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"She's nearby."
Amamiya Natsuki put away the person-finding compass and said,
"The compass can only confirm the general direction. We still need to search."
After a pause, Amamiya Natsuki turned to Tsubame-senpai: "Speaking of which, there are still two megaphones in the game backpack…"
"You absolutely must not use those things!"
Tsubame-senpai's forehead dripped with cold sweat, and she couldn't help but complain, "This is a game instance! Using a megaphone to call someone, how could you even think of something so outrageous?!"
"There might also be mushroom people in the village. If you shout with a megaphone, it would be terrible if they all came out."
Tsubame-senpai had a clear mind and whispered, "It's now confirmed that Chika is in the Village, and the Village isn't large, so we can search house by house."
Amamiya Natsuki said, "Won't we encounter danger if we go in and search?"
"It's definitely not as dangerous as shouting into a loudspeaker," Koyasu Tsubame quickly replied. "Besides, if we're lucky, we might find Chika right away."
After speaking, Tsubame-senpai extended her right hand and whispered, "Natsuki-kun, give me a flashlight."
"Mm."
Amamiya Natsuki nodded, put down the Little Red Riding Hood he was holding, took out a flashlight, and handed it to Tsubame-senpai, saying, "Since that's the case, let's start searching from the house in front of us."
...
The productivity of the fairy tale kingdom in the dungeon was quite primitive; the first impression the Village gave was probably that it was small, dilapidated, and humble.
Many homes didn't even have courtyard walls, only simple bamboo fences.
"I'll knock on the door."
Amamiya Natsuki approached the first house, raised his hand to knock, while Tsubame-senpai stood behind him with Little Red Riding Hood.
Who knew that there had been rustling voices inside the room, but as Amamiya Natsuki knocked, the room instantly fell silent.
Amamiya Natsuki raised an eyebrow and called out, "Please open the door."
...
There was no response from the house, only dead silence.
"Grandma, open the door, we're here to bring warmth."
...
Little Red Riding Hood shouted from the side, "Grandma Mary, open the door quickly! It's Sir Hero, not a bad person!"
According to the information gathered during their journey, mushrooms do not grow in a single day but slowly mature.
During this period, people with mushrooms growing on their heads would gradually undergo a significant change in temperament, slowly falling into evil darkness and acquiring some incredible powers.
Therefore, once a mushroom was discovered growing on someone's head, for the safety of the Village, they would often be expelled from the Village.
Of course, some people would also choose to leave voluntarily for the safety of their families, exiling themselves.
The little girl continued to shout, "Grandma Mary, please open the door."
...
Unfortunately, there was still no response.
"This makes things difficult," Amamiya Natsuki sighed, saying gloomily, "The door is so old and broken, it would probably break with one kick, wouldn't it?"
"The weather outside is so cold; if there's no door to keep out the cold, they might freeze to death."
Koyasu Tsubame: "..."
If they don't open the door, he'll kick their door down? What kind of bandit Sir Hero is that!
But it must be said, Amamiya Natsuki's rhetoric was quite effective.
The indigenous people of the fairy tale world also feared dark forces; polite persuasion was useless, but a verbal threat immediately opened the door.
"P-please wait a moment."
An old, flustered voice quickly responded from inside the house.
Soon after, a faint, dim light ignited in the house, and then an old woman opened the door, nervously looking at the three people outside.
"Grandma Mary!"
Little Red Riding Hood broke free from Tsubame-senpai's hand and happily ran forward, shouting.
"You are...?"
The sky was growing darker, and the old woman's eyesight was clearly poor; she squinted as she looked over.
Upon seeing Little Red Riding Hood clearly, she immediately retreated nervously, her face full of caution.
"Grandma Mary, don't be afraid, the mushroom is gone!"
The little girl happily took off her red hood, revealing her clean little head.
Seeing this, the old woman was immediately shocked; she pulled Little Red Riding Hood closer and checked repeatedly, finally confirming that the mushroom had disappeared.
"The Sir Hero saved me," Little Red Riding Hood pointed, "When we came out of the forest, Sir Hero also removed the mushroom from Grandma's head."
"Actually, I am a professional Sir Hero, and I came here this time to solve the mushroom disease," Amamiya Natsuki smiled, lies flowing easily from his mouth. He pointed to Tsubame-senpai beside him, "This is my companion, the beautiful Holy Knight."
Koyasu Tsubame felt her face flush and couldn't help but look away.
Compared to Amamiya Natsuki, she still had some sense of shame and felt too embarrassed to deceive an old person.
A female knight who wasn't shivering from the cold? That would be too embarrassing!
After a few more words, the old woman quickly welcomed Amamiya Natsuki and the two others into the house.
Inside the house, there was also a small child, who looked even younger than Little Red Riding Hood; the grandmother and grandchild were very lucky and had not become mushroom people.
