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Alistair Archibald was usually a benevolent and tolerant man, but there a three things he simply could not stand: People who stood in his way, people who insult him, and people who forced him to make hard choices.

Of these, Talus was all three.

Alistair Listened to everything that was said. It was a lot to take in, But he understood the gist of it. Chieko and him would essentially be replacing Vertti. Talus wanted a new host, presumably because in order to forward his plans. 

But it seemed like Talus was vulnerable right now. Not physically vulnerable, as Ashton was proving. Talus didn’t possess Fritzi’s speed, but he was able to dodge every attack Ashton threw at him. He didn’t know how long he planned on toying with Ashton, but this was good. He was underestimating them, and letting himself get distracted. [color=baddab]”Such a tiny knife, I have to wonder if it’ll even break my skin.”[/color] 

While he found Ashton’s bold move pleasing, he was put off by Flame’s choice to take a nap at this time. He wouldn’t have wasted his mana on him if he thought he was just going to collapse on the ground. Ashton was a man of action. He despised weaklings, people who would nap when there’s work to be done.

And then there was Chieko, who fell somewhere on the line. It was clear she was stressed to her limit. Alistair was too, but he was a bit better at hiding it. She asked Vertti if killing her would really solve everything. 

[color=lavender]"I believe so."[/color] Vertti placed her hand on her chest. [color=lavender]"It’s in our contract. He’s defective that way. Something that happened to him after encountering the witches. He can only draw his mana out of one person at a time. If you kill me, he will die shortly afterwards."[/color]

Alistair was not sure how Chieko would respond, but he chose to give his input on that plan. [color=c1ba46]"No! Now’s not the time to be dead!"[/color] It was just principle. Ashton thought killing Hiro would reset the timeline, but it ended up just killing him. He wasn’t going to let someone else die and hope the magical mumbo jumbo all worked out okay. He approached the two girls and spoke in a hushed tone. [color=c1ba46]"Killing Vertti is exactly what he wants, that’s why he’s getting ready to trade hosts. We don’t need to kill his current host, we need to make sure the witches can’t pick any of us."[/color] Alistair groaned. He just needed to understand the game better. [color=c1ba46]"I take it the vote has to be unanimous? It seems like Lust’s vote was holding things up for everyone."[/color]

[color=lavender]"Excluding the witch of envy, the other eight have to all agree on one, yes."[/color] 

Alistair folded his arms. [color=c1ba46]"Hey ladies!"[/color] Alistair spoke in his normal voice. [color=c1ba46]"Are you watching this?"[/color] 

That was when the shapes of the witches started to appear all around them.

[b]”I, wouldn’t, miss, you, for, the, world, Alistair.”[/b] Sloth hovered over Alistair.

[b]”Chieko has always been my favorite.”[/b] Gluttony ran her hand over her stomach. [b]”I would not miss her for the world.”[/b]

[color=c1ba46]"Well, there you have it."[/color] Alistair looked at his companions, speaking quietly again. [color=c1ba46]"The reason why Lord Talus is pulling such a risky stunt right now is because he’s trying to force the witches to pick one of us. The fact that Vertti is here with us means that she can still be nominated. All we need to do to claim victory is make sure the witches don’t pick either of us and instead pick Vertti."[/color]

[color=lavender]"That might work."[/color] Vertti nodded. [color=lavender]"It’s worth a try. I’ll see what I can do."[/color]

[color=c1ba46]"We can deal with him once the game ends. Meanwhile, I think I know what will make Lust happy."[/color] Alistair stepped over to Chieko with a finger raised in the air. [color=c1ba46]"Chieko."[/color] Alistair said a bit louder. [color=c1ba46]"We might not survive this. I’ve encountered a lot of woman since I got here. However…"[/color] He wrapped his arms around Chieko and kissed her on the lips.

[b]”Noooo!”[/b] Lust cried. [b]”It’s like Lin all over agaiiiihahahaaaan…”[/b]

Gluttony chuckled before placing a finger on her lower lip. [b]”I actually think my opinion of Alistair has improved a bit.”[/b] she giggled. [b]”It’s hard to pick between the two now.”[/b]

While all this was going on, Aerith trembled in anger. [color=gold]"What? Where did this come from!? You could have held me like that!"[/color]

Disappointing. It didn’t even bother Alistair that he might have to kill Aerith. Not that he looked forward to it, but she didn’t have a single redeemable quality. She was human garbage, and the fact that she wanted to kill them for a shoulder to lean on. Not that he would do so willingly, of course. That would be giving into wrath after all. 

[color=c1ba46]"Survive, Chieko!"[/color] Alistair turned to face Aerith and started flinging ice spears. It seemed the two of them were racing against the clock to disappoint as many witches as possible.