Alice in Borderland

Chapter 107

In slow motion, my slightly open eyes are reflected in the blue-metallic circuit board of the key bracelet and I swallow hard, because my throat feels parched from one moment to the next. My gaze slips into the background and at the broad grin that beams devilishly at us, I instinctively take a step back into a defensive position and can't take my eyes off the strange man's face. His expression is frightening and almost insane, the whites of his eyes emphasized by red pulsating veins.

"What have you done, where is she?", as the first words pass my lips in bewilderment, I find my voice again and start at him reproachfully towards the end. The man, however, ignores me completely, his concentration solely on Chishiya. Partly I am inwardly grateful that his menacing eyes do not pierce me, but just as detrimentally he does not answer my questions.I allow myself a sidelong glance at the person next to me for a second and falter. The member of the leadership team has pulled up the hood of his white vest and is standing to one side of me, but I can still make out his emotionless gaze on the strange man. He raises his eyebrows, slightly bored, while the corners of his mouth turn downwards, barely noticeable. From their appearance and demeanor, the two men facing each other seem to be about the same age, and since the stranger addressed him directly, they must know each other from somewhere.

"Who were you again?" Chishiya replies boredly to the revelation of the key bracelet. He raises his eyebrows arrogantly and looks completely relaxed, while our partner seems to be in trouble. I watch their body language in disbelief, but I can't just stay out of it."What about her?" I say in a more controlled manner, but his gaze remains fixed on Chishiya. He doesn't seem to notice me and acknowledges my reaction with an amused grin. Is the man next to me that cold or does he just not want to give this guy any satisfaction?

"We haven't seen each other for a long time, I don't think since university in the fifth semester," the stranger sighs calmly and leans against the closed door from which he escaped through his save room. He examines the key bracelet in his hand with interest and turns it with his bony fingers. "At first I thought you were alone, but then I discovered the key bracelets. Still, these things don't mean you must know each other. I've heard of a few hook-ups in my time here. The boy there responded to your head shake, though."

"I..." I blurt out and look at Chishiya with wide eyes. Does that mean I've put us in danger?"But the interesting thing was that the girl didn't react.""Really, because she didn't notice me shaking my head, we're supposed to know her from somewhere?" Chishiya interjects, and while his remark sounds derogatory, he looks at the man emotionlessly.They know each other from university, I guess by Chishiya's intellect and demeanor the main university of Tokyo. But what is the man's intention? I can't remember ever seeing him in a game, and he seems surprised to see Chishiya, which leads me to conclude that they haven't met in Borderland either. Nevertheless, Chishiya must know the strange man, otherwise he would not have addressed him directly.

Even though he's turning the key bracelet with his fingers in a determined yet carefully heroic manner, I don't think he killed the woman. She's too clever for that, from what I can tell from our meetings. The games she has survived, she won't let herself be eliminated by an arrogant participant. Sayuuri had also given me a tip and let me decide for myself which killer I wanted to incorporate into my tactics. Somewhere in there she is probably trying to find another way after my choice. And yet the man from the beach reluctantly allows himself to be drawn into an exchange of blows.I watch Chishiya carefully. There must be something connecting him to Sayuuri, otherwise he wouldn't be talking to her. The player was on the roof for a reason when Chishiya spoke to me and described the increasingly dangerous conditions on the Beach. He factored this girl into our plan, which is why his indifference worries me all the more.

"Am I mistaken or was the girl a cheerleader at our university? I couldn't get a good look at her training uniform, but I always enjoyed watching the girls at the games. Anyway, without digressing any further, she was pretty quiet when I dislocated her arm.

She didn't even open her mouth when I wanted to know about you," said the man in front of us, who had to grin a little. For a brief moment, Chishiya raised his eyebrow almost disparagingly, at which I could recognize a small nod. He thought about the man's words.As I consider his words in more detail, I realize that Sayuuri must certainly be in pain. A dislocated arm is certainly scary and not favorable for such a game with hunters. It significantly reduces her chances. Should a hunter run into her, she wouldn't be able to climb onto one of the high stands or physically fight back effectively."You know Chishiya, your wasteful father may own this hospital, but you've always been a thorn in my side. You always had to be better than me, without really trying. Your snide comments and looks still make me angry to this day," the man speaks to Chishiya again, who still has a fairly relaxed attitude.