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

The warehouse, which was originally neatly arranged with various shelves and items, is now a complete mess, as if a bull has pushed it in and is rampaging through the area, with scattered items and collapsed shelves everywhere.

Among the messy cargo lay the remains of two heads with damaged controllers.

No, none of that matters—

He vowed to protect her and wanted to find an opportunity to tell her what true 'filial piety' meant. Finally, he mustered up the courage to try to help others.

At this moment, the colorful girl lay among the messy goods, in a cruel position as if she had been severed from the chest, with blood-red butterflies fluttering from the severed end, filling half the warehouse with a blood-red dance.

Having decided to confront her feelings and stop dodging the issue, the dazzling idol Hasumi Ryoua, who intended to seriously inquire about her resolve, now slumped in a corner of the warehouse. Her throat had been pierced, and her once radiant eyes, which would henceforth exist solely to attract her attention, had become dull and lifeless.

Meanwhile, the overly shy and introverted girl, Kurobe Nanoha, who possessed terrifying drive but lacked the courage to finish the job, and who pretended to be mature but was still naive, lay on the ground, her severed arm still tightly gripping the magic spear.

Surrounded by crimson butterflies and amidst the piles of corpses and remains of the prepared witches, the guard with the headband stood motionless before Kurobe Nanoha, gripping an overly terrifying scythe.

"What is this... This is... a joke, right..."

"Aaaaaaah—Aaaaaaaahh ...

A wail that could no longer even be called a 'scream' came from Chang Rong's mouth.

"[Coo coo coo... It seems there's been a murder at the warehouse... Hmm, is it really a murder? It feels like the guards carried out a deliberate execution? I have absolutely no idea what's going on. But this seems a bit familiar, doesn't it, Mr. Chang Rong?]"

The warden's words were devoid of any emotion; they were simply a statement of facts.

It feels familiar... Yes, it feels familiar...

Chang Rong, who had thought she could finally live the "Gala Gemu life," stood silently in the warehouse. The swirling magic that Noah had cast on her blood to prevent anyone from being frightened was now flying out of her body, looking more like a silent mockery.

Volume 1: Chapter 135. The Witch's Trial... We must continue.

"【How is it, Mr. Changrong? Can you speedrun it as usual this time? Although it doesn't seem like a murder case, gugugu... Oh dear, Mr. Changrong? You seem completely unable to accept the current situation.】"

Inside the previously hidden warehouse, the warden owl was talking to himself, but he soon noticed Chang Rong's strange behavior. The white-haired boy seemed to have frozen in place, as if he was completely shocked by what he was seeing and unable to move.

"【[Coo coo coo... You've encountered similar situations before, and your handling of them was clearly calm and efficient—well, that makes sense, since the time you spent with the victims that time was completely different from this one. Ah, Mr. Chang Rong not only finds the culprit before the witch trial even begins, but he can also lead the aspiring witches to live peacefully, which makes things much easier for me. This time too, you easily broke the record for a continuous period of peace and tranquility. It's just a pity that this situation still occurred in the end.]"

The warden wore a genuinely helpless and regretful expression; it seemed it wasn't the type to react with 'Hehe, what a strong smell of blood!'

"..."

"[Besides, this situation feels incredibly troublesome... Why were the guards who rushed over after receiving the alarm killed instead? Please spare me... Controllers are already difficult to obtain, install, and debug, and now there are two more gaps. If things get too serious, it will arouse suspicion and even attract attention... Sigh, anyway, I'll just broadcast a notification first.]"

The warden sighed, then fluttered away through the ventilation duct. Not long after, loudspeakers throughout Witch Island broadcast the news of the death.

It wasn't until the voice from the radio reached Chang Rong's ears that he barely regained a sliver of consciousness.

—I have to…I can’t just stand there…I have to do something.

Chang Rong forced himself to move again in this chaos. He moved forward through the collapsed shelves and scattered debris and came to Noah Kinosaki's side.

That dreamlike girl, as if she had stepped out of a canvas, that girl who, even though she was deprived of her 'right to paint' by magic, still wanted to create paintings for everyone, that innocent girl Noah Shirosaki who regarded herself as important and had her own little quirks—now lay motionless on the ground like a broken paintbrush, her iridescent eyes already tightly closed, and even the blood-red butterflies that flew out from the cut that severed her gradually dissipated.

Scattered beside the body of the girl who was once Noah were sketchbooks covered with various drawings, all works from the girl's personal art book. Among the sketchbooks were also yellowed, old pages, the writing on them strange and unfamiliar, seemingly witch script.

Chang Rong picked up a piece of drawing paper that had also been cut up. It depicted Chang Rong holding Arisa's hand by the bedside. Although the lines weren't 'delicate,' the scene was incredibly warm. But even that warmth was now torn and scattered like scrap paper.

"Ahhh...why, why did this happen...Noah...this 'injury,' this, this..."

She was forcibly cut in half—whenever Chang Rong realized this, she would feel dizzy and have the urge to vomit. The Noah Shirosaki in front of her could never come back; she couldn't even become whole again.

