Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

Old Guo's screams of agony had not yet stopped.

Although he was screaming pitifully, he didn't seem to be completely powerless to fight back, and was still struggling to escape from that thing's grasp.

"A formless monster that only makes the sound of footsteps, capable of killing silently; a mind-reading monster that knocks on doors and traps people through conversation; a monster that hides in houses as a corpse and follows survivors out to attack; and a fully formed monster that takes the appearance of a survivor and reveals its inhuman side after suffering a fatal wound..."

There are already at least four different things that we have seen so far.

I wonder if any more amazing things will come out next.

This is so difficult! If only we could save our progress and try again like in a game.

"Woo..."

The girl lying on top of him let out a painful whimper.

Knowing what had happened, Gao Hai lowered his head and helped Zhen Fei sit up in the pile of garbage. His gaze fell on her abdomen, where a dark red color was beginning to seep out. When they fell together, a lot of the stain had stuck to Gao Hai, staining his clothes red as well.

"It looks like things are going badly."

Gao Hai stared at the bloodstains on Zhenfei's abdomen for a moment, then sighed and said.

"Of course I know...it looks terrible...you don't need to tell me..."

Taking deep breaths, Shijo Maki struggled to sit up with the help of Takami, her small body trembling uncontrollably.

"Don't be stubborn at times like this; being too arrogant isn't cute."

Gao Hai shook his head and complained, then carefully looked around.

So far nothing has reached them, and although the smell of ash is getting stronger, it is generally safe.

It's likely that Guo, who's currently getting beaten up by the fake Kaguya, has taken a lot of the attention away from them. If that's the case, then we need to act quickly, since no one knows how long that veteran player can hold out.

"Leave me here... I'm a burden now, I'll only hold you back."

Now that she had finally calmed down a bit, Zhenfei covered the bullet hole in her stomach and said in a low voice.

Judging from the expression on her face, the girl had clearly made this decision very seriously.

"Ok, I know."

As Gao Hai spoke, he reached for the hem of his t-shirt and ripped a piece off with a "rip." Of course, he avoided the area with the red and white stains, figuring his brains wouldn't be able to speed up Zhenfei's healing.

"What are you doing? Didn't you say you could just leave me here? Finding the clock is the most important thing. Now is not the time to do this. Besides, you clearly didn't choose to save me in the first place. Shouldn't you be a rational person? Why did you choose this path?!"

Realizing what Gao Hai was about to do, Maki struggled for a moment, but due to the pain and weakness caused by her injury, she could not break free from Gao Hai's grasp. Therefore, she could only angrily question Gao Hai.

She knew that Gao Hai had intervened when she interacted with the information she was reading and was subsequently dragged into this distorted world by the shadowy figure. He hadn't chosen to save her then, but instead took the backpack from her back. He simply couldn't escape in time, and that's how he ended up falling into this place with her.

It's impossible not to feel a little uncomfortable, but Maki knew very well that it was the best choice Gao Hai could make at the time, and the decision itself was not wrong. If she could do it all over again, she would also think Gao Hai did the right thing and support his actions.

So why don't we do that now?

In such an uncertain and dangerous situation, rescuing a weakened and injured person who has lost most of their mobility is simply asking for trouble.

You should have been more rational, shouldn't you?

“Hey, don’t you ask yourself this question? How long have we known each other? Ten hours? Probably only three or four hours at most. To be honest, we’ve only exchanged a few words. We’re just strangers forced to team up because of our current predicament. You got shot for trying to save me, a stranger. Have you ever thought about how stupid you were? The rational thing to do was to just abandon me and run away, right?”

Faced with Zhenfei's question, Gao Hai simply spoke in a calm tone, quickly tying the torn t-shirt scraps around Zhenfei's waist and wrapping them tightly. His emergency bandaging was clearly not very professional; he only barely managed to stop the bleeding and caused her immense pain. Even so, despite her body trembling several times and her forehead covered in cold sweat, Zhenfei gritted her teeth and endured the pain without uttering a sound.

