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

Before she could even take out her keys, Liang grabbed the hand that was holding them.

"...If it's locked, then we don't need to worry about it."

Liang spoke very seriously.

"Our goal is to confirm the extent of the water leakage. Since it's locked, the water ingress here shouldn't be a major problem. We'll check other areas, and we'll assume this area is fine."

As Liang said this, she turned her head to look at the bar, and then at the other door leading to the warehouse, which was located inside the bar.

Because of the angle, Liang couldn't be sure whether the door was closed or open. She could only try to recall the previous situation in her mind and try to remember whether Xingge had had time to lock the other warehouse door.

crunch--

The three of them heard a clear sound of the door opening a moment later.

The sound of a door opening came from behind the bar, clearer than could be.

The intense chill made Xingge shiver. In the white light of her flashlight, she vaguely saw a figure moving behind the bar, as if someone had been lying on the bar until just now, when they stood up, opened the door, and went into the warehouse.

"...Is it a hallucination?"

Xingge asked with difficulty.

"It's an illusion. We need to go over there and check the condition of that door."

Liang tried hard to suppress the urge to escape back to the stage and spoke earnestly to the two people beside him.

"Then...then let's go...let's go..."

Hongxia, the most timid of them all, could barely speak coherently at this point. Her face was contorted with grief, and her steps trembled. Her older sister, standing beside her, was also in a similar state of grief, though her steps weren't as shaky. It was only now that she could remain calm and continue walking while observing the situation.

Although I hate to admit it, I do seem to have the talent to be a gamer, just like Gao Hai said.

Seriously, this kind of thing is anything but rock and roll.

Liang thought to himself with a hint of helplessness as the three of them slowly walked around the bar and soon arrived at the location of the second warehouse door.

"Locked up?"

Under the alternating red and white light of the flashlight and the computer, the door inside the bar can be seen to be closed.

If it's in the closed state, then it should be locked properly, so there shouldn't be any problem, right?

Although that's what she was thinking, Xingge still slowly approached, intending to turn the doorknob to check if the door was locked.

One step, then another.

slam-la-

Amidst the splashing sound of water, Hongxia, walking beside her, frowned and looked down to find that her skirt was already wet.

Before anyone knew it, the water had almost completely submerged Hongxia's thighs, reaching the hem of her skirt.

Is the water level rising even faster now?

The question had just arisen in Hongxia's mind, and before she could voice it, a piercing, sharp sound interrupted her.

[Sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle—]

The sharp, piercing noise startled Hongxia and Xingge. Both of them trembled like cats with their fur standing on end. Although Liang didn't seem to react much, her heart skipped a beat, and she almost collapsed to the ground, unable to catch her breath.

Of course, Liang didn't actually do that. Instead, she immediately calmed down and looked towards the source of the sound.

It wasn't the computer she was holding.

That noise just now came from the stage control area.

What's going on? The power was clearly off in the store, so why is there this sound all of a sudden? Is it another hallucination? Is this hallucination trying to scare us with noise?

Instinctively, Ryo had a premonition that something was wrong.

Then, a hoarse, strange voice, whose gender was indistinguishable, continued to ring out.

[Tokyo Night Talk brings you the latest news.]

[Attention all listeners! Please, please pay close attention!]

[First news: The rainfall has exceeded 1200 mm, and the rain has lasted for more than 3 hours. Tokyo's sewers have been completely blocked by floodwaters and are beginning to overflow.]

Please be careful in your basements. Water may already be seeping out and spreading.

I heard that there are many strange things in this sewage, like discarded rings, guns loaded with bullets, and even girls dismembered into pieces—all sorts of things. And now they're slowly, slowly floating up from the sewers along with the torrential rain and floodwaters.

[Listeners probably don't want their homes to be messy and dirty, so please make sure to check your home thoroughly and seal any leaks properly.]

Ah, of course! If you enjoy treasure hunting, this might be a great opportunity. Who knows what you might find in the water?

[Then came the second message: the residential area has now been officially taken over, and everyone will soon be rescued. Friends in the residential area can cheer and celebrate!]

However, there are still two fugitives active in the residential area right now. They are a woman with black hair and blonde eyes, and a woman with red hair and yellow-green eyes. They are both very dangerous criminals and will not be as helpful as this program. Please be careful and never trust them.

[The third message is a health advisory. As the weather gets colder, those who enjoy swimming should definitely swim in a swimming pool. Swimming in the wild is very dangerous; there's no need to risk your life. After all, soaking in cold water for a long time will definitely have a significant impact on your health, right?]

It was unclear whose voice was broadcasting the message, but they just kept broadcasting a whole bunch of information in one go.

The three people present were momentarily stunned and couldn't figure out what was going on.

But soon, Ryo, who was the first to realize something was wrong, widened her eyes sharply. She could clearly feel the intense malice in the announcer's hoarse voice, as if a terrifying monster was watching the three of them behind the bar through the broadcast, silently observing them and choosing who to devour first.

Is this an illusion?

