"These platforms seem to be slowly moving closer to each other, as if they are about to gather together again."
Maki looked around at the floating rock fragments nearby and keenly noticed that many of the fragments were gradually drawing closer to one another, appearing to be in the process of reassembling.
After the loss of Andres as a critical link, the instance of Red Nut Grey Cave was effectively already half destroyed. However, Hedda's obsession still had not been laid to rest, which meant that this instance could not be completely destroyed. Everything would reconverge and restore itself to its original complete structure—only what specific changes might occur during that process was difficult to say.
They could not wait for this place to reassemble. Vernon's issue had to be resolved before that happened.
Not far away, Hedda—the Aberration clad in a blood-soaked dress, her resentment surging sky-high—had already stopped attacking and was simply standing there in a daze. As for Vernon, who had now completely transformed into an Aberration, although he had already been beaten into a pile of mangled flesh, he was still writhing with difficulty, attempting to complete his experiment.
The fundamentally mechanized nature of Aberrations was, at this moment, being displayed to the fullest extent. They acted only according to fixed behavioral patterns and never considered the actual situation. To be honest, Maki was quite curious—these Horror Stories, these obsessions, these Aberrations—what exactly were they? Why did they possess such strange and terrifying power, and why were they so rigid and inflexible, completely bound by rules, as if they had been deliberately shaped to be this way?
Even if anomalous individuals appeared among them—such as Kyosei from the Shirakawa Apartments or Vernon from the Red Nut Grey Cave—these obsessions, although retaining a certain degree of humanity, were still unable to defy their own rules and would be completely constrained by them.
But who, exactly, wrote these rules?
Why were these things, in particular, restricted by all kinds of rules, possessing various weaknesses and specific conditions for being overcome, just like a game?
And setting that aside, the Red Nut Grey Cave itself—a long-running instance spanning several decades—and the Black Blood Bullet connected to this instance had already proven that many years ago, the existence of Aberrations and Horror Stories could, in fact, be recognized by people all over the world, understood by anyone, and subjected to research.
Yet Maki knew nothing about such matters. None of the players knew about them. Everyone only knew that the first game appeared roughly two years ago. Players who had survived from that period were referred to as first-generation players, and even among those who had experienced more than twenty games and stood at the very top of the player hierarchy, none of the information passed down from them contained anything regarding whether Horror Stories had existed in the past. On the forums, there had never been any posts discussing such things either.
So when did this concealment of knowledge—this thing that divided ordinary people from players—begin to exist? Where did it come from? Was someone operating behind the scenes to create this phenomenon? And this so-called Sacrifice Game—what kind of role was it actually playing among players, among humanity, and among Horror Stories?
Moreover, even setting those distant matters aside, the Red Nut Grey Cave had always been nothing more than a beginner instance. The Research Base area had never appeared at all prior to this game, and in theory, this portion of the area should have been in a dormant, sealed state before now. Then how did the American players' Black Blood Bullet come into existence? During the unfixed period of the Red Nut Grey Cave, only those with the Tourist identity should have been able to enter normally, and the raw materials for Black Blood Bullet should not have been obtainable at all.
Perhaps… the black blood stones in the Prison Zone had once been taken out of this instance, and were able to continue existing outside the instance, just like Obsession Items?
Maki suddenly thought of a plausible explanation.
That's right—just as Obsession Items can exist independently after leaving an instance, the raw materials for Black Blood Bullet, those black bloodstones transformed from living people, themselves possess Aberration-like properties. Back when the research facility still existed in a normal state, black bloodstones were likely already being taken out from here, and researched, produced, and maintained elsewhere. Since this thing can be mass-produced using human lives as raw material, then those black bloodstones that made it into the real world might also be usable in the same way, even if the users had already forgotten about the existence of the Red Nut Grey Cave.
If that were the case… then after this instance is cracked by Takumi-kun and the entire instance falls into destruction, would the American players' black bloodstones all become invalid? If the source of Black Blood Bullet truly lies in the Red Nut Grey Cave, then by destroying this instance, wouldn't they end up becoming enemies of all American players?
This possibility sent a chill through Maki.
However, there was no longer any path of regret to take. From the moment they entered this instance, Takumi-kun, due to the restrictions imposed by that Aberration watch, was required to destroy the instance in order to clear it. All she could do was assist him, and face together with him the turmoil that might come afterward.
No matter what difficulties lay ahead, Maki had no intention of leaving Takumi. Instead, she resolutely chose to remain at his side, exerting every ounce of her strength to help him.
The turbulence within the girl's heart quickly settled at this moment.
She continued hiding behind the rock together with Chika, observing among the building fragments not far away Vernon, who was still writhing with difficulty and attempting to carry out his research, as well as Hedda standing beside Vernon, who, seemingly because she had been unable to kill him for a long time, appeared to have fallen into a kind of frozen, crashed state.
For now, the situation on this side looked relatively stable. There should not be any major problems.
"Those who seek to usurp the divine throne will ultimately suffer the consequences and find no rest."
Chika spoke softly at this moment, murmuring in a low voice.
"Huh? What did you say?"
Maki turned her head. She had not clearly heard what the pink-haired girl beside her had just said.
"I was talking about Vernon. Someone who believed he could evade all punishment and become the god of a new world, yet in the end could only fall to this state—becoming an obsession forever conscious, wandering within the instance, unable to find rest. For a person like that, there probably isn't any punishment more painful than this, right?"
Chika's words carried a hint of reflection.
When Takumi reached the second floor of the Research Area and entered Gallagher's office to obtain authorization, Chika also took the opportunity to search through some materials. As a result, she found another notebook of Aston's that Vernon had collected back then, as well as some records left behind by Vernon himself, inside Gallagher's office. It seemed that these things Vernon believed he had hidden very carefully had, in fact, been discovered by Gallagher long ago; it was likely only because he did not consider them important that they had simply been left in the office untouched.
Because it had not been long since she read them, Chika could still recall, word for word, the records she had seen.
[Aston's Notes 2]
[I found quite a few animal bones inside the fissure in the "Gentle Slope" area. The Kitchala tribe of that time seems to have used this place as a site for sacrifices. They believed this was the mouth of a god—food thrown down from here would be devoured by the god, and afterward they would receive blessings.]
[Moreover, according to the records left behind by these natives, approaching this fissure outside of sacrificial periods also seemed to be dangerous? One would even suffer divine punishment? I don't really understand—this is a fissure that can be seen at a glance; who would be so brainless as to fall into it?]
[Aston's Notes 3]
[Alright, I take back what I said earlier. Damn it, I was just a little careless, and as a result I fell straight into that damn hole.]
[Being stuck inside really feels awful. My back and knees were completely scraped up, and I even injured my hands while climbing back out. Fortunately, it's quite narrow down there—at most you get stuck only a little before it ends. Getting free isn't too difficult, provided you've received professional training and are a qualified caving specialist.]
[If this place were to be developed into a tourist attraction, it would be best to surround this area with railings. I seriously doubt that no tourists would accidentally fall in. Rescuing someone from this kind of narrow fissure is by no means an easy task.]
[But honestly speaking, I'm actually quite curious. If the god of these Indians truly existed, and was really as formidable as they made it sound, then why weren't they able to survive?]
[Haha, perhaps the false god was frightened away by the radiance of the Lord.]
[Vernon's Records]
[God does indeed exist. The inspection of the "Great Rift" confirmed energy reactions similar to those within a "Blood Vessel." There is no mistake—the "Great Rift" once contained an extremely high-intensity energy reaction. The magnitude of that energy… was more than five hundred thousand times that of the "Blood Vessel" where Andres was located.]
[However, that existence is no longer inside it now.]
[The readings show that at least seven thousand years ago, the existence recorded there departed. From that day onward, all that remained within the "Great Rift" were merely traces left behind by that god. And those mere traces alone were already enough to make ignorant fools bow down in worship.]
[Those traces have now almost completely lost their power. At most, they merely induce people to fall into the fissure. But given the size and width of that broken fissure, falling in doesn't cause any real harm at all—at worst you scrape your skin a bit and feel uncomfortable for a week, and then it's over.]
[What is this supposed to mean? Is my research just over like this?]
[After striving and searching for so long, I ended up finding nothing more than a footprint left behind several thousand years ago? No, no, no—I refuse to accept this. This is not an ending I can acknowledge.]
[Let me think… sacrifice? Ah, that's right—sacrifice. Those idiot natives would throw meat and grain into the fissure and then pray. They believed that the god would receive the food they offered and then bless their tribe with prosperity. Although they were just a bunch of fools destined to be eliminated, their line of thinking might be worth borrowing.]
[Aston was a fool, and his successor Patrick Reed was an even greater fool among fools. With such a magnificent legacy of a great existence present within the cave, they were utterly incapable of discovering it, let alone making use of it. That is why they ultimately failed—and I am the one who should be able to win in the end.]
[Then let us begin. Hm, if sacrifices are to be made, sacrificing animals seems rather meaningless. Let's try sacrificing living people instead. Conveniently, according to the translated ancient texts, using captives from other tribes as offerings appears to be the highest grade of sacrifice, and the results should be quite good.]
