"Why is Kaguya-chan looking at me like that? I'm scared!"
"She feels too much pressure carrying four burdens by herself."
It wasn't Kaguya who spoke, but Hayashi, who had already recovered. He patted Chika's shoulder and said.
"Ah!?"
Hearing this, Chika blinked in confusion, then her gaze swept around, finally landing on Miko, Ishigami, Hayashi, and Yukino's faces.
She then nodded as if confirming something.
"Hmm, Kaguya is right. You don't have any decryption experience, so it's a bit difficult to lead you, but Kaguya and I won't look down on you!"
"Enough!"
Listening to Chika's words, which automatically excluded herself from being a burden, Kaguya couldn't help but scold her for her nonsense.
She stared at Ishigami, Chika, Miko, and Hayashi and said.
"You'd best stick close to me later, otherwise! Understand—!"
As she finished speaking, a cold smile flashed across Kaguya's lips, and she made a highly intimidating throat-slitting gesture with her right hand.
"Understood!!!"
Seeing this, Ishigami and Miko quickly nodded! Although they didn't know why President Shinomiya was like this, they expressed that they would unconditionally trust President Shinomiya.
As for Chika~
"Wait, Kaguya-chan, you don't think I'm a burden too, do you! I'm Holmes Chika~"
Before Chika could finish, Kaguya had already placed her chilling hand on Chika's neck, and simultaneously, her originally icy beautiful face strangely wore a gentle smile.
At this, Chika finally wisely shut her mouth!
"If you say another word, I'll sew your mouth shut with a needle!"
Kaguya smiled as she gave Chika her final ultimatum. Seeing Kaguya's serious and terrifying demeanor, Chika finally behaved.
Then Kaguya turned to Yukino and said.
"Yukino, let's first analyze the existing information!"
"Hmm, the rabbit should be dangerous..."
Yukino nodded, but before she could finish, Hayashi's voice came through.
"Sorry to interrupt you, but I think you'd better turn around and walk straight out the zoo gate; otherwise, it might be too late."
"?"
Hayashi's words stunned Yukino and Kaguya. Then the two girls looked at Hayashi in surprise and said.
"What are you talking about, the zoo gate? Where is it?"
'Have they already started doubting the rabbit's posture and the elephant's shape, unable to see the zoo gate?'
Looking at the questions in Kaguya and Yukino's eyes, Hayashi couldn't help but sigh. This was the drawback of smart people.
Thinking too much wasn't an advantage in this zoo.
Wuwuwu—!!
Just then, Chika covered her mouth, excitedly waving her hands, looking eager to speak her mind.
Kaguya frowned and glanced at her. After confirming that Chika truly had something useful to say, she spoke.
"You may say one sentence."
"Isn't the zoo exit right there!"
Chika pointed to what she saw as the zoo gate and said in confusion, startling Kaguya and Yukino.
At the same time, following the direction of Chika's finger, they realized that she was pointing towards the path to the Ape Enclosure.
"?"
How can this person see the exit?
And can they really leave just by seeing the exit?
Full of doubts, Yukino and Kaguya were unsure if seeing the exit truly meant they could leave.
After all, they had just entered the zoo! And how did Chika see the exit, and why? Also, what did Hayashi mean by 'it might be too late'?
Just as Yukino and Kaguya were full of questions and about to press Hayashi.
"What do you mean by 'late'..." Yukino asked, puzzled.
Before she could finish speaking,
She and Kaguya saw another pair of eerie eyes grow beneath Hayashi's outer eye corner. They were crimson, like a rabbit's.
They darted around, then lifted to fix on Hayashi's original black eyes.
'I see it!'
From its gaze, Yukino and Kaguya read such emotion.
What puzzled them was that, faced with such an eerie scene, Chika and the others seemed to notice nothing, looking at their changing expressions with confusion.
They looked as if they were playing an exaggerated facial expression game.
Ishigami, however, sensed that something was off between them, but he didn't know what they were doing.
'Why is President Shinomiya's gaze so shocked, her face so pale, and sweat pouring down her face!!'
'Is there something terrifying on this student's face? I can't seem to see it?'
Ishigami didn't know how it happened, but as he 'doubted' and 'thought,' he vaguely saw some eerie shadow flickering at the corner of Hayashi's eye, but he couldn't see it clearly.
"!"
'Holy crap! Can't think about it; I feel like I'm about to see something!'
Ishigami, realizing something was wrong, quickly slapped himself, interrupting his thoughts, and in return, received looks of bewilderment from Chika and Miko.
"..."
Ishigami's actions aside.
Looking at the terrifying rabbit eyes at the corner of Hayashi's eyes, Kaguya's voice was filled with both fear and confusion.
"Why, we've been together all this time, you haven't done anything, nor have you violated any rules, so why would you..."
"Perhaps this is the curse of knowledge!"
Hayashi said casually.
Compared to Yukino and Kaguya's fear, Hayashi appeared very calm. He even walked to a smooth iron sign and looked at the eyes on his face.
To be honest, for someone with trypophobia like him, the current situation wasn't too bad; after all, it was just an extra pair of eyes.
And just as he thought that.
Hayashi suddenly heard the eerie laughter of a baby again in his ear.
The sound, a sharp and breathy
This sound, Hayashi had heard it when he was 'distracted' just now.
But this time, it was closer!
So close it was right on his face.
And along with this laughter, the crimson rabbit eyes on Hayashi's face also grew more numerous.
His reflection in his vision was soon covered with dense eyes, making even himself feel disgusted.
At the same time, Hayashi felt his vision turning red!
The figures of Yukino and Kaguya were also distorting, seemingly turning into monkeys? Or mosaics?
His own consciousness was also growing heavy.
"What was I again..."
Editor's notes:
Change of update plan, from once a day to once in two days… with two chapters, which means not much change.
(๑>•̀๑)