The five of them sat in a circle. Yae Sakura was on Otto's left, and Kiana was on his right. Next to Kiana was Theresa, and next to Yae Sakura was Himeko.
"Eh? Do I have to participate too?" Yae Sakura asked, her reaction delayed.
She had been a bit distracted, her mind elsewhere.
But she still couldn't figure it out.
"A birthday party is livelier with more people," Otto said with a smile. "Besides, these are all pillars of our Schicksal."
When there was only one man at a party, it was only natural for that man to want as many girls present as possible.
Of course, for a man unskilled in conversation, such a situation would be tantamount to sitting in a prison cell.
"Mm." Yae Sakura nodded.
She was Otto's secretary; contact with these girls was inevitable in the future.
And besides…
Looking at the white hair of Theresa and Kiana, Yae Sakura felt that she wouldn't dislike spending time with them.
"Then let's begin," Otto said cheerfully. He picked up the tissue box Theresa had prepared earlier. A quick glance inside confirmed it had been emptied.
Clearly, this was the prop they had intended to use.
"We write the Truth or Dare prompts on paper, then put them in here to be drawn?" Otto's gaze fell on the pen and blank paper on the table, which stood out starkly from the snacks and drinks.
"Mhm, mhm." Theresa nodded.
Originally, she and Himeko had planned to dig out all of Kiana's secrets tonight, but the Overseer of Schicksal had crashed their party.
Sigh, I'll just write something random.
The paper was torn into slips, and everyone was given three. Theresa immediately buried her head and began writing.
Carefree as she was, she was the most relaxed person here.
Himeko held her pen. The alcohol had completely worn off. She didn't even dare to peek at Otto from the corner of her eye. This was the Overseer of Schicksal.
The Lord Overseer is actually playing Truth or Dare?
It felt surreal. She didn't dare to write anything too provocative.
If she displeased the Lord Overseer, she would surely be the one to bear the brunt of his anger. After all, everyone else here had some sort of close relationship with him.
Sigh.
With a heavy heart, Himeko prayed that no one else wrote anything too outrageous. Otherwise, she would be the only one to suffer.
Yae Sakura held the pen awkwardly, not quite used to the modern tool.
Besides, she had no idea what to write.
The village girl, having lived alone for so long, had a touch of social anxiety.
Oh well, I'll just write something simple.
Participation was what mattered.
Otto, meanwhile, leaned over, pretending he was trying to peek at what Kiana was writing. Seeing this, Kiana shoved a hand in his face and pushed him away.
Like a cat with its fur on end, she hissed at him.
Fine, fine, I won't look.
Otto stopped teasing her. It wouldn't do for Theresa to notice.
Before their relationship was official, Otto had no desire for Theresa to learn that she might have a double-digit number of grandmas in her future.
However, Otto knew that even though Kiana was hiding her paper like a thief, she wouldn't write anything too extreme.
Because the prompts were chosen by drawing lots.
One wrong move, and Kiana would be setting a trap for herself.
Otto was also fairly certain that the prompts written by the other three girls would be rather dull.
Kiana was the only one here who saw him through a "dirty" lens. There was a generation gap between him and Theresa, his junior. Himeko, in her timid and fearful state, would never write anything romantic. And what would a simple village girl like Yae Sakura even know to write?
But so what?
A smile spread across Otto's face as he bent his head and began to write.
Soon, everyone had finished. Just as they were about to fold their slips, Otto spoke with a smile.
"Let me do the folding, just in case a certain little cutie tries to mark her slips."
The Overseer had spoken. Himeko was the first to show her loyalty, handing her prompts to Otto.
He quickly collected all of them. Without any attempt to hide his actions, he openly began to fold the slips one by one.
However, he was no honest man.
And he had no obligation to be honest with everyone present.
Not stirring up trouble would be completely out of character for him.
"The gods grant me classics, to master the art of war, to strategize from within the command tent—King of Legality."
Otto recited the incantation in his mind, unleashing the Authority of Reason. Though the slips of paper looked unchanged, the words written on them had been altered beyond recognition.
Heh heh.
This is the power of the Herrscher of Reason!
The ability to freely modify content makes one the king of Truth or Dare!
After folding all the slips, he took the tissue box. He suspected there was something fishy about it; it looked brand new, yet it had been emptied despite still having tissues inside.
He snuck a glance at Theresa. When she saw him pick up the box, her eyes widened slightly, a flicker of panic revealing that she had indeed rigged it.
Just as I thought.
Were you planning to corner Kiana, who had just stepped out?
He placed the folded slips into the box and gave it a shake. Then, Otto placed the box in the center of the table and said with a smile, "I'm the oldest here, so I'll go first. We'll go counter-clockwise after me."
He could have suggested some other party games, but with an elder like him present, Theresa and Himeko, at the very least, wouldn't be able to relax and have fun.
It was better to get straight to the point.
Yae Sakura raised an eyebrow slightly but said nothing.
She remembered that Kallen was younger than her, and Kallen had said she was the same age as her childhood friend.
That would make her older than Otto.
But she didn't say anything. She wasn't quite sure what was going on yet, so it was better to watch how the others played first.
No one else had any objections. With Otto's method, everyone would get a turn eventually.
Theresa pouted with a hint of regret. If it were just her, Himeko, and Kiana, she could have teamed up with Himeko to completely dominate Kiana.
She wanted to get closer to her dear niece.
After all, they were kindred spirits.
Otto, taking the lead, reached his hand into the box. He noticed Himeko tense up. She hadn't written anything extreme, but she suddenly remembered the rigged slip she and Theresa had prepared.
If the Lord Overseer draws that, will he get angry?
Otto's hand rummaged inside the box. He didn't grab one of the slips on top but instead searched around the edges.
Suddenly, an idea came to him.
His fingers brushed against the seam of the box, and he felt the hidden slip of paper.
Well now, my dear little Theresa, so you're the plucky gambler in adversity? Does that make me Hyodo Kazutaka, then?
Let's see what grandpa's little girl prepared.
Without a second thought, and without using the Authority of Reason to change its content, he decided to experience it in its original, unadulterated form.
He pulled out the slip and slowly unfolded it.
"Let me see, let me see!"
Kiana squeezed in next to him, her heart pounding. What if someone wrote something like "kiss the person of your choice"?
Otto unfolded the paper and slowly read its contents aloud.
"Say… who is the person you like."
The expressions on Himeko's and Theresa's faces changed slightly. This was the question they had prepared for Kiana.
But Himeko's interest was piqued. Who could the great Overseer of Schicksal possibly like?
Then again, do I even have the right to hear this?
Will the Lord Overseer have me silenced afterward?
Kiana's eyes widened, her interest piqued as well.
But a sense of apprehension fluttered in her heart.
What if he didn't say her name?
Yae Sakura had no reaction, and Theresa was even less interested.
Because Theresa already knew the answer. She was, after all, a clone of her.
It's definitely Kallen Kaslana.
Oh?
Seeing the contents of the note, Otto was also a bit surprised.
His gaze fell upon Kiana, whose eyes seemed to be shining with hope.
Otto looked at the four girls around him, a smile spreading across his face. Then, he slowly began to speak.
"The person I like…"
"is…"
"Kiana Kaslana."