"Entered the Stone Forest Path area. Returning to the entrance."
Shinomiya Kaguya once again contacted the command room through her headset to report the information, then stepped forward and advanced ahead together with two team members.
Stone Forest Path.
That was the name of the section of the cave she was moving through.
Stone pillars stood one after another along both sides of the path, and together with the clusters of stalactites, Kaguya could more or less understand why this place was called "Stone Forest Path."
Most of the benches that had once been built here as part of a tourist attraction had already collapsed or been damaged.
All of the lights used for illumination were completely extinguished, so the exploration team could only move by relying on the lighting equipment they carried.
Faintly, Kaguya could hear someone speaking in a low voice.
The sound came from behind the rock wall at her side, from an unknown distance away.
She could not make out what was being said.
However, the warning conveyed by the blessing was growing stronger and stronger, and it was certain that if she continued listening to that voice, nothing good would come of it.
Kaguya did not hesitate. Ignoring those disturbances, she continued to advance cautiously through the darkness, avoiding the scattered pieces of clothing on the ground as she moved step by step toward the direction of the entrance.
Splash—
It seemed that the sound of flowing water suddenly rang out.
Kaguya paused slightly and raised her head to look ahead, toward the source of the sound, but she saw nothing.
Splash—
Meanwhile, Takumi was already wading forward through the water. He was about to pass through Stone Forest Path and reach the area known as the Plains.
Just a moment ago, he had felt something strange, as if someone had glanced at him.
Takumi turned his head back in confusion, but all he saw was the cave with water dripping down and the churning surface of the water. Other than that, there was nothing else.
There was no time now to pay attention to these unusual sensations. While he still held the identity of the rescue team, he had to find a way to obtain more information about this instance and find other people as soon as possible.
"We're here. This is the Plains."
Under the swaying light, Sato Takao walked alongside Takumi as they entered an enormous cavern—extremely wide, nearly the size of a football field.
This was the largest area within Red Nut Grey Cave. It was filled with strange rock formations, and if it were not for the water leaking everywhere and the ground being covered by flowing water, Takumi felt he might actually have been willing to stop and properly appreciate the scenery.
But as things were now, just wandering about this place were those pale figures wearing rescue team uniforms and firefighter uniforms, as well as things dressed like Tourists and others that seemed to be Explorers moving together with them. This alone forced Takumi to stay alert and act with caution.
Here, he felt intense malice.
It was impossible to determine its exact direction. It was as if something separated by a thick barrier was projecting a powerful sense of malice toward this place.
"You said that rescuing people from here only triggers the next cycle, and that staying here too long or running straight out also triggers the next cycle. That's right, isn't it?"
Takumi turned to look at the newcomer player called Sato Takao and spoke.
"Y-yes, that's right. Do you have any ideas?"
Sato Takao nodded repeatedly and asked Takumi cautiously.
"I can't say there's definitely a solution. I can only try."
As he said this, Takumi stepped forward and moved toward the entrance of the Big Slide.
His target was not the Big Slide itself.
Rather, based on the information Sato Takao had provided along the way, it was the guard booth located at the entrance to the Big Slide.
Splash—
Violent streams of water rushed down along the sloped passages of the cave.
Takumi could see that the position of the Big Slide should originally have been blocked by a concrete wall, but that wall had already collapsed. The rainwater inside the cave gathered together and flowed down through this passage, surging toward the deeper reaches of the cave.
Vaguely, it seemed that beyond the breach in the Big Slide, someone could be seen extending a hand and waving toward him.
Takumi felt an invisible force, as if enticing him and driving him, urging him to approach that breach, to make him pass through the entrance of the Big Slide and go deeper into the cave.
However, this level of mental erosion no longer had any effect on Takumi. He first had the three players stand farther back, then quickly headed in the direction of the guard booth. At this moment, the guard booth that appeared inside the cave looked completely intact, utterly different from the one that Takumi and Chika had previously discovered, which had already been entirely abandoned.
He reached out, grasped the door handle, and gently twisted it.
It did not turn. It seemed that the door was locked.
Takumi reached out and knocked forcefully on the door of the guard booth, then kicked it once, but received no response.
No one inside?
After a brief hesitation, Takumi chose to draw his handgun and aim the muzzle at the door lock.
Bang!
After a sharp gunshot rang out, Takumi kicked the door of the guard booth open and then strode inside.
...
Fujiwara Chika lifted her head, turned around, and looked toward the security guard who had opened the door and walked in.
Or rather, what walked in was something wearing a security guard's uniform.
The girl did not let out a scream.
She merely clenched her fingers, letting her fingertips pierce her palm until it bled, yet without making a sound, simply staring at the thing that had walked in.
It was indeed wearing a security guard uniform.
But its body… Chika found it difficult to describe. It was as if a person had been flattened bit by bit; every part of the body appeared pressed flat. Shattered bones and rotting flesh poured out from the seams of the clothing, from between skin and muscle, likewise flattened.
The images that came to Chika's mind were those from grotesque films where people are forcibly crushed into meat paste, or rats run over by car tires on the road.
This thing was now standing right in front of her.
Even after becoming such a terrifying sight, it was still moving as if it were a normal person.
[Who… are… you?]
The girl heard the thing's slurred, indistinct question.
"I… I am…"
Even though she had already done her utmost to steady her emotions, Chika's voice still began to tremble uncontrollably.
[The guard booth… cannot… be entered…]
The flattened body twisted and staggered forward, and the head that had been crushed into a pulpy mass slowly drew closer toward Chika.
The crisis of death was closing in.
Before today, the girl had never experienced such intense fear.
Don't panic.
Don't lose your rationality.
She had to give an answer. She had to give an answer that conformed to the rules of this place.
[You… cannot… be here…]
Within the blurred voice, that thing's head was already almost pressed against Chika's face.
