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"These are Hinata-chan's search records from the past month," Shinomiya Kaguya picked up an intel page. "Her previous search records were very ordinary: celebrities, food, cute pets, gossip... Until six days ago, the search content changed, and the first search related to nightmares appeared."
Amamiya Natsuki looked down at the paper.
Six days ago, the junior high school girl's search records included content like "Why do I have nightmares all night?" and "Why can't I move in my dreams?"
Clearly.
The nightmare curse had already appeared.
Fujiwara Chika asked curiously:
"So, Hinata-chan's exposure to the nightmare was six days ago?"
Shinomiya Kaguya shook her head:
"To be precise, it should be seven days ago."
"Huh?" Kitagawa Marin blinked in confusion. "Why?"
"I know!" Koyasu Tsubame's eyes lit up. "That junior high school girl only searched for things related to nightmares on her phone the day after she had the nightmare, so the actual time she had the nightmare was the day before."
Amamiya Natsuki looked admiringly: "Senpai is so smart."
"Perfunctory."
Koyasu Tsubame's eyes darted around, and she gave him an exasperated glare.
She was a high school student, after all. Even an elementary school student could figure out such a simple deduction!
"Counting back seven days, it's exactly a week," Kitagawa Marin put her hands on her hips and mused, "So, last weekend?"
"Exactly. We need to focus on where Hinata went and what she did last weekend."
"..."
After confirming the time, everyone retrieved the information and quickly completed the junior high school girl's Sunday activity track.
"Surveillance shows that the junior high school girl Hinata left home at a few minutes past ten in the morning and met a girl named Misaki at a dessert shop to eat dessert."
"Immediately after, the two went to a bookstore to buy books."
"After leaving the bookstore, the two went together to a shopping mall, where they had lunch. Their afternoon activities included shopping and watching a movie."
"They left the shopping mall at 5:10 PM, took the Train Station home, and arrived home at 5:36 PM, after which they did not leave the house again."
Simply put, this junior high school girl's Sunday activities were very simple: just eating, drinking, and playing. There were no suicidal behaviors like exploring abandoned Ghost Houses or playing spirit-summoning games with friends.
Shinomiya Kaguya stood in front of the small blackboard, holding a piece of chalk. It was a pity she lacked a pair of glasses, otherwise she could completely contend for the title of most beautiful teacher, and analyzed:
"The Sunday activity itinerary is as above, and there are a few points worth noting."
"Firstly, the nightmare phenomenon did not spread on a large scale, proving that the place where Hinata encountered the strange entity was not a public place, and only Hinata was infected with the nightmare curse; her friend was not infected."
"That makes sense." Fujiwara Chika cupped her chin with her right hand, nodding in agreement. "Just seeing the sketch can infect one with the nightmare curse. If it broke out in a public place, I feel like the entire Tokyo would be in danger."
Koyasu Tsubame pursed her pink lips: "It's a good thing we got the mission. If it were those dark-hearted criminals who spread that sketch online, wouldn't everyone in the world be infected with the nightmare curse?"
Amamiya Natsuki looked over, feigning shock:
"Senpai is so scary! Chika was only thinking about Tokyo being in danger, and Senpai is already considering cursing the entire world?"
"I didn't!" Koyasu Tsubame's eyes darted around, and she gave him an annoyed glare. "Given the current situation, the possibility of widespread infection and transmission does exist, right?"
"I have a question!" Kitagawa Marin raised her right hand, posing a question. "Kaguya-chan said that the strange Nameless woman is not in a public place, but all of Hinata's activities were in public places, right?"
"That's right," Fujiwara Chika nodded. "Bookstores, restaurants, shopping malls, movie theaters—these are all public places."
Shinomiya Kaguya said with a calm expression:
"They are public places, yes, but there must be a place where she was alone. This is precisely the area we need to find, such as a restroom, a photo studio, and a newly opened escape room venue in the shopping mall."
After a pause, Shinomiya Kaguya continued:
"In fact, we can already rule out places like bookstores and dessert shops. Although there aren't many ordinary people infected with the nightmare curse, Hinata isn't the only one; some people have already posted complaints and help requests online."
