The result of the final conversation could probably not be considered particularly pleasant.
Maki Shijo ultimately suppressed her emotions, maintaining a calm and restrained attitude while participating in the post-instance discussion, and did not get into another argument with Chika.
However, even though she managed that, the resentment-filled expressions she cast at Gao Hai from time to time throughout the conversation were impossible to conceal, causing Gao Hai to feel immense pressure.
As for the topics of discussion, they were mainly divided into three parts.
The first was regarding Gao Hai's watch. After clearing the Red Nut Gray Hole instance, this cheat-like device, which seemingly granted Gao Hai many powerful abilities, finally began to reveal another side. It forced Gao Hai to adopt a method of 'perfect clearance' to pass instances, requiring him to liberate the core obsession so that the watch could devour the instance.
Furthermore, based on the completely abnormal high difficulty of the Shirakawa Apartments and Red Nut Gray Hole instances, the group speculated that the difficulty of the instances Gao Hai participated in would inevitably become increasingly terrifying. Even if they tried to use tricks to utilize entry tickets for other instances, it would likely be useless. Just like Red Nut Gray Hole this time—a Tourist-level Twilight instance transforming into a dual-core instance at the peak difficulty of Dim Night—this already explained many issues.
The result of this discussion was to attempt to acquire three fixed 'Dim Night-level' instance entry tickets. Gao Hai, Kaguya, and Maki would enter them. Although there were basically few fixed Dim Night-level instances remaining in the player market that could be easily cleared, after confirming the perils of that strange watch, this was considered the only potentially feasible path to try at the moment.
Chika had no way to participate in this topic. Although the first instance game of her life was a peak-difficulty dual-core Dim Night level, in the judgment of the [Sacrificial Game], Chika Fujiwara was merely a newbie who had cleared a Twilight-level game once; she did not have the qualifications to participate in a Dim Night-level game. Chika was very distressed about this and sulked on the side for a long time.
The second topic was the [Black Blood Bullets]. The time all players worldwide entered the game was basically within the same day. It could be assumed that the [Sacrificial Game] opened games at a unified time. Therefore, while American Players were inside the instance, they could still use the Black Blood Bullets normally.
However, once they returned to the real world, they discovered that the Black Blood Bullets they held had all lost their effect. The player factions controlling the production channels of Black Blood Bullets also stated that the raw materials for the bullets had become invalid, suspecting that the instance had been cracked.
Fulfilling the core obsession's dying wish and cracking or destroying an instance was inherently extremely difficult. Because player demand for Twilight-level instances was high, not many veteran players dared to take the risk to destroy such instances unless they were unpopular ones. But that type of player usually operated alone and wouldn't necessarily be able to crack a Twilight-level core obsession. As for Dim Night-level and Red Moon-level, even among veteran players, there were few with such capability.
Therefore, after extensive investigation, players traced it back to the Red Nut Gray Hole instance. The American Players also realized that the source of the Black Blood Bullets likely lay within this instance.
Comments on the internet appeared extremely polarized. American Players were incomparably furious about this; many wanted to find the person who cleared the Red Nut Gray Hole instance and torture them to death to vent their anger. To those who had lost a major life-saving item, the player who destroyed the instance was now their mortal enemy.
However, players outside the Americas were basically watching the show, wishing for the commotion to get even more intense. After all, the Black Blood Bullets item had previously been strictly controlled and could not flow outwards. for players who couldn't get this item, the angrier these American Players were now, the happier they felt. There were even incidents where American Players, blinded by rage, arranged offline fights with other players, actually taking planes and cars over thousands of kilometers to kill the other party's entire family.
They must act low-key and hide themselves.
This was the consensus of Gao Hai and the other three.
Although the four players present had only just passed one or two instances, the enhancements from A-rank and S-rank ratings had already granted all four of them considerably powerful strength. Combined with the Obsession Items and Blessings obtained from other players, they indeed possessed sufficient capability to protect themselves.
Even compared to those unfathomable veteran players, they wouldn't yield much ground. Gao Hai's strength, in particular, could completely rival some of the weaker veteran players. But it was better to avoid unnecessary showing off.
Just like the previous 'Women's Face Gang'—although they successfully exterminated it, the fact that the opponent marched straight into Maki's home to kill was simply too insecurity-inducing. Although Gao Hai was all alone, both Maki and Chika had soft spots like family and friends. While Kaguya had no affection for her family, there were people she trusted deeply and absolutely could not lose by her side. Once they provoked those crazy, radical players, the trouble they might face was headache-inducing just to think about.
