Bzz—bzzzzz—
Amid the noisy static, the sounds of someone fiddling with equipment could be heard, along with footsteps and some indistinct conversation.
Maki and Kaguya conducted one final check of their surroundings. After confirming that there was indeed nothing watching them, Kaguya—still feeling that it was not entirely safe—sprinkled ashes at the doorway and in several corners of the room. She then grew concerned that the sounds on the tape recorder might carry some kind of strange effect. After some thought, she discussed it with Maki and decided that only Kaguya would listen to the tape, while Maki would move farther away and cover her ears, keeping constant watch on Kaguya's condition and ready to act immediately if anything seemed wrong.
This was about the maximum level of precaution the two girls could manage. As for whether it would actually work, that would depend solely on the luck to come.
"Hah…"
Shinomiya Kaguya had to admit that although she could still maintain an expressionless face to pretend she did not care, when she had to face the unknown terror alone, her heartbeat inevitably sped up, and sweat began to seep uncontrollably from her palms.
Under normal circumstances, the moment she noticed her hands sweating, Kaguya would immediately wipe them dry and wash her hands at once to avoid leaving any odor. But at this moment, she had no time at all to pay attention to such matters. Her focus was completely fixed on the tape recorder in front of her.
[A1 confirms communications are normal, no static.]
A low male voice came from the tape recorder.
[Command confirms communications are normal, no static.]
[A2 confirms communications are normal.]
[A3 confirms communications are normal.]
…
[A6 confirms communications are normal.]
In total, seven voices sounded in succession. From the sound of it, one belonged to the person in charge of remote command, while the other six were part of the same squad, preparing to begin their operation.
An action log? Could this be an audio recording from explorers investigating the Red Nut Grey Cave?
Realizing this, Kaguya became even more cautious.
[A1: Exploration operation, codename "Cave-01," now preparing to begin recording.]
[A1: All members, conduct the final equipment check.]
[A2–A6: Check complete.]
[A1: All members have completed checks. Ready to depart at any time. Command, please acknowledge receipt.]
[Command: Received. Proceed with the operation.]
[A1: Operation start. Beginning entry into the "Entrance" area. The next area to be passed through is the "Fork."]
[… (For roughly more than ten minutes, no one speaks; only dull footsteps and faint static can be heard.)]
[A1: Command, how long have we been advancing?]
[Command: 16 minutes and 22 seconds.]
[A1: The situation here does not match the intelligence we obtained beforehand. From the "Entrance" to the "Fork" should not be this long a distance—we should have seen the "Fork" within ten minutes.]
[A4: And it shouldn't smell this bad either. This place smells like a thousand rotting rats stuffed inside.]
[A3: And it's pretty cold in here too. I remember the travel brochure advertising this place as warm in winter and cool in summer. Could it be false advertising?]
[A1: Stop interrupting. I can already see the "Fork." We've walked at least 500 meters. This is completely different from the intelligence we initially received. Are you sure the person who provided us with the intel wasn't a problem?]
[Command: That's precisely why we need personnel to conduct on-site reconnaissance.]
[A1: That's really great news. We'll proceed along the "Gentle Slope." Honestly, I don't want to say this, but I have a really bad feeling about this.]
[A6: Didn't you already say it, Captain?]
[A1: Shit...]
[… (Another four to five minutes of silence, with only the continuous sound of footsteps.)]
[A2: …Damn it, this place is really oppressive.]
[A4: A national-level tourist resort, huh?]
[A1: We've passed through the "Gentle Slope" area and arrived at the "Plains." Preparing to enter the "Big Slide." Let's finish this operation quickly.]
[A4: Why are there so many clothes lying around here? Is someone holding a massive orgy here or something?]
[A3: Then they really picked a great spot.]
[A1: Command, we've reached the entrance to the "Big Slide." The slope ahead is about thirty degrees. How do we get down?]
[Command: Search nearby. You should be able to find a safety rope. It's a tool left behind by the scenic-area staff before. It directly connects the upper and lower sections of the "Big Slide." You can use that rope to proceed to the "Great Cliff" area.]
[A5: Captain, found it—over here.]
[A1: Good. The thick No. 6 safety rope—this thing is said to be able to hoist an elephant?]
[A2: So do we need to do some math here and see whether the combined weight of the six of us exceeds an elephant?]
[A4: Hey, that actually sounds like a good idea.]
[A1: Cut it out. Keep moving. I really don't want to stay in this damn place for even a second longer.]
[… (The voices disappear once again. Then comes the sound of the rope being tugged, along with footsteps and all kinds of rustling noise. This time, the silence lasts for more than twenty minutes; throughout, only footsteps and heavy breathing can be heard. Then, gradually, a "drip—" of dripping water begins to sound, at intervals of about once every three minutes.]
