Deon couldn’t tell what happened in the next few seconds after that. All he felt was something cold spreading across his face like a liquid, before hardening piece by piece.

His first instinct was to tear it off, but the raccoon-masked man already proved it to not be the best idea. So Deon forced his hands to stay still.

When he opened his eyes again, the first thing he saw was Hana’s white dove mask just short of his face. "Are you okay?!"

Jin peeked from behind Hana, his own hand pressed nervously against his chest. "For some reason, only that shadow went crazy after you..."

"Seems...about right," Deon struggled before finally sitting back up on the soft grass.

He lifted one hand carefully and touched the edge of the mask. The shape was different from Hana’s dove or any of the other creatures he had seen so far. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

His fingers traced along a sharp curve running down the bridge of his nose, almost like a beak.

Wait...a bird?

Hana seemed to realize it at the same time. Her eyes moved over the shape of his mask, then widened upon realizing what it was.

"You’re...a raven."

"There’s no way..."

Deon turned, only to catch his own reflection in the pink glass of the conservatory. A sleek black raven mask stared back at him. The porcelain was sleek enough to look almost like polished obsidian, with a narrow beak curving down between the eyes.

Vivian’s laugh came from the side as she saw what happened. "Oh, Little Day!"

"Don’t..."

"I didn’t say anything."

"You were about to."

"I was only going to say it suits you."

"That’s exactly why I said don’t."

Deon turned back to see her mask so he could make fun of her. But the words died in his mouth as he realized how much it suited Vivian. Her mask covered one side of her face, sleek and dark, shaped like a cat with red trim along the edges.

He turned to look at the rest. The twins both seemed to have some kind of fish on their masks.

Mina’s had a blue fish across its left side, body curving upward around her eye like it was swimming toward the surface. Nami’s was the complete opposite, with a red fish curving beneath her right eye like it was diving into dark water.

What’s up with the Miracle Royale and giving these twins matching stuff? Someone in production must really love the joke.

Finally, his eyes landed on the boy standing awkwardly behind Hana, both hands hovering near his face. His mask was smaller and shaped like a young deer with soft brown markings around the eyes and a tiny antler curled from up top.

Jin noticed Deon staring and immediately stiffened. "W-What?"

"Nothing."

But before Jin could reply, the whispers between the spectral guests faded into silence. Even the servants stopped moving, standing in their assigned position for only one reason...

Lady Rosaline had finally moved. Her shadowy finger lifted from her lap and touched the empty teacup in front of her.

Clink!

A blue panel unfolded from above the pavilion.

[Lady Rosaline awaits her proper tea.]

[Prepare and serve the correct blend to receive the Lady’s favor.]

[Only those who receive the Lady’s favor may enter the Rose Room.]

[Improper tea shall be judged as an insult.]

Whispers started traveling between contestants immediately, seemingly trying to figure out how the game worked...and how much "insult" actually meant as a punishment.

Hana swallowed beside him. "So...we have to make her tea?"

Jin looked at the empty cup in the pavilion, then at the shadow servants. "Does anyone here actually know how to make noble tea?"

The question passed right through Deon’s ears as he brought a finger up to his chin, deeply in thought.

No...there’s no way the game is about brewing the tea itself. That’d be too boring. Then it must mean—

"It’s less about how you brew the tea," Deon shook his head. "And more about what tea you actually brew."

"Exactly," a voice said from the side, stepping forward as if Deon had just given him the opening he needed. "The wording says ’correct blend.’ That means the important part is identifying her preference."

Deon turned, but he didn’t need to know whose voice it was to recognize them. Joshua stood there with a hand on his chin as well, a shiny peacock mask sat on his face, a little bit avant-garde for the party but he didn’t seem to mind.

"Damn, you smart-asses think you’re actually right, huh?" someone snapped.

The voice of the owl-masked woman from before rang out. And it was clear that she was starting to become impatient.

"We’ve only got two days and how many other puzzles left? We don’t have time to search every flower in this place," she said, walking forward. "You’re all complicating it."

"This is the Rose Room," she said, pointing toward the pink-glass conservatory. "Then, what do you think the tea is supposed to be?"

A few contestants exchanged looks. Even Deon himself thought about the possibility.

And her name is Rosaline, too. There’s no way that many coincidences don’t actually mean something. Unless it was on purpose as a red herring...

Joshua seemed to realize it at the same time. "Wait. Don’t—!"

But it was already too late. The owl-masked woman had already turned toward the nearest rose bush. She reached down and plucked one of the roses from its stem.

The moment she did, the petals folded inward, curling until the shape distorted completely. The green stem stretched, twisting into a delicate handle, while the petals turned into porcelain. In the span of a second, the rose had transformed into a small teapot.

The woman flinched, not knowing that would happen, but proceeded regardless.

"See?" she announced. "The answer was accepted!"

At the base of the pavilion steps, a shadow servant had appeared, standing perfectly straight. Unlike the wandering attendants, this one seemed to be waiting specifically for service.

Its faceless head tilted toward the teapot in the woman’s hand. The owl-masked woman swallowed. Then, before anyone could stop her, she walked forward and held the teapot out before putting it onto the outstretched tray.

Every spectral guest turned toward the pavilion as the servant climbed the steps, carrying the rose teapot as if presenting an offering.

It stopped beside Lady Rosaline’s table, lifted the pot, and poured.

A stream of red tea flowed into the empty cup before the servant pulled back. Lady Rosaline nodded, putting her delicate hands on the cup—

And took a sip.

Deon clenched his fist in anticipation as Hana held her breath beside him. The owl-masked woman clasped her hands together, trembling so hard that her fingers clicked against each other.

When after a few seconds had passed and nothing happened, the woman rose her hand triumphantly.

"See?! I just solved the puzzle you all were so scared of—"

CRASH!

The entire table jerked violently as Lady Rosaline’s hand snapped downward, grabbing the edge of the white tablecloth and yanking everything out.

The teacup shattered against the pavilion floor, red tea splashing across the white stone like blood. The saucer followed after it, breaking into pieces. Even the silver spoon spun once before clattering down the steps.

Lady Rosaline rose from her chair as the blue panel appeared above her at the same time.

[The Lady has been insulted.]

"Wrong..."

Her voice scraped through the entire garden.

"IT’S ALL WRONG!"