"That's why I've said it before, I'm different from you. I'm the eldest daughter of the Shijou family, I received the best and most comprehensive education, I was born to lead others. How could someone like me allow my follower to die like this? It's just that I made a mistake this time... Also, what does tsundere mean? I always feel that this word has a bit of a malicious connotation..."

Although she was in so much pain she was almost crying, Shijou Maki stubbornly refused to show any weakness and even became more aggressive.

"So don't be so arrogant at times like this, Miss. Although I'm not a good person, I can't just abandon the person who saved my life. Okay, now be good and listen to me. I'll carry you on my back. You'll keep an eye on the sides and back for me, and I'll keep an eye on the front. We'll try to find the clock or a way out of this place as soon as possible. Don't forget, I can't turn the clock anymore. Even if I just need someone to turn the clock, I'll spare your life."

Seeing Zhenfei like this, Gao Hai couldn't help but sigh again. Then he reached out and flicked Zhenfei's forehead, speaking in a very impolite tone.

What is this supposed to mean?

Is it a 2D anime-style romantic comedy with gore and horror elements?

If possible, could you remove the last two modifiers?

"Whoa, you! You...you actually flicked my forehead! What? You think you can act like an elder just because you're two years older... Waaah, waaah, you'll regret this. I'm really just a burden to you now..."

Maki's angry voice didn't last long before it was interrupted by a painful whimper as Takahashi roughly pulled her up and carried her on his back.

She knew the man in front of her had made up his mind, so she just muttered something in a low voice, then reached out and wrapped her arms around Gao Hai's shoulders and neck, pressing her upper body against his back somewhat awkwardly.

Being carried on the back of a man other than my father... This was the first time. I had hoped it would be a romantic experience, but instead I was in this godforsaken place with a man I had only known for a few hours, and I had been shot in the stomach with the bullet still lodged inside my body.

That's terrible...

It's absolutely terrible...

"Whatever your little moods are, put them aside for now."

Standing amidst the garbage heap, Takahashi had no idea what Maki, whom he was carrying, was thinking. He could only guess that the girl was probably feeling resentful, uncomfortable, and wronged. Although he had read the entire original manga, to be honest, truly understanding a girl's thoughts face-to-face was quite difficult.

Although he himself wasn't in a much better mood at the moment.

"If we encounter a dangerous situation later that we can't escape, I won't hesitate to use you as bait. That's the limit of my kindness. So, until then, please make the most of your remaining value and act as a good watchtower for me. Show me the aura of a noble lady."

He deliberately imitated the Japanese people's cringeworthy, childish tone.

Gao Hai casually picked up a burning piece of wood and handed it to Zhenfei, whom he was carrying, as a torch. Then he took a step forward and ran out of the pile of garbage, arriving at a completely chaotic and distorted area of ​​buildings.

"This kind of thing, humph, I know it without you telling me. Don't underestimate me, you bastard..."

This remark probably displeased Zhenfei somewhat, so she snorted a few times and then began to observe and pay attention to her surroundings.

Regardless, this man chose to take me along, since I was already incapacitated and basically just a burden.

Therefore, we must not betray their decision until true despair arrives.

With a serious expression, Princess Zhenfei's resolve was as firm as iron at this moment.

Gao Hai, who was carrying her forward, was also filled with the same intense emotions.

His current thought is very simple:

Wow, these legs are so soft, warm, smooth, and fragrant. I could play with them for a year and never get tired of them.

Shijo Maki habitually wears white ankle socks, and because of her dress-style school uniform, her entire thighs, knees, and lower legs are exposed. At this moment, Takami is carrying Shijo Maki on his back, so his hands are supporting the girl's thighs.

Of course, this lewd thought only lasted a short time in Gao Hai's mind. Soon he became serious and sped up to traverse this distorted area.

It's hard to say whether the concept of "floor" still matters in this area, as we can't determine exactly which floor we're on.

