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"I'll go first."
Ms. Tanaka, who was trapped in the hotel with Kaguya and Marin, stepped forward. This obsessed player didn't hesitate and said directly:
"I choose the companionship service."
There are two tiers for the 'Player Power Leveling' service.
One type is to enter the adventure alone, with Komi providing a notebook. This option is cheap and affordable.
The downside is that it's a single-line communication; in an emergency, you can only handle it yourself, with no one to help.
The second type is the companionship service.
Amamiya Natsuki enters the alternate dimension first and provides full companionship throughout, ensuring safety. The service fee is naturally higher.
"I guarantee your satisfaction."
Amamiya Natsuki nodded and looked at Ghost Story Hanako: "Where are the stairs?"
"The staircase on the east side of the fourth floor."
Vengeful Spirit Loli looked up, grinding her shark-like teeth, and reluctantly gave the location.
Damn humans!
If it weren't for threatening my mother, I wouldn't cooperate with you!
"Hanako-chan, open your mouth."
Fujiwara Chika held Dark Cuisine and occasionally fed her.
"Ah..."
Vengeful Spirit Loli subconsciously opened her mouth. Unbeknownst to her, she had already been conditioned into a habit.
The group headed straight for the fourth floor and quickly found the location of the thirteenth step.
"I'm going in first."
Amamiya Natsuki greeted them, stepped onto the stairs, and his figure instantly disappeared.
The next second.
As the darkness before his eyes receded, the familiar scene reappeared before Amamiya Natsuki.
A dim corridor.
A desolate campus.
Time was still frozen at dusk.
"I'm in."
Amamiya Natsuki took out his notebook and contacted the outside world.
The delicate handwriting of a young girl quickly appeared on the notebook.
"Hanako said the new location is on the west side of the second floor."
"Received."
…
Amamiya Natsuki walked to the second floor and soon arrived at the location of the thirteenth step. He picked up the notebook and sent a message to the outside world.
"You can come in now."
A few seconds later.
A figure appeared out of thin air, it was Ms. Tanaka, the obsessed player saved earlier.
"Eh, is this the alternate dimension?"
Ms. Tanaka quickly scurried downstairs, came to Amamiya Natsuki's side, and looked around curiously.
"I've already told you the situation," Amamiya Natsuki said, "To complete the shoot, you need to interact with a kaidan at least. Just going in and coming out immediately won't work."
"Currently, only two curses from the vengeful spirits have been identified: one is the elementary school student wiping the table, and the other is the vengeful spirit in the restroom. Of course, you can also choose to tackle new vengeful spirits; your score should be higher."
Last night, when he and Marin were verifying their hypothesis, the cover of the videotape that appeared showed Kitagawa Marin hugging Vengeful Spirit Loli.
Presumably, the scores would definitely differ.
Amamiya Natsuki wasn't sure how many vengeful spirits were in the alternate dimension, and Hayasaka Ai, who had stayed for several hours, wasn't sure either. There was still a lot to explore.
"No, absolutely not needed." Ms. Tanaka shook her head decisively, "As long as I can clear it safely and steadily, that's enough."
"Right now, I just want to get back to my apartment quickly and completely lie down. I don't care about the clearance score at all; I've never been an achievement hunter." Ms. Tanaka bowed and said, "I'll leave it to Natsuki-kun now."
Amamiya Natsuki smiled and said:
"Leave it to me."
Everyone likes a customer like this who has no extra demands and can be satisfied with the minimum service.
While this Ms. Tanaka had unleashed her true nature in the dream, wanting Amamiya Natsuki to help clear her drain, in reality, she was well-behaved, following closely behind Amamiya Natsuki. They soon arrived outside the first-floor restroom.
"Sobs..."
A mournful, plaintive cry intermittently came from the restroom. Coupled with the dim twilight and the eerie campus, it was quite chilling.
"We're here."
Amamiya Natsuki stopped a step ahead, looking at the restroom not far away.
Miyuki-chan, I've brought more business for you.
The elementary school student wiping the table was actually closer, but Ms. Tanaka was afraid of pain. After hearing it would be very painful, she decisively chose the weeping vengeful spirit in the toilet.
"I'll wait for you outside," Amamiya Natsuki said, "I've told you everything, go in yourself."
Ms. Tanaka said nervously:
"There really won't be any danger, right?"
"Please rest assured, Miyuki-chan is guaranteed to be harmless." Amamiya Natsuki gave a thumbs up, "We are a golden signboard."
…
Ms. Tanaka's lips twitched speechlessly, but she quickly mustered her courage and walked towards the restroom.
Players are not ordinary people; having seen so many strange evil spirits in reality, they already have a certain immunity. It's just that they usually passively endure it. Now, actively seeking out vengeful spirits, it's inevitable to feel a bit nervous.
Amamiya Natsuki stood in the hallway, quietly waiting.
There's no need to worry about the Vengeful Spirit Loli who just cries and cries.
A moment later.
Ms. Tanaka ran out of the toilet, panting slightly, her face pale, and came before Amamiya Natsuki: "I, I saw Miyuki-chan, her eyes were so scary... and it was really cold."
