Within rule-based Horror Stories, the most important thing, without a doubt, is the "rules" themselves.
The rules of that previous Alice's Grand Adventure Game were obviously filled with malice at a glance, and were extremely riddling in nature; many things could not be carefully analyzed. But this student ranking rule was different. It was extremely detailed and had a very rigorous internal logic—of course, it was also extremely perverse. At least among all the rules Takumi had seen, this thing stood in a league of its own in terms of perversity. If the time and occasion were not inappropriate, he would definitely have cursed out loud.
However, this set of rules was really hidden deeply. And on the player forum, there had previously been no related information whatsoever. Even if this thing was hidden within an Aberration-induced hallucination, it should not have been impossible for any player to obtain relevant clues, right? Or was it that this thing possessed some kind of contaminating nature?
Just like information related to the core Obsession—would simply knowing this set of rules bring danger to the player?
After all, Miko was even somewhat unwilling to speak out the contents of this set of rules. Perhaps after learning these rules, his current condition had already undergone a certain change.
Various thoughts spun rapidly through Takumi's mind.
The first issue lay in what punishment would be received after these rules were violated. The rule sheet had basically made it clear—that would be "one warning penalty". Only the punishment for "Bad Student" was "Those who violate the order will die". And combined with the fact that, up to now, violating the rules had brought no substantive punishment, Takumi had already thought of a rather ominous possibility.
Perhaps the power of these Aberration rules would only truly manifest after a player became a "Bad Student".
Because only at that time would violating the rules result in death, so when the rules were previously violated, players could not detect any abnormality at all and had no way of knowing how many "warnings" they had received. Then, once the number of violations accumulated—once the player had received a sufficient number of warnings—on the next violation of the rules, they would die immediately.
If that is really the case, then this rule is not ordinarily insidious…
"You didn't participate in the morning reading during the second morning reading session, and you didn't greet the teacher. You probably violated about two rules, which means you should currently have two warnings on you. As for me, I already have five warnings. So right now, Yotsuya-san, you should still be an Ordinary Student, while I'm already a Delinquent Student, and I'm only one warning away from becoming a Bad Student."
Takumi looked toward Miko as he spoke, recalling and thinking through the situation while explaining.
"Our clothes all have bloodstains on them. Does that count as a violation?"
After hearing Takumi's explanation, Miko showed a thoughtful expression. Then she looked at the bloodstains on both her own clothes and Takumi's and cautiously asked.
"…Only Outstanding Students, Good Students, and Ordinary Students have requirements regarding their attire. If the blood on the clothes is considered improper dress, then you should already have three warnings as well. Looks like both of us are Delinquent Students now."
Takumi nodded lightly and casually made a joke, although Miko showed absolutely no sign of wanting to laugh.
"Th-then… what should we do?"
Not knowing how to deal with what might happen next, Miko asked nervously again.
"It's simple. We need to find a way to obtain a new identity."
Takumi only thought for a moment before quickly arriving at that conclusion.
Identity.
Players inside an Instance often possess an identity, and this identity plays an extremely important role for them—sometimes it even directly determines whether the player lives or dies.
In the Shirakawa Apartments Instance, all players had the identity of "Second-Floor Resident," and aside from the Rescue Team Badge, there were basically no means of changing one's identity. In the Red Nut Grey Cave, several identities existed and could be continuously switched between. But after arriving at Fujihana Middle School, the players' identity would very likely be fixed as "Student," and they would be bound by the hidden Horror Story rule of the student-ranking system, often walking toward death without even realizing it.
In this Red Moon-level Instance, Campus Uncanny, only the areas of Yoruyama Middle School and Baidōsu Academy had ever had their core Obsession Item taken away. Fujihana Middle School and Hayadate Elementary School, on the other hand, had never been breached by players to locate the core Obsession Item. To a certain extent, this already explained the difference in survival difficulty and investigation difficulty between these areas.
