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

Each little foot has its own unique characteristics, features, and flavor.

However, it doesn't match.

The shoe prints that Gao Hai saw in this abandoned village did not match in size or shape.

So these aren't their feet.

Gao Hai quickly activated the newest and most recent fragment of his DNA. Then, he recalled the time when he and Goto Ichiri traveled through time and reversed everything during the final stage of the Nightfall Mountain Middle School instance.

"Being curled up in this spot for so long has made my whole body ache..."

At that time, Gao Hai was trapped in a small space for a long time. Every time he went out, he had to operate in a race against time. As a result, he accumulated a lot of pressure and his body was often uncomfortable. He felt sore all over.

Of course, considering that during this period the two of them were either sitting all day or busy with this and that, could only sleep on hard ground, and often could not straighten their arms and legs, an ordinary human would either die suddenly or suffer from various joint diseases. Only top players like Gao Hai and Yi Li, whose physical qualities surpass those of humans, would only feel a little uncomfortable.

"Um... well... I have a little bit too..."

By this time, Goto Ichiri, who had spent quite some time with Takami, was able to chat with her for a bit. So after Takami's complaints, she nodded slightly and quietly echoed them.

"Could you please massage my neck and back? I've been sleeping on the floor for so long, I feel like my neck is going to go numb."

"Huh? Huh? Huh? Me, me, me, can I do it?!"

"There's no one else here, so could I ask you for a favor, Ichiri-kun?"

"Waaah... I... Waaah, okay, okay."

Then, Gao Hai, taking advantage of the situation, quickly made a request. Although Xiao Boqi hesitated for a while with a long face, he finally agreed to Gao Hai's request. He carefully came over and used his little fists to massage Gao Hai's back and shoulders for more than ten minutes.

Judging from the girl's flushed cheeks and stiff body after the massage, this action probably burned out more than half of the hardware in her brain.

The subsequent events essentially blew Goto Ichiri's mind out.

"Well then, as is customary, Yili, you've been here for so long, have you felt any soreness, numbness, or discomfort anywhere on your body?"

"Huh? Am I alright..."

"Don't hold it in, just tell me if you feel uncomfortable anywhere."

"Hmm... well... it's probably because my legs and calves are a little sore, I've been sitting for long periods of time..."

"Then I'll give you a good massage as a way of repaying you for what I did earlier."

"Whoa! Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait—!!!"

Gao Hai decisively grabbed Yili's small feet, took off her shoes, and then took off her pink socks.

Gently, Gao Hai pressed his hand on the girl's fair, small feet, which had no unpleasant odor, and gently kneaded them again and again.

For a moment, Goto Ichiri, like a startled pony, instinctively raised her other foot to kick Takami. Considering her physical abilities, which were at their peak, if that kick had landed, Takami, whose physical abilities weren't yet at the Red Moon level, would most likely have lost half his life. But Pochi was ultimately a kind child, so after raising her foot, she paused in mid-air for a while, finally lowering it again with a flushed face. Then she lay on the ground, covering her face, letting Takami massage her feet.

This event was deeply etched into Gao Hai's memory and written into his DNA sequence.

Therefore, even though he hasn't developed any relationship beyond friendship with Goto Ichiri yet, Takahashi still has a fairly deep understanding of this cute girl's body. Especially the feel of her feet and calves. Of course, he also remembered the cute patterned panties she showed him when she hesitated after lifting her foot.

That interesting experience still feels great to me now. I think even when I'm over fifty, I'll still think about it from time to time and cherish the memory.

With this in mind, Gao Hai finally determined the object to which the footprints on the ground belonged.

Goto Ichiri.

To be precise, they should be considered clones of Goto Ichiri, because while the size and shape of these footprints are almost identical to those of Goto Ichiri himself, there are subtle differences in some very inconspicuous details, as if they were deliberately created.

So, did she hide somewhere in this village and use her guitar to create clones to act in her place?

Based on his familiarity with Goto Ichiri, Takami successfully deduced the truth.

