[208] Episode 5 · Paradox Spiral! (6)

Chapter 208: Episode 5 · Paradox Spiral! (6)

Compared to the self-assured evaluations of the nobility, viewers in the Southern Region who had seen the earlier episodes of The Garden of Sinners couldn't help but discuss their thoughts:

"It feels like Ryougi Shiki's condition has worsened. She seems increasingly unable to control her homicidal impulses."

"Judging by the timeline, this seems to be set after Overlooking View. It's already the latest development, so it's not surprising that Shiki's state is deteriorating."

"The psychological impact of SHIKI's death is indeed severe. She still hasn't filled the void within herself, leaving her with a lack of self-awareness."

"As for Enjou Tomoe, this guy is pretty lucky. With Kokutou Mikiya conveniently absent, I wonder what he's been up to. He's this close to being entirely overshadowed."

"That's not entirely fair. Shiki clearly has no interest in Enjou. Her attitude towards him is less like dealing with a person and more like handling a pet. It's not even that kind of relationship."

"I'm just curious about what's really going on with Enjou's family. From the flashbacks, his family seemed pretty normal, so how did such bizarre circumstances arise?"

"No idea, but this guy sure has it rough. Hopefully, he gets at least a somewhat decent ending."

"Yeah, let's hope so."

Amidst the various voices and opinions, whether from the common folk of the Southern Region or the mages of the Imperial Mage Academy, the extended introductory scenes of Paradox Spiral left them unable to form definitive judgments.

All they could do was exchange thoughts while waiting for the story to unfold further.

...

After a long and relatively uneventful buildup, the film's plot finally takes a sharp turn.

One day, Enjou Tomoe noticed someone tailing Ryougi Shiki. Alarmed, he quickly informed her about it, but her response was surprisingly indifferent.

Shiki didn't care about such trivial matters.

Acting on an impulse, Tomoe confessed his feelings to Shiki, only to have her press a knife against his throat.

Looking into her cold eyes, he heard her ask, "Would you die for me?"

After trembling for a moment, the boy replied, "Yes, if it's for you, I would."

Hearing this, Shiki's gaze grew colder.

Meanwhile, Tomoe, filled with despair and pain, muttered to himself:

"Not like my life has any value anyway. After killing my parents, it's only a matter of time before I get the death penalty. Compared to the gallows, dying by your hand seems much cleaner."

"Killed your parents?"

"Yeah, I killed them. Over and over, like I was scared I wouldn't finish the job, I tore through their insides with a kitchen knife. Heh… Honestly, what an idiot I was, completely numb to everything. My fingers wouldn't let go of the knife, my wrists kept twisting and churning their organs. By that point, I couldn't even tell if I was stabbing them to kill them or just to stir up their guts. I couldn't even recognize if they were still human anymore."

"Tomoe, why did you kill them?"

"I… I was afraid. Because I had a dream.

"One night, after coming home from work, I collapsed on my bed. Not long after, I heard my parents arguing in the next room. Then the sliding door opened. My father was covered in blood, and my mother stood there. And then… she stabbed me, over and over, right in the throat."

"…"

"At first, I thought I had actually died. But when I woke up the next morning, nothing like that had happened.

"Yet, every night after that, I kept having the same dream. Over and over, the exact same thing. Until finally, I couldn't take it anymore. Before they could kill me, I killed my mother."

As Tomoe's anguished voice trailed off, the tragic details of his story were laid bare.

Though riddled with inconsistencies and unanswered questions, few in the audience delved too deeply into them.

After all, the specifics of his confession aligned perfectly with the scenes shown at the very beginning of the film.

Amid this unsettling turn of events, the story continued to unfold.

After revealing the truth about murdering his mother, Enjou Tomoe never returned to Ryougi Shiki's apartment.

He had resigned himself to dying like a weed, unnoticed and forgotten by the roadside. But then, as he wandered aimlessly through the streets, he suddenly saw his mother—someone who was supposed to be dead.

The sight sent a chilling wave of dread coursing through him. Driven by an overwhelming instinct, he sought out Ryougi Shiki and told her everything he had witnessed.

"So, you're saying your supposedly dead parents are still alive?"

"How could that be?! I definitely killed my mom, and my dad's dead too. There's no question about it. If they were still alive, that would be the real absurdity!"

"In that case, why don't we go to your house and confirm it?"

"What?"

Tomoe was taken aback by Shiki's unexpected suggestion. Before he could even process it, he found himself already following her lead.

The previously subdued plot took another sharp turn, and this time, an indescribable sense of danger began to permeate the screen.

Even the nobility, who had been relentlessly criticizing the film, fell silent, their attention now fully captured by the escalating tension.

One by one, they watched the screen with bated breath, eager to uncover the source of the unsettling events.

In contrast, the True Ancestor Arcueid calmly remarked, "It seems like Enjou Tomoe's entire family might not be human anymore."

"Huh… what?"

Durin was visibly stunned by how effortlessly she seemed to have deduced the final truth.

With a serene smile, Arcueid elaborated,

"Let's set aside the fact that Tomoe's parents, who were supposed to be dead, have suddenly come back to life."

"Just focusing on Tomoe himself—he's gone an unusually long time without consuming regular food, and there's hardly been any depiction of him resting."

"That's far from normal. Under such prolonged psychological pressure and physical deprivation, any ordinary human would have broken down completely by now."

"Unless, of course, the humans in The Garden of Sinners have entirely different parameters, in which case, ignore my comment."

"…"

Durin considered her words carefully but ultimately decided against spoiling the story.

Meanwhile, the others who overheard Arcueid's insights were visibly astonished. It was clear they hadn't noticed such subtle details in the earlier scenes.

Even Duke Constantine couldn't hide his surprise as he remarked, "I see. So this means that Enjou Tomoe's family was already… abnormal from the start."

"On the surface, they seemed to lead an ordinary life, but in truth, they were never normal humans to begin with. But what could have happened to twist a seemingly ordinary family into something so bizarre?"

"That," Arcueid replied, "will depend on the explanation provided in the upcoming plot. My guess is that it has something to do with the person tailing Ryougi Shiki, and perhaps even with the apartment where Enjou's family lived."

Her words hung in the air.

Durin, hearing this, sighed helplessly, inwardly marveling at Arcueid's incredible attention to detail.

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