One had to admit—this dungeon's anomalies were creative.
Their methods of instilling terror were exceptionally well-crafted.
The moment the school's lights cut out, headless students, their necks impaled with flowers, emerged in droves, surrounding Takakai and Miko in the restroom. The sight was undeniably horrifying—though only Miko was visibly shaken. Takakai remained unfazed.
CRASH!
With a burst of shattered tiles, Takakai barreled through the wall, dragging Miko into the lobby.
Glancing back, he spotted a door nearby labeled [2nd-Year Records Room].
We're back where we started?
They hadn't retraced their steps, yet the school's twisted layout had looped them around.
Ahead, in the hallway leading to Classrooms 2-002, 2-003, and 2-004, shadowy figures shuffled forward—students with their eyes, noses, and mouths gouged out.
Meanwhile, the headless students in the restroom staggered like frail elders, struggling to rise.
"They're… different from the hanging students upstairs?" Miko murmured, confused.
"These anomalies are suppressed," Takakai realized.
Though still dangerous, their movements were sluggish, their malice dulled.
The flowers.
The white chrysanthemums protruding from their necks weren't just decorations—they were Obsessions.
Each flower served one purpose: to restrain the students' supernatural nature, pacifying them.
To let them rest?
A fragmented vision flickered in Takakai's mind—
A ruined classroom. A hand placing a flower on a desk.
Then, silence.
The memory was severed, as if forcibly cut off by some unseen force.
Someone mourned these students.
After the school was abandoned.
After everything ended.
But now wasn't the time for speculation.
The faceless students were closing in, their malice palpable. Unlike their headless counterparts, these creatures radiated pure hostility.
"Howard!"
Takakai summoned his second Rescue Team member—Howard, the firefighter he'd met in [Nutty Putty Cave]. Unlike Guo, Howard's lingering will was far stronger.
Without needing orders, Howard stepped forward, arms spread.
"Mission initiated. Fire brigade deployed."
He intercepted the students, buying time.
Takakai scooped Miko up and moved.
Not running—speed-walking, a technique he'd practiced precisely to circumvent the dungeon's contradictory rules:
[Sheep Mother] and [Duck Teacher] forbade running and noise. [Flashlight Sister] demanded immediate flight when encountered.
This hybrid gait allowed him to move swiftly without triggering penalties.
Through the badge, Takakai sensed Howard being overwhelmed.
Seven seconds. Not bad.
Once the students dispersed, he could recall Howard and send him to scout the records room.
By now, they'd reached the hallway intersection—where the stairs loomed.
And where [Turtle Teacher] lurked.
Will it appear?
Step. Step.
Takakai's gaze remained fixed ahead.
Five steps. Six.
Behind them, the faceless students' footsteps grew louder.
Eight. Nine.
The stairwell came into view—and with it, a shadowy figure.
SNAP!
Takakai opened the black umbrella, shielding them as they passed.
The figure—a hulking anomaly with a turtle's head stitched to its neck—turned sluggishly, its arms dragging fused, writhing bodies behind it.
[Aah... Aahhh...]
Agonized wails echoed, even from a distance.
Miko clutched the candle, shutting her eyes.
She recognized some voices—her classmates.
Some had already died. Others… might be beyond saving.
But she could do nothing.
So she pretended not to hear.
[AAAAAAAAH—!]
A sharper scream ripped through the hall.
The faceless students had stopped chasing.
Instead, they kneeled, kowtowing violently to the turtle-headed teacher.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Blood gushed from their hollow eye sockets, noses, and mouths, painting the floor crimson.
Miko heard their pleas—
[Please forgive me, Teacher! I'll do anything!]
[No more warnings! I'll obey, I swear!]
[Don't send me to the basement—NO! NOOO—!]
[Mom… Mom…]
Chains rattled.
Screams melded into unintelligible noise.
Red.
So much red.
Spreading across the halls, the classrooms, drowning everything.
...
Takakai closed the umbrella.
After evading pursuit, they'd reached their first destination: Office No. 3.
He stared at the umbrella, puzzled.
This Obsession—unusable in [Nutty Putty Cave] due to its high risk of backlash—somehow functioned normally here, with reduced instability.
Why?
An Obsession that backfires in a Twilight-grade dungeon but stabilizes in a Crimson Moon-grade one?
It made no sense.
But for now, its effectiveness was undeniable.
"We're here. You okay?"
Miko blinked, dazed.
"…Just… a little lightheaded."
She glanced back at the darkened hallway.
Did I see something just now?
Why can't I remember?
But it didn't matter.
It wasn't my concern.
It was for bad students to worry about.
For bad children to suffer.
Not me.
Never me.
Shaking off the thoughts, she followed Takakai—and the third figure beside him—toward the office.