This Humble One, Reincarnation Stream Player

"It certainly fits the persona, but if he's too stupid, it could be dangerous."

"Why? The game prompt stated that the Ego Trait cannot be plundered. No matter what he thinks, he has to honestly stick with us."

Chaos Items can be used by players on each other, but the side effects are too severe for novices to necessarily withstand, and the Ego Trait is a bound skill that cannot be transferred to another user.

But nothing in this world is absolute; if this trait of yours were in the hands of a veteran player, the difficulty of clearing the stage could be reduced several times over.

This thought flashed through Yuki's mind, but there was no evidence, and no need to voice it and cause unnecessary worry.

"I get it, you're just jealous that Hayasaka and I..."

Before the words could finish, Mai Sakurajima jumped lightly in front of him as her long black hair fanned out, her face filled with a benevolent smile.

"You have two seconds to rephrase that."

Yuki instantly stood at attention and shouted, "Mai-senpai is a woman of character who would never do something as low as abandoning righteousness for profit!"

"That's more like it." The young girl nodded in satisfaction, hands behind her back, and slowly headed upstairs.

Hiss, it was pitch black and she still stepped on my foot with such precision. Could she have some kind of passive skill?

Yuki leaned over to rub his foot, then followed her up with a grimace, though he felt a slight warmth in his heart, knowing he hadn't misjudged her.

His 'Prophet' attribute could know Mai Sakurajima's personality, hobbies, and even traits in advance, but it couldn't predict how the other party might change under high-pressure situations. When it comes to life and death, the probability of a person changing is far too high.

It was as if they had returned to the start of the game; the two walked slowly through the abandoned building, exploring from the underground parking lot all the way to the top floor. Occasionally, they would stop to look into the distance, seeing flashing police lights and helicopters flying through the air.

This really felt like a certain game. As the wanted stars accumulated, the enemies shifted from ordinary officers with handguns to combined air-ground forces. Furthermore, Yuki guessed there was no upper limit in this dungeon; if one relied on the strength of a veteran player to kill indiscriminately, there would probably be Gundams filling the sky later on.

The underground pipes were being searched, and the containers in the port area had already been surveyed. Like a tightening noose, the space for them to maneuver was getting smaller and smaller.

"They seem to be searching this way." Yuki leaned against the wall as a helicopter's searchlight flashed past. The sound of the police dogs grew clearer. After circling twice, he had basically grasped the layout of the building.

The building was fifteen stories high, facing south, with stairwells on the east and west sides, an empty elevator shaft in the middle, and open rooms occupying both sides of the hallway—a standard apartment building design.

"Should we take another detour?" Mai panted slightly, deciding that if she survived and returned, she would definitely work on her physical fitness.

Climbing from the underground parking lot to the top floor, and then from the top floor down to the first, had left her legs sore and swollen. Honestly, she felt like she had walked a year's worth of distance since the game began.

"Sit down, want me to massage your feet?" Yuki saw through her exhaustion at a glance; no ordinary person could handle tens of thousands of steps a day.

Mai looked at the calm man, hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Don't do anything weird."

"Please don't underestimate me. Without black stockings, I won't lose my mind to beastly impulses."

Asking for a beating.

The girl raised her hand, but her body honestly placed her legs over. At first, she remained tense and guarded, but a moment later, she relaxed.

It couldn't be helped; it really felt good. The pressure was just right, the acupoints were found accurately, and while there was some pain, it was within her tolerance. It was clearly very professional, but that look in his eyes...

"Hey, why do you look even more comfortable than I do?"

Yuki didn't speak, savoring the tactile sensation in his hands.

Slender, delicate, well-proportioned, and resilient. As his fingers brushed over her exquisite ankles, he felt the fine texture of her skin, and by the faint light from the window, he could even see a patch of snow-white flesh.

The only flaw was these long trousers; if they could be replaced with silky black stockings, there wouldn't be a single thing to complain about. Even with the trousers, he could only answer with a famous quote:

"Because it feels great."

"You really are full of perverted thoughts. I don't want you to massage me anymore."

"Don't mind it. A gentleman judges by actions, not thoughts. I haven't done anything out of line, so why do you care what I'm thinking?"

Mai Sakurajima, who had been about to pull her legs away, paused. She realized Yuki's hands were indeed behaving, not even attempting to probe toward her thighs, and he remained focused and earnest in relaxing her muscles, occasionally poking his head out to observe the movements of the pursuers.

"Can't you... just pretend to be a gentleman?"

"Acting depends on the target. I play the innocent in front of Li Dan, act like an expert in front of Hayasaka, and in front of you, I have to be full of lewd banter."

"Why?"

Yuki's massaging hands paused. He looked up, his face serious. "Because Mai-senpai, you are quite the seductress yourself."

Smack.

