After finishing breakfast, I immediately start preparing the prisoner’s meal.
…Yes, for lunch.
It turns out that breakfast is…skipped, according to President. He says they’ll just vomit it anyway. Oh, how disgusting.
As I start making chicken broth with chicken, ginger, and green onions, everyone else seems to be in the middle of a discussion.
“I absolutely refuse to do it.”
“I know, we won’t make you do it, Hariu.”
“President has the thickest skin among us, so he should do it.”
“No, I find this unacceptable too, so I nominate Toriumi for the task.”
“Let’s starve them to death!”
“…This won’t work if you leave it to him.”
“Maybe Kariya would be a good choice. He hasn’t been seen by them.”
“No, I really don’t want to do it. I’d definitely end up revealing myself.”
…What on earth are they talking about?
“What amusing discussion are you all having?”
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
“Oh, right, Maito-san is here!”
“So, what exactly is going on here?”
“Well, it’s perfect timing. So, how about Maito takes on the role of winning them over?”
“…Huh?”
According to President’s explanation, they want to gather information efficiently with the least amount of torture, so as not to turn the prisoners into vegetables or cause any unnecessary trouble. They plan to employ a method similar to ‘The North Wind and the Sun’.
In other words, they will offer food to the weakened prisoners after some mild torture to win them over and extract information.
“Maito-san can pretend to be a resident of this world, making her suitable for the task.”
They all seem to be saying that as if it was planned from the beginning. Well, I guess it was decided that way from the start.
“Wouldn’t it be better for me to handle the female prisoners’ torture? Wouldn’t it be difficult for you guys to do it?”
“It’s okay. I’ll treat female prisoners equally during the torture. It’s about gender equality.”
Oh, I guess worrying about it was unnecessary. My apologies.
“In fact, she was quite fierce with the female prisoners before. I don’t think she’ll hold back.”
“Well, that’s the idea. We’re pretty angry too. It’ll be alright.”
Well, it seems like they’ve made up their minds.
…Well, technically, yeah. Although Hariu and the others didn’t explain everything to everyone, I also won’t reveal anything. Thanks to ‘Sharing’, I know a lot more. If you ask me, I might even be angrier than the rest of them when it comes to rescuing Hariu. I can understand the feeling of wanting revenge too.
Of course, it’s clear that everyone is more capable of effective torture than I am, so I have no objections to their plan.
“Let’s confirm once again. We’ll be asking about the connection with the former king, the relationship with Life (Physical), any information on other students or classrooms, details about the ‘Ashes of the Abyss’, and any knowledge they have about how to return to our original world. And when we ask, the condition is that if everyone agrees on what they say, both everyone and Rosemary will be released. Of course, we won’t mention Rosemary until they talk about her. Is that okay?”
…As a strategy, it’s more about using me, or rather, Rosemary, as an escape route. Instead of making them talk by saying they “can’t endure torture,” we’ll frame it as “talking to help Rosemary.” It’s easier for them to justify and talk about it this way.
…So, as everyone went downstairs, I’ll make a light and digestible porridge for lunch, with well-made chicken broth.
I won’t add any ingredients since that would make it harder to digest and fill their stomachs.
There’s a reason for serving the soft and easily digestible porridge.
Of course, it’s partly to be considerate of their empty stomachs, but more importantly, it’s to mess with their sense of time.
In a room with no light and no clock, mealtime becomes the only indicator of time. Along with that, the time until one gets hungry is also measured.
So, by preparing a menu that makes them hungry quickly, we can gradually mess with their sense of time and make them feel like they’ve been imprisoned for days, wearing down their spirits.
And, it’s important to make sure even a simple bowl of porridge can satisfy them by making it delicious. That’s crucial.
Since porridge tends to overflow easily, I have to be careful while cooking it. I’ll add a slightly stronger salt flavor to it. Yes, that will make the snack of water taste even better, I’m sure.
Now, after straining the chicken broth and removing as much oil as possible, I’ll simmer the rice in the broth for about an hour until it becomes completely soft.
The porridge is now ready with the delicious flavor of the chicken broth infused into the soft rice grains.
Maybe I shouldn’t have added ginger and green onions; they stimulate the appetite too much. I’ll use something else next time. Also, ginger warms up the body, so I’ll avoid that next time.
Next, I’ve already soaked the kombu in water. I’ll use it later to make a broth with dried fish. Yes, adding a little soy sauce for flavor could be a good idea.
And, of course, next time will also be porridge. Forever porridge. I’ll create subtle variations, but it will be porridge. Let them enjoy easily digestible porridge and get hungry!
As I kept the porridge warm and continued sewing, everyone returned.
