Antagonist Protection Service

Our period of peace and quiet didn't last for long.

Before the crying child stood the Detective, her arms crossed with a slight frown adorning her face. Glimpsing that scene, I doubted I was the only one to feel that something bad was going to happen.

In the subsequent moments, footsteps dashed out of the kitchen. It was, of course, the only other group currently contained within this church, consisting of the assailant "John", "Peter" the mother, and "James", the little sister anxiously trotting behind them.

The mother, naturally, rushed straight to the side of her small son, proceeding to hold and soothe him from tears. The little sister also stopped by her side, seemingly concerned about the younger boy.

Meanwhile, there was only one thing "John" could be doing in this situation.

"You bitch... What the hell is your problem, huh?!"

The young man grabbed the Detective by the collar, lifting her clean off her feet to almost match his eye level as he glared at her with daggers of fire in his eyes.

Different from her tirade of the early morning, this time, no one was in place to stop him.

Going further, nobody even seemed ready to make a move.

"Answer me! The hell do you think you're doing here, you little...!"

"..."

And yet, met with this point-blank ferocity, the Detective remained almost expressionless.

Even with her petite body completely off the ground, dainty feet dangling in the air, the only sign of emotion on her face was that persistent, ever-so-slight downward curl of her lips.

A moment of severe tension continued for some moments, the aggressor's huffing and puffing becoming more ragged like a bull, his face flushing redder and redder, his teeth grinding rougher and his fists clenching tighter.

Eventually, when he opened his mouth to yell again, he was interrupted.

Not by the Detective's voice, but by her face.

Or rather, by the witch's return.

"...!"

Nowhere close to the action, observing it only from a fair distance away――Despite that distance, my body shuddered.

For a third time, it rang in my ears.

A sound like jingling bells echoed, and immediately following that, the dreaded music again sounded to noone but myself.

Simultaneously, the witch's face distorted.

Just before her, I noticed her target flinch, visibly hesitating despite still grasping her collar.

And then, that high-pitched, raucous voice―strangely subdued as if barely stifling its brimming laughter―resounded towards him and encompassing all who were present.

"Are you scared...?"

It was just three words, but it was enough to make even my spine curl.

"John" too appeared speechless, and considering what discomfort I felt, I could only imagine what sort of physiological response he would have received from that practically nonexistent distance.

Whether oblivious or simply uncaring as to the effect of her words, the witch continued, unblinking.

"It's okay to be scared. To be scared as a sheep, to be so scared, frightened, terrified like a lamb that you can't handle it, that you can't take it any more, that you wet yourself in horror, in fright, in shock. You know? Being scared like such a sheepie is only normal, being afraid like such a little sheepie is normal, being anything other than a poor little sheepie is scary, oh so scary, so frightening, so horrid, so shouldn't you embrace it, shouldn't you embrace the safety of being a sheep, shouldn't you oh shouldn't you pray and hope and wish to be saved, to be embraced, to be held tightly in that warm embrace... of a sheep's fate?"

'What the fuck...'

For a while, she spoke in a subdued, almost soft tone, strangely uncharacteristic and most unsettling as she prattled on at great length about sheep, fright, and safety.

I could only recognise sheer pity in that voice.

Gradually, however, her tone darkened, and as her voice simultaneously lowered, her eyes also seemed to shift, containing something more akin to the blatant mocking I'm sure we had all already grown used to.

"...Oh. Or rather, maybe you should just confess after all. Sin and confess, and sin, and confess. When the day comes, won't you do that? Pretty please? After all, you are not innocent lambs, you are not the sweet, juvenile little things that have committed no wrong, are you? No, you are fully grown, awfully sinful sheep, plenty capable of sin and crime and wrongdoings and misdeeds and transgressions! Isn't that so?"

By this point, "John's" grip had evidently loosened to the point where the witch could simply hop down from his grasp to the stone brick floor beneath, and as she effortlessly recovered her standing, she maintained that contemptible expression and continued, sweeping a glance over us all who silently observed.

"And so, won't you hurry up already? Sin and die. Confess and die. Die pitifully like sheep, like the sheep you are, like the sheep you were born to be. Those foolish sheep who believe in something so inane, who follow something so nonsensical as following in the will of "God", of a god who captures you, who interrogates you, who does not exist and yet who kills you, are they insane? Those insane, stupid, foolish, terribly pitiable and awfully sinful sheep..."

Following that lengthy monologue, which was becoming far too frequent and in fact surprisingly benign compared to her previous speeches, the Detective casually licked her lips and faced everyone.

In the air, the tone had shifted to contain more richness than terror, various lighter tunes beginning to incorporate themselves, building similarity to the 'Detective's Theme'.

Then, without warning, she said something completely unexpected.

"Oh. Incidentally, I believe I have uncovered the identity of our dearest 「Judas」."

Silence ensued.

'...What?'

My eyes naturally widened, and I didn't even need to look around to know that everyone else was the same. In fact, I frankly couldn't believe it.

How the hell did she figure it out? And already...?

This was only the Third Day. A lot had happened in this time that was both short and long, but there were still eight days left until the supposed eleven day limit. It couldn't be ending this quickly, could it?

'I don't understand...'

Just how did she do it?

Without a doubt, everyone was asking the same thing internally, and that fact was swift to prove itself true.

"W-who is it?!"

I was too preoccupied with my own thoughts to register who exactly asked that, but it demonstrated how like-minded everyone was in this situation.

I also wondered. Who could it be? Of course, there was no way it could be me, and I highly doubted she would name herself as 「Judas」 considering what happened this morning, so was it--

"―"Thaddeus" is 「Judas」."

Interrupting my zooming train of thought, and probably the thoughts of all others in the room, the Detective announced the perpetrator's identity clearly.

Then, she giggled.

"Isn't it most fitting? The apostle christened "Thaddeus", also known as 'Jude'―"Judas Thaddeus"―really turned out to be the true 「Judas」 amongst you all. Just a fascinating coincidence, isn't it? I really am good for that one, kihihi!"

Her voice turning low just for that last line, the Detective's smile appeared dark. Meanwhile, I turned my head.

"..."

Looking towards the girl with teal hair.