(I saw an "Atomic Heart Makima" on Tieba—so bizarre. Let me show you all.)
"Yay! I'm in!" Denko gave face to her own Mr. Su Tang, throwing both hands up almost the instant he finished speaking. Only then did she cock her head and ask, "Um, what's 'Truth' and what's 'Dare'?"
"Simple. If you pick Truth, you have to answer whatever you're asked—and it has to be the truth." Su Tang smiled, glanced around the table, traded a quick look with Aki Hayakawa, and went on: "If you pick Dare, you must do a task."
"In a moment, each of us will write down two dares—things like 'drink a bottle of beer' or 'say something to so-and-so.' We'll pile them together, and whoever chooses Dare draws one at random and completes it."
He took some blank order slips from the side table—the kind for writing a menu. Clearing his throat, he added, "Of course, try not to write anything over the line. It's just a game—and the one who draws it could be you."
"I get it!" Power thrust up a hand. "But how do we know you sneaky humans won't lie during Truth!"
"Lousy woman, only devils like you love lying!"
"Brat! Don't get cocky! I'm writing a dare that says, 'Be Power the Great's seat cushion!'"
"Bring it on! I'll make you eat ten pounds of cilantro!"
They were at it again.
Makima watched quietly. Tilting her head as if something had occurred to her, she smiled. "Sounds like a fun game. In that case, let me contribute too."
From the handbag hanging on her chair she took out a flesh-colored cube.
Su Tang's eyelid twitched.
That shape…
Too similar! It looked exactly like the Mouth Devil from that night!
Just one mouth, a little cube—exactly the same!
"Miss Makima, is that… a devil?" Mr. Fushi's tone held a trace of hesitation.
"Yes. The Lie Devil."
Makima set the chunk on the table, smiling. "Speak to it. If the speaker lies, it opens its mouth and cries out. If it's the truth, it does nothing."
"That amazing?" the younger squad leader peered at it, surprised. "Devil abilities really do cover everything. How come we haven't seen Miss Makima use this before?"
"I captured it recently," Makima said calmly.
Su Tang stared without blinking at the Lie Devil.
Hmm… On closer look, it did differ a bit from the Mouth Devil.
The diversity and possibilities of devils were, indeed, stunning.
Sometimes Su Tang even thought—if devils didn't oppose humans, if the two races coexisted in peace, the world would be astonishingly colorful.
Sadly, that was no more than a fantasy.
Devils are born of human fear—at their root, they stand opposite to humans.
"Miss Makima, that's a timely gift—we were thinking along the same lines." Su Tang smiled and was about to continue explaining when an abrupt "ah" interrupted him.
It came from the Lie Devil on the table.
Given his angle, he was facing it.
"Ahem. I was just, uh, testing it for everyone." He turned the Lie Devil to face a different direction, as if nothing had happened.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha! I'm dying! Humans really are born cheats. Not like me—I never lie!"
"Ah."
Power's braying laugh stopped dead.
Arms folded, she glared at the Lie Devil now facing her, as if to say, "Little buddy, what's your problem?"
"It's broken! I never lie!"
"Ah, ah."
The Lie Devil cried out twice more.
Everyone burst into laughter.
The room filled with a lively air.
Well—except for Power.
"All right, you're the mighty Blood Fiend—why pick a fight with it?" Seeing she looked ready to pop the Lie Devil into her mouth, Su Tang lifted a hand and headed her off.
After so many days of living together, he had the measure of this half-a-brain fiend.
Sure enough, at his words, Power snorted proudly through her nose and tipped her chin up, acting aloof.
"Okay, now that we've got a lie detector, did everyone get the rules?"
"Very clear—no wonder you're so good at this, Su Tang-kun," Himeno gave a thumbs-up.
"Even if you didn't, it's simple—one round and you'll get it." Su Tang tore off two sheets, cut them into small slips, and handed them out. "Write your two dares now—two slips each."
Pens scratched.
The novelty had everyone interested. As they wrote, they sneaked peeks at what others were putting down.
"Write yours—why are you looking at mine?"
The female squad leader shielded her slip, eyeing the younger squad leader leaning over.
"Heh-heh, I don't know what to write."
The younger leader scratched his head, then glanced right at Power. This time he wasn't caught—but…
He honestly couldn't read what Power had written.
Was that even human writing?
"Um… there are a lot of characters I can't write, so I drew symbols. If anyone draws mine, I'll say it out loud then."
Denko, embarrassed, held her pen and admitted it.
"No problem—might even make it more fun that way."
Su Tang smiled back, then wrote his own.
The first was already decided: [Ask Makima for information related to Denko].
He hadn't limited the subject, so whoever drew it would have to ask that question once.
He'd already asked in the office and gotten nothing, but since Aki still doubted, why not ask again? Asking under cover of the game might produce something unexpected.
Su Tang was sure Aki—and probably Himeno too—had written similar prompts on their slips.
