Yuuki was certainly not honest, but he wasn’t evil either, and had nothing to do with being reclusive or tyrannical.
The preparations he had made over the years were to cope with crises and truly enjoy his youthful daily life.
If even his personality changed, wouldn’t that be putting the cart before the horse?
His fingers tapped lightly on his thigh, gliding over the deep crimson light, listening carefully to the sounds coming from the walkie-talkie.
The other two groups also found nothing.
That Garden completely defied common sense; it bloomed so brilliantly, yet not a single drop of water could be found.
As for the unknown fruits, no one dared to try them.
Ryan decided to go to the city wall first to check.
Ai, on the other hand, was wandering around the building, occasionally making some noisy sounds, and he didn’t know what she was doing.
The unknown enveloped everyone like the moonlight.
Even Yuuki relaxed a little, thinking about how best to use his Reinforcement Magic charges, but he still didn’t know what the crisis was, so he had to endure.
‘Twenty minutes of rest, time to continue.’
He glanced at his watch, then turned his head with a half-smile: “Hey, are you still mad?”
Mai sat in the corner, propping her head up and ignoring him, a faint ‘hmph’ sound coming from her.
The two of them had gotten to know each other a bit.
Just now, Yuuki had boldly thrown out a suggestive pose, which had angered the bunny girl senpai.
“I’m telling the truth, and only the truth can make us trust each other.”
“Hmph, it was just a bit too unpleasant to hear,” Mai finally turned her head, her purple eyes full of dissatisfaction.
Whether it was due to dungeon prompts or personal preferences, Yuuki was willing to be tied to Mai.
But in a game, there was no time to get to know each other slowly, so Yuuki added a reason for his trust:
You’re too famous.
If you backstab me and I happen not to die, seeking revenge on you wouldn’t be difficult.
‘Good thing I stopped my acting career several years ago, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to play.’ Mai deeply felt the disadvantage of being an idol.
According to Ryan, after completing the dungeon, they would return to reality, and this guy and she were clearly not far apart, a reason so true it was impossible to refute.
But it’s better than baseless trust, which makes me feel more at ease.
Annoyed as she was, Mai admitted that the reason was just right, because the reverse was also true: with her connections, finding him for revenge would also not be difficult.
“Alright, anyway, we’re in the same boat.
It’s better than the others,” Mai walked back, her eyes full of vigilance: “But you’re not allowed to have strange thoughts about me.”
“Given your attire, that’s difficult,” Yuuki teased, then immediately corrected himself: “But I can try.”
“That’s more like it,” the girl lowered her raised foot, recovering a bit of her liveliness.
This beautiful girl had thorns, just like the short dagger she always held in her hand.
According to Mai, she couldn’t kill others but she could kill herself, and if she was covered in blood, others probably wouldn’t be interested anymore.
That’s good.
In this dangerous game, he didn’t need a clingy girl.
He didn’t expect her to be useful, but at least not to hold him back.
After a short rest, the two continued to explore the old castle.
After passing through the banquet hall, they entered another building.
This place seemed to be for guards or servants, and the decorations were far less luxurious than the previous building.
The carpet was gone, and their leather shoes made a ‘creak, creak’ sound as they stepped.
The wall bricks were also covered with tiny cracks, and the red moonlight shone in through the cracks and windows, permeating everywhere.
The walkie-talkie crackled, and Hayasaka’s voice could no longer be heard, which made Mai immediately move closer to Yuuki, feeling a chill down her spine.
“Let’s go back, we definitely won’t find any food.”
“You’re not so hungry you can’t walk, are you?”
Mai’s face flushed slightly, and she subconsciously covered her flat stomach.
Not drinking water for over four hours wasn’t a big deal, but after her tense nerves relaxed, she felt an intense urge to eat.
“No.”
“Really no?”
“Really no! I just think wasting physical strength like this is very irrational.”
Your stomach is rumbling.
It’s the middle of the night; dinner should have been ten hours ago.
Yuuki was also thirsty and hungry, but he didn’t expose her, casually replying: “I’m not looking for food, but rather for a place where the Red Moon’s light doesn’t reach. Maybe there will be some unexpected gains.”
Huh?
Mai’s mouth slightly agape, seeing his serious profile, she couldn’t quite keep up with his thoughts.
Normal people were looking for water and food, but this person was looking for a place where the moonlight couldn’t reach.
“Why? Is it valuable?”
“Not valuable for now, but this game has puzzle-solving elements, and to solve puzzles, you need to gather information and not be led by the nose.” Yuuki pushed open a wooden door and saw the stairs leading to the first floor.
