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

However, judging from the screen crack, the phone might have shattered at that moment... But let's not think about that for now.

What we know so far is that the effect of this 'elevator trap' is to teleport people to a seemingly unreal area. Although it is still Witch Island, there are neither witches nor prospective witches. There are only those degraded versions, but still immortal, and numerous remains.

—Perhaps Meruru and Rhea have already been captured by these things… Although I can deal with them for a short time, because of their immortality, they will eventually rely on their numbers and mobility to corner me like they did before. I need to find a different way.

Chang Rong left the incinerator and went to the room leading to the first floor. Running up to the entrance from there might allow for a further struggle. However, judging from the current situation, the outcome would likely be pretty much the same.

We must try to eliminate the immortality of these remains... wait, come to think of it—

Chang Rong suddenly realized something. Since the discarded clothes in the boiler room were still there, then 'that thing' must still be sitting there obediently.

With that thought in mind, Chang Rong gave up the idea of ​​going upstairs, not only because he heard heavy footsteps coming from above the stairs, but also because he had thought of a better solution.

Chang Rong turned and walked towards the underground cell. Fortunately, there weren't many remains here; the few scattered ones were just locked in the cell, tears streaming down their faces.

Ignoring the wreckage, Chang Rong arrived at Meruru's single bedroom before the footsteps behind him completely caught up with him.

Although in the witch trial that she and Yuki participated in, Meru chose to live with Nanoha Kaori (because one of the prospective witches was so insignificant that she forgot to assign a dormitory room, so that witch ended up with a single room), Meru once said that her single room actually had a secret passage.

"It should be near this wall—click."

Chang Rong locked the door from the inside and frantically searched through the wreckage outside the cell, finally finding a movable stone next to the bed.

The hidden passage used by the mastermind slowly emerged. Without saying a word, Chang Rong entered it and circled around to an inconspicuous ventilation fan passage covered with weeds on the outer perimeter of the castle.

Having successfully escaped the encirclement of the veteran remnants in the castle, Chang Rong immediately returned to the underground cryogenic chamber.

Although I had fantasized about the elevator crashing again during operation and creating a void, where I would plunge in and find myself waking up next to Meruru and Rhea, unfortunately, this time the elevator arrived at the basement without any obstacles.

"...Will I ever have another chance in my life to enter through the main gate openly and legitimately?"

Back in the control room, Chang Rong complained and grumbled as she skillfully removed the iron grille of the ventilation duct, grabbed the edge with both hands, crawled into the duct, and entered the freezer compartment on the other side.

Since there was no mysterious, sickly, wheelchair-bound detective here, the basement's cooling system remained at a level of 'never being maintained and its effectiveness is barely noticeable'. This allowed Chang Rong to have some opportunities for exploration.

The underground freezer's decor remained unchanged. The only difference was that the ice blocks that should have contained the remains of the prospective witches were completely empty. Anyone who saw this would probably think to themselves, "Whose freezer is so extravagant, freezing ice blocks for shaved ice in such an elegant and artistic way?"

The witches' 'corpses' don't exist... This seems to be the only obvious difference from the original Witch Island so far. However, Chang Rong doesn't have time to think about the reasons right now.

Fortunately, the safe was still on the table.

Chang Rong entered the password: "Ze Du can use the clairvoyance magic to observe the coded image recorded by Kurobe Nanoha using illusion magic and then relay it to himself."

Do you understand? It's okay if you don't. Anyway, this is the Soul Fusion Skill of our Witch Island Information Position. Do you have such a one-click cloud-based box opening and sharing system?

If you dare to slander me, I'll have Nanoha Kaori use her vision to find out your bank card number and password, then use Coco-chan's telepathic magic to transfer it online, and then I'll swipe all the money from your account balance for 648 RMB, and finally upgrade you to a higher class.

"...It really is here."

Putting aside his useless thoughts, Chang Rong looked at the revolver and some unused documents placed in the safe in front of him.

The red ritual sword that was supposed to be their target in the basement: to summon the Great Witch. And those seemingly ordinary, transparent liquids labeled with the number 13—Witch Slayer Potion.

"..."

When Chang Rong grasped the Demon-Slaying Potion, he hesitated for a moment.

Chang Rong understood the power of this thing better than anyone else. He had personally witnessed Ze Du Coco disappear before his eyes after taking it, and he had also seen Meruru take the 'early researched weakened version' and almost self-destruct in front of him.