The light inside the house was quite dim, the faint lamp barely offering any illumination, making it difficult to see things.
Amamiya Natsuki, amidst the exclamations of the grandmother and grandchild, directly turned on his flashlight and began searching inside the house.
The house was very small, and he quickly searched it thoroughly, but unfortunately, he found no trace of Fujiwara Chika; she was clearly not in the house.
However, it wasn't a complete waste.
The Grandma's understanding of the Village's situation was clearly superior to Little Red Riding Hood's, as this little girl had been self-exiled for some time.
After inquiring about the situation in the Village, Amamiya Natsuki and Tsubame-senpai didn't linger and continued their search.
With the first successful experience, the next steps were simple.
Amamiya Natsuki would approach the door, threaten them with harsh words, and most residents of the Village would open their doors with frightened faces.
Unfortunately, they searched several houses in a row but still didn't find the secretary's whereabouts.
"The big house ahead is Sister Karen's, but unfortunately, Sister Karen later moved to the city."
The little girl continued to be a loyal guide.
"No one there makes it even more convenient," Amamiya Natsuki turned his head. "Tsubame-senpai, do you know what it feels like to illegally enter a house?"
Koyasu Tsubame's lips twitched slightly: "I don't know."
"Then you're about to find out."
...
This house was quite large, surrounded by low courtyard walls.
Amamiya Natsuki propped himself up with one hand, directly crossing the wall, then said, "Tsubame-senpai, come in."
Koyasu Tsubame followed suit, crossing the wall, and after landing steadily, she let out a soft breath.
"Tsubame-senpai, how does it feel to illegally enter a house?"
Amamiya Natsuki asked.
"Don't keep saying 'illegal entry,' it sounds so strange," Koyasu Tsubame glared at him. "We're not here to steal anything... Anyway, hurry up and find Chika."
Holding their flashlights, the two walked into the house, their footsteps creaking on the accumulated snow.
The house had clearly been uninhabited for a long time; a faint musty smell lingered in the air, and as the flashlight swept across, tiny dust particles could be clearly seen floating in the air.
The two quickly finished checking the first floor with their flashlights, and just as they were about to go upstairs, they suddenly heard a tapping sound.
"Natsuki-kun, there are footsteps."
Koyasu Tsubame's gaze was alert as she whispered, "It sounds like... high heels."
Footsteps suddenly appearing in an abandoned, uninhabited old house would naturally make one vigilant.
To facilitate movement, Fujiwara Chika wore flat sports shoes, so her footsteps would definitely not sound like this.
"I hear it."
Amamiya Natsuki moved his flashlight, looking in the direction of the sound.
Little Red Riding Hood followed behind them, curiously asking,
"Someone in the Village heard this sound before; they said it seemed to be a pair of shoes."
"It sounds a bit familiar..."
Koyasu Tsubame's delicate brows furrowed slightly, a flash of inspiration passing through her mind; she felt as if she had heard this fairy tale before.
"It appeared."
Amamiya Natsuki shone his flashlight upwards, and at the turn of the stairs on the second floor, a pair of dance shoes suddenly appeared.
A pair of red dance shoes.
Under the bright white light, only a pair of red dance shoes lay alone on the steps, the shoes themselves empty, with no one present.
"It's the Red Shoes!"
Tsubame-senpai blurted out.
The vague memories in her mind quickly became clear; it was an Andersen's fairy tale she had read in childhood, about a girl who loved red dance shoes so much that she even wore them to church to pray, and was eventually punished. The Red Shoes danced incessantly until a headsman cut off her feet, and only then did she find release.
When she was young, she didn't think much of it, but now, thinking back, she realized that this fairy tale was terrifying when examined closely; it was clearly a horror fairy tale!
The Red Shoes, which couldn't be taken off once worn and danced continuously until death, were clearly a terrifying curse.
Tap, tap, tap!
The Red Shoes clearly noticed the three people downstairs; the footsteps suddenly became urgent, as if worn by an invisible person, running quickly downstairs, heading straight for Tsubame-senpai.
Amamiya Natsuki frowned slightly and kicked at the Red Shoes, but unfortunately, he only kicked one away. The other, with urgent steps, had already reached Tsubame-senpai.
Koyasu Tsubame nervously held her breath and quickly retreated, but the speed difference was too great, and she was caught by the Red Shoes in an instant.
The shoe leaped from the ground like some kind of liquid, directly wrapping around Tsubame-senpai's right foot, then transforming back into a red dance shoe.
The other dance shoe was not idle either; it quickly circled around Amamiya Natsuki and appeared on Tsubame-senpai's foot.
And then...
Tap, tap, tap.
Tsubame-senpai suddenly started dancing, nervously saying,
"My body is out of control!"
