60.24-Everyone's playing dirty

 

Last time on the Smole, the contestants went camping and had to identify secrets. They had 12/25 secrets correct but also -25 points because they picked an executed contestant as the secret holder wrongly 5 times, thus earning a net of 23/100 points to make the pot 602/1240 points. Will Breandan survive his first execution or will it be his last? Is he the Mole?

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Breandan: "I felt so powerless as the newest contestant, but this mission gave me valuable insight into each of my competitors...and the Mole."

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Bert: "I am so glad we only needed to spend one night camping. I'm not sure how much more intimately we needed to get to know one another and the great outdoors."

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Virginia: "My reputation is gone. How will I face the world now?"

Francisca: "Hi Virginia. I hope you don't mind me intruding."

Virginia: "Why are you here?"

Francisca: "I wanted to check on you."

Virginia: "You have, now you may leave. I do not need sympathies."

Virginia: "I understand now—truly, deeply. To have others approach, their words laced with kindness, yet never knowing the true shape of their intent. To wonder if their presence is a comfort or a quiet, calculated intrusion. Yes, I understand it now."

Francisca: "Predator was about you, wasn't it?"

Francisca: "Your half-brother molested you and your sisters as a young girl. To feel powerless against it all, yet having to comfort your siblings that it is fine and expected, and that everything is normal."

Virginia: "You are meant to feel gratitude. After all, he was the one who bore the weight when your parents were gone. He became the head of the household, fed you, clothed you, gave you shelter. A burden far too heavy for a boy, yet he carried it still. It is justified—so wholly justified—yet, at once, it is not. And to think otherwise, to let resentment creep in, would be selfish, would be blind to his virtues, to the goodness that shaped his every act. Wouldn’t it?"

Francisca: "You don't have to rationalise his actions."

Virginia: "I am not. I burn with rage—yet I remain bound, shackled by debt and duty I cannot forsake."

Francisca: "But, there is a happy ending at least."

Virginia: "It's not truly biographical. It's a work of fiction."

Virginia: "I longed for a different ending—one that spoke to my truth. But the publishing house had its own desires. And Gerald, its owner, could not be offended. Without him, there would be no career, no books, no voice. So I obliged."

Francisca: "The official ending is what is written in the books. The main character has a blossoming romance with her lover out in the open. She leads a life of bliss forevermore, and understands what true love feels like. Maybe that's what the main character can aspire to."

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Bert: "Hey, haven't you heard of knocking?"

Breandan: "I must make sure the fair maiden is safe."

Bert: "What is the fair maiden was changing? It would be an outrage of modesty."

Breandan: "I hadn't thought of that."

Bert: "I thought there would finally be peace with Kearney gone but it's been less than 24 hours..."

Breandan: "I will protect Francisca better than Kearney did."

Bert: "Look, I'm not a threat, alright? You and your brother have been barking up the wrong tree."

Breandan: "I saw--"

Bert: "Don't always believe what your eyes see. It's something called TV magic. It's manipulation. She seems fine now, doesn't she?"

Bert: "If you do want to fulfil your knightly duties, you can come and protect me."

Breandan: "Are you afraid of Maru too?"

Bert: "Terribly so. He's volatile. But I can hire you for longer than that."

Bert: "I can give you lots of money."

Breandan: "How much?"

Bert: "More than your current salary."

Breandan: "I didn't join law enforcement for money."

Bert: "I know. You joined to show up your brother...I mean duty and honour."

Bert: "Imagine how much honour it would be to protect someone like me."

Breandan: "Who do you need protection from outside of the Smole?"

Bert: "I have made some enemies. None of it is my fault. They're just jealous of my wealth."

Breandan: "Who in particular?"

Bert: "Some past clients, some family, it doesn't matter who. You just need to be my bodyguard."

Breandan: "I will consider. I don't know if I can abandon my post and Dragon Valley for one foreigner."

Bert: "Here's my business card."

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Virginia: "It's raining."

Virginia: "I have to drench myself for 15 minutes."

Virginia: "Endure this and I will finally have my first bingo."

Maru: "Hey Ms. S. Enjoying the rain too?"

Virginia: "It's Ms. Supine. Why are you out h...why are you lighting a fire? It will be extinguished by the rain."

Maru: "No it won't."

Virginia: "Is this another new technology?"

Maru: "Come warm up with me. It feels great."

Virginia: "I do prefer warmth to sickness."

Virginia: "You're mad."

Maru: "Oh, you're judging me too?"

Virginia: "It is not that. I understand insanity born out of trauma. I am deeply sympathetic towards you."

Maru: "Then embrace your crazy side!"

Virginia: "How vile! Did you just let out some wind?"

Maru: "I want to ignite an explosion."

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Virginia: "Today, I did something radical—I stepped into the rain without an umbrella, let the cold drops soak my blouse, sting my skin. Then came Mr. Mango, and somehow, there was warmth—a fire in the rain, his company beside me. Strange, how I once feared him, mistook him for Gerald. And now? Now I linger in his presence, laughing under the storm. My sanity must be slipping. And yet—I enjoyed it. Of course, I made sure to take a hot shower after fifteen minutes. I cannot afford to fall ill and let it disrupt my game."

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Breandan: "Knock knock."

Francisca: "Come in."

Breandan: "Francisca, how are you doing today?"

Francisca: "I'm fine, thanks for asking."

Breandan: "Kearney is gone but I will take his place to protect you and everyone in this house who requires it."

Francisca: "You really don't have to do that."

Breandan: "I insist. I can't be the worse guardian."

Francisca: "If you want to help me, you can tell me who Kearney suspected."

