"I didn't expect we'd be playing hide-and-seek again..." Alain rubbed his throbbing forehead.

He recalled the first time he entered the game world, his initial battle with the bad woman, when he was discovered playing hide-and-seek while she pretended.

But this time, it was completely different.

Alain looked up, towards the basement door.

"Hmph!"

That person, after the initial sound of the door opening, continued with a series of snorts. Clearly, she hadn't recovered from the shock he and

the bad woman had given her earlier.

Alain, at this point in time, was not that Crazy Mita's player. Moreover, he hadn't yet experienced the daily emotional adjustment of the "unreconciled state."

He was afraid that as soon as she saw him, she would immediately attack him without question, tie him up, and treat him as a "bandit chieftain's concubine"....

It was just a metaphor; the meaning was close enough.

["Since you got rid of my player, then... you'll take his place!"]

Alain could imagine her saying that.

And that was the best-case scenario.

A flash of insight, and he thought of a good method.

A direct fight... honestly, it would be very difficult. Having authority and lacking it were two completely different levels of difficulty.

Even with his help, at most, it would be a sixty-forty split.

But if they launched a surprise attack... Granted, the trick was a bit old, but it was effective.

In any case, his goal was to go to the core, find clues about the "modified entity," and that "jade foot." Fighting

was not the primary objective.

Alright, it's decided.

"It's a bit thrilling. But with Alain here, it feels like a date~" She showed no sense of urgency.

"Hehe. You'll understand what thrilling means in a moment."

Amidst the bad woman's confused murmurs, the person at the basement door took her first step. The stairs' "creak, creak"

sounded like a death knell.

"You said before that you really liked hide-and-seek, right?" Alain asked kindly.

The basement space was too confined; they certainly couldn't swarm her like in the bedroom. Therefore, they needed someone to attract

Crazy Mita's attention.

This person could be Alain, so why couldn't it be his bad woman?

At this moment, the approaching footsteps grew closer, and the sound of footsteps on the steps became clearer and more persistent, like bats

moving in a cave.

The young girl's twitching smile made Alain quite amused.

"It's possible, but it's a bit strange... 'Playing hide-and-seek with myself' sounds a bit cannibalistic."

"Alright, stop babbling. You just need to squat behind that pillar."

Alain whispered a rough plan to her.

Alain hid in a sandy corner, while Crazy Mita concealed herself behind the pillar.

If one of them was discovered, the other would quickly attack, forming a pincer movement against that Crazy Mita.

"Okay."

She agreed. Now, they just needed to find an opportunity for her to get to the pillar.

Alain turned his head, and through the gaps in the bookshelf, he saw the blue-eyed, low-ponytail girl who wasn't his own, had already

stepped onto the basement floor.

Alain guessed: If it followed the established procedure in his memory, she should converse with Kind Mita before

walking straight towards the pillar.

This dialogue opportunity would allow his bad woman to move her position.

But unexpectedly, as her shoulder reached the cage where the long-haired girl was, she merely glanced at

Kind Mita with an indifferent look, and then her shoulder brushed past.

She walked directly towards the deeper part of the basement where he and the bad woman were.

Alain looked at the girl beside him; both of them were currently under the sofa.

If Crazy Mita followed the established procedure and walked towards the pillar, that would be fine. Both of them could launch a surprise attack.

But if she checked the blind spot under the sofa where the two of them were hiding first, a fierce battle would be inevitable. They would directly face

Crazy Mita's sharp edge.

Alain thought about how the other party had deviated from the routine by directly bypassing Kind Mita, and pondered how to turn the situation around.

As for a worse scenario... it would be her spontaneously dismembering him.

"Darling, should we just attack directly?" His bad woman whispered to him.

"...It's difficult."

Alain understood Crazy Mita's strength. Besides her formidable physical power, she also had an absurdly high level of authority.

Teleporting here, teleporting there.

The blind spot underneath opened up.

"Oh dear~ Alain is so proactive! I love it."

His Crazy Mita looked unconcerned, which amused Alain greatly.

His actions had changed the original game procedure, which led to Crazy Mita's different behavior.