Raise the chance it gets drawn.
As for his other slip…
He thought it over. This was a welcome party, after all—it should be celebratory.
But just as he set pen to paper, he caught a glimpse of Makima's profile out of the corner of his eye.
Calm. Serene.
He suddenly recalled that night, however many days ago, the first time he met her.
The woman who always wore a smile had stepped forward and hugged Denko, a look of attachment on her face.
Only for a moment—but he'd caught it.
And afterward, he'd never again seen her show that state.
Hmm…
After a beat of thought, Su Tang's mouth curved.
A bold idea came to him.
[Hug Makima for ten seconds]
Looking at the words, he crumpled the slip with a faint smile and tossed it in with the others.
—
"Okay, all done?"
He counted the paper balls in the napkin box—twenty-two in total. With two per person, the number was right.
"Done. Let's start," Mr. Fushi said with a smile.
"Good. Let's see who our first lucky one is."
Su Tang set the empty beer bottle in the middle. To improve the spin, he dabbed a little oil on it.
A flick of the wrist to the right—the bottle began to spin with a soft whirr.
He watched with a look of expectation.
Why pick this game? Because it made cheating easy, of course.
With the Rooster Talisman's "telekinesis," he could stop the bottle whenever and wherever he wanted—one thought.
So there would be no failing to ask the Denko question—the outcome was prewritten!
Even if no one drew the "Dare" slip, he would make sure the bottle's mouth pointed to Makima whenever "Truth" came around.
Of course, he wouldn't use the Rooster Talisman yet.
It was a game—always cheating would be no fun.
This was a welcome party—giving everyone a good time came first. Pressing Makima was just a side job, a plan he and Aki had made on the way here.
So he decided to leave the first few rounds to fate.
Whoever it landed on, it landed on.
Only in the third or fourth round would he steer it to Makima.
As he thought, the bottle's spin slowed.
Eyes leaned forward.
Whirr…
The mouth slid past Su Tang, past Power, past the younger squad leader, past the female squad leader…
And stopped—in front of Kobeni Higashiyama.
"Haaah."
Everyone exhaled at once.
Except Kobeni.
"Eh—ehh?! Me?!" She pointed at herself, face blank with nerves.
"Ahh, first spin is Kobeni. An auspicious start," the female squad leader teased. "Truth or Dare?"
"T-Then… Truth…"
She hesitated and stammered out her choice.
She was afraid a dare would be some weird punishment—more embarrassing.
"All right, whoever the base points at gets to ask."
Following the line of the base, Su Tang smiled. "Denko, think fast—what do you want to ask?"
Sure enough, the bottle's mouth pointed to Kobeni and its base to Denko.
"Heh-heh! Me!" Denko stared at Kobeni, put down her chopsticks, and struck a thinking pose. "Let me think—what should I ask?"
One second, two…
Denko was still thinking.
Kobeni was already sweating with tension.
"Got it!" Denko clapped, looked at Kobeni, and cackled. "Tell us the most embarrassing thing in your heart so far!"
"Most… embarrassing?" Kobeni's eyes widened. Her hands kneaded her hem as she thought. She stammered, "Um… back when I was in school…"
"Ah."
Before she could finish, the Lie Devil cried out.
"Eh—ehh!" Kobeni jumped.
"No lying, little Kobeni," Himeno winked with her one eye.
"Aah…" Kobeni gulped, cheeks blazing, her hem stretched taut in her grip. Beads of sweat slid down her brow. She flicked a glance at Su Tang and whispered timidly, "The most… embarrassing thing was… when we came out of the Eternity Devil… um… with Senior Su Tang…"
She broke off there, face scarlet—she couldn't go on.
Su Tang's eyes went wide.
He felt the gossiping gazes swing onto him. He hadn't expected the fire to land on him mid-spectating.
He waved his hands, blurting, "Don't listen to Kobeni! I only gave her a gastric lavage…"
Half-said words really were the deadliest.
And the Lie Devil hadn't cried out. That meant it truly was the most embarrassing thing in her heart.
Well…
He thought of something—and could understand why she'd find it embarrassing.
After he'd explained, everyone more or less believed him—especially Denko, who became convinced her Mr. Su Tang hadn't been "tainted."
"Whew."
They both sat back down.
Makima, who had been quietly watching from her seat, chuckled. "Su Tang-kun is quite popular."
"All a misunderstanding," he sighed.
"Hee-hee, I didn't expect the first round to be this fun. Let's start the next!" Sitting beside Kobeni, Himeno eagerly spun the bottle.
The soft whirr rose again.
Eyes tensed once more—Kobeni's "auspicious start" had been dramatic indeed.
And since someone had taken Truth, whoever was picked next would have to take Dare.
Who knew what these slightly unhinged colleagues had written!
Once, twice…
The spin slowed. The mouth slid past Arai Hirokazu, past Mr. Fushi, past Denko…
And stopped—
In front of Makima!
—
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