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

The thing outside the door did not attack the two of them.

A new voice interrupted the interaction between the people inside and outside the house and the ghost.

"Is anyone over there? Give me a shout, are you there?"

In the deserted corridor, Xiong Mi strode in, his sharp eyes fixed ahead, and shouted in a loud voice.

She made no attempt to hide herself; her loud shouts echoed throughout the entire floor, and could even be clearly heard by those on adjacent floors.

Beside Xiong Mi, on the wall of the corridor, was a sign that read, "No Loud Talking."

Chapter 32: The Insight and Combat Strength Required of a Red Moon-Level Player

Xiong Mi had no idea what had happened.

She saw that Maki and Chika had inexplicably broken away from the group, and then the bell rang early not long after.

She didn't sense anything unusual. In her view, the investigation hadn't revealed anything abnormal; everything was perfectly normal and there was no need to doubt it.

But this is not right.

As one of the investigators who participated in the investigation of the [Early Arrival Elementary School] instance area, Xiong Mi has developed the habit of self-examination. For all players who survived the cognitive blocking mechanism of Early Arrival Elementary School and did not go insane, this is a self-testing method that must be learned.

Therefore, Xiongmi repeatedly examines his self-awareness to discern whether there is a conflict between what he considers normal and what is generally considered normal in human common sense, in order to prevent those strange forces that can exert mental influence by bypassing the strength of will.

So from the moment Maki and Chika inexplicably left the group, Xiongmi began to think about whether this was normal. If it was normal, was it just his opinion that it was normal, or was it something that everyone would consider normal? If it wasn't normal, was it the two who left the group or himself who was abnormal?

Xiong Mi knew very well that she did not think Zhenfei and Qianhua were reliable teammates.

Admittedly, both young girls possess judgment and action abilities beyond their years. Even if they are not yet Red Moon level players, they definitely have the potential to become Red Moon level players. If Xiong Mi saw such promising newcomers without antisocial or mental health tendencies elsewhere, she would definitely try to invest in them and make a good connection.

The problem is, she's now in a Red Moon-level dungeon and has encountered these two girls.

In her mind, this was perfectly normal, nothing to doubt. The two girls were the ones who entered the instance with her, her teammates on this mission. Even though one of them had only completed the instance twice, and the other was a complete newbie who had only completed it once, and they had even used special items to forcibly skip the instance, there was still no problem.

So, is this kind of thing normal among players?

The answer is absolutely not. This kind of thing, tantamount to suicide, should never happen among players. Even malicious players who intentionally sabotage others rarely choose this method, since players who die in a dungeon have a significant chance of turning into monsters, causing enormous trouble for the survivors. Not to mention, how could she, as the leader of the team, allow such a newbie to appear in an extremely dangerous Red Moon-level dungeon investigation mission?

Therefore, she who thinks this is normal is definitely not normal.

Now think about it more carefully: how did you meet these two young girls? Who are they in their social circle? What reasons did they give you that led this complete novice into this extremely dangerous and deadly dungeon?

【Gaohai】

The name quickly came to Xiong Mi's mind.

As a newbie player who had just cleared two dungeons and didn't have many obsession items or blessings, I successively defeated the two major dungeon areas, [Fujika Middle School] and [Hayatei Elementary School], and entered and exited the high-difficulty Red Moon-level dungeon [School Ghost Stories] twice, successfully rescuing other players both times.

Both he and Akira Toyama, two players who were thought to be doomed, survived the dungeon thanks to his rescue.

Miko Yotsuya, an ordinary human who had never participated in any missions, survived the dungeon, which at least demonstrates her extraordinary perceptive talent. However, in the subsequent Hayate Elementary School dungeon, with Kaguya Shinomiya as a newbie, Takami not only rescued a completely ordinary human, Ai Hayasaka, but also defeated and rescued the out-of-control Red Moon-level player, Akira Toyama, achieving a flawless clear for the entire team.

Yes, I would only agree to bring newbies to the [Campus Ghost Stories] if this person was present.

Only this man, whom she considered equivalent to a "miracle" in himself, was qualified to make her agree to this action, which she saw as tantamount to courting death.

That's right, this is the only word Xiong Mi can think of to describe the man [Gao Hai].

For players struggling within the dungeons, for those barely surviving the monthly ghost story game, this man named Gao Hai was nothing short of a miracle. With him involved, even seemingly suicidal actions that added unnecessary difficulty were acceptable. Because he had already perfectly cleared similar levels under similar conditions, completing an impossible challenge.

So this is the only reason I can convince myself.

Did Gao Hai participate in this mission?

Xiong Mi read through his memories and cognition, and then came to the answer of "no".

From her perspective, this was perfectly reasonable.

After careful analysis and reflection, stepping outside her own understanding and using absolute rationality, she realized that this was utterly illogical.

Therefore, Gao Hai must have already participated in this mission.

The fact that this information was forgotten and that related knowledge was blocked means that the now-mutated [Nightfall Mountain Middle School] must possess an information-blocking mechanism similar to [Early Rising Elementary School]. Only in this way could everyone take it for granted and not give this issue any thought.

Perhaps only someone like her, who has received a spiritual blessing and experienced something similar, and thus has the means to forcibly escape the trap, could discover the problem from such subtle details.

No, it's not just myself.

Among the girls Gao Hai brought, the two who voluntarily left the group must have also noticed the problem.

They must have realized that they couldn't get help from their teammates and knew that it would be difficult to get support under cognitive blockage, so they decided to leave the group.

Tsk... How embarrassing. As a senior, you can't help your junior when they encounter problems. You even have to wait for the junior to do something unreasonable before you realize the problem. It's really too embarrassing.

