After doing all this, Bai Yuze felt his consciousness beginning to grow hazy. At that moment, a smile appeared on his face.
As for how to break the fifth loop, he had already laid the groundwork for recovering his memories later...
Bai Yuze opened his eyes, feeling the world spin around him. He glanced at the unfamiliar surroundings and immediately realized he had entered the trial instance Horikita Manabu had mentioned.
He found himself lying on a shabby bed, with someone else sleeping beside him.
"Yukinoshita Yukino! Wait! Why does it feel like I've said that before?"
Bai Yuze trusted his instincts, so he immediately checked his surroundings and searched himself for anything unusual.
Sure enough, he found four scratches on his wrist, some deep and some shallow. There were also words written on it in permanent marker.
[When in doubt, cut your wrist and open the book!]
"Uh... This looks like my handwriting... Do I have some kind of self-harm fetish?"
Although it was hard to believe, Bai Yuze could still recognize his own handwriting.
He was bewildered. Why would he kill himself when everything was fine? Was the hard-and-fast rule of this instance that he couldn't leave in one piece?
He was confused at first, but after looking at Yukinoshita Yukino lying on the bed, his expression grew resolute.
He went over to Yukinoshita Yukino and grabbed her wrist. No matter how carefully he examined it, though, he couldn't find any scratches on Yukino's wrist.
"Could it be that I really did write this myself? Was it to make myself cut my wrist?"
Before Bai Yuze could think it through, Yukino suddenly rolled over and pinned him to the bed.
The sudden pain jolted Bai Yuze's mind, and a few flashes of memory passed through it.
"Wait! I think I've been through this before!"
"Hah! A shameless pervert like you must be a rat everyone despises, getting beaten, cursed at, and spat on every day! And now you've gotten this brazen?
"Tell me! How did you kidnap me from my home? Where are your accomplices?"
Faced with Yukino's stern interrogation, Bai Yuze didn't answer. Instead, he muttered to himself.
"Someone should be screaming soon. What was her name...?"
"Ah!"
As soon as Bai Yuze finished speaking, a scream reached their ears.
"That's Yuigahama!"
Yukino was too concerned to think clearly. The moment she let her guard down, Bai Yuze took the chance to break free. As soon as he was loose, he ran toward Room 102.
At that moment, all sorts of scenes were flashing through his mind. He knew he was about to find the answer he wanted.
"Don't! Stop right there!"
When Yukino saw Bai Yuze run off without looking back, she hurried after him, worried he might lay his hands on Yuigahama.
By the time Yukino arrived, Bai Yuze was already inside the room, staring blankly at the Male Corpse in Room 102—or, more precisely, at the scalpel in the corpse's neck.
"Waaah! Xiaoxue! I'm so scared!"
When Tuanzi saw Yukino, she immediately rushed over to her. Yukino was just about to comfort her when she saw something even more shocking.
Bai Yuze pulled the scalpel from the Male Corpse's neck, wiped it on his clothes a few times, then slashed his wrist with it.
Bai Yuze went still for a moment, then burst out laughing.
His laughter drew both girls' attention.
Bai Yuze was laughing cheerfully, but blood was running from his wrist. The sight was deeply unsettling.
Then Bai Yuze came back to his senses. He looked at the two girls sheepishly and gave an awkward smile.
"Uh... Well... Do either of you know how to bandage this? My wrist's bleeding..."
Yukino: ...
Tuanzi: ...
"So... you're saying you were recovering your memories just now? We're trapped in a Rules Horror? And this is already the fifth loop?"
After using the scalpel to cut a piece of cloth from the Male Corpse, they bandaged Bai Yuze's wrist as best they could. Then the three of them started talking.
"That's right. That's why I did what I did. I was trying to recover my memories."
Bai Yuze nodded, marveling at how smoothly his plan had gone—and how innocent Tuanzi still was.
"Hmph. Maybe this is just a trick you came up with to earn our trust."
Yukino crossed her arms, her expression cold. She didn't dare believe what Bai Yuze said, and she didn't want to believe it, either.
