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

Xiong Mi raised his hands high, holding a huge, blood-red chainsaw.

Originating from the Red Moon-level dungeon [Tommello Slaughterhouse], the Crimson Chainsaw is a powerful artifact of obsession, one of the very few that can be mass-produced and can directly cut physical monsters. Gao Hai obtained one from Yuanshan Ming, while Xiong Mi, whose [Slacking Off Gang] already had two of these chainsaws, brought one with her on this mission.

Xiong Mi was initially reluctant to use this obsessive object, which was tantamount to "kicking down the door" once used. After all, taking it out might trigger a stress response from the monster. However, she felt that now was the most appropriate time, since the students were still obediently following the instructions broadcast over the loudspeaker and sitting motionless in their seats.

Come on, let's see if you're tougher or if this saw is sharper!

The next second, Xiong Mi swung his chainsaw and instantly severed the heads of two strange students sitting in the front row.

Blood was splattering.

The sounds of bones shattering and liquid splattering mingled together.

In less than a second or two, the bodies of more than a dozen students were torn to pieces.

【…】

The atmosphere within the faculty is becoming increasingly heavy.

With Xiong Mina's actions amounting to hostility, the atmosphere here has reached a point where she must be killed on the spot, her flesh and bones torn apart, and her self and perception utterly shattered.

"Heh...huh..."

Self-awareness has already been overridden by a blessing; otherwise, Xiong Mi is certain she would have died on the spot.

The body was treated with a healing potion, but it could only barely prevent the injury from worsening immediately, and the ability to move was eventually beginning to be affected more and more severely.

No attack occurred.

All the students simply sat motionless in their seats.

Even as they were torn apart by the blood saw, cut into pieces of flesh large and small, with severed limbs scattered all over the ground, the students remained motionless, showing no fear, no sadness, no anger; they simply continued to sit in place without any emotional fluctuation.

Meanwhile, Xiong Mi, who had been relentlessly attacking them, suddenly began vomiting blood and going insane without suffering any damage. He developed increasingly severe injuries out of nowhere, causing his initially swift movements to gradually slow down.

Now I finally understand why that little girl Goto was forced to erase her memories.

[Atmosphere] This thing, at Nightfall Mountain Middle School, is something that can truly distort reality. It's something that, even if you can't see or touch it, can quickly kill a player.

However, we can already feel that the impact is diminishing.

The students who were cut and torn apart showed signs of recovery and self-healing, but the process was not fast and was far from keeping up with Xiong Mi's efficiency in his killing spree.

The number of students remaining has gradually decreased, and the numerical advantage that originally completely overwhelmed Xiongmi is no longer as obvious as it was at the beginning.

Xiong Mi could sense that after quickly cutting down more than ten students, the "atmosphere" that had almost destroyed her was rapidly weakening in intensity, and was gradually reaching a point where it wouldn't kill her.

So, the key point is indeed the number of people?

The atmosphere and rules of this now-mutated Nightfall Mountain Middle School are based on the number of people in a given space. When these strange students completely outnumber the players, the players will feel a strong "atmosphere" and will essentially lose their ability to resist due to the influence of this eerie power. However, as long as the number of strange students does not overwhelmingly overwhelm the players, the "atmosphere" will hardly harm them. As for if the number of players exceeds the number of strange students within a certain range, it is likely that, conversely, the players will generate an "atmosphere" that harms the strange students, forming a very strong defense.

buzzing-

The chainsaw continued to swing.

When the number of motionless students dwindled to about five, the previously expressionless students suddenly displayed extreme fear and terror. The distorted atmosphere that Xiong Mi had sensed earlier also largely dissipated at this moment.

hum-

He swung the blood-red chainsaw once more.

Xiong Mi, whose mental state was already at its limit, staggered a step, then struggled to regain her balance.

The classroom, now completely stained blood red, now only had Xiong Mi and two other unharmed students left. One student was trembling, looking pitiful and cowering like a bullied student. As for the other…

Xiong Mi squinted at the student who was sitting motionless in the same spot, whose features were gradually becoming blurred for some reason, and whose appearance was rapidly changing.

Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Frenzied Herd Mentality and the First Victim

Several days before she entered the class, everyone knew that a sick girl would be transferring in.