If becoming a witch is a curse, then the Witch Slayer Potion is like a miracle cure for the zombie virus infection; one pill at a time, one gulp at a time, can completely destroy this curse.

but……

Chang Rong didn't know what these so-called 'wrecks' actually represented, whether they still had a chance for redemption, whether they had achieved a so-called 'ordinary life' in some other way, or what they had experienced and encountered in the past.

Chang Rong knew nothing of these things; the only thing he knew was that he now had the ability to forcibly shut down all these problems.

"...I'm sorry."

After a brief silence, Chang Rong picked up the Witch Killer Potion, tightening his grip on it as he felt the terrifying presence of this potion, capable of severing all curses and bonds, akin to a demonic pact and hellish fuel.

He had no idea what Meruru and Leia were going through. Under these circumstances, his only goal was to find them, but it was clear that the existence of those remains was hindering him from achieving that goal.

Chang Rong never considered himself a kind person; he was more aware of his selfishness than anyone else.

A sage can treat all lives equally, but I am not a sage, and it is impossible for me to put everything on both sides of the scale perfectly balanced.

To me, Meruru and Rhea-sama's lives are far more 'precious,' and that's why... in order to protect them, I have no choice but to selfishly kill you.

Chang Rong took a strap from the toolbox next to her, modified it a little, and hung it on her body. She then tidied up the contents of the safe and returned to the Water Crystal Room.

"Hiss hiss hiss—"

boom! !

As soon as he emerged from the underground passage, he heard the roar of the wreckage outside the locked door, but this time Chang Rong did not hesitate at all and pulled the trigger directly.

A .38 caliber bullet is less powerful than a crossbow bolt, yet the remains of the person whose head was pierced by the bullet fell straight down. Although they struggled and writhed for a while, they never came back to life.

"...I'm sorry, but I'm looking for my friends. It's an emergency, and this is the only way I can 'negotiate' with you all."

Chang Rong opened the door, raised his pistol, and repeatedly pulled the trigger at the wreckage that had rushed towards him from a distance, drawn by the smell.

Bang bang bang bang!

Five consecutive explosions shattered the false illusion of peace on 'Witch Island'. One of the wrecked creatures was shot in the head and failed to escape, but the others avoided fatal blows and continued to charge towards Chang Rong.

"Hmm... It seems that although the bullets have been soaked and wiped with the magic-killing potion, it doesn't seem to have reached the heaven-defying level of 'death upon contact,' at most it has added true damage to the attack itself."

Chang Rong observed the reactions of the wreckage that had been hit and came to this conclusion.

The wreckage closest to him was already at a dangerously close distance, and with no time to reload, Chang Rong tucked his revolver into his waistband, then drew his ceremonial sword and thrust it forward, instantly piercing the wreckage with a thousand transparent holes.

I never expected that not only Coco-chan and Hiro, but even Mag, you're with me...

Chang Rong drew the ritual sword and held it in front of her. She took out a bottle of demon-slaying potion from the handmade strap at her waist, bit open the cap, poured it onto the ritual sword, and once again enchanted it with Witch Slayer V.

Unlike bullets, ritual swords are coated with more magic-killing potions, and can cause instant death upon impact, although they require frequent enchanting to increase sharpness.

"Hiss hiss hiss—!!"

brake!

Now that the effects of the Demon-Slaying Potion have been confirmed, the next steps are quite clear.

Chang Rong swung his ritual sword and severed the head of the remains, which in a sense helped Nikaido Hiro teach these remains what it means to think about a problem from a different perspective.

After confirming that no debris was nearby, Chang Rong took out the enchanted bullets wrapped in oil paper from his pouch and reloaded them one by one before entering the castle again.

Before, I arrived empty-handed, standing like a lackey, being chased around by the wreckage, like a harpy rabbit being chased and chewed by a big dog.

Now, fortunes change every thirty years. Good morning, Witch Island! Let this castle burn to ashes!

Having made up his mind to save Meruru and Leia no matter what, Chang Rong was no longer confused. He no longer agonized over whether the environment he was in was real, nor did he ponder whether the 'remains' of those he had killed could be redeemed.

His only task was to find Meruru and Rhea in the castle, and to eliminate any enemies that stood in his way.

Chang Rong gradually discovered that shooting directly at the legs of the wrecked remains was more effective than trying to aim at their writhing heads. The enchanted bullets wouldn't restore their severed legs, allowing him to easily walk nearby, draw his ritual sword, and execute them.