No…not just Noah, but also Rhea and Nanoha…and them…I have to…

Chang Rong gathered the scattered drawings into his pocket and desperately tried to stay conscious with the force of clenching his teeth. He forced himself to leave Noah's corpse and immediately went to the side of Ryoua Hasumi, who was slumped on the ground not far away.

That blonde prince-like idol girl who always wore a forcedly handsome, greasy but undeniably cool smile; that prankster superstar who tirelessly tried to attract Chang Rong's attention but was always rejected by Chang Rong; that girl who rejected everyone else's attention and only wanted Chang Rong's gaze... has also been completely and eternally asleep in this warehouse.

Ryota Hasumi's right wrist was fractured and twisted at an odd angle, as if it had been struck by some enormous force. Scattered around her was her sword, or more precisely, the 'sword fragments' that were bent and deformed, with the blade already broken off.

Ryota Hasumi wasn't wearing her usual dashing gold suit, which made her look like a knight in shining armor. Instead, she was wearing a light-colored, flowing princess dress. Although it seemed a bit out of place on her, anyone who didn't know the story would surely believe that she was the Sleeping Beauty from the fairy tale.

Hasumi Ryoa had several bruises, but the most direct and fatal wound seemed to be the one that pierced her throat, its shape resembling the twisted black tentacle-like hand of the guard. It could also have been pierced by the tip of the guard's scythe.

—I…I'll never hear Léa's voice again? I'll never see her perform again? That outfit must have been for a stage play. Léa wanted to be a 'princess,' so who would be her 'prince'? No…that question is meaningless, because I'll never see her perform on stage again…

Looking at the once-radiant blonde girl slumped motionless in front of him like an abandoned, mutilated mannequin, Chang Rong felt as if her brain had been completely filled with something viscous and heavy, making even thinking for a second an endless torment.

Never again could she touch Noah Kinosaki, never again could she rub Ryota Hasumi, never again could she see the painting of balloons, never again could she enjoy the performance of her favorite idol—these facts were like steel needles piercing her heart, and with each heartbeat, Chang Rong felt a pain as if she were being torn apart.

Despite the hard stone slabs beneath her feet, Chang Rong felt as if she were walking on cotton. Every step forward required her to exert all her strength, otherwise she would be swallowed up by everything and unable to move forward at all.

We still need to check on Nanoha's condition... Yes, Nanoha's condition too...

Chang Rong forced his head to look at the 'hairband guard' surrounded by blood-red butterflies, and the black-haired girl Kurobe Nanoha Kaori lying on the ground next to her, whose right hand and spear had been forcibly severed.

"Why are you here...? Could it be that you did all of this, Rhea-sama, Noah, Nanoha-ka...?"

"—"

Chang Rong and the guard with the hairband—the remains of the former Kurobe Nanoha Kaori—faced a standoff. No, it was less a 'standoff' and more like Chang Rong looking at the other with almost pleading eyes.

However, the guard with the hairband did not respond, nor could she. Faced with Chang Rong's questioning, the guard glanced at Nanoha Kaori beside her, and then chose to flee once again.

"Well……!"

The guards escaped from the warehouse in a bizarre yet remarkably swift manner, while at the same time the warden, who had just finished broadcasting, flapped his wings and flew back.

"【Coo coo...? Isn't that the guard? I clearly didn't give any orders, how did it suddenly run away...?】"

The warden was also taken aback by the headband guard's behavior, turning his head 90 degrees in bewilderment.

"+Izaki Ichiya is si (< 8) yue*yi Why is she here... Did she do all this...?"

Chang Rong questioned the warden while desperately trying to move to Kurobe Nanoha Kaori's side.

"【Sigh... I don't know either. Although that guard was brought over by Lady Meruru and does indeed possess higher intelligence than other guards, it seems to be frequently malfunctioning lately. Is it nearing the end of its service life? But it hasn't been used for very long.】"

The warden flapped his wings, pondering his response.

—Nanoha Kaori's older sister was turned into remains and then transformed into a guard… So, no one managed to escape the witch trial after all… But, but… Ugh! How exactly did Nanoha Kaori's older sister become remains? I can't remember at all…

A sharp pain shot through his brain. Although the nausea had persisted ever since Chang Rong arrived at the warehouse, the act of trying to piece together fragments of memory still caused him immense suffering.

In short, the more important thing right now is to confirm Naoka's body... huh?

"—Nanoha Kaori, Nanoha Kaori...she's still breathing...!!"

Chang Rong had given up all hope, but when he came to Kurobe Nanoha Kaori's side, the slight rise and fall of the black-haired girl's chest was like a match lit in a little girl's hand in winter, faintly illuminating Chang Rong's heart, which was almost completely consumed.

"Nanoha Kaori... hang in there... hang in there...!" Without saying a word, Chang Rong tore off his tie and tied it directly on the wound on Nanoha Kaori's arm to stop the bleeding. He would apologize to the young lady who had been mending his clothes later, but at least he had to save Kurobe Nanoha Kaori right now...!

"Kurobe Nanoka is still alive... I need to take her to the infirmary for treatment!"

