When the trio of fans known as the Silver Team—otherwise known as Six's Royal Guard—woke up, they found themselves inside a cage isolated by barriers of reinforced plastic.
The Silver Team consisted of the "stray dog" trio—Lock, Papa, and Caesar—and the cosplayers who had joined them later, Arthur and Hideyoshi, totaling five members. However, only the three original members were present in this place.
The audience-participation game that had begun right at the start of the fan meeting was a stimulating event where fans competed by shooting each other with tranquilizer guns. It was far more intense than a simple survival game. Being indoor types by nature, the stray dogs had reaffirmed their bond with the Silver Team but had already given up on any hope of winning.
They were satisfied just having seen the real Six on the stadium's special stage. They had no regrets left. They felt like they had heard the iTubers and Arthur arguing about something, but everyone had been too focused on filming Six to really listen.
That was when the cosplayer duo displayed their lion-like prowess. When they encountered the Brown Team led by the Grandfather of the Galaxy, the stray dogs had tucked their tails and trembled at the sheer number of opponents, which easily exceeded a hundred. However, from that point on, Arthur and Hideyoshi began what could only be described as a "musou" game.
In truth, even to the eyes of the three amateurs, the strength of the Brown Team was abnormal. Aside from their numbers, they were a disciplined legion hidden under identical hooded robes, bound by fanatical loyalty. A single punch delivered while shouting the name of the Grandfather of the Galaxy possessed enough power to shatter concrete and bend metal fences like candy. Furthermore, every single member of the team used that superhuman strength as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Yet, that fanatical legion—something straight out of a nightmare—was completely suppressed by just two cosplayers. Though they had heard beforehand that the duo dabbled in martial arts, it was clear their skill was far beyond a mere hobby. They had to be Karate Masters. The three praised their gallant figures, shouting, "Masterful!"
Witnessing the strength of the cosplayer duo as they wiped out the Brown Team in less than a few minutes, the stray dogs began to think that winning might not be a dream for the Silver Team after all. If that happened, they might even get a personal audience with their team leader, Six.
"Thank you, big brother!"
They envisioned Six with a beaming smile—an expression she never usually showed—shaking hands with them. The trio's excitement reached its peak, and they let out howls of joy.
But then, their consciousness went dark. By the time they woke up, they were already trapped in this prison with no way out.
Outside the cage, a large digital countdown clock was ticking away the seconds. Less than thirty minutes remained. With every tick, a balloon installed in the ceiling of the cage inflated bit by bit. What was inside that giant balloon marked with a skull symbol? It likely wouldn't end in a joke like the punchlines of common variety shows.
There were many other people inside the cage besides the trio. By talking to them, they were able to understand the general gist of the situation. The people gathered here were "hostages." Unless the iTubers finished the game within the time limit and came to this location, there was no way to be saved.
Some attempted to escape the cage, but the reinforced plastic walls could not be destroyed even when several adults threw their weight against them. Pomerni was outside the cage. Without any sign of monitoring the trapped hostages, he sat motionless on a folding pipe chair.
His gaze remained fixed on a single point in the void. According to rumors, he had occasionally behaved cheerfully in front of the cameras as if he were a different person, but he was fundamentally unresponsive. He sat as still as a corpse. The trio couldn't help but feel an eerie sense of dread at the sight.
Everyone present felt a deep anxiety. They didn't even want to imagine what would happen if help didn't arrive in time. Yet, they could do nothing but wait. While the flow of time should have been constant, it felt as though the numbers on the clock were draining away like water from a bucket with no bottom.
"Heh... hehehehehe... Ahahahaha!!"
Lock, one of the three, suddenly burst into laughter. The other two had been worried because he had been looking unwell for a while, but his condition seemed to have worsened even further. His eyes wandered without focus, and though the room wasn't cold, his body shivered violently, making his teeth chatter.
"Lock! Get it together! Is there a doctor?! Is there a doctor in here?!"
"...I'm not a doctor, but I'm an amateur Hunter. I can perform a basic examination."
"Oh! Thank you so much!"
The man who responded to Papa's call for a doctor began the examination. Once he finished checking everything, the man's expression was grim.
"It looks like an acute reaction to Vila. Or maybe D2... Does this patient have a habit of using drugs?"
"Eh? N-No, I don't know!"
"Munch! Six-tan's panties, munch munch! Haffu haffu, nom nom!!"
