As Asuna and the others investigated, a morning passed, and the scorching sun hung high in the sky. The fiery sunlight shining on them brought only a slight sense of security.
Suddenly, a slightly hoarse, smoky female voice rang out.
"Want to take a gamble?"
"No, thank you..."
Wiping the cold sweat from her forehead, Asuna cautiously refused the Hyakkaou Private Academy girl in front of her, who was somewhat fanatical about gambling.
Initially, Asuna and the others had been acting with Yuki.
However, after visiting numerous locations in the academy and finding nothing, or perhaps Yuki had discovered something but didn't tell them, Yuki then suggested they explore separately.
Splitting up in a place overrun by ghosts!?
The Glasses Man and the others naturally strongly objected. If they had that courage, the Glasses Man wouldn't have mocked Hayashi just now.
"It's true that I'm leading you, but I'm not your nanny. In the dungeon, only those who learn to use their own brains can live longer."
Since Yuki had said this, no one dared to refute her anymore.
Although Asuna was very scared, she knew Yuki was right.
It was already a great kindness for her to accompany them into the dungeon; she couldn't rely on her for everything. Therefore, despite trembling with fear, Asuna mustered her courage to approach those 'Ghost Students' of Hyakkaou Private Academy.
Fortunately, these students, burned into 'human candles,' did not look grotesque at the moment.
It's just... Asuna wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but she always felt that as time passed, the charred marks on the students' necks seemed to be spreading.
—The original black line had clearly thickened a lot.
'The dungeon's requirement is to survive for seven days...
On the seventh day, will all these guys turn into malevolent ghosts?'
Thinking of this, a deeper chill surged in Asuna's heart, which even the scorching midday sun could not dispel.
'Malevolent ghosts formed from burned people... charred flesh, twisted faces...
Wuwu~… so scary!'
The terrifying imagination continued to spread. Asuna now really wanted to dig a hole in the corner of the academy wall and bury herself.
—If she could survive seven days without eating or drinking.
Helpless, Asuna could only walk towards the Hyakkaou Private Academy cafeteria, which was the meeting point Yuki had arranged.
"Asuna~."
As soon as she stepped into the cafeteria, Yuki's elegant call came from the front row.
Yuki was already waiting there for her.
The other three newcomers were also sitting beside her.
'These guys... after splitting up to explore, did they just find a place to hide?'
Looking at the Glasses Man and the others, Asuna couldn't help but inwardly criticize. It wasn't malicious speculation; she had personally witnessed one of them sneak into the sports hall storage room during her exploration and never come out.
"Asuna, did you find anything?"
Sitting elegantly on an ordinary cafeteria chair, Yuki's posture still exuded noble grace, and her tone towards Asuna carried a hint of scrutiny.
"A little... about their necks... and how every student in this academy is unusually obsessed with gambling."
Asuna told Yuki about her observations of the spreading charred marks on the students' necks and her conjecture that they might turn into ghosts on the seventh day.
Hearing this, Yuki nodded in approval:
"Not bad. For a newcomer, your basic observation skills are up to par."
Asuna's answer wasn't stunning; it was decent.
But compared to the Glasses Man and the others, this Shuchi'in Academy classmate indeed had more potential.
Within the dungeon, hotheads, unlucky individuals, and cowards find it difficult to survive.
Thinking that hiding will allow one to survive the last few days? Naive!
In the instance world, only by learning to observe can one live a little longer.
However, Yuki had no interest in reminding the Glasses Man and the others. She, Kaguya, and Yukino needed teammates.
It was about selection, not being a saint.
Even Yukino, who had the highest moral compass among the three of them, had put away most of her kindness after experiencing several instance worlds.
"But I still haven't found the path to survival, the ghost's killing pattern..."
Despite Yuki's praise, Asuna couldn't be happy and said with some disappointment.
In fact, remembering that those students would turn into ghosts after seven days, she was afraid.
This situation felt no different from knowing you would die in seven days but finding no way to survive.
—The taste of waiting for death was not pleasant.
"Don't rush; it's normal for the path to survival to be hard to find on the first day.
As for the ghost's killing pattern, perhaps everyone will know tomorrow!"
Yuki's tone was still elegant.
But the deeper meaning in her words sent a chill down Asuna and the others' spines.
They would know tomorrow? How would they know?
Naturally... after the ghost makes its move and kills someone!
"Suou-senpai, What about you? Did you find anything?"
The Glasses Man couldn't help but press, eager for more survival information.
"The answer is obvious—gamble!"
"?"
"?"
"?"
The newcomers' faces were filled with confusion.
Looking at the newcomers' confused expressions and Asuna's thoughtful look, Yuki once again mentally sentenced everyone else except for Asuna to "death."
But on the surface, she still said calmly.
"The dungeon's hint is 'you must accept the consequences of a gamble.' This is also a school where gambling is the school rule.
