The Insane Regressor: Throne of Pride

Nothing happened immediately.

The black mirage cloud remained suspended before Ravian, bearing the three lines that had transformed him in a single instant from a victim into the enemy of everyone present.

{Role: Killer}

{Role Objective: Conceal your identity and reduce the number of participants to three before anyone exposes you.}

{Once the condition is fulfilled, you will be the sole survivor.}

The words vanished when Ravian willed them to, then the cloud contracted until it dissolved and disappeared before his eyes. Across from him, the other eight were doing the same; some dismissed theirs quickly in a way that betrayed their fear and unease, while others did so with deliberate slowness, as though trying to show that they had received nothing worth worrying about.

None of those actions held any real value.

The killer could feign confusion, an innocent could conceal their shock, and anyone who possessed a different role would never reveal it before a group that had learned only moments ago that eight of them were going to die.

’And I’m the main villain here...’ Ravian thought, a smile nearly forming on his face despite himself.

Ravian was now almost certain that the Fate Taboo had done something to his fate after their first encounter.

Nothing that had happened to him since then could be considered normal. First, he found the orc inside a cave near the human camp. Then he killed a random man to test one of his skills, only for that man to be inside a suspicious tavern that had already been under surveillance for some time.

And out of all the investigators involved, the Envoy of Truth came directly to him and specifically targeted him. Later, Lysandra discovered him inside one palace among the thousands of noble estates in the capital.

And now, here he was, dragged into some different domain or world called the Nightmare, controlled by a being whose level of power he could not even begin to understand, and given the worst and most difficult role within it.

’So this is what you meant when you said you had many ways to destroy me, Fate?’

’This really does sound exciting.’

Ravian maintained his composure and tried to turn the anxiety within him into excitement. After all, he was almost certain that his arrival here had been accidental. This was merely an unknown entity seeking something from them, not from him specifically—or so Ravian hoped. Otherwise...

Things would be harder than he had imagined.

The unknown entity’s laughter echoed throughout the realm and into their souls once more.

"Kikiki... Look at your faces. Not even a minute has passed, and every one of you has already begun lying to the others without uttering a word."

The mist forming its head shifted, and a broad grin, a pair of upside-down eyes, and the face of a crying child appeared across it in succession before it returned to a featureless surface.

"But don’t worry. The game hasn’t started yet. There are still a few little rules you need to know so you can die fairly."

"After all, I keep my promises," the unknown entity said in the same enigmatic tone as before.

The broad-shouldered man frowned and clenched his fist, but he did not step forward this time.

The thin man beside him said sharply, "You said only moments ago that the game had already begun."

The entity tilted its head toward him.

"I lied," it said with an innocent expression.

"Kikikikiki!"

Then it erupted into broken laughter, as though dozens of throats were arguing over the tone that should emerge from them.

No one joined in.

Ravian, however, was no longer paying attention to everything happening before him. Instead, he watched the surrounding mist as it slowly changed and noticed that the silhouettes of doors and corridors appearing within it no longer vanished completely. The domain was preparing to assume a fixed form as soon as the explanation ended.

The entity raised a finger that could not maintain either its length or the number of its joints.

It was the very definition of something inhuman, and yet there it stood before them.

"First... every round consists of a day and a night. Day begins when you hear the White Bell and ends with the third chime of the Black Bell. Between the first and third chimes, you will be given a short window to return to your rooms or stand wherever you choose. I won’t force you to hide. Terror is more beautiful when it is optional," the entity said as though all of this were perfectly self-evident.

Meanwhile, the others stifled their gasps and sobs so they would not accidentally provoke the entity. Not all of them, of course.

Greed showed on one person’s face, as though the end of this game were a reward in his eyes, while another seemed to find pleasure in tormenting others. And naturally, there were those who wore a poker face like Ravian, revealing no expression that could benefit or harm them in any way.

An enormous clock without hands appeared in the mist above them, one half white and the other black.

"During the day, you will work within the palace I provide for you. You will serve its guests, perform the duties assigned to you, and maintain the illusion as though you were genuine servants. The palace’s guests and its other servants are mirages, but they will see you, hear you, and remember what you do. Anyone who deliberately refuses to work, tells them the truth about the game, or attempts to use them to sabotage the domain... will be expelled."

The youngest woman asked in a soft, trembling voice, "What does being expelled mean?"

A small mouth appeared on the entity’s face and whispered a single answer.

"Death."

Her face went pale as the entity raised a second finger.

"Second... the killer cannot choose just anyone he wants. He must first communicate with his victim during the day, then remain the last participant to communicate with that victim until night falls. If someone else speaks to the victim after him, they will no longer be a valid target unless he communicates with them again and becomes the last."

Their gazes immediately darted between one another.

For a moment, relief washed over them because the rule seemed simple.

But that relief soon gave way to a strange thrill and even greater shock.

This time, their gazes held more than mere suspicion. They also held fear of something they had been doing without a second thought ever since they arrived.

Talking.

The entity continued with obvious delight, "At the beginning of the night, a special mirage visible only to the killer will appear before him. He may select one victim who meets the conditions. If he selects an invalid target or someone protected by another mechanism, no one will die, and I will not tell you what happened or why the attempt failed."

Ravian was now completely focused on the conversation, and he allowed that focus to show without trying to conceal it.

What was the best way to deceive someone?

Naturally... it was to tell the truth.

The old man asked, "What do you consider communication?"

For the first time since its appearance, the entity’s face remained fixed in a single form for two full seconds. It took the form of a smiling white mask.

"A good question. Communication is the transfer of deliberate, directed meaning from one participant to the consciousness of a specific participant. There are many forms of communication, and all of them count here..." The entity paused for a moment before continuing in a voice brimming with obvious amusement. "And you will have to discover the rest for yourselves."

The thin man asked, "What about something said where everyone can hear it?"

"General speech that does not target any particular person does not count as individual communication. A passing glance is not communication. Standing in the same room is not communication. But if you conceal within public speech a meaning that only one person understands, and that meaning reaches them..."

The mask’s smile widened until it stretched beyond the boundaries of its face.

"Then the Soul Mirage does not care how many people heard the voice. It cares about the person the meaning—or the signal, or even the emotion—reached."

It was a complicated statement, one filled with possibilities, and the frowns on their faces made it clear that everyone had realized that.

Ravian memorized the statement and repeated it word for word in his mind so he would not forget it.

Then he smiled as he placed a hand over his mouth.

’Wonderful... This is going to be truly wonderful.’

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