Knowing this alone wouldn't change his current situation. After all, Goto Ichiri herself was still hiding, and it was highly likely she had used the power of multiple blessings and obsession objects, making it impossible for Takami to find her. Furthermore, he hadn't made any significant disturbance upon entering this place, meaning that unless he directly encountered Goto Ichiri's clone, she might not be able to detect him.

I need to find a way to let them know I'm here.

Only after she knows I'm here can she use that guitar to create a timeline where "my clone found me" by altering the timeline, thus giving me a chance to reunite with her.

Gao Hai continued running while deep in thought.

Those invisible malevolent thoughts and deathly intents are still slowly approaching, gradually sealing off Gao Hai's routes of movement.

Even using the power of nothingness to fly is useless, because the death intent is all-encompassing, completely covering everything from the ground to the underground to the sky. Once it spreads, it is absolutely impossible to get even a fraction of a distance away.

Time is running out, and the area where we can dodge and move is becoming very small. If we continue, we will be completely cut off from our escape route.

Through the perspective of the rescue team's badge, Gao Hai could now clearly see the village on the other side, where a fierce battle was raging. Old Guo had already sacrificed himself again. Howard, driving the fire truck, crashed through three houses before stopping and began standing on the roof, using a high-powered water cannon to mow down the entire village. Hirano Sosuke's unlimited-ammo pistol had already leveled more than 30% of the village and the surrounding forest within a three-kilometer radius. The villagers who had passed by the teacher had vanished without a trace.

These villagers, who could easily overpower the players, were instantly reduced to cannon fodder in front of the rescue team members who were actually monsters, and were beaten so badly that they had no chance to fight back. However, taking this opportunity, Gao Hai observed their peculiarities more clearly and roughly figured out how these things came to life.

However, that wasn't the focus at the moment. Gao Hai was concerned about the situation in Li Family Village to confirm whether the damage caused by the rescue team would extend to the desolate village he was currently in. He quickly received a negative answer.

Unlike the closely connected Li Family Village and Liu Family Village, this desolate village seems to be more spatially separated from other places, and there will be no situation like when Gao Hai detonated the aerial bomb and both villages were bombed at the same time.

boom!

Without hesitation, Gao Hai raised his pistol and fired a shot into the sky.

"I'm already here!"

After the sharp gunshot, Gao Hai suddenly shouted, his voice so loud it could be heard throughout the entire village.

The instant the shout and the gunshot rang out, an intense chill instantly locked onto Gao Hai's location and rapidly converged upon him.

However, in the next moment, this event became as if it had never happened. Because a clone appeared before Gao Hai, preventing him from self-destructing. Therefore, his actions in deliberately exposing himself on that timeline naturally became something that never occurred.

Chapter Twenty-Two: A Girl's Intimate Moments and a Brand New Record

"Woo..."

Gao Hai heard the girl's mournful cry.

The intense heat of their breath was almost within reach.

The warmth of his body rubbed against her skin and clothes.

The soft and full touch was intensely pressing on my nerves.

"Wow...whoosh~"

Gao Hai let out a long breath, then tried to be serious, but his tone still couldn't help but become frivolous.

"Ugh..."

And so the girl's cries became even more mournful.

The reason why this happened is simple: Takami and Goto Ichiri were huddled together in the same cardboard box.

A few minutes ago, by manipulating her clone, Goto Ichiri successfully located Takami and used several consecutive time jumps of the clone to bring forward the rendezvous time between Takami and the clone, thus successfully bringing Takami to the vicinity of her location.

However, faced with the invisible death aura permeating the entire instance, Goto Ichiri himself couldn't think of any way to help Takami evade their pursuit. Furthermore, the situation was extremely urgent, leaving no room for idle thoughts. In desperation, Ichiri had Takami crawl into his cardboard box domain, then placed a third layer of cardboard boxes inside, creating an even more thoroughly isolated domain.

This method did indeed succeed. Under the isolating power of the multiple obsessions, Gao Hai was able to avoid the perception of those inanimate objects and thus survive.