"For the next month, we won't show our faces at any player gathering spots. If we encounter players asking questions, we will follow Ms. Aoyama's explanation and say we actually went to the [Yamazaki Amusement Park], a Twilight-level instance. She has already agreed with Mr. Koikawa; relevant information about this instance will be sent to us soon. When it arrives, we'll memorize it and get our stories straight. Pretending to be a temporary team that passed the Amusement Park instance alone without contacting other players will suffice."
Kaguya summarized this matter at the end.
"To be honest, I don't want to have contact with any players at all either. Right now, I just want to sleep soundly at home for a few days and play games for a few nights."
Gao Hai yawned with a 'burnt-out' expression on his face; even his voice sounded weak and listless.
"In that case, I know a hot spring hotel in the suburbs. It's a very nice place to rest, you know? And they have a dedicated e-sports room there, using considerably high-end configurations. Ah Hai, you might like it. If Ah Hai wants to go, I can treat you, or we can all go together as a group of four."
Hearing this, Chika's eyes lit up slightly, and she immediately raised her hand to propose.
"Oh, really? Come to think of it, although I've been in Japan for so long, I haven't soaked in the hot springs here yet."
Gao Hai paused for a moment, then leaned closer to Chika with great interest. Then, Maki secretly reached out under the table, grabbing the hem of Gao Hai's clothes to forbid him from getting any closer to Chika, before looking at Chika with unconcealed hostility.
"We don't need you to treat us. If we go, we can all pay for ourselves."
However, this kitten-baring-its-fangs level of aggression elicited no reaction whatsoever. Chika merely smiled slightly, and Kaguya, unwilling to start another dispute, hurriedly began the next topic.
The final topic naturally concerned the arrangements for this coming month.
Real life was not safe, so everyone needed Obsession Items to protect themselves; thus, distribution needed to be done here.
Regarding the next game, they needed to ensure everyone stayed together as much as possible. Chika's situation also needed careful consideration—whether to find a reliable player group to carry her through a clearance or something similar.
Additionally, to deal with potential threats, they needed to discuss how the four would maintain contact daily, how to timely warn others at critical moments, and so on. There were quite a few things in this regard that required careful discussion. Even though veteran players like Aoyama Nanami and Koikawa-san were showing goodwill to them now, leaving aside the question of how long this goodwill would last, once they cleared a few more instances, the attention Gao Hai—who inevitably destroyed the instance every time he cleared it—would attract would certainly increase. At that time, would these two veteran players really still be willing to help cover for them?
"In that case, Ah Hai, come and be a security guard at Shuchiin Academy."
Then, while Kaguya and Maki were pondering these issues, Chika, who was swaying her body and seeming somewhat idle, raised her hand and spoke very nonchalantly.
"Security guard?"
Gao Hai was stunned once again, not quite understanding what Chika meant by this.
"That's right. Kaguya-san, Shijo-san, and I are all at the same school, so the three of us spend the vast majority of our time together. No matter what happens, we can basically look out for each other. But Ah Hai lives alone, which leads to Ah Hai being disjointed from the rest of us. So, it is necessary to let Ah Hai enter our daily social circle."
Chika wagged her finger, speaking with a very serious expression.
"Of course, the normal application process for a Shuchiin Academy security guard is very troublesome, and Ah Hai definitely doesn't have the relevant certificates. So I'll ask my dad to think of a way to write a letter of recommendation for Ah Hai, or letting Grandpa write one would work too. It's probably hard for Kaguya-san to persuade her family, but Shijo-san should be able to ask her parents for help, right? Although it might be impolite, as long as we use that suggestion necklace, cheating out a letter of recommendation shouldn't be a big problem."
"Moreover, with a letter of recommendation, the school will naturally know that Ah Hai's situation is special, so they won't really assign Ah Hai too much work. This way, Ah Hai's life won't have any added burden, and he can still live leisurely and freely every day. Would you be willing to do this, Ah Hai? If you agree, I'll operate this matter."
As the descendant of a politician, Chika Fujiwara retracted her usual lively and cheerful girlish demeanor at this moment, beginning to explain things like letters of recommendation to Gao Hai with considerable proficiency.
"Why bring up this kind of suggestion so suddenly? What do you want to do?"
Maki, who hadn't expected the other party to say such things, furrowed her brows and asked.
"I just hope that as a team, we can be more united. Of course, I also hope to see Ah Hai more often. Don't you wish to see Ah Hai, Shijo-san?"
Chika laughed "ehehe," her expression looking very innocent as she spoke.