Sometimes you might encounter unexpected situations where you find wreckage in a narrow corridor but don't have time to reload. In such cases, instead of drawing your ceremonial sword and confronting it head-on, it's better to think of other solutions.

I'm not some river sword demon who can take on 5 people with 3-stage Q. People will die if they are killed. Even if I have the magic-killing potion, it doesn't mean I won't be killed by the witch's remains.

"Hiss hiss hiss!!" "Crack crack!" "Awooohoo!!!"

Faced with the swarming wreckage, Chang Rong took the crossbow bolt from his back and pulled the trigger. The first bolt was an original one that could be used to assemble a simple spear, but the second bolt was simply a makeshift crossbow bolt made by attaching an ice pick to the end of a wooden stick.

Rhea, it turns out you never really left me.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

A dull thud resounded as two remains were pinned to the corridor walls, one on each side. Chang Rong precisely pierced the heart of the remaining remains with her ritual sword, then took out a Demon-Slaying Potion and forced it into the mouth of the struggling remains that were restrained, pouring it down her throat without warning.

Before long, the remains stopped moving, and their bodies gradually became covered with a layer of crystals, which looked like Oripathy to someone who didn't know better.

When encountering more clusters of wreckage, Chang Rong would simply throw out the magic-killing potion and shatter it, turning the potion-soaked glass shards into fragmentation grenades. Although they might not kill the wreckage, they could at least significantly restrict or weaken its movement over a large area.

Although Chang Rong pondered his own proficiency more than once along the way, the endless stream of wreckage left him no time to seriously consider the question.

If I really had to say... it's because the power of love is limitless!

Having searched the entire second floor to no avail, and faced with the ever-surging debris, Chang Rong went to the edge of the studio's balcony and jumped directly down from the hammock below.

Although it almost got accidentally pierced by the fence next to it, it was unharmed in the end.

The castle has been basically explored, with only one place remaining—

In the corridor leading to the courtroom, Chang Rong raised his revolver in his right hand and fired two shots into the chest of the wreckage that was lunging at him, stopping it in its tracks. Then he shot it in the head and took it away.

After firing six bullets and running out of ammunition, Chang Rong threw the pistol forcefully at the wreckage in front of him. Then, he took out the magic long gun from his back, which he had extracted from Naoya Kaori's memories and which had been crafted by a certain veteran bomb maniac.

Because it was magic, there was no need to consider so many other things. Chang Rong poured the last bottle of magic-killing potion into the muzzle of the gun and pulled the trigger, without even considering the possibility of resistance, barrel explosion, or misfire.

boom! ! !

In an instant, the splashing liquid transformed into a flamethrower-like effect, corroding and engulfing all the remaining debris in the corridor.

With a ceremonial sword piercing the still-twisting skulls, Chang Rong, panting, pushed open the doors of the courtroom.

The courtroom, so familiar yet slightly unfamiliar due to its long absence, stood before him. It remained as solemn and imposing as ever, seemingly out of place within the entire castle.

What was originally just a game for the witches to play when they were bored has become a real death trap for witches, where they are even placed in the center for everyone to witness their execution.

At that very moment, two 'witches' were awaiting trial in the center of the courtroom—

"Leya, Meruru!!!"

Chang Rong's pupils widened instantly; the two girls he had been desperately searching for were right in front of him.

The jealous witch Hasumi Ryoa, who enjoys depriving others of their attention, is currently placed in an iron maiden-like container. The open lids on both sides are covered with chilling spikes. Just thinking about what that thing looks like when it's 'closed' makes Chang Rong feel like vomiting.

Beside Leia, the cruel witch Ice Meluru, who enjoyed instigating and tormenting others, was suspended in mid-air, directly below scorching lava emitting white steam that distorted the very air. Chang Rong didn't even have the courage to imagine what would happen if that rope broke.

The two seemed to have fallen into a coma, completely unmoved by Chang Rong's shouts and their own life-threatening situation.

"I'm coming right now—huh!?"

Chang Rong was about to go and rescue the two, but he suddenly stopped.

It wasn't out of his own will, nor was he held back by fear that they might become witches in front of him.

Yes... I'm unable to move.

The white shirt and slightly loose black overalls she was wearing seemed to be "fixed," making it impossible for Chang Rong to move at all.

Wait, fix it—

"You...because of you...it's all...your...reason—"