"New rules."
Those two words immediately yanked Hoshino Ai's wandering thoughts back to reality. She spotted the paper in Hayato's hand and leaned close without thinking, not caring how near they were now. Her pale purple eyes locked onto the text on the blue card.
Koi no Kokoro Love Hotel Check-in Rules 2
Rule 6: After successfully checking in to this hotel, please do not make loud disturbances that affect other guests' rest.
Rule 7: This hotel's rooms are very private with excellent soundproofing. Any sounds coming from other rooms should be ignored.
Rule 8: For the sake of your health, we recommend bathing before resting.
Rule 9: This hotel does not prohibit visiting other rooms or moving about the hallway at night.
Rule 10: This hotel has no twin-bedrooms. If your room has a twin-bed room, please leave immediately and re-process your check-in procedures to obtain a new keycard.
Friendly Reminder: All of this hotel's adult toys are complimentary. Please feel free to use them. May joy accompany you through this wonderful evening.
Five more rules, this time concerning what happened inside the rooms.
Hayato's attention focused on the tenth rule immediately.
Hoshino Ai's face went pale.
She'd almost missed it. She'd almost overlooked this crucial set of rules hidden at the bottom of the drawer. How much would that have affected their chances of survival?
Very likely, she and Hayato would have died in this love hotel because of her mistake, because she'd violated the check-in rules without even knowing.
Cold sweat formed on her back, trickling down her spine. Her whole body felt chilled despite the warm room.
"I'm sorry, I... I was too embarrassed by these adult toys and didn't check thoroughly enough. It's my fault. I'm truly very sorry. But please rest assured, I won't make a similar mistake again."
When someone makes a mistake, they must get up and apologize.
She was an idol. Hayato was her fan. But in this crisis-filled death game, the idol-fan relationship meant nothing. It was far too flimsy to rely on.
Hoshino Ai knew that if she wanted to survive, she had to adjust her attitude and level the relationship between them.
She believed that if she wanted to leave this love hotel alive, the survival key lay with Hayato.
A flash of surprise crossed Hayato's face. He'd actually expected Hoshino Ai to make excuses or even say something like "you're a man, you should take more responsibility."
But she was more clear-eyed about reality than he'd imagined, understanding her position better than most would.
That's... actually pretty mature of her.
Hayato patted her shoulder gently.
"Be more careful when checking the other areas. If anything feels off, tell me immediately."
"I will. Please don't worry."
Hoshino Ai nodded firmly, her expression determined. She stood up and immediately threw herself into checking the rest of the room, the closet, the curtains, and even the love hotel's signature adult toys. She endured her embarrassment and nervous emotions, checking each place one by one with careful attention.
Soon, she returned to Hayato's side, slightly out of breath from the thorough search.
"I didn't find any new rules or anything special in the other places."
She looked at his profile and continued.
"Is there anything we need to pay attention to in these rules?"
"Sounds, bathing, going out to visit other rooms, and twin-bed rooms."
Hayato handed the rules paper to her. She took it carefully, holding it like something precious, studying and memorizing every word. The rules concerned their lives. Even if she didn't want to memorize or recite them, she forced herself to remember all ten rules, making sure she could recall them at any time.
Her lips moved silently as she repeated them to herself.
Knock knock knock...
Knock knock knock...
Suddenly, urgent knocking sounded at the door.
Hoshino Ai's head snapped toward the sound, her body tensing instantly.
"Hayato-san, Hayato-san, it's me, Sawanaga Taisuke. Quick, open up! Important matter! We found new check-in rules!"
The voice came through muffled but panicked.
Hayato stood up. He made a reassuring gesture to the purple-black-haired girl tugging at his sleeve, then walked toward the door.
The knocking and the voices from the hallway could be heard clearly, which meant the hallway didn't fall under the category of "other rooms."
Even through the door, Hayato could sense Sawanaga Taisuke's panic and tension radiating through the wood.
"What's your buddy's name?"
A pause.
"Ah!"
Sawanaga Taisuke froze, clearly caught off guard by the sudden question.
"Itou Makoto. My buddy's name is Itou Makoto. Sorry, I was too scared in the lobby earlier and forgot to answer your question."
So it really is School Days.
Itou Makoto.
Hayato's jaw tightened slightly. He absolutely had to send that guy to the rooftop if they ever met, that person is the first trauma Hayato has after watching anime.
His right hand turned the handle. The door swung open slowly.
Standing there was Sawanaga Taisuke, his face pale and sweaty. Behind him were the middle-aged men Tanaka Ichiro, Kuroda Hikari, and Kamimura Miho. All four looked tense, their eyes darting around like cornered animals, as if they'd encountered something terrifying.
"Hayato-san, here are the rules. We found them in the closet, hidden pretty well behind some hangers. But the most important thing is this one."
Sawanaga Taisuke immediately shoved the blue paper into Hayato's hands, almost desperately.
His finger jabbed at Rule 10, shaking slightly.
"Rule 10 says the hotel has no twin-bed rooms, but our room..." He swallowed hard. "Our room is a twin-bed room."
Reality conflicted with the rules.
The words hung in the air like a death sentence. All four of them looked like they were barely holding it together, fear written plainly across their faces.
If they hadn't followed Hayato's advice and searched every corner of their room, they probably would have violated the hotel's rules without ever knowing.
In that moment, they were truly terrified.
Their room now looked like a trap waiting to snap shut, ready to devour all life at any moment.