"I-I naturally... But even so, with your and my family backgrounds, if we just pull a few strings, getting Hai-kun a job directly as a teacher wouldn't be a problem, right? Although he might not know much knowledge, at least being a PE teacher should be fine, right?"
Maki, who had almost subconsciously denied it again after being teased by Chika, held back her words until her face turned red, then plucked up her courage to follow up.
"Absolutely not. That would be much more troublesome; making things too difficult for the school authorities isn't a good thing. Besides, if Ah Hai really became a teacher, would your family accept a student-teacher romance, Shijo-san? Anyway, my family wouldn't accept it, and I wouldn't accept it either."
In the next second, Chika crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks to refute, instantly silencing Maki, who wanted to say something more.
It seemed... that was indeed the case...
Although she really wanted to refute the word "romance," after thinking about it carefully, Maki gave up struggling on this issue.
After all, whether Gao Hai became a teacher or a security guard, the goal wasn't the duty itself, but to pull him closer to the three of them, ensuring the entire squad could spend more time together. Moreover, even if they became players, at least... she still hoped to receive her family's blessing... wait, wait, wait, what kind of blessing do I want?! A blessing is something only needed for marriage, right?! This Fujiwara cow, did she actually think straight to marriage for a man she's only known for a day or two?! What a shameless woman!!!
Maki, who finally reacted, raised her head abruptly, eyes widening as she prepared to question Chika.
However, before that, the girl opposite her had already spoken her next sentence.
"Shijo-san, our opinions don't play a decisive role. The key is still whether Ah Hai himself is willing or not. So I'm just proposing the security guard idea; before you give your suggestion, let's ask for Ah Hai's thoughts first."
The smiling Chika spoke while turning her head to look at Gao Hai.
And Gao Hai, knowing full well he wasn't cut out to be a teacher, scratched his head and naturally expressed, "Being a security guard is definitely no problem, but let's forget about being a teacher," bringing this topic to an end just like that.
Damn it, I feel like I'm completely being led by the nose by the other party. What on earth is going on with this woman?
Maki felt a strong sense of powerlessness, having anger she couldn't vent.
And in fact, not just her—Kaguya, standing to the side, also felt a considerable degree of discomfort regarding Chika.
Is this really the Fujiwara-san I know? Isn't the change a bit too drastic?
Kaguya Shinomiya felt as if she could see the invisible pressure Chika Fujiwara was releasing toward her surroundings.
In her impression, Chika had always been a carefree, happy girl; nothing like 'oppressive force' had ever existed in her. But now, the Chika beside Gao Hai displayed a dominance incredibly unfamiliar to Kaguya, even giving Kaguya the feeling that the other party had already become a queen.
What Kaguya and Maki did not know was that this Chika Fujiwara had a full month more memory than the two of them. In that one month, the girl had had a very, very long time to sort out her feelings and recognize the current situation clearly. Her determination and will were naturally not something this losing heroine tsundere and hesitant girl could compare to.
If nothing else, at least among the three girls present, only Chika Fujiwara clearly realized that the three of them must unite around Gao Hai. Only by hugging together as a group could they better face the terrifying abyss of the [Sacrificial Game]. For this reason, normal male-female romantic relationships and the like actually had nothing to do with them players anymore. Therefore, Chika Fujiwara's goal now was very clear: to ensure that she could possess the heaviest, most profound weight in the bottom of Gao Hai's heart.
Of course, her love for this man couldn't be faked. After realizing that she probably couldn't monopolize Gao Hai and couldn't just leave him, Chika had experienced all the inner conflict and pain.
But she had already thought through all these things seriously during that month which had been rewound and disappeared.
After the time of the entire universe was rewound by that strange watch for a full month, and after restarting the instance and reuniting with Gao Hai, Chika had had ample time to think through these matters once again.
So she had made her decision. She wouldn't treat this matter as child's play, nor would she play any 'whoever confesses first loses' games.
So her determination was no longer on the same level as Maki's, and as for Kaguya, who hadn't even clearly recognized her own inner thoughts, there was even less need to mention her.
"No matter what, since we survived that terrible cavern together, then next, we must also unite together and work hard to survive the coming difficulties, okay?"
Thus, at the end of this squad meeting, Chika Fujiwara smiled from the bottom of her heart, speaking to everyone present with an incomparably serious tone.
Then she reached out, hugging the arm of Gao Hai who had stood up preparing to leave, and pressed her entire person against the side of his body.
"Ah Hai, Ah Hai, can you accompany me to buy new board game wargames?"
That look of hope, pleading with hesitant probing like a small animal, seemed like a completely different person from Chika's serious and solemn posture when speaking the previous sentence.
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