No, absolutely not!

The rules within the red light are quite clear: hallucinations shouldn't present information we don't know or that we haven't actively revealed. And what we just discussed—whether it's the rainfall or the residential area—is something we know nothing about and that we haven't discussed at all.

Not an illusion.

What could that be?

This thought flashed through Liang's mind, instantly sending chills down her spine.

Regardless of whether the announcement was true or false, one thing is certain: something has indeed entered this place. And if something has entered, then what about this door—whether it's locked or merely ajar—?

Her next action was entirely a conscious reaction; she acted subconsciously the moment she realized something was wrong.

She reached out and pulled Xingge, who was closest to the warehouse door, backward, causing him to stumble.

Then, Liang took a step forward and turned the computer screen in her hand toward the door, letting the dim red light shine directly onto the door, onto the small warehouse that had been opened at some point, revealing the scene inside.

slam-la-

The water rippled back and forth on the warehouse floor.

In a corner on one side of the warehouse, streams of water kept gushing out, seeping from behind the cracked walls and floor, and the rate of seepage gradually increased as the cracks in the corner itself widened.

What's in the water?

Something flowing rapidly in water, seeping out from a crack in the wall.

It was black, very small, and difficult to see.

It looks like very small pieces of beef that have been cut into pieces.

There were also strands of black hair, intertwined and flowing out of the cracks.

slam-la-

A pale woman's face emerged from the water.

Her entire face looked like a woman's face had been cut into countless tiny pieces.

A woman with only two dark eye sockets, whose eyeballs are completely invisible.

All the cuts and cracks disappeared quickly, and the glue was restored to its original state. It floated straight out of the water in the warehouse and instantly pressed down on the pale woman in Liang's direction, at a speed that the girl herself did not have time to react.

boom! ! !

The next second, a burst of raging red light erupted, blasting the bar counter to the ground and sending Hongxia and Xingge flying into the water. Liang himself was also pressed underwater by a powerful impact, and he subconsciously inhaled a mouthful of water into his nasal cavity.

A pale woman's face then submerged from the water's surface and sank directly into the cool water.

Boom——! ! !

The second surge of blood-red light tore the woman's face to shreds, scattering it into countless pieces like building blocks tossed to the ground by a mischievous child.

Liang opened his mouth wide, suffering greatly from the water that had entered his lungs, and his consciousness became blurred.

"elder sister--"

It seemed that Hongxia's terrified screams were heard.

I couldn't hear clearly; it seemed like there were other sounds echoing in my head.

It was as if my consciousness had been pulled to another place, a dark place filled with the foul smell of blood, yet somehow it made me feel at ease.

[This is Alice's special report~]

Then, Liang heard the voice of a young girl who seemed somewhat cynical.

[The lucky ones who get to hear Alice's special broadcast either have exceptional mental talents or are about to die in a way that makes their souls almost leave their bodies.]

However, since you can still hear Alice's voice, it means you still have a chance to survive, so please don't give up the struggle!

After all, if humans give up struggling, they become dead humans, and dead people aren't cute anymore. Alice would be sad too, hee hee hee hee~

Wait a minute, didn't you say it could be either someone who's about to die or someone with talent? Why are you making it sound like you're assuming only people who are about to die can hear your voice? That's incredibly unprofessional.

Ryo Yamada, who isn't a tsukkomi (straight man) character, almost changed jobs because of Alice's inexplicable words.

[First and foremost, to all the lucky ones who can hear Alice's voice, your souls and bodies, whether congenital or acquired, are now showing signs of separation to some extent.]

This talent allows you to unleash your senses, extending a part of your soul outside your body, thus achieving multi-faceted perception impossible for normal people. This ability is crucial, given that the entire city is teeming with strange creatures. With this ability, you possess observational skills more than twice as strong as ordinary people, significantly increasing your chances of survival.

[Furthermore, the perspective of the soul is different from the easily deceived perspective of the naked eye, which is merely a function of the brain. As long as your mind is not corrupted, you don't need to worry about being deceived by hallucinations. You could say that with this ability, once you hide in a safe house and close the doors and windows, you really don't need to worry about anything; you just need to wait for rescue. Isn't that amazing? Clap~ clap~ clap~ clap~ clap~ (very enthusiastic applause), congratulations!]

However, nothing in this world is perfect. So, while you possess strong observational abilities, the fact that your souls can leave your bodies to a limited extent means that if you encounter a spirit that can attack your spirit, you'll be in a more dangerous situation than others. After all, for ordinary people, the soul is much more fragile than the body. Whether it's having your soul directly ripped from your body or becoming mentally impaired after being attacked, it's basically not much different from being dead.

So, have you learned this skill after listening to this?

I have indeed learned it.

Within the voice that called itself Alice, something unknown, some information flooded into Ryo's mind, allowing her to naturally understand how to use the ability described by the other party, and how to separate a part of her soul from her body to gain a supernatural perspective.

It's amazing.

No, it can't be explained by the word "miraculous" alone.