The students that had been pursuing them had all stopped moving due to the presence of the [Turtle Teacher], giving Takakai and Miko some breathing room.
"Did you see anything just now? Like... someone placing flowers in the ruined school?"
Takakai turned to Miko, asking her directly.
Since he had caught a glimpse of that fragmented vision, he assumed Miko—with her sharper senses—would have seen something too, perhaps even more clearly.
"Huh? No, I didn't... I didn't see anything like that."
But this time, things were different.
Miko's expression was blank, completely unaware of what Takakai was talking about.
She didn't see it? Only I did?
This puzzled Takakai.
Miko's senses have always been sharper than mine. Why is this suddenly different?
Is that vision something only I could see? If so, why was it abruptly cut off, as if something didn't want me to see the full picture?
Almost like... something noticed me peering into it and forcibly severed the connection.
"Let's go. We need to keep moving."
In the end, Takakai didn't dwell on it.
There was no point agonizing over questions with no answers. Right now, their priority was finding a way to change their identities.
The Print Room & Office No. 3
As they moved forward, they soon reached the Print Room.
The door was slightly ajar, and through the dim candlelight, they could see printers, desks, and stacks of papers—likely test sheets.
Takakai didn't enter.
He could sense malice lurking inside, so he chose not to provoke whatever was in there.
Instead, they pressed on toward Office No. 3 at the end of the hallway.
The office door was strikingly different from the classroom doors—heavy, reinforced metal, painted a deep vermilion, as if designed to keep intruders out. Compared to the flimsy wooden classroom doors, this one screamed authority.
Takakai grabbed the handle and tested it.
Locked.
Without hesitation, he activated the Rescue Team Badge, gripping the doorframe and prying it open with brute force.
The metal groaned in protest before finally giving way with a deafening screech.
Miko stared, stunned.
"Will... will I become like you someday?"
She pointed at the ruined door, her voice tinged with awe.
Takakai chuckled.
"This is just the basics. A strong body can endure curses and fight back when needed. But for you... focus on surviving first."
After cautiously scanning the room for threats, he stepped inside.
The Bloodied Ram Mask
The office was modest—three large desks divided into six workspaces, each labeled by subject:
Japanese
Mathematics
English
Science
Social Studies
(Unmarked)
The first five desks were cluttered with papers and textbooks.
But the sixth—the unmarked one—held something far more disturbing.
A rotting ram's head mask, reeking of blood.
Next to it, a pink sticky note.
Like it was left here... for me.
The thought unsettled him.
"Do you see anything unusual?" he asked Miko.
She scanned the room carefully before shaking her head.
"No... nothing strange."
Takakai hesitated, then approached.
The note's handwriting was eerily familiar—identical to the one from the [Alice Game].
Its contents read:
[Grown-ups always wear masks.]
[They make up so many excuses, but never tell the truth.]
[Is it because of the masks?]
[Why can't they take them off and speak honestly?]
[Is lying really that fun?]
The words felt like a child's naive questioning—fitting for a middle school.
But it also reminded Takakai of a warning from past players:
[Once you put on the mask, you can't easily take it off.]
Was the [Teacher] identity a trap, like the [Security Guard] role in [Red Nut Cave]?
Yet... they had no choice.
With a deep breath, Takakai picked up the ram's head mask.
The inside was hollowed out but uncleaned, still caked with clotted blood and rotting flesh.
"Takakai-san... you're really going to wear that?"
Miko's voice trembled as she took a step back.
"Someone has to test it. If something goes wrong, I might still resist. You wouldn't stand a chance."
He raised the mask, feeling its sinister aura.
This wasn't an Obsession, but it carried an unnatural presence.
Putting it on wouldn't just change his identity—it would do something worse.
But they had no other options.
Squelch.
Takakai pulled the mask over his head.
Wet, sticky flesh pressed against his skin as semi-dried blood smeared across his face.
The mask had no eyeholes—yet, somehow, his vision sharpened, as if the world had shifted from 480p to 1080p.
"T-Takakai-san...?"
Miko took another step back, her expression fearful.
A deep, muffled voice emerged from the ram's mouth:
"I'm still me. Still Takakai."
He turned toward her, the mask's bulging ram eyes twitching slightly, its gaze lingering on her.
"This might change my identity to [Teacher]. We'll know for sure when we encounter the [Students]."
"We've wasted enough time. Let's go—next, we'll find a way to changeyouridentity."
With that, the ram-headed figure strode toward the door.
And as it moved, the rotting eyes of the mask shifted ever so slightly, watching Miko from the corner of its vision.