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[Instance: Cat and Mouse Game]
[Type: Randomly Triggered Scenario]
[Preparation Countdown: Five Minutes]
[Players are advised to prepare for transmission, manage their time, and engage in healthy gameplay.]
The prompt was brief, listing only the game's name, with specific tasks to be revealed once inside the game.
Amamiya turned to Kaguya. "Did you get the notification?"
"Yes," she replied, her calm expression accompanied by a slight nod.
Had she triggered the scenario alone, Kaguya thought, she'd likely feel anxious, maybe even afraid. But with Amamiya by her side, the tension eased.
"Based on past patterns, these instances usually relate to specific locations or objects." Kaguya lifted her gaze to the abandoned factory in front of them. "So, it's likely the dungeon was triggered because of this place."
"The abandoned factory even as the game setting," Amamiya mused. "Makes sense." Then he extended his hand toward Kaguya. "Cat and Mouse… reminds me of that classic film where a con man and a detective chase each other."
"Maybe we're looking at something similar," Kaguya speculated, "like a twisted game of cat and mouse, with a murderous figure lurking in the factory, making us the prey."
Without hesitation, Kaguya reached out, clasping his hand.
Her skin was delicate and cool, softened by warmth that was reassuring to hold.
Now that they were preparing to enter the scenario, there was just time to solidify their strategies.
"Shame we can't summon Chika," Amamiya sighed. "With only my current skills, I don't feel quite secure."
Kaguya bit her lip slightly, determined to master her skills.
It's settled! She thought to herself. Once we're out of this, I'll start flipping a coin every day until I get the skills I need.
"Let's scout around the factory first," Kaguya suggested, "and gather as much intel as we can."
Amamiya nodded. "Whatever you say."
Kaguya blushed, unable to resist scolding him. "…Stop pinching my fingers!"
"I'm helping you relax," he said, feigning innocence.
"I'm not tense!"
"…"
The five-minute preparation countdown expired in an instant.
Standing in the shadowed corner of an alley, Amamiya waited calmly for the transition.
"I wonder if we'll be teleported together or scattered around randomly," Kaguya wondered, her voice betraying a hint of apprehension.
She hadn't forgotten the Midnight Mall challenge, where she'd been trapped alone in a stairwell that led nowhere but up and down. The memory of that harrowing start was one she wasn't eager to relive.
Noticing her tension, Amamiya gave her fingers a light squeeze. "Right now, you should think positively—set a 'reverse flag,' so to speak."
"Huh?"
"Like, for instance…"
In the next second, their surroundings vanished.
The transition was seamless, like simply closing one's eyes. When Amamiya opened them again, he found himself standing in a dim, dilapidated room.
The light was dim, heavy with the scent of dust and mold, and a stack of worn cardboard boxes lay abandoned in the corner, marking the desolate interior of an abandoned factory.
Amamiya felt the warm, delicate hand in his own. Turning, he met Kaguya's clear, delighted gaze.
"It seems the flag worked," he observed.
This time, the two hadn't been separated during teleportation. They'd arrived together, still holding hands.
"Seriously? We're already getting the lovey-dovey routine, even in a horror game?" a disgruntled voice muttered from the shadows.
It appeared that Amamiya and Kaguya weren't alone in the game instance. Three other players stood scattered around the dimly lit room.
One of them, a high school boy standing at three o'clock, seemed to be the one who had spoken. Of average height and build, he wore his hair in a messy, spiked style and had a white bandage wrapped around his right hand. The aura he exuded suggested a protagonist's flair, making Amamiya feel he should keep an eye on him. 'Was there a dark dragon sealed in that bandaged hand?'
At nine o'clock, a quiet girl—likely also a high school student—stood with her eyes glued to a book she held close. Black-framed glasses framed her face, and two neat braids draped over her shoulders. She had an air of literary charm about her, a vibe that almost made one wonder if her last name was Hanekawa.
[Note: Reference]
Finally, at twelve o'clock stood a tall girl with straight posture and waist-length pink hair. She had a naturally determined expression, emanating a calm authority that seemed to attract followers. In her hand, she held a sword that could easily be mistaken for the legendary Excalibur.
"It's not a real sword," she muttered, seeing him looking at her weapon. "It's just an ordinary bamboo sword."
Amamiya shook his head, his tone serious. "There's no way it's just a regular bamboo sword. How else could it even be brought into the game?"
What was the core of any game? Balance.
Items from the real world couldn't normally be brought into the game. Otherwise, it would completely ruin its balance. In reality, most people didn't have access to weapons, but the wealthy certainly did, putting others at a disadvantage. Take Kaguya, for example—she could procure lethal weapons in mere minutes. Imagine the game chaos if she showed up armed like that.
Regular players might wield only a makeshift fruit knife or a DIY pot-lid shield, while Kaguya, hypothetically, could pull a Gatling gun from her bag, instantly becoming an unstoppable force. That wouldn't just ruin the game experience; it'd be unfair and unbalanced.
If the game tried to account for her by targeting Miss Gatling herself, it would destroy the very idea of a fair challenge.
Thus, from the start, the rule was simple: no external tools, aside from clothing, could be brought into the game.
The pink-haired girl clarified, "This bamboo sword came from a blind box—it can harm evil spirits a bit, that's all."
"Hey, what was that about 'sealing the Dark Dragon' in the narration?" another male player asked, wincing and holding up his bandaged hand. "It's just an injury! What are you, chuunibyou?"
"And you two," he continued, directing his frustration toward Amamiya and Kaguya, "you're still holding hands? This isn't some romantic vacation! Everyone knows that in horror games, clingy couples like you are the first to die!"
"C-couple…"
Kaguya, who had maintained a calm expression until then, turned red as the word hit her. Her gaze darted away, and she was flustered.
Holding hands was nothing, she thought, feeling indignant. This was slandering her innocence!