NOVEL SIMPLE Reaper (MC) POV:
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[But Watson is kind, so I'll give you a chance.]
What an arrogant Object.
The first impression I had of Watson, the flying gas lamp, was that it had an arrogant attitude.
Moreover, it smelled of blood, wasn't cute at all, and had a creepy voice - not an Object I was particularly interested in.
I wasn't too interested, but I was listening obediently since it seemed necessary for the detective to find the location of the mirror.
Otherwise, I would have given it a good punch...
Watson, who had been boasting arrogantly to the detective, was startled when our eyes met and did something completely unexpected.
Smoke endlessly poured out from the lamp, engulfing the camp.
I felt like entering a cloud.
This cloud seemed to swallow even sound, as the detective and his junior's noisy voices echoed from far away.
The moment no sound could be heard, crimson lightning flashed inside the cloud, creating an interesting atmosphere.
Just as I was thinking it was like a haunted house attraction, a huge shadow began to cast itself within the cloud.
With a body as huge as a mountain, Watson's appearance looking down was extremely powerful and strong.
But to me, it just looked like a cute pufferfish puffed up in fear.
['Eye'?]
[I definitely felt 'eyes'?]
[Was it a mistake?]
Watson looked at me and spoke.
Since I'm an Object with the concept of being unable to communicate, all I could do was tilt my head in a 'huh?' manner, pretending not to understand.
[No intelligence? Can one have an 'eye' without intelligence?]
[It didn't show any wisdom, no clairvoyance, no mind's eye.]
[But I feel an 'eye'? Is it a mistake?]
An 'eye'? If it meant a special eye to see something, I did have one.
An eye to see how to kill the target.
The giant Watson circled around me, observing, before withdrawing its smoke and leaving.
It seemed related to some annoying story, but since I couldn't communicate at all, it just passed by.
Indeed, I was right in choosing the concept of being unable to communicate!
***
Detective POV:
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The smoke Watson suddenly spewed devoured the surroundings, before quickly disappearing again.
"Senior, what just happened all of a sudden?"
"Well, nothing seems to have really changed..."
The junior, startled by the sudden incident, clutched a hammer tightly in her hands, appearing ready to strike anyone approaching.
The gray Reaper was still gazing at Watson with an indifferent expression.
Watson pretended to be calm, but was clearly wary of the Gray Reaper.
"No, something definitely changed. Watson's attitude is a bit different."
Watson, who had previously exuded an air of looking down on people endlessly, now seemed to have a hint of caution after the smoke.
Or rather, was it fear of something?
Watson tore his gaze from the gray Reaper and continued speaking.
[Cheating only leads to death.]
[But I'll give you a chance.]
[Because Holmes is special.]
"What kind of chance are you giving?"
In response to my question, Watson pondered deeply before answering.
[I'll give you a very light penalty.]
[You must never leave this camp from now on. You cannot leave until you complete the request.]
[I think this is a reasonable enough penalty.]
[Holmes, if you fail the request, you'll die right here.]
[You'll burn up along with the missile!]
As Watson said, it was a 'light penalty'.
With barely 24 hours left, going outside wouldn't allow me to find an effective solution anyway.
Even crawling into the sinkhole would be better than leaving, the best option was resolving it here.
However, that didn't mean the difficulty had changed enough to make it solvable.
Then one solution came to mind.
Watson could communicate.
It had a clear sense of self.
Objects that demanded a price often did more than their abilities allowed if the price was paid sufficiently.
Couldn't Watson be considered one of those Objects that demanded a price?
Moreover, it was an intelligent Object I could converse with.
A deal should be possible.
No, I must make a deal.
"Watson, let's make a deal! Tell me the location of the Object that creates butterflies!"
[No]
[Are you trying to avoid the trial?]
[Are you giving up on the case?]
Trial, giving up, request, cheating. These are the keywords Watson is fixated on.
The 'Holmes' that Watson speaks of seems inconsistent and confusing, but it seems closer to an existence that properly overcomes difficult trials and resolves cases.
If so, then the word 'Holmes' may hold the key to negotiation.
"Watson, let's make a deal! I will complete another trial befitting Holmes. So tell me the location of the Object that creates butterflies!"
[Another trial?]
[The trial we give may be more difficult than this case?]
[Holmes may actually be able to complete this request?]
[It may turn the 0.1% chance of solving it into 0%?]
"Yes, but I still want to make a deal!"
For a moment, I felt like I might be making a mistake, but I decided to trust my instincts and decisions.