However, this method has a small problem: the space inside the cardboard box is not very large. It is very difficult to fit two people in such a small cardboard box. As a result, Takami and Goto Ichiri had to squeeze together, as if they were tightly embracing each other.

too close……

Goto Ichiri felt like his brain was about to explode.

Mr. Hai… he’s too close… too close, too close, too close, too close…

The strong scent of adult male hormones filled my nostrils, mixed with a faint smell of sweat from running.

The rough texture of their skin rubbing against each other was palpable, and a heavy, powerful heartbeat echoed through their clothes from their thick chests.

The initial joy of reunion, the tension of trying everything to help each other escape, all melted into panic as their bodies pressed together. If they hadn't spent a long time together during the final mission at Nightfall Mountain Middle School, Yili would probably have already passed out.

{Waaaaah...you two...Mr. Gao, please, don't bully Boqi-chan...}

Kita Ikuyo, who was watching all this, blushed, but she had no intention of looking away. Instead, she was carefully observing Goto Ichiri's expression, trying to confirm whether her companion had already fallen for him.

Hmm, based on initial observation, it's highly likely. The blushing is about the same as that of Mr. Gao's classmate Shinomiya during the Five Armies Battle.

This man, although he says he hasn't slept with Pochi-chan, has he actually already progressed to that point? Perhaps, now it's just a matter of seeing the real thing? Could it be that he's actually enjoying the feeling of deliberately not making things clear?

Perhaps because things were finally a little safer now, and because Takami had so confidently promised that Maki and the others would be safe, Kita Ikuyo relaxed a bit and even had time to gossip.

{Don't talk nonsense, I'm completely innocent with Ichiri. Uh, at least until now, nothing has happened between us.}

However, because she forgot to put on her inner defenses, all of her little thoughts were overheard by Gao Hai. Therefore, Gao Hai, who was originally enjoying the trembling of the girl in his arms, couldn't help but turn his head and express his protest very seriously.

Upon hearing this, Kita Ikuyo silently reopened her defenses and then showed Takami an expression of complete distrust. Takami could only sigh silently, unable to understand how such a pure and upright good man like himself could be misunderstood as a philandering scumbag who deliberately flirted with girls.

Hmm, could it be that Kita has already fallen for me, so he's saying these things on purpose to get my attention?

No, no, no, that kind of thinking is too extreme. This kind of thing isn't suitable for me. Okay, okay, let's focus on serious matters now. After all, the rescue team has been demolishing houses for quite a while now, and Gao Hai estimates that the villagers will start to react soon.

{Yili, could you tell me about your situation here? How you got here, what you've investigated—any valuable information will do. I desperately need intelligence, and right now you're my only remaining teammate who can provide it.}

"By establishing a temporary mental link through the object of my obsession," Gao Hai said earnestly to Goto Ichiri.

{Ugh...}

However, Xiao Boqi's condition obviously did not recover so quickly. The girl pressed against Gao Hai's chest had her eyes turned into circles and she was dizzy.

So Gao Hai reached out and patted the girl's pink head with a little force.

Snapped!

"Whoa!"

The system restarted successfully.

Calm down, we're still in the dungeon, and in a very dangerous situation.

Gao Hai spoke again through the temporary mental link established by the object of his obsession.

{Um...um...sorry, I...I'm a little flustered. Um, where are the others...?}

The girl, who had finally regained some consciousness, took several deep breaths. Then, because the space inside the cardboard box was too small, she moved her body awkwardly and replied to Gao Hai in a low voice through the mental link, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

I feel so uncomfortable, even breathing has become difficult.

And I keep feeling like there's something hard pressing against my body, ah, could it be... could it be... Waaah, don't think about this now, don't think about this anymore!

{I...I...I don't know how I got here. It seems like I was teleported the moment I stepped into the village, and then I've been hiding here, using my clones to gather information...}

With Gao Hai's black watch pressed against his waist, Goto Ichiri, who had a slight misunderstanding, almost overloaded his CPU to the point of melting on the spot.