A blood-colored city.
Just like before, a city without people.
The pain and torment he had suffered in that dark room had now completely disappeared, as though it had never existed—like a dream.
However, that statement would only apply to those who did not know about those experiences. For Takumi, who had personally endured that execution, he had truly experienced that pain and knew very clearly that none of it was any kind of dream. Because next, when he left this blood-colored city and returned once again to the real world, he would have to experience that terrifying hell again—and it was very likely that he would be sent back here several more times, each time dying in a different way.
Come to think of it, how many times had he already come to this city?
It seemed like the fifth time.
Takumi reached out and touched his face, then touched his stomach and chest. After confirming that the cuts that had been opened on his body were gone, he slowly let out a breath and then simply sat down on the ground with a thud.
When he recalled how his face had been split down the middle and then torn apart like ripping bread—with even strands stretching during the process—Takumi felt extremely uncomfortable.
Moreover, this time it was again a situation where he could not even seek death. Damn it, what exactly was going on with that Alice? She casually made a flesh doll, and it could actually trap a person's consciousness inside the doll forever, unable to die? Was that ability something she had already possessed before death, or was it a power she obtained after death when she became an Aberration? No, no—come to think of it, is that thing really an Aberration? She can converse with people, set traps and schemes, and can freely use Aberration powers without restraint. All the limitations that Aberrations normally have seem not to exist for her at all. This thing is clearly already different from a normal Aberration, isn't it?
Especially that vile, twisted personality—she actually felt more like a living person…
Thinking this, Takumi extended his hand and looked at his palm.
At this moment, his palm was naturally clean, with nothing on it.
But Takumi had already recalled that when he had been trapped by Alice's inhuman charm, during the process he had suddenly felt his palm become wet. At the time, he had thought it was simply sweat from his hand, but now that he thought back on it, that had clearly been when Alice stuffed the blood-stained pen into his hand.
As for what happened afterward—Alice killing Yoshino Rika and showing him that bloody pen—it had merely been an illusion. In reality, she had already killed that girl long before, and at that time he had actually already triggered the rule and was destined to die.
Then why hadn't I died on the spot, but instead was only executed after I discovered the bloody pen in my hand?
Was it because of Alice's own cruel sense of amusement?
After all, this Alice had triggered the effect of his blessing. After that thing possessed Miko, Takumi had already sensed that something was wrong through Hedda's blessing. Because of that, he could be certain that Alice herself possessed an absolutely antisocial and twisted personality—an extreme state that a normal person could never reach.
However, it was also possible that within all these seemingly irregular events, some kind of rule was still operating behind the scenes.
If that were the case… perhaps it was because I must know the origin of the item and realize that I already possess the game-clearing item before Alice can execute me. Or perhaps, if this Alice wants to carry out an execution, she must make the target of the execution understand what has happened. But if that were the case, then what about Yoshino Rika? She had been killed directly, and her candle seemed to have been extinguished by Alice with some kind of power. Wait… could it have something to do with identity? Rika had already become a Bad Kid, so killing her required no adherence to any rules and could be done directly. Meanwhile, my identity is Teacher, so the process of the Alice Game must be followed?
Takumi thought of several possibilities, but since the chain of information could not yet be established, he could only temporarily record these conjectures without any way to confirm which one was true.
'No matter what, for the next second run, I need to carefully consider what I should do.'
Thinking this, Takumi turned his head and looked at the crack in the ground behind him.
"More people have shown up."
Within the fiercely burning flames, many more figures had now appeared.
The Takeda couple—those two old acquaintances—were still burning. Then there were Anthony Tovan, that mayor, and many politicians and reporters from the United States. Together they numbered fifteen people, all burning together. In addition there was Vernon himself, along with researchers from the research base, soldiers, and some exploration personnel as well—more than thirty people in total.
"Oh, and Patrick Reed too. That man was also in the sea of fire. Although there had been an element of coercion in what he went through, that did not change the fact that, in essence, he was also a bastard who treated human life like grass and was obsessed with wealth. It could only be said that when he was in front of his friend Wilbur, he still looked somewhat like a human being, but when facing those tourists and employees, he turned into a beast."
Fifty-six people.
That was the current number of burning firewood in the blood-colored city.
Takumi estimated that there should originally have been even more. For example, that General Gallagher could have been pulled in as well. But perhaps only those who could still preserve a certain degree of selfhood, who still possessed a self, could be dragged into this sea-of-fire hell. After all, the Red Nut Grey Cave had been operating for many years. Probably some villains had already had their souls scattered and ceased to exist before Takumi broke through the Instance.
The rollback time had now been shortened to forty-one days. He only needed to let forty-one days pass for his watch to automatically recover one charge. Because more than a month had already passed outside the Instance, plus the time that had passed inside it, Takumi now only needed to wait two more days to recover one rollback use.
Two days? But in my first run, in the Instance of Fujihana Middle School, I only survived for a little over an hour before dying.
