After the feeding game between Gao Hai and Maki concluded, the two lingered in the woods for a while longer, engaging in some slight intimacy and playful frolicking. Then, Maki left first as she had to return for class.
Gao Hai felt a bit of regret regarding this; having their time together interrupted was truly unpleasant. However, for Maki, this was actually a good thing. Just like on their previous date, as Gao Hai chatted with her, he would start getting handsy—stealing kisses on her small mouth, touching her hands, touching her waist, touching her thighs, and so on at the slightest provocation.
*Why is this guy always so unsatisfied? Are a man's desires really this strong?!*
Maki, feeling quite dissatisfied and shy about this, roasted him in her heart. Yet, at the same time, she felt a faint sense of reluctance to part. A marvelous feeling that was hard to describe in words—a sense that she actually hoped he would go even further—spread within her heart.
Come to think of it, she felt that his movements today were even more difficult to accept than usual.
Sitting in the classroom, Maki listened to the teacher's lecture absent-mindedly. As her mind replayed Gao Hai's actions in the small woods just now, she vaguely sensed that something was amiss.
When his hand caressed her waist, or when it gently stroked across her thigh—how should she put it? Even though he often did this in the past, today these actions were exceptionally discomforting. They made her heart race and gave her an indescribable sensation, as if her entire person were trembling.
Why did such a change occur?
It was as if there had been some change in this guy's technique, but why would a change happen so suddenly?
Maki Shijo felt extremely confused about this.
And it wasn't just the motions of touching her body; the kissing seemed to have changed a bit compared to before as well.
Previously, every time Gao Hai kissed Maki, he did so with great force, often leaving her breathless. But today, his kiss had become much more restrained. He was cooperating with her more, creating a marvelous sense of pleasure that made her heart beat even faster.
So, why would such a change happen?
The young girl couldn't help but think of that butterfly bow fat woman who was pestering Gao Hai.
*It shouldn't be possible...*
No matter what, that woman had only known Gao Hai for a few days. Moreover, Auntie Kaguya had said that Fujiwara herself had no romantic experience, so it was impossible for her to teach Gao Hai any kissing or touching techniques. Impossible, impossible; such a thing was impossible!
Maki, repeating these words endlessly in her heart, had completely mentally detached from the classroom.
***
As for Gao Hai in the small woods, he had originally prepared to return to the sentry box. However, just as he stood up, he was blocked by Ai Hayasaka, who walked out from one side of the woods.
"Oh, you've come out. I thought you planned to stalk me for a while longer, maid of the Shinomiya family."
Gao Hai, not feeling surprised by this in the least, spoke very casually.
"...You knew I was here?"
Ai Hayasaka's eyes widened slightly. She felt she had hidden herself very well and hadn't expected to be seen through so early.
However, if it was this man, it was understandable. After all, a month ago, he had easily shaken off her attempt to track him. Although he appeared to be just an ordinary person, in terms of physical fitness and perception, this person definitely stood at the apex of humanity. He was someone who could absolutely never be underestimated at any time.
"Mr. Gao, an elder of the Shinomiya family hopes to invite you for a chat tonight. May I ask if you are willing to accept the invitation?"
Ai Hayasaka, her expression unchanging, bowed slightly and spoke respectfully to Gao Hai.
"An invitation?"
Hayasaka's words caused Gao Hai to pause slightly.
Gao Hai himself was quite familiar with the source material of *Miss Kaguya*, so he knew very well whom Hayasaka was representing here.
*Have those older brothers of Kaguya started to act? Come to think of it, I haven't done anything, right? Why would they suddenly seek me out? And this matter is definitely being kept from Kaguya. Under normal circumstances, a pawn like Hayasaka shouldn't be used casually, right? What reason exactly requires her to step forward and issue the invitation?*
"Shinomiya-san doesn't know about this matter, correct?"
Gao Hai, not planning to beat around the bush, looked at the blonde girl before him and asked directly.
"...Yes. This invitation was initiated by an elder of the Shinomiya family. We hope you... do not tell Miss Kaguya about this."
Hayasaka's head lowered a bit more than before, but her voice still strove to remain peaceful.
"Tonight? What is the specific time? And the location?"
Gao Hai quietly watched the girl's reaction. After remaining silent for a while, he spoke up to ask.
"7:00 PM. Dongming Building, 19th floor, Room 8."
Hayasaka continued to answer calmly.
"Mm, alright. I'll go over and take a look then."
Gao Hai nodded casually, not particularly concerned about this matter.
Unless a Player popped out from among Kaguya's brothers, they were ultimately just ordinary people. Furthermore, if the Gao Hai who had just cleared Shirakawa Apartments previously still had many deficiencies in strength and could potentially be caught by ordinary people, the current him basically had no worries in this regard. Even facing a fully armed military unit, Gao Hai had ample confidence to retreat unscathed, or even defeat them.