[A1: We have successfully reached the Great Cliff. (Static begins to appear faintly in the speech.)]
[Command: A1, is there a problem with your communicator? Check it.]
[A1: I just checked. No obvious malfunction. Maybe the signal here is a bit poor?]
[Command: This is a wired connection. You're still wearing the connecting line on you. In theory, this kind of problem shouldn't occur.]
[A4: Now that you mention it, that's true. The seven of us each have a line connected. It's connected all the way from the entrance of this dump to here. By the way, how long is this connecting line again—two thousand meters or three thousand?]
[A3: I hope this thing is long enough. Otherwise, if it gets stuck halfway down the cliff, we'll be screwed. By the way, our task is just to install a sensor device at the entrance of the "Blood Vessel," right? We don't need to crawl into that several-hundred-meter-long doghole, do we?]
[A1: We don't. Move out.]
[… (Here, the static grows even louder. Amid the harsh, noisy sound, there seems to be something faint—like a person's low, muffled groan.)]
[A5: Captain, there's someone up ahead.]
[… (All sound suddenly disappears, including the static. At this moment, Kaguya can only hear the tape recorder itself running.)]
[A1: I see them. The person ahead—stop, raise your hands, and kneel on the ground!]
[… (Even more piercing static suddenly erupts. The chaotic noise begins to mask the voices, making it harder and harder to make out what people are saying.)]
[Command: Squad A, respond. You haven't replied for ten minutes.]
[A1: Trapped ■ inside ■?]
[A3: Move ■…]
[A2: It's ■■ tighter here.]
[A5: I ■ am ■ who ■■?]
[Command: Squad A, please respond.]
[… (The audio develops increasingly severe static and intermittent dropouts. The squad's voices can occasionally be heard, but due to the audio malfunction, they are difficult to identify accurately; it can only barely be judged that the squad members are talking among themselves.)]
[A6: No… retreat… can't move…]
[A2: Who… speaking… can't get out… where…]
[A1: Help… why so many… people…]
[A4: Can't see… can't see anymore… talking… behind me…]
[A5: Following behind… Command please… understand…]
[A3: He… left… I can't move…]
[A1: Hands… I see… hands…]
[… (The piercing static completely overwhelms the squad members' voices. Only the Command's voice remains discernible.)]
[Command: Please respond! Squad A, please respond!]
[Command: Initiating Procedure No. 2. Immediately begin actions regarding Squad A's—]
[Command: Confirmation received. All Squad A signals have been lost.]
[… (After a final segment of faint static, the audio ends.)]
Even after the sound had completely stopped, Kaguya still did not dare to relax. She stared at the tape recorder for several more minutes before cautiously checking her surroundings. Only after confirming that there was nothing amiss did she let out a small breath of relief, take out the tape, shut off the recorder, and then communicate with Maki in the distance using their prearranged hand signals.
Likewise letting out a sigh of relief, Shijō Maki removed the cotton plugs from her ears, walked over to Kaguya, pulled out a chair, and sat down in front of her.
"How was it?"
Maki asked seriously as she looked at Kaguya.
"From the sound of it, it should be audio left behind by the research base during an exploration of the Red Nut Grey Cave. Six people in total. But they don't sound like the explorers I played before. The atmosphere between them was very relaxed, and you can tell the Command placed a lot of importance on them. It might have been records left by official investigators. I'm guessing this recording comes from the early days after the research base was established—back when the researchers here still didn't understand how serious the Red Nut Grey Cave problem was, so they were still sending official personnel down to explore. Maybe later, after too many people died, they started using death-row inmates as explorers to conduct investigations."
Kaguya lowered her head and spoke while thinking very seriously, but what occupied her mind were the final words left behind by that squad.
At the very last moments of their lives, they all seemed to be experiencing immense pain, as if they had been stuck in something, and at the same time, there was also something staying together with them.
Hands?
Someone at the end seemed to be repeatedly emphasizing "hands." Had they seen something's hands? Or something else that resembled hands? Or was there something on the "hands" themselves that drew attention?
These pieces of information were probably very difficult to explain or verify on their side. But over on Takumi's side, perhaps they could be of some use to him?
"Let's contact Takumi-kun. We should tell him about the information we've obtained here."
As Kaguya said this, a faint sense of emptiness suddenly arose in her heart.
Relying on just herself and Maki to crack this dungeon, riddled with mysteries, was simply far too difficult. And the very reliable Takumi, who had once fought alongside them in the Shirakawa Apartments, was not by her side now, unable to provide any help.
This feeling of having to face unknown dangers relying only on herself was really… extremely unpleasant…
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