"What do you need me for?"
"Didn't you sleep well?"
Horikita Manabu walked over. Bai Yuze, sitting in a chair, was startled by the dark circles under his eyes, then handed him a drink.
Horikita Manabu hesitated for a moment but still took the drink.
"I wanted to ask, are the difficulties of these instances all the same?"
Bai Yuze asked the question that had puzzled him for a long time. If everyone had to go through the same difficulty as his instance, then it would be good if fifty first-year students survived.
Or did it mean that everyone in this school was extraordinary?
But this idea was quickly dismissed by Bai Yuze. Yamauchi Haruki was pretty much as described in the book, unless Yamauchi Haruki had been cursed and matched with him in an instance.
"The first trial is always simple. Usually, no one dies, and even the anomalies inside lack aggression. At most, they just scare players."
"Is that so? Then did I enter the wrong instance, or did you describe it incorrectly?"
Bai Yuze chuckled. Oh, how "lacking in aggression." Indeed, the anomalies inside were all "amiable," and they would leave on their own after eating people.
"But there's an exception: players who possess a Guaidan. The instances for these players are very difficult, especially the first instance after consuming a Guaidan. The difficulty will greatly increase.
Therefore, most players wait until they have sufficient strength before choosing to consume a Guaidan, to improve their survival rate."
Bai Yuze's mouth twitched. So, he, a bronze player, had stumbled into a high-tier match, huh? No wonder everyone else looked so at ease, while he was in such a sorry state.
"Then why didn't you say so before?"
"You didn't ask. Besides, saying it wouldn't have done any good, it would only have caused more anxiety... However... you're not bad. At least you came back from there."
After saying this, Bai Yuze noticed Horikita Manabu's lips curl slightly. Bai Yuze immediately understood that Horikita Manabu was getting back at him for calling him "brother-in-law."
"Then I really appreciate your concern, brother-in-law! After all, Suzune still needs me to take care of her. How could I die in there?!"
Kicking a cripple's good leg, slapping a mute's good mouth.
Bai Yuze was extremely grateful to Horikita Manabu. If he didn't stir up some trouble for Class D, he'd eat instant noodles without a seasoning packet for the rest of his life.
People can't learn from others, but they learn instantly from experience. Wasn't this indirectly fulfilling Horikita Manabu's request?
Horikita Manabu's mouth twitched, but he managed to suppress the urge to punch the guy in front of him.
"Wait, since this school is to help innocent people chosen by The Strange World, why did you want your sister to drop out? Wouldn't it be safer to stay here?"
Bai Yuze suddenly remembered Horikita Manabu's earlier insistence on Horikita Suzune dropping out. Thinking about it now, it seemed illogical.
"Suzune has always looked up to me as a role model since childhood. I said I liked long hair, so she kept her long hair. I said to learn to be aloof, but she misunderstood my meaning and never socialized with anyone."
"Uh... you're saying it, but why do I feel like you're showing off?"
Bai Yuze felt like Horikita Manabu was about to burst out laughing any second. Isn't it good to have a sister who clings to you, a brother-complex who takes her brother as a role model in everything?
How could he say such a pretentious thing with a helpless expression?
"I understand Suzune. She has followed in my footsteps all these years. I originally thought being chosen by The Strange World would make her give up this idea, but who knew... she was chosen too..."
"Oh, so you deliberately said those things to ignite your sister's competitive spirit and motivation to pursue you? To make her double her vigilance in The Strange World? But you might be disappointed; your sister hasn't grown at all, and seems to have even regressed."
Bai Yuze understood. No wonder Horikita Manabu both wanted Horikita Suzune to drop out and spent points to have him help Horikita Suzune. In summary, it was three words: 'Tsundere!'
"I had already anticipated that..."
Horikita Manabu said, then pulled out a phone. The personal points on the phone reached eight digits.
"The Student Council President is quite wealthy, huh? Did you start boosting?"
Bai Yuze speculated that since innocent people were drawn into The Strange World, there must be wealthy individuals and tycoons. Such people, wanting to survive, would gather "veterans" who frequently navigated The Strange World, much like boosting in games.
"Some instances can yield specific points. Usually, the school has people posting bounty quests. Of course, strange artifacts can also be traded in the school market, and wealthy scions hire others to survive."
"So... you're saving so many points to pave the way for your sister?"
Bai Yuze looked at Horikita Manabu's dark circles and then at the enormous number on Horikita Manabu's phone. This changed Bai Yuze's perception of Horikita Manabu, and his gaze became respectful.
"If more than half of the students in a class experience an anomaly resurrection, the class will be forcibly disbanded. I've looked at Suzune's class... aside from a few special students, everyone else... is quite ordinary."
"So you plan to use points to transfer Horikita Suzune to another class?"
"Yes, when Suzune's class reaches that point, I will do so."
Horikita Manabu answered without hesitation, but Bai Yuze's words made him silent...
"Then have you ever considered... what if your sister dies in The Strange World?"
The path is laid, but if the person is gone, it's like a monk buying a comb — useless.
Although it sounds cruel, that's the reality. With Horikita Suzune's abilities and personality, if she doesn't correct herself, she will eventually die in The Strange World, either carelessly killed by an anomaly or betrayed by someone.
Her luck can't last forever. Currently, she's matched with capable teammates, but what about later?
What if an even more outrageous person than Yamauchi Haruki shows up? Wouldn't she be screwed?
As the saying goes: "When I become the team's ACE, I know this game is lost."
Horikita Manabu fell silent. He had also considered such a situation, but what could he do? This cursed world was just so absurd.
He could only slowly, bit by bit, strive for more hope for his sister to survive... even if it was just a tiny chance.
"By the way... can't you personally go in and guide your sister through the instances?"
Bai Yuze voiced his inner thought. Since "boosting" existed here, why wouldn't Horikita Manabu, with his abilities, guide his sister through the instances?
This plan would both strengthen their sibling relationship and help Horikita Suzune grow, as Horikita Suzune only listened to her brother...
"It's useless. In an anomaly instance, if the power gap between two people is too large, the difficulty will be set according to the strongest person's difficulty. At that point, let alone Suzune, I wouldn't even be able to protect myself..."