*Speaking of which, the one looking for me should be Huangguang Shinomiya, right?*
Gao Hai didn't really have a deep impression of this person. He just knew this guy looked a bit like the 'Transport Captain'—bald with a mustache. When he first appeared, he felt like a traditional villain, but in the end, under that old thief Akasaka's intelligence-lowering aura, he turned into an incompetent and furious clown. Aside from that, he didn't seem to have any characteristics.
*Oh, right. This guy appeared on camera in that [I Want to Be a Photographer] scene, which could be called a world-famous painting of the original Kaguya work. In a sense, he could count as a big celebrity in this work, right?*
*I wonder what this person wants to do by finding me. He isn't planning to play the 'wining and dining me to take me in as a dog' routine, is he?*
*If that's really the case, hmm... it really would be better to tell Kaguya in advance. In case talks break down and I extinguish her brother, this matter would be a bit hard to resolve. It's best to tip off the family member first; that way, whether it's following protocol or directly attending the funeral banquet, preparations can be made properly.*
Thinking this, Gao Hai stepped out of the small woods and returned to the sentry box.
Shuchiin's security booth was very large; it was basically a fully equipped one-bedroom apartment that could be used for living, completely the extreme opposite of that small sentry box in Red Nut Gray Hole. At this moment, two security guards were already sitting inside. Upon seeing Gao Hai arrive, they exchanged greetings. After introducing their names and general situations, they went about their own business without interfering with each other.
These security guards seemed to have undergone quite professional training. Even if they didn't look very conspicuous, when it really came down to fighting, they would presumably be quite formidable.
However, in Gao Hai's view, these people were just that and nothing more. After all, no matter how powerfully they trained, to Gao Hai, who had already surpassed the limits of the human body, they were just children who could be taken down with one punch each.
*Which is to say, unknowingly, I can no longer view myself and these security guards as the same kind of people.*
Gao Hai had discovered the change in his mindset.
The high degree of physical enhancement, along with the extraordinary power brought by the Blessing and Obsession Items, had already changed his thinking and self-positioning to a certain extent.
Ordinary people could not understand matters related to the [Sacrificial Game] due to unknown reasons. Even if they encountered a Player using Obsession Items to commit a massacre, they would forget it afterwards and no longer care, just like NPCs running according to a set program. They had become a completely different species from Players.
As long as Gao Hai was willing, he could take out his scalpel at any time and kill the few people present without bearing any responsibility, even if he committed the crime under surveillance. Even... as long as he was willing, he could completely kill everyone in Shuchiin, slaughtering this school filled with all of Japan's elite talents, and afterwards, no one would trouble him.
Of course, it was impossible for Gao Hai to do such a thing.
But what about those Players who lacked strength, yet because they had participated in too many Twilight-level missions, were forced to face Dim Night-level instances?
Although his own two instances were labeled as Twilight-level, they were actually both Dim Night-level in reality. Gao Hai deeply understood how difficult an instance of this level was. He had also asked Aoyama Nanami how task-focused Players conquered these. The answer was that Players continuously paid with casualties to bring out data, barely finding a path to survival.
Then, on the foundation of this survival path, capable and courageous Players would continue to explore and investigate deeper. Finally, after clues were thoroughly consolidated, only then could they find a way to bring out the core Obsession Item to lock the instance dead, or resolve the obsession to obtain a Blessing.
Under normal circumstances, a not-very-difficult Dim Night-level instance—assuming experienced veteran Players survived the first opening—would undergo about 8 to 10 instance runs before Players conquered it and took the core Obsession Item. But these were, without exception, single-core instances. For the double-core instance type like Red Nut Gray Hole that Gao Hai experienced in his second mission, there were only 8 similar double-core instances clearly recorded as fully cracked to date.
As for the higher-grade Red Moon-level instances, there were only 3 instances worldwide recorded as cracked with the core Obsession Item taken. One of the more well-known ones was [Campus Horror Stories]. This instance was considered to possess 8 cores; 7 had been probed, and 3 of those 7 were successfully taken, resulting in the instance being downgraded to Dim Night-level.
This instance was also, to date, the most unworthy of its name among the Dim Night-level instances in the [Sacrificial Game]. Known as a 'Pseudo-Red Moon,' it was a terrifying dead zone where Dim Night-level Players who entered basically faced ten deaths and no life.
Even though basically all relevant information about this instance could be found on the forum, and even though the Red Moon-level Player teams that successfully seized core Obsession Items from the instance had shared basically all the safety intelligence they could share, Dim Night-level Players possessing this intelligence still could not survive. Entering this instance meant death.
The reason was very simple: the gap in hard power was insufficient. If the quantity and categories of Obsession Items were not comprehensive enough, and the level of the Blessing was not high enough, it was still difficult to survive even if the rules were known in advance.
In fact, even after being downgraded to Dim Night-level, the clearance conditions for [Campus Horror Stories] had never changed, only undergoing a slight adjustment.
Survive for 3 days—survive for 72 hours.
As long as this goal was achieved, the Player could clear the [Campus Horror Stories] instance.
