It didn't take long for Takumi to find a floor map of the Dormitory Building in the corridor.
Unlike the Teaching Building, whose internal structure had been clearly distorted, the Dormitory Building's layout still appeared relatively normal. On the third floor where he and Miko currently were, there were fifteen dorm rooms in total, along with a washroom, a restroom, a room for the dorm supervisor, and two staircases. Structurally, it was quite simple.
As for the riddle Alice had given, Takumi didn't spend much effort figuring out that the answer was likely "toothbrush," so he didn't touch any of the toothbrushes on the rack. As for Miko's riddle, due to the rules, Takumi couldn't ask about it. He could only emphasize to her that she must not take any related items and had to make sure she didn't come into actual contact with anything corresponding to the riddle. After all, no one knew where Alice's so-called "correct location" was—if picking up the item meant that their current location was automatically treated as the correct one, that would become a huge problem.
"I don't see where Kumagai-san is…"
Miko, carefully following behind Takumi, observed her surroundings as she spoke in a low voice.
"She was probably teleported to another dorm room. Don't worry about her. No matter what, she's still a Red Moon-level player—she should at least be able to protect herself. Let's head to the first floor. That's the rendezvous point we agreed on beforehand. Once we get there, we'll assess the situation."
Saying this, Takumi quickly led Miko into action, heading toward the staircase on the left side of the Dormitory Building—the one directly across from Room 304—and moved downward toward the second floor.
The reason he didn't choose the staircase on the right was because to reach it, they would have to pass by the restroom. And since Alice's game rules had specifically mentioned the restroom, Takumi couldn't help but stay cautious. If it wasn't necessary, he would avoid going near that place as much as possible.
However, sometimes the more you try to avoid something, the more you end up walking straight into it.
For example, right now.
After leading Miko down the stairs, Takumi saw that the floor indicator for the next level read [-1 Floor], instead of the normal [2nd Floor] he should have seen.
Something was clearly very wrong here.
Even under the candlelight, the surroundings didn't look that different from the third floor—but for some reason, Takumi felt a strong instinct, as if a voice in his mind was warning him to leave immediately and not remain here any longer.
Faintly, it seemed that some dorm room doors were quietly opening, as if something inside was secretly peeking out.
And this time, even the Sheep-Head Hood could not give Takumi a sense of security. He had a feeling that if whatever was inside those rooms came out, both he and Miko would die on the spot—there would be no second outcome.
"Let's go. We're heading back."
Pulling the girl along, Takumi returned to the third floor and looked down at the pitch-black stairwell, a growing sense of unease forming in his heart.
The corridor on the third floor hadn't changed much—it was still just as dilapidated as before. Large chunks of the ceiling had collapsed, several lights hung loosely in midair, and both walls were covered in cracks and claw marks. There were also patches of suspicious black liquid stains hardened onto the surfaces.
Near Room 308, close to the restroom, Takumi saw a poster pasted onto the wall. Although it had faded, the text was still readable.
It was a set of [Student Code of Conduct].
[As a student of Fujihana Middle School, these rules are what you are expected to follow. Both you and your parents should take this code as guidance for your behavior.]
[1. Carefully listen to the words of teachers and students more outstanding than yourself. Maintain a humble attitude and memorize their words exactly, without a single mistake. If you are unable to recite their words word-for-word, you will receive a warning.]
[2. Obey the commands of teachers and students more outstanding than yourself. Whatever student rank you belong to, you must strictly follow its rules. This is the baseline you must uphold as a student—you must never violate the rules.]
[3. If the commands of more outstanding students conflict with those of a teacher, you must prioritize the teacher's command. If two teachers' commands conflict, then before they reach a consensus, you must follow the instructions of the teacher who gave you the command first.]
[4. You must never lie to a teacher. Always treat teachers and other students with absolute honesty. You must never violate this rule.]
[5. Maintain cleanliness in your surroundings. Wherever you are, the hygiene of that place is your responsibility. Any trash that appears within 10 meters of you counts as your dereliction of duty. If discovered, you will receive a warning.]
[6. Waste is shameful. Whether it is wasting food or water, such behavior is unacceptable. Any wasteful behavior occurring within 10 meters of you is your dereliction of duty. If discovered, you will receive a warning.]
[7. Students must not become friends with teachers. Teachers are your eternal superiors. Once such thoughts arise, it means you have already lost the foundation of your existence as a human and will be permanently downgraded to the "Bad Student" rank.]
[8. Students must not harbor hostility toward teachers. You must always maintain a humble and respectful attitude toward teachers. You must obey teachers. You should take pride in obeying teachers. Otherwise, you will be regarded as having lost the foundation of your existence as a human and will be permanently downgraded to a "Bad Kid."]
[9. Any act of harming a teacher is absolutely unacceptable. Only teachers may harm students. Only Outstanding Students may harm inferior students. Rank is absolute. Any questioning of rank is unacceptable. Those who question it are trash who have lost the foundation of their existence as human beings and will be permanently downgraded to "Bad Kids."]
[10. ■■Teaching Building■%s■df■■￥v＃er■g… (illegible garbled text)]**
[11. ■■Athletic Field fd■■%s■■s■d* (illegible garbled text)]**
[12. ■■Swimming Pool■■■■■■… (illegible garbled text)]
[14. Students residing in the Dormitory Building must abide by the basic rules within it. During the day, they are not allowed to remain in the dormitory. After lights out at night, they must stay in their own beds and sleep. The rooftop is off-limits. They must bathe once every day. No trash is allowed on the dormitory floor. When leaving the dormitory, bedsheets and covers must be kept neat and orderly. Water resources must not be wasted. Upon seeing the dormitory supervisor, they must greet them. Any violation of these rules will result in one warning penalty.]
