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

"Let me do it."

At this moment, it seemed that the situation had finally been clarified. Fujiwara Maho, the only one of the three women in the Fujiwara family without the frontal armor, rushed forward, followed by Toyomi, who could only frantically support her unconscious father, Fujiwara Daichi. Without hesitation, Fujiwara's mother snatched the pen from Moeha's hand and quickly wrote down the names of all four of them, even adding Chika's name after a brief hesitation. As for Toyomi, it was clearly too difficult for a single woman to support the weight of an unconscious adult male. Although Toyomi eventually managed to steady her father, Fujiwara Daichi's head hit the wall of the hall, leaving a bruise on his head, and his somewhat conscious mind returned to chaos.

"Oh, Mom, what is this...?"

Mengye was still somewhat confused about why her mother was suddenly being so cooperative with this strange, unfamiliar girl.

"What do we do next?"

The mother immediately turned her head to look at Gao Hai, who was now appearing in the room as a phantom.

I've remembered it.

Fujiwara Manho stared intently at Takami's slightly blurry, expressionless face.

Two months ago, she had already investigated the boy. She had been trying to figure out what kind of person he was, why he could develop intimate relationships with the daughters of the Shinomiya, Shijo, and Fujiwara families, and why several wealthy young ladies would willingly serve him at the same time. She could still recall her wariness of Takahiro at the time; after all, for a diplomat, Takahiro's actions were simply too bizarre, too illogical, and defied common sense. For the sake of her daughter Chika's happiness and safety, her decision to restrain herself from confronting her directly and instead conduct a secret investigation was already a result of careful consideration.

Then, she couldn't remember what she had investigated, and forgot all the information about it. She even lost the ability to pay attention to Chika's love life, so much so that when Fujiwara Daichi became suspicious and wanted to investigate, she instinctively downplayed the matter and dissuaded her husband, without considering whether there might be any problems involved.

But now she remembers.

Having received the blessing of the Blood Flower and no longer being affected by the information obscuration, and after seeing the image that Takahashi had conjured up, Fujiwara Manho's memories were pieced back together. She realized that her daughter was probably not submitting to a man who had used despicable means, but rather had likely climbed the social ladder to some unimaginable being, benefiting the Fujiwara family as well. This explained how they had been able to safely reach this apartment amidst the abnormal changes and extreme dangers of the world, seemingly protected by divine intervention as they overcame various difficulties.

Then there's nothing more to say.

Regardless of what this young man is saying, just listen to him. Whatever instructions or ideas he has, just follow them and you won't go wrong. Think about other things later when you're really safe. Right now, you're trying to survive, so why bother with anything else?

Once the decision was made, Fujiwara no Manho acted decisively. Or rather, that's just how the Fujiwara family is; you might not see anything unusual normally, but when it comes to crucial moments, once they've made a decision in their hearts, they'll carry it out without hesitation.

Yes, Gao Hai understood this all too well. After all, without Qianhua's decisiveness, building the large family he had now would have been much more difficult. No, now wasn't the time to think about that. He should focus on saving these people's lives first.

"Got the key, it's 302!"

Having already grown in experience, Hongxia didn't need Gao Hai's reminder this time. She took the room key that appeared after registering her name and immediately spoke.

Take the shortest stairs from the north gate; something will catch up to you in no more than 15 seconds. You don't have much time!

Gao Hai's figure disappeared as his voice rang out. Unbeknownst to her, the doll returned to Hong Xia's waist, and she had already pushed open the north door on one side of the hall, signaling the people behind her to hurry up and follow her.

Meanwhile, behind another door opposite the hall, faint footsteps could be heard in the darkness, indicating that something was approaching.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Information and Speculations about Dansu Company and Room Selection

crunch--

The old door hinges made a piercing noise as the door was opened.

"Hurry, hurry, catch up!"

Hongxia entered the corridor first, and after carefully observing the stairwell, she quickly spoke to the people behind her.

Fujiwara Maho and Fujiwara Toyomi, mother and daughter, helped Fujiwara Daichi, who was even more dizzy from hitting his head, to come forward. Then Fujiwara Moeha followed in. Nijika, who was at the back, closed the door and led the group up the stairs.

This time, the staircase wasn't blocked like before, but the chilling aura coming from behind made Hongxia feel increasingly uneasy.

Those things are getting closer and closer.

While the surveillance cameras in the lobby hindered the movements of some of the strange creatures, they also allowed others to pinpoint the group's location. However, Gao Hai's observation suggested that their delay in catching up with Hongxia's group was related to room 112. A strange creature, seemingly from a Chinese region instance, which emerged from that room and was wandering the corridor, clashed violently with the creatures tracking Hongxia and her companions, thus temporarily halting their progress.

This was good news for Hongxia and the others in the group, who had some wounded members who needed assistance. However, before she could rejoice for long, Gao Hai told Hongxia very seriously that such a fierce conflict meant that the monsters that were tracking them were likely very aggressive. Once they successfully broke through the barrier, they would probably catch up at an extremely fast speed. The girl was frightened and quickly urged the Fujiwara family members to hurry up and climb the stairs.