Amamiya Natsuki didn't hide the matter of the nightmare curse; he clearly explained it in the mutual aid group. The hacker player who took on the commission naturally knew the stakes involved and, without Amamiya Natsuki even needing to remind him, thoughtfully filtered and compiled all recent online information about the nightmare curse and sent it over.
If only Hinata was infected, it would indeed be difficult to find, but by compiling the activity trajectories of all nightmare infectees, the final intersection would be the answer.
"In summary," Shinomiya Kaguya circled a location on the small blackboard with chalk, "the location of the strange Nameless woman is more than 80% likely to be in the escape room venue."
Escape rooms are similar to Ghost Houses in gameplay, but lean more towards adventure and puzzle-solving. Not every corner or prop will be explored, and as for what exactly it is, they'll only know once they go there.
Amamiya Natsuki sat below, sincerely saying:
"Teacher Kaguya, you've worked hard."
Fujiwara Chika: "Teacher Kaguya, you've worked hard."
Marin: "Teacher Kaguya, you've worked hard."
"..."
"That's enough, all of you." The the Young Lady raised her hand and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, giving Amamiya Natsuki, who was leading the teasing, an exasperated look. Then she said, "Are we going after school, or what?"
"Of course we're going now," Fujiwara Chika said decisively. "Who knows if that strange entity will run around? Better safe than sorry. We need to eliminate it early to feel at ease."
"Exactly." Kitagawa Marin put her hands on her hips and nodded in agreement, "That Nightmare Curse is as terrifyingly contagious as the zombie virus. What's skipping one day of class? We're saving the world."
"That…" Koyasu Tsubame coughed twice, "We don't need to skip class, asking for leave is fine too, right?"
"That's settled then." Amamiya Natsuki stood up, "Let's meet at the school gate later."
As the top student in his grade, it was quite easy for Amamiya Natsuki to ask for leave. He simply made up a reason and got the teacher's approval—this was one of the privileges of an excellent student.
After getting his leave approved, Amamiya Natsuki left the office and went to the hallway, taking out his phone to message Miko.
"Natsuki, what's wrong?"
Upon receiving the message, Miko quickly walked out from the classroom next door.
"It's like this…" Amamiya Natsuki quietly explained what happened in the Student Council, "You go ask your teacher for leave, and we'll go to the shopping center together. I'll tutor you when we get home tonight."
It didn't matter if the senpai went or not; after all, she hadn't mastered any skills yet, so going would just be to make up numbers. But Miko was different.
Despite being an ordinary person, she could see various evil spirits, making her a genuine 'supernatural ability user.' Her innate ability had even been certified by the game, especially her advanced spiritual vision, which could see through various illusions. It was very necessary to bring her along.
Being thoroughly prepared before acting had always been Amamiya Natsuki's principle.
After listening, Miko pursed her pink lips in distress and whispered:
"It might be hard for me to get leave. I haven't rested well these past few days and always zone out and feel sleepy in class. I've already been called out by the teacher. Without a proper reason, the teacher definitely won't agree."
"That's true…" Amamiya Natsuki mused for two seconds before giving a reason, "Just say that you've been sleepy and easily fatigued lately, with chest tightness and pain, elevated basal body temperature, and nausea and vomiting, and you need to go to the Hospital for a comprehensive check-up."
The more Miko listened, the more something felt off. When she heard "nausea and vomiting," she finally realized, her pretty face flushed, and she couldn't help but glare at Amamiya Natsuki: "The symptoms you're describing are clearly those of being pregnant!"
"The teacher won't just stand by and watch her student get a big belly," Amamiya Natsuki whispered, "So she'll definitely approve your leave for a check-up."
Miko bit her silver teeth, her pretty face crimson, and she shyly uttered two words through her lips:
"…Shameless!"
Shyly glaring at Amamiya Natsuki twice, Miko turned around, her dark hair carrying a hint of gardenia fragrance in the air, and walked towards the office.
A moment later.
Miko returned like a battle goddess, though her eyes were particularly resentful.
"What was your reason for leave?" Amamiya Natsuki asked curiously.
"I don't want to talk to you," Miko straightened her pretty face and said unhappily, "Go away."
The school gate was not a good meeting point, so Amamiya Natsuki and Miko walked out of school and headed straight for the Train Station.
Before long, everyone gradually came out after getting their leave, took the train, and headed to the shopping center.
