can tolerate the food in the cafeteria so much..."

Chang Rong muttered a complaint under her breath, but quickly succumbed to Tachibana Sherry's tyranny and chose to submit and remain silent about eating and drinking.

Before long, the two arrived at the lake that Nanoha had mentioned. The lake was quietly nestled in a serene, verdant forest, and the clean, clear water contained almost no foreign objects.

"I'm a little curious about the source of the lake, but the upstream part is blocked by a wall."

Chang Rong frowned as he looked at the magic-free wall beside the lake.

"There aren't many fish in the lake, what a pity, Watson," said Tachibana Sherry, standing by the lake and shining a magnifying glass into the water.

—What is this, is this some kind of entrapment? If I answer 'I wish I could grill fish,' will I get knocked out immediately?

Haha, you've really been underestimated! My favorite thing to do, Chang Rong, is to say NO to those arrogant people!

"NO!"

"...?"

...At least he only received a glare from the club president, who looked at him like he was an idiot.

"But I've always been curious – is this island really just a 'prison'? It feels more like a place like a summer resort that has been forcibly converted into a prison."

Chang Rong looked around the wall and found that only this wall could be called a 'man-made' structure; the rest of the surrounding environment was completely natural.

Including an old, strange castle, outdated entertainment facilities and decor, and a stunningly beautiful flower field... Rather than calling it a prison for witches, it's more like a paradise that fits the concept of 'witch'.

The reason why the mysterious figure on the ice went to such great lengths to find the Great Witch is that she chose to place the prison in this location. Could it be that this island itself is the property of that 'Great Witch'?

If that's the case—

"Watson, Watson~~"

Chang Rong sighed and turned to look in the direction of the voice, her thoughts interrupted by Miss Holmes.

"What's wrong, President?"

The words in his mouth were forcibly silenced.

It wasn't because Shirley Tachibana had used him as a grip strength test and lifted him up high again, but rather because the scene before him had completely overloaded his brain.

That eccentric blue-haired pseudo-detective, at this moment, once again—stripped down to only his pure white underwear.

She stood in the shallow water of the pond, her body soaked by the clear lake water. The water flowed down her hair, wetting her only remaining clothing and clinging it to her skin, vaguely revealing a touch of allure that shouldn't be seen by others.

Although the scar on her lower abdomen was still there, the injury had almost healed. Therefore, at this moment, Shirley Tachibana had no 'extra elements' that could distract Chang Rong from her gaze. She simply displayed her fair and beautiful body, which shimmered slightly as it was sculpted by the water.

"Oh my, I was wondering how much willpower Nanoha Kaori must have to take a bath in a place like this, but the actual experience is really great! The water temperature is just right, not icy cold, and it feels so smooth and comfortable~!"

"Ugh... What are you doing?!"

Chang Rong hurriedly looked away and questioned the blue-haired idiot about what had gotten into him during the reprogramming.

"Hmm... Hmph hmph~"

Seeing the white-haired boy's embarrassed and evasive appearance, Shirley Tachibana smiled.

"Hey Watson, wanna join me for a bath? Bathing in the same lake as the head of the detective agency is something most people don't get to experience, you know?"

"There's no one else in our detective agency, right!? And wait, stop messing around, Tachibana! Do you have some kind of exhibitionist fetish—ugh!?"

Pfft!

Chang Rong was suddenly grabbed by the arm by a force, and fell forward into the lake. Tachibana Sherry followed suit, falling backward into the lake as well.

The feeling of weightlessness and falling forced Chang Rong to open his eyes. In that instant, he saw the 'fake' wearing human skin at almost zero distance.

The blue-haired girl, who fancied herself a detective, was now pinned beneath him, most of her body submerged in the lake, her blue hair now scattered in the water from the commotion, resembling the petals of a blooming sky-blue rose.

The white-haired boy's reflection could be clearly seen in his amber eyes, and if one looked closely, one could also see the blush on the boy's cheeks.

The forest, which had been filled with birdsong and the sounds of animals darting about in the bushes, suddenly seemed to be muted. All that could be heard now was the sound of water dripping from their temples and their breathing.

“Although I have absolutely no idea how to please and tease others as a ‘human,’ it seems I did quite well this time, right, Watson?”

Lying in the lake, Shirley Tachibana looked at the gray eyes of the boy who had tackled her, a slight smile playing on her lips, and said softly.

"This time is different from the time in the punishment room before...!"

Chang Rong swallowed hard and retorted guiltily. He wanted to get up immediately and break free from this terrible position, but he didn't want to look away and appreciate the beautiful moment when the 'fake' truly became human.

It's really strange. I've seen Tachibana Sherry like this before, but this time is completely different from the time in the punishment room.

"In that case, I've won this battle of wits! I've made you, Watson, truly see me as a 'human,' right? Right~?"

"If this is all an act, then I truly accept my defeat wholeheartedly, President..." Chang Rong replied softly, her face flushed. At this point, there was no point in stubbornly denying it.

"Yes, what if it's a disguise..."