Chang Rong hugged Kurobe Nanoha and said to the warden in a tough tone, "That's not an application at all, it's more like a declaration."

"【Go rescue them if you want, there's no need to be so harsh on such an adorable warden, cluck cluck cluck... But these kinds of things always seem to happen around you, Mr. Chang Rong.】"

The warden sighed and said he didn't intend to stop Chang Rong from rescuing people, since this wasn't the first time he'd encountered this situation.

Just as Chang Rong was preparing to leave with Kurobe Nanoha, the prospective witches who had heard the broadcast arrived at the warehouse.

Because the situation was so urgent, Chang Rong didn't even have time to stop them or inform them in advance about the tragedy that had occurred in the warehouse. The prospective witches witnessed this horrific scene firsthand.

"This, this is... what is this—Noah, Rhea...!?"

Nikaido Hiro stared wide-eyed at the scene before her, her face instantly contorted in a grotesque expression, her eyes trembling from the intense shock, cold sweat beading on her forehead, and her entire body shaking violently.

Nikaido Hiro refused to believe it was true; her self-proclaimed correctness seemed so ridiculous and powerless in the face of this Witch Island.

Murder is wrong, but this 'wrongness' is repeated again and again in front of me, each time taking away what I cherish, and I can do nothing about it, I can only accept it like a pathetic clown.

"Leia-chan, Nanoha-chan, Noah-chan—Wa ...

After witnessing that horrific scene, Emma Sakuraba broke down in tears.

She would shed tears for the deaths of Margot and Meruru, and she would feel immense guilt for personally sending Zedo Coco to the execution platform. At this moment, the kind and pure Emma's will was completely shattered by the cruel and cruel scene that seemed like a cruel joke.

"W-what's going on—wait!?"

Emma Sakura's screams and wails turned Hannah Tono's face ashen, but when she tried to come over to check on the situation, she was stopped by Sherry Tachibana.

"Don't look, Hannah. Don't... don't look." This time, the blue-haired detective girl didn't show her carefree smile, nor did she sigh with relief, "Finally, a case to solve!" She simply stopped the blonde girl beside her, hoping to at least protect Hannah Tono's fragile and delicate heart in this way.

"Balloon Teacher... Hasumi? You're lying, you're lying... You're lying, you bastard, you bastard, you bastard... Why?!"

The dull thuds of Arisa Wisteria's frantic pounding on the floor became, for a moment, the only echo in the warehouse.

Some of these aspiring young women had been immersed in the joy of embracing men and women, some had struggled with how to take their relationship with their crushes to the next level, and some had pondered how to deal with their inner feelings.

However, what they were seeing was like a hammer, indiscriminately and unconditionally shattering all the girls' beautiful plans for the future, leaving only a pile of wreckage and the two corpses of their closest companions, who could no longer open their eyes.

This island was once home to witches, a fairytale paradise. But with the fall of the witches, this prison island, filled with despair, continues to this day to tirelessly transmit that pain and despair to the aspiring witches imprisoned here.

Unable to escape, and even less able to resist.

------

"Although the bleeding has stopped temporarily, I don't know if the infection and inflammation issues can be avoided or treated..."

Inside the medical room, Chang Rong sat by the bedside, looking at Kurobe Nanoha and Saeki Miria, who were still unconscious. With an extremely haggard face that looked like she was about to die, she spoke softly while constantly observing and monitoring their breathing and heartbeat.

"……hateful"

Nikaido Hiro frowned deeply, her fists clenched tightly. Seeing Chang Rong like this, she really wanted to go up and say something to comfort him, but under these circumstances, any attempt at 'comfort' would only have the opposite effect.

Moreover... I simply don't have the spare capacity.

Nikaido Hiro felt that just following Chang Rong to the infirmary and being able to stand there without fainting or falling had completely drained all her strength.

She even suspected that the only reason she hadn't fainted yet was because she didn't want to add any more burden to the white-haired boy.

Chang Rong was already teetering on the brink of collapse... At this point, even the slightest fluctuation could cause him to completely break down...

"Damn it...damn it...damn it!! Why, why did this happen...!? Balloon teacher, Hasumi—you bastard, you bastard, you bastard, why...!!" Arisa Fujito frantically grabbed and rubbed her hair, trying to vent her frustration through this self-punishment.

After seeing the corpse of the prospective witch, Arisa almost instinctively wanted to use magic to kill the warden to 'avenge' him. If Sherry Tachibana hadn't stopped her in time, the tragedy would probably have continued.

Arisa Fujito punishes herself madly for her powerlessness and the foolishness of being unable to help at all. But even so, Arisa cannot escape the lingering despair she saw in the basement.

"Ugh..."

Hannah Tono sat silently on the sofa, her face ashen. It wasn't that she had no feelings about the situation; rather, just suppressing the urge to vomit and have a hysterical breakdown had exhausted all of the young lady's energy and strength. She had no energy left to say or do anything.

"Oh dear... what are we going to do now, Watson..."

Tachibana Sherry stood in the center of the incredibly heavy and silent infirmary, and even she could no longer maintain her carefree and eccentric demeanor as before.