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

The completely unexpected turn of events left Kita momentarily stunned. But before she could react, her phone vibrated again. Picking it up, she saw a new text message had appeared. The instant Kita's gaze fell on the message, a woman's voice, filled with a wicked sense of humor—a voice she'd heard at Takami's house when they'd just escaped the [Infant Cry Village] instance—began to read the message aloud, word by word:

【Are you Ms. Kita Ikuyo from room 309 on the 3rd floor of the Kelaifan Hotel? Hehehe~】

Interlude 4-46: I'm here to end this band's life. What are you going to do?

That voice is undoubtedly Alice's voice.

Kita Ikuyo was certain she couldn't be mistaken; this was one of the blessings Takami received after clearing the [Infant Cry Village] instance. It was an illusory creature modeled after the eerie Alice from the previous Fujika Middle School instance, with its wicked and twisted personality reduced. It could be said to be Takami's own electronic pet.

Although Kita herself had never been to Fujika Junior High School and hadn't personally witnessed the power of the original, eerie Alice, she did see firsthand how terrified Yotsuya Miko was of it when she returned to reality from the "Infant Cry Village." Even now, this virtual Alice occasionally frightens Miko, causing the girl considerable distress. From this perspective, Kita strongly suspects that this Alice inherited Takami's own twisted sense of humor.

Come to think of it, that thing doesn't seem to listen to Gao Hai much. Unless it's really a critical moment, it won't come out no matter how much he calls. I don't know why it bestows such a strange blessing. Could it be that Mr. Gao actually has a taste for this?

But that's not important right now. The key question is, why did this thing come looking for me at this time?

Just when I heard Senior Ryo's voice outside the door, was it an enemy impersonating Senior Ryo and planning to attack me?

No, no, no, that shouldn't be possible. My sensory abilities were further enhanced after clearing [Infant Cry Village]. If it were truly an enemy, I couldn't possibly fail to detect it at this distance. Besides, although Alice isn't very obedient, she's not inherently malicious in her actions. If she were truly an enemy, Alice would never deliberately scare me like this; instead, she would try to seek help and aid me. After all, this wondrous little thing is still a trustworthy ally.

But if they aren't enemies...

Kita's eyes widened; she had realized a certain possibility.

Yes, when there are real enemies, Alice is a very reliable ally. But if there are no enemies, this thing doesn't seem to mind playing the "enemy" for a while.

"You're the one who lured Senior Liang here?!"

She suddenly lowered her head and asked a question while looking at the still-lit phone screen.

Hehe~

Her response was Alice's adorable, cute voice, and a chibi-style Alice with one eye closed and tongue sticking out, displayed on the phone screen.

So it really was you who brought them here!

At this moment, Kita gritted her teeth, wishing she could find Alice and teach her a lesson. However, Alice didn't have a physical body in the real world, so no matter how angry Kita was, she couldn't cause her any real harm. Moreover, after answering Kita's question, Alice decisively disappeared, and Kita couldn't find her even if she wanted to.

Tuk Tuk——

"Excuse me, is Kita-kun inside?"

Before Kita Ikuyo could react, there was another knock on the door. And this time the voice was different from the previous one; it clearly belonged to Nijika.

So, did both of them run here?

What to do now?

Kita Ikuyo found herself even more panicked than she had anticipated.

Although the girl might tell herself in her heart that she wants to abandon the bonds of ordinary life, ultimately it's just a self-destructive act born from being forgotten by everyone. If people she used to know were to come looking for her again, Kita wouldn't know how to handle it, especially her idol Ryo-senpai and the kind Nijika. She couldn't possibly tell them to their faces that she didn't plan to return to the band, nor could she use her supernatural powers to drive them away or manipulate their memories; she couldn't do such a thing.

But if they really do regain their memories, should I choose to go back?

For a brief moment, the red-haired girl's eyes lit up as she recalled her happy past. But soon, thinking of Aoyama Nanami, her expression quickly dimmed again.

Even if he could return to the band now, if another accident or problem were to occur one day, the final outcome probably wouldn't be good.

I can no longer go back to the lively and cheerful time when I could face everything with a smile.

From now on, I will continue to live as a pure player.

Let this so-called "ending band" truly end.

Kita Ikuyo sighed softly and made a decision in her heart once again.

That means if you don't hear a knock, wait for the two people outside to give up.

Anyway, they wouldn't have the magnetic card key to the room door, so they can't get in. Besides, neither Ryo-senpai nor Nijika-chan would do anything like kicking down the door and barging in, so if I just leave them alone, they'll give up on their own soon enough.

With this thought, Kita calmed down a bit and sat in his seat waiting for the commotion outside the door to stop.

Ring ring ring—

[Pfft~]

Then she heard the door open automatically, and a barely audible, suppressed laugh.

The door lock has been opened? Is... the circuitry being manipulated?

Alice again!!!

The unexpected situation left the girl speechless, almost jumping up on the spot.

But before she could actually jump, two figures had already entered the house.

"Ugh, it's so dirty and messy, it needs to be cleaned up properly."

As soon as Hongxia entered the room, she was startled by the mess and instinctively felt the urge to tidy it up.

"You... are Kita."

Ryo, standing to the side, didn't react much to the messy room, or rather, she didn't care about the state of the room at all. After entering, she immediately locked her gaze on the helpless girl on one side of the room. Her tone was slightly hesitant, but she quickly and firmly confirmed the girl's identity.

There are still many blurry and unclear parts in my memory.

However, after actually seeing the other person, I was able to gradually recall some things and feel many memories that I had forgotten for some reason gradually coming back to me.

"senior……"

Kita spoke in a low voice, almost a murmur.

She could sense the other person's hesitation when confirming her identity. Clearly, the other person had not actually remembered her existence, but had learned something through some means, or had been informed of some information by someone.

