In the world of the Rule Horror.
After a brief pause, Andrew finally recovered from his overwhelming fear. Some color returned to his pale face, though his spirit was still clearly depleted.
Part of this was due to the terrifying psychological impact of the stuffed toy.
Another reason was that since seeing his sister's diary around 7:30 p.m., it was now 8:19 p.m.
Andrew had used the Simulator five times in a row, spending nearly nineteen hours of intense mental activity within it.
Even a man made of steel would be mentally drained by now.
But there were still three hours and fifty-four minutes before the rooster's crow would sound.
So, rest was not an option yet.
Especially now that the situation had changed dramatically, Andrew needed to completely revise his plans.
First, he had to move his parents from the friendly faction to the enemy faction.
Grandma and his sister were family, part of his side.
The Female Ghost and the Man in Black Trench Coat could temporarily be considered neutral.
There must be a deeper reason Grandma deliberately lured the Female Ghost to his sister's side, he just hadn't figured it out yet.
The Man in Black Trench Coat's main goal was to kill the parents, so he likely wasn't sent by the mastermind. It could be a case of internal conflict among the masterminds.
So for now, the Man in Black Trench Coat could be treated as a neutral party.
But in the basement chapter, the third rule states:
[If you see a man in a black trench coat pulling a suitcase, do whatever it takes to stop him from entering the elevator or your home.]
Not all rules were necessarily accurate, but this one had been verified in the Simulator.
The Man in Black Trench Coat must not be allowed to take the elevator or enter the home, or kill the parents.
Why this rule existed was still unknown. Maybe the parents would play an irreplaceable role later on.
In any case, this had to be followed.
Originally, Andrew needed to forcibly stop the Pocket Watch once to break the Illusory World and solve this problem.
But the tenth rule in the Three-Member Family's Survival Rule Chapter said:
[The Pocket Watch can only be forcibly stopped three times. Any more and it will break and become unusable.]
There were only three chances. Andrew was extremely reluctant to use one of them just to stop the Man in Black Trench Coat from killing his parents.
Frowning, a sudden idea flashed through Andrew's mind.
"If the rule says 'if you see the Man in Black Trench Coat,' what if I never go to the basement?"
In all previous simulations, he had encountered the Man in Black Trench Coat only after going into the basement.
In particular, there was one time when he went into the basement with his parents and sister. Although deliberately avoiding the previous timing, they still met him there.
It seemed that after 11:13 p.m., entering the basement would always lead to an encounter with the Man in Black Trench Coat.
But if he avoided that time window, even going into the basement might not trigger the encounter.
For example, in the most recent simulation, Andrew had entered the basement early and hadn't seen the Man in Black Trench Coat.
Therefore, as long as he avoided the specific time, he wouldn't run into the Man in Black Trench Coat.
This would naturally prevent all the events that followed, solving the problem.
And it was a much better solution than using one of the limited stops of the Pocket Watch.
In addition, he now needed to add Tangshan Psychiatric Hospital to the list of enemies behind the scenes.
There was definitely something wrong with that place, and Grandma was most likely being held there.
He had to find time to investigate the Psychiatric Hospital, the sooner, the better!
Grandma could be in grave danger.
Rescuing her might be the true key to clearing this Rule Horror.
If successful, many things could be explained.
And Grandma's combat abilities were probably very powerful.
With her help, everything to come could become much easier.
The only problem was that Tangshan Psychiatric Hospital seemed absurdly powerful.
A single stuffed toy had unleashed such overwhelming might!
Also, the "friend of Grandma" that Mom mentioned was very likely not a friend but an enemy.
She might not have been helping Grandma suppress the Bloodthirsty Aberrant Demon bloodline, but suppressing Grandma herself.
Grandma's disappearance might very well be connected to her.
According to Mom, this person was still "helping to suppress Grandma," which meant she was probably still inside Tangshan Psychiatric Hospital and very likely one of the people in charge of that place!
She might be the central reason behind the eerie nature of Tangshan Psychiatric Hospital.
Thinking back, Mom bringing back the so-called ghost-repelling items—hemp rope, tape, and a towel—might not have been to seal the Female Ghost or prevent the sister from losing control due to the Bloodthirsty Aberrant Demon.
There was no guarantee those things even had any ghost-repelling properties.
Those three items looked far more suited for restraining people.
And even if, hypothetically, they did have ghost-repelling properties.
What was Mom's real intention? That was now a huge question mark.
Also, the list and receipts inside Mom's jewelry box were suspicious.
Those things could reveal their identities if exposed. Why leave them at home instead of destroying them?
It felt like they were deliberately waiting to be discovered.
Was it to fool the Female Ghost, to "prove" they were hunting the mastermind?
Or to make the act more convincing?
Or maybe both?
Or perhaps… even more reasons beyond that?
Thinking back now, Andrew still felt a chill.
If he hadn't seen the true faces of his parents in the Simulator.
Even with the old-style phone, it would've taken time to truly believe they were evil.
That delay could have made things even more complicated, even more confusing when it came to identifying friend and foe.
And once the faction was misjudged, he might not even understand how he died.
At that thought, you recall the fifth rule from the Three-Member Family Survival Rule chapter:
[Do not touch your mother's jewelry box; do not touch your father's key.]
In this rule, the father's key was just as important as the mother's jewelry box.
If he were to steal the father's key, could it possibly lead to more vital information and clues?
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