Although no one knew who the rumor came from or how it spread so quickly, the end result was that almost the entire school knew about it within a few days and that the transfer student named Eriko Asamoto had a mental illness.

It seems to be called something like schizophrenia? Or personality disorder?

Everyone was talking and speculating about what kind of person this new classmate would be, and they were suspicious of her because of her special qualities that made her different from others.

Initially, it seemed the girl was hearing negative thoughts and had unfounded beliefs that she would be coerced or harmed by someone. However, after a period of treatment, she has nearly recovered and has been able to return to school.

However, as more and more people began to discuss the girl and the matter, the topic began to change, and soon the story about the girl was described in a completely different way.

Some say that Eriko Asamoto stabbed her parents with a knife, some say that she crawls on the ground like a dog looking for excrement in the grass, some say that five people live in her brain, some say that she bites her roommate's neck in the middle of the night, and some even say that she has killed several classmates and was transferred here on bail.

Before the girl even arrived at the school, everyone had already fabricated a non-existent backstory for her and began to dislike her.

If you think about it carefully, this is indeed very strange. You've never met this person, nor have you seen anything that can be definitively identified as being related to them. It's just hearsay among classmates, and then you start to dislike and hate this stranger, joining everyone else in taking this aversion for granted.

Even if you don't actually know whether those words are true or false, even if all the people spreading these rumors don't know whether these things are true or false, no one verifies them, not even one person asks. Everyone just desperately spreads them, desperately adds fuel to the fire, and desperately shows strong hostility towards the girl they don't even know what she looks like.

And so, a consensus was formed.

Although no one knows exactly how this consensus was reached—perhaps it started with a casual remark from a small group of students—the fact remains that "Eriko Asamoto is a mentally unstable person who will hurt others without reason, and everyone should hate and despise her" has become a reality that everyone must accept. Neither students nor teachers can violate this principle, or they will be punished.

Yes, this is an unspoken rule that must be followed as long as one is in a school.

If any student dares to disregard these consensuses, then he will become like Eriko Asamoto, an object that is perfectly justified in being hated and tormented by everyone.

If a teacher tries to break these rules, initially no students will do anything to the teacher, but soon the teacher will get into trouble due to various coincidences or strange reasons.

As for whether it's strange for something like this to happen at this school...

How is that possible?

This is perfectly normal, okay?

Ultimately, this is just the atmosphere that a school should naturally have. It's clearly the fault of this student who transferred here out of nowhere, isn't it? We've already established a good atmosphere and built our own little circle. This outsider coming to our territory is just being inconsiderate.

Especially since this person is mentally ill, isn't that even more despicable? This kind of person will only ruin our good atmosphere, so it's okay to do whatever we want to her. Therefore, accepting and understanding her is absolutely wrong, and we are the ones who are absolutely right!

"Cough...cough cough...whoosh cough cough!"

Xiong Mi was kneeling on the ground, supporting himself with one hand, coughing violently.

Crimson drops of blood fell to the ground one by one.

Along with it fell, Xiong Mi's severed tongue also fell.

【No, you can't talk to this lunatic! Good students would never do something so insensitive!】

Someone spoke up beside her, laughing and joking.

No one is allowed to strike up a conversation with her, and no one is allowed to make contact with her. That's the rule here.

Someone was patiently emphasizing this to her.

[That's right, this is the "Rules for Getting Along with the Unlucky One Eriko"!]

[Article 1: Eriko Asamoto is a disgusting person; no one is allowed to speak to her. Anyone who tries to speak to her must cut off their own tongue to stop the disgusting thing from spreading.]

[Article 2: Eriko Asamoto is trash. Her three meals a day should include various insects and garbage. If she resists, she can be forced to eat them. Anyone who thinks this is wrong will also receive the same treatment, and will have to eat double the amount of insects.]

[Article 3: Eriko Asamoto is an annoying bitch. She always answers the teacher's questions incorrectly in class, deliberately being different from us. So we need to strip her clothes off and lock her in the classroom or the toilet. Anyone who doesn't do this will be treated the same as Eriko.]

[Article 4: Eriko Asamoto shouldn't have been born. She needs to know how much she's disliked, so her books, bag, stationery, and shoes should be thrown away every day. Her roommates in the dormitory should regularly throw away her clothes, toiletries, and bedding. Let her know she's unwelcome. Anyone who doesn't do this is Eriko's accomplice and should be thrown off the roof to their death.]

