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

"Oh dear? Now that the murderer has come forward, let's quickly vote on his execution. Everyone should have a button on their phone now; just press it to carry out the execution."

—Buttons… What a twisted bastard, and he even included me in that?

Chang Rong looked at the phone in her hand. The original screen had been replaced with a light gray button, with the word "Execution" simply and directly written in the center of the button.

There is no buffer, no self-deception, and no escape.

Place your finger on the button and press it continuously, watching the scarlet liquid fill the button.

Accompanied by a short, mournful cry, like the chanting of angels, everyone became accomplices at that moment.

Volume 1: Chapter 18. Remnants of Love

Rumble rumble rumble—

A dull rumble emanated from the gear-shaped base in the center of the courtroom. The platform that had originally been supported by spikes slowly sank, and a new platform rose up in front of everyone.

"Target, target...?"

Upon seeing the scene before her, Emma Sakuraba's body trembled violently.

It was a massive target, surrounded by angel sculptures and purple roses, appearing incredibly holy at first glance. But even so, it couldn't change its essential nature as an execution platform.

"Don't look so stiff, Chang Rong. I much preferred your adorable, deliberately mature look during the court hearings~"

Even as he was escorted to the execution platform by guards, Baosheng Mag still wore that smile and said to Chang Rong in a half-joking manner.

“Marg…”

Nikaido Hiro gritted her teeth and stared intently at the girl who was about to be executed. She was furious, but she didn't know who she wanted to vent her anger on.

Unlike the girls with their varied expressions, the heretical monster known as the 'Guardian' silently performed its duties, binding Baosheng Mag's limbs to the four opposite corners of the target, making him stand in a 'T' shape in front of the target.

"What is this, a knife-throwing performance in a circus? You bastard..."

"Hmm... but it's different from the circus, right? After all, the circus has to avoid living people, but now—"

"...Ugh! Stop talking, Gorilla Girl!"

Everyone could foresee what was going to happen next, and some of them had already turned their heads away from watching Baosheng Mag's fate.

"Oh my, how exciting! Such vulgar taste, such a crude method~?"

Marge on the target still wore her radiant smile and continued to tease in a flippant tone, until—

Boom! ! !

A dull thud echoed as the wooden target was struck and pierced through. A heavy crossbow bolt shot out from nowhere, grazing Baosheng Mag's cheek and embedding itself deeply in the target.

The moment Baosheng Mag turned her head even slightly, her skull was pierced through.

Thump! Thump! Thump! ^-Already flowed and scattered two sins>Thump! ! !

"—Waaah!"

The crossbow bolts were fired one after another, but they all merely pierced through her kimono and grazed her skin.

More terrifying than death itself is the process of waiting for it. The Damocles' sword of threat truly gnawed at Baoshengmag, and the smile on her face vanished without her noticing.

"Meruru...she really is a good girl."

As the arrow pierced the skin and struck the target, Baosheng Mag began to murmur.

"She took such good care of me, crying and begging me not to die, happily holding my hand and congratulating me on my recovery... Ah, if I could, I would have wanted to possess her, to bind everything about her to my side. I loved her so much, so in the end, I killed her, made her my possession, and let her know my love—"

"fraud……!"

Nikaido Hiro interrupted Hosho Mag.

"A liar? Too bad, this is my true love—"

"Yes, a scammer!!"

Hiro interrupted Baosheng Mag again with an even louder roar.

"You call this 'love'? You must be kidding me!"

--wrong

"You don't 'love' Meruru at all!!"

—The love she spoke of…

"The love you speak of is nothing but a lie, just like you—an erroneous and false thing made of hypocrisy!!"

—The 'truth' hidden beneath her lies...

"You have no idea what love is!!!"

—The vision she truly wanted to pray for…

"No! No, no! I understand, I understand! This is my love!!" Faced with Hiro's loud rebuttal, Baosheng Mag completely shed all pretense and shouted in a panic.

"Well~ I don't really understand what love is either, but even I wouldn't kill someone just because I fall in love with them~? Mag, your actions are simply to make Meruru disappear, right?" Tachibana Sherry said, resting her chin on her hand and tilting her head.

"No, no! I—"

"Exactly, exactly! Just honestly admit that you can't stand Meruru's saintly attitude, so you accidentally killed her—wouldn't that be easier for everyone?" Zedu Coco stuck out her tongue.