As soon as he finished, his head was slapped, and he watched with lingering regret as the two long legs left his control.

What do you mean seductress? How long are you going to keep playing that bunny girl gag?

Mai Sakurajima bit her lip. Due to her work, she had seen many people who were polite on the outside but dark on the inside, and many sycophants who fawned without bottom lines, but she had never met anyone who was so full of lewd banter in front of her.

She flexed her ankles, and sure enough, the soreness in her calves had vanished significantly. This made her expression even more complicated; she had to admit that what Yuki said just now was right.

Judge by actions, not thoughts. Regardless of what he said, the fact that she was still alive was ninety-nine percent thanks to this guy.

"Not even a thank you?"

"Not a chance. Let's call it even. I'll thank you when you learn to behave."

"Oh, that's going to be a long wait." Yuki shook his head with regret, though he found it quite interesting.

Calm, mature, rational, and firm, yet she hadn't lost the cuteness and shyness of a young girl. Teasing her a little even made his own mood improve.

He wondered what the Reincarnation Game would turn her into, but fortunately, the probability of her being twisted was very low.

Yuki didn't like "darkened" girls, because they became impossible to control.

"What are you thinking about again?" Mai asked, her face full of suspicion; she always felt she couldn't quite see through him.

"The question from just now—didn't you ask if we should take a detour?"

The corner of Mai's eye twitched slightly. Distracted by his retort, she had truly forgotten. Honestly, how was this person's brain wired? It was so hard to keep up with his train of thought!

"This is a dragnet search; breaking through won't be that easy." Yuki didn't care what the girl was thinking. He returned to his tactical mindset and deliberated, "Hayasaka has already scouted it out. If we don't engage in a massacre, the enemy's technological level and total numbers won't change. It's truly interesting—it's the exact opposite style of the Ancient Castle."

Inside the Ancient Castle, players had slaughtered wantonly, the shattered corpses and fresh blood stimulating their nerves.

"But if we don't break through, we won't last until midnight." Mai Sakurajima shifted her body, poking her head out from in front of Yuki like a planking exercise to peer outside. "This village isn't big, but it isn't small either. We can stall for an hour at most. If we're truly forced into a corner with nowhere to hide, we can't just wait to die."

"Why go through all that trouble? Just lie on my legs. Are you even guarding against a gentleman?"

"In your dreams. We're talking business; I won't be fooled again." The young girl turned her head and shot Yuki a glare, yet the look only made one's heart itch.

"Right, that's the dilemma. You can't avoid it without a bloodbath, and you can't avoid it if you do kill. Besides, I find it strange—since Li Dan and Thomas are in contact, why not let him draw the fire in the city center?"

The total count remained constant; if there were more enemies on the canal side, there would be fewer in the city. The difficulty lay in avoiding reports from ordinary citizens, but for Thomas, ordinary people would be knocked unconscious before they could even scream.

"What's so strange about that? That bird's-nest-hair guy would never sacrifice himself for others. Why would he put himself in danger?" Mai Sakurajima scoffed. Sometimes this guy just overthought things; wasn't it an obvious issue?

It was the only explanation, and the most logical one, yet Yuki always felt something was off—just like how Li Dan claimed his specialty was being a Weapon Master.

Calculating against players was indeed more mentally taxing. He listened as the sound of the propeller returned, signaled to Mai, and the two crawled along the ground, moving into the building until the third-floor wall blocked the light. Only then did they slowly stand up.

Before them was an iron door, looking quite abrupt in this unfinished building filled with gray concrete. Yuki didn't dare turn on his flashlight; he groped along the door with his palm, soon revealing an expression of pleasant surprise.

"A spherical lock. The core isn't complex. Quickly, lend me your hairpin."

Mai was dazed, subconsciously removing her hairpin, only understanding what Yuki wanted to do when she heard the 'click-clack' of mechanical movement.

"Picking a lock? Wait a second, are you a medical student or a thief?"

"I am, of course, a doctor who saves lives and heals the wounded, just with a wider range of hobbies." Over the years, Yuki had prepared all sorts of strange skills; he wouldn't claim to be a master, but at least he knew a little bit of everything.

Click.

The lock was quickly pried open. He gently pushed the iron door, and sure enough, he saw several piles of items neatly stacked in the room.

"What on earth are these?"

Yuki didn't answer. He pulled away the plastic sheet covering them, revealing iron boxes underneath. He opened one and nodded with satisfaction.

"Dynamite and detonators. To demolish a building like this, you need blasting. Remember those holes we saw when we entered the building?"

Mai Sakurajima tilted her head. She did indeed recall the circular holes on the pillars and walls, and she immediately came to her senses.

Those were things completely foreign to her. Upon seeing them, she hadn't thought much of it beyond finding them strange, but in the eyes of an expert...

"Wait, how did you know?"

