Kaguya-sama: Love Is War wants me to turn myself in.

Without needing to speak, the two easily understood each other's eyes.

Instead of becoming a lone wolf player, he joined others and made his quest panel public.

"Great, everyone's main quest is exactly the same." The middle-aged man smiled. "Now we can work together to clear the game."

“That village at the foot of the mountain should be the Narukami Village mentioned in the quest, right?” a bespectacled man said. “There are definitely hidden dangers in the village. In that case, can we skip it?”

Upon hearing this, someone asked curiously:

"What do you mean?"

“It’s simple.” The bespectacled man held up a finger and pushed up his glasses. “There’s a road right behind us, why don’t we just go back along the mountain path?”

A girl with a ponytail hesitated and said:

"It can't be that simple, can it? There might be an accident like a landslide that prevents everyone from leaving."

“Then let’s just cross the mountain and leave.” The bespectacled man had obviously thought this through and said calmly, “The surrounding area is just some forests with an altitude of a few hundred meters. There are no cliffs or precipices that are impassable… Let’s try it. Maybe we can pass the level. If we do nothing, we definitely won’t pass the level.”

Other players expressed their agreement.

"Makes sense."

"Let's all try walking back together. Even if we can't get out, we can eliminate a wrong answer."

"I agree."

"..."

It has to be said that these words sounded quite reasonable. Takanashi Rikka turned her head, looked expectantly at Amamiya Natsuki, and whispered:

"Shall we go together?"

Amamiya Natsuki nodded and said, "It wouldn't hurt to go and take a look."

There were at least a dozen players present, roughly half male and half female. It was unclear how many were veteran players, but there were clearly no newbies shouting and yelling.

Before leaving, someone boarded the bus to check it and found that it was malfunctioning and couldn't be started. Since none of the players were mechanics, they had no choice but to abandon the bus and walk instead.

Led by the man in the suit, the others followed behind, walking along the dilapidated road that had been neglected for years, in the opposite direction from the village.

Amamiya Natsuki naturally traveled with Kaguya and the other two, walking at a leisurely pace at the back of the group.

The girl next to her, Shayou, remained silent, walking alone at the very back.

If Chika Fujiwara were here, she would definitely go over and talk to Sayu.

Unfortunately, Chika is still just a leg accessory, and Kaguya and Yukinoshita aren't the kind of benevolent girls who want to take care of everyone, so no one talks to her.

And so, everyone continued up the mountain path, heads down.

At first, people were talking and chatting with each other, but later, for some reason, the group suddenly became quiet.

"Does anyone else feel that the forest is too quiet?"

"Confirmed, we didn't hear any small animals, or even birdsong."

"It feels so eerie."

"I hope we can just walk out; I don't want to enter the instance at all."

"Everyone's the same, no one's going to be stupid enough to willingly enter a dungeon, right?"

"..."

Natsuki Amamiya silently apologized in her heart.

Sorry, I was the one who voluntarily entered the instance.

After walking for about a few kilometers, the middle-aged man in the suit at the front suddenly stopped and said in a deep voice:

"There is a stone tablet here."

Amamiya Natsuki walked over out of curiosity and found a stone tablet standing by the roadside, covered in moss, but the characters on it were still barely legible.

Welcome to Narukami Village

Visitors are requested to observe the following rules:

【1. After dark, please stay indoors and do not go out】

Second: Always maintain a calm and peaceful mind, and do not think about things you fear.

Three: If someone suddenly calls your name from behind, do not turn around, and do not respond.

[Four: If you see something strange, please remain still and do not shout.]

"..."

After reading what was written on the stone tablet, everyone fell silent, feeling a chill creeping in.

The man in the suit said in a deep voice:

"Let's walk faster and try to get out of here as soon as possible."

Amamiya Natsuki stepped forward and reminded him:

"It's going to be dark soon."

The other players all looked over.

"how do you know?"

"We can't even see the sun."

"It might be morning now."

"..."

The sky remained overcast and the scenery was unchanging; many people couldn't even tell the difference between morning and afternoon.

Amamiya Natsuki shrugged and said:

"There's an electronic timer on the bus. It broke down at around 5 PM. You didn't see that, did you?"

Upon hearing this, a player on the road hesitated:

"Yes, there is a timer... but I didn't pay attention to the time."

"We've been walking for a while, which means it's almost six o'clock now?"

Darkness falls very quickly in the mountains and forests; it can be said that it gets dark in the blink of an eye.

It would have been fine if it had just gotten dark, but the stone tablet also bore the rule "Do not go out after dark," causing everyone to exchange bewildered glances and begin to worry about what might happen after dark.

Two choices were presented to the players.

You can either continue along the mountain path and try to get out, but the danger is that night could approach at any moment.

Either turn around now and go into an abandoned village to escape the night.

"How to do?"

"Continue forward or return to the village?"

"How about we go back to the village first and come back tomorrow?"

"..."

The man in the suit hesitated for a few seconds, then walked to a large tree, quickly climbed to the top, took out a monocular telescope, and said swiftly:

“I see a tunnel ahead, only two or three kilometers away… Let’s run there together, it won’t take long.”

Upon hearing this, the previously hesitant players breathed a sigh of relief and quieted down.

What people fear most is not being able to see their goal. Now the tunnel is only two or three kilometers long, and we can reach it quickly by running.

Led by the man in the suit, a group of random players started running along the mountain path.

Humans are creatures of blind obedience; if someone takes the lead, others will follow suit. In the blink of an eye, only Natsuki Amamiya and a few others remained in place.

"Natsuki-kun?"

Rikka Takanashi was clearly tempted, and when she noticed Natsuki Amamiya standing still, she looked up at her.

Amamiya Natsuki calmly said, "We won't go over there, we'll just go down the mountain."

"Eh?"

“The dungeon shouldn’t be that simple.” Yukino Yukinoshita’s voice was cold. “Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility that they can clear it directly, but the possibility is very low.”

Kaguya Shinomiya agreed:

"No need to rush. If they don't come back, it's not too late for us to leave tomorrow."

"But the village must be very dangerous, right?" Rikka said timidly.

Amamiya Natsuki said, "We don't need to go to the village; we can stay on the bus for the night."

Rikka suddenly realized, "You can do it like that too."

After the discussion was completed, Natsuki Amamiya prepared to return.

"President."

Kaguya Shinomiya gently tugged at his sleeve, glancing to the side.

Looking over, Natsuki Amamiya saw that besides the four of them, there was another player who hadn't left—the girl sitting next to him on the bus.

The girl stood alone in the same spot, neither speaking nor approaching, looking exceptionally lonely.

Natsuki Amamiya thought for a moment, then walked over and said:

Why didn't you go to the tunnel with them?

Shayou seemed a little cold, her left arm crossed over her chest, gripping her right arm, and she said in a low voice, explaining:

"I hate running."

Damn it! Just because you hate running doesn't mean you're not looking for a way to make a living. Even Zizi isn't as lazy as you!

Amamiya Natsuki said speechlessly:

"So, are you going to stay here alone, or come with us?"

"..."

Shayou didn't answer, but silently walked to the group, clearly having made her choice.