"It's no use, his head is completely gone."
"Actually, his comments are pretty much the same as always."
"Even this?!"
According to the amateur Hunter's diagnosis, it appeared to be symptoms of psychotropic drug poisoning. It wasn't fatal, but there was no effective means of treatment in the current situation. Since there was a risk he might turn violent as the withdrawal symptoms worsened, Papa and Caesar were ordered to stay by his side.
"We're right here with you. It'll be okay."
"Seconded."
Lock didn't have the composure to respond to his companions' encouraging voices, repeating delusions with an agonized expression.
"...He did it... I saw it... those two did this to us...!"
Lock was trying to tell his friends something, but he couldn't form coherent words.
"Have faith in our comrades. I'm sure Arthur-sis and Hideyoshi-shi will come to save us."
"NO! THEM! THEY!"
Lock suddenly tried to struggle, and the other two scrambled to hold him down. In a prison where the tension remained high, the trapped hostages were being driven to their psychological limits. If the commotion grew any louder, there was a risk that panic would spread through the group.
"We, the Six Guard, will not be shaken by something like this! Comrade Lock! Stay strong! Are you still a member of the Guard?!"
"Guard... Six-chan... protect..."
"That's right! Don't lose to some drug!"
Lock regained his composure. However, there was no telling what would happen next at this rate. Papa and Caesar desperately encouraged their suffering friend. In this dangerous and uncertain situation, it was also a way to maintain their own mental stability. Sharing the hardship and overcoming it with comrades—their mutual words became a support, fighting back against the encroaching fear.
At that moment, something moved beyond the transparent wall. The door, the only entrance to this large room, opened. Someone walked in slowly. In response, Pomerni stood up from his chair.
"Wait, isn't that..."
Papa muttered as he saw the figure. He knew that person. Everyone among the hostages here likely knew them. Blocked by the wall, no sound from the outside could be heard. No one knew what that "person" said.
"...Six! Six?! Ah, thank goodness! You're awake!"
I was released from the VR sensory device and returned to the real world. The first sight I saw was a close-up of Noah's face, crumpled with tears and snot.
It seemed he had recovered from being knocked out by the electric shock. 'LOLI-MOTHERCON' was scribbled on his forehead, but he didn't seem to notice. I could guess who wrote it.
"I was so worried! You suddenly stopped responding, and I didn't know what was going to happen...!"
Apparently, I had been in a state similar to being unconscious for a while. In terms of time, was it around when I was having the direct conversation with Milluki's 'Internal Persona'? Mentally, there was no gap in time for me, but it seemed my physical body's reaction had been different.
I was currently being carried by Noah as we moved. We were already outside the stadium. The four of us were running through a shopping district. We had stayed in the stadium's arena because there was no risk of ambushes in such an open area, but it seemed something had happened that forced us to move.
Velvet was clutching a spiked club made of ice. The blood stuck to its surface was frozen, showing that it had already been used. Blade was also scanning the surroundings without lowering his guard, his vigilance clear.
"Finally awake, are we? How nice for you. Now that you're up, hurry up and help with the cleaning."
What was the "cleaning" Velvet was talking about? The target of it appeared from the shadows of a street corner.
"IT HURTS... IT HURRRRTS...!!"
A person appeared along with a creepy scream that sounded like a halfway mix of electronic audio and a human voice. Or at least, they were supposed to be a person. There was a man who looked like an ordinary guest. One look at his face made it obvious he had lost his mind.
The man ran toward us at a terrifying speed. Velvet met him with her ice club. The club was clearly infused with aura. It was a strike that an ordinary person who couldn't use Nen could never hope to endure. If I recalled correctly, hitting an ordinary person with a Nen attack would forcibly open their aura nodes, so wasn't it something one shouldn't do recklessly?
However, that concern was misplaced. The man's body was already shrouded in aura. But it looked different from the 'Ten' that we Nen users utilized. It was more like he was simply venting power outward. At this rate, the consumption of aura would be far too high compared to the defensive power gained. He would run out of fuel in no time.
"WHY... WHY WON'T YOU UNDERSTAND...?"
The man had one leg shattered by Velvet. Normally, a fracture like that would make it impossible to move properly, but the man who had been blown back stood up immediately. He stood up on his bent leg. What made it possible were red crystals that had sprouted from nowhere. They were reinforcing the fractured area like a cast.
"What kind of B-movie horror film is this?"