“How’s it going?”
“Things are not going smoothly here. The boys are mostly remaining silent, showing too much hostility. The girls, on the other hand, have spoken about almost everything, but the information is quite inconsistent, so we need to hold a meeting to discuss it. It’s a bit of a mixed bag.”
Well, they started with a hostile mindset from the beginning, and we are just following suit, given that they crossed the line we can’t forgive. Well, it can’t be helped.
However, if they’re not talking about other students’ sightings, are they suspecting that we’re trying to capture and kill other students? They might know about our connection to the former king, but what about information on other students? Shouldn’t they be free to talk about that?
“Anyway, please bring the meals. And, I’m sorry, but this as well.”
“Oh, I see. Understood.”
President brought the collars. Well, yes, the credibility comes from props, after all.
Of course, delivering meals for 27 people at once is impossible, so we have to go back and forth, taking about 5 portions each time. It’s tiring.
As we went downstairs, a wall appeared right behind us, and the stairs disappeared.
It seems that the maid dolls here are coordinating and signaling to Senpai. As a result, the entrance and exit to this underground cell are now authentication-based. Convenient.
Balancing the tray with the bowl of porridge and spoon in one hand, I opened the door, and the sound clearly indicated that the air inside tensed up.
…It’s okay, it’s just a meal. Don’t be so nervous. …Everyone said they only did it lightly, but I wonder what kind of torture they used. Maybe they brought in arthropods or something. Oh well, never mind.
The door to the private cell has a double structure. It’s a measure for preventing escapes and ensuring our safety. I unlocked the frontmost cell, locked it again after placing the tray inside, and then took only one bowl and one spoon. I opened the door that led directly into the private cell and stepped inside.
There was one boy lying limply inside. His external injuries weren’t too noticeable. Good, it seems he got away with minor injuries. You’re lucky, my friend.
“Um, here’s your meal.”
But it’s not just ordinary food.
Since his hands aren’t restrained, I simply handed him the bowl and spoon. He received it hesitantly, as if still afraid.
“…Is there poison in this?”
“I made it, and there’s no poison in it.”
I intended it to imply that President didn’t make it, but it seems he understood more than that. It’s like I’m on your side, is what I meant.
After a moment of hesitation, he took a tiny spoonful of porridge and cautiously put it in his mouth.
Hehehe, it’s quite delicious, isn’t it? It’s my masterpiece!
“Is it tasty?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s good to hear.”
If it’s delicious, it means he might want to eat more, and that means he’ll get hungry quickly!
“I’ll come to collect the dishes later.”
With a smile, I left the cell, making sure not to forget the keys.
Alright, let’s continue like this.
“Here’s your meal.”
And after serving a few more people their meals.
“Oh… You’re the one who was at the auction.”
…Oh, it’s Fukuyama-kun. Well, it’s only natural that he’s here since he was involved in that incident. But still, it’s good to see him here.
“Here’s your meal.”
Not feeling like having a conversation, I place the food down, give a smile, and attempt to leave quickly.
“Wait!”
I failed.
“What is it?”
“Hey, you know… They’re probably doing terrible things to you, right?”
…Well.
Strategically, it would be better to say, “Yes, that’s right!” and acknowledge that they’re both going through something terrible. But I just can’t stand talking to this guy.
In all likelihood, I can probably get away without saying anything.
“That’s not happening.”
“But you have that collar on as well, right? That’s terrible! You just don’t get it, do you? This is so wrong!”
…See? He started preaching about it without me saying anything.
…Conclusion.
Fukuyama-kun got carried away by his sense of justice (laughs) and got really angry about Rosemary’s situation.
In the meantime, I didn’t say anything bad about anyone. So, Fukuyama-kun misunderstood and took it upon himself to stand up for her.
But serving meals to 27 people and then collecting the dishes took longer than I expected, especially because I ended up having brief conversations with each of them.
…However, it seems like everyone is still cautious even when they eat.
I wonder why. Maybe they have less guard against the people of this world, or maybe they were just really hungry.
It’s probably a combination of both. They unquestioningly believed what the former king said, and they must be really hungry.
Now then, let’s make the next batch of porridge.
After about an hour, everyone went back to work, and I started preparing the next porridge while the current one was simmering.
The next porridge will be vegetable broth with bacon flavor. Quite Western-style. The first one was Chinese, the second was Japanese, so maybe the next should be ethnic… like curry porridge or Tom Yum porridge… No, let’s not go there.
…For a while, we’ll continue alternating between torture and meals like this, gradually narrowing the time intervals and messing up their sense of time. It seems like this will be a long-term battle.