I even had the hope that I might actually be remembered, but...

"You are the guitarist who ran away."

Liang spoke again, his tone becoming more resolute.

"Hmm, seeing people really does bring back more memories. Kita... Kita-chan, um, that's right, I should be calling you Kita-chan. I remember now, when you first joined my and Ryo's band, you didn't know how to play guitar at all, and you never participated in rehearsals. When it came time to actually perform, you ran away, and that's how we found Pochi-chan."

Following Ryo, Nijika stared intently at Kita for a while before a look of sudden realization appeared on her face, and she began to utter a series of words.

"Hey?"

The unexpected development stunned Kita once again. She realized that after Ryo and Nijika actually met her, they really began to regain their memories and recall the past.

"Lastly, well, it was Pochi who brought you back, but now both guitarists have run away."

"I remember it was raining when I first performed on stage, and later I performed at school. Hmm, I remember now, Kita-chan was really sparkly when she wore a maid outfit as a waitress, and her words made the omelet rice taste even better."

"I wanted to buy a guitar but I ended up buying a bass instead, but the bass is pretty good."

“We also went hiking together and stayed overnight at a seaside villa. Kita-chan has amazing stamina; it always seems like she has endless energy.”

"Yeah, and together with Hongxia, they buried her alive because they were jealous of Boqi's breasts."

"Yeah, no, no, don't bring this kind of thing up!"

All the memories gradually resurfaced with this moment of reunion.

If Kita initially harbored self-destructive thoughts like "ending this band," then at this moment, after truly confirming that Ryo and Nijika had successfully regained their past memories, the girl's chaotic thoughts finally broke down completely, leaving only intense emotions rising to the surface.

“W-what…”

He reached out and wiped his eyes, feeling only a wetness.

She sniffed, reached out and wiped her eyes again, trying to stop the tears from welling up, but her voice trembled more and more.

The negative emotions that had accumulated over this period finally began to dissipate with the reunion of the three. And unnoticed by anyone, the pixelated Alice avatar silently reappeared on the phone on the table, making a seemingly laborious gesture of wiping away sweat before disappearing.

[Hmph, all the teacher remembers is playing with his girlfriend; he's completely forgotten about what's going on here!]

[If Alice hadn't guided them to meet, Kita-san's emotional issues might have caused a very troublesome accident. The teacher is truly incompetent; she couldn't even notice something like this beforehand. What a useless coward!]

So this time, Alice will help this incompetent teacher. Remember to thank Alice in your heart!

After leaving such a message on Gao Hai's phone, Alice's traces completely disappeared, and no one knows where she went.

Meanwhile, after having a good cry, Kita's idea of ​​"ending the band" was naturally forgotten. Having confirmed that Takami had originally intended to explain the situation to Nijika and Ryo, and after receiving Alice's message that Takami had detected the gradually awakening innate powers of the two girls after receiving their blessed abilities, she carefully explained the details of the [Sacrifice Game] to Ryo and Nijika. Of course, all the bloody and violent parts were glossed over, including Kita's own death, which she vaguely described as "something happened and it took a long time to recover."

Finally, after confirming that they would return to the Starry Sky with Ichiri the next day for another band reunion, the three girls, who had been talking from dusk till nightfall, finally parted ways. Incidentally, before separating, Nijika resolutely cleaned Kita's room, packing up and throwing away all the trash, contacting hotel staff to change the sheets, pillowcases, pillows, and all the hotel amenities, and even washing all of Kita's carelessly tossed clothes.

After discovering that Nijika was planning to do these things, Ryo did not hesitate to run away, showing no intention of staying to help.

Kita did try to stop Nijika, but she was adamant, so in the end Kita and Nijika cleaned up together and then had dinner at a restaurant near the hotel. Incidentally, Ryo disappeared while cleaning, but she reappeared shortly after entering the restaurant and brazenly mooched dinner off Kita.

"In the end, did things really go back to the way they were before?"

After finally saying goodbye to Nijika and Ryo, Kita returned to his hotel room and lay on the bed. He stared blankly at the ceiling for a long time before muttering to himself.

I was thinking of giving up the band, but after meeting the two of them, I changed my mind. Am I really such an indecisive person?

But if Nijigasaki and Ryo-senpai can recall and regain their past memories, then could Mom and Dad... could they do the same? If I appeared in front of them now, would they remember me as their daughter again?

The girl felt conflicted again.

Now that it's confirmed that the forgotten memories can be recovered, shouldn't I be happy?

Ke Xiduo found it difficult to describe his complex feelings at that moment, feeling a sense of confusion about what to do next.

Forget it, let's leave tomorrow's matters for tomorrow.

Furthermore, while Alice's guidance was the reason why Nijigasaki and Ryo-senpai came to our door today, given Alice's elusive and capricious nature, would she really do something like this for no reason? Or was it because Mr. Gao promised something that prompted her to act? Could it be that today's events were actually part of Mr. Gao's plan?

Wait, wait a minute. Speaking of which, although I didn't attend Mr. Gao's meeting with his group of girls, Boqi specifically told me that Mr. Gao would come to see me this afternoon for a date. But it's already dark and he's nowhere to be seen. Could he have completely forgotten about it and stood me up?

Of course, Kita didn't really feel that she was particularly looking forward to going on a date with Takami. However, if the other party had already set a time but then didn't show up, Kita would still suspect that she had been tricked and would feel genuinely annoyed.

Never mind, I'll call Mr. Gao first.

Having finally made his decision, Kita sat up in bed, picked up his phone, and sent several messages to Takami.

There were no replies; all messages were unread.

"Well……"

After hesitating for a moment, Kita decided to make a phone call.

No one answered.

"What does this guy mean?"

Kita's mood soured again.