Gambling is naturally the most important thing."
Hearing this, the Glasses Man asked in horror:
"So... we should gamble with those ghosts?"
His observational skills weren't great, and he was timid, not daring to investigate, but he wasn't completely stupid.
Gambling with ghosts?! In all horror stories, do people who gamble with ghosts ever come to a good end?!
"And what about the stakes? I don't have any cash on me. My phone has no signal here."
Hearing this, Yuki's clear, lively eyes swept over the Glasses Man, and a devilish smile curled at the corner of her lips as she said.
"You forgot, you yourself are the best capital!"
"Ah?"
Feeling a little numb on his scalp from Yuki's gaze, the Glasses Man was somewhat puzzled.
Asuna, however, instantly understood Yuki's hint.
Capital?
Hands, feet, heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, skin, flesh, blood... one's body itself—isn't that the best capital!
So those ghosts who wanted to gamble with her... were coveting her body!?
Logical! Too logical! After all, what would a dead ghost care about money?
'Good thing I didn't gamble with those ghosts.'
"What do you mean?"
The Glasses Man, who hadn't understood, continued to ask.
"It means you can use your flesh and blood to gamble with them!"
Yuki's elegant voice carried a hint of disdain, and then she said with ill intent.
"How about it, want to try? On the first day, the ghosts shouldn't be too excessive, at most asking for one finger. Perhaps you should try and see what you can get from the ghosts if you win."
"Huh?! How could I possibly gamble!!!!"
Hearing Yuki say this, the Glasses Man immediately said in fear that he wouldn't dare to gamble with those terrifying guys!
"Suou-senpai, since you're experienced, why don't... you give it a try?"
The Glasses Man instigated.
"I already tried! Look~"
Saying that, Yuki pulled out a student ID card, waved it, and continued:
"With one arm as the stake, this is what that student lost to me."
The Glasses Man's and the others' eyes immediately widened. Although they didn't know what the student ID card was for, they knew its value was Yuki's arm!!
Thinking of this, their gaze towards the student card in Yuki's hand became even more fervent!
"Let me remind you again, avoiding it is useless. You might as well take advantage of the first day, when the difficulty is lowest, and gamble more with those ghosts.
On the first day, ghosts cannot directly kill you."
At this point, Yuki paused slightly but continued in her mind:
'But if you don't gamble with them, you might not survive tonight.'
However, she didn't say this sentence directly.
Elegantly fiddling with the student card with her slender hand, in Yuki's experience, after possessing a student ID, ghosts should no longer prioritize attacking her.
She should be safe tonight, but as for the others—hehe~.
Thinking of this, Yuki looked towards Asuna.
These words seemed to be spoken to everyone, but in reality, they were only meant to guide Asuna.
At the same time, her mind had already drifted far away. Compared to the Glasses Man and the others, she was more curious about Hayashi—Yukino's interesting classmate—what was he doing at this moment?
Such a calm newcomer, Suou Yuki had never seen before. She really wanted to see him cry!
The sight of a handsome young man crying~~ that scene would definitely leave her with an endless aftertaste and a joyful mood…
Just as Yuki was indulging in her mischievous fantasies, a scraping sound suddenly echoed from the cafeteria entrance. It instantly startled her awake, instinctively reawakening all her pursuit memories.
Hmm—all sorts of memories of being chased by ghosts!
"I! ***"
Ghost?!!
Why? Surprised and flustered, Yuki didn't even have time to curse, let alone maintain her elegant young lady persona.
There was no need to look; extensive escape experience screamed a warning to Yuki—a ghost was approaching!
'What a joke!!!
First dungeon difficulty!!! First day!!!
The ghost has already appeared?! Even the fourth dungeon difficulty wouldn't be like this!
Even if someone really violated the rules, the ghost should wait until night to kill people!!!
Damn it!! What went wrong?!'
Yuki's brain raced, but her body had already instinctively taken over control.
She was slightly flustered, losing much of her elegance, and darted to the back door of the cafeteria like a frightened rabbit.
Pulling open the back door, she stepped outside, pulling out an ancient and eerie lady's fan from her hand. On the fan's surface, a dignified lady elegantly strolled, her sleeve raised high to cover half her face.
After preparing to escape through the back door at any moment, Yuki then turned to look back and gather information.
—Asuna, though a beat slower than Yuki, finally caught up; as for the other three, they remained frozen in place, looking bewildered.
They seemed not to have reacted to what Yuki was doing.
They watched Yuki's seamless actions with confused expressions.
"Suou-senpai, you..."
The Glasses Man called out in confusion.
At this moment, how could Yuki have time to bother with him? Her gaze was locked onto the cafeteria entrance—sure enough, a charred hand was already gripping the doorframe.
The ghost really came!!! On the very first day!!