After finishing breakfast, I immediately start preparing the prisoner’s meal.
…Yes, for lunch.
It turns out that breakfast is…skipped, according to President. He says they’ll just vomit it anyway. Oh, how disgusting.
As I start making chicken broth with chicken, ginger, and green onions, everyone else seems to be in the middle of a discussion.
“I absolutely refuse to do it.”
“I know, we won’t make you do it, Hariu.”
“President has the thickest skin among us, so he should do it.”
“No, I find this unacceptable too, so I nominate Toriumi for the task.”
“Let’s starve them to death!”
“…This won’t work if you leave it to him.”
“Maybe Kariya would be a good choice. He hasn’t been seen by them.”
“No, I really don’t want to do it. I’d definitely end up revealing myself.”
…What on earth are they talking about?
“What amusing discussion are you all having?”
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
“Oh, right, Maito-san is here!”
“So, what exactly is going on here?”
“Well, it’s perfect timing. So, how about Maito takes on the role of winning them over?”
“…Huh?”
According to President’s explanation, they want to gather information efficiently with the least amount of torture, so as not to turn the prisoners into vegetables or cause any unnecessary trouble. They plan to employ a method similar to ‘The North Wind and the Sun’.
In other words, they will offer food to the weakened prisoners after some mild torture to win them over and extract information.
“Maito-san can pretend to be a resident of this world, making her suitable for the task.”
They all seem to be saying that as if it was planned from the beginning. Well, I guess it was decided that way from the start.
“Wouldn’t it be better for me to handle the female prisoners’ torture? Wouldn’t it be difficult for you guys to do it?”
“It’s okay. I’ll treat female prisoners equally during the torture. It’s about gender equality.”
Oh, I guess worrying about it was unnecessary. My apologies.
“In fact, she was quite fierce with the female prisoners before. I don’t think she’ll hold back.”
“Well, that’s the idea. We’re pretty angry too. It’ll be alright.”
Well, it seems like they’ve made up their minds.
…Well, technically, yeah. Although Hariu and the others didn’t explain everything to everyone, I also won’t reveal anything. Thanks to ‘Sharing’, I know a lot more. If you ask me, I might even be angrier than the rest of them when it comes to rescuing Hariu. I can understand the feeling of wanting revenge too.
Of course, it’s clear that everyone is more capable of effective torture than I am, so I have no objections to their plan.
“Let’s confirm once again. We’ll be asking about the connection with the former king, the relationship with Life (Physical), any information on other students or classrooms, details about the ‘Ashes of the Abyss’, and any knowledge they have about how to return to our original world. And when we ask, the condition is that if everyone agrees on what they say, both everyone and Rosemary will be released. Of course, we won’t mention Rosemary until they talk about her. Is that okay?”
…As a strategy, it’s more about using me, or rather, Rosemary, as an escape route. Instead of making them talk by saying they “can’t endure torture,” we’ll frame it as “talking to help Rosemary.” It’s easier for them to justify and talk about it this way.
…So, as everyone went downstairs, I’ll make a light and digestible porridge for lunch, with well-made chicken broth.
I won’t add any ingredients since that would make it harder to digest and fill their stomachs.
There’s a reason for serving the soft and easily digestible porridge.
Of course, it’s partly to be considerate of their empty stomachs, but more importantly, it’s to mess with their sense of time.
In a room with no light and no clock, mealtime becomes the only indicator of time. Along with that, the time until one gets hungry is also measured.
So, by preparing a menu that makes them hungry quickly, we can gradually mess with their sense of time and make them feel like they’ve been imprisoned for days, wearing down their spirits.
And, it’s important to make sure even a simple bowl of porridge can satisfy them by making it delicious. That’s crucial.
Since porridge tends to overflow easily, I have to be careful while cooking it. I’ll add a slightly stronger salt flavor to it. Yes, that will make the snack of water taste even better, I’m sure.
Now, after straining the chicken broth and removing as much oil as possible, I’ll simmer the rice in the broth for about an hour until it becomes completely soft.
The porridge is now ready with the delicious flavor of the chicken broth infused into the soft rice grains.
Maybe I shouldn’t have added ginger and green onions; they stimulate the appetite too much. I’ll use something else next time. Also, ginger warms up the body, so I’ll avoid that next time.
Next, I’ve already soaked the kombu in water. I’ll use it later to make a broth with dried fish. Yes, adding a little soy sauce for flavor could be a good idea.
And, of course, next time will also be porridge. Forever porridge. I’ll create subtle variations, but it will be porridge. Let them enjoy easily digestible porridge and get hungry!
As I kept the porridge warm and continued sewing, everyone returned.