I had the feeling that if I tried to find the Object directly, I would absolutely not be able to resolve it.
Even if I did find it, it would probably be after 24 hours had passed.
[Very well, I'll give you a trial.]
[A trial for Holmes!]
[If you fail the trial, Holmes is mine.]
[If you succeed, I'll get rid of that Object.]
We will rely solely on your kindness! Click here!
Donate now
Watson gave a meaningful smile, then revealed the trial.
[A difficult trial. A difficult trial indeed.]
[This Holmes is unlucky.]
[Just choose the Object that Holmes is looking for here.]
***
Reaper (MC) POV:
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The trial Watson gave was simply choosing a photo.
The detective stared intently at the photos, seeming to consider various factors.
The junior wielding a hammer was assisting the detective by his side, but didn't seem to make much progress.
'The Object that produces butterflies'
With only this vague clue, we had to find the answer among over 100 photos?
Just looking at the probability, it was a mission with less than 1% chance of success.
A large door-like Object could be said to have butterflies pouring out, an Object shaped like a butterfly cocoon could be seen as a cocoon constantly birthing butterflies... Since reasons could be attached however we liked, it seemed impossible to logically choose the answer.
Of course, I had additional information, so I could judge logically.
I knew that the Object producing butterflies was the 'Black Mirror'.
Still, I kept the fact hidden.
Because I didn't know how Watson would react.
For now, I should observe how the detective handles this.
***
Detective POV:
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The trial Watson gave was outrageous.
It had lined up exactly 152 photos, and said that among them, the target Object was present, so I had to choose and guess correctly.
The only clue given was that it was an Object that produces butterflies.
But that can't be called a clue.
Choosing based solely on the hint that it produces butterflies is not deduction, it's 'guessing'.
Watson was right.
It's an impossible problem to solve.
Should I trust luck and guess?
If I'm going to rely on luck to guess, I might as well not make a deal and search the camp directly.
That would be better than 1/152 odds!
Better than resorting to the absurd act of leaving it to chance!
"Haah..."
I took a deep breath and gathered my thoughts.
Even the junior was staring intently at the photos, trying desperately to find something.
If I can't keep my wits here, I'm not qualified to be a senior.
Right, if I have to rely on luck and guess, there was something I needed.
I took out the 'Fortune-Measuring Coin' and tossed it.
I caught the high-flying coin in my hand and opened my palm to check.
The number that came up was 20. The perfect number for leaving things to chance at this very moment.
Then, suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
When the coin showed 20, my thoughts turned in another direction instead.
Might I be missing something?
The junior standing beside me was examining the photos with a worried expression.
The gray Reaper was watching me with keen interest.
No, it felt more like a teacher observing a student's actions.
A gaze confirming if I would choose the correct answer, as if the Reaper already knew the answer.
Does the gray Reaper know something?
"Watson! Do I have to choose this photo myself? Can the junior or the gray Reaper solve it instead?"
[I'll allow the junior to solve it on your behalf.]
[The Reaper?]
['It' doesn't have 'eyes' and didn't borrow 'eyes' either, so it's fine, right?]
[Yes, I'll allow the Reaper to solve it on your behalf too.]
I trusted my observational skills. Rather than leaving it up to odds of less than 1%, I would entrust the choice to my observational skills.
"Gray Reaper. Help me."
As I said that, the gray Reaper, who had been looking at me, faintly smiled and walked towards the photos.
Clump clump~
The gray Reaper picked up one photo and held it high above its head.
The photo depicted a 'Black Mirror'.
[Holmes should solve it? Can his colleague solve it instead?]
['Eyes'?]
[Did we allow that?]
[Not 'eyes'?]
[Not cheating?]
[Strange.]
Watson muttered confusedly.
The shadow of denial distorted confusedly, and red blood flowed.
And that twisting suddenly stopped at one point.
[Holmes. Congratulations.]
At that moment, the butterflies reflected in the monocle all flew up into the sky at once.
And then, the sound of a mirror breaking came from somewhere in the camp.
Clap clap clap
The sound of Watson's applause could be heard.
[Trial passed.]
[See you next time.]
[Survived the day?]
With those words, Watson disappeared instantly.
The gray Reaper was gazing blankly at the sky.
When I looked at what it was looking at, the sky was filled with the torn corpses of black butterflies.
"Junior! Run quickly!"
To avoid being swept away by the endless shower of butterfly corpses from the sky, we ran hard out of the camp.
The gray Reaper had disappeared somewhere.