The "badge claim" strategy is a method exclusive to Seers. Since Ritsuka chose to use this strategy, it meant she was asserting herself as the Seer.
The moment Ritsuka brought up the badge claim, Sakatsuki immediately glanced around—especially at Draco—trying to verify her suspicions through their reactions.
As expected, while the others showed some surprise, it was within the realm of "Oh, so Ritsuka's the Seer?" Only Draco raised her eyebrows, her expression filled with both surprise and deep displeasure.
Why the displeasure? Even if you're a werewolf, discovering the Seer should be cause for glee, not frustration. It means that during the night phase, you no longer have to kill at random—you have a clear target: the Seer.
When combined with her previous words and actions, Sakatsuki was almost certain now—Draco was the real Seer, and Ritsuka was merely faking it.
As for that strange line earlier—"I'm debating whether to bite you to death"—Sakatsuki had now understood the meaning behind it.
First, we must clarify one thing: the relationship between Draco and Sakatsuki was still one of servitude. It was only because Sakatsuki had lifted the veil of Imaginary Numbers that Draco was able to freely manifest in the real world.
And as a kind of familiar, Draco could always observe Sakatsuki—and vice versa.
Herein lay the problem: while Sakatsuki would naturally play by the rules, would Draco really be so obedient?
Especially after discovering that Sakatsuki wasn't a werewolf, but rather on the good side—yet not knowing his full role. When you're that close to uncovering the truth, would you really abide by some harmless rule instead of tearing through the veil?
Draco's answer was, of course: no. She had traced her vision back through the Imaginary Numbers and grasped more detailed intel on Sakatsuki—Divine role: Dreamcatcher.
Oh no. Disaster incoming.
Just as Sakatsuki understood Draco's role, Draco equally understood what kind of role Sakatsuki had.
To hand the role of Dreamcatcher—a role perfect for flashy, chaotic plays—to a man who was a supreme agent of fun? This game was about to become a battlefield of utter havoc.
That was why Draco had said those seemingly threatening words.
With his reasoning complete and the truth revealed, Sakatsuki looked at Ritsuka with a bright smile.
If Draco was the Seer, then Ritsuka's identity was now beyond question.
A werewolf. A bold wolf claiming Seer status to duel with the village.
Countless thoughts surged through Sakatsuki's mind as he instantly grasped the roles of Draco and Ritsuka. Meanwhile, in the real world, the "werewolf" Ritsuka had only just begun her speech.
"I picked Mash-chan for my first check, not because of some deep logic, but simply because she's right next to me. If I don't check her, who would I check? And why not check Artoria-chan? Easy—I can only check one person per night. If I check #5, I can't touch #7. If I touch #7, I can't check #5. Hahaha."
As it turns out, Ritsuka's mental resilience as a Master was top-notch. Not only did she boldly claim to be the Seer as a werewolf, but she even had the leisure to crack a joke. The room visibly relaxed, the mood easing up quite a bit. Taking advantage of this, Ritsuka continued:
"Okay, that's it for the psychology behind my first check. Now let's get to the real deal—why I checked #7, Miss Artoria, on the second day. And no, it's not because she was on my other side."
Due to time constraints, Ritsuka opted to use numbers rather than names from this point forward.
"Among those not claiming Seer—#2, #4, #5, #8, #9, #12, and #14—there are seven people. Normally, it's rare for five werewolves to all step forward and claim, so there must be werewolves hiding among those who stayed silent, trying to manipulate votes. Which means, among these seven, there are definitely wolves—the number is unclear, but their presence is certain."
Having pointed this out, Ritsuka turned her gaze to the ahoge girl—Artoria.
"As for why I chose to check Miss Artoria, well, you all saw it just a moment ago."
Not only Ritsuka, but everyone instinctively recalled Artoria's flustered demeanor during the captain vote. They nodded in agreement.
When no one else seemed suspicious, Artoria stood out as the most likely breakthrough.
