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

Takami had no intention of hiding anything and told Hayasaka everything directly.

{Oh, that's great...}

Hayasaka let out a long sigh, revealing an expression that was both tired and joyful.

My young lady, who has always been unable to express her feelings frankly, can finally rest easy now. She used to be so smart, but now she seems more and more like a fool. It's really not easy for her to get to where she is now.

However, while the young lady's side was fine, he himself had become the one who was dragging things down.

Thinking of this, Hayasaka raised his head and looked at Takami, who was staring intently at him.

She knew very well that her problem wasn't like Kaguya's; it wasn't something that could be solved simply by mustering the courage to say "I like you." After all, her young mistress simply didn't understand romance and was awkward in expressing her feelings. Therefore, as long as she could talk things out, there wouldn't be a problem. But she was different. Her inner conflict wasn't about romance. After all, since the Hayasaka Elementary School arc ended, she had actively started serving Takami. Hayasaka's actions in expressing her affections were quite aggressive. Among the many women Takami knew, only Chika's actions were comparable to Hayasaka's. But the problem was that Chika took the initiative because she had spent a whole month thinking, while Hayasaka acted immediately after her first arc. In this respect, she was even more impressive than Chika.

So, where does my problem lie?

Hayasaka fell into deep thought.

If I had to pinpoint the key issue, it would be my pretense.

The image I present to others today is entirely a performance; none of it can be considered my "true self."

The reliable maid at Kaguya's mansion is a facade, the lively and energetic girl at school is a facade, and the puppy-dog maid who fawns over and serves Takami is also a facade. Like Kaguya, Hayasaka is also a product of the Shinomiya family's distorted education. However, unlike Kaguya, who was treated as a commodity from the beginning and thus lacks common sense and has a warped value system, Hayasaka was destined to become a maid for a member of the Shinomiya family from birth. Therefore, her education and training were completely different from Kaguya's, but in terms of distortion, they were no less than Kaguya's.

Now, Hayasaka herself isn't quite sure what she's really like anymore. Sometimes, however, she feels that this constant role-playing is just too exhausting. It's like being dragged into a bottomless abyss, with absolutely no possibility of change in the future.

So, are my feelings for my master real?

Despite being reluctant to think about this issue, Hayasaka couldn't help but start pondering it after learning that Takami was seeking to deepen her relationship with her and Kaguya.

The relationship that has developed between herself and her master is basically guided by her own initiative. She chose to offer herself to him, and he accepted her, and the two naturally came together.

Although the dog-like curse from the dungeon initially drove me, and I was indeed very irrational during that time, even now that the effects of the curse have been largely eliminated, I still have no regrets when I look at myself honestly.

In other words, after her master entered Hayate Elementary School and saved her from that twisted hell, she had already given her heart and soul, and there was no possibility that she would choose anyone other than her master.

But if that's the case, then why is there something lacking in the emotional relationship between me and my master?

Perhaps it's because... even when facing my master, I can't show my true self. I'm still putting on a facade when I'm with him? Even though I genuinely like my master, I'm actually using pretense, using methods of flattery, guidance, and control that I don't want to use, to try and win his heart?

If that's the case, what can I do to make a change...?

If that's the case, should I really... change? If my master saw my true self, saw my less-than-ideal, vulnerable, and ugly side, would that really be a good thing? That kind of thing...

As for me, I'm actually not quite sure what I should do, or what my master wants me to do.

In the end, Hayasaka did not reveal her inner thoughts, but simply smiled as always, walked to Takami's side, and said softly.

Just like when she was always by Gao Hai's side, she possessed a touch of girlish liveliness, a hint of deliberate shyness, and a dash of professional maid-like qualities. This subtle combination of impressions was the way Gao Hai liked best, a state she was certain of after much deliberation.

She will continue to maintain this demeanor in front of Gao Hai.

If she could, she didn't want to show any different side of herself in front of Takami, any attitude that might shatter his impression of her. Just imagining the possibility of such a thing happening filled Hayasaka with uncontrollable fear and unease. She knew that she was far from being able to change anything. In that respect, perhaps she was even less capable than her young mistress?

{Hmm? Should I tell you? I'm not really sure either, so you can stay with me for a while.}

Unaware of Hayasaka's inner thoughts, Takami scratched his head and finally said this.

So he and Hayasaka sat in the cabin, chatting and joking from time to time, passing the time during which they had nothing to do.

In the end, nothing noteworthy seemed to have happened. Takahashi wasn't sure if his casual chat with Hayasaka had changed anything, since the maid beside him seemed no different from usual, unlike Kaguya who showed significant emotional fluctuations.

However, Andres' blessing didn't include Hayasaka. The blessing power, which reacted immediately after Kaguya expressed her feelings, remained unchanged despite Takami and Hayasaka's interaction. Therefore, Takami guessed that something was probably missing between her and Hayasaka.