“How’s it going?”
“Things are not going smoothly here. The boys are mostly remaining silent, showing too much hostility. The girls, on the other hand, have spoken about almost everything, but the information is quite inconsistent, so we need to hold a meeting to discuss it. It’s a bit of a mixed bag.”
Well, they started with a hostile mindset from the beginning, and we are just following suit, given that they crossed the line we can’t forgive. Well, it can’t be helped.
However, if they’re not talking about other students’ sightings, are they suspecting that we’re trying to capture and kill other students? They might know about our connection to the former king, but what about information on other students? Shouldn’t they be free to talk about that?
“Anyway, please bring the meals. And, I’m sorry, but this as well.”
“Oh, I see. Understood.”
President brought the collars. Well, yes, the credibility comes from props, after all.
Of course, delivering meals for 27 people at once is impossible, so we have to go back and forth, taking about 5 portions each time. It’s tiring.
As we went downstairs, a wall appeared right behind us, and the stairs disappeared.
It seems that the maid dolls here are coordinating and signaling to Senpai. As a result, the entrance and exit to this underground cell are now authentication-based. Convenient.
Balancing the tray with the bowl of porridge and spoon in one hand, I opened the door, and the sound clearly indicated that the air inside tensed up.
…It’s okay, it’s just a meal. Don’t be so nervous. …Everyone said they only did it lightly, but I wonder what kind of torture they used. Maybe they brought in arthropods or something. Oh well, never mind.
The door to the private cell has a double structure. It’s a measure for preventing escapes and ensuring our safety. I unlocked the frontmost cell, locked it again after placing the tray inside, and then took only one bowl and one spoon. I opened the door that led directly into the private cell and stepped inside.
There was one boy lying limply inside. His external injuries weren’t too noticeable. Good, it seems he got away with minor injuries. You’re lucky, my friend.
“Um, here’s your meal.”
But it’s not just ordinary food.
Since his hands aren’t restrained, I simply handed him the bowl and spoon. He received it hesitantly, as if still afraid.
“…Is there poison in this?”
“I made it, and there’s no poison in it.”
I intended it to imply that President didn’t make it, but it seems he understood more than that. It’s like I’m on your side, is what I meant.
After a moment of hesitation, he took a tiny spoonful of porridge and cautiously put it in his mouth.
Hehehe, it’s quite delicious, isn’t it? It’s my masterpiece!
“Is it tasty?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s good to hear.”
If it’s delicious, it means he might want to eat more, and that means he’ll get hungry quickly!
“I’ll come to collect the dishes later.”
With a smile, I left the cell, making sure not to forget the keys.
Alright, let’s continue like this.
“Here’s your meal.”
And after serving a few more people their meals.
“Oh… You’re the one who was at the auction.”
…Oh, it’s Fukuyama-kun. Well, it’s only natural that he’s here since he was involved in that incident. But still, it’s good to see him here.
“Here’s your meal.”
Not feeling like having a conversation, I place the food down, give a smile, and attempt to leave quickly.
“Wait!”
I failed.
“What is it?”
“Hey, you know… They’re probably doing terrible things to you, right?”
…Well.
Strategically, it would be better to say, “Yes, that’s right!” and acknowledge that they’re both going through something terrible. But I just can’t stand talking to this guy.
In all likelihood, I can probably get away without saying anything.
“That’s not happening.”
“But you have that collar on as well, right? That’s terrible! You just don’t get it, do you? This is so wrong!”
…See? He started preaching about it without me saying anything.
…Conclusion.
Fukuyama-kun got carried away by his sense of justice (laughs) and got really angry about Rosemary’s situation.
In the meantime, I didn’t say anything bad about anyone. So, Fukuyama-kun misunderstood and took it upon himself to stand up for her.
But serving meals to 27 people and then collecting the dishes took longer than I expected, especially because I ended up having brief conversations with each of them.
…However, it seems like everyone is still cautious even when they eat.
I wonder why. Maybe they have less guard against the people of this world, or maybe they were just really hungry.
It’s probably a combination of both. They unquestioningly believed what the former king said, and they must be really hungry.
Now then, let’s make the next batch of porridge.
After about an hour, everyone went back to work, and I started preparing the next porridge while the current one was simmering.
The next porridge will be vegetable broth with bacon flavor. Quite Western-style. The first one was Chinese, the second was Japanese, so maybe the next should be ethnic… like curry porridge or Tom Yum porridge… No, let’s not go there.
…For a while, we’ll continue alternating between torture and meals like this, gradually narrowing the time intervals and messing up their sense of time. It seems like this will be a long-term battle.