"I told you, my hobbies are quite broad. Take blasting, for example. Don't look at me like that; it's all book knowledge. I've never actually done it in practice."

It would be a miracle if one could practice this kind of thing.

Mai didn't know how to retort. She finally understood where the 'professionalism' Hayasaka mentioned came from. It was a combination of observation, intelligence, and knowledge. But what kind of normal person would study lock-picking and demolition?

No, wait—there was also kendo, acting, and even physical therapy massage...

"Do you just study these messy, random things all day?"

"Wrong." Yuki spread his hands, his face hidden in the shadows revealing a few white teeth.

"Learning makes me happy."

Chapter 30: Within Seven Steps, the Blade is Fast!

What a weirdo.

Mai Sakurajima really wanted to cut this guy's head open to see what was inside.

Living in a peaceful, modern society, shouldn't one be studying hard and enjoying their youth in their spare time? How could someone spend so much time learning these random, messy things?

No wonder Hayasaka suspected he was a veteran player. This feeling was as if he had known about the Reincarnation Game all along and had made full preparations in advance—it was a form of cheating, in a sense.

"Did you know about the Reincarnation Game early on?"

"Of course not. I just have a wide range of hobbies." Yuki wouldn't reveal his secrets. He took out a few detonators and used his coat to bundle them onto his back.

"You don't believe me?"

"I do, but everyone has little secrets, right? Senior, if I asked you for your measurements, would you tell me?"

Pfft. That was clearly not the same thing, and who was your senior!

Mai Sakurajima's cheeks flushed slightly, but she gave up on digging for secrets. The reason didn't matter anyway; the more professional Yuki was, the safer she was.

She opened her mouth, just about to ask what Yuki was going to do with the dynamite—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Muffled gunfire echoed in the night sky, appearing so abrupt. The two turned their heads rapidly, their expressions instantly tightening.

The sound of the Death Knell Revolver. Li Dan and the others had been discovered!

It was a matter of time, but when it truly arrived, it made one break out in a cold sweat. The enemies would swarm over like a school of sharks smelling blood.

To kill was to evolve; to not kill was to be a target. This dilemma tugged at their nerves, forcing their focus to sharpen instinctively.

9:30 AM.

Yuki glanced at his wristwatch, then looked out the window to see the entire harbor draped in a thin veil of crimson, yet the Red Moon itself remained invisible, as if obscured by a thick layer of dark clouds.

It's damn punctual, he thought. Following this trend, the Red Moon would appear around 10:00, which confirmed that the information Hayasaka Ai had found online was correct.

The moonrise was indeed shifting earlier; it was safe to conclude that the sun would rise at 8:00 AM, making tonight twelve hours long.

So, what would become of these living corpses that were otherwise indistinguishable from ordinary humans?

Lacking a point of reference, Yuki couldn't answer that; he only knew two things:

First, the enemies that hunted them during the day in Crimson Moon City were fundamentally different in their life form compared to the living corpses in the ancient castle, despite sharing the same core objective.

Second, if he didn't find a way out, he wouldn't even survive until the start of the second night.

With helicopters patrolling the sky, moving on the ground would inevitably lead to exposure. Should he return to the pipes? Impossible—there wasn't even room to dodge there. If a grenade were tossed inside, Li Dan might survive, but he would be dead for sure.

Mai Sakurajima didn't even dare to breathe, terrified of disturbing Yuki's thoughts, as the sound of helicopter blades grew denser and gunfire began to erupt in waves.

"Yuki, get over here and regroup! The enemies are on our tails, and I can't protect these two anymore!"

Li Dan's anxious voice crackled over the walkie-talkie; it was practically a threat. If he weren't forced to stick together, he would have abandoned the two burdens long ago. With the trump cards of a veteran player, escaping wouldn't be difficult.

Yuki stood there blankly as if he hadn't heard, his eyes darting between the explosives in front of him and the increasingly crimson sky outside the building, until he suddenly gritted his teeth.

"Brother Li, I have a way to stall for time. Bring them both to these two unfinished buildings. Don't hold back against the enemies—just blast them away."

"But if we do that... fine, I understand. Every second we live is a second gained." Li Dan quickly snapped back to reality.

The reason they had chosen the harbor district to hide in wasn't just because it was sparsely populated and harder to be discovered; it was because it sat on the edge of the city, furthest from the "spawn points."

This meant that even if RoboCops were spawned, it would take them some time to reach the scene. As for what would happen after the Red Moon appeared, who could worry about things half an hour into the future?

With time pressing, Yuki quickly laid out the plan, telling him that the underground parking lots of these two unfinished buildings were connected, and instructing him on where to hide later. Then, he asked Li Dan to pass the walkie-talkie to Hayasaka Ai.

"Hack the terminal, jam their communications, and feed them the false information I'm about to give you."