From the first floor to the second floor, and then to the top floor, the third floor.

Hongxia was thankful that the building wasn't very tall, and the climb up wasn't too difficult. But just as she was about to step out of the stairwell, she noticed something amiss. Looking up, she saw room 301 right in front of her, then turning to her left, she saw a dark red liquid with a pungent odor spreading down the corridor.

It came from room 302.

No, that's not right.

By the light of her flashlight, Hongxia clearly saw a large hole in the wall next to the main entrance of room 302, directly opposite the corridor where she was now. Looking through this broken wall, Hongxia saw an empty space, with foul blood constantly dripping from the ceiling, turning the entire room into a distorted, blood-red area. Behind this room, Hongxia clearly saw a corridor, a corridor leading to an unknown destination, disappearing into the shadows—a corridor that, based on architectural principles, could not theoretically exist in the real world.

Is this also a manifestation of spatial anomalies?

The girl could vaguely sense that the distortion here was probably not limited to this one. So she turned her head to look at the other side of the corridor. She saw room 312 at the end of the corridor, and room 311, whose door frame was vaguely visible around the corner. At the same time, she could also see that the area between rooms 301 and 312, which should have been empty on the first-floor map, now had an extra room. The nameplate on this room did not read a room number, but rather the words "Boss's Office".

There were also several lines of large characters painted on the wall that read:

Work for Dansu Company, work for your future.

Everything you have is everything to Dansu Company. Love the company as you love your home.

Give everything you have to Dansu Company, and Dansu Company will give back everything to you; this is your second home.

I have a feeling that this is some kind of unscrupulous company brainwashing its employees.

Hongxia had to admit that these few lines of advertising slogans made her feel very uncomfortable. However, upon closer inspection, she noticed that there were actually a few lines of painted characters below these slogans. However, these characters were smaller and blurrier, and because of the dim lighting with only a flashlight, Hongxia was unable to see them clearly at first glance.

[Give everything you have, and then be abandoned by Dansu Company]

He worked for Dansu Company until his death, and was then carelessly buried like a stray dog.

It's okay not to work for this company; as long as you stay in this city, you're going to die sooner or later anyway. As long as you're here, there's no way you can escape.

Like the previous promotional text, it consists of three lines of text, but the information it conveys is worlds apart.

What exactly is going on?

Hongxia blinked, only to see the last three lines of text suddenly disappear, replaced by paint of another color that had been smeared and destroyed. And somehow, a new notice had appeared on the wall in front of her.

[Temporary Notice from Zhenyang Apartment]

It is extremely impolite to vandalize the walls of an apartment. Regardless of who did it, please do not attempt to do so again and avoid causing trouble for others.

[Without a doubt, insulting and attacking Dansu Company, which underpins this city, is a crime that no one can commit. It is their existence that gives us the opportunity to enjoy our current happy lives; it can be said that without Dansu Company, we have everything. Defamation and slander against this company are absolutely unacceptable acts of evil. We will establish a comprehensive monitoring system to prevent similar incidents from occurring, and we also hope that all residents will actively report such acts to find the perpetrators as soon as possible and bring them to justice.]

[Furthermore, to strengthen management, this apartment building has granted Dansu Company's security personnel 24-hour access. Company personnel can legally enter any resident's home at any time to conduct searches to ensure the company's reputation. Residents must cooperate with company personnel at all times and must not resist or refuse their inspections; otherwise, they will be deemed to be violating regulations and will be severely punished by law.]

Please don't forget that it is because of the company's existence that we are where we are today. It is Dansu Company that has created our happy lives, and we should dedicate everything we have to Dansu Company, just as Dansu Company has given us everything.

The announcement wasn't very long, and before the Fujiwara family went upstairs, Nijika had already read it and her expression became even more displeased.

A company can send its employees into any apartment resident's home anytime, 24 hours a day. The resident not only can't stop them, but must unconditionally cooperate. What kind of nonsense is this? How can such a bizarre company exist? Is it some kind of feudal tyrant? This is just too outrageous!

Furthermore, considering the information that the water is toxic, and the information about Minamata disease seen in the underground exhibition hall, could it be that this Danso Company is a company similar to a nitrogen fertilizer company, and has also carried out operations such as directly discharging untreated sewage into the local area?

"Huff...huff...I've never been this tired before. Helping someone climb the stairs and climbing them on my own...it's a completely different experience. Ugh, are we safe now?"

While Nijika was still contemplating the possible scenarios, the Fujiwara family finally caught up. Fujiwara Toyomi, supporting her father, had beads of sweat on her forehead. The eldest of the three Fujiwara sisters had a hairstyle similar to Chika's, but shorter, without a bow, and with a longer section of hair on the left side styled to hang down in front. Incidentally, among the three sisters, her frontal armor was the largest; even with just a glance, Nijika sensed that its strength was likely even more exaggerated than Ichiri's.

"Hurry up, let's get to the room first. If we stay in the hallway, they might catch up with us at any time."

Hongxia, who had not yet sensed the presence of those strange creatures, spoke to the group. Meanwhile, the Fujiwara family, with the mother and eldest sister supporting their father from both sides and the third sister pushing from behind, formed a human tank and charged forward, following Hongxia toward the direction of 302 and the blood-red room behind the collapsed wall.