She had never believed in ghosts or gods. She only believed in science. But there was a saying: "If something exists, there must be a reason for it."
"Hehe, it does sound pretty fantastical, but I don't think Bai Yuze is lying. By the way, Xiaoxue, you say you don't believe him, but you were really careful when you bandaged him!"
Once again, Tuanzi played the peacemaker, smoothing over the tense atmosphere.
Bai Yuze didn't need Tuanzi to say anything on his behalf. He'd seen Yukino's actions for himself and knew that beneath her icy exterior, she had a passionate heart.
"I! I just didn't want him to die here and attract a swarm of flies! You should help the weak whenever you can. It was no trouble!"
Yukino made a flustered excuse, then shot Yuigahama a reproachful look. They were supposed to be on the same side, so why was she taking his side?
Tuanzi could only blink and stick out her tongue.
But this wasn't the time to admire Yukino's flustered side. The most important thing was to convince her that everything here was real.
Bai Yuze already had a plan for how to earn Yukino's trust.
"If you don't believe me, there's a note in Room 101. The person who wrote it called himself 'Yang Peng.' You can go take a look."
Yukino eyed Bai Yuze suspiciously. Still, she went to Room 101 to expose his lie, bringing Yuigahama with her.
The two girls returned a short while later. As soon as they came in, Tuanzi exclaimed in surprise.
"Wow, Bai Yuze! You're amazing! There really was a note in Room 101, and the person who wrote it really did call himself 'Yang Peng'!"
"Yuigahama, don't let him fool you. The handwriting on the note is the same as the writing on his wrist. He said the writing on his wrist was his, which proves he wrote the note himself!"
Yukino confidently pointed out the handwriting on the note. Bai Yuze could only answer helplessly.
"I had no choice. The note with the clues would get corrupted, and it could only last for four loops. I had to copy it by hand and put it back."
"Hmph. I think you staged the whole thing."
Yukino wouldn't listen to anything now. After all, people found it hard to deny the "truth" they'd seen with their own eyes.
But Bai Yuze had another way.
"You can check whether you have any injuries. I remember Yukino had bruises, and Tuanzi had burn marks on her chest."
"Hmph. So full of yourself! You think you've got everything under control? You're just a pathetic worm who can't even accept that your lies have been exposed!"
Yukino taunted him, but Bai Yuze only smiled calmly.
"Are you scared?"
"An obvious attempt to provoke me. But I'll make sure you lose so thoroughly you can't deny it!"
"Yuigahama, you go check. I'll stay here and keep an eye on Mr. Kidnapper, in case his animal instincts take over and he does something befitting his nature."
"Ah? Oh!"
Tuanzi was still confused by Bai Yuze's use of the word "Tuanzi," but after hearing Yukino's suggestion, she gave up trying to figure out what it meant.
"Doesn't it scare you to be alone with me? What if my animal instincts take over?"
Bai Yuze nearly laughed. In his eyes, Yukino was clever, but clever people could still be foolish. Never mind the difference in physical strength between men and women—with a scalpel in his hand, the winner was already obvious.
"Oh? Has Mr. Kidnapper finally shown his true colors?"
Yukino looked calm and cool on the surface, but cold sweat was already breaking out on her forehead. She'd sent Yuigahama away so she could look for an exit, while she kept Bai Yuze occupied.
Even in the worst case, at least one of them could escape. But she'd clearly overestimated Tuanzi's brainpower. After all, all her daily nutrients had gone to other places.
Bang!
"Xiaoxue! There really are burn marks on my chest!"
Yukino: ...?
"Why didn't you go look for an exit???"
Yukino was flustered. She couldn't believe Yuigahama had actually gone to check her own body!
"Uh? An exit? What exit? Didn't you tell me to check whether I had any injuries?"
"That doesn't matter! The point is that we need to escape from here!"
"Huh? Oh, right! Then why didn't you just say so, Xiaoxue?"
"If I'd said it outright, he would've found out!"
"Oh, right!"
Yukino: ...
Before you continue