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

whoosh-

Chapter Nineteen: The Awakening of the Rotten Space and the Riddle from the Telephone Call

Saw something.

In a blurry, unsettling shadow, something slowly began to emerge.

It appeared to be a young girl.

A girl who always held her head high with pride, feeling that she was different from others and that she was destined to achieve great things.

She seemed to have come from a wealthy family and had a happy, carefree childhood. Back then, she had lofty ambitions, always dreaming of taking over her parents' business and achieving even greater success. She saw herself as a bird, destined to soar in the sky, unlike those commoners who could only toil on the ground.

But as she grew older, around seventeen or eighteen, her family faced a sudden change of fortune. In a very short time, she was forced to return to the mundane world and learn to live as an ordinary person. Even though she tried hard to achieve this, she failed and ultimately had no choice but to accept that she would spend the rest of her life as an ordinary person, marrying a man she didn't love, having children, and becoming a clumsy housewife.

Is this really the kind of life I want?

She had asked herself this question more than once.

Is a life bound to the mud, unable to truly take flight, truly an outcome one willingly accepts?

But if you want to make a change, what should you do?

I once thought myself exceptionally talented, but after my family's fortunes declined, I realized I had no talent at all. My past arrogance was simply a result of being lost in the adulation of the past, unable to discern the sincerity of others' praise and compliments. The truth is, I have no real ability whatsoever, whether it's making money or so-called literary or artistic cultivation; in reality, they are all irrelevant to me. In the end, all I have left is meaningless pride, an unwillingness to face reality and accept mediocrity.

What on earth should I do?

What can I possibly do now?

Am I destined to accept all of this and be just an ordinary middle-aged woman who spends her days busy with cooking and cleaning, and running around for her children's grades and her husband's trivial matters?

Not reconciled.

I can not be reconciled.

I want to change all of this.

I don't want to continue living like this.

When no one is around, she will quietly complain like this.

But is she really in so much pain that she can't accept her current reality?

That doesn't seem to be entirely true. After all, she has indeed lived an ordinary life for so many years, and her current resentment is really just talk. She's no longer a young person, and she no longer has the motivation to strive to change her current life. Those words of resentment are actually just a deep-seated longing for the ambition and drive of her youth.

Yes, this is an illness, isn't it?

Then, a voice answered her.

You are in pain. You are dissatisfied with your current life, but you can only helplessly accept that you are being assimilated step by step and gradually become as mediocre as everyone else.

This has caused you severe harm; it has broken your heart and devastated you. This is a mental illness, a psychological disorder that needs treatment, and I am your therapist.

Come on, entrust everything to me, and I will help you become perfect.

Let me erase your pain.

Let me bring you happiness.

Let me guide your future.

I will guide you to that truly perfect and happy world.

All you need to do is trust me.

It was an incredibly gentle voice, the kind of voice that, just by hearing it, would involuntarily create the illusion that you could trust the other person.

In a daze, I couldn't question the voice at all. On the contrary, the more I listened to the voice, the clearer I could recall the past, all my childhood aspirations, and the ideals I had failed to realize over the years, and I felt increasingly dissatisfied with my current situation.

Yes, yes, I want to change.

I don't want my current life anymore. I want to be better, I want to be more perfect, and happier.

Please help me, doctor!

Please, please help me! Tell me what to do, tell me how to change all of this. I don't care what price I have to pay, as long as there is real change, I'm willing to give everything!

……

Darkness eventually swallowed everything.

The blurry image, and the almost frantic plea at the end of the scene, have been swallowed up by the darkness and disappeared without a trace.

cold.

An even stronger, more intense, and icy cold, as if one were in an ice cave, swept over the entire body at this moment, almost freezing the very marrow of one's bones.

"Woo..."

The girl was crying out in sorrow.

Xiao Hua, who was groggily waking up, struggled to get up from the ground. For a moment, she felt dizzy and disoriented, as if she had just returned to the ground from a pirate ship and roller coaster.

I just saw something.

In the instant that twisted and terrifying creature attacked her, she clearly sensed something and saw the echo of a moment from the past that had already vanished into time.

Are those the memories and emotions of this strange creature when it was once human?

I recall Mr. Gao Hai mentioning that players with strong perception can indeed obtain various clues by touching items related to the mysterious object or by directly sensing the aura emitted by the object itself.

So, it seems I do have a talent for perception. Although this ability can only be successfully triggered under extremely dangerous head-on contact with a strange creature, it's still somewhat humorous.

"Ugh... I'm so dizzy, where am I?"

Xiao Hua, who had been swaying unsteadily, steadied herself and looked around.

The first thing she noticed was the cell phone lying on the ground not far away; after all, it was still emitting a faint red glow. Even though the light had become dimmer and seemed like it might go out at any moment, at least for now, it could still illuminate the surroundings and give Xiaohua a little bit of security.