However, he can't worry about that for the time being.

In the temporary mental link, Cat Brother, Xiao Guo, and the Taoist from the "Slacking Off Gang" had sent a message that all three had fully recovered and were ready to act at any time. On the other side, the historians, Chachai and Tangyuan, were in the same situation. Tangyuan even shouted something in the temporary mental link, sounding quite energetic.

The break time is over, and it's time to get back to work. Gao Hai can't let his personal feelings delay everyone's progress, especially since a time anomaly has already occurred in the instance; they can't afford to delay any longer.

{So let's make [Water Ghost Lake] our first objective.}

Gao Hai, who spoke through the mental link, was the first to step out of the village. This time, the team members who followed him were Maki and Kaguya, while the Fishing Gang was accompanied by the Taoist and Tangyuan.

After leaving the village, the five players began their journey along the dirt road beside the farmland, heading towards the still lake in the valley. The remaining players stayed behind to guard against potential enemy attacks and infiltration.

As night fell, the dark red moonlight gradually shifted to a deep crimson. Time continued to flow, and no one could predict what would happen next.

Chapter 91: The True Form of the Water Curse and Speculations on the Origin of the Dungeon

So, the first step is to go to the [Water Ghost Lake] area at the bottom of the valley below Little Black Mountain, right?

Yes, I saw something when I was captured by the Fox Queen. There should be something beneath that [Water Ghost Lake]. If we successfully find that thing, our subsequent actions will go much more smoothly.

{It really sounds unbelievable. A woman who's naked, three meters tall, with fox ears and a tail, and a perfectly proportioned face and figure... If she weren't a monster and didn't eat people, that would be wonderful. Just hearing about it is incredible. Seriously, Mr. Gao, did you enjoy being held like that?}

{Alright, alright, this is a mental link for discussing combat, not for discussing personal hobbies. I don't understand why you boys like that kind of thing, but for now, let's think about the next steps. I don't think this operation will proceed smoothly.}

{Miss Tangyuan is right. Once our operation begins, both the villagers and the members of the [Treasure Hunters] will definitely notice our movements. Although they may not know the purpose of our operation, they will certainly try to interfere, so it's best to be prepared to be ambushed. Especially considering that [Water Ghost Lake] involves the unsolved mystery of "cursed water," we must proceed with extreme caution.}

{That's true. In short, let's proceed according to the pre-arranged plan. However, if any unexpected situations arise, we'll probably have to rely on Mr. Gao, since your strength is undoubtedly the strongest among all of us.}

{Gao Jun, the route from the village entrance to [Water Ghost Lake] has been scouted. No anomalies have been found so far, and we are ready to proceed.}

Okay, we've discussed most of what needed to be discussed, let's get started!

After the final conversation within the temporary mental link, the players officially began their operation.

Gao Hai led the way, with Zhen Fei following behind him. Next in the middle was Li Nianyou, the "Taoist" from the Lazy Fish Gang, and at the very back were Tang Yuan and Hui Ye. Thus, a temporary five-person player team was formed, leaving the village and heading towards [Water Ghost Lake].

The group walked along the road down the mountain, passing through terraced fields.

Every now and then, accompanied by gusts of cold wind, the tattered strips of cloth draped over the scarecrows in the fields could be seen fluttering in the wind. It was as if these scarecrows had come to life, bound to the fields and struggling helplessly.

By now, Gao Hai had a general understanding of the spatial structure of the [Infant Cry Village] instance. From the [Ghost Cry Cave] at the highest point, to the river extending down from above the snow line, and the [Water Ghost Lake] and [Bottomless Lake] into which the river flows, the [Water Ghost Lake] eventually flows to the valley area at the lowest point, passing through the [Li Family Village] area, the terraced fields area, and the farmland in the valley. In addition, there is an abandoned village on the other side of the [Water Ghost Lake] at the very bottom of the valley. That is the general layout.

The group had passed through this terraced field area several times before, and no one had ever encountered anything problematic here. Gao Hai, however, remembered that the Red Knot Society had encountered something in the field area before, and he wondered why they hadn't encountered anything like it on their side. He wondered if it was because of the layered spatial structure here.

We safely passed through the terraced fields; it looks like they're waiting for us behind.

After traversing the field area, Gao Hai muttered something under his breath in the temporary mental link. He had initially wondered if the [Treasure Hunter] player, who dared to attack him in the field area, would try again, but it seemed these people didn't have the courage.

Tread - Tread -

Accompanied by the sound of footsteps on the hard dirt road, the five people gradually approached the lake area at the bottom of the valley.

Following closely beside Gao Hai, Zhen Fei carefully activated her auditory enhancement blessing, using the resonance between her blessing and Gao Hai's to help him improve his ability to distinguish between [reality] and [falsehood]. However, judging from the feedback from their senses, they hadn't encountered any problems in this regard along the way. The surrounding space remained stable, and there was no confusion between reality and illusion; everything was so peaceful.