Takumi could not help but feel a bit of a headache. Of course, it was only a headache—he was not afraid. After all, although he had not found a way to clear it, he had already found many ways to survive. For example, if he stuffed the candle directly into the watch at the start, he could ensure that the Very Bad Wolf would be unable to attack him from beginning to end. That alone would directly solve one troublesome problem and free up one of his hands to do more things.
Also… yes, as expected, it's there.
Raising his head, Takumi saw those items gradually falling from the sky.
First, there were several dozen candles.
Takumi had not gotten his blood on those candles, but it seemed that because he had stored them in the watch's space, those things were still judged to be items owned by him, and so they directly fell in front of him.
In other words, those students whose candles had been snatched away would now directly activate at the very start of the Instance.
Next, there was a blood-stained sheep-head hood.
Mm, that's right. The hood that could give Takumi the identity of Teacher had also been pulled in by the watch. Takumi remembered that this thing would gradually fuse together with flesh and blood. It was probably during that process that it came into contact with his blood, causing it to be judged as his possession.
Unfortunately, there was no Outstanding Student badge. It seemed that thing did not actually have much practical significance and was merely an item used to transform identity.
Then after that was… hm? A jointed blood puppet?!
Looking at this Obsession Item that had been lost and then regained, Takumi froze.
In the Red Nut Grey Cave Instance, Takumi had originally given this Obsession Item to Maki and Kaguya. But during an attack in the research base, in order to escape the pursuit of the Aberration, they had thrown this thing out and failed to recover it, which caused this Obsession Item to be lost in the end.
Now this thing had returned.
By the power of the watch, it had been pulled back from who knows where.
"So as long as an Obsession Item has been stained with my blood, it can be retrieved. This thing can even recover an Obsession Item that was discarded after being contained? Isn't that a bit too ridiculous?"
Wanting to complain, Takumi then looked toward the next Obsession Item.
The next Obsession Item was a white sheep doll.
Yes, that's right—the one Alice had used in the first run to store Takumi's brain and internal organs.
"So this thing is actually an Obsession Item? And it just happens to be the one used to hold my corpse after I was killed. Does this count as me entering the Instance while carrying my own urn? No, wait, I wasn't dead at the time. At most this thing counts as a skin suit. But if it's a skin suit, does that mean I could debut as a youtuber? Though in recent years, that probably wouldn't be very appropriate."
After casually making a few sarcastic remarks, Takumi picked up the white sheep doll, and soon understood how this thing worked.
Its effect was simple: it could take a fatal blow in his place.
Because this stuffed toy had absorbed Takumi's blood, it could to some extent be regarded as him. When Takumi encountered a fatal attack, this doll could substitute for him.
And this substitution was active. Including situations like when Alice had turned him into a living cloth doll before—if that happened again, as long as he could remain conscious, he could replace the flesh and blood of the cloth doll with this toy, and then revive himself at full health.
One doll could substitute for death once. After completing one substitution, the doll would enter an out-of-control state. As for how that loss of control manifested… it was hard to tell. It seemed to be sending coordinates to Alice? After this thing was used, it seemed capable of tracking the player.
"In terms of effect, no player could possibly resist the temptation. But once it's used, Alice will lock onto you? That really is quite a vicious Obsession Item."
Takumi shook his head, then looked toward the final two dolls and a chopping knife.
Yes, that's right—the watch had pulled in three dolls for him. One had contained his own flesh and blood. The other two had been brought in because they had been splashed with his blood during his self-destruction. And that knife had been the one Alice used to cut his flesh. All of them had been dragged in by the watch.
Aside from "ridiculous," Takumi could not think of any other word to describe this black watch.
The chopping knife was about half a meter long, the kind used for splitting firewood, its blade stained with blood. After obtaining it, Takumi sensed that this thing not only possessed extremely sharp properties, but also seemed to have a special effectiveness against the Aberrations within Fujihana Middle School. As long as it was an Aberration in the school—whether a student, a teacher, or anything else—this chopping knife could dismember it. Moreover, after dismemberment, it would greatly reduce the Aberration's recovery and regeneration speed. It was a special Obsession Item that existed specifically for Fujihana Middle School.
Perhaps it was this knife that had carried out massacre after massacre within this school.
As for the two dolls that had been splashed with his blood after his self-destruction, this was…
He could sense the presence of living people.
Among the two dolls, one rabbit doll had the name Toyama Akira written on it, while the brown bear doll had the name Kumagai Mai written on it. Inside both dolls, the presence of living people could be felt.
Moreover, it was not an aura that ordinary people could possess, but clearly the aura of players—and players far stronger than ordinary ones. Even after enduring long periods of torment, that presence could still be clearly felt.
Inside these two dolls were two players who could at least complete Dark Night-level Instances. Perhaps… it was even possible that they were Red Moon-level players?!