Now that he had been thrown into Fujihana Middle School, a place where even Red Moon-level player teams had been unable to find the core Obsession Item, it could be said that he had started at the most difficult level among already difficult openings. If he wanted to change the current situation, then no matter what, he had to change his identity—at the very least, he had to escape the identity of Delinquent Student.
After all, according to the rules, Bad Students can never leave this school.
"The Teacher identity, or the Outstanding Student identity—those are the two identities we can currently consider. The teachers' heads have all been replaced by some kind of animal. If we can find the corresponding animal headgear, we might be able to turn ourselves into teachers in terms of identity. As for Outstanding Students, they wear a specially made badge. If we can obtain that kind of badge, we might be able to gain the Outstanding Student identity and no longer be subject to rule warnings."
Takumi spoke while analyzing the situation, and Miko, who was sitting on the ground, listened quietly without interrupting his train of thought.
Now the two of them had returned to the fifth floor. As the only floor that currently had a known map, it was obviously best to complete as much exploration as possible on this floor.
There were three teachers' offices, which were the most likely places to obtain the Teacher identity. However, the student-ranking rules did not specify many behavioral requirements for the Teacher identity. If they encountered an Aberration inside the offices, they would probably have to adapt on the spot.
There was also that extremely peculiar location—Class 1 of the second year—isolated at the edge of the entire floor and requiring one to pass through quite a long corridor. That place, which was clearly separated from the other classes at a glance, might contain proof of the Outstanding Student identity. However, the danger there was probably the greatest. After all, both he and Miko were already Delinquent Students in terms of identity. That meant if Outstanding Students existed in Class 1, then in theory those things could issue orders to him and Miko, and they would not be able to disobey.
It was truly quite a troublesome situation, especially since he was already on the verge of becoming a Bad Student. A single careless mistake could lead him straight into a dead end.
This Fujihana Middle School felt as if, from beginning to end, it had never intended to leave the players any path to survival. He truly had no idea how the players who previously entered this area had managed to escape successfully.
"Next, once the lights go out, we'll set off. After confirming our position, we'll go find the nearest teachers' office. If the office route doesn't work, we'll go to Class 1 and see whether we can find anything there."
After some thought, Takumi finalized their next course of action.
"O-Okay."
Miko hurriedly nodded, showing not the slightest doubt about Takumi's plan.
"Then get some good rest. Your sensory ability is extremely strong. If anything unusual happens later, you must tell me immediately."
Takumi gave Miko another serious reminder.
"I understand. I-I'll do my best."
Miko quickly nodded again, her flustered movements resembling a chick pecking at rice, which made her look quite cute—though Takumi currently had absolutely no time to pay attention to something like that.
In fact, even now, the girl was still somewhat dazed, feeling deeply confused and frightened about the situation she had found herself in.
In this place, the only person she could rely on—the only man who could protect her—was right here, right in front of her.
If it hadn't been for Takumi, she probably would already be dead…
Just like her classmate Ogawa Kyoko. Simply because she had fallen to the very back of the group, the killing rule of the human mannequin had been triggered. Without realizing it, her footsteps had been imitated, and she had turned into another human mannequin. In a place this terrifying, a high school girl like her, completely lacking the strength to even truss a chicken, might not even know how she had died.
Thinking about it, Takumi was really amazing. Every time they encountered danger, he was always able to break the situation in time.
And he actually looked quite young—probably only two or three years older than her. Would calling him Takumi-san be a little inappropriate?
Finally having obtained a brief moment of rest, Miko's attention could not help but fall on Takumi, who had been protecting her all along the way.
"Can you hold on?"
At that moment, Takumi suddenly spoke.
"Huh?"
Miko froze for a moment, not understanding what Takumi meant.
"What comes next will be very difficult. To survive in a place like this requires courage and perseverance far beyond the ordinary. If you feel like you can't hold on, you must say so. There's nothing shameful about it. Right now we are companions cooperating with each other. If there's pressure in your heart, just tell me. Although my ability to comfort others might not be very strong."
Takumi's voice carried a trace of teasing, and his expression looked quite relaxed, as if the dangers they had encountered along the way just now were nothing at all.