We've arrived, this is the place.

Gao Hai stopped in his tracks.

Beside him, the river was still flowing with a "whoosh," but looking ahead, one could see that the lake into which the river flowed remained completely still, like a mirror, reflecting light and shadow under the dark red moonlight.

No, that's not right...

The still lake did not truly reflect the sky.

At that moment, Gao Hai suddenly realized a problem.

Although the players had discussed the lake's reflection on the way here, and Chachai had reinforced the cognitive shielding for everyone to ensure that even if they saw the sky reflected in the lake, it wouldn't trigger anything, Gao Hai, gazing at the mirror-like lake, found that he could still clearly see the lake surface without experiencing the "inability to understand what he was seeing" phenomenon that should occur after the cognitive shielding was applied.

Gao Hai hadn't noticed this before; he simply thought the lake was like a mirror, so calm it didn't even have a ripple. But now that he realized the lake didn't reflect the surrounding scenery, he began to pay attention to what the lake actually reflected.

Is it only after realizing that this "Ghost Lake" doesn't produce reflections that one can notice this? Is this some kind of deliberately designed cognitive effect? ​​If so, then what exactly is reflected on the lake's surface?

Gao Hai looked at the lake in front of him.

The lake surface is as calm as a mirror, yet also appears blurry and indistinct, making it impossible to discern what kind of scene it reflects.

The dark red color swirled and twisted, like paint being stirred.

Does this distorted scene really have any meaning?

Then, Gao Hai realized that what he was seeing was an eye.

It's hard to describe whether he actually saw something or what he "thought" he saw. After staring at the lake surface carefully, Gao Hai had this idea and began to believe that he saw an eye.

A cloudy eye, devoid of self-awareness, already...dead...

Those are not the eyes of a monster.

That wasn't the eye of the Black Mountain God, nor the Fox Goddess, nor the eye of any local deity I had already encountered.

But that... might be the eyes of some being similar to them, those who couldn't survive, those whose very existence had vanished, leaving only these incomplete parts, the eyes of a being unknown to Gao Hai.

The water in this instance is cursed.

The mountain god managed to remove the curse from the flowing water. Although the mountain god's consciousness had perished, this being achieved a different kind of immortality in another way before dying, so this power is still in effect today.

The curse on the still water was lifted by the Fox Queen, but the Fox Queen has clearly undergone an unusual change. This change has caused the curse in the still water to reappear. Only by finding a way to contact the Fox Queen and obtain some kind of mark from her can one gain the ability to travel back and forth in the still water.

This was something Gao Hai already knew.

But now it seems that the truth may not be so?

The curse of water, in essence, is the fusion of a deceased god with water. The truly cursed entity is the remains of this deceased god, while the mountain god and the fox goddess merely suppress the curse? Villagers who worship the mountain god or the fox goddess gain corresponding privileges, thus allowing them to drink either flowing or still water. This is also reflected in the instance, so players must drink different types of water in spaces belonging to different villager factions, is that correct?

No, that's not right either. Li Ziyong's ancestral precepts mentioned that "the water has been cursed," so this curse should have occurred in his generation. The existence of gods, on the other hand, dates back to a much earlier time, so the timelines don't match up at all.

God... God's death... Was it because of the blood-red flower?

The blood-red vines from the starry sky—this thing could even sense the presence of the black watch—meant its level was terrifying. Perhaps it was merely an insignificant avatar of some being's power, but for this planet, it was already an overwhelming force. Both the mountain god and the fox goddess clearly paid a heavy price to fight it, but was that truly enough to suppress it?

Gao Hai suddenly thought of the Red Nut Gray Hole.

He also remembered that what the researcher of the Red Nut Gray Hole, Forn, was so obsessed with was a trace left by a god in the cave.

The deity left the cave ten thousand years ago and disappeared without a trace, leaving behind only traces of extraordinary power within the cave that have not dissipated even after ten thousand years.

The timing is right...

The timing actually matches up perfectly.

So, did all the gods of the planet, whether they represent the land, the water, or something else... such as the gods related to the sky, participate in the suppression and sealing of the Blood Flower, and ultimately achieve victory at the cost of the vast majority of gods being killed and corrupted?

Gao Hai raised his head and looked at the sky, at a sky he could no longer comprehend. He couldn't see anything in the sky, but after seeing what was in the water, he began to realize what the root cause of the danger in the sky might be.

What did you perceive?

Tangyuan's voice rang out in the mental link, and she and the Taoist carefully created some distance between themselves. As Red Moon level players, they were well aware of the potential problems that could arise from a teammate's sudden stroke of inspiration, so both of them were extremely cautious.

{I roughly know what's in the night sky and still water, hmm... but I can't tell you, or you'll probably be dead.}