However, the immediate goal remains unchanged: to find the clock and find a way to salvage everything.

If we can find the clock with Princess Zhenfei, everything can be restored to how it was at the beginning.

Ha, now, that's the only thing we can believe...

tread--

Heavy footsteps tread through the twisted architectural structure.

It was at this moment that a surge of scalding heat suddenly came from behind.

Sensing something, Gao Hai suddenly dodged to the side, adjusting his position in mid-air to protect Zhen Fei, and the two of them landed together under a slanted double bed.

Boom!

The next moment, there was a violent explosion, and a burst of flames spread out, blasting nearby floors to collapse, with large sections of the ground and ceiling collapsing.

Old Guo's tattered backpack flew high into the air, then fell back down, revealing several homemade bombs inside that had not yet been activated, their detonation mechanisms already damaged by the high temperature.

Beneath the collapsed ground, amidst layer upon layer of shattered ruins, a gate at the very bottom, shimmering with a faint red light in the darkness, like a gateway from hell, suddenly revealed itself.

On that door was a rusty, dirty house number.

304

Chapter Twenty: Two People Traveling Through a Chaotic World

The incredibly powerful explosion shattered the floors and ceilings of at least five or six floors.

When Gao Hai helped Zhenfei to her feet from the pile of rubble, what he saw was the twisted architectural structure amidst the burning flames, extending almost endlessly from bottom to top, with no visible top or end in sight.

"Was that an explosion of this scale made with high explosives?"

The pale-faced Princess Zhen murmured to herself, then quickly noticed the unusual surroundings.

However, due to his limited mobility, it was Gao Hai who took the initiative. He grabbed Maki's shoulders and hugged her like a large rag doll, then quickly turned and fled, running away from the explosion zone.

The surrounding sounds are getting louder.

Amidst the ruins and countless chaotic doors, more and more things, startled by the tremendous commotion, began to stir.

We must not let these things hold us back.

Without a clock to turn back time, if we get caught here, it's all really over.

"Where exactly is this place? It feels like no matter which direction you go, it's all the same chaotic structure. Is this really the same apartment we stayed in before?"

While nervously observing her surroundings, Princess Zhenfei couldn't help but mutter to herself.

She thought she had seen enough illogical things today, but this place always exceeded her expectations. The endlessly stacked, broken buildings before her were like a scene of destruction in a disaster movie, yet they added a touch of surreal strangeness.

Will we really be able to find a way out of here, or find the wall clock here?

The girl's heart was gradually becoming uncertain.

"This should be the [3rd floor]."

Gao Hai answered Zhenfei calmly.

"The third floor? How can this be? The place looks like this..."

Zhenfei was stunned for a moment, not quite understanding what the other party meant.

"Regardless of what the Shirakawa Apartments were like before, it has now become an illogical and supernatural world. The second floor we were on before, perhaps because it was far from the most dangerous 304 in the Shirakawa Apartments, and also not near the exit on the first floor, seemed to be normal on the surface. But conversely, the first floor has now been hidden, and there is no way to leave through normal means. The anomaly on the third floor has expanded from 304 to the entire third floor. This whole fragmented building complex is now the third floor, an endlessly extending ruin. Well, this is just my guess, but it shouldn't be too far off from reality."

Gao Hai spoke calmly as he carried Zhenfei on his back and ran forward.

"304... If I remember correctly, when I looked down through that hole just now..."

Maki's expression changed slightly. Although she hadn't seen it very clearly at the time, she still remembered that the lowest level of the ruined building revealed after the explosion was a blood-red floor, and there stood a door there, a door that, even though she hadn't seen it clearly, still made her feel a chill.

"Yes, that's it. I think the real rooms on the third floor are hidden in various areas of this ruin. Like the place we were in before, and the hidden area that was exposed by this explosion."

As Gao Hai answered, he couldn't help but think of Lao Guo, a seasoned player who clearly had many tricks up his sleeve.