[15. ■■■■■ (completely blacked out and illegible)]
Reading through this set of student rules didn't take Takumi much time. As for the contents, when cross-referenced with the earlier Student Ranking Handbook, all he could say was that this school was absolutely unrivaled when it came to not treating people like human beings.
Damn it, putting everything else aside—every single sentence spoken by a teacher or an Outstanding Student had to be memorized verbatim. Not a single word could be wrong, or you'd be punished. What kind of genius came up with a rule like that? This kind of system would only make Good, Ordinary, and Delinquent Students disappear rapidly, leaving only Outstanding Students and Bad Students in the end. To further intensify the internal conflict within the school, this damned place had really gone all out.
"Takumi-san, this set of rules…"
Since this was the third loop, Miko hadn't seen the Student Ranking Handbook this time, so she was naturally confused by these rules and didn't quite understand what they were about.
"Don't worry about it. With me here, nothing will go wrong."
Saying that, Takumi continued forward with Miko. As they passed the restroom, his nerves tightened to the extreme, carefully monitoring any movement inside. The moment he heard dripping water or any kind of voice, he'd have to consider whether it was time to go in and start cutting everything down.
But this time, nothing happened.
The pitch-black restroom was completely silent—no sound came from within.
The two of them passed through without incident and soon arrived near rooms 312 and 313.
Creak—
At that moment, several dormitory doors along the corridor suddenly opened. One after another, twisted Aberrations stepped out from inside the rooms.
Takumi immediately sensed intense hostility.
These Aberrations actually harbored direct malice toward him—toward him, who was wearing the Sheep-Head Hood and held the Teacher identity. What was going on?
Ever since entering the Dormitory Building, he had never taken off the hood. Why were these things reacting differently from the ones in the Teaching Building?
"Be careful. Stay behind me."
The bloodstained machete was already in his hand.
Even though the sudden immunity of these Aberration students to his presence caught him off guard, it didn't change the situation. As long as he had this blade, most of the Aberrations in Fujihana Middle School couldn't do anything to him. He just needed to charge forward and cut them down.
Blood splattered everywhere as Takumi led Miko forward, easily hacking down more than ten Aberration students who rushed at them.
As they reached the staircase on the right side of the corridor, Takumi noticed a student with only half a head sprinting toward them from the side. Its movements were extremely fast. He instinctively prepared to strike—but before he could swing, the thing abruptly stopped, raised both hands, and made a gesture of surrender.
Takumi: ?
What the hell was this? Another rational Aberration? Were Aberrations retaining their sanity actually that common?
[Don't shoot, I'm on your side. It's me, Kumagai Mai.]
The next moment, the Aberration spoke—with Mai's own voice.
Takumi: ??
[This is one of my Blessing abilities. I can copy a template of my own personality and memories, then implant it into anything that has a "human-like structure," temporarily controlling it. I can only control this student for about fifteen minutes. Next, I'll have it move together with you two. As for my real body… I probably won't be able to come. Two Alices have locked onto me, and just evading them is already giving me a headache.]
Hearing an Aberration speak in such a lazy tone made Takumi almost see an image of Mai herself—cigarette in mouth, looking irritated.
Copying her personality and memories and implanting them into an Aberration to take control of it… there was actually such an absurdly powerful Blessing?
Takumi had to admit—he was a little envious of Mai's highly versatile ability.
Most of his own Blessings were support-type. One teleportation Blessing wasn't even usable. Meanwhile, this Red Moon-level player could directly control Aberrations. Really… comparing people was infuriating.
[I already tested it. On each floor, only one staircase leads downward—the other always leads upward. If you take the wrong one, you'll end up somewhere very wrong. That means if we want to reach the first floor, we have to cross each corridor once per floor to switch staircases. Move faster.]
[Don't worry about my safety. The reason I got caught earlier was to cover my teammates. This time I'm alone, and I already understand how this thing's ability works, so I won't get caught that easily again. Compared to that, your side is more dangerous.]
[Alright, alright, let's move. This isn't the place to chat… ah, I could really go for some booze and barbecue. Risking your life like this isn't fun at all—and there's not even any pay…]
After finishing her communication, the Aberration student controlled by Mai let out a complaint like an overworked office worker and took the lead.
The Blessing of the little girl from Shirakawa Apartments clearly indicated that this student was an Aberration—but one that held goodwill toward Takumi. That contradiction alone was enough to confirm the situation. Without hesitation, Takumi led Miko and followed it downstairs.
Miko blinked. In her vision, this Aberration student had Mai's face on a male student's body—a bizarre mismatch that felt oddly novel to her.
Tap—
The girl suddenly turned around, looking behind her.
Strange… had she just heard footsteps?
She listened carefully again, but there was nothing.
Was it just her imagination?
"Takumi-san, I think I just heard someone following us… like footsteps."
Even though it might be a false alarm, Takumi had previously told her to report anything, so after a moment of hesitation, she spoke up in a low voice.
"Really? Hmm… it should be fine. Stay close. Hold my hand."
Takumi stopped, listened carefully, then shook his head and gestured for her to continue.
It seemed nothing abnormal had happened.
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