Alain flung the door wide open. What greeted his eyes was a tender pink corridor. Cheerful sunlight streamed in from the corner of the corridor, pale white particles drifting gently like fireflies.
Ahead of him, on either side, were two vases resembling welcoming flowers. And beneath the vase on his right, there was also something that looked like a timer.
On the wooden floor, a patterned carpet was laid flat. Pink wallpaper was adorned with several wall lamps. At the same moment, the ring changed: the numbers displayed [1.3B].
"What's this? Why is it different from what we saw before?" Millie walked to his side, her small hand gripping the controller hanging slightly downwards, looking at the scene before her in surprise.
And this question... Alain also found it difficult to answer.
"Let's go in first..."
The two stepped into the corridor, and the door behind them automatically closed as usual.
Alain recalled the scene when he first entered 1.3B: at that time, the walls were far from as bright as they were now, but rather dark, with only the dim light from the walls, making the monster at the corner bare its fangs and brandish its claws.
Looking around now... Although the layout was different from a typical Mita room. But this warmth was a precious ordinariness.
His gaze shifted to the side, to the timer beneath the vase on his right, the numbers on it stopped at "1". What did this timer mean? Alain was puzzled. Too many questions. At this point, he could only explore step by step.
"Wow! It feels a bit like an open world!" Millie, encountering the unknown, seemed particularly excited on the side.
He first walked back to the door they came from, trying to see if he could open it. But pulling the doorknob, apart from a strong sense of obstruction, the door was difficult to budge. In other words, their escape route was locked.
"Let's go. Stay close behind me." They could only move forward. Alain reached this conclusion.
"Don't worry, I'll definitely squeeze your body dry!"
"...Your way of putting it is a bit strange." Alain ruffled the girl's hat, then walked forward step by step. Millie straightened her hat while keeping pace with the young man, vigilantly surveying her surroundings.
The two walked one after the other, soon reaching the crucial node of their second entry into 1.3B—the corner of the corridor. Alain remembered that last time, it was here that he had seen the monster's shadow. Even though the scene had become warm, he didn't let down his guard.
Gripping the greatsword in his hand, trying not to let any edge of the weapon peek around the corner. Alain leaned against the wall and gestured to Millie. The girl nodded lightly, the controller emitting a blue light, and Alain's body, as usual, received the enhancement effect.
He peeked his head slightly around the corner, his greatsword ready at any moment... Unexpectedly, there wasn't a single enemy. In fact, he didn't even see a single person.
Light streamed in from the window, hitting the carpet, appearing full of life. A few green plants were placed on the windowsill, looking particularly verdant in the dappled sunlight.
At the end of the corridor was a grandfather clock. The clock was still ticking peacefully. This was... the only moving thing Alain saw in the corridor beyond the corner.
"Still, nothing?" He temporarily relaxed his body; being constantly tense wasn't good. It was just that the monster had given him too strong a sense of pressure.
Alain simply walked to the middle of the long corridor, Millie following closely behind, looking at the 1.3B corridor with clicks of wonder.
"Isn't this very peaceful?"
"Suitable for a bridal suite?"
"Hmm?" Millie was suspicious, understanding that Alain probably wanted to tease her again. "You... and your best friend's?"
"Mine and yo—poof—" As expected, a light punch landed on Alain's cheek. And the young man faithfully played the role of "sound effect," letting out a puff of air.
"Heh ha! Next time you make that kind of joke, it won't be as simple as just punching you!" Millie proudly puffed out her ample, round chest, eliciting Alain's retort,
"Give you an inch and you take a mile."
"This time, it's my victory!"
"Tch." The current grudge would definitely be exacted by bullying Millie fiercely later.
"Alright, let's continue observing. Look for this version's Mita."
"It's the Little Lei you like~" As the two advanced again, Millie, unsurprisingly, teased.
"Ahem... Don't talk like my dear."
"Yahoo~ Little Lei—or rather, future Miluo, we're here to find you!"
How did this girl guess? To be honest, the name Alain had decided on for this Little Mita was indeed Miluo. After all... Miluo, and Millie, combined, could nicely save him the pain of naming. That's right, just like that. No other reasons at all. Mm, that's how it is. Yes, that's right.
As the two spoke, Alain's steps reached the middle of the corridor beyond the corner, and thus he saw what was on his left. It was a cabinet and a wooden chair. On the cabinet were items like a small television and an alarm clock.
A wall clock hung in the corner, its pendulum swaying gently in the light breeze of time.
Wall clock. Alarm clock. Grandfather clock.
And on the wall behind the cabinet hung several photos, mostly decorative paintings. And one of the photos caught his attention.
It was a lovely little girl, with dark blue short hair that just passed her ears, and a bow tied at the back of her head. The little girl was smiling charmingly, looking away from the camera. Juxtaposed with the other hanging pictures, it looked warm.
"Is this the Little Mita of 1.3B?"
Judging solely from the photo, she didn't look particularly miserable. On the contrary, in the sunlight, she looked gentle and mild.
"How about it?" Millie tugged at his sleeve, "Do you like her?"
"I like her. No, wait..." Alain quickly shut his mouth; continuing would be too much. "We... let's keep moving forward!"
He gripped his greatsword, his steps stiff as he left the middle of the corridor and continued onward.
"Tch~ Only at times does he act a bit like a captain." Millie said helplessly, but her nose suddenly bumped into Alain's back.
"No..." At this moment, Alain was looking at the second corner at the end of the corridor. There, a grandfather clock was placed. The pendulum of the grandfather clock swung, as if in sync with the beating of his heart. Between him and the grandfather clock, there seemed to be a line connecting them.
It wasn't until Millie waved her small hand in front of Alain's eyes a couple of times that he snapped back to reality.
Alain wondered if he was expending too much energy on the mission and was hallucinating. No, whenever he had such thoughts, it was inevitably some intuition at play.
Alain settled Millie down, then walked back to the cabinet to observe. His gaze fell on the alarm clock and the wall clock, finally landing on the grandfather clock at the corner. He really did discover something: The time on all three clocks was stuck at exactly 12 o'clock, unchanged.
Alain silently noted the time, then walked back to the grandfather clock. And Millie was crouching in the corner where the grandfather clock was placed, strenuously fumbling for something.
"There seems to be something inside."
Alain poked his head out, wanting to see what was going on. Brushing past the girl's hair, he unexpectedly discovered something hidden in the corner.
It seemed to be a purple jar, placed in the small corner behind the side of the grandfather clock.
Alain had Millie get up, then squatted down himself, wanting to take out the jar. But just then, a line of writing appeared on the wall,
[That is my surveillance method, please do not touch it]
The writer of the words was undoubtedly Prankster Mita. By the way, did she rely on this kind of jar to monitor the game world? Alain grumbled inwardly. But having an extra comrade also steadied his mind.
Following his line of sight, he saw the door at the end of the second corner. "There, is that the version's exit?"
Version 1.3B, was it over just like that? He hadn't even seen the Mita belonging to the version, or that monster... Alain was puzzled, reaching out to grab the girl's hand and walk forward. Although Millie would usually let go when not in battle, this time she let him hold her.
After a few steps, the two arrived at what looked like an exit.
Greetings! ✨ Walnut here!
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