Otoriphobia

13: The Maze of Humanity.

...

The deaths of Tomoko Kato and Arisu Morishita had not gone unnoticed.

As Yuuna Otori, Rin Kagemori, and Korekiyo Otori walked through the exit of the Abattoir, with Kishibe following behind them...

They each struggled with an immense emotional weight.

The last three sheds of what was once the optimistic, powerful Blue Team...

They were burdened with despair and hatred towards Hanzo Kishibe.

However, they were also forced to remember... that they could not kill him, not yet.

They could not take revenge on Kishibe...

And that was something that clenched onto their hearts like an iron fist.

The four survivors made their way down the narrow stone corridor, accepting the fact that they were being immediately dispatched to participate in the Fifth Game.

The fifth time they'd tread the line of life and death again...

The fifth time they'd watch another life fall into the hands of Ricky.

The fifth time Blue Team would bear another scar... like a whiplash to the heart.

The group finally reached the end of the corridor as the next door slowly opened...

Revealing the arena where they would compete in the Wakui Project's Fifth Game.

...

They found themselves in a massive, open-air room...

But before them lay a massive labyrinth, built with towering walls of stone.

The massive maze appeared to have two entrances, one to the left and one to the right, and as they stopped in front of the entrance, Ricky's voice burst out over the loudspeakers.

"Welcome, one and all... to the Wakui Project's Fifth Game! I call it... the "Maze of Humanity"! It's a giant maze, brimming with different puzzles and mysteries to solve! Surprisingly enough... this game doesn't directly involve murder, but it's a race to the end. There are plenty of traps inside that could kill you, so you're going to want to pass each test within the maze's walls carefully!"

Ricky cheered over the loudspeakers before moving on with his announcement.

"Anywayyyy... you aren't going to be forced to choose a path you don't want to. And you're not forced to stick with anyone either! As you can see, there's two paths... you're completely free to partner up with whoever you want and pass it as you see fit."

"..."

Kishibe, covered in the blood of Tomoko and Arisu, glanced over at the members of Blue Team, a twinkle in his eye.

"I suppose... I'll be taking on this challenge alone, then. I bid you farewell, Blue Team... and I also wish you the best of luck."

Kishibe smiled pleasantly at the other participants before walking towards the left entrance of the Maze of Humanity, slipping away into the maze and walking out of their vision.

This left Yuuna, Korekiyo, and Rin standing in a cluster nearby the right entrance of the Maze of Humanity, and after a few moments of silence, Korekiyo spoke up.

"...We don't have a choice. We outnumber Kishibe, so... let's go together."

"..."