"If you're a villager, Artoria, and you vote for me, I won't let you down. Even if you're a werewolf and vote for me, as long as your speech doesn't blow up spectacularly, I won't suspect you of being a backstabber. How's that?"
Classic Ritsuka—not only rallying villagers to vote for her, but even trying to rope in werewolves (though she herself is one):
"Same goes for everyone else. If you're a villager, vote for me—I'll carry you to the finals. If you're a werewolf, come on in and try a backstab. I welcome it. Alright, that's all."
Just before the timer hit zero, Ritsuka sat back down, satisfied. Barring any surprises, her speech had probably won her a fair number of votes.
Barring any surprises, of course.
At that moment, a certain pretty boy was in quiet discussion with Draco.
"You want me to replace you as the Seer?"
"What are you talking about? I don't understand," Draco replied flatly, glancing at Sakatsuki. "Also, we're not supposed to be talking while others are giving their speeches, right?"
"If the real Seer doesn't come forward, then Ritsuka's claim will be accepted by default. But if the true Seer reveals themselves, they'll immediately become the werewolves' prime target. I don't think I need to spell out the rest, do I?"
With that, Sakatsuki said no more and shifted his attention to Cu Chulainn's campaign speech.
As expected, in the face of Ritsuka's brilliant performance, Doggo decisively dropped out of the race for sheriff. On his way out, he threw some shade at Artoria, expressing doubts about her shaky presence.
"See? I told you—Father—ahem—I mean, contestant #7 has definitely got issues!"
With Ritsuka and Cu Chulainn on her side, Mordred immediately perked up and threw herself into a rowdy roast session: "If you ask me, #7's definitely a werewolf! Only a guilty conscience would act like that!"
"Watch your tongue, Sir Mordred." Artoria, who had been sitting with her head down, suddenly raised it, unleashing the full might of her King of Knights Pressure Aura™. "I admit—for personal reasons—I've been somewhat at odds with my role. But that's no excuse for your baseless accusations. As a knight, have you truly forgotten the meaning of respect?"
"Guh... it's just a game!" Mordred was momentarily cowed by the intensity of Artoria's presence but quickly snapped back, red-faced and yelling. "What's so wrong about calling you a werewolf?! You're the great King Arthur, after all—of course you'd suck at playing a villain! Just surrender already—and bring your teammates down with you! Like you—yeah, you! Sitting there smiling like a fox. You totally look like a bad guy!"
"...Me?" Sakatsuki blinked, pointing to himself, but didn't bother engaging in the chaos. Instead, he simply clapped his hands. "Holy Grail System."
[Warning issued to contestants #7 and #10 for disrupting game flow and speaking out of turn. One more infraction will result in disqualification and penalties.]
The cold mechanical voice shut both ahoge knight and rebel princess right up. Sakatsuki, meanwhile, gave Mordred a long, meaningful look before finally turning away.
Even if Mordred's nature was rebellious, for her to act so recklessly in a game like this—where social death was always on the line—was incredibly suspect. Especially dragging Sakatsuki into her rant like that. Criticizing Artoria was understandable. But why him?
Didn't she worry that Sakatsuki and Artoria might ally against her and sway the rest to vote her out first?
"So... her role must be something that gives her confidence to act without fear. Or maybe even allows her to pull others down with her." Sakatsuki muttered thoughtfully, then looked up at the group with a calm, charming smile. "My turn, right?"
That tone, that look—it practically had "I'm invincible" written all over it.
But this was just Day One. There had barely been any discussion. Where was Sakatsuki getting this smug "I know everything" attitude from?
Draco couldn't help but roll her eyes.
She was curious to see what kind of deductions this guy could possibly make with so little to go on.
The very next sentence, however, left the room utterly speechless.
"Naturally, I'm on the good side. Now let's get to the real point: though Ritsuka claims to be the Seer, to me, she looks more like a werewolf."
Sakatsuki struck a pose worthy of Commander Ikari Gendo, fingers steepled, mouth curled in a subtle and cryptic smile as he stared at Ritsuka—whose expression had just slightly shifted.
The deduction phase had begun.
***
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