"This makes no sense."
Amamiya stared incredulously at the book in his hands.
How could a castle, ancient and mysterious, house a book like this?
'A Manual for Raising a Loyal Boyfriend'... The title alone screamed modern-day Japanese manga.
"What are you reading?"
Kaguya walked over curiously. Her eyes fell on the cover, and they immediately widened in shock.
This doesn't make sense!
The cover, the title—everything was identical to the book she kept hidden in her drawer. But how had it shown up in this game?
"You know this book?" Amamiya asked, noticing her surprised expression.
Kaguya remained silent.
What should she do? Should she admit it?
If she admitted to recognizing the book, how would she explain reading something like this? No explanation could save her from looking like a perverted girl with a twisted inner life despite her composed exterior.
"I..."
Just as Kaguya was about to come up with an excuse, a cheerful voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Kaguya-chan, come look at what I found!"
Chika waved them over with enthusiasm.
"What is it?" Kaguya followed her voice.
"Look at this." Chika held up another book, a perplexed look on her face. "The title is so weird."
Amamiya, curious, glanced at the cover—and was immediately taken aback.
'Postpartum Care for Sows'?
This kind of book shouldn't exist in a castle like this!
Meanwhile, other players had discovered similarly bizarre titles: '108 Ways an ADC Can Die', 'How to Make a Rich Tokyo Woman Fall for You in 100 Days', 'A Brief History of Time', 'I Became a River Crab', 'Miss Survival Guide to Reincarnation', and so on.
The castle's library was full of strange, mismatched books that had no place in such an old and eerie setting.
Out of curiosity, Amamiya opened 'A Manual for Raising a Loyal Boyfriend', only to find that the text inside was blurry and illegible.
A familiar notification flashed in front of his eyes.
'[Upon closer inspection, you find this book to be very strange]'
"No need for a reminder," Amamiya muttered under his breath. "Anyone can see that these books are weird."
He grabbed a few more books, but they were all the same—blurry text, some even missing entire pages. Occasionally, there were books with a few legible words, but they made little sense.
"Amamiya-kun, come on!" Chika called, already holding a stack of books.
"Yeah, yeah."
Amamiya gathered a pile of books, following the other players as they left the library and returned to the hall.
"The fireplace is over there."
"Hurry, light a fire."
"I'm freezing! My teeth are literally chattering!"
The group huddled around the fireplace, shivering, as they dropped the books at their feet.
"Okay, time to start the fire," someone said.
"Yeah, get it going—it's freezing."
"Why isn't anyone starting it yet?"
Suddenly, the room fell silent. No one moved.
After a few moments, Chika hesitantly broke the silence.
"Um... Does anyone have anything to light the fire with?"
Amamiya was the first to answer. "I don't."
Kaguya shook her head. "Me neither."
"I... I..." Rikka raised her hand shyly, and when everyone looked at her, she weakly added, "I don't either."
Yukino sighed, "Sorry."
It didn't take long for everyone to realize they had a serious problem.
They had no fire-starting tools.
Lighters, matches—none of these things could be brought from the real world into the game. Normally, you don't think much of it, but when you really need one, you're out of luck.
Amamiya suddenly recalled an old saying: 'Life is unpredictable...'
No, wrong.
'Life is full of ups and downs.'
"There's still a long time before the countdown ends. What if we freeze to death before then?" A female player's voice trembled with a touch of despair.
"Don't give up!" Chika chimed in optimistically. "We could try... rubbing sticks together to start a fire?"
Is she serious?
Rubbing sticks to start a fire may sound simple, but in reality, it's incredibly difficult. Most people would just end up with blistered hands, not a roaring flame!
"Great idea," Amamiya said, nodding sarcastically. "We'll leave that task to you, Fujiwara-san."
Chika blinked in surprise. "Amamiya-kun, you're kidding, right?"
"I'm not."
"You can't even look me in the eye and say that!"
"..."
The idea of rubbing sticks together was quickly scrapped. Everyone was still freezing, their hands and feet going numb, and with no proper tools on hand, there was no way to start a fire.
Yukino calmly folded her arms across her chest and offered a suggestion. "Actually, there is another way to stay warm. We could all huddle together, back-to-back."
"Huh?"
"Like penguins in Antarctica," Kaguya added, her voice cool but pleasant. "During winter, temperatures in Antarctica can drop to minus thirty or forty degrees. Penguins gather in large groups, and the heat from their bodies helps them survive the cold."
"Oh, I get it!" Chika's eyes lit up as she immediately wrapped her arms around Kaguya, pressing their faces together. "Like this, right? We stay warm by hugging!"
"Let go of me." Kaguya turned her head, visibly uncomfortable with the sudden closeness. "Back-to-back is enough."
"No way! Hugging is definitely better for warmth."
"Yukino-senpai," Rikka said, her ahoge (the little feather of hair on her head) swaying slightly as she looked at Yukino. "Let's warm up together too."
"..."
The temperature inside the castle was dropping rapidly. Pale frost had begun to form not only on the wooden doors but also along the walls. Everyone was shivering, their hands and feet numb from the cold.
Under these conditions, huddling together for warmth became a necessity.
Naturally, the female players stayed with the female players, and the male players with the males.
There were three sofas arranged in front of the fireplace, and the girls squeezed together on one of them. Chika and Kaguya sat in the middle, while the other girls huddled on either side.
Amamiya sat on a separate sofa with two other male players, trying to stay warm together.
"Are you cold?" Kiyono, a tall male player, asked quietly.
Amamiya responded just as quietly, "I'm trying to figure out the most handsome position to freeze in."
"What do you mean?" Kiyono asked, confused.
Amamiya smirked. "Even if I turn into an Ice sculpture, I'll make sure I'm a handsome one."
"Hey, don't joke about that now." Another male player, Hesuan, coughed twice and added, "But seriously, huddling together doesn't seem to be helping much, does it?"
"Maybe we don't have enough people," Amamiya mused, rubbing his chin. "Why don't you go ask the girls if they'd mind surrounding us?"
"You're dreaming. There's no way they'll agree!"
"..."
Despite their best efforts, huddling together barely helped. The cold still seeped into their bones, and everyone was beginning to feel the discomfort.
Amamiya silently opened his game inventory, hoping to find something useful.
"Huh?"
A badge suddenly caught his attention.
It was the exclusive badge he had earned after clearing the "Midnight Subway" challenge—the 'Light of Life'. According to Umi, it made your skin a bit fairer and raised your body temperature slightly.
"Guess I'll give it a try."
Amamiya took out the badge and equipped it. Almost immediately, he felt a warm current radiate from the badge, flowing through his body. His stiff, frozen limbs quickly thawed, and warmth spread through him.
"It actually works."
Amamiya was surprised—it was far more effective than he had expected.
"Hey, why did your body suddenly get warmer?" Kiyono asked, turning his head curiously.
"Yeah, it's not as cold as it was a moment ago." Hesuan looked equally amazed.
Amamiya didn't hide the badge's effect. "It's a bind-on-use item. Unfortunately, I can't lend it out."
"Amamiya-kun!" Chika's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Now's the time for you to step up and sacrifice yourself!"