AnalogHorror: Rule Kaidan 4016
Chapter 93 - 43: The World is Forgetting Him

Chapter 93: Chapter 43: The World is Forgetting Him

"The basement...?"

The moment Lin Yi discovered the basement, he suddenly felt that the darkness at the end of the corridor began to creep slowly in a strange way...

Whether it was his gaze being drawn in or because he was focusing too much, the darkness in Lin Yi’s vision slowly enlarged, like ink seeping into white paper, washing over to his front...

[Entry to the basement of the Gymnasium is prohibited!!!]

At this critical moment, huge red letters from the Gymnasium’s rules flashed through Lin Yi’s mind.

"!!!"

Lin Yi’s forehead exploded with a series of very impactful exclamation marks, and his train of thought was severed by his own will!

"Dammit!"

Lin Yi shook his head, and his gaze snapped back from the darkness like a drawn sword.

"Huff... huff... huff..."

He gasped heavily, looking around and realizing he was still in the Gymnasium.

He glanced at his watch.

2:35 PM.

"Not much time has passed, seems like it was just a moment of distraction."

He looked down at his feet.

A few more steps forward and he would cross the white line, which means...

"I was drawn in, but the attraction wasn’t strong enough..."

"Is it because I didn’t cross the line?"

"Or is it because of the Gymnasium’s uniqueness?"

This white line in the Gymnasium marked the boundary between different sections, serving as a dividing line both physically between different plates, and metaphorically between experience zones and non-experience zones on the map.

Crossing this line would lead into a non-experience zone.

Lin Yi wasn’t sure if it was because his willpower had grown much firmer after being tempered over time, enabling him to pull himself back from the brink of being lost, or because he was in the experience zone, protected by the lighting.

Lin Yi personally leaned toward the enhancement of his own willpower, especially since the corridor leading to the basement was hung with old kerosene lamps.

The light from the kerosene lamps, like a domain, also acted like some kind of seal, suppressing the darkness of the basement, preventing it from spreading.

Lin Yi withdrew his gaze from the corridor and looked towards the row of old kerosene lamps.

In the old kerosene lamps, there was something like candlelight, resembling flames, yet similar to fireflies, clustering and dispersing, seemingly not just light, but more like light at some stages.

Though it was in the corridor of the Gymnasium devoid of wind and rain, the candlelight flickered unstably, as if being blown about in a cold wind.

"Seems you’ve noticed it too." A calm voice suddenly emerged beside Lin Yi.

Then, a tall and robust figure emerged from his side, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

This familiar voice made Lin Yi’s soul tremble, and he turned his head in surprise, the person standing next to him was indeed...

"Young Master Tian?!"

Lin Yi was both shocked and pleased, as the person next to him turned out to be Tian Bufan.

"Yi~" Tian Bufan waved his hand dismissively, "Let’s skip the ’long time no see’ bit... Gym class isn’t for chatting, so I came over to meet you a bit earlier."

Lin Yi, with a look of astonishment, said, "You were so sure I would come here?"

"Not only was I sure you’d come, but I was also sure you’d be here at this time, at this spot." Tian Bufan’s gaze landed on the old kerosene lamps in the corridor, he calmly continued, "Don’t be surprised, you only need a simple way of thinking to make a reasonable prediction."

He said unhurriedly: "Based on what I know about you, you generally stay a while at a position you deem ’safe’ after entering an unfamiliar environment to familiarize yourself with it."

"Compared to the Gymnasium rules which are already in your hands and can be referred to at any moment, you would definitely observe the surroundings by comparing the maps immediately."

"So just by using a simple process of elimination, I knew you were here."

Lin Yi opened his mouth, although what Tian Bufan said sounded simple, predicting his appearance time and location still seemed outrageous?

He suddenly felt as if he were being manipulated – even though he had often felt manipulated before, this time it still seemed more outrageous.

"Though however... how did you know it was gym class at this exact time?" Lin Yi slowly voiced his doubts, "A guess?"

If it were him, he definitely wouldn’t be able to predict Tian Bufan’s location so accurately; rather, like a blind cat finding a dead rat, stumbling upon the right answer might be more likely.

"Guess?" Tian Bufan raised an eyebrow, "Anything that ties the outcome to luck never enters my consideration."

"Uh..." Lin Yi felt himself being looked down upon.

"I discovered that all the classes in the school have gym class at this time, so you were bound to be here at this time, at this place." Tian Bufan explained.

"Alright." Lin Yi felt increasingly overwhelmed by Tian Bufan, so he spread his hands, "So, you came to chat with me ahead of time?"

"I’ve just mentioned, time doesn’t allow for it, so we can’t talk much." Tian Bufan said, "Gym class has its reasons for existing, and if it was just for chatting, we could do so in the Teaching Building... provided we find each other’s classroom without accidentally walking into the wrong one."

"But considering there are strict rules for moving up and down the stairs in the Teaching Building, plus some other factors, it’s too easy to make a mistake, so unless necessary, it’s better we don’t meet in the Teaching Building."

"It’s best not to even know each other’s classroom and student ID to avoid accidentally thinking about it when your will is confused, and then making a mistake." Tian Bufan stated.