Chapter 21: The First Procedure in the Analysis Room and Report Submission
Adjusting the researcher's white lab coat to cover the fabric doll hanging at the waist.
Shijo Maki was the first to step into the [Analysis Room], a large laboratory located on one side of the base. She quickly noticed a notice posted beside the entrance.
It seemed to outline some rules of this laboratory.
[Points to Note in the Analysis Room]
1. This laboratory is responsible for analyzing rock samples from the cave, extracted using remotely operated machinery. All mechanical equipment may only be used by those with sufficient operational experience and must adhere to the corresponding usage rules. If any improper operation occurs, you will be held accountable.
2. Ensure that at least two people are present in the Analysis Room while working. Do not remain in the room alone.
3. Eating, drinking, smoking, or engaging in any personal activities unrelated to the experiment is strictly prohibited in the laboratory. Unauthorized personnel or those without approval are not allowed to enter the Analysis Room.
4. Keep the laboratory clean and organized. It must be cleaned at least once per day. Collect any scraps or waste generated from the analysis area and dispose of them in the designated incinerator within this section. During this process, if any strange sounds are heard, do not pay attention to them.
5. When entering the Analysis Room, wear the designated laboratory attire. This attire must not be taken outside the Analysis Room.
6. All researchers working in the Analysis Room must undergo daily psychological assessments. The samples extracted from this area contain special hallucinogenic substances, so it is necessary to ensure that researchers maintain a stable mental state.
7. During the sample classification phase, if traces such as bloodstains, fabric fragments, etc., are discovered, activate Contingency Program Level Two and temporarily leave the Analysis Room. At this time, no one is allowed to remain in the room until Contingency Program Level Two automatically concludes.
8. During the sample analysis phase, if any biological information is detected from the sample, immediately activate Contingency Program Level One (also known as the Emergency Program) to transfer the sample to the cryogenic storage area. Once this program is activated, leave the Analysis Room immediately. Do not stay inside.
9. If, during work, you see things that should not appear in the room—such as a torn-apart human body, a person begging for help, or a rescue team member wearing an abnormally inflated suit—this means you are experiencing deep hallucination symptoms. In this case, you must activate Contingency Program Level One and remain in the Analysis Room.
10. You are a researcher of the cave base. Do not forget your identity. Do not misjudge your own identity.
....
The content of this guideline was fairly straightforward, seemingly a more detailed supplement to Article 3 of the Researcher's Code. Shijo Maki carefully read through the entire notice, then Kaguya stepped forward to examine it thoroughly as well. The two girls exchanged glances before cautiously proceeding deeper into the laboratory.
*Ong—— Ong——*
As they stepped inside, the room's automatic sensor system activated, illuminating the previously dim laboratory.
At this moment, no one else was present in the room—only some machinery operating automatically.
After putting on the designated Analysis Room uniform over her researcher's coat, Shijo Maki ventured deeper into the laboratory and saw large containers filled with rock samples. These stones appeared to have been transported by automated mining machines from the Isolation Zone. On the surface, they looked entirely ordinary, resembling regular rocks. However, given the strange nature of this place, coupled with the details from the guideline they had just read, Shijo Maki felt it best not to get too close.
"Contingency Program Level One and Contingency Program Level Two, huh?"
Kaguya, who had just finished changing and stepped inside, glanced toward two buttons beside the control panel. The buttons were clearly marked: a light red button for Contingency Program Level Two and a deep red button for Contingency Program Level One.
The two girls had no information regarding the specific details of these programs. Clearly, the author of these rules and guidelines did not want researchers to know too much.
"If we just complete the basic procedure once, we can leave. Let's finish this quickly."
Shijo Maki muttered softly as she stepped up beside Kaguya, then pressed a button on the central control panel of the laboratory.
*Ong——*
The hum of machinery resonated as a platform at the edge of the laboratory slowly lifted, revealing large and small rock samples placed atop it. A massive container descended, gathering the rocks before moving along a conveyor belt, swiftly transporting them into a large-scale processing device.
Shijo Maki then moved to another area of the laboratory and pulled down a lever. Immediately, two other devices activated automatically, emitting deep, muffled sounds that made the entire room vibrate in a steady rhythm—like a human heartbeat—consistent and strong.
Kaguya, who had reviewed the standard procedure manual that Shijo Maki had brought, did not stop at the main control panel but also moved to another area of the laboratory. She pressed the start button of a large device, and shortly after, the sound of something being crushed echoed through the space.
Pressing buttons, pulling levers—it seemed that was all there was to a researcher's job.
It felt as though this repetitive process was slowly eroding human thought. Kaguya silently pondered that if the researchers who joined this base before them had to do the same thing—pressing buttons day after day—then perhaps, when the time came for them to press the buttons labeled Contingency Program Level One and Level Two, they would do so without hesitation.
Even so, that was merely an unfounded hypothesis.
The two girls, acting with utmost caution, completed the entire standard procedure without encountering anything unusual.
It seemed that this place was different from Shirakawa Apartment—there was no brutal slaughter right from the start.
"Let's go."
After receiving an automatically printed report, Shijo Maki pressed the waste disposal button. She glanced at the report, confirming that there were no lines mentioning [Biological Information Detected], and only then did she let out a quiet sigh of relief, signaling for Kaguya to leave the laboratory with her.
The analyzed rocks were now stored in a corner of the workspace. That area was already filled with hundreds of different specimens, all of them strange stones placed inside transparent glass containers.
At that moment, Kaguya felt as if the rocks trembled slightly.
As if they were alive.
But the thought had barely formed before she forcefully suppressed it. She tried not to think about anything related to it, maintaining her composure, removing her outer coat, and silently following Shijo Maki out of the laboratory.
Just before the door behind them shut, a faint sound of crying echoed.
However, Kaguya, who had deliberately shifted her attention elsewhere, only caught a fleeting trace of the sound before it was completely sealed off by the tightly closed door.
"Next, we need to submit this report to the office. Once we've done that, we'll have three hours of free time before we're required to return to the dormitory."
Shijo Maki, walking ahead of Kaguya, spoke in a low voice, her expression exceptionally serious.
The next task—was to make contact with the others in this area.
People who very well might be nothing more than monsters pretending to be human.
Creatures that were supposed to be long dead, yet under the power of horror story rules, they moved as if alive—capable of conversation, capable of thought.
This reminded both Maki and Kaguya of Xu Sheng, a special existence within Shirakawa Apartment. But the difference was that Xu Sheng was fully aware of his true identity and retained his own consciousness, even to the point of aiding the survivors in Shirakawa Apartment.
What about the monsters in this place? They seemed to have completely forgotten everything that had happened to them, influenced by some force that made them endlessly repeat moments from their past lives—as if trapped in an eternal performance.
From this perspective, perhaps they were more similar to the "parents" of Room 304?
Lost in thought, the two continued up the stairs, heading to the second floor of the research area.
Though called the second floor, in terms of actual height, this was already the third. It seemed that the analysis area and the research area on the first floor shared a connecting space, spanning both the first and second floors, unintentionally increasing the building's height.
As soon as the two girls reached the top of the stairs, a tall man in a researcher's uniform was already waiting for them in the hallway. His attire was far more refined than that of ordinary researchers, clearly indicating that he was no common figure.
"Has the new analysis report been prepared?"
His voice was ice-cold.
"It has. Please review it, Professor Fornell."
Shijo Maki calmly handed over the report, addressing him by the name displayed on the nameplate on his chest.