"This room..."

"Don't worry about it, don't go too close to that room, don't go in."

Fujiwara Manho noticed the blood-soaked room and was somewhat worried, but then Nijika spoke up, and she looked away, turning her attention to the door of the adjacent room 302.

If I use the key to room 302 obtained after registering my identity to open this door and enter, will the monster chasing me stop and not enter the room?

As she approached the door, Fujiwara Manho pondered Nijika's words, feeling somewhat uneasy. However, given the critical situation and the lack of a better solution, she could only obediently follow behind.

"No, don't go through that door!"

But at that moment, another voice interrupted their actions.

"elder sister?"

Hongxia turned her head in surprise and found that not far from room 302, Ijichi Hoshika was standing at the door of room 303, holding a few thin wires in her hand. It seemed that she had been standing there for a while, as if she was trying to unlock the door.

When did my sister learn lock-picking skills? Oh wait, she couldn't seem to open room 303? No, no, that's not the problem. It's curfew now, and there are creepy things everywhere. What's she doing in the hallway? And where's Liang? Where's Liang who took my sister to 304? Why isn't she here?

What Hongxia didn't know was that Yamada Ryo, who was temporarily stored in the temporary mental space that Gao Hai had created and was observing from the perspective of the squirrel doll, was theoretically right next to her at this moment. It was just that Gao Hai hadn't found a good opportunity to create a physical body for her, so she was temporarily remaining in a soul state.

"Don't go into 302. Room 302 is very dangerous. I saw information about the survivors. Rooms 302 and 308 on the third floor, 206, 211 and 212 on the second floor, and 109 on the first floor are all very dangerous and should not be entered. Rooms 303, 207 and 112 are the safest. Only by entering these rooms can you ensure your safety."

Xingge, who had only slipped out of 304 a short while ago and nervously tried to unlock 303, immediately relaxed upon seeing Hongxia. Although she was still reciting information, she was much more at ease and began to feel happy for her sister's safe return. Of course, she also immediately noticed the group following Hongxia and realized from Hongxia's actions that they might have obtained the key to 302, so she quickly reminded them.

However, Hongxia did not immediately communicate with Xingge. Instead, after signaling to the people behind her not to come over, she used her body to block the Fujiwara family while looking down at the doll hanging on her body.

[It's actually Miss Xingge herself! She actually came out to pick the lock and open the door at a time like this; she's really got some nerve. Let's listen to her. Room 302 just so happens to have such a strange room and passageway, and considering what happened to 109 before, we really should be more cautious.]

Gao Hai's voice quickly echoed in the minds of everyone present. Regardless of how the Fujiwara family adapted to this telepathic communication, Hongxia breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that the other person was indeed her sister, and immediately adapted to the fact that the people behind her were following her forward.

Mr. Gao Hai, can you unlock this door?

As she ran, the girl asked Gao Hai through the mental link, and noticed that in the middle of the wall directly opposite rooms 302 and 303, there was a strange-looking door on the wall that should have been empty. She didn't know why there would be a door in such a place.

No, now is not the time to concern ourselves with such matters.

Click——

[It's already opened, hurry, they're coming!]

Gao Hai's voice and the sound of the door lock clicking were almost indistinguishable.

The chilling aura became clearer, and in an instant, Hongxia felt as if the stairwell had turned into an ice cave.

They arrived, and after breaking through the strange obstacles in room 112, those things moved at an unbelievable speed, as if they had flown all the way up.

"Woo..."

At this moment, Fujiwara Moeha, who was walking at the back, began to tremble all over. As an ordinary person, she felt weak all over and felt like she couldn't muster any strength as she walked.

Hongxia rushed over and pulled the girl, who was shorter than her but had a much larger build, into room 303. Xingge helped Fujiwara Manho and Fujiwara Toyomi drag the unconscious Fujiwara Daichi into the room, then closed and locked the door.

However, this does not mean that safety has arrived.

Both Hongxia and Xingge could sense that the pursuing creatures showed no intention of stopping. They would likely rush into the room, as the apartment building's rules seemed unable to restrain these monsters.

So, is 303 really a safe house? Where exactly is it safe?!

Feeling her heart racing, the girl quickly looked around, searching for anything unusual about the room.

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Cursed Power Targeting Gao Hai and the Conversation in the Gap

At first glance, the layout of room 303 is not much different from the room I entered when I was invited by Shizuko Ogiyama and others to room 109. The structure is almost identical.

The foyer, living room, kitchen, dining room, two bedrooms, and toilet all looked pretty much the same. Of course, Hongxia hadn't actually gone into the toilet; she only had a guess in her mind. The reason she hadn't investigated was mainly because she already knew there was a problem with the water in this instance. Also, after meeting up with Xingge, Xingge mentioned that the toilet in room 304 was sealed off, which made Hongxia wary. So, from the beginning, she had no intention of opening the toilet door in room 303.

However, the focus of the problem right now is not on that. The real key issue is how to find that so-called "safe house".

You should be able to find it, right?