Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

He had thought this before opening that door and not finding the child.

Even when faced with the two people's evasive gazes and irrelevant answers, he had not completely given up on the idea.

He followed the unsettling odor into the kitchen and headed towards the bathroom, only to be stopped and told it was a "place he couldn't go." He hadn't completely shaken off this delusion.

But in the end, he saw the truth and what had happened.

These are candies for my younger brother.

This isn't for you.

[You dare eat me? I'll beat you to death!]

[I'll teach you to be greedy! I'll teach you to be gluttonous! I'll teach you to be greedy!]

Let's see how you sneak food now.

Mom was really angry that day.

The debt collectors came again and smashed up the house.

The lock on the front door was broken, and a hole was cut in the kitchen door.

My mother said she didn't have the money to fix it for the time being and could only make do with what she had, and then she was scolded and beaten by my father.

She was unhappy all day, and her face was gloomy the whole time.

But I'm very hungry.

I was punished again yesterday by not being allowed to eat.

I ate candy once at my brother's house; it was very sweet and delicious.

If I only eat one, I think I won't be discovered.

When I reached out to take it, I realized that my mother hadn't left and was waiting for me to take it.

First I was verbally abused, then I was beaten.

Just like before.

But Mom was still very angry.

She started pricking people with needles again, just like before.

It hurts.

But she was still angry and hadn't calmed down.

Then she said she would make sure I could never steal food again.

buzz-

The kettle started to boil water.

Boiling water was poured down.

Blood and tears dripped from the needle and thread.

pain.

It hurts.

Really hurts.

My whole body aches, my mouth hurts, my throat hurts, it hurts so much...

My mother said I deserved to be punished and locked me in the toilet.

I feel weak and in a lot of pain.

It's dark outside, and it hurts so much.

It got light outside, then dark again, and then light again.

I still feel weak, my head is dizzy and it hurts a lot.

I tried to stand up, but I couldn't.

It's dark outside again.

Dad opened the door and came in once, then closed it again.

He forgot to lock the door, and I have to stay inside to be punished, but I'm in pain, hungry, and dizzy.

Is my brother home?

Does your brother have any food at home?

It's been so long since I've seen my brother. Has he left? Is he still alive?

I want to knock on my brother's door.

elder brother……

Is my brother there...?

I can't remember where my brother's house is...

...

……

……brute.

...You two beasts!

You beasts... I'll beat you to death right now!

Captain, stop right now! Don't do that!

If the flood peak doesn't reach the third floor, first take people into custody and evacuate them.

Do not disturb the scene. Take them away and then call the police. Do not commit any acts of violence here.

So what if I kill my own kid?!

You beast, I'll beat you to death!

Murder! Murder! Ahhhhhh!

Captain, calm down! Calm down! What you're doing won't help. Take them away first. The flood peak is coming soon, and it will be too late if we don't leave now!

What are you doing? Trying to arrest me? Get out of my way, don't touch me!

Let go! You're assaulting me!

Take them away quickly... never mind, Captain, let's go, we'll come back after the flood peak passes.

……

That was several years ago.

I never imagined that someone would do such a thing to their own flesh and blood, to their own child.

I was born into an ordinary family, and I've always believed that most people are normal, knowing that abnormal people are only a minority. But seeing such a minority just once made me so angry that I couldn't control myself, yet I felt so...powerless. I didn't know what I could do; I could only wishfully believe, deceive myself, and convince myself that everything could get better.

But the final truth was crueler than I had imagined.

This is still not over.

Whether those beasts received their due punishment in this endless cycle of reincarnation, I'm not sure. They should have retained their consciousness, like me. But now I can't see that anymore. Perhaps they couldn't bear the torment and went completely insane, or perhaps they died right from the start. I hope it's the former, and frankly, even if it's the former, I feel they didn't receive enough punishment; they deserved it.

But that child wasn't.

But those innocent people who were brought into this apartment building are not.

The apartment building's current state has nothing to do with that child; she didn't do it.

Someone, something, orchestrated all of this behind the scenes. The apartment's current state is the result of some deliberate manipulation.

I managed to glean some remnants from the child's memories, but the relevant information was still too scarce. I didn't even know what it was; I only knew that it had once existed in the apartment, watching all of this unfold until the very last moment, when it revealed its own traces, leading everything to where it is today.

That child still cannot rest in peace.

My comrades, their obsessions have also been swayed, trapped in a vicious cycle that lasts for seven days and from which they cannot escape.

And then there are the ordinary people with their own families and their own lives. They are thrown into this place like meat to be fed to wild beasts, destined to die in struggle.

It's like nurturing something.

The deaths and suffering of these people, the memories and despair of that restless child, are used in a continuous cycle to devour more lives, thus cultivating something.

This shouldn't be the case.

No matter what the purpose of the person who orchestrated all of this is, I will never accept it, and I will resist to the end.

It seems my identity holds some special significance for that child. I haven't completely become like my comrades; I still remember what happened, and I can still think normally. I think I must be an exception, a variable, someone the mastermind behind it all didn't anticipate.

So I will do everything in my power to change all of this.

only……

I seem unable to connect with that child's existence.

This apartment seems to be undergoing a transformation.

The child's very existence is imprisoned, and in this apartment, she has no way to find liberation.

Am I missing something?

I can clearly see her memories and feel her pain.

But I couldn't see her obsession, or what she truly longed for.

I think I might still fail in the end.

As expected, I still failed.

Just as I was unable to save her before, the result this time will be the same.

But you are different, Mr. Gao Hai.

The apartment you are in has been transformed; her existence has been liberated, and it is time to bring her peace.

The 1st floor, the 2nd floor, the 3rd floor... no, the three floors are actually all one unit.

She never left the third floor until she died. On the third day, she climbed out of her house and climbed down the third floor. She knocked on every door, trying to find me, hoping that I could open the door for her like last time, let her in, let her hide in that safe little bedroom, close the door, and then close the main door so that she wouldn't have to hear the noise outside anymore.