Otoriphobia

9: il Mafioso del Topo

"...Hiroto's right."

Yuuna sighed.

"Honestly, I don't know... what we can expect from the Third Game, but whatever it is, Kishibe's going to use it as an opportunity to learn from his mistakes... and try to outsmart us. Last time, he managed to evade death and sent off one of his teammates... Leafy... to die in his place... but this time, he'll try to ensure one of us is the one dying."

"...That's true. Right now, he's the biggest threat to our safety."

Rin placed one hand down on the table, giving the entire situation some thought.

"We... outnumber them. Kishibe only has Risa and Arisu, but we have our entire team still in-tact... that's 3 to 5. The thing is... Kishibe is a manipulator. Given the last two games... I think he's basically been able to gather enough information to guess what our personal weaknesses are by now."

"...I guess that's pretty much true..."

Tomoko lifted her finger to her chin and looked up at the ceiling.

"...But, you know... it really depends on what kind of game this next game is going to be. What if it's unlike the games we've played before?"

"...What?"

Hiroto raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?"

"...Well, there was a big contrast between the Icebreakers game and Wakui Chess... this one might be even further off the mark, right? We... we've got to be ready for anything."

"..."

Yuuna looked over at Korekiyo and Risa.

"That's true... as a team, we've got to be prepared for anything Ricky might throw at-"

"GOOD MORNINGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!"

Ricky's annoyingly loud voice boomed over the loudspeakers, interrupting the Blue Team's conversation.

"I'm sure you're all still recovering from the shocking twist that occurred at the end of yesterday's game! But trust me... the Third Game is really going to exceed your expectations! It's going to be absolutely fabulous, and you'll see why... For now, please direct your attention towards the closet area!"

Everyone turned, looking to the area where they'd received their garments for Wakui Chess- which slowly shut its doors automatically. The closet was pulled back into the wall by a series of pulleys and metal cords, and into its place fell a large elevator, with shining metal doors.

"An... An elevator? What the hell?"

Hiroto squinted, trying to get a better look at the elevator.

"No, that's not an elevator, it's a humpback whale. It's quite the rare occurrence to see one in these warmer waters, you know..."

"..."

"A humpback what-"

"NO SHIT, IT'S AN ELEVATOR! God DAMN! You people really don't know how to pick up on sarcasm! Anyhow..."

Ricky sighed over the loudspeakers.