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

At the same time, Ryo was also able to confirm that it was not Shizuko Ogiyama, but something had changed according to her own memories, causing her to mistake something else for Shizuko Ogiyama. This change was difficult to discern at first glance, and Ryo was able to discover it because her spiritual perspective allowed her to exert a higher level of spiritual vision than ordinary people, thus allowing her to detect flaws and find out the other party's true appearance through prolonged observation.

If I were to fall into suspicion immediately upon seeing that head and attempt to take hostile action against Shizuko Ogiyama, it might actually lead to worse consequences. Aside from what might happen if we argued, the commotion I made might attract the attention of whatever was originally moving around in the hall.

It's hard to describe. They were so terrified that they didn't move and couldn't take action in time, but they ended up accidentally walking onto the right path.

"Liang, are you okay?"

Hongxia, who was the first to notice that Liang was not in a good state, walked over from the side and asked with some concern.

"Your expression changed drastically just now. Was there something inside the door?"

On the other side, Shizuko Ogiyama also came up and asked curiously, seemingly having been observing Ryou's expression.

"...I'm not sure. Something might have been here, but it's gone now."

After thinking for a moment, Liang didn't directly describe what she saw, but instead expressed it in a relatively subtle way.

Of course, even this expression caused a change in Hongxia's expression, and she subconsciously became afraid. Xingge behind her also paled slightly, but compared to her more timid sister, Xingge still possessed some adult backbone, so she managed to maintain a composed expression. However, Torio Mami looked like she was about to die of fright. Liang was genuinely worried that if something came out, this lady might just roll her eyes and faint.

"Was what you just saw the same as what you saw at the entrance of 109?"

After hearing Ryo's answer, Shizuko Ogiyama showed no expression on her face, and then asked another question.

"...not quite the same."

This time, Liang's answer seemed more hesitant.

"I'm not sure, that one at the entrance of 109... disappeared too quickly, I don't know what it was."

Seeing that the doubt in Shizuko Ogiyama's eyes hadn't disappeared, Ryo thought for a moment and added some more details. Although it was still somewhat like a riddle, Ryo himself genuinely didn't know how to answer, so he could only use this vague explanation.

"One? So you're saying you're seeing a definite 'individual,' right?"

However, even this vague answer was enough for Shizuko Ogiyama to glean useful information. This time, a hint of surprise and contemplation appeared on her face, and her gaze towards Ryo deepened.

As for Yamada Ryo herself, her attention has now turned to the closed duty room and the registration book placed on the counter on one side of the duty room.

Opening the register, the written records were no different from before; it was still a bunch of illegible, blurry marks, and the last four signatures that could be identified.

The pen, like the one I'd seen before, still had its nib removed and was unable to write.

Incidentally, Ryo initially considered taking the pen or the register, as they were quite unusual-looking items. However, both the register and the pen had a thin thread running through them, securing them to the counter. This thread, which appeared to be made of some kind of plastic, was completely untamperable according to Ryo's tests; even biting it with her teeth wouldn't leave a mark. Furthermore, Ryo didn't want to damage the register and the pen, so she ultimately left them in the lobby.

"The pen nib really was taken. Let's look for it here together. Although I'm not entirely sure if we'll be in danger without registering our names, since it's placed at the apartment entrance, I think we should try to fill it out. Oh, right, here's the pen I have with me. You can try writing in the register again. I tried before and failed, but maybe it will work for you."

As she spoke, Shizuko Ogiyama took a black ballpoint pen from her pocket and handed it to Ryo. Then she gestured for Mami Torio to join her in searching for the pen nib, which might have fallen somewhere in the hall. As for Haruka Hondo, who had been silently following the group, she stood there with a dark expression, seemingly unwilling to participate, but she showed no intention of leaving. She simply stood on one side of the hall, coldly observing the actions of the group.

"Let me help look for it too. Liang, are you planning to test something? Be careful, this place feels a bit eerie, it gives me a bad feeling."

Seeing that Shizuko Ogiyama had started to take action, Nijika signaled to Hoshika to help Ryo find the pen tip as well. However, before they began, Nijika, who had a vague feeling, went to Ryo and whispered in her ear, her voice full of worry.

"I know, don't worry, we should be safe now. The curfew hasn't started yet, so there shouldn't be any real danger for the time being."

Liang replied calmly, as if the two were still under the stars, discussing music with composure.

Her calm demeanor gave Hongxia a bit of confidence, so the blonde girl patted Liang on the shoulder again before turning around and joining the search team.

