Definition of Terror

As the locked door was easily opened and footsteps approached her, the Chronicler closed her eyes and tried her best to calm herself down.

To be honest, she's in a very bad situation right now.

For some unknown reason, she is now unable to use any of her Skill, retrieve her items, has her Equipment locked, cannot summon her Title, and even her physical attributes have plummeted to those of an ordinary person... In other words, at this moment, she has become a common.

In the previous story, after being transformed into a blackboard eraser, she experienced a similar situation— her Equipment and props became unusable. But at least then they had a chance to escape. But what about now?

If she were to reveal any weakness, she would probably be finished. How much Strength could common possibly have against these bizarre beings?

With her eyes slightly closed, suppressing the urge to immediately escape from the bed, the Chronicler tried her best to keep her breathing even and pretend to be asleep.

Just as her heart was in her throat, the footsteps reached her bedside. After what seemed to her an incredibly long silence, the figure standing by the bed reached out and turned off the bedside lamp, then turned and left the room just as it had come in.

As the door slammed shut, the Chronicler felt a sense of relief, as if he had escaped a disaster.

However, just as she was about to open her eyes, she suddenly remembered something and forcibly restrained herself, instead maintaining her steady breathing and pretending to be fast asleep.

About three minutes later, the sound of light footsteps came from inside the room again. The footsteps initially sounded by the bedside and then moved towards the door.

With the sound of a door opening and closing, and the footsteps fading away outside, the room returned to its initial silence.

--Her guess was correct.

At first, the figure never left the room. It was only after the door was opened and closed that it quietly walked back to the bedside from the doorway!

If she hadn't failed to hear the footsteps fading away outside the door and become suspicious, she might have fallen into their trap...

As Player, you must always maintain basic vigilance. Being Player is a profession that involves dancing on the edge of a knife. You can't be careless at any time. If you get caught up in the Anomaly, death is the best outcome.

Because most of the time, when Player fail in Anomaly, they face something far more terrifying than death...

The Chronicler had a deep understanding of this point.

Once, during Mandatory Quest issued by the system, she went to a rather strange world.

That Mandatory Quest involved 13 Player, and their task was simple: to find out the truth behind how the world became what it was.

That Mandatory Quest brought her the deepest nightmare she still doesn't want to face. Even after successfully completing Mandatory Quest, she had thoughts of suicide more than once...

--Compared to death, the most terrifying punishment is the inability to die no matter what, and the constant suffering of eternal torment.

In that terrifying world, there were initially thirteen Player, and eight of Player returned alive.

The survival rate seemed high, but in reality, only three people survived.

--Because of the eight Player who returned safely, five of them committed suicide as soon as they got back to reality.

She was powerless to comment on such matters, because she herself had contemplated suicide. Rather than facing such a terrifying fate amidst the Anomaly she would encounter in the future, perhaps suicide in advance was a form of relief.

To this day, she refuses to recall everything she encountered in that Terrifying World. If someone hadn't helped her seal those memories with Skill and items, she would have lost the will to live and chosen to commit suicide prematurely.

Even now, the only impression she remembers is that the world was terrifying, and she never wants to encounter such a world again in her life.

That wasn't a world completely overrun by Anomaly, nor was it completely destroyed by Anomaly; it was even a world that those Anomaly had to carefully avoid...

In that world, everyone is alive and well. Even the Five Players who perished there are now alive and well, and will live on forever in the endless years to come...

However, no matter who it is, after learning the terrifying truth about that world, they will want to escape from it as soon as possible. Those with weak wills may even choose to commit suicide in despair after escaping.

--What turned that world into that terrifying place was a Meme that spread throughout the entire world.

"... Have you left?"

After confirming that the figure had completely left, the Chronicler breathed a slight sigh of relief and sat up in bed.

Although the room was completely dark, this environment was still...

"Skill and attributes have all been restored... What's the pattern here?"

The Chronicler frowned slightly and looked down at his palm.

If the Player's full power were sealed from the very beginning of the story, it would be easier to understand, just like the previous Story One she experienced.

However, this intermittent availability is incredibly frustrating. In some crucial moments, the sudden restriction of Player's power can have extremely serious consequences.

"..."

After thinking for a moment, and confirming with his Skill that the giant hand under the bed had disappeared, the Chronicler reached out and turned on the bedside lamp.

She picked up her phone from beside her pillow, wrote down everything she had experienced, and then sent a message.

--This is a special request from someone. If they encounter anything unusual at night, they must tell that person exactly what happened.

While it wouldn't be impossible to tell the other person when school starts tomorrow, considering the sudden disappearance of all his abilities, the Chronicler felt it was better to tell the other person in advance.

... Anyway, she had nothing to do late at night.

About five minutes later, she received a reply on her phone.

[Check the door locks.]

"... Door lock?"

Turning his gaze toward his bedroom door, and after glancing at the bedside to make sure the large hand hadn't appeared, the Chronicler got out of bed and went to the door.

The door remained locked.