"Senpai, you must speak honestly in the dungeon and avoid saying things you don't actually mean," Amamiya said seriously. "False information can lead to poor decisions."
"I... I understand," Tsubame replied, her pretty face flushing slightly as she nodded in earnest.
It was truly embarrassing to be lectured by a boy who was a year younger than her. Yet, oddly enough, it was also reassuring.
If she had been left alone in the snowy forest, she likely would have been completely lost, unsure of where to go or what to do.
"It's freezing…" Tsubame hugged her arms, exhaling a puff of white mist as she muttered in a low voice, "I thought a fairy-tale world would be full of beautiful mountains and clear streams. Who knew we'd be stuck in a blizzard like this?"
Her main mission was to survive for forty-eight hours. On paper, it seemed straightforward—just find a safe place to hide. But in reality, it was far more challenging.
Watching a few episodes of Man vs. Wild didn't magically turn you into Bear Grylls. Ordinary people were still just that—ordinary.
The situation was made worse because it was summer in the real world, and everyone had dressed lightly. Now, in this icy landscape, they were losing body heat at an alarming rate. Forty-eight hours? Most people wouldn't even last a single day.
"That's not a problem," Amamiya said, pulling a jacket from his game space. "Senpai said she wasn't cold earlier, so I hesitated to take out the clothes."
Tsubame froze in disbelief.
"...You had clothes all along? Why didn't you take them out sooner?!"
"Wait a second." She frowned and asked suspiciously, "How do you even have clothes? Aren't we not allowed to bring items from the real world into the game?"
Without answering her question, Amamiya handed the jacket to her. Tsubame took it hesitantly.
"Try putting it in your game inventory," he suggested casually.
"…Hmm."
Tsubame pressed her lips together, skeptical but curious. As soon as she thought about storing the jacket, it vanished into her inventory. Her eyes widened in surprise.
"The jacket was actually a prop?" she exclaimed.
Amamiya nodded. "You can get anything from the blind boxes, even toilet paper. A jacket isn't that unusual." He gestured toward her. "Hurry and put it on, Senpai. If you get sick in a dungeon, there won't be any hospital to help you."
Tsubame nodded but hesitated, glancing at him. "What about you, Amamiya-kun?"
"Of course, I have my own clothes," he replied, pulling out two more jackets from his gaming backpack as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Tsubame stared at him incredulously. "Wait a second. You have way too many clothes!"
"I learned my lesson after the Snowstorm Manor dungeon," Amamiya explained while putting on his jacket. "I still remember how miserable it was freezing back then. As a player, I refuse to fall for the same trick twice."
"Snowstorm Manor?" Tsubame repeated, recalling the guide she had read in the player mutual aid group. Although she hadn't experienced that dungeon herself, she could imagine how dangerous it must have been.
"What about Chika-chan and the others?" she asked worriedly while slipping on her jacket. "Won't they get frostbite?"
"Don't worry," Amamiya reassured her. "Chika, Kaguya, and Hanamori are all prepared with proper clothes."
Failures were opportunities to learn.
For a novice like Tsubame, missteps were understandable. But for experienced players like Kaguya, who had already endured the freezing conditions of Snowstorm Manor, preparation was second nature.
There were hundreds of players in the mutual aid group. If every player opened a blind box once a day, there would be dozens, if not hundreds, of items generated daily. Acquiring a few pieces of clothing as a backup wasn't a problem at all.
It was worth noting that the bunny girl card in Kaguya's possession was a dress-up transformation card. After transforming into a bunny girl, not only would you get an adorable costume, but it also provided attribute bonuses—making it a functional prop.
However, the clothes that Amamiya had taken out at the moment were just ordinary garments. They couldn't transform or grant special effects; their sole purpose was to provide warmth.
"Whew…"
After putting on the clothes and feeling her limbs gradually warming up, Tsubame let out a small sigh of relief.
If she had entered this dungeon alone, she'd probably have been left hugging herself, shivering uncontrollably in a futile attempt to stay warm.
"Senpai, can you ski?"
Amamiya's voice broke her thoughts.
"Huh?" Tsubame blinked, startled by the question. Then, as realization dawned, her eyes widened. "Wait, don't tell me you…"
"That's right."
Before she could finish her sentence, a snowboard materialized in Amamiya's hand.
Tsubame: "…"
Are you serious?
A snowboard? The level of preparation this boy had was mind-blowing!
Unfortunately, there was only one snowboard, and with the dense trees, uneven terrain, and steep slopes of the forest, actual skiing was out of the question.
