Prologue – Introduction

"I guess I took some worlds for granted.

I plowed through hundreds of them, only to be killed at the end.

At this point, I had barely any hope for succession.

I believed at every world, I would die, or maybe I would finally succeed with Hanyuu at my side.
How wrong I was when I said I would not find a remotely different world from every one of them…"

1983, summer, the Showa period, Japan. The cicadas' cry echoes throughout the village Hinamizawa as evening falls. Most people in Hinamizawa are enjoying their dinners, watching television, or doing some other random activity. However, for some people, it's quite different.

Right now, it seems the Sonozaki house is very quiet, but in one certain room, it's full of laughter and… a dead body.

"Ahahaha!" Shion cackled manically. "I did it, I did it, Satoshi-kun! I just need to kill Shion, and your leech, and you'll be avenged!" The green haired girl cheered and laughed with wide eyes and a disturbing wide smile as she watched her prey die on the floor, clutching her taster to her large chest.

Furude Rika, on the other hand, was far from happy. She really wanted to finally have a good ending, but seeing Sonozaki Shion trying to kill her, she knew there was no use in trying to defeat her. So, in a desperate attempt to finally end this sorrowful world, she stabbed herself in the head until she died. Right now, she was lying on the floor, blood splattered on her head and on her dress.

The last thing Rika saw was Shion's surprised face as she lost consciousness. The next thing Rika knew that she was floating in a void, and there wasn't any damage to her body. The knife wound was gone, as of any damage she had received during the world she had left seconds before.

"Rika…" a voice said to her anxiously, echoing throughout the void. "We failed again, didn't we?"

"Yes." Rika replied to the voice. "Sonozaki Shion will continue her rampage until she dies herself. Another world failed." A look of disgust crossed her face.

The voice sighed. "If only we had the winning piece… then we'd be the victors of this world."

"But it would be an unhappy world, right?" Rika countered. "The village elder is dead, and Sonozaki Shion would be sent to jail if we won… or something like that. So, I guess you can say this is a good thing."

"Ur… I suppose…" the voice said, obviously at loss to say anything more. "Hopefully the next world is good, right?"

"Hopefully," Rika agreed. "Should you reset everything now, Hanyuu? If I'm right, then Sonozaki Shion is killing Houjou Satoko right now." She looked regretful and sad at that statement.

"Right. Let's do our best, Rika."

"Of course."

They always had this conversation right before Hanyuu reset and they started anew, which was always followed by a big flash of light, where Rika would see each of the events that unfolded right after she died. Of course, they weren't all pretty.

So, the said flash of light appeared, and horrible events were shown before her eyes: Satoko being tortured and thrown down the Sonozaki well with her own body, Shion revealing her true self to Keiichi and Rena, and then trying to kill Keiichi. Fast-forwarding to when Shion fell off the hospital and apologized to everyone, Rika felt sorry for Shion.

It's not your fault you killed Satoko, Mion, the village elder, and me… I forgive you, Shion.

With that final scene, Rika felt herself be pulled to the next world… the next chance to either have it a good ending or a predicable bad end.

But for some reason, Rika had a strange premonition that this next world would not be like the others.