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

With this power present, I don't need to worry about being attacked by monsters. Even if the core monster in this area comes out to try to kill me, I will still be absolutely safe until the red light is completely exhausted.

Similarly, Xiaohua knew that even if she fell into extreme emotions for various reasons, such as fear or despair, she would be able to recover faster than usual. After all, what was stored in her head was a fragment of the divine being's spirit. With this, she shouldn't need to worry about her mental state at all.

very strange.

Do you think Xiaojianzi wouldn't know about this?

Mr. Gao Hai made it very clear that Xiao Jianzi knows everything, and she is aware of all the current events. Since Mr. Gao Hai said so, then Xiao Jianzi's situation must be exactly as described.

In that case, how could she possibly ask such a strange question? [Workbook Question 3] What's the point of this odd question? I feel like a normal Omiko would never ask something like this… a normal Omiko?

Xiao Hua suddenly stopped moving.

She heard the cryptic voice again and realized it was above her head.

The girl looked up and saw small feet covered in filthy blood hanging outside the barbed wire fence.

Then she looked at her phone again, and after a brief pause, spoke in a serious tone:

"Xiaojianzi, is it really you?"

The other party responded very quickly, almost immediately after Xiao Hua finished speaking.

[It's me...of course it's me...sizzle...]

Judging from the voice, it is definitely Komiko's own voice.

However, the source of this voice was indeed not inside the phone. So, was the voice of this so-called "Koko" that I was communicating with actually coming from somewhere else?

The next moment, Xiao Hua realized what was going on and couldn't help but shudder.

Chapter Twenty-One: A Moment of Escape in the Dark Corridor and the Gradually Awakening of Talent

Thinking about it carefully, some things should have been discovered much earlier.

When I first entered the mansion and closed the window on the second floor, I saw what looked like footprints left by a child.

During her subsequent exploration of the building, she encountered a modified long-necked monster, a monster with a head like a porcelain doll that could somehow touch her, and finally, a monster that appeared as a series of childlike dolls.

The first monster was successfully banished by Xiaohua using the red light. As for the latter two monsters, Xiaohua initially thought they were the same thing. But now, upon closer reflection, this idea was probably inaccurate, since the two actually have considerable differences in their outward appearance. She simply subconsciously felt that there should only be one monster left in the house, without seriously considering the possibility that the two might not be the same entity.

But now she understands.

As she became aware of this crucial issue, some previously overlooked phenomena began to change with her understanding. She began to realize that beside her, in the seemingly empty space to her side, there had always been a figure standing there, but Xiaohua had simply not noticed it before.

It was that thing with a head like a porcelain doll, a stiff, cold smile, and a body size similar to a normal person.

Even now, until Xiaohua realized its existence and successfully found it, this thing is still emitting the sound of "Yotsuya Miko," trying to continue the communication from before.

When exactly did it start following me around?

Could it be that from the moment I successfully banished that long-necked monster, from the moment I fell into this distorted space, to the entire process of my exploration, it has been following me the whole time?

It had been right beside me the whole time, yet I couldn't perceive its presence, couldn't truly find it. Only after I began to suspect there might be another monster did it finally reveal itself, appearing before me. With such abilities, perhaps this thing wasn't the monster corresponding to this distorted space? I had completely ignored its existence, letting it follow me everywhere... Wait... could it be that the reason the child doll kept appearing beside me was also to remind me of its presence?

Subconsciously, Xiao Hua moved her body, taking a step away from the ceramic-faced monster.

The next moment, the monster suddenly raised its head, its lifeless, stiff face facing the girl. In that instant, Xiao Hua even felt that the smile on the other's face seemed to become more vibrant.

run!

Without the slightest hesitation, the girl turned and started running, accelerating her pace deeper into the dark corridor.

Before this, Xiaohua was certain that she had never run so intensely, not even during physical education exams, she had never run with such all her might.

But she didn't have time to think about such things right now, after all, the footsteps following closely behind were so clear. The monster caught up with her the moment it realized that Xiao Hua had discovered it, and it was extremely fast, not leaving her behind at all.

[Xiao Hua... Xiao Hua... Why don't you listen to me...]

The faint, slightly distorted sound of electricity was still coming from that thing's mouth.

Beyond the rusty barbed wire fence, more things flashed by, as if something else was spying on everything and following the fleeing girl.

"Xiaohua...stop...please stop...please stop..."

"Huh...huh..."

The girl could feel her energy being rapidly depleted.

She stumbled forward as she ran, the lantern in her hand swaying violently with each movement. The increasingly dim light took on a dark red hue, as if it were gradually merging with and being absorbed by its surroundings.

slam-la-

The cold rain fell on the girl, soaking her clothes and running down her skin.

It's raining.

From the endless dark sky, the wet raindrops fell in a light drizzle, gradually becoming more frequent.

The rainwater smelled incredibly foul; just smelling it made one want to vomit.

No, that's not right, this isn't rainwater.

As she ran, the girl looked down at her soaked shoulders and arms and saw only patches of black stains spreading outwards.

That was rotten, foul-smelling blood.

Falling from the sky into this barbed wire corridor at this moment was black, putrid blood, like raindrops flowing from a long-dead corpse, making one want to vomit.