When this instance was still Red Moon-level, the clearance condition was to survive for 1 day. After the downgrade, it was extended to 3 days. That was all.
And this was already enough to make the chosen Players despair.
So, not a single Dim Night-level mission was something ordinary Players could handle easily. Players capable of conquering Dim Night-level instances either had a comprehensive team or were truly powerhouses walking at the forefront.
The rest—those ordinary Players who could only rely on forcibly staying in Twilight-level instances to linger on in their last breaths—faced a situation of nine deaths and one life if they entered such an instance. For example, the hidden Research Base of the Red Nut Gray Hole instance: in the post-game review, Kaguya and Maki believed at least 10 or more Players had descended there, but in the end, only the two of them left alive. None of the others survived.
For these Players who had retreated until there was nowhere left to retreat, who were forced to their limits before facing a Dim Night-level instance, their lives had already entered a countdown.
Could such people truly remain indifferent in the real world and not do anything in their final moments?
No. Madness under despair was a very normal thing.
*But I haven't known about such things; I haven't seen them...*
*Or is it merely that I haven't seen them, that's all?*
A trace of chill involuntarily arose in the bottom of Gao Hai's heart.
He didn't think about this matter any further.
Calming his mood, he shifted his attention away from these things he was powerless to help with.
*What use is thinking more about it? If there really are those kinds of crazy Players, unless they damage the interests and safety of me or my companions, I won't bother with them.*
*Speaking of which, since [Campus Horror Stories] is already the most famous super-high-difficulty death zone among the Dim Night-level, this broken watch wouldn't throw me into this school, would it?*
Gao Hai, suddenly realizing this problem, froze.
*It shouldn't... go that far, right?*
*The most basic progression should still be observed, right?*
*And as long as I get an entry ticket for another instance in advance, this broken watch surely wouldn't go so far as to forcibly deflect my destination, right?*
Gao Hai felt somewhat uneasy.
And right at this moment, he suddenly heard the sound of knocking on glass.
Looking up, it was Chika Fujiwara wearing her school uniform. Unknown to him when she arrived, she was standing outside the window, making a funny face at him.
***
The noisy city.
A remote alley.
And Koikawa-san, leaning on a cane, standing expressionlessly in the darkness.
Two men who looked to be in quite terrible condition—disheveled and unkempt—knelt before him. In the corner of the wall to the side, a human-shaped thing was struggling painfully, the dense sounds of something chewing ringing out ceaselessly from inside its body.
"I am very glad you chose the normal reporting process instead of rushing into a school planning to commit a massacre like this idiot."
Koikawa-san, whose face was crawled upon by black insects, spoke gently.
"Now then, 10 cargo boxes. Among them, 1 small box, 3 large boxes, 3 medium boxes, and 3 old boxes. These are the 'Boxes' the [Market] has allocated to you. The freedom of use is entirely in your hands, but do not take the 'Boxes' out of this building. Can you do that?"
"Everyone can understand your encounter; each of us has a time when we must face this moment. However, disrupting order will bring trouble to those still alive, and this is not allowed. So, as long as you submit an application, the [Market] will try its best to satisfy you. But you cannot act recklessly in private. In this city, there are many eyes watching you, understood?"
The man's voice remained gentle throughout.
The struggling of the human-shaped object squirming in the corner, and the chewing sounds, never stopped.
The two Players ultimately just nodded gently in agreement, then turned and walked away somewhat in a trance, entering the abandoned building next door.
As for the sounds that rang out next from inside the building, Koikawa-san had heard them many times. He had no interest in listening again.
"Clean up the traces after they are finished."
After giving an instruction to a follower standing beside him, Koikawa-san turned and left.
At the end of the alley not far away, Hitori Goto watched this scene unfold with a somewhat pale expression, her small hand clutching the hem of her tracksuit so hard she almost tore the clothes.
"Why did you come over here?"
Aoyama Nanami walked over from the other side at this moment. Surprised to see Hitori Goto, she hurriedly walked up to pull her away.
"They... those people..."
The pink-haired girl didn't seem as socially anxious in front of Nanami and was able to speak in a low voice.
"Those are Players who have continuously participated in more than 5 Twilight-level missions. They... this kind of thing is wrong, but the [Market] has made regulations; we have no way to change anything. Don't look, don't listen, don't mind it. We are powerless regarding this kind of thing. Mr. Koikawa... can also only do his best to choose a compromise, a method to maintain stability, that's all..."
In a voice filled with a sense of powerlessness, Nanami sighed deeply, taking Hitori Goto to leave quickly.
The scent of blood in the air grew increasingly thick.
And in the city under the sunlight, ignorant and unaware people continued to spend their days, whether busy or leisurely.
________________________________________
Get rewarded for helping with our community goals!
🎯 Reward for all: +1 bonus chapter at 50 Powerstones.
🚀 Tier Reward: Help us reach 20 members for +5 chapters on all stories!
👻 Join the crew by searching Ms. Medusa on (P). You know the spot! 😉