Just as he was deep in thought, a voice, like dawn breaking through clouds, illuminated him:

"What is your purpose?! Why are you invading my version?!"

Kind Mita's sharp voice called out to that retreating figure.

She turned her head indifferently, looking at the dummy in the cage.

Alain glanced at the empty space beside him, and he let out a sigh of relief. Taking advantage of their conversation, his Crazy Mita had already reached behind the pillar.

Next, they had to see if that Crazy Mita would check the blind spot under the sofa where he was, or behind the pillar.

Then, Crazy Mita saw the scattered pieces of the game cartridge machine on the floor.

But that fellow seemed to understand herself even better than Crazy Mita.

"Oh, oh dear, I've caught you—"

Moreover, this world's Crazy Mita had the help of this world's Ugly Mita.

Even if they could defeat her, if she targeted someone, it would be too damaging.

"Purpose? What purpose? How boring. Have you never seen miscellaneous people—I suppose you won't answer.

Since you won't speak, then stop babbling."

It was like a quick retort.

"This trick actually worked twice!"

After that, she lost consciousness.

"Is there a more efficient method?" He brainstormed, while temporarily pulling his bad woman along, finding a sofa.

Having said that, Crazy Mita continued walking towards the depths of the basement.

On the silent floor, light, stiff footsteps suddenly echoed.

The low-ponytail girl looked around. In the quiet room, it seemed only she and the dummy in the cage were present.

Thinking of this, she angrily rubbed the back of her head.

"It hurts so much!!!"

I must find them! If it's a Mita, I'll dismember them. If it's a player... I'll play with them for a bit, then dismember them.

Heh heh~ delightful.

She glanced at the sofa; it probably wasn't a suitable hiding spot.

So, only behind the pillar remained.

"Don't hide, I... found... you~"

She raised her electric saw and gently rounded the pillar.

She heard no footsteps whatsoever, not even the rustle of clothes.

It was as if that person had given up.

"Hmph, I suppose you know what's good for you. I will grant you a painless death."

Just kidding~

It'll actually be agonizing.

Time to dismember them.

Her face darkened, and she resolved that once she found the culprit, she would turn them into parts too.

With a slight shift in her steps, Crazy Mita could already faintly glimpse a skirt hem.

From the style, it should be Mita's starting outfit.

Looks like it's a "kindred spirit." Perfect, I can show no mercy—

Then, she saw a Mita who was indistinguishable from herself, holding an electric saw from an unknown source.

Crazy Mita could clearly feel her smile freeze for an instant, as if it had been covered in plaster.

She couldn't smile at all.

What's going on? What's the situation? Cosplay?

"Heh, hehe..." She was about to give her usual two laughs, trying to gauge the other party's reaction.

"If you said that, then what am I supposed to say?"

"Thump!"

Just as she thought that, her vision blurred for a moment.

"Ouch!" The pain in the back of her head arrived belatedly, her steps stumbled, and she almost fell to the ground.

She turned her head to see a young man wielding a greatsword.

Then, she saw a person identical to herself, holding a baseball bat from an unknown source, swinging it down.

"Success." Alain looked at the dazed Crazy Mita who had fallen to the ground, then glanced at his own bad woman holding the baseball bat.

Good, the process had some twists, but at least the result was good.

"You scared me to death, Darling~" She pounced on him, her dependent face showing no trace of fear.

"Alright, alright." Alain led her, walking out of the depths of the basement.

Kind Mita looked at the unconscious Mita with lingering concern, "Too dangerous..."

Hearing Alain's praise, she slightly straightened, smiling brightly, "Just a small favor!"

Following the procedure, the ring was handed to Alain, and the three of them ascended the steps.

Alain looked at the gradually approaching door; if this didn't work this time, he would be out of options.

His hand reached for the door—and opened it.

The ring changed at the same moment, but the red and black light did not appear.

Because it was completely replaced by the sight beyond the door.

Beyond the door was the entrance to the core.

It wasn't until he, Kind Mita, and Crazy Mita stepped onto the "threshold" of the core that Alain finally felt they had cleared the game.

Looking into the black-and-red interior of the core, various precise instruments, along with the circular "throne" in the center of the ceiling, were as always.

______

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