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

"Hey, I've already told you what happened. Now, tell me what you think."

Gao Hai put the phone to his ear and spoke directly.

"...I'll go with you tonight."

After a moment of silence, Kaguya gave a reply.

After sensing the complex emotions the girl was expressing in her reply, Gao Hai simply raised an eyebrow, replied with a simple "okay," and said nothing more.

Interlude 2-14: Kaguya Shinomiya's Change and Her Decision

Kaguya Shinomiya didn't know how to describe her feelings at that moment.

Nervous? Excited? Sad? Excited? Anticipating?

It seems that, more or less, they all have some resemblance.

family.

For children from ordinary families, family means people they can trust and rely on, partners who walk hand in hand through difficulties. Family members are elders who guide their growth, partners who support them, and younger generations who guide them step by step.

But for Kaguya Shinomiya, the word "family" only evoked intense disgust in her.

Control, oppression, trampling on humanity, and recklessly violating legal and moral boundaries—all driven by pure self-interest.

This large family brought Kaguya only disgusting darkness, never bringing her even a single day of happiness.

Kaguya Shinomiya's generation had four children, listed in order of age: Hikari Shinomiya, Seiryu Shinomiya, Unryu Shinomiya, and Kaguya Shinomiya. Hikari, as the eldest son, already manages a portion of the Shinomiya family business and is essentially considered the successor to Kaguya Shinomiya. The second brother, Seiryu Shinomiya, is a good-for-nothing fool who only knows how to lust after women. He follows his elder brother Hikari's lead in everything he does, a complete follower.

In contrast, while Shinomiya Un'yō is also a scoundrel, he still has a modicum of conscience. As the son of a second wife, Shinomiya Un'yō has virtually no power in the conservative and traditional Shinomiya family. Therefore, he has developed a diplomatic strategy primarily based on intimidation and terror. Even so, because he is not valued, he still doesn't have many opportunities to get his hands dirty, so all things considered, he can actually be considered a good person.

Kaguya Shinomiya, the youngest daughter, was born to a hostess hired by her father, Kan'an Shinomiya. Leaving aside the messy details, let's just say that Akasaka, the old scoundrel, had fallen seriously ill. In short, she was even less valued, and many members of the Shinomiya family simply ignored her. At this time, her third brother, Un'taka Shinomiya, took over caring for her and taught Kaguya how to survive in the dark and cruel environment of the Shinomiya family.

In a sense, it can be said that the morbid side of Kaguya Shinomiya comes entirely from her brother, Unyo Shinomiya.

On the other hand, if it weren't for her third brother's guidance, Kaguya Shinomiya would have become an even worse and more rotten person than she is now, perhaps even beyond redemption.

If this melodramatic story of the wealthy family were to be elaborated upon further, it could drag on for quite some time. However, Gao Hai really didn't want to get involved in such matters. He didn't have the time to pry into other people's family affairs. Rather than getting bogged down in such trivial issues, he'd rather memorize the various rules and information in [Campus Ghost Stories]. That way, if he were unlucky enough to be thrown in one of them someday, at least he'd be prepared. In fact, Gao Hai had already planned to go find Xiao He Shu and Qing Shan Qi Hai in a couple of days to investigate the current situation of the Red Moon-level dungeons and the top-difficulty Dark Night-level dungeons known to players, making thorough preparations for any possible situation.

Therefore, for Takami, the only reason to continue paying attention to the Shinomiya family was Shinomiya Kaguya herself.

The only reason he's standing here now is because of his teammate who shared life and death with him in the dungeon, her hesitation, her inner conflict, and her indecisiveness.

Are you really sure you want to come with me?

Gao Hai raised his head, glanced at the already dimming sky, and then turned to look at Shinomiya Kaguya beside him.

"Yes, I've made up my mind..."

Kaguya Shinomiya nodded slightly. Although she tried her best to maintain a calm demeanor, Takahashi could still see a hint of wavering in the girl's eyes.

