Asuna Yuuki cautiously prepared to leave the ward. She turned her whole body sideways, her back pressed against the door frame, her eyes fixed on the hideous, bloody face of the three-meter-tall terrifying monster standing there, fearing that it would suddenly make some aggressive moves if she wasn't paying attention.
But the monster, the so-called caregiver, just stood there quietly from beginning to end, which made Asuna Yuuki feel relieved.
It seemed that the inference was correct. The caregiver had no hostility towards Players and would not prevent Players from leaving. On the contrary, it would urge Players to leave through actions.
It's just because its appearance was too terrifying, and the hints, such as 'safe area' and 'no entry allowed' were so vague that could easily make people fall into misunderstandings and preconceived notions that the caregiver was an obstacle to complete the mission objective.
After her emotions finally calmed down, Asuna Yuuki looked at the man who called himself 'Akira Fususeki' but whose real name was 'Asagiri Utsunomiya', just standing there, pursed her lips, and said with a complicated expression, "Didn't we agree that I would open the door..."
"Don't get me wrong." Asagiri Utsunomiya interrupted Asuna Yuuki before she could finish her words, then said, "I didn't intend to risk my life for a girl I'd just met, to act heroic or cool, or because I couldn't bear to see you die in front of me. I'm not gentle or kind, and I'm certainly not the kind of simp who freezes and loses his ability to think at the sight of a beautiful girl.
"I went to open the door simply to prevent you from suddenly reacting to extreme fear and angering the caregiver who wasn't originally an enemy. And I trust my own reasoning. That's all."
Asuna Yuuki nodded first, but then couldn't help but wonder, "Then why didn't you just open the door of the ward at the beginning? Why did you have to wait until I was about to open the door before stopping me?"
"To test you, of course." Asagiri Utsunomiya explained calmly, "In that situation, you took the initiative to offer to open the ward door, and you actually intended to do it. This proves that you're not such a shameless person who thinks others should sacrifice for you. It also proves that you have the courage to face danger. Plus, you didn't make up a fake name when you introduced yourself before. So, you've passed my assessment."
Asuna Yuuki frowned slightly and asked in confusion, "Assessment?"
"Let's talk as we walk." After saying this, Asagiri Utsunomiya, who was about to leave, suddenly stopped, and turned around. Then he walked towards the caregiver, raised his head to look directly at the other party's face, and spoke in a relaxed tone that had become his trademark.
"I'm sorry, sir. I didn't understand the situation before and didn't know you knew it was dangerous here, so you came to urge us to leave. I even insult you. I'm very sorry."
When Asuna Yuuki saw this scene, she couldn't help but open her mouth slightly, with a look of surprise on her face. She never expected that the other party would suddenly apologize to the caregiver.
"Hmm..."
What Asuna Yuuki didn't expect was that after hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's apology, the caregiver actually nodded and squeezed out a low, deep voice from its throat, as if to express its acceptance of his apology.
*Buzz, buzz!*
The sudden sound of a phone vibrating broke the silence in the corridor.
Asagiri Utsunomiya pocketed his drill, took out his phone, and clicked on the app with the eye icon, only to see a line of text displayed inside.
[The Caregiver of ??? Asylum: Hodel Franklin's favorability towards you has increased.]
"Hey, there's also a favorability level? Interesting." Asagiri Utsunomiya said and put away his phone, then waved to the caregiver... no, Hodel Franklin, and said in a cheerful tone, "Okay, we're leaving. We'll meet again next time we have a chance, Ol' Hod."
"Ol' Hod..." When Asuna Yuuki heard Asagiri Utsunomiya addressing the tall monster with bloody face so affectionately as if they were long lost friends, and the other party's words 'We'll meet again next time we have a chance', she felt mixed emotions. If possible... she didn't want to come again.
Asagiri Utsunomiya had the exact opposite idea to Asuna Yuuki. He was sure that he would come to this asylum, whose name was not yet known, again in the future. Otherwise, what was the point of the app notifying that the favorability of the caregiver named Hodel Franklin had increased?
While leaving, Asuna Yuuki was observing the surroundings. She noticed that this corridor had many wards, similar to a normal inpatient building, and the structure of each ward was the same as the one she and Asagiri Utsunomiya had stayed in before, with only a single bed, unlike double rooms, triple rooms, etc. in normal hospitals.
Based on this detail, Asuna Yuuki became more convinced that this was indeed a mental asylum, and that those detained there were those with serious violent tendencies, or even those who committed serious crimes but could not be executed due to their mental illness.
However, the facilities of this asylum appeared very old, with rusty railings, yellow walls covered with stains and moss, stains and dirt on the floor, and the kind of elevator with rusted metal sliding doors that she had only seen in old TV dramas.
Although there was an elevator and it seemed to be working properly, Asuna Yuuki and Asagiri Utsunomiya both chose to take the stairwell.
Was the quality of the elevators here good? They finally solved the puzzle and was just one step away from clearing the dungeon. If they got stuck because of a malfunctioning elevator, it would be so miserable.
After passing through the dark stairwell and going down to the first floor hall, Asuna Yuuki looked outside and found that the sky was very gloomy. She could only vaguely see that there seemed to be a courtyard outside.
It was not until this time that Asuna Yuuki looked at Asagiri Utsunomiya, who was holding a chainsaw and a drill, and slowly said, "So, Fususeki-san, if I'm not mistaken, you know me, right?"
Asagiri Utsunomiya, without hiding anything, replied frankly, "I can't say I know you, but I do know your name and what you look like."
Hearing Asagiri Utsunomiya's answer, Asuna Yuuki muttered with a nod, "Is that so..."
When leaving the ward earlier, Asagiri Utsunomiya said that Asuna Yuuki did not make up a fake name, but gave her real name.
This revealed a message.
If he didn't know Asuna Yuuki's real name and appearance, how could he know that the name she reported was true?
"Who... are you?"
Seeing that Asuna Yuuki looked a little wary, Asagiri Utsunomiya replied with a chuckle, "Although I know your appearance and name, this is indeed the first time we've met. The reason I know this is very simple."
Asagiri Utsunomiya paused here for a moment, creating a suspense, then continued speaking.
"Because I'm the same as you, a freshman in the high school department of Shuchi'in Academy this year."