Although she still couldn't figure out what this palpitation meant, and although she couldn't see what kind of expression she was making in the boy's eyes.

But... seeing the blush creeping onto his cheeks, Tachibana Sherry suddenly felt incredibly happy. Because of herself, this 'non-human being,' she had successfully made the boy see her as 'human.'

As expected... Even if he said 'it doesn't matter if I don't pretend in front of him,' even if he would indeed accept all of 'Tachibana Sherry'... I still want to show my 'human' side.

Heh, what an awkward, selfish, greedy, and shameless guy. He's clearly a defective product that's far from being 'human,' and my acting is full of flaws in front of him, but even so—I still want to be 'Sherry Tachibana'.

"Tell me, Watson. If we were truly 'human,' what should I do next in a situation that you will never forget?"

"Even if you asked me this question, I wouldn't know—"

Before the white-haired boy could answer, Shirley roughly grabbed Chang Rong's neck, pressed him in front of her, and kissed him without hesitation.

"--is that so?"

After a brief moment of close contact followed by separation, Shirley Tachibana smiled and asked Chang Rong.

"Of course, of course—"

Just as Chang Rong was frantically trying to figure out how to respond, he saw something strange in his line of sight.

Twisted and eerie, dressed in a long, pure black dress resembling tattered rags, studded with rotten flowers covered in thorns, holding a sun umbrella covered in spikes, the 'guardian' with an inhuman face stood silently by the lake.

No, that thing isn't a 'guardian,' it's 'wreckage'—

It is the witches' final 'end'.

Volume 1: 94. Am I now... qualified to be a [human]?

"Hey, what's wrong, Watson—hmm?"

While still playfully asking Chang Rong if she was human or a god, Shirley Tachibana also noticed the white-haired boy's strange behavior.

She immediately got up from the shallow water, wringing the water droplets from her hair as she followed Chang Rong's gaze to look at the guard not far away, who was covered in withered flowers and held a parasol covered in spikes.

"Seriously, I didn't expect there to be guards here too? Does this mean that the way I only intended to show Watson has been seen by others as well? I'm so angry!"

As always, Shirley Tachibana spoke in a carefree manner, while picking up the clothes that were placed aside and quickly changing her clothes, ignoring her wet skin.

"No...that thing doesn't seem to be a guard—"

Chang Rong swallowed hard and slowly took out his phone to send a group text message.

"Not a guard? What's that... Oh, it's 'remains,' right? I remember the warden once said that when aspiring witches are executed, they can't die a quick death because of their witch-like immortality. Under extreme pain and torture, they become 'remains,' mindless, thoughtless, and immortal walking corpses?"

Shirley Tachibana rested her chin on one hand, pondering the warden's words.

“That’s right, that thing is probably wreckage… Although I don’t know why wreckage would wander into a place like this, let’s retreat slowly and stay away from that thing.”

For some reason, the moment Chang Rong saw the 'wreckage', she felt an instinctive urge to vomit and feel unwell, but now was clearly not the right time to empty her stomach.

"Hey~? How about I go up and give it a punch?" Shirley Tachibana once again struck a pose as if she was about to give them a good beating, and said eagerly.

"Don't drag me down with you if you want to die, President. You'd better get rid of that bad habit of punching me the first thing you do when you meet me..."

While complaining, Chang Rong pulled Tachibana Sherry back to slowly distance herself from the wreckage.

"Why don't we try communicating with it? Maybe it's actually a neutral, benevolent monster, and whoever becomes friends first is the good guy or something~"

"How could there possibly be such a convenient feature?"

"How about we try throwing a Poké Ball at it?"

"Seriously, stop joking..."

Chang Rong felt very uncomfortable. She couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong, but whenever she saw the 'wreckage,' she felt a sharp pain in her brain that made her want to vomit.

Chang Rong pulled Ju Shirley along, carefully observing the 'wreckage' while constantly increasing the distance between them.

Fortunately, the remains wrapped in withered flowers simply stood there, looking at the two with its eerie 'face,' without suddenly launching an attack.

Just keep backing away slowly, slowly, and that will be fine.

"Watson really underestimated me! If it were Rhea, she would definitely yell 'Don't you dare hurt my top fan Chang Rong!' and then coolly draw her sword to confront him, right?"

"Even if it were Rhea-sama, I'd drag her away! Don't forget this thing is immortal. If it gets targeted, there's no chance of 'winning,' okay!? Rather—be careful!!!"

"Whoa!?"

Pfft! !

Chang Rong and Tachibana Sherry were chatting away when, for some reason, the 'wreckage' that had been standing still and dazed just a second ago suddenly rushed towards them.

The three sharp, cold spikes in its hand transformed into a giant axe, which it swung directly at the two of them. Chang Rong desperately pushed Ju Shirley away, and the spot where the two of them were standing was instantly shattered by that incomprehensible, monstrous force.

"Hiss hiss hiss ghhh—"

The wreckage emitted incomprehensible, distorted sounds in the air. Although they were incomprehensible, even Shirley Tachibana could tell that this thing had no possibility of 'communication'.