"Here, Senpai, take this rope." Amamiya handed her a length of rope. "Tie your feet to the board. It'll make walking on the snow a lot easier."
"I see."
Tsubame nodded, quickly following his suggestion.
Meanwhile, Amamiya approached a nearby tree, snapped off a sturdy branch covered in snow, and used it to craft a crude pair of snowshoes.
To do a job well, you must first prepare the proper tools.
When traveling through the snow, it wasn't just about staying warm—it was also about conserving energy. Being properly equipped was essential.
A few minutes later, the two were ready to continue their journey.
"Thanks to you, Amamiya-kun," Tsubame said sincerely, "it's not just much warmer now, but walking is so much easier."
The snow on the ground was deep, and without the makeshift snowshoes, every step would sink her ankles into the snow. Getting out of it was exhausting.
Amamiya shook his head with a faint smile.
"I suddenly miss Miss Werewolf," he remarked.
If she were here, moving through the snow would've been much easier.
Incidentally, some players in the mutual aid group had mentioned encountering monsters from other dungeons within different copies. What's more, these monsters could recognize the players. In other words, vengeful spirits and creatures seemed to "wander" between dungeons.
This meant it was entirely possible to meet Miss Werewolf again in the future.
However, as Amamiya recalled the yandere Kaguya he had encountered in the hospital, he immediately shook his head.
"If it's that yandere young lady… let's hope we never meet her again."
"…"
The two walked in silence for a while, with Tsubame following closely behind. Suddenly, she stopped and whispered, "Amamiya-kun, look over there."
"I see it."
Amamiya narrowed his eyes, focusing on a pine tree not far away.
Beneath the tree stood a little girl dressed in a ragged linen dress and a small hat. She carried a bamboo basket on her arm and was standing on her tiptoes, struggling to reach something growing on the tree.
"Amamiya-kun, should we go help her?" Tsubame asked quietly. Her instincts hadn't fully adapted to the dungeon yet. Seeing someone in need, her first thought was to offer assistance.
"Don't," Amamiya replied firmly, gently grabbing her hand and stepping back. He whispered, "Look at the ground. There are no footprints."
"Huh?"
Tsubame froze at his words and quickly looked down. Her eyes widened as realization struck.
The snow in the forest was thick. A normal person walking through it would leave clear footprints, and those footprints wouldn't disappear so easily.
But at this moment, there was clearly not even a single footprint behind the little girl picking mushrooms under the tree.
After discovering this, Tsubame suddenly felt a chill in her heart.
Fortunately, I didn't foolishly go over to help, otherwise I would be in danger now.
"Let's take a detour."
Amamiya whispered.
The most urgent task is to reunite with Chika first and activate the combination skills to eliminate crime and evil.
"good."
Tsubame nodded quickly, followed closely behind Amamiya, and carefully walked around the things under the pine tree.
The two of them walked away quietly. Tsubame couldn't help but turn her head and look behind her. She saw that the little girl was still picking mushrooms under the tree and seemed not to have noticed them at all. She breathed a sigh of relief.
But after a while, Amamiya suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong?"
Tsubame asked curiously.
Amamiya didn't say anything, just pointed forward.
Tsubame-senpai looked over curiously, her eyes widened in disbelief:
"Eh hey hey? Why is she in front of us?"
"wrong!"
Tsubame quickly shook her head, "Maybe we are lost?"
"We only walked for a few minutes, and basically kept the same direction. Even if we got lost, we wouldn't have to go back." Amamiya shook his head. "It's more likely that the thing has discovered us and affected our senses."
"Let's go." Amamiya calmly walked towards the tree, "Let's go over and see what she's up to."
Since I can't avoid it, I'll just go over there and let her know what it means to ask for trouble.
The two of them quickly walked under the tree.
When they got closer, they could hear the little girl mumbling something in a low voice.
"Two, two, two..."
The endless repetition of counting makes people feel uneasy for some reason.
"Hey, do you know that I once beat several elementary school students and made them cry?"
Amamiya went straight to the point.
"You must be kidding, right?" Tsubame looked over in shock, and shouted in her heart, "What on earth happened? Why did you beat up elementary school students and make them cry?"
"…"
The little girl who was standing on tiptoe to pick mushrooms from the tree suddenly stopped and then slowly turned around.
Tsubame held her breath nervously, and glanced over with the corner of her eye. She was surprised to find that under the hat was not an evil face with a mouth full of monsters, but a cute loli with blonde hair and blue eyes.