Amamiya Natsuki stood beside her, watching the gracefully dancing girl, "Tsubame-senpai is truly the president of the Gymnastics Club; her dancing is quite standard."
Tsubame-senpai bit her lower lip and said while dancing,
"I've studied dance for many years."
"No wonder it's incredibly beautiful."
"Now is not the time to talk about such things, Natsuki-kun, hurry and help!"
...
The dance Tsubame-senpai was performing was tap dance. Amamiya Natsuki seized the opportunity, grabbed Tsubame-senpai's right ankle, and tried to forcibly pull off the Red Shoes.
"G-gently..."
Koyasu Tsubame furrowed her willow-like brows and softly cried out in pain.
"I'm already holding back my strength," Amamiya Natsuki let go, and Tsubame-senpai immediately started dancing again, her steps light and joyful, "The shoes won't come off; it's as if they've grown onto her feet."
Hearing this, Tsubame-senpai's heart sank.
If the Red Shoes couldn't be taken off, would she have to have her feet cut off, just like in the fairy tale?
It's impossible.
Completely impossible.
Even if I temporarily get rid of the Red Dancing Shoes, how will I face the next dungeon?
"Senpai, there are two solutions now." Amamiya Natsuki extended two fingers, looking at the Senpai dancing with low spirits.
Koyasu Tsubame's eyes lit up. She looked over while dancing, "What's the first solution?"
"There must be an antidote within seven steps of a venomous snake; the Red Dancing Shoes should be the same." Amamiya Natsuki said seriously, "The first solution is for me to search the room while you continue dancing, Senpai. I'll find the source of the Red Dancing Shoes' rules. The drawback is that it's time-consuming and labor-intensive."
Koyasu Tsubame hesitated, "What's the other solution?"
"That's simple and crude," Amamiya Natsuki said. "Senpai, do you know the Sheep Transformation Technique?"
With the Copy and Paste ability, Amamiya Natsuki had naturally copied the Sheep Transformation Technique before entering the dungeon.
"Of course, I know."
The Sheep Transformation Technique is one of Chika's skills, obtained after completing a fun quest in the amusement park. Unfortunately, it can only be used on allies, and its duration is very short.
Koyasu Tsubame had naturally heard of this skill. After thinking it over, it seemed like it might actually work.
Your pair of Red Dancing Shoes can't possibly be worn on four feet, can they?
At this thought, Koyasu Tsubame took a deep breath and said while dancing,
"Natsuki-kun, I'm counting on you."
"Have you decided?"
"Mm."
"Alright." Amamiya Natsuki walked to the Senpai's side, extended his right hand, and touched her body. "Silently say 'accept' in your heart; don't resist."
"..."
As Koyasu Tsubame silently agreed, the skill was successfully released. Tsubame-senpai only felt her vision rapidly lower, eventually transforming into a pure white lamb.
"Eh eh eh?!"
Little Red Riding Hood was shocked, "Knight-sama has turned into a little lamb!"
"I see it," Amamiya Natsuki said from the side. "And it's a pretty little ewe."
At the same time,
the Red Dancing Shoes seemed to freeze, suddenly stopping their dance. They clearly couldn't comprehend how the human from just now had suddenly turned into a four-legged creature.
Amamiya Natsuki bent down and picked up the lamb.
"Senpai, try to take off the shoes again."
"Baa—"
A soft bleating sound came from the lamb Senpai's mouth.
Amamiya Natsuki looked at the Senpai's four limbs. The Red Dancing Shoes were still on her two hind legs. This time, with a gentle pull, the Red Dancing Shoes successfully came off.
Clearly, according to the Red Dancing Shoes' rules, to make them dance, one must first be a human.
The two Red Dancing Shoes were quickly removed.
During this time, Amamiya Natsuki also received an item appraisal from the game.
[Item: Red Dancing Shoes]
[Type: Rule Item]
[Attribute: After wearing the Red Dancing Shoes, one will be forced to dance until exhausted]
[Note: This item can be taken out of the current dungeon after fulfilling certain conditions.]
Tap, tap, tap.
After leaving the lamb Senpai's feet, the Red Dancing Shoes "came back to life," tapping on the ground for a bit, then quickly changing direction and running towards Little Red Riding Hood.
Damn it, it's going for such a small child instead of me. This is discrimination, blatant gender discrimination!
Little Red Riding Hood was startled and quickly hid behind.
The Sheep Transformation Technique had just been used. If the little girl put on the Red Dancing Shoes again, it would be troublesome to take them off.
Amamiya Natsuki made a decisive move, grabbed the Red Dancing Shoes, and put them back on the sheep-transformed Senpai's feet... or rather, on her sheep hooves.
Thus, the Red Dancing Shoes, which had just come to life, fell into an unsolvable dilemma again and eventually became motionless.
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