Breandan: "That's confidential information, ma'am."

Francisca: "You want to protect me right? To do that we must both stay in the game, which means knowing where others went wrong."

Breandan: "Are you proposing a coalition? I work alone."

Francisca: "Not a coalition. I just want to know who Kearney suspected."

Breandan: "Even if I wanted to tell you, I don't know for sure. You should know more as you were actually in the game with him throughout. I only saw part of what happened in here."

Francisca: "But you see things that I didn't see too."

Francisca: "I have a clue. I can throw that in too. All I ask for is what you know."

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Francisca: "Everyone's playing dirty. I'll be at a disadvantage if I don't too. I learned from my mistakes. I'll do what it takes to win the game."

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Maru: "Mitch! I'm so glad to finally see you. I missed you so much."

Mitch: "Did you really? You seemed to be doing fine without me."

Maru: "I've been randomly doing quizzes and missions. I tried to look at the notes you made for me but I'm just not as smart as you. You know, I thought you didn't want me any more."

Mitch: "Rip apart your journal."

Maru: "What? Why?"

Mitch: "It's like you don't need me any more. You found new friends now. You threw me under the bus to save yourself so why should I help you?"

Maru: "I didn't! I told them how great you've been."

Mitch: "You kneeled down to them! You made me look weak! You made us look weak. Do you want to be seen as a weakling forever?"

Mitch: "And look at what good that has done you. Francisca still judges you, the O'Sheas are guarding against you and even Bert is only pretending to help you. You look disgusting in that Hawaiian getup. You're being ostracised, Maru. The moment I stepped aside, you threw away all the years of our hard work. If that's what you want, fine. But don't expect me to come back to you after to clear your shit."

Maru: "Mitch, wait! I'm sorry! Don't go! I'm begging you."

Mitch: "Spineless. You really want me back into our life? Then listen very carefully."

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It is time for the quiz. 10 questions about the actions and identity of the Mole. The lowest scorer may be executed.

Q1: Is the Mole male or female?

A: Male

B: Female

Q2: Does the Mole have freckles?

A: Yes

B: No

Q3: What colour are the Mole's eyes?

A: Brown

B: Hazel

C: Violet

Q4: What is on the Mole's umbrella?

A: Cubes

B: Dragons

C: Trees

D: Sandcastles

E: Hexagons

Q5: In Mission 12, how many marshmallows did the Mole roast on average?

A: 1.68

B: 1.76

C: 1.88

D: 2

E: 2.25

Q6: In Mission 12, how many times did the Mole vote for the correct contestant?

A: 6

B: 8

C: 9

D: 12

E: 13

Q7: In Mission 12, who did the Mole vote for the 12th secret?

A: Maru Mango

B: Bert Alto

Q8: In Mission 12, who did the Mole vote for the most?

A: Francisca Vanderburg

B: Francisca Vanderburg and Bert Alto

C: Trenton Alto

Q9: Did the Mole re-vote in Mission 12?

A: Yes

B: No

Q10: Who is the Mole?

A: Francisca Vanderburg

B: Bert Alto

C: Maru Mango

D: Breandan O'Shea

E: Virginia Supine

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"Contestants, welcome to your execution ceremony. For Breandan and a recap to the rest, a red candle means you are out of the game, be it because of execution or otherwise. A green candle means you made it through to the next episode."

"As is tradition, we start with Breandan O'Shea."

Virginia: "Mr. O'Shea pushed aggressively for one of us to be voted for each time, unless we were certain it should be someone else. On the surface, this appears to be a clever way to avoid unnecessary penalties. But, if you scratch beneath the silver, you begin to see how it could hinder our chances of earning points from the former contestants—the majority of whose secrets lie within."

Breandan: "Yes! I know who the Mole is now."

"Virginia Supine."

Breandan: "Every time it was Virginia's secret, she cost us 5 points."

Virginia: "As expected by now."

"Maru Mango."

Bert: "Maru was able to insert himself into a key position by voting randomly and against the group every time. Every tiebreaker he did failed."

Maru: "I should change my favourite colour."

"Bert Alto, Francisca Vanderburg, one of you will be leaving us tonight."

Bert: "This isn't good."

"Bert Alto."

Francisca: "Bert was playing for himself. He kept claiming other contestants' secrets as his own and there just isn't a good reason for it."

Bert: "Damn it."

Breandan: "What in tarnation?"

"Unfortunately, Bert Alto, you have been executed. Please pack your bags and leave."

Francisca: "Bert was someone who would do whatever it took to achieve his goals. He was a man with a plan."

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Bert: "I say we spice things up a bit. It would be good to find out what everyone is up to, isn't it?"

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Bert: "The quiz was too hard. I had two suspects and I answered the first five questions on the first suspect, but when I got to the second half I didn't know the answers."

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Virginia: "Mr. Alto made a strong debut. He successfully seized every opportunity for exemptions, and despite his occasional grumpiness, he proved to be a good sport."

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Bert: "This look is so haphazard. I can't believe I'm caught wearing something like this on international television."

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Bert: "My goal was to make more money. That didn't happen of course, but I tried my best. The campfire mission was really intriguing to me as I got to know more about my fellow contestants."

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Breandan: "I thought it was thoughtful of him to want to throw a vote away to protect Ms. Supine's dignity. That went against my impression of him and made me realise he isn't as evil as he appears to be."

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Bert: "I can understand if nobody wants to own up to this one. It's not something to be proud of."

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"Thank you for joining, Bert. We hope to see you soon."

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The former accountant has been executed! Will any more shadows be executed or is one of the remaining shadows the Mole?