Gao Hai had a dream.
He dreamed he had become a harem emperor in a 2D fanfiction world, conquering several hundred beautiful girls with ease. He could have a new one every day and still not run out in a year, enjoying an incredibly pleasant and exhilarating, almost decadent, lifestyle.
No one was his match; no one could possibly disrupt his rhythm. This was because he possessed a super system that granted him supreme power and wealth just by checking in daily. Even the system itself could transform into all sorts of girls to accompany him—white-haired lolis, black-stockinged onee-sans, busty hot girls, it had them all. You could say it was all-encompassing.
And all he had to do each day was revel in pleasure—revel until he was soaring, revel until he fainted, then continue reveling in a dream within a dream, only to wake up and start all over again.
Ah...
A life like that was truly, truly...
And then his dream ended.
That overly depraved dream—so depraved that Gao Hai felt if it were real, it would probably summon Slaanesh by the next day—dissipated like an ethereal illusion, leaving not a single trace behind.
In its place was a gloomy, cold atmosphere, a feeling of being enveloped in chill air as if inside an air-raid shelter.
What's going on?
Before opening his eyes, Gao Hai already smelled an odor, like something had grown moldy.
No, it was more like the smell of slightly rotten wood in a damp environment, mixed with a hint of pervasive dust—the kind of smell an abandoned house that hadn't been lived in for a long time would have.
So, where am I?
Gao Hai opened his eyes.
An unfamiliar ceiling.
The white walls were covered in mottled cracks, with electrical wires exposed and fastened by nails to a hanging pendant lamp. The bulb looked like an old-fashioned incandescent one, already coated in a layer of dust that obscured its internal structure. It was impossible to tell if it still worked or was broken.
The two windows on one side of the room were boarded shut with wooden planks and covered with a layer of white cloth, the edges of which were also nailed down. This allowed only a sliver of light to filter through, making it impossible to see what was outside. Judging by the brightness, however, it seemed to be daytime.
His gaze shifted, moving past the wall where most of the paint had peeled off to reveal the brick structure beneath, and landed on a small round table in the little living room. The table was very low, with two small wooden stools beside it, one of which had a broken leg and was lying on its side. On the table was a pot with a dead plant, its species unrecognizable.
On the wall next to the small round table, it looked like there should have been a door, but the door had been removed, leaving only the frame. This gave a direct view into the small kitchen behind it, and the dust-covered bowls and chopsticks piled in the sink.
At the end of the wall by his head stood a very old wooden door. A diagonal crack had split the wood, wide enough that if someone were outside, they could probably peek into the room. There was a small cabinet at the head of the bed and another at the foot. Gao Hai noticed a sheet of A4 printer paper on the cabinet by his head, covered in densely packed words. Unlike its surroundings, the paper didn't seem to have much dust on it, as if it had been placed there not long ago.
This place looked like a small rental unit that had been abandoned for some time.
Why would I suddenly appear here?
Was I kidnapped?
No, that's not right. In the last moment before my memory cut out, there was no obvious sign of an attack.
And right now, there was clearly another person next to me.
Gao Hai could hear her breathing and smell the fresh scent of women's shampoo.
A woman was lying beside him. Together, they were lying on the same bed in this room that couldn't look more dilapidated.
The rhythm of her breathing had already changed while he was looking around the room. It was very likely she was now pretending to be asleep.
A badger game?
But do people really kidnap someone from their home just to run a badger game? Something about that feels a bit off.
In any case, I should get up and check the situation. If it really is a badger game, then I guess I'll just have to challenge her to a dark duel right here. I've heard it's the best strategy for the pretty boys of Japan to handle the radical feminists; Gao Hai felt that was experience worth learning from.
Bzz—
However, before Gao Hai could make a move, a piercing sound, like nails scraping on a chalkboard, suddenly rang out in his mind.
In that instant, Gao Hai found himself unable to move. His entire body stiffened as if frozen in place, able only to listen to the shrill noise resonating inside his head.
Bzz—
The sharp, unbearably uncomfortable sound lasted for more than ten seconds before it gradually began to fade.
Then came a voice, its gender indiscernible, impossible to identify. It was so twisted that just hearing it sent an inexplicable chill down one's spine.
[Welcome to the Sacrificial Game]
The first sentence sounded somewhat familiar, as if he had just heard it.
[Player Gao Hai, this is the first game you have participated in. Game Level: Twilight]
[Your objective is: Escape from Shirakawa Apartments]
[The time limit for this game is: seven days]
[Game hints will now be provided. Please be sure to make good use of them]
[Hint 1: The path to survival is hidden in the messages of those who came before]
[Hint 2: A reopened door will lead to hope]
[Hint 3: A precious item amidst the dust will bring happiness]
[Hint 4: The secret is hidden in the one place you must never go]
[Hints concluded. We wish you success in this game, that you may approach the throne that witnesses the end of all things]
From start to finish, the voice took less than a minute to say all that.
And after it finished speaking that nonsensical stuff that was impossible to immediately comprehend, the bizarre voice vanished without a trace. The stiffness that had made Gao Hai completely unable to control his body disappeared at the same moment, and he regained control of his limbs.
"What the..."
With control of his body suddenly restored, Gao Hai tumbled right off the bed. In mid-air, he managed to grab the A4 paper from the nightstand, clutching it to his chest before hitting the ground. He rolled once before scrambling awkwardly to his feet.
He was now completely certain that he had been dragged into some kind of supernatural event, and very likely a deadly, terrifyingly dark one at that.
Wait, director, hold on, this isn't right.
Didn't I transmigrate into a slice-of-life anime crossover world?
This plot development is totally wrong! How did it suddenly turn into a death game?! Hey!
Can I get a refund? Can I quit the show? This plot is way beyond my ability to handle, okay?! Why the sudden genre shift? Can't we just stick to a pandering harem plot?
Though a torrent of complaints flooded his mind, Gao Hai was already on his feet and moving quickly. Keeping his distance, while also not getting too close to the wooden door with the crack or the kitchen entrance, his gaze locked onto the bed in the corner of the small living room where he had just been lying.
Then, he saw her: a girl with long, unbound black hair, a cold expression on her face, and a gaze that held a hint of chill and scrutiny as she sat up on the bed.
Red pupils.
Her figure was a bit on the flat side.
A black long-sleeved dress with white cuffs and a red ribbon tie at the collar.
That appearance, along with that gaze that looked at him like he was trash, activated Gao Hai's DNA in an instant.
Isn't this... isn't this that photographer... cough, no, that's not right. In this state, isn't she Ice Kaguya? It's Kaguya Shinomiya from her Ice Kaguya Princess phase, before she was changed by the President.
My 2D transmigration story... just what in the world has it turned into?!
At that moment, Gao Hai felt his mind spin into chaos, no longer sure what kind of story he was the protagonist of.
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