Chapter 4: As the Protagonist, Why Don't I Get Cheat Powers?!
Rule Horror.
As a once-trending genre in Chinese online circles—a unique blend of mystery and supernatural horror—Kaito was well-acquainted with it.
From the breakout hit Zoo Horror to the subsequent waves of Daluo Mountain, Second-Level Academy, Espedro City, and more, these works, structured around lists of seemingly mundane rules that gradually descend into the uncanny, had once fascinated Kaito. They provoked deep thought while sending chills down the spine.
But precisely because he knew what this thing was, he absolutely did not want to enter a place associated with Rule Horror.
Damn it! This is life-threatening! What sin have I committed?!
Rule Horror—mental pollution and cognitive distortions are child's play. It casually involves spatial overlaps, dimensional shifts, even parallel worlds. Time reversal is just another Tuesday. And the masterminds behind it are often incomprehensible, invincible entities like Cthulhu or higher beings. Kaito was no legendary investigator—he was just a struggling novelist! Why must he suffer like this?
Would it be better to just end it all and reincarnate?
Kaito found himself seriously considering the idea.
Then it occurred to him—in some Rule Horror scenarios, suicide doesn't kill you. It just makes things worse.
Goddammit, couldn't those Rule Horror writers show a little mercy? Did they ever stop to think how miserable it'd be for someone unlucky enough to get trapped in their twisted worlds? Couldn't they spare some sympathy for pitiful protagonists like him, victims of sadistic authors?
"Living Rulebook?"
While Kaito's mind was in turmoil, Kaguya—who had finished reading the contents before him—frowned slightly.
This so-called rulebook was bizarre in every way, giving her an unsettling feeling. Though she'd never believed in supernatural nonsense, the eerie voice earlier and the terrifying loss of bodily control had already shaken her worldview. Now faced with this strange Living Rulebook, she couldn't help but overthink.
"If this isn't a prank… Huh, where's the clock in this room?"
Remembering the rulebook's mention of an [absolutely accurate] clock, Kaito immediately wanted to locate it to check the time.
Just then, he instinctively looked down—and noticed a black watch on his left wrist.
A watch?
Since when did I wear a watch?
No visible brand, no decorations, just an ordinary-looking black watch.
Before his gaze landed on it, Kaito hadn't sensed its presence at all. There was no feeling of wearing anything on his wrist. Only after spotting it did he finally register the weight on his hand.
But when Kaito raised his left arm to examine the watch closely, he saw it was covered in cracks. The dial had twelve markings, but only a minute hand pointed rigidly at the 12 o'clock position—no hour or second hands. The minute hand didn't budge, and there were no buttons or switches to adjust it.
What the hell is this weird thing?
Is this… my protagonist cheat?
At the first moment, Kaito thought of this point. Or rather, facing the likely tragic situation ahead, he could only console himself with such thoughts to avoid sinking into complete despair.
"Ah—!"
A piercing female scream suddenly rang out, seemingly coming from the next room.
What's going on? This feels like such a cliché plot device—a sudden scream at the story's beginning to drive the narrative forward. Isn't this trope a bit outdated? Next thing you know, we'll walk out to find a corpse, everyone will start babbling nonsense, then some middle-aged man will suddenly collapse onto the floor, followed by a grade-schooler hiding behind him to dramatically point out the culprit, right?
Hmm, actually, that doesn't sound too bad. It's a hundred—no, ninety times better than participating in some rule-based horror game.
"Should we go check it out? We're probably not the only ones trapped here."
Kaito cleared his throat and spoke to Kaguya across the table.
Then he noticed the printed paper on the table was already in Kaguya's hands. She was flipping it over, examining it from every possible angle, even inspecting the blank backside carefully.
Looking for hidden messages, perhaps?
I only looked away for a second, and she silently took the paper without making a sound. Are anime girls really this ridiculous? Is she descended from some Japanese branch of the Assassin Brotherhood?
"Let's go investigate. You hold onto this rules sheet—my clothes don't have pockets to carry it."
Apparently satisfied there were no hidden messages, Kaguya placed the paper back on the table and spoke to Kaito in her usual calm tone.
Though she suggested going out, Kaguya herself didn't move. Clearly, she intended to follow Kaito's lead rather than go first. Kaito didn't comment, simply folding the paper and tucking it into his pocket. His gaze shifted between the room's only wooden door and the kitchen doorway before he decisively approached the door with the hole, gripping its handle to open it.