[Article 5: Eriko Asamoto pollutes the surrounding air. Whenever she appears in a place with other people, unless it's a group activity required by the teacher, you must immediately remove her. You can verbally abuse her, punch and kick her, or use knives, compasses, or similar objects if you have them, but do not create wounds on exposed skin, as that will be easily noticeable. Those who think this is cruel are equally trash; find an opportunity to blind and deafen them to prevent them from identifying you.]

[Article 6: Eriko Asamoto is a slut. She pretends to be a good student to seduce teachers, so any teachers who are friendly to her must be driven away. If they can't be driven away, find a way to kill them. Their bodies can be buried in the mud behind the old school building. Everyone must fully support this, and anyone who doesn't provide enough support should be killed first.]

[Article 7: Eriko Asamoto is a jinx. It's said she found a recruitment poster for a non-existent ghost story club, and she's destined to become a ghost story, bringing misfortune to everyone. So, when the time is right, we must bury her alive in the botanical garden in the courtyard. At that time, everyone who hasn't actively attacked Eriko should also be buried there; that's the only way to do justice.]

I heard a group of young people earnestly explaining the rules.

I heard the students reciting it repeatedly without any doubt.

These words, and the words spoken by these students, are undoubtedly still human beings.

But why... could they display such inhuman cruelty while they were alive?

No, it's not entirely because of these students themselves.

Xiong Mi recalled that Gao Hai had mentioned some intelligence he had collected at Fujika Middle School and Hayate Elementary School during the pre-entry mission meeting, including the location of Takamagahara, the place where the hideouts were the remnants of their evil deeds.

【Yorakuyama Middle School】continued operating even after the war, miraculously continuing to function smoothly despite numerous incidents of students and teachers going missing or dying. No one suspected anything wrong with the school. This situation only ended when Morihara Koji, one of the core figures of the school, blew up most of the teachers and students in the assembly hall with an aerial bomb, rendering the school unusable.

Even so, with the disappearance of Yelu Mountain Middle School, no one felt that there was anything wrong with the place. Everyone simply forgot about it and didn't care about it at all. That was all.

While this could be explained by the information-blocking properties of the "Sacrifice Game," the Sacrifice Game hadn't existed yet at that time, so the one operating in the shadows... was probably "Takamagahara."

Furthermore, according to the information relayed from Takahashi by that little guy, the death toll at the main campus exceeds ten thousand. This number could not possibly have been reached in a short period of time; it must have been accumulated gradually over several years or even decades of operation. Even so, it is completely impossible for more than ten thousand high school students to die in a region without causing any problems. There must be something else that hasn't been investigated yet.

Tsk, I still know too little...

It's a real pity that I still know too little.

Being able to act based on only a few clues, and being subject to various restrictions as soon as one takes action, this dungeon exploration was truly quite unpleasant.

"Pooh!"

Xiong Mi spat out a mouthful of blood.

She sent a final message to Maki and Chika outside the door.

As for Jianbing, it's a pity she can no longer transmit information. Although she confronted the core obsession and obtained relevant information, Xiong Mi is now under even deeper information blockade and can no longer communicate with her teammates.

Even though he had forgotten his captain, Jianbing didn't stop restricting the students' movements. He still made announcements from time to time to ensure that the monsters in the school building couldn't take any action before the actual class time and before the teachers, who were actually monsters, entered the classrooms. Although he had forgotten who gave him the order, this teammate whom Xiongmi trusted continued to fulfill his duties.

As for myself...

Xiong Mi slowly straightened up, facing the students around her.

All the students who were torn apart by the blood saw have stood up again and have all come together and been restored to their original state.

The core obsession known as "Eriko Asamoto" has completely vanished, disappearing without a trace once again.

And these things clearly wouldn't let her go.

She could even hear the whispers that these things made together.

【Cut off her tongue, so she can't speak anymore~ Hehe~】

[You have to pry open her mouth and feed her ants, insects, phlegm, and plastic garbage bags, and make her eat it all~ Hehe~]

[We're going to strip her naked, throw her off the rooftop, and throw away all her belongings~ Hehe~]