Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

The lights grew dimmer, as if the light was about to disappear completely from here.

Those swollen firefighters and rescuers were slowly walking into the water, gradually disappearing from Gao Hai's sight.

He turned his head and looked to his side.

Tiled walls and rock-structured cave structures are intertwined, with the latter soon replacing the former completely.

Before the tiled wall completely disappeared, Gao Hai saw a line of writing left on it, as if someone had suddenly picked up a pen and written it down.

The text reads:

What have we done?

The next moment, Gao Hai had already stepped into the training area. He tilted his head, bit the umbrella handle with his mouth to maintain his balance, then reached out and grabbed the doorknob, slowly closing the door.

The corridor behind the door had disappeared, leaving only a cave covered by water.

And those people in rescue suits floating in the cave, floating in the water that flooded the cave.

What have we done?

It was as if I could hear someone sighing and saying something in my ear.

Yes, none of this should have happened.

These fine young men shouldn't have left so quietly.

These innocent people who just wanted to visit this place shouldn't just disappear like that.

This shouldn't be happening; this shouldn't be going on.

What have we done?

What have we been doing?

What's the point of continuing like this?

Click——

With a soft click of the lock, Gao Hai closed and locked the door.

Turning around again, I saw an empty training area. Sunlight streamed down from the windows in the ceiling, illuminating the various equipment in the huge training area. It was as if nothing had happened yet, exuding a tranquil beauty.

Gao Hai let go of Qian Hua, put her down, and folded up the umbrella.

Fujiwara Chika took a small step back and let out a long sigh of relief. It was unclear whether her relieved demeanor was due to the strange events she had just experienced or something else entirely.

Gao Hai had already put the umbrella, which was starting to bleed and clearly showing signs of getting out of control, into the space in his watch. Then he quickly scanned the entire training area, slightly moved his hands and feet, and prepared to take action.

Chapter 35: Everyone needs to step up their efforts!

Kaguya Shinomiya let out a soft breath, changed out of her yellow and white striped uniform, and put on the white lab coat she wore as a researcher.

Maki was already waiting for her outside the staff lounge. The two girls quickly exchanged information in the corridor, and Kaguya learned from Maki that it was now the second loop, as well as various information from the previous loop.

"Fujiwara-san, she's become a player too...?"

Kaguya Shinomiya felt a mix of emotions about her childhood friend, Fujiwara Chika, becoming a player. On one hand, Chika had joined the terrifying and bizarre "Sacrifice Game," and Kaguya didn't want this always carefree girl to encounter such a terrible thing. On the other hand, being deeply immersed in the game, Kaguya couldn't suppress the slight joy she felt for having someone familiar as a companion, even though she knew that feeling happy about such a thing was somewhat despicable.

"I remember you and this Fujiwara-kun were very close, right? Is it okay for her to be next to Kai-kun?"

Maki's focus was different from Kaguya's. She was more concerned about a strange woman following Takami. Although she knew that Takami was relatively proper during the mission, she couldn't help but worry about whether there would be any fan service scenes when she thought about his lewd nature.

Forget it, there's no point in worrying about this kind of problem.

Let's focus on doing our own thing first.

Haijun has grown stronger and is much stronger than in the previous instance, yet even so, he cannot escape the fate of dying and starting over. Therefore, I must do everything I can to alleviate his pressure and do what I can to help.

After all, that guy said that the reason I could establish this kind of telepathic communication with him was because we trusted each other absolutely...

To be honest, when Maki first heard this reason from Gao Hai, her first reaction was to deny it. The idea of ​​absolute trust between them sounded like a confession of love and a declaration of commitment, which was hard for her to accept.

However, the girl had to admit that this feeling was really good.

This feeling of perfect understanding, which belongs only to him and me, this heart-pounding feeling that I've never experienced before, is just wonderful.

Therefore, I must work hard.

I must work hard and do my best to help him through his difficulties. After all, he's also struggling to survive somewhere, and he's concerned about my situation too.

Zhenfei secretly cheered herself on in her heart.

Beside her, Kaguya, with a furrowed brow, looked slightly unusual.

What she cared about was the unique connection that Zhenfei had established with Gao Hai, as Zhenfei had just mentioned.

They can establish a mental link, allowing them to speak their minds without being overheard by anyone. This ability is incredibly important in the dangerous and terrifying world of the "Sacrifice Game." Kaguya is certain that this ability can play a crucial role in various situations, a level of advantage that ten Obsessions combined cannot compensate for—a devastating advantage over other players.

However, only Takami and Shijo Maki established this link.

According to Maki, establishing such a connection requires mutual trust. Hmph, although that's what she said, judging from her hesitant attitude, Kaguya had no doubt that building such a spiritual connection required far more than simple "mutual trust." It probably required a deeper understanding, perhaps even a level of mutual affection—a kind of "love"—to establish such a connection.

After deducing this, Kaguya couldn't help but feel uneasy.

Kaguya had to admit that she had never envied Shijou Maki, who, despite sharing a wealthy and influential family background, was unlike her—more like a healthy and happy young girl. Entrusting her heart to someone, especially a man she'd only known for a month, was something Kaguya could never do, even if she knew it would benefit her and increase her chances of survival. Ultimately, for Kaguya, trusting others was incredibly difficult, let alone trust of this level.

However, she couldn't help but think of her maid, Hayasaka Ai, the person she trusted most, and the things she had said to her, intentionally or unintentionally, in the past.

"For Kaguya-sama, it might be nice to experience a relationship."

Although it was just a joke at the time, looking back now, it makes the girl even more unsettled.

I really can't do this kind of thing.

Even if Gao Jun were truly my perfect match, it would be impossible for me to develop a relationship with him to that extent in such a short time. Moreover, to me, that guy has far too many shortcomings; at most, I can only see him as a comrade-in-arms, and taking things any further is simply not feasible.

It's better to discard such naive ideas.

With different thoughts and ideas in mind, Maki and Kaguya stepped into the analysis room together, carefully completing the tasks required of them as "researchers," and waiting for the time to explore freely to arrive.

The complex emotions of the two girls were directed at the same man, the man who was currently making both Maki and Kaguya feel uneasy. He was reaching out and making a serious, gentle gesture as if he were pinching something.

I really want to experience that soft, warm touch again.

Gao Hai thought to himself about the soft, squishy feeling he had experienced from the doll, then quickly regained his composure and focused his attention on the task at hand.

This training area, which had inexplicably appeared in the underground cave, was now only occupied by him and Fujiwara Chika. The strange creatures had temporarily left, so it could be said that this place had temporarily become a safe zone.

However, this safety is only temporary. If we don't find a way out of here and get to the big slide soon, it will be difficult to deal with those things when they come back.

"There's even specialized rock climbing training equipment! This is the first time I've ever seen anything so tall and big."

The pink-haired girl standing to the side stared at a man-made cliff by the wall and sighed.

"Let's leave that aside for now and try to find any useful clues here first."

Gao Hai casually remarked, then reached out and patted Qianhua on the head before taking a step forward.

Caught off guard by the unexpected head pat, Chika let out a soft "hehehe" laugh, then earnestly said to Takami, "Private First Class Fujiwara awaits your orders, sir," before deliberately striking a few steps in formation. It must be said that this quirky girl effectively eased Takami's tension, making him chuckle. The two then settled into serious mode and began exploring the place at a faster pace.

So, at this moment, a small, inconspicuous room located in a corner of the training area, mostly blocked by a climbing structure, caught the attention of Gao Hai and Qian Hua.

Gao Hai sensed a faint, eerie atmosphere coming from the door of that room.

Chapter Thirty-Six: The Truth Gradually Emerging

squeak-

With a sharp sound, a very simple wooden door was slowly pushed open.

A blood-red doll concealed itself, then quietly slipped inside, glanced around the room, and then stealthily retreated back outside. Next, Gao Hai poked his head into the room, cautiously observed the surroundings again, and then opened the door and entered.

This is a small warehouse.

You can see some training equipment neatly arranged, such as rope ladders, hooks, water gun nozzles, and so on.

On one wall of the warehouse, there was a whole row of firefighter uniforms and rescue worker uniforms, the two types of clothing differing only slightly in color and style.

The existence of two different clothing styles seems to stem from the fact that the world of Ameri has established two distinct organizational structures: firefighters and rescue teams. The former primarily operate in urban areas, while the latter mainly handle complex outdoor environments such as mountains and lakes. Another explanation is that the insurance and leave systems for the two positions differ. However, some argue that while there may appear to be differences in benefits, both positions often experience wage arrears, making the actual difference negligible.

Gao Hai had seen quite a bit of news in this regard. Before entering the Red Nut Gray Hole instance, he had paid attention to some news from the Kingdom of America. However, he knew it was impossible to find information related to the instance in the real world, so he only browsed some news there when he was bored. As a result, he saw some negative news about the Kingdom of America's fire department, knowing that many firefighters and rescuers who were injured and retired during missions were unable to receive the insurance compensation they were entitled to.

Nevertheless, the fire station's equipment and facilities look quite good; perhaps there's some special reason for that?

Thinking this through, Gao Hai cautiously stepped into the warehouse and signaled Qian Hua to stand guard at the door and keep an eye on the situation outside.

He can sense eerie auras through the power of blessings.

It's in this warehouse.

It's somewhere in this warehouse.

For some reason, the eerie aura seemed rather strange. Gao Hai vaguely sensed that the thing itself seemed quite illusory, like firewood that was about to burn out and could no longer continue to burn.

wrong……

Is this feeling some kind of lingering echo?

Gao Hai circled around to the depths of the warehouse, to a dimly lit, empty, and seemingly secluded corner.

He sensed something subtle here, something left over from the past, from those strange obsessions.

Slowly, he began to move, little by little, until Gao Hai leaned against the wall in the corner, stretched out his hand, and placed his fingers to his ear, as if he were communicating with someone, making a phone call gesture.

"I'm really in a difficult position because of what you're doing. Can't you think of a way to completely seal off that place?"

The man in the suit leaned against the wall, speaking into his phone with a displeased expression.

If only it could be like that. You know very well that we've tried every possible way to seal off the giant slide, but the walls keep collapsing. People keep getting in there inexplicably; it started as just security guards, but now more and more tourists are getting trapped.

A man's voice came through the phone, sounding exhausted and seemingly in poor mental condition.

"I've lost several of my men, Mr. Pei Di. I can't keep suppressing this matter indefinitely. The continuous disappearances are attracting increasing attention. Tourists from out of town may not know the situation, but locals are basically avoiding that cave. I believe you understand what I mean. This really can't be suppressed forever. This involves over fifty people missing, tourists from all over the world, and local firefighters and rescue teams. The situation will likely only get worse."

The man on the phone sighed wearily, his tone increasingly helpless.

"...So what's your plan? I pay you so much money every year just to have you suppress this matter, right? Are the families of those missing rescue team members causing trouble again? Didn't you say you'd already taken care of them?"

The voice on the phone sounded somewhat doubtful.

This batch is definitely done, but what about the next batch? Everyone's not stupid; what do you think will happen if this continues? The situation is already very bad; if it continues like this, I think I'll have no choice but to withdraw.

The man on the phone sighed again, and then spoke with a hint of hesitation.