Squeeeak—
An ear-piercing screech accompanied the door's movement, which felt impossibly heavy and stiff.
The hinges were nearly rusted through, effectively seized up—it could only be forced open with sheer strength.
As the door swung open, Kaito saw a small wall clock and, barely a meter beyond the door, a dilapidated wall.
The door opened onto the end of a narrow, elongated hallway.
This claustrophobic corridor led to a sharp right turn into another equally narrow passage.
At its end, Kaito spotted a partially open bathroom door revealing an old-fashioned squat toilet. Though clearly neglected for some time, thankfully there were no... unspeakable horrors to be seen. The exit door stood beside the bathroom—a rusted, aged-looking metal door.
Kaito tried to recall the layout of this apartment. Upon entering, the bathroom was on the right, while a hallway stretched to the left. After a right-angle turn and another stretch of hallway, turning right led to a small living room that doubled as a bedroom, with a kitchen on one side...
What kind of insane architectural design was this?
Was the architect of this building out of their mind?
With these thoughts, Kaito reached for the doorknob and pulled the door open effortlessly.
"The lock is broken."
Looking down, he noticed the door's lock was completely damaged, the bolt unable to extend, rendering the door impossible to secure.
A sense of foreboding washed over him.
Stepping through the metal door, he entered the corridor outside.
It felt even more oppressive than the room—narrow, stretching straight left and right. Despite the already cramped space, the hallway was lined with tall cabinets, seemingly bolted to the walls with no handholds for climbing, leaving only a tiny gap at the top barely large enough for an adult to lie flat. The corridor was lit by a ghastly white light, illuminating the cracked, peeling paint on the ceiling and walls. Rows of rust-covered, dark-red doors lined the narrow passage.
The door he had just exited bore a dark-red plaque marked [204].
A perfect setting for a horror film.
Kaito's unease deepened.
At that moment, several people were already in the hallway. Kaito spotted a Black man with a buzz cut (no, correction—a Black brother); a middle-aged Asian man with glasses, wearing a bulky suit and sporting a potbelly; a towering White man over 190 cm tall, his face adorned with thorn-like tattoos; an unremarkable-looking, mild-mannered middle-aged Asian man carrying a backpack; and a young girl who appeared to be a high school student, dressed in the same uniform as Kaguya.
"Your fellow countrywoman?"
At first glance, the girl seemed vaguely familiar, but Kaito couldn't immediately place her. He turned to Kaguya, who had followed him out, and asked.
"..."
Unsurprisingly, Kaguya recognized the girl at once—and the girl recognized her too. Despite this, neither made any overt gesture of acknowledgment, exchanging only subtle glances to avoid drawing attention to their connection. Though their identical uniforms made the effort somewhat futile, maintaining the pretense of being mere acquaintances might still prove marginally useful, so they committed to the act without hesitation.
Maki, you're here too?
Great-aunt, you're in this place as well?
It seems the mastermind behind this possesses formidable power, targeting both the and Shijo Families simultaneously...
That said, their goal doesn't appear to be ransom or the like. Do you have any leads, Great-aunt?
We're the same age—can you drop that title already? This is hardly the time!
Even if you say that, great-aunt is still great-aunt. Isn't that how our family hierarchy works?
Without exchanging a single word, perhaps due to the special ability of being an otaku, Kaguya and this ponytailed girl managed to convey a series of rather complex messages through eye contact alone.
Meanwhile, after his initial confusion, Kaito quickly recalled the identity of this girl.
Isn't this girl... isn't she Maki Shijo?
The most tragic character in the original Kaguya-sama series, living through the fiery depths of a love triangle drama every day—wait, no, her situation is even worse than that. At least in a love triangle, all three parties are genuinely entangled. She's purely the losing side, forced to endure wave after wave of romantic displays, watching her best friend and the boy she secretly loves share sweet moments together. And by 17, things escalated to the point of a shotgun wedding—what a bizarre spectacle.
Who would have thought this poor girl, constantly tormented in the original story, would also be chosen to enter this rules-based horror game? Honestly, personality-wise, you could call her a little angel in the original. If what I'm experiencing now is really part of a movie, TV show, game, or novel, I can't help but suspect the author might be a psychopath. Why throw such an adorable, pitiable child into this kind of plot?
Kaito's thoughts raced, but none of it showed on his face.
At this moment, he and the others in the hallway were staring at Room 205—the room next to his and Kaguya's—from which screams had just erupted. No one knew what was happening inside.