"Takumi-san, when you face those things, are you never afraid?"
There was still some time before the lights went out. Seeing that there was nothing unusual around them, Miko hesitated for a moment before softly asking Takumi.
"Afraid? Of course I'm afraid. Especially after being scalded with boiling water, squeezed into rock crevices, and tortured in various ways many times. Now whenever I see those things, I feel afraid and completely don't want to come into contact with them again."
Takumi gave a slight shrug and leaned against the wall beside the main door. There was a faint trace of weariness in his voice.
"I see. Then Takumi-san, you've had it pretty hard. And you're really impressive as well. Just the things we've encountered so far already feel extremely terrifying to me. Honestly, it's hard for me to imagine what you must have experienced."
Miko's expression relaxed slightly as she let out a small laugh before speaking to Takumi.
"It's probably better not to know about that kind of thing. Well… although you already more or less know it. I actually think you're quite remarkable. An ordinary high school student from a normal family remaining calm when facing those things—that's not something simple."
Takumi leaned against the wall in a more relaxed posture, occasionally observing the surrounding environment while casually chatting with Miko.
Two strangers who had barely interacted with each other sitting down and chatting in such a place filled with danger—it had to be said that it was somewhat strange. But whether it was Takumi, who had been exerting both mind and body along the way, or Miko, who had suffered quite a heavy mental shock, both of them now needed a moment like this to relax a little.
Under the white lights, the school looked completely different from the dilapidated ruins it appeared to be in the darkness. It seemed very clean and orderly.
Those classrooms still faintly echoed with the sound of reading, while the two people sitting beside the restroom door casually chatted, sharing their thoughts and experiences with each other.
"So that means you're an only child in your family."
Takumi spoke with some curiosity.
"Mom originally wanted to give me a little brother or sister, but Dad passed away early, so now it's just Mom and me living together."
Miko nodded as she answered.
Just like how the president's family did not exist in this world, as a variant individual from another world, did this world's Miko not have a younger brother either?
Finding it rather interesting, Takumi could not help but smile.
"Um, Takumi-san… do you really have two girlfriends?"
Unable to believe Takumi's romantic history, Miko hesitated before asking.
"That's right. For players, living like ordinary people in a monogamous marriage is probably very difficult. After all, we can only huddle together for warmth while constantly guarding against all kinds of dangers. Under those circumstances, players either become completely abstinent, or very indulgent. Honestly speaking, I'm not a good example in this regard, but I really need Maki and Chika, and they need me too, so this is how things turned out. You look like a good kid, so don't learn from someone like me."
Takumi was very frank about having two girlfriends. He had absolutely no intention of hiding it, and even used himself as an example to admonish Miko.
"I-I would never do something like that… ugh, I actually met a man with a harem in real life…"
Miko looked at Takumi with a shocked expression. The good impression she had initially formed of this man seemed to shatter a little, yet at the same time it somehow became more complete, giving her a strange feeling that she could not quite describe.
Dating more than one girl… no, listening to what Takumi-san said, the relationship he had with those girls was clearly a complete one, from spirit to body. Ugh, it somehow reminds me of the things in those indecent magazines boys read. N-no-no, why am I recalling something like that? Forget it, forget it!
Blushing unconsciously, Miko lowered her head and, quite troubled, raised her hand and slapped her own head several times.
Takumi, however, did not notice Miko's small movements. He simply frowned and looked toward the white ceiling lamp above the restroom.
"It's about time."
Takumi spoke in a low voice.
He had been silently keeping track of the time in his mind, knowing that it would not be long before "Nightfall".
Miko hurriedly cast aside her distracting thoughts and, somewhat nervously, straightened up and moved closer to Takumi.
And just as she made that movement, a pleasant ringing sound echoed from the corridor. At that moment, all the lights instantly went out, and the entire teaching building fell back into darkness. Only the faint glow of two candle flames remained, illuminating the restroom where Takumi and Miko were.
As well as the figures standing all around them—
One after another, students who had lost their heads, with a flower inserted into the severed stump of their necks.
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