"You no longer need to be controlled by these people, but you need to understand that the shackles on your body are gone. This is something that takes time and effort to understand. You don't need to force yourself to break free. After all, you still have us, you still have me, Zhenfei, and Qianhua. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Think carefully about whether you really have the determination."

Knowing that Kaguya had actually forced herself to come here with him, Gao Hai thought about it and still tried to persuade her. If the girl showed fear after going upstairs, she might be left with deep psychological trauma. Therefore, it was better to think it over more carefully.

He could already sense the changes in Kaguya.

The icy girl you first met at Shirakawa Apartment has changed considerably. Under the terrifying game of supernatural tales, Kaguya has gradually begun to consider the interests of Takami, Maki, and Chika, no longer putting herself at the center, and her cold side has begun to weaken to some extent.

If things continue to change, she may not become the carefree, lovestruck girl from the original work, but at least she won't be as disobedient as the original Kaguya, which is actually a good thing.

However, Kaguya is now forcing herself to make further changes, and Takami is unsure whether this is good or bad, so, being cautious by nature, he tried to persuade her.

"...No, if I back down here, I'll find it hard to muster the courage again in the future."

But Kaguya simply took a deep breath, her expression becoming even more resolute.

I am different now than I was in the past.

Therefore, there is no reason to continue retreating; it is time to make a change.

"Let's go, Gao Jun."

The girl spoke earnestly to Gao Hai beside her.

"it is good."

Seeing that the other party's mindset had stabilized and their belief had been strengthened, Gao Hai said no more, nodded and moved forward directly into the luxury hotel called Dongminglou.

At the hotel entrance, servants were already waiting for Takayuki's arrival. They were not surprised by Kaguya's appearance; a few of them politely asked Kaguya to leave, while the others continued to guide Takayuki upstairs.

"Miss Kaguya, this is the show that Young Master Huang Guang has booked. Please leave."

The servant spoke curtly to Kaguya, coldly blocking her way.

"Where I go is none of your business, your servants?"

The next moment, at Kaguya's icy voice, these servants couldn't help but retreat, unable to muster the courage to stop her.

What... what's going on?!

These rigorously trained servants were utterly horrified.

At this moment, the aura emanating from Kaguya was like a powerful spirit honed through countless life-or-death crises.

But how could a princess who lives a secluded life and is kept in a cage possibly have such an aura?

Facing Kaguya Shinomiya's attendants, I felt a chill run down my spine.

Even so, as servants, they could not back down here.

"Miss, I'm sorry..."

Therefore, these servants finally took a step forward and decided to temporarily control Kaguya.

And that was it. Kaguya Shinomiya walked past the servants who had fainted on the ground with a blank expression. With her strength and speed enhanced to the limits of the human body, it was easier for her to beat these servants than to knock down ten roosters that she had raised for two and a half years. At least the latter would not rush up to be beaten, but would run and jump around on the ground.

Gao Hai stood in the elevator, supporting himself on the elevator door with one hand. He only let go after Kaguya arrived, allowing her to enter the elevator. Then he signaled to the attendant inside the elevator that they could continue.

"Mr. Gao, this is not in accordance with the rules..."

The attendant looked quite embarrassed.

"You have no rules whatsoever. If you don't want to press the button, then get lost."

Gao Hai had no intention of wasting words with the other party and spoke directly with obvious disgust.

The servant immediately became obedient, dutifully pressing the numbers on the elevator buttons, and then stood against the wall.

Soon, the elevator arrived at the floor the two needed to go to. As expected, as soon as the elevator doors opened, Gao Hai saw more than a dozen thugs in black suits standing in the corridor, looking at him and Kaguya with a fierce expression.

"I suddenly feel like a supernatural movie set has turned into an action movie set."

Gao Hai complained as he walked out of the elevator.

"Actually, these people came to stop me. I guess it was because I hit one of his men and made my older brother feel ashamed."

Kaguya, who was walking out beside Takahashi, spoke in a calm tone.

"So do you need my help?"

