His eyes opened.
A world dyed crimson stretched before him.
A city bathed in the glow of a blood-red sky. A metropolis alive with lights yet devoid of life, steeped in utter silence.
How many times had Takakai come to this place since obtaining that damned black wristwatch—that cheat tool that loved to crank up the difficulty? Six? Seven? He couldn't quite recall the exact number. Definitely not past ten yet, though it was probably getting close.
Death, then a return to the starting point. A fresh beginning.
Takakai realized he'd grown utterly accustomed to it.
Physical agony could no longer break him. Psychological assaults barely chipped at his resolve.
After enduring so much, he'd changed. The Takakai who'd stumbled cluelessly into Shirakawa Apartments and the man he was now might as well have been two different people. He wasn't sure whether to feel pride or melancholy about that.
Either way, he had to keep moving forward.
All he could do now was analyze the rules, learn from his mistakes, and push on. That was it.
"Hah. No rest for the wicked, huh? At least I've pieced together a few things."
Sitting on the ground, Takakai muttered to himself as he scratched a name into the bloodstained pavement with his fingernail:
[Hachiya Chiyo]
A name he'd pulled from the diary—from the so-called [Friend Kamiki].
A grade-schooler. An orphan, abandoned by her parents. Normally, kids like her wouldn't have been on the research team's recruitment list. But under pressure from the military and the recklessness of the project lead, Shirasawa Elementary had expanded enrollment in its final year. That was how this girl, who shouldn't have qualified, ended up there.
The collapse of Shirasawa Elementary seemed to trace back to her. Something she had done—something the researchers failed to notice and stop in time—had triggered an irreversible catastrophe, warping the school into the fractured, cursed hellscape it was now.
Takakai was certain: Hachiya Chiyo was either the core grudge of this dungeon or at least pivotal to it.
Was that figure I glimpsed before self-destructing… her?
At the very least, he now had a critical lead. No more fumbling in the dark.
Next run, his priorities were clear:
Regroup with Kaguya ASAP.
Use her student status to dig up intel on Hachiya Chiyo.
Speaking of which… my "teacher" role hasn't been useful yet. Sure, it got me into the [Observation Room], but that just got me killed faster. Is there more to this identity?
As he pondered, Takakai stood, glancing toward the collapsed section of the plaza.
The figures writhing in the endless flames had multiplied.
Now, hundreds screamed within the inferno—researchers, fanatics, all the perpetrators of the Fujika Academy incident—howling as they fruitlessly struggled against their torment.
"Oh? More voices. Scream all you want."
Yawning, Takakai turned away.
His gaze landed on Yotsuya Miko, lying motionless nearby.
Like last time, she remained inert in this blood-soaked city—little more than decoration.
Takakai wasn't picky. He flopped down, using her stomach as a pillow, and raised his wristwatch.
The hand trembled at 1, inching toward 0.
The power harvested from the flames had replenished his retries.
This reset would cost nothing.
Click.
The needle settled at 0.
Takakai exhaled, tension easing slightly.
Annoying? Yes. Grueling? Absolutely. But surviving over a day in Shirasawa Elementary before triggering the [Friend] and kennel's chain reaction proves this dungeon's lethality is… manageable. For a Crimson Moon-tier, anyway.
The [Friend] rule's cognitive interference weakened with each encounter. Even after falling for it in the Observation Room, repeated exposure had built his resistance. It wasn't a major concern anymore.
The kennel, though? Still a nightmare.
That fused ayakashi—a hybrid of two entities—made deciphering its rules a crapshoot. From what he'd gathered:
Primary Rule:[Turn into a Dog]
Triggers:
Entering a dog cage.
Being observed by the kennel entity.
Unknowns:
Why purebred vs. mutt? (Takakai suspected second transformations were insta-death.)
Once affected, mental degradation was severe. Blessings and grudge items became near-unusable—except for equipment-types like the Rescue Team Badge, which could be cheesed.
As for the pistol? His failure to fire during the confrontation was likely due to his dog-brain's inability to process complex actions. If he could retain cognition post-transformation, shooting might still be possible—but only if hidden from the entity's gaze.
Still… the kennel might be skippable.
That monstrosity was clearly a boss born from children's nightmares, but it wasn't the core grudge. Avoiding it entirely was viable—if he hadn't released all the dogs.