[In the next exploration operation, let the explorers who get stuck in the fissure not come back. Mm—if that's the case, it would be best to tamper with their equipment a little, so they won't struggle their way back up or anything like that. That would be boring.]
[Good. Heaven never cuts off all paths of survival. I can always think of a way. I will keep moving forward. I will succeed.]
[God. A true god.]
[Sooner or later, I will reach that step.]
[I have already invested so much time. I will succeed. I must succeed. Failure is absolutely not allowed!]
The notebook suspected to be Vernon's diary became increasingly filled with hypnotic, self-suggestive language the further it went. In the notebook, Vernon spared no effort in praising himself, encouraging himself, repeatedly writing statements such as [I will succeed, I will become a god] to himself. Perhaps it was because he had borne considerable pressure during the course of his research, but Chika had to admit that after reading those words, which were almost crazed in nature, she felt a certain fear toward Vernon as a person.
However, for the moment, these things were not worth bringing up to share with Maki. After all, there were more important matters at hand right now.
Thus, the now-silent Chika and Maki continued monitoring Vernon's situation.
They had already prepared several different action plans, ensuring that once Takumi reached the office and issued his instructions, they would be able to restrain Vernon immediately and allow Hedda to kill him completely, thereby bringing an end to the final obsession within the Red Nut Grey Cave.
As the long wait dragged on, a measure of anxiety inevitably arose in Maki's heart.
She did not know how far Takumi had progressed on his side.
Unable to help herself, she turned her head and glanced in the direction where Kaguya had departed.
With Kaguya at his side helping out, those two should be able to reach the office smoothly.
After all, although Kaguya is somewhat irritating as a person, her abilities are very strong. With her assisting from the side, Takumi will certainly have a much easier time.
Thinking about it that way, this mission should be able to safely and smoothly make it through the final stretch. It's just a pity—if only I were a bit stronger. If that were the case, there would be no need for Kaguya to help; instead, I would be the one helping.
"…"
The instant she sensed it, Maki turned her head.
In that fleeting breath of time, she saw the gun barrel aimed directly at her.
What Blessing perceived was an abundance of goodwill—it was human, a person who was actively directing goodwill toward her.
Yet in the other party's hands, the gun barrel was already locked onto her head, and the finger resting on the trigger had already been pulled with force.
Click—
In the very next moment, just as Maki immediately made an evasive movement, the gun failed to fire a bullet.
[Huh? How could this be? Why have all the "Black Blood Bullets" disappeared?]
Rex examined the magazine in confusion, only to discover that there were actually no bullets inside at all.
Naturally, he would not understand that after Andres's obsession had dissipated, the Black Blood Bullets—being derivative products—had naturally lost the foundation for their existence and thus vanished without a trace.
However, this was not really a problem.
After confirming that the firearm was of no use, Rex casually discarded the gun, then reached behind him and drew out a sharp mountaineering ice axe.
[Please don't misunderstand. I am completely a good person. I'm here to help you.]
Rex split the corners of his mouth into a smile.
His body seemed to have only just reassembled itself from a puddle of rotten flesh. As a result, when he opened his mouth, it directly tore the inside of his oral cavity apart. And when he discarded the handgun, there was even a finger still stuck to the gun, which was thrown away together with it.
Maki's Blessing was still only able to sense goodwill—only [the goodwill released by Rex as a human being].
However, she was not surprised by this. That was because Takumi, who had previously faced Rex head-on, had already figured out this person's true situation. He knew that the so-called Rex was merely a surface shell. What truly controlled this body's actions was Vernon, the one who had transformed Rex into this state. Yet now that those Black Blood Stones had clearly disappeared, this person was still able to move. Could it be that Vernon's own anomalous power had reawakened Rex?
It seemed that Vernon was quite clear about what kind of outcome would await him if he failed to take action, which was why he decisively chose to make use of Rex once again. Even Takumi had not anticipated that after Rex had already dissolved into a puddle of rotten flesh, he would still be able to reassemble himself and act again. It could be said that from the moment Rex was exposed, Vernon had already gone along with the situation, laying a contingency plan in advance and activating it here.
[If possible, I hope you won't resist. That would be very painful.]
Gripping the mountaineering ice axe, Rex jumped down from the platform, landing beside Maki and Chika, then turned around and spoke.
Then Maki raised the handgun in her hand, aimed it at Rex, and pulled the trigger.
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang—
In less than three seconds, Maki emptied an entire magazine, then swiftly reloaded. In just 0.9 seconds, she inserted a fully loaded magazine, chambered a round, and once again aimed at Rex, who had been knocked to the ground by the consecutive shots.
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