Gao Hai asked with great interest.

"No need, it's just some trash, I have enough on my own."

Kaguya's voice was full of contempt; she didn't even bother to look closely at the thugs standing in front of her.

As expected, a servant stepped forward to lead Gao Hai on the way.

Kaguya was stopped by the thugs, but in just over ten seconds she caught up with Takahashi again, her clothes still clean and tidy.

Open the door to a luxurious private room.

Gao Hai stepped inside and saw a huge screen on one side of the private room. On the other side of the screen sat a bald man with a small mustache, who appeared to be making tea. Tea sets were also set up in the room, suggesting that the man intended to enjoy tea with Gao Hai remotely via the projector.

However, after Kaguya followed him in, the man completely lost interest in drinking tea.

"What are you doing, Kaguya? I don't remember you being such an ill-mannered and rude child. Do you think you can bully me just because you've got some fighting skills? How can you marry a man like this? Are you planning to disgrace the Shinomiya family?"

The man named Shinomiya Hikari placed his teacup on the table and asked in a volatile mood.

“…Ambition must match ability, and correspondingly, after acquiring the corresponding ability, ambition should also evolve with the times. Am I wrong, brother?”

Upon hearing Huang Guang's cold voice, Kaguya instinctively showed a slight hesitation, but she quickly calmed down, raised her head, stared expressionlessly at Huang Guang on the screen, and spoke slowly in a cold voice.

"Really? Then tell me, what abilities do you have? Do you have enough subordinates who trust you? Do you have enough wealth to dispose of at will? Or do you have some company or high-ranking official backing you up? Have you lost your mind? Do you think that just because you can take down a dozen thugs with your bare hands, you can threaten me?!"

Huang Guang's expression grew increasingly agitated. He completely disregarded Gao Hai, who was present, and directly lashed out at Kaguya.

He simply couldn't believe that Kaguya, who had been a caged bird who had only been submissive for seventeen years, would suddenly rebel against him, and with such childish and foolish means of rebellion.

Born into the traditional and closed-off Shinomiya family, Hiroaki always treated Kaguya as a pawn. His original plan was to marry her off to a powerful force once she came of age. As for Kaguya's own thoughts, that was irrelevant; Kaguya, completely under the control of the Shinomiya family, had no right to refuse her older brother's arrangements.

But now, the fledgling bird has jumped out of its cage and pecked him.

Although this bite was completely painless and posed no threat whatsoever, it was something that Shinomiya Hikari, who had always been in control of everything, could no longer tolerate.

"Yes, I don't have many loyal followers, many people I trust, or many forces I can use. Even now, the number of people I can wholeheartedly trust is only a handful."

Kaguya, standing still, smiled gently, but her expression as she looked at Huang Guang was as if she were looking at an ant.

"So, what exactly gives you the confidence to threaten me here?"

Huang Guang frowned, sensing something amiss in Kaguya's expression.

"It's very simple. The only support I have is power, absolute power that you can't resist. So you can no longer restrain me, because with this power, you have no means to threaten me. And if I want to eliminate your henchmen and kill you, the boss, it's just a trivial matter that I can do easily."

After saying that, Kaguya didn't even bother to look at the furious man again, and turned to look at the floor-to-ceiling window next to her, gazing at the brightly lit city under the night sky.

"Gao Jun, can you help me?"

She turned to look at Gao Hai again and earnestly made her request to him.

"What do you need me to do?"

Gao Hai answered casually, already somewhat guessing the girl's plan.

“My elder brother really doesn’t know how to treat guests. He can’t even communicate face-to-face. He should be punished properly. I know where he is now. Can you take me there?”

Kaguya lowered her head, her tone extremely sincere.

"No need to be so polite, we're not that distant. So, would you mind if I traveled in a more stylish way?"

Gao Hai reached out and braced himself against Kaguya's shoulder to prevent her from bending over completely, then smiled and said.

Then, as Kaguya nodded slightly, Takami's eyes turned blood red.