With no one around to disturb her, Liang's gaze returned to the counter. This time, she focused her eyes on the glass window of the counter, which was completely dark, as if obscured by something, making it impossible to see what lay inside.

Peering through the small windows on the counter, nothing could be seen. The eerie darkness seemed to materialize, completely blocking all views from the lobby and adding to the mystery of the room.

Last time, Shizuko Ogiyama and others interrupted her actions, so this time, Ryo felt that no one would interrupt her again.

"call……"

Take a deep breath, followed by a sense of disorientation, as if your soul is leaving your body and moving closer to the dark glass in front of you.

This was the third time Ryo had used the Soul Perspective ability in a short period of time. Compared to the previous two times, Ryo vaguely felt that the speed at which his soul left his body seemed to have increased this time, as if his proficiency had improved with the number of times he used it.

I wonder what this ability will become in the future. Also, according to Mr. Gao Hai and Alice, my ability to separate my soul from my body was actually acquired spontaneously during my contact with those monsters. In addition to that, I should also have the ability to disguise my existence and reduce my presence in front of strange creatures. I just don't know how to trigger that ability.

While I was thinking, my vision had merged with the glass, and all I could see was darkness.

As they ventured deeper, the darkness gradually faded, and little by little, things began to appear in Liang's field of vision.

Ah, I can see it now.

After passing through that layer of darkness, what came into Liang's view was a very simple small room with only two tables and a chair.

The room was littered with snack bags and trash bags, looking very dirty and messy, clearly indicating that it hadn't been cleaned for a long time. The walls were covered in various graffiti, obviously children's drawings, but Liang immediately noticed that the tallest of these drawings was almost at ceiling height, about 2.2 or 2.3 meters. This was definitely not a height a child could reach, even with a stool.

In addition, near the counter, Liang also found a note with a few words written on it.

【To Funada Taro:】

I left the spare key for unit 201 in the laundry room next door, inside the detergent dispenser cap of the blue washing machine that had a malfunction sticker on it.

Please double-check your belongings next time you go out, and don't forget your keys again.

[P.S.: After seeing this note, remember to go to the plaza on the first floor and dig up some soil. The cat knocked over the flowerpots at home, so I need to add some soil.]

[PS2: If our son comes home late from school again today, don't cover for him anymore. With the martial law so strict lately, this isn't the time to let him run wild. What if he gets caught by the patrols? If he misbehaves again, give him a good beating. You need to show some manly spirit; don't always think that a little persuasion will suffice.]

[—Hiromi Ichise]

The note itself didn't contain much information, but the details in it piqued Liang's interest.

Is there a spare key in the laundry room next to room 201? If that's not possible, it might be a backup plan. However, being on the second floor means limiting the number of times you go up and down the stairs to no more than twice a day. If you exceed that limit and have to use the stairs you've already used, there's a risk of something dangerous happening.

While pondering, Ryo shifted her gaze back, looking through the glass at the group searching for pen nibs in the lobby. Confirming they hadn't found anything yet, but hadn't encountered anything unusual either, Ryo turned her attention back to the duty room behind the counter. This time, she noticed a fountain pen, seemingly a spare, located inside the counter window.

This distance... if you put your hand through the counter window, you might be able to reach it?

Ryo hesitated for a moment, then looked away after confirming there were no other clues. She first opened the register, took out the ballpoint pen provided by Shizuko Ogiyama, and tried to write something. Unsurprisingly, she found that the pen couldn't leave a mark on the paper at all. On the contrary, it could leave blurry marks when used to scratch the counter or the wall, which was enough to prove that there was nothing wrong with the pen itself, but that there was some kind of rule restriction in the register itself.

Is that really the case?

It seems that this is the only way to move forward with the registry.

"Everyone, please be careful. I saw a pen inside the counter and I'm going to try to reach for it. I'm not sure if this action will cause any chain reaction."

Liang turned to look at the people inside the room and earnestly warned them. Then he took a step forward and reached his hand towards the dark window.

Chapter Nine: The Unknown in the Darkness and the Moment Danger Approaches

To be honest, Liang felt that he was really crazy to do such a thing.

But then again, whether it was being attacked by the dismembered female ghost in the torrential rain tonight, or accidentally wandering into a city street full of eerie creatures and having no choice but to flee here for survival, after experiencing so much and having a deep understanding of what this ghostly place is all about, Ryo has come to realize that in order to survive here, she must break her previous principle of "never doing anything that might bring danger" and actively participate in dangerous situations.