A faint crying sound came from afar, it was hard to tell whether it came from the front, the surroundings, or the back.

The suffocating oppression continued to intensify, as if it were crushing flesh and bones, almost taking away Xiaohua's own breath.

Crazy.

The girl sensed the madness lurking in the shadows.

She vaguely realized that what was allowed to exist in this pitch-black space was madness after abandoning all reason, absolute darkness where nothing remained.

Just like this increasingly rusty barbed wire, after the walls and ground, which are like flesh and blood, rot and collapse and disappear, the last remaining bones will naturally dissolve little by little, gradually decay and collapse, until no trace is left.

Is this what they call a "hospital"?

Is this the real "treatment" being imposed on so-called patients?

It's as if you can see those smiling "doctors" reaching out their hands, see these fakes that imitate adults, and see the moment they finally bare their fangs and become ferocious.

They lurk in the shadows, seeking out those with inner emptiness, twisting them, and transforming ordinary people who were originally just somewhat confused, unable to see the future, or dissatisfied with their current lives, into extreme madness, turning them into complete monsters, and then calling it "salvation," even sincerely regarding such brutal and terrifying acts as a means to change the world, and gradually expanding their scope of operations, harming more and more innocent people.

Like this distorted, decaying space, this world that holds the memories and emotions of the mother who became a monster, perhaps it shouldn't have been this horrific, underworld-like place, filled with so much filth and stench. Like that room overflowing with various delicacies, those dishes that Xiaohua carefully savored—such delicious food couldn't have been made casually. This mother, who ultimately descended into madness and murdered her family, may have indeed been dissatisfied with her situation and her life before contacting the [Hospital]. But at that time, she could never have imagined cruelly murdering her family. It was the [Hospital's] [treatment] that ultimately turned her into a monster.

"Huh...huh..."

The girl continued running forward, panting heavily.

Stop going forward... Turn back... Come for treatment... Come for salvation...

The sound behind me never seemed to fade into the distance.

No matter how hard Xiaohua ran, she found that the monster following behind her maintained the same speed, sticking close behind and impossible to shake off.

Every now and then, she would feel the other person touching her body, feeling that thing would come closer from time to time, gently poking her waist with its fingers, or blowing a breath on the back of her neck, and then pulling away again, as if it was deliberately teasing her.

She didn't know if it was her imagination or if it was real; she just kept running as fast as she could, with no intention of stopping. To be honest, Xiaohua herself hadn't considered the reason for this seemingly irrational behavior. She simply instinctively felt she should try to escape him, that she couldn't let him follow her like this, otherwise something very dangerous would happen.

slam-la-

The dark rain of blood was becoming even more intense.

Just like a hurricane and torrential rain in the real world, the howling wind made it even more difficult for the girl to move forward.

Should we continue forward...? If we go any further... there will be no turning back...

He could hear the monster following behind him speaking softly, as if whispering in his ear.

Then, the lantern in his hand suddenly emitted a sharp sound, and the flame inside flickered and exploded. Xiao Hua himself lost control of his body and fell to the ground.

thump--

After a heavy thud as she fell to the ground, Xiaohua opened her eyes and felt a warm sensation on her forehead.

I didn't feel much pain, just a little dizzy, and because I had been running for so long, I was out of breath and felt like my body was about to collapse.

Stand up, stand up quickly.

A chilling sense of crisis continued to spread, trembling in every organ and bone of the body.

I can't fall here, I can't stay here any longer. If this continues, I'm afraid I'll really die here.

You must stand up, you must stand up immediately, stand up, and then keep running!

"Cough cough... Ha... Ugh..."

Struggling, the girl got up again, crawling out in a dim red light.

She could feel the putrid blood soaking her clothes, making her look as disgusting as if she had just been pulled out of the blood.

She could also feel the malicious gazes from all around her, a discomfort that was far stronger than when she was running, as if she were being watched by something.

Head up.

Under the eerie red glow of the lantern lying not far away, its interior lights already extinguished, and in the faint red glow of the phone still tightly clutched in the girl's hand, Xiaohua raised her head and looked at the faces peering at her from behind the barbed wire fences on all sides, at the dense array of cold, emotionless gazes projected from every direction.

All the faces were rotting.

All the gazes were so cold.

Xiao Hua felt a strong wave of dizziness.

Just being stared at by these faces seemed to push my spirit to its limit, and my will was about to give way.

Even with the protection of the fragments of consciousness, one's own consciousness wouldn't be completely destroyed in one fell swoop. But every minute and every second spent in this place undoubtedly aggravated this effect, gradually gnawing at the self named [Yuri Kawaka].

If even I, protected by a deity, feel intense pain and unbearable discomfort in this terrifying and twisted black space, then what must ordinary people without any protection feel, and how will this place turn them into?

My ankle started hurting again.

Xiao Hua's fracture should have healed, but at this moment she felt a pain as if her old injury had recurred, and she was unable to stand up and continue running normally.

Even so, she continued to move forward, crawling on her hands and feet when she couldn't stand up, gritting her teeth and forcing herself to keep going just to take another step.

"Huh...huh..."

With heavy breathing, the girl reached forward and gripped the barbed wire, taking another difficult step.

It looks like I can see something now.