"Let's go, to the third floor." Amamiya Natsuki raised the notebook in his hand; the new location had already appeared on the notebook, "As long as you leave the alternate dimension, the curse will naturally disappear."
…
The two didn't stop and went directly to the third floor, quickly finding the thirteenth step.
"Natsuki-kun, I'm going out first."
Ms. Tanaka shivered while happily waving goodbye, stepped onto the stairs, and instantly disappeared.
Amamiya Natsuki didn't leave, but held the notebook to check messages, heading to the next location where the stairs appeared.
A moment later.
Another passerby player entered the alternate dimension.
"Natsuki-senpai, I'm counting on you."
"Mm."
…
Like Ms. Tanaka, other passerby players also chose the companionship service, as safety comes first. If they were confident in themselves, they wouldn't have purchased the power-leveling service.
The business was proceeding smoothly.
The only trouble was perhaps having to consume a Komi every once in a while—the copied skill was only temporary; once the skill was used up, communication with the outside world would be impossible.
So, it was necessary to copy skills from Komi from time to time.
Like now.
Amamiya Natsuki stepped onto the thirteenth step, returned to the real world, and looked at the long-haired girl: "Komi, I'll have to trouble you again."
…
Komi's pretty face quickly flushed red. She placed her hands on her abdomen, looked down at her toes, and hurried towards the classroom.
There were many people in the hallway; holding hands with a boy in front of so many people was impossible, completely impossible!
Amamiya Natsuki followed her.
"Don't bully Komi."
Juju called out softly from behind.
"Don't worry." Amamiya Natsuki waved, "I'll definitely keep my promise."
"Eh?" Kitagawa Marin was startled and asked curiously, "Did Natsuki and Juju make a promise?"
Juju's small face quickly flushed red, and she nervously turned her head away.
Deciding to sacrifice herself, saying something like, 'You bully me, don't bully Komi,' was impossible to say!
The two entered the classroom.
Amamiya Natsuki and Komi sat opposite each other, and he instructed:
"Hold out your hand."
…
Komi reluctantly raised her right hand.
Clap.
Amamiya Natsuki gripped it.
If you slowly raise it, people will fall asleep!
Komi's body stiffened slightly, and she nervously turned her pretty face away, looking at the gloomy sky outside the window. Her fair, jade-like face was tinged with crimson, even the tips of her ears turning red.
Then... there were five minutes of silence.
No matter what Amamiya Natsuki said, Komi only nodded or shook her head, or shivered. In short, she didn't say a single word, truly valuing words like gold.
The emotionless girl said more than you!
Five minutes passed in a flash, the skill was successfully copied, and Amamiya Natsuki silently released her hand and said:
"Next time, let's call Juju too, the three of us?"
It wasn't that he wanted a threesome; he simply wanted someone to talk to. The time spent staring at each other was too long.
The companionship continued.
Hanako acted as a traitor, constantly broadcasting the latest location of the kaidan stairs. Komi provided intelligence support with her notebook, and Amamiya Natsuki provided companionship within the alternate dimension. The entire process was as mature as a factory assembly line, without any thrills or accidents.
The only one who had it tough was Miyuki-chan, the thirteen-year-old girl, who had to receive a guest from time to time. As everyone went in and out, she didn't even dare to cry anymore.
Half an hour later.
Amamiya Natsuki emerged from the alternate dimension and said to everyone in the hallway, "Everyone has the videotape now, right?"
"We do."
"Thank you, Natsuki-kun."
"Much obliged."
"…"
Several passerby players expressed their thanks.
The kaidan videotape had been successfully submitted, and Main Quest One was complete. Now, they just needed to survive until the end of the instance, and they would successfully clear it.
"Since everyone has it, it's time to leave the campus."
Amamiya Natsuki spoke while looking at Komi.
The black-haired girl's pink lips trembled slightly, as if she wanted to speak, but unfortunately, no sound came out. Finally, she lowered her head in resignation.
Damn it!
Amamiya Natsuki was speechless.
She still refused to speak. If someone kidnapped her and sold her, would she not even dare to ask the police for help?
Shinomiya Kaguya glanced over and said,
"It seems Komi is still missing one."
"Oh, I forgot." Fujiwara Chika slapped her forehead. "Komi hasn't gotten a videotape yet, has she?"
Komi nodded.
Juju bit her lower lip; she had forgotten too: "Komi, hurry to the alternate dimension. Get the videotape after clearing it."
"Wait." Kitagawa Marin quickly said, "If Komi goes in, Natsuki will have to stay behind."
Amamiya Natsuki nodded: "That's right."
Someone had to stay outside to write notes; it was clearly not feasible for both of them to go in together.
Spy Maid raised her hand and said,
"I'll go in with Komi."
If anyone knew the alternate dimension best, it was Hayasaka Ai.
Komi lowered her head and walked to Kaguya, nervously taking out a trade item. She had participated in the game few times and didn't have many valuable items on her.
Shinomiya Kaguya gently shook her head.
"Komi, you don't need to." Amamiya Natsuki said from the side, "You're Juju's friend; you don't need these things."
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