The storage room.
It was piled high with all sorts of useless junk—chaotic, dusty, and completely unorganized.
Herta had searched this place yesterday and found nothing at all. But now, based on the clue she'd purchased, it was obvious she'd overlooked something crucial.
So she stopped caring about getting dirty.
Kneeling down, she began rummaging through the clutter at high speed.
"Not this… not this either…"
Dust kicked up into the air, making her cough repeatedly. For a moment, she even wondered if Valerius was deliberately messing with her—she'd already searched more than half the room, yet still found nothing.
Livestream Chat
[Asta]: Huh? Didn't Lady Herta already search here yesterday? Why is she back again?
[Screwllum]: Evidently, Lady Herta obtained key intelligence—most likely information sold by Valerius.
[Jade]: That seems likely. The one-point clue probably pointed to this place.
[Jing Yuan]: Lady Jade, could you share the clues you obtained?
Now that Jade had already been eliminated—and still carried information—Jing Yuan couldn't help asking. After all, he had seen the killer with his own eyes.
[Jade]: The three-point clue was a number sequence: 1-3-4-2-6-5.
The two-point clue was: "Beware of a non-existent profession."
Jade had long heard that Jing Yuan excelled at strategy. Since he was already eliminated, she was curious what kind of deduction he'd make with the same information.
[Jing Yuan]: I see… then I understand.
[Jade]: Who is the killer?
[Jing Yuan]: I can't say. But… try thinking in the most absurd direction possible.
That response left Jade utterly confused.
Absurd?
How absurd are we talking?
She wasn't the only one puzzled—many viewers were just as lost.
Livestream Chat
[Yae Miko]: Could it be Ei? That absurd enough for you?
[Kamisato Ayaka]: Lady Guuji?!
[Kuki Shinobu]: Th-this…
[Thoma]: That answer is a bit much…
The Inazuma viewers collectively fell silent.
Sure, based on past games, their Archon wasn't exactly the most reliable—but accusing your own god of being the killer was a stretch.
[Venti]: Heh… that would be pretty absurd.
[Zhongli]: Unlikely.
Even if one were to think wildly, Zhongli felt Raiden Ei was improbable. Based on what he knew of her, she wasn't the type to carefully plan a murder and frame someone else. Sending her into battle made sense—this kind of intricate scheme? Not really.
"Think in the absurd direction…"
Mulling over Jing Yuan's words, Jade suddenly froze.
A name surfaced in her mind.
[Jade]: …It's them?!
[Jing Yuan]: Heh. It seems we fell into a cognitive trap from the very beginning.
[Jade]: …I only hope Lady Herta realizes it in time.
Regret welled up in Jade's heart.
If she'd bought the one-point clue as well, she might've been able to piece everything together herself—and possibly even win.
Inside the Game Arena.
After a full day of searching, the remaining players regrouped in the main hall.
Herta's face was smudged with dust, but her eyes gleamed sharply.
Seeing that expression, Valerius immediately knew—she'd found something important.
"Alright," he announced. "Night is falling again. Time to choose rooms."
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone froze.
"…Choose rooms again?"
"Yes," Valerius replied. "Rooms are reassigned every night. However, the room where a murder occurred may no longer be selected."
That caught Herta completely off guard.
She never expected room selection to reset.
By the time she reacted, Raiden Ei, Furina, and Xiao had already grabbed Xiao between them and rushed upstairs.
She didn't even have a chance to chase.
Sure enough, by the time she arrived on the third floor, all the rooms there were taken.
The only ones left were Room 2 and Room 3.
Based on the clue 1-3-4-2-6-5, Herta believed this represented the killer's intended order.
Room 1 had already fallen.
If she wanted, she could pick Room 2 to avoid danger—
But she didn't need to.
"Heh," Herta chuckled softly. "Victory is already in my grasp."
Without hesitation, she stopped in front of Room 5 and spoke clearly.
"I will exercise the Young Lady's authority. Xiao is forbidden from leaving his room tonight."
With that said, she descended to the second floor and chose Room 2.
Even though she'd restricted Xiao, she wasn't foolish enough to rely on that alone.
After all, who knew whether special abilities would still apply?
In Herta's mind, however, the outcome was already decided.
Because she now held the decisive clue.
The killer's gender belongs to the minority.
That was overwhelmingly specific.
At a glance, the answer seemed obvious.
Among those remaining, only Xiao was male.
Jing Yuan was already eliminated.
If that was the case—then who else could the killer be?
The only pity was that the time for accusations had already passed today.
She'd have to wait until tomorrow.
As for sharing victory with the other two?
That thought never even crossed her mind.
She had only four points left.
If she won alone, with two others still alive, she'd gain two more—bringing her total to six.
Why would she split the rewards?
She wasn't a merchant like Jade, concerned with favors and relationships.
If there was profit to be had—
She wanted it all.