"I'm looking for mushrooms." The little girl held the bamboo basket in her arms, took a half step back timidly, leaned against the pine tree, and said nervously, "Grandma is sick, I want to pick some mushrooms and make soup for her, but the snow is so heavy that I can't find any mushrooms... Can you please help me find mushrooms?"
"Sick grandma..." Tsubame blurted out, "Are you Little Red Riding Hood?"
"How do you know my name?"
The little girl tilted her head, and the snow on her hat fell off, revealing a bright red color.
The sound of the game's prompt echoed simultaneously in the ears of Amamiya and Tsubame.
[Side Quest: Little Girl Looking for Mushrooms]
[Task Description: Grandma is sick, and Little Red Riding Hood needs to gather enough food to nourish her.]
[Task Requirements: Find the hidden mushrooms within ten minutes.]
[Reward: Unknown]
[Note: This task is mandatory and cannot be refused.]
"Looking for mushrooms?" Tsubame muttered, pursing her pink lips in hesitation.
Mushrooms were usually abundant during the spring-summer transition, thriving in fields and forests after the rain. But with snow blanketing the ground in the freezing cold, where could they possibly find mushrooms?
Amamiya sighed, pointing towards Little Red Riding Hood. "Senpai, you're such a kind person. You can't stand seeing others in trouble, can you?"
Tsubame's lips twitched. "…"
Sure, she liked helping people, but this wasn't a normal Little Red Riding Hood—it was clearly a strange one. She didn't feel like helping at all.
"Will you help me?" Amamiya turned to her with an innocent look.
"I… of course, I will." Under Little Red Riding Hood's expectant gaze, Tsubame forced a stiff smile.
"Good. Since we've all agreed, the next step is to find those mushrooms." Amamiya stepped up to a nearby tree, plucked a mushroom growing on its trunk, and handed it to Little Red Riding Hood. "Will this do?"
"No," Little Red Riding Hood replied, shaking her head. She then began muttering softly to herself, "Two, two, two…"
Tsubame crouched down, her curiosity piqued. "Two what?"
Little Red Riding Hood looked at her calmly and replied, "Two mushrooms."
Hearing this, Tsubame glanced at the bamboo basket hanging from Little Red Riding Hood's arm. "That's strange. There aren't any mushrooms in here."
Amamiya looked down and confirmed it. The basket was indeed empty—not a single mushroom was in sight.
At that moment, a text prompt appeared in Amamiya's vision:
[After careful observation, you've obtained a clue: In this nightmare fairy tale world, mushrooms may not always be the mushrooms you imagine.]
"So… normal mushrooms don't count?" Amamiya stared at the one he had just picked. Since no game notification appeared, it was clear that it didn't meet the task's criteria.
[You noticed something strange about Little Red Riding Hood and decided to investigate by stripping her clothes to verify her identity.]
"Hey, hey! Stripping a little girl's clothes? That's illegal—an aggravated crime, at that!" Amamiya quickly dismissed the absurd suggestion.
[You proceed to remove Little Red Riding Hood's clothing and nod with satisfaction. Elementary schoolers in this fairy tale world are unexpectedly good at fighting. Unfortunately, you still haven't found any mushrooms.]
"How strong are we talking?" Amamiya wondered aloud, intrigued. The girl was so petite—how could she possibly win a fight against two adults?
Taking a deep breath, Amamiya suddenly declared, "Senpai, you stole my stuff!"
"Huh?" Tsubame blinked, stunned by the accusation. She instinctively wanted to deny it. "This is my first time visiting your house! How could I steal anything?"
Ignoring her protest, Amamiya continued, "Forget about mushrooms for now. Let me search your body."
Fortunately, Tsubame was quick on the uptake. She blinked a few times and decided to play along. "No way! I didn't take anything!"
Amamiya pressed further, "We're checking today, no matter what. Don't try to hide behind Little Red Riding Hood."
Tsubame sighed dramatically, stepping toward Little Red Riding Hood as if seeking cover. "I won't let you check!"
"Don't try to escape!" Amamiya followed her closely.
Little Red Riding Hood, standing still, hesitated briefly, unsure whether to dodge. In the end, she didn't move.
Taking advantage of the moment, Amamiya swiftly reached out, grabbed the hood covering Little Red Riding Hood's head, and pulled it off, shaking away the snow.
His movements were so quick that Little Red Riding Hood didn't have time to react.
The next moment, golden hair tumbled out.
"Eh?! Hey, hey!" Tsubame's eyes widened in shock as she spotted a purple mushroom growing on top of Little Red Riding Hood's head.