However, the two girls were a bit reckless.

This is a Red Moon-level dungeon, a dangerous area that even top players must tread carefully, as a single wrong step could lead to certain death.

Although no problems had been found in the investigation before, it was likely because none of their actions had triggered any hidden dangers, and because they were all in a state of "following the rules".

Now, these two girls who have broken away from the group have made such a grand gesture, which may break the rules and attract those hidden monsters.

I have to go and save them. Even if I can't save them, I have to get the information they've gathered and continue what they're doing. I can't let their efforts be wiped out by the information blocking mechanism.

Moreover, in this process... they probably won't be able to get support, just like they can't rely on other players. Now that Xiong Mi has realized the information blocking mechanism, she is also facing the same dilemma of not being able to get help from her companions.

"Stand firm, Level 1 alert. From now on, do everything in our power to prevent any student from leaving the teaching building."

After a brief moment of thought, Xiong Mi gave instructions to his teammates.

"Level 1 command? But everything around me is perfectly normal?! Okay, I understand, boss, you need to be extra careful."

The man with the strange name "Jianbing" paused for a moment, a rare look of surprise appearing on his usually indifferent face. But he quickly recovered and, without hesitation, chose to carry out the order.

He didn't understand why such an extreme action was necessary given the current situation, but his captain had said so, so he did it. For this man who had already gone through many dangers with Xiong Mi, this wasn't a choice that required careful consideration.

Meanwhile, Xiong Mi herself was already running towards the affiliated teaching building and quickly entered it.

Xiong Mi knew the location of the broadcasting studio that Zhenfei and Qianhua had gone to. She quickly went up to the second floor via the stairs on one side of the auxiliary teaching building, and then began to walk towards the corridor on her left.

If I remember correctly, after passing this restroom, you'll reach the broadcasting studio a little further ahead.

This broadcasting studio appears to be divided into two rooms: an outer broadcasting room and an inner broadcasting booth. If the two girls were only operating the equipment to modify the ringing time, then operating it from the outer broadcasting room would have been sufficient.

Xiong Mi mentally sketched out a map of the second floor of the attached teaching building, pinpointed the location of the two people, and then quickened her pace slightly.

On one side of the corridor, she caught a glimpse of a sign that read "No Loud Talking".

She quickly sensed the presence of Shijou Maki and Fujiwara Chika, realizing that they were hiding in the broadcasting room and hadn't moved an inch since she arrived.

This state, suggesting they're hiding from something or influenced by some strange force, confirms they're in danger. There's not much to say about the countermeasures, but unfortunately, in the Red Moon-level dungeon, simply hiding when in danger often isn't enough.

tread--

While thinking, Xiong Mi had already reached the door of the broadcasting studio and saw the rules posted there.

This code of conduct is no different from the one we investigated yesterday; I can't see any problems with it.

However, the reason they are hiding inside and not coming out might be because their behavior has violated some rule.

Through her own senses, Xiong Mi could confirm that the two girls hiding in the broadcasting booth were still alive and hadn't transformed into anything else. However, she couldn't determine their exact situation, and since she felt nothing was amiss, Xiong Mi suspected that if she made contact with Maki Chika, they might actually be in danger. After all, her contact might bring them something that could threaten them, and she wouldn't even be aware of the process.

In short, since they chose to stay indoors, then... is the threat in the hallway?

Xiong Mi frowned, pondering as she turned to look at the front and back of the corridor.

I can't see any problems at all, and my gut feeling is that everything is "perfectly normal," so does that mean I need to do something?

Turning her head again, Xiong Mi's gaze was now fixed on the wallpaper marked "No Loud Talking".

Such an action is already risking one's own life.

However, this is probably the only way to get rid of this state of "ignorance." She doesn't want to investigate until almost all of her teammates are gone without her even realizing it.

"Is anyone over there?"

Xiong Mi spoke, and his voice was incredibly loud at that moment.

"Give me a word, are you there?!"

As she spoke, she walked away from the broadcasting studio door, cautiously observing her surroundings.

It seems that something is starting to change.

Although it was not very noticeable, Xiong Mi had a vague feeling that the corridor seemed different from before.

Where is the danger?

Xiong Mi took out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and stood there motionless, silently waiting for the enemy to come knocking.

zizi——

The next moment she heard a shrill, noisy sound coming from a loudspeaker on one side of the corridor.

The unexpected intruder bought the girls hiding in the broadcasting room time to conceal themselves.

The thing that had been lingering outside the door seems to have vanished; its whereabouts are unknown.

Or perhaps it has already hidden itself again, preparing to hunt once more.

By the time the danger was realized, the body had already been torn apart.

Xiong Mi didn't even see what the thing that attacked him looked like before his body was torn apart at the abdomen. His lower body fell directly to the ground, while his upper body was grabbed by something and pulled toward the ceiling.

thump--

The broken legs fell heavily to the ground with a clear crack.

The cotton that had been gushing out from the cut also bounced out, trembling slightly and mixed with a few drops of blood.

The upper body of Xiong Mi, who had been dragged to the ceiling, had been transformed into a rather ugly rag doll.

【…】

The broadcast fell silent at that moment, as if the current situation made it impossible for the commentator to continue.

tread--

Footsteps sounded again at that moment. Xiong Mi, with a cigarette in his mouth and a small shotgun with a shortened barrel in his hand, raised his hand and pulled the trigger towards the location from which the attack had just come.

The two girls inside heard a loud noise at that moment; perhaps the intruder was trying to defeat the attacking monster.