After picking up the phone, the next step is to observe the surrounding environment.

It looks like... this is still the same room as before. The furniture and other furnishings are the same, but there are some very big differences in the specifics.

"Is it rotten?"

Xiao Hua frowned in confusion and muttered to himself.

Like food left outdoors for days in the sweltering summer heat, the entire room showed obvious signs of decay. The sofa, walls, bookshelves, carpet, and everything else were rotting. Numerous torn wounds covered the room, filled with grayish-white mold and pustules. Some wounds even had maggots wriggling inside.

The strange creature that attacked him was gone.

After the previous attack, the attackers seemed to have disappeared on the spot and never returned.

But why has this room changed so much? It doesn't feel like the same place at all, and every time it changes, it always seems to go in a disgusting way.

Xiao Hua frowned, disgusted, but because she had already witnessed even more massive insect lairs before, she didn't feel too nauseous at this moment.

I picked up my phone and looked at the cracked screen.

[Willpower: 55%]

Defense: 12%

Looking at the data displayed on the screen, the girl fell silent for a moment, feeling a tightness in her chest.

The willpower boost seems relatively stable at the moment, remaining at around half. However, this defensive shield will likely only withstand one or two more attacks at most before it can no longer protect me.

If I can't find something to banish this obsession, perhaps... I'll die here... I...

Calm down! Calm down! Calm down!

There's no point in thinking about these things now; it will only waste more time and distort your mindset!

Xiaojianzi is already outside; she'll definitely try to contact me again and get me out. I need to adjust my mindset and find a way to persevere. The final moment is still far off; it's not time to give up yet!

The girl took a deep breath, trying to suppress her somewhat erratic heartbeat. Then she clenched her trembling little hands into fists, then released them, then clenched them again.

After repeating this several times, Xiao Hua, who had recovered somewhat, stepped out to carefully investigate the specific changes in the room, when she suddenly heard a sound coming from her phone.

[Buzz... Xiaohua... are you... buzz... still there... buzz...]

The electrical interference noise became more severe than before.

Xiaohua had to hold the phone almost to her ear to barely hear Jianzi's voice and understand what she was saying.

"I'm here, I'm still here. Jianzi, how's the situation on your end?"

Sensing something amiss from the unstable communication, Xiao Hua quickly asked.

[Buzz... Danger... Approaching you... Buzz buzz buzz... You're getting closer... Buzz buzz... Be careful... There's more than one... Buzz...]

[I'm fast here... buzzing... can't find you... buzzing... near you... interference... buzzing... interference source...]

[The exercise book... Exercise book question three... Remember this question... *sizzle*... Then ask me... *sizzle*... You will... *sizzle*... Understand... *sizzle*... *sizzle*...]

The severe noise was a disaster for Xiaohua's hearing. After hearing the noise from the other side for a while, Xiaohua started to experience tinnitus and began to lose her sense of location.

"Ugh... my head hurts even more. What on earth is Komiko talking about?"

Xiao Hua, clutching his head, muttered a few words of annoyance, rubbed his temples, and then forced himself to concentrate again.

Regardless of what happens on Jianzi's side, my current predicament remains unchanged, so now is not the time to be distracted. I should focus on surviving first.

Hmm, but does Omiko mean that there's interference in the communication, and more than one interference? But why ask question three in the workbook? Is there anything special about this question? I have absolutely no idea, I don't understand what riddle Omiko is talking about.

Xiao Hua, who wasn't good at thinking, couldn't glean any valuable information from Jian Zi's message; she only confirmed that she probably wouldn't receive any more help along the way.

It's nothing much, really. The main person who helped me from the beginning was Mr. Gao Hai. Without him, I would probably have died long ago.

First, a scan of the entire room was conducted, and unsurprisingly, no trace of the object of obsession was found. This confirmed that the food room, toy room, and doll room were all free of any such objects, making the trip a complete waste of time.

I just don't understand why this room became such a disgusting place; there's no record of it on the log sheet.

While thinking, Xiaohua walked to the only door in the room and tried to open it.

The doorknob didn't move; it seemed the door was stuck.

Just like the information recorded on that graffiti map, it seems I have no choice but to go back the way I came. Ugh, this place has become such a mess, do I have to keep crawling on the ground? It feels so disgusting. I should have just gone straight to the bedroom or that smeared area; those two places look more like they have something hiding there.

As Xiaohua turned around with these thoughts in mind, she heard a "click" behind her, the sound of a door opening, and a faint sound, like someone sobbing softly.

She turned around abruptly and discovered that the door, which had been locked, had opened automatically, revealing a dark corridor outside.

Meanwhile, in a corner outside this door, Xiaohua also saw a bright lantern and a dirty-looking note with the same handwriting as the note she had found earlier: