Oh crap… I think I've been targeted already...

Returning to the Hairball Society's base with Leon and his group— the Multi-level Marketing Witch's second-hand broom shop—Catherine, who had reverted to her true cat form, climbed weakly onto her designated sofa and lay on the soft cushions with a look of despair.

I originally thought as long as I didn't wear that damn hat, I'd have a good chance of escaping the Slaughter King Association's lock-on, but as soon as I saw the Food God just now, I immediately lost control of my body and started "performing."

This proves that whether or not I wear that sleep cap, I've already been locked on by the "Bedtime Story," and even all my previous actions are probably part of what the "Bedtime Story" had set.

Thinking about it carefully, even my methods of contacting the Food God in advance might be within the rules of the "Bedtime Story." It was precisely the invitation from me, the "Evil Witch," that attracted the "Evil Prince" who covets the Witch Kingdom.

As expected, the next plot is probably about me and the ambitious Lionheart Prince scheming to "impersonate" Princess Catherine and thereby take over the Witch Kingdom with an evil plan.

Then justice will eventually triumph over evil, and those with ill intentions will get their comeuppance, while the good people live happily together and such...

Curse it!

Thinking of that jerk who's wearing my face and usurping my identity, the enraged cat-eared woman couldn't help but scratch the sofa beneath her fiercely.

Clearly, those bastards from the Slaughter King Association are the villains, so why am I the bad guy? This damned story is just... ugh... what is he doing?

Watching Leon enter the second-hand broom shop, but not rushing to discuss the situation with her, instead fiddling here and there, rummaging through things, the cat lounging on the armchair couldn't help but blink and actively reverted to human form.

"What are you looking for?"

"Heh heh."

Glancing back at the armchair's cat-eared woman, Leon halted his groping movements and spoke arrogantly:

"I'm just amazed that a powerful witch daring enough to strike at the High Witch King's daughter actually lives in such a shabby place, without even a decent piece of paper."

"..."

Faced with Leon's sudden taunt, the cat-eared woman's ears twitched, temporarily leaving her at a loss for words.

Ever since successfully reuniting outside the inner court, it seemed that because a certain story node was reached, "Bedtime Story" had began enforcing stricter constraints on these "characters" including me.

As the constraints increased, our actions and words were further curtailed, and every attempt to deviate from our "roles" induced a sense of impending doom.

As for the words that the "Evil Prince" and "Evil Witch" shouldn't say, they've been completely blocked off, not a single word can be uttered, basically in a state where communication is impossible.

So, even though I've successfully contacted my ally, due to "Bedtime Story's" rules, I can't have any "out-of-character" conversation with him, not even share any known intelligence...

"Hmph!"

Seeing that Princess Catherine didn't seem to want to respond, and fearing that having Yoha extract things from the Mirror World might prematurely expose that I could still use some abnormal objects, Leon had no choice but to hint again:

"Witch! You don't even have paper and pen to show for it?"

Oh, so he wants paper and pen, to communicate with me through writing?

Barely discerning the meaning behind Leon's arrogant tone, the cat-eared woman lightly shook her head, then replied with a very seductive smile:

"Noble Prince, the issues you and I are encountering currently cannot be solved with mere paper and pen."

Can't be solved with paper and pen? Does that mean even written communication is impossible, not just speech?

Seeing the sly smile on the "Evil Witch's" face, Leon frowned and pondered for a moment, then waved his hand impatiently and raised his eyebrows lecherously.

No, apart from language and writing, gestures, eye signals, and clues won't work either.

Shaking her head slightly at Leon to indicate that all those forms of communication were ineffective, unable to circumvent the "Bedtime Story" restrictions, the cat-eared woman let out a helpless sigh.

The constraints of the "Bedtime Story" were much stricter than I imagined, making it feel like the only things I can communicate with him involve how to abduct that impostor "Princess Catherine" using my identity and expressing my hatred towards the High Witch King's lineage, and so on.

Although the Food God was a lot stronger than I was, occasionally managing to deviate slightly from the "character role," he was still under the overall constraints of the "Bedtime Story" and was significantly limited.

What to do… although I've found an ally, we can't even talk to each other, making it seem like it doesn't matter whether we meet up or not?

Realizing there's no way to communicate at present, Leon could only pull up a chair to sit across from the cat-eared woman, frowning alongside her in shared frustration.

But after staring at the cat ears for a while, it seemed like an idea struck him suddenly. Leon couldn't help but smack his thigh and then exclaimed with a look of disgust:

"Witch, you're really ugly!"

"???

The sudden personal attack left the cat-eared woman boggled, and she raised her head in bewilderment, pointing incredulously at her own face.

Aren't you blind? When that impostor parading with my face strolls down the street, do you know how many people would rush just to catch a glimpse of my appearance? And I'm ugly?!

"What I mean is, compared to your current look, I much prefer how you appeared before."

Expressing a bit of regret through his eyes, the nefarious Prince Leon haughtily clarified:

"With how you look now, there's nothing I can say to you. In my eyes, you aren't even as pretty as a stray cat!"

"..."

You...!

Understanding it was a "Bedtime Story's" issue and that the Food God wasn't truly insulting her, but facing Leon's outrageous remarks, the cat-eared woman involuntarily wore a darker expression.

Suppressing the urge to retort fiercely and mulling over Leon's implied meaning, Princess Catherine shot him a glare and then once again turned into her cat form.

Seeing that she finally caught onto his meaning, Leon couldn't help but let out a tiny sigh of relief, quickly switched to the "Owner" badge, walked over to the conflicted black cat, picked her up and hugged her tightly, and then loftily announced:

"Remember, from today on, I am your master!"

"???