The journey was silent.
"Shopping center, arrived."
Amamiya Natsuki stepped off the train and looked up at the shopping center in front of him.
The sky was clear, and the sun was bright.
On the shopping center's LED large screen, various anime girl posters were scrolling, particularly eye-catching.
The group entered the shopping center and went straight to the escape room venue on the top floor.
The top floor mainly consisted of a gym, cinema, escape room venue, and so on. It was only a little past eight in the morning, so the top floor was deserted, with hardly any customers to be seen.
"Whew…"
When they arrived at the escape room venue, a front desk lady in a work uniform was yawning sleepily. Seeing Amamiya Natsuki and his group walking straight towards her, she quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, stood up straight, showed a professional smile, and bowed:
"How may I help you?"
Amamiya Natsuki got straight to the point:
"We want to play an escape room."
"Eh?" The front desk lady was startled. She thought they were there to ask for directions or had left something behind, and didn't expect them to be there to play an escape room. Fortunately, her professional demeanor was good, and she didn't show any strange expressions on her face. Instead, she smiled and introduced the venue's theme, "Our escape room is called 'Shibuya Labyrinth Murder Case.' It was just launched a month ago, and the current perfect clear rate is less than a hundred people…"
After patiently listening to the front desk lady's commercial introduction, Amamiya Natsuki took out his wallet and said directly:
"Tickets, pay for everyone."
The people who came together were Amamiya Natsuki, Kaguya, Chika, Marin, the senpai, and Miko. Hayasaka Ai's identity had not yet been exposed, so she couldn't come. Juju and Komi were at another school.
Besides them, there were also Mrs. Shimizu, Yandere Kaguya, Sadako, Man-faced dog, and the Maid Loli, whom the front desk lady couldn't see.
In short, the strongest team, all assembled.
"…Please wait."
The front desk lady's gaze swept over the girls, her expression slightly strange.
Strange.
Too strange.
Who comes to play an escape room at eight in the morning, and with such a strange combination of one boy and five girls?
They were all wearing high school uniforms, and today was a school day. Why weren't they in school?
Could it be that they skipped class to come here?
When did her escape room become so attractive?
"Wait—"
The front desk lady's expression suddenly changed as she thought of a possibility.
Could these students know that no one would be around in the morning, so they wanted to do that kind of thing?
She heard that high school students nowadays are very bold and like to seek thrills in various places, such as rooftops, or the spectator stands on the sports field…
Very likely!
Otherwise, there's no reason to skip class and come play an escape room!
As for why it was a combination of one boy and five girls… As a working adult, the front desk lady was well aware of the importance of looks and money. Even if a handsome and rich boy was a pervert, many girls would still like him.
But… didn't they know there were surveillance cameras inside the escape room?
What should she do?
Should she inform them?
Or…
The front desk lady secretly pressed her legs together, her face flushed as she looked at the surveillance monitor.
She'd watch for a while; maybe she was mistaken…
Amamiya Natsuki naturally didn't know where the front desk lady's thoughts had gone, and even if he did, he wouldn't care.
His only goal in coming was to find the bizarre Nameless woman that had invaded reality, not to play a multiplayer game. There would be no live broadcast for her to watch.
Entering the escape room venue, a network of man-made tunnels immediately came into view.
"Eh?" Fujiwara Chika looked left and right, curiously saying, "It looks a lot like the real Shibuya underground Train Station."
"Shibuya Labyrinth Murder Case" naturally wouldn't be the above-ground Shibuya; the shopping center didn't have enough space to set up such a scene. The main setting was the underground Shibuya Train Station, with its labyrinthine tunnels and trains as the theme.
According to the introduction just now, this scenario was mainly about Puzzle solving and didn't have many supernatural elements… Clearly, this was not the case.
After the invasion of the strange, this place had become a truly supernatural location.
"Everyone, work in pairs," Amamiya Natsuki said in a deep voice, "Look for clues and be careful."
"Understood."
"Got it."
Amamiya Natsuki looked at Miko: "Any special discoveries?"
"None," Miko carefully looked around, whispering, "I haven't even seen any evil spirits."
Amamiya Natsuki then looked down at Man-faced dog: "Quick, use your invincible sense of smell to find the strange entity."