…But Hayasaka's in there. Damn it.
Meaning he had to go back.
Hope that thing isn't petty enough to chase me over one missing mutt…
Plan for next run:
Meet Kaguya.
Rescue Hayasaka.
Investigate Hachiya Chiyo.
Let's wrap this up in Round Two. …Wait, is that jinxing it? Nah. Compared to other Crimson Moons, Shirasawa's been downright gentle. And didn't Kumami say the player survival rate here exceeds 30%? That's including amateurs and civilians dragged in—ten people, three make it out. For this difficulty, that's terrifying.
…But how many survivors actually solve the core?
After a long silence, Takakai sighed and stood.
Dong—
The bell tolled—always precisely when he was ready.
But first, loot.
Takakai looked up as two objects descended from the bloody sky:
A filthy, blood-caked apron.
A grime-encrusted ladle.
Grudge items from the kennel entity.
No cleaver or pot, though. Pity. Still, self-destruct's rewards never disappoint.
Stashing them, he watched the city dim.
Dong—
Darkness swallowed everything.
Like after Fujika Academy's final loop, Takakai made no wish. His slots were limited, and until absolutely necessary, he'd hoard them.
Dong—
As the last chime faded, his consciousness detached, returning to the dungeon's starting point.
Alright.
My turn now.
Lying on Miko's stomach, Takakai checked his watch.
The numeral displayed:
2
"Position at 2? Two retries spent? No way."
His brow furrowed. This didn't add up.
He'd just learned [Hachiya Chiyo]'s name. Just died to the kennel entity's butchery. The watch should read 1. And with the flames' power replenishing his retries, the needle should've reset to 0!
Takakai bolted upright.
The realization hit:
He'd died three times in Shirasawa Elementary.
And he'd forgotten the second and third deaths, recalling only the first.
How?!
He'd nearly overcome the memory-wiping reset mechanism. This shouldn't be happening. Was something else at play?
Something was very wrong.
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
He could guess: During the second reset, he'd probably brushed it off, assuming [extra retries only replenish after returning to reality]. But now, with the counter at 2, the discrepancy was undeniable.
What's erasing my memories?
The core grudge's power?
I need safeguards. Now.
Dong—
As the bell rang, Takakai steadied himself and made a new wish:
A memory anchor.
Records his experiences continuously.
Activates upon death, storing memories before the reset.
Accessible in the blood city.
Cost: 1 retry per save.
Drawback: Reading memories leaves him vulnerable.
It was the best he could do blind.
Please work. What the hell happened to me?
Click—
The watch's hand jumped to 3.
Then—
Rain pattered against the window.
Something tapped the glass.
The same cramped, musty room.
Takakai sat up, turning—
And froze.
A small figure stood in the center of the room.
"You—"
[Liar~! Hehe, another liar~! I'm a smart kid, I won't be fooled! You're no teacher! Liars get punished~! The Supreme Ruler will punish you now~!]
Squelch.
Blood sprayed.
Takakai's eyes widened.
A gaping maw tore through the ceiling—rows of jagged teeth crushing him into pulp before he could react.
The small figure giggled, staring up at the writhing, black-red mass.
[Hehe~ Hahaha~ Another liar died~! Another liar gone~! No one will find you~ No one will know~ Quiet, quiet, you died~!]
In the ten minutes before his Blessing's invincibility expired, Takakai's mangled remains twitched helplessly. Then—
Crunch.
Back to the blood city.
Click.
The watch's hand: 4
After reviewing the 10 minutes and 0.3 seconds of his fourth run, Takakai could only stare blankly.
"What the actual—"
Breakdown of those 0.3 seconds:
0.2s: The child and maw appeared the instant he opened his eyes.
0.1s: Post-Blessing, split into two 0.05s intervals—the time it took to shred him twice.
And just like that, the entire loop was erased from his memory.
Even now, resurrected in the blood city, those memories didn't return.
Does its rule persist here?! No—Fujika's Alice couldn't, so why this bastard?
Meaning…
The erasure happened before death.
The moment the thing attacked, its rule activated. By the time Takakai reset, his memories were already gone.
Or worse—being killed by it inherently includes memory deletion.
What kind of bullshit is this?!
Takakai slammed a fist against his temple.
Runs 2 through 4 of Shirasawa Elementary had screwed him over without explanation.