“Did you notice that it’s almost four in the morning, and that Red Moon hasn’t moved at all?”
It really was true.
Mai looked out the window.
The Red Moon hanging alone in the night sky indeed hadn’t set with time.
But what did that mean?
It wasn’t even certain if they were on Earth right now.
“Let’s go back. We’re getting farther and farther from Ryan and the others.”
“Don’t rush. Let’s find the basement first. A castle can’t not have one.”
The girl rolled her eyes in slight frustration, having underestimated Yuuki’s stubbornness.
She turned to glance at the deep corridor, then quickly followed him into the stairwell, only to bump into Yuuki’s back as he suddenly stopped.
“What are you doing now?”
“Shh.”
Yuuki turned and made a shushing gesture, his stern expression immediately making Mai close her mouth, staring at the man without daring to breathe.
Their eyes met, their bodies almost touching, yet there was no hint of ambiguous feelings.
Both pricked up their ears and tensed their muscles.
‘He wouldn’t be intentionally taking advantage of me, would he?’ Mai found herself feeling as if she was being held in Yuuki’s arms.
Just as she was about to pull away, she heard a strange sound.
Thud.
It sounded like footsteps, or like water drops splashing on the floor.
Besides the static on the walkie-talkie, a breathing sound like a bellows was heard.
Almost at the same time, both of them looked up.
Upstairs?
Hayasaka’s group?
Mai instinctively reached for the walkie-talkie, but Yuuki glared at her, and she instinctively put it down.
She didn’t know why, but after these few hours of interaction, Yuuki gave her a very professional impression.
Not an old player, and definitely not like a confused new player.
The Red Moon’s gift is here already?
Yuuki never forgot [Hint Four].
He wasn’t just exploring the basement; he wanted to know what the ‘gift’ actually was.
At least in front of Mai, he didn’t have to be restrained.
Thud, thud, thud. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
The strange sound was getting closer and closer.
Yuuki kept turning his head but saw nothing.
His vision only showed mottled walls and the crimson moonlight he had grown accustomed to.
A certain eerie atmosphere was brewing.
Perhaps it was an illusion, but the crimson moonlight in the hallway was gradually thickening.
Yuuki no longer waited, grabbing Mai’s slender wrist.
“Run!”
He turned and ran towards the banquet hall they had just left, ignoring the girl’s hurried breathing, and resolutely focused his mind.
A change had already appeared in the deep corridor:
A dark object fell through the ceiling in front of them, and crimson liquid spread across the floor.
Yuuki focused his eyes and then heard a sharp scream behind him.
“It’s that college student!”
It was indeed the White college student, at least his clothes were his.
That handsome head with a somewhat delicate aura had turned directly into a smashed watermelon, and his clothes were covered in red and white liquid.
Unlike Mai, who only focused on the bloody scene, Yuuki observed carefully as he ran past the corpse, seeing a huge blood-hole in the chest and various internal organs dug out.
It looked like it was caused by claws.
Was the opponent a beast-type monster?
The scene was terrifying, but Yuuki actually breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as it wasn’t a ghost or something, it was fine.
He hadn’t had the conditions to prepare for such skills over the years.
Stepping through the pool of blood, a slimy sensation came.
Mai felt the smell of blood like a hand gripping her throat.
This was completely different from the ‘head exploding’ novice guide.
This college student was alive and well just a few hours ago, and his gentlemanly demeanor had left her with a good impression.
Yet now, his body lay before her like a rag doll.
‘What happened to Hayasaka?
Will I also die so tragically?’
Fear climbed into her heart, chilling her spine, like someone falling off a cliff.
The sensation of the hand gripping her wrist suddenly became incredibly clear.
Her fingertips twitched, and she instinctively wanted to grasp Yuuki’s hand, but soon, this last reliance also vanished without a trace.
Yuuki suddenly stopped, turned, and threw her out, looking directly into her purple eyes filled with shock and anger.
The meaning in her eyes was obvious:
You really aren’t a good person!
This was clearly using her as bait to hold off some terrifying monster, but a moment later, Mai felt she was terribly wrong.
Crack.
Accompanied by the crisp sound of breaking wood, spiderweb-like cracks covered the floor beneath Yuuki’s feet, then with a ‘boom’, it shattered, and amidst flying sawdust, he plunged directly to the first floor.
Thump, thump, thump.
Yuuki felt sharp pain coming from various parts of his body, as if he had hit several hard objects, but he didn’t care about the physical pain at all.
Activating Reinforcement Magic.
He couldn’t worry about so much anymore.
This first use of a supernatural skill was in actual combat!