"Bastard!" Man-faced dog cursed angrily, "It's already been a week, and so many people have come in and out every day. How could there still be a scent left?!"
"Less talk," Amamiya Natsuki made a feint kick, "If you're completely useless, you won't get to eat tonight."
"…"
Man-faced dog cursed with its mouth, but its body was quite obedient, starting to sniff around the tunnel for clues, but still found nothing.
Amamiya Natsuki then pulled Sadako over: "Have you sensed the aura of a fellow kind?"
Sadako shook her head, her black hair swaying.
Amamiya Natsuki sighed. The shortcut wouldn't work, so they could only search slowly, bit by bit.
They hadn't found the strange Nameless woman, but the puzzles in the secret room were quickly solved one by one—as a high-IQ girl, the puzzles in the secret room posed no difficulty for Kaguya.
Especially when the two Kaguyas were together, competing with each other, numerous puzzles were solved with ease.
"Wait, these high school students are too amazing! If this continues, they'll clear it soon." The front desk lady outside was dumbfounded, and also a bit incredulous, "You guys skipped class this early in the morning just to play a game?"
"The killer's identity has been confirmed, we're about to clear it." Shinomiya Kaguya frowned slightly, not looking happy.
Clearing the escape room was meaningless; the important thing was that the strange Nameless woman still hadn't been found.
At this moment, Amamiya Natsuki mused and suggested:
"Perhaps we can do a physical minesweeping?"
The girls looked over: "How so?"
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Which of you puts on the Pure White Bride Skin Card, and we'll use the Pure White Bride's discoloration to pinpoint and narrow down the strange entity's location."
"Good point." Fujiwara Chika's eyes lit up, "Pure White Bride can grant immunity to negative statuses, and the Nightmare Curse definitely counts as a negative status. Once the Pure White Bride turns black, it means we're close to the strange entity."
Mrs. Shimizu smiled beside them: "Which of you will wear the Pure White Bride?"
"I will." Fujiwara Chika stepped forward without hesitation, "Let me protect everyone."
"You can't." Amamiya Natsuki shook his head, reminding her, "We've all been infected with the Nightmare Curse now. After you put on the Pure White Bride, it's very likely to turn black immediately."
"I almost forgot." Fujiwara Chika tapped her forehead and stuck out her tongue, "Kaguya-chan and I can't wear it. It looks like we can only choose between the senpai, Marin, and Miko."
Miko moved her pink lips and whispered:
"I'm not a player, so I can't wear it."
"Then it's just me and the senpai left." Kitagawa Marin looked at the senpai with great interest, extending her right hand and saying, "Senpai, let's play rock-paper-scissors?"
"Eh?" Koyasu Tsubame was startled, then quickly shook her head, not very interested, "No need for rock-paper-scissors, you wear it."
"No way." Kitagawa Marin lifted her chin, "Rock-paper-scissors is the only way to have fun."
"…Alright."
Koyasu Tsubame reluctantly agreed.
A few seconds later.
The winner was decided.
"I… I lost…"
Kitagawa Marin knelt on the ground in disappointment.
Koyasu Tsubame silently withdrew her right hand: "Marin-chan, why don't you wear it instead?"
"A bet's a bet." Kitagawa Marin firmly shook her head, "You won, Senpai."
Amamiya Natsuki took out the Pure White Bride Skin Card and handed it to the senpai: "Here."
Koyasu Tsubame silently took it and equipped the Skin Card.
A faint light flashed on her, and the pure and flawless Pure White Bride wedding dress was instantly worn perfectly.
Amamiya Natsuki's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but take out his phone, wanting to take a commemorative photo.
This senpai's popularity in school was extremely high, even surpassing that of the Young Lady, not only because of her generous personality and wide social circle, but also because her beauty was incredibly striking.
At this moment, wearing the Pure White Bride, with skin fairer than snow, a long neck, delicate collarbones, deep cleavage, and bangs slightly covering her right eye, the senpai's pure beauty was breathtaking.
"Stare—"
Two icy gazes looked over simultaneously.
Yandere Kaguya and Shinomiya Kaguya, for once, were united.
Amamiya Natsuki wisely put away his phone, not daring to take any more pictures.
Just then, Fujiwara Chika's soft cry suddenly rang out: "...The Pure White Bride turned black!"
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