Just like that pen behind the dark counter, which only she can see right now.

"call……"

Take a deep breath.

Try hard to control the trembling of your fingers.

Liang stepped forward and slowly reached out his hand towards the dark window.

"I'll do it. It's better for adults to do these things."

Suddenly, another hand reached out from beside him, interrupting the courage that Liang had finally mustered.

Turning around, she saw Xingge standing calmly beside her, speaking directly in an uncompromising tone. Clearly, this 29-year-old woman knew her younger sister's friend's personality well, so even though Liang insisted on taking matters into her own hands, she didn't hesitate to stop her.

However, if we're just talking about courage, Liang is certain that Xingge isn't much better than her.

"I can see what's inside, and I can pinpoint the approximate location of the target. You can't do that, store manager, can you? Even setting aside whether we can find the target quickly, what if we touch something strange?"

Thinking this, Liang shook her head slightly, coldly denying Xingge's idea, and intended to pull her hand back from where it was being held. However, there is a truth in this world: the development of events is not determined by mere words; the actual balance of power often plays a crucial role.

Obviously, a girl like Yamada Ryo, who can spend a whole month's allowance on a whim and then eat grass, has no chance against Hoshika in terms of strength.

“I can’t see it, but if you can, just tell me where it is. I’m not stupid. If I touch something I shouldn’t, I’ll just pull my hand back, right? Don’t pretend to be tough in front of me. Besides, I have to do something to make up for my stupid mistake. Okay, now tell me, which way should I look for that pen?”

Xingge stepped forward and pushed Liang aside from the window. After glancing at the pitch-black window in front of her, she took a deep breath and then, without the slightest hesitation, reached her hand inside.

Xingge had wondered if she would experience anything strange, like in some horror stories where she reached in and touched something sticky, only to pull it out and find it was human flesh and blood, or something more grotesque like touching rotten things, maggots, or cockroaches. But when she actually put her hand through the small window, Xingge only felt a faint chill from the tiles on the counter, and nothing else.

"is that OK?"

Hongxia, who had originally wanted to squeeze in but was too small to get past Xingge, finally emerged from beside Liang and looked at her older sister with great concern.

"I'm fine. Where's the pen?"

Xingge was actually quite scared inside, but she tried her best to put on an indifferent expression in front of her younger sister, though her voice still trembled slightly.

"Move to the left, and extend it a little further forward. That pen is against the glass; it's easy to bump into it."

Liang wasted no time and immediately began to instruct. Xingge also quickly moved her arm, trying hard to find the pen Liang had mentioned.

rustling—rustling—

The chill emanating from my arm seemed to be intensifying.

Xingge could feel her heart pounding harder and harder, and cold sweat was gradually becoming more and more profuse. She swallowed hard, trying to control her breathing, and slowly groped forward with her fingers along the glass until, at a certain moment, she realized that her fingers had touched a slender object.

Is this it?

As Xingge grew increasingly nervous, she tried to pull her hand back, but Liang suddenly grabbed her arm.

"You took the wrong one, that's not it."

Liang kept her head down to make sure no one could see the expression on her face, but her voice remained steady.

"no?"

Xingge was stunned when she heard this.

"Next to you, or even a little closer. You're holding a chopstick."

Liang nodded slightly, but kept her head down and didn't make eye contact with Xingge.

"Oh well."

Without much thought, Xingge released the object and continued groping forward. After a few seconds, she found another long, thin object. This time, she used her finger to confirm its shape and was certain it was a pen.

"This time it's the right thing to do, take it out."

Liang also spoke up, his tone not changing much.

Shizuko Ogiyama stood a little further away, near the south gate, watching the three people. She had no intention of helping these three strangers she had only known for less than ten minutes. On the contrary, some of their actions made her uneasy, and she worried that they might unintentionally trigger some danger. Therefore, she deliberately chose a convenient spot to escape.

As for Hondou Haruka, he completely ignored the situation and just stood by the wall with a disgruntled expression. He had nothing more to say to his roommate, Ogiyama Shizuko. In fact, if Ogiyama Shizuko hadn't come from modern society and had some mental constraints, she might have already started thinking about killing her roommate.

Torio Mami and Nijika stood behind Ryo and Hoshika, both with worried expressions. However, Torio Mami herself knew nothing and was simply worried that Hoshika might take something terrible out of the window, while Nijika realized from Ryo's reaction that the situation was probably not simple.