Chapter 20: The Final Turn
The hiss of the door echoed like a breath before execution. Aoi stood in the threshold of the Red Team room, blindfold gone, face unreadable. Silence fell like fog.
Ren looked up, his shoulders taut with tension. Shun sat on the bed's edge, rigid, as if expecting a detonation.
"How bad was it?" Ren asked, voice low.
Aoi stepped in slowly. "They're sharp. Tatsuya especially. He's colder now. More than before."
She sat. Her tone remained flat, but her eyes gleamed with storm clouds.
"He knew it was me. Not guessed. Knew."
Shun exchanged a look with Ren. "Did you say anything? Give something away?"
"No," Aoi said, shaking her head. "No name. No emotion. No tells. But he said my name anyway."
"Tatsuya doesn't guess," Ren muttered. "He watches. Then strikes."
"It was like he wasn't talking to me," Aoi said softly. "Like he was dissecting me. With his eyes."
They lapsed into silence.
"Did they believe you?" Shun asked at last.
"They didn't need to. Daichi plays dumb, but he's always watching. Mei's quiet, but it's a silence that has teeth."
She met their eyes. "They weren't interrogating. They were confirming."
Ren's jaw tightened. "Then they're close. Maybe it's already too late."
Aoi shook her head. "Not yet. But blink now, and they win. Bloodlessly."
"Then we don't blink," Shun said flatly.
---
Across the partition, the Blue Team sat in the heavy stillness left behind by Aoi's departure.
"Okay," Daichi said finally. "Explain it. How did you know it was Aoi?"
Tatsuya remained seated, cross-legged. His eyes stared past the walls.
Mei leaned forward. "Tatsuya... how?"
"Three voices," he said. "Ren's is too casual. Lies ring in his tone. Shun masks his voice, but not his intent. Every word is a bullet. Aoi—she hides in neutrality. Flat. Even. But not still."
"She wasn't calm," he continued. "She was angry. That restraint wasn't calm—it was controlled fury."
Daichi frowned. "So anger gave her away?"
"Not just that. When she answered about who she trusted least—she didn't pause. She struck. Instinct, not strategy. That was Aoi."
He looked up. "She's the only one who gets angry when someone sees through her."
Daichi smirked. "Remind me not to play poker with you."
"You already did. You lost," Tatsuya replied.
Mei nearly smiled.
---
Morning. Day 5.
Tatsuya stood by the door.
"Today, I go to the Red Team."
Mei blinked. Daichi raised an eyebrow. "You? Seriously?"
"I haven't crossed yet. It changes the dynamic."
"Less predictable?" Mei asked.
"Exactly," Tatsuya said. "I don't play by emotion. I watch."
"Won't they try harder to read you?" she asked.
"Let them. They'll waste their time."
"And what will you do?" Daichi asked.
Tatsuya met his gaze. "I will watch."
---
Red Team, same morning.
"Tatsuya's coming," Aoi said.
"Dangerous," Shun muttered. "Emotionless. Unreadable."
"Then we stay sharp," Ren said. "This won't be a quiet night."
They nodded, silently preparing.
---
Tatsuya entered the Red Room. Ren smirked. "Welcome. Who are you?"
"A player. One who plays to survive."
"This your strategy?" Aoi asked. "Walking in cold?"
"I wait. Observe. Act when necessary."
"Careful," she whispered. "Sometimes waiting means losing."
---
That night, outside the rooms.
"Time is up," the Accountant's voice crackled. "Final meeting."
Tatsuya stepped forward. "You lost. What I warned you about—it's real."
"We're not listening," Aoi snapped.
"You never did."
Silence fell. Then:
"The Bomber is... Shun."
A pause. The Accountant's voice rang out:
"Correct. Red Team loses one heart."
Shun exploded. "No! I'm innocent! This is a setup!"
Aoi stared. "We trusted you."
"This explains it," Ren muttered.
Mei watched him crumble. "You can't hide what you feel."
Tatsuya remained still. "Doubt is a luxury the Bomber doesn't get."
The Accountant's voice again:
"Red Team: two hearts. Blue Team: four. Blue Team survives. Red Team fails."
Daichi burst into laughter, embracing Tatsuya. "You cold bastard! You actually saved us!"
Tatsuya didn't smile. "I said I would."
---
Red Team.
Aoi whispered, "We lost."
"No," Ren replied. "That's not all."
"He saw me," Shun said. "The real me. No one's ever done that."
Aoi murmured, "Tatsuya didn't win because he played better. He won because... he never played at all."
---
The lights dimmed. A hiss.
Gas seeped into both rooms. No screams. Just silence. All three members of both teams collapsed.
---
CONTROL ROOM
Dozens of monitors glowed. Every angle. Every breath.
A single figure stood watching. Shadowed.
A button pressed. Footage froze.
A voice, curious and quiet:
"They entered with masks. They leave with truth. Ugly, raw, irreversible.
The hearts they lost will never return.
But for those who survived...
Was it worth it?"
The figure turned. The monitors dimmed.
Blackness swallowed the room.
Fade to black.
Next In Chapter 21:After the Fall