Day Five: The Dolls

Raid Event: Doomsday Getaway

Episode 4

Day Five: The Dolls

Previous Quest

Day Four: Sleeping in Shifts

Next Quest

Day Five: The Victor's Choice

Summary

Elisanne is the latest victim—and while looking for clues, the party discovers some peculiar dolls with the souls of the dead sealed inside! The group also makes a horrifying realization: There is one more doll than there are bodies.

Dialogue

Do try to make your soul tasty for me, now! Aaaaaah ha ha ha ha ha! AAAAAAAAAH! Elisanne, stop this now! ...Amane, go! Run! AMANEEEEEE!

---

*pant* *pant* Was that...a dream? MUST you caterwaul so, Prince? All of that shouting scared me! Amane! You're alive! Don't say it like you're surprised! Such a tone may bring misfortune. Sorry about that. Still, I'm relieved to see you well. We were all watching out for each other, remember? There's no way Scylla could have pulled any of her tricks last night. How many are dead? DUDE, come ON! You can't just vanish on the mysterious death island and then pop back in whenever you feel like it! I will ask again: How many are dead? Luca, Cleo, and Ranzal. So three. Are you certain? What is THAT supposed to mean? If my estimation is correct, there should be one more corpse. Well, you're wrong! Everyone else is...is... ...... Er, Elisanne? ...Wake up? Her breathing has stopped. No... Not Elly... Rrrrrgh! DANGIT, Scylla! Get your scaly butt out here so I can KICK IT ALREADY! Notte... *sniff* I really hate this. It's stupid. Why does everybody have to die? I knew it. What are you talking about, Mikoto? And how did you know Elisanne was dead? I don't think she is. What are you talking about? It would be more expedient to show you. Come with me. Mikoto? Hey, wait!

---

Where are we, exactly? One of the caves dotting this island. It seems they are all connected and share a complex interior structure. Take care, everyone. It's darker here than you'd think. Yeah, and not great footing, either. Let us proceed cautiously. If we get lost, we may not be able to find our way back. It's so dark, I can't even see the face of the person standing next to me! Heh. What if it's Scylla? WooOoOOOOoo! NOT funny. Yes, read the room already. Yeesh. Sorry. Fear and wariness will only carry us so far in this darkness, which means we've no choice but to trust each other. Well, I'll be the bigger person and trust you, Patia—so you should be grateful. Well, seeing as I don't have a choice, I'll suppose I will trust you as well. I'm more worried about getting lost in here than I am about Scylla, actually. Are you sure this is okay, Mikoto? Yes. Over the last few days, I've developed a fair understanding of the cavern system. But why were you in these caves to begin with? The wind whispered to me of trapped souls that forever wander this land. Oh, well, that explains everything. It's just a bit farther now.

---

...There. Look. Wait, those are...

 ?! Why are there dolls here? Dolls always up the ol' creepfactor. Brrr! The reason I thought there were more victims was because of these dolls. I hope you are going to explain? Yesterday, there were three dolls here. However, the number has increased since last night. Three victims as of yesterday... Then the number increases... But from that alone... Listen.

Y-Your...Hiiiiiighnesssss... That's Elly—but it came from one of the dolls! Okay, I am NOT cool with ANY of this! Mmm, yes. I thought it might be something like this... What do you know, Norwin? Not something I know so much as something which caught my attention. Namely, Luca's body was too neat.

---

What do you mean? There were no external wounds on his body. No signs of any abnormality. It was as if his soul had simply been... plucked out of his chest. And if that's the case, maybe we can bring everyone back by returning their souls to their bodies! I know not. However, the waves I feel from these dolls are unmistakably the pulsings of life, so the possibility may remain. All right, so we free the souls that are trapped in these dolls. But HOW? Haaang on a second there, mystic bub. You're saying each of these dolls is the soul of one of our dead pals, right? That means there's one too many! Wait, she's right. Including Elly, we've lost four of our friends... But there are FIVE dolls! And then there were six.