If I can restore them to normal, turn them from living dolls back into human beings—if these two players can still retain their sanity and cooperate properly with others—then I will no longer be fighting alone. I will no longer have to face a Red Moon-level Instance by myself while dragging along a fragile True Sight and a group of pure deadweights.
Players who could be captured by Alice in an Instance like Fujihana Middle School could not possibly be the kind of bottom-tier players who muddle through Dusk-level Instances.
So if I can truly free these two dolls…
Dong—
The first toll of the bell had already sounded.
Takumi set down the dolls in his hands and raised his head to look at this blood-colored city.
It was time to make a wish.
After experiencing death many times, Takumi had already understood that every time he arrived at this place after dying, he could make one wish to this blood-colored city. As long as the wish was reasonable enough and within the limits he could bear, it might be granted.
So what kind of wish should I make?
Suppress the Instance's out-of-control catalyzing effect on Dusk-level Obsession Items? No, that would be meaningless, and the cost would definitely not be low.
Have the true nature of Alice directly revealed to me? Although I really want to know what that thing actually is, such a wish is unrealistic. Even if it could be fulfilled, I would not be able to afford its cost.
I must consider what I most need to know right now.
What do I need…
I already know that there is something wrong with that black umbrella, so in the second run I will not use it. That will greatly reduce the possibility of Miko being possessed, which will give me a guarantee when exploring the enemy situation. I also know how to deal with the candle problem, so in the second run no one needs to open the classrooms to trigger those eerie students, which means the number of enemies can be controlled to a certain extent in the short term. In addition, with the sheep-head hood, many of the pitfalls I stepped into during the first run can already be avoided in the second run. Therefore, I must carefully consider what I need the most right now.
So, what do I need?
Takumi closed his eyes, then quickly opened them again in realization.
I need a direction.
I cannot run around the Teaching Building like a headless fly.
That "Alice" seemed to have the ability to influence the entire Teaching Building, so gathering information was extremely dangerous and it was easy to get trapped. I needed to know how I could find the right direction, how I could break through layer upon layer of fog and find the truly correct place.
This wish was a one-time expenditure, but it was definitely also a wish that would require paying a huge price, so I should make it vague and weakened to a certain extent, reducing the difficulty of fulfilling this wish as much as possible.
So, what I need is—
[The direction of the location of something that can help guide me toward the correct direction of investigation]
After weighing it several times, Takumi finally said this to himself in his mind.
Dong—
The second chime had already rung.
And at this moment, Takumi also felt some kind of power responding to him.
This black watch had already gained a new function.
This function could only be used once in each Instance, and each use required consuming 3 rewind charges; one use would consume one quarter of the slots.
After using it, Takumi would obtain a direction. The thing existing in that direction would definitely be able to help with his investigation, help him find the truth, and be beneficial to cracking the Instance's core obsession and destroying the Instance.
Dong—
The third chime had already rung.
Takumi could vaguely sense the existence of Maki and Chika, in the distant faraway place that was almost already beyond reach.
The watch's ability could still be activated. He could let Chika and Maki retain their memories, and he could also let Chika unlock spiritual communication with him. But that had no meaning, so it was impossible for him to use such a function now.
It was time to keep moving forward.
With that thought, Takumi closed his eyes, then felt a strong sensation of falling.
Darkness wrapped around everything once again.
Then, when the darkness dispersed, Takumi opened his eyes and discovered that he was sitting in a classroom seat, surrounded by students who were still slumped over their desks unconscious.
This was Class 015, second-year middle school, on the 5th floor of the Teaching Building of Fujihana Middle School. He had returned.
Returned to the moment when everything began. Unfortunately, it was not a return to when he was still at home and Miko had just come to the door. But returning to this point was still not bad.
"Mm..."
Miko, in the seat beside him, let out a low groan at this moment, then slowly opened her eyes.
She heard the sound of footsteps coming from beside her.
It seemed that someone had passed by her side, and had even casually taken something from the desk she had been lying on.
And also... why was there a strange stench, like something had rotted, and why did she suddenly feel a chill rising from the bottom of her heart?
No, no, where exactly am I right now? I clearly remember that I had finally managed to escape together with Takumi-san...
"You little brats, you little pieces of trash, is the classroom a place for you to sleep?"
"At your age, how can you be sleeping? I'm talking right now, and every single one of you is lying there—what exactly are you trying to do?"
A cold voice suddenly rang out at that moment.
All the girls woke under the stimulus of a wave of chill, then got up in confusion and saw the rule sheet placed on their desks. Mm, there were no candles; there were no candles on any of the desks.
Then they heard the sound of a person lightly coughing. After raising their heads, they saw a man wearing a sheep-head hood and rescue team clothing, standing on the podium with his arms folded across his chest. That sheep head was tilted slightly, as if it were looking at them sidelong.
Then, after their gazes had all focused on this sheep-headed man, he reached out, lightly tapped the desk, and then spoke in a serious tone: "So, in summary, you've been kidnapped by me."
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