No one would take another's life simply because they "dislike" it.

"No, no! That's not right! Don't deny my love! Don't... [love me]!"

After a near-screaming roar, Baosheng Mag stared wide-eyed, revealing a tense and panicked expression that even he himself was unaware of.

"I...what did I say..."

Accompanied by murmurs, Baosheng Mag's body underwent a visible transformation.

Its cheeks cracked and peeled off, its hands twisted, and its nails visibly lengthened. The dark, twisted flesh clung wildly to the girl's fair skin, devouring the being that was once called Baosheng Mag.

The taboo that Baosheng Mag unintentionally uttered became the key, completely opening the door to witchhood.

—No one should become a monster because of past wounds.

"Ugh... Ughhhhhh—!?"

The girls screamed at the sight before them. Their naive fantasies that 'prospective witches' could never become 'witches' were all mercilessly shattered on the execution platform before them.

Baosheng Mag, who was a companion just a few days ago, has now become a witch in front of everyone.

—Witch, witch… I hate this, I always hate it, I've always hated it, so…

【Rong, this is my 'original sin'. Even after witnessing all this, do you still want to continue?】

—So I will continue

There were no more empty spots on the target, and the next crossbow bolt would undoubtedly pierce through the witch before them.

But before the crossbow bolts could be fired, Chang Rong took action first.

"You liar!"

The white-haired boy leaped off the judge's bench like a rabbit, roaring as he charged straight at the witch.

"Chang Rong—hey, what are you doing!?"

Nikaido Hiro was startled by this sudden scene. She yelled and tried to stop Chang Rong, but she didn't have time to react.

"...Brother?"

The witch frowned slightly, unable to comprehend this unexpected farce.

"Didn't you call yourself a con artist? Didn't you think you could fool everyone? Then what's going on now—wailing!"

The guard rushed to Chang Rong and effortlessly pinned him to the ground.

"You idiot rabbit...!!!" Hiro couldn't sit still any longer. She quickly scanned her surroundings and her gaze immediately locked onto Hasumi Rhea, or more precisely, the sword at Rhea's waist.

As luck would have it, at almost the same time, Hasumi Ryoya drew her sword, swallowed hard, and prepared to charge at the guard.

The girls had witnessed the power of the guardians before; it was an existence that a 'prospective witch' could not contend with. It was like a toddler facing an adult; there was no 'equal' relationship whatsoever.

"Wait, wait a minute, Shiro-chan and Leia-chan! That guard didn't hurt Changrong-kun...!"

Sakura Emma frantically grabbed Hiro2, and at this moment everyone finally noticed that the guards who should have mercilessly killed them were now only suppressing Chang Rong.

Is it a problem with not meeting the kill agreement? Or is it something else...?

Kurobe Nanoha, who was gritting her teeth and raising her spear at the back of the crowd, froze on the spot when she saw what was happening in front of her, her face filled with disbelief.

None of this commotion affected Chang Rong; he simply continued shouting at the witch.

"A liar should have the awareness of a liar! Keep deceiving everyone with lies until the very end! Crying and screaming about meaningless things like 'Don't love me,' are you really the self-proclaimed con artist, Baosheng Mag? Or are you something corrupted by something, something that's already broken?"

"I……"

Yes, why am I yelling like that? It's not pretty at all.

Why reveal your 'taboo' so directly? This is not something that can be easily said.

"Whatever's influencing you, you're just going to accept it like that? Turn into a witch? Don't be ridiculous, I won't accept that!"

Oh dear... it seems my 'farewell' was too ugly, even Brother Chang Rong couldn't stand it anymore?

But he's right. Even if I become a witch, I'm still me. Not a puppet that can be easily controlled and manipulated.

Even if I can never truly know what 'love' is, I will still love (deceive) this world in my own way.

This is the true existence of the one named Baosheng Mag.

That's why—

"Hey, Chang Rong... I love you!"

Boom!

The sound of crossbow bolts rang out again, this time piercing not the wooden target, but the witch's heart.

Seeing the boy's surprised expression, Baosheng Mag finally smiled again.

Haha, the astonished expression on the face of someone who's been scammed is something I could watch countless times without getting tired of it.

So, are you... satisfied with this lie, the final act of a con artist?