The Truth of the Matter

Gah!

Ugh... Wh-Where am I...?

Oh, you seem to be back to your senses!

Still in one piece after taking Charlotte's attack head-on? You're quite resilient.

Huh? You're that girl from earlier today. The one carrying all those boxes...

Before I blacked out...?

Oh...! R-Right! Now I remember!

I'd just arrived at dawn to switch with the overnight guard...

Hey, your shift's over. Anything happen during the night?

Huh? What's this box for?

...Chocolate.

H-Huh...? Chocolate...?!

Chocolate... for Valentine's Day.

H-Hold on. Um, why would you...

Like, I mean... Valentine's chocolate...? Why give it to me, of all people...

...A gift entrusted to us by a guest.

To be delivered... to the white-masked magician... upon arrival...

You should've said that first! You startled me!

*Sigh*... What's with him, though? Something seems off about him...

Guess I'll leave this... somewhere I won't forget it.

And then, this young lady here showed up carrying a mountain of chocolate boxes.

She set them down right on top of the box I was keeping, which gave me quite a start.

Luckily, it was still there after she left, so I figured all was well, but...

...So the boxes really did get switched then.

Such trivial details don't matter! Tell us what happened after that.

...? Y-Yes, understood...

Not long after this young lady went inside...

What's gotten into everyone today? The part-time bunny girl, the night shift guy...

And it's weirdly hectic inside, too...

Should I go see what's going on?

Long time no see.

Oh! You're here? So there's a magic show at the Valentine's event?

It was scheduled on short notice. It's only natural you didn't know.

Haha, you seem to be in a good mood today, though.

Oh, right. Here, the previous shift passed this gift along to me.

Heh, it seems you've carried out your task well.

It looks rather ordinary compared to what I'd heard, but...

If the rumors are true, it should be able to strip away everyone's masks.

Pardon? What do you mean...?

Here, take this chocolate.

You delivered the box so well, it's only fitting that I reward you.

Oh, uh... Thank you. Don't mind if I do.

Something about the mood felt off, but we weren't strangers, so I just ate it right then and there.

The moment I ate that chocolate, I heard fingers snap right by my ear, and then...

...I woke up here.

We often invite skilled performers for our shows.

That magician was one of them.

She always seemed sort of displeased whenever she came by, but today she looked strangely cheerful.

All that talk about pretense and desire... She sounds like the type to write everyone off as hypocrites.

Nothing's more dangerous than someone with power who doesn't even bother keeping up appearances...

And she means to sacrifice others for such a childish idea?

We have to find that magician before she makes things even worse!

An excellent choice.

On that note, about becoming my partner—

...We'd better find the magician quickly, before we get any worse!