"I am… a security guard…"
Clenching her teeth, the girl finally gave her answer in this suffocating moment, every single word in the sentence trembling as it left her mouth.
The monster's movements halted.
[Security guard…?]
That thing seemed somewhat confused by Chika's words. Its movements paused slightly, and its twisted body stiffened in place.
"Y-Yes, that's right. I'm a security guard. I-I-I'm the security guard here! I'm the newly appointed security guard, Fujiwara Chika!"
As she spoke those words, having recovered a bit of confidence, the girl grabbed the chair and retreated slightly, then continued to shout loudly at the monster.
[Security guard… shift one… only one… no partner… why…]
The thing seemed to grow even more confused. Its voice and movements were like a PC version of The Last of Us running on a 1050 Ti—stuttering to the verge of a system crash.
"I'm here to change shifts! I-I-I'm here to switch shifts with you. You're off work now. You're already off work!"
Extremely tense, Fujiwara Chika almost immediately shouted her reply the moment the other side expressed doubt, sweat already breaking out on her forehead.
[Change shifts? Time… change shifts…]
That thing seemed to lapse into confusion again, lifting its head as if to look at the clock hanging inside the guard booth.
But having already noticed its intention, Chika immediately stood up and blocked the wall clock, waving her hands to obstruct its line of sight—if this flattened thing truly still had something that could be called "sight."
"Changing shifts means changing shifts. If I say it's time to change shifts, then you really can get off work. What, do you want to work overtime?"
Chika deliberately asked in a harsh, aggressive tone.
[Off work… off work…]
Seeming to more or less understand—or perhaps finally having been fooled by the girl—the bizarre thing lightly nodded. Then the tattered security uniform on its body was taken off and casually tossed into the corner of the wall.
Without its clothes, that thing was nothing more than a mass of flattened, rotting flesh, looking nauseating and utterly horrifying.
Yet it itself seemed as though it were truly nothing more than an ordinary security guard. It discarded the uniform, set down the flashlight, hung the keys on the hook beside the door, then slowly turned around and left the guard booth, not forgetting to close the door properly before leaving.
"Ah… that scared me to death…"
Only after the other party's footsteps had completely disappeared did Fujiwara Chika finally let out a breath, collapsing straight onto the floor.
She raised her head and saw a map—a map hanging on the wall, mounted in a frame—with the title [Red Nut Grey Cave Tourist Map] written on it.
Standing up, the girl walked back to the desk. Lowering her head, she saw a set of rules, not very long, pressed beneath the glass plate on the desktop.
[Big Slide Security Personnel Rules:]
[Welcome to becoming security personnel at the Red Nut Grey Cave lockdown point. The following are the rules you must abide by during your working period. We believe that the work experience here will become a unique memory for you, and sincerely hope that you will fulfill your duties properly.]
[1. Your work content is to remain here for a full 12 hours and ensure the safety of the perimeter wall. The day shift is from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and the night shift is from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. the next day. During work hours, do not leave your post without authorization, and do not leave the "Plains" area.]
[2. You must conduct a patrol once every 30 minutes. The patrol area consists solely of the Big Slide lockdown wall. Carry a flashlight to illuminate the wall and conduct a visual inspection only. Do not use your hands to touch the isolation wall.]
[3. If cracks or collapses are discovered in the lockdown wall, do not approach to handle them. Return to your guard booth and contact external staff via the communicator. If there is no response, leave Red Nut Grey Cave via the "Stone Forest Path" and go outside the cave to notify other staff. Do not take the "Gentle Slope."]
[4. Your work is carried out by a single person. You have no work partner. Therefore, unless it is shift-change time, no one will come to relieve you of your duties or cooperate with you on patrols. If someone appears during your working hours and claims to be your partner, ignore them. As long as you do not engage with them, they will leave on their own after a while. If a dispute occurs, the company bears no responsibility.]
[5. Ensure that the guard booth door remains locked at all times. Whether you are on patrol or staying in the guard booth, lock the door. Do not allow tourists to slip inside, and do not open the door for anyone knocking and attempting to enter. Once again, if you become involved in a dispute with others, the company bears no responsibility. If guard booth property is damaged, you must compensate at double the cost.]
[6. Your flashlight will be replaced and recharged daily by company personnel to ensure sufficient power, so there is no need to worry about insufficient battery. If the flashlight flickers, its illumination weakens, or it fails to light up, this indicates a malfunction. You may terminate the current patrol and return to the guard booth to rest, and use another flashlight for the next patrol.]
[7. The guard booth's power supply is extremely stable and will not experience outages. If a power outage occurs in the guard booth, you should suspend your security duties and leave Red Nut Grey Cave as soon as possible via the "Stone Forest Path" to notify other staff. Do not be curious about the sounds inside the "Gentle Slope," and do not respond to them. Do not approach the "Gentle Slope" at such times.]
[8. When you are inside the guard booth, ignore anyone outside who asks for help, especially those claiming that you are needed to go to the rear of the Big Slide for a rescue. That is a prank by nearby residents.]
[9. You must not discuss with anyone what you see or hear during your security work. As security personnel, you have signed the strictest confidentiality agreement. For the sake of your job, remain silent. If tourist numbers decrease due to rumors spread by you, the compensation amount you will bear will be something you could never repay in your lifetime.]
[The above constitutes the content of the Security Personnel Rules. Be sure to memorize and comply with them. The company's safety department will conduct regular inspections of your work to confirm whether you are properly fulfilling your duties.]
Is this a new set of Horror Story rules?
The girl wearing a security guard uniform frowned, carefully reading through the rules once and firmly committing the contents to memory. She then turned her head to look at the time on the wall and discovered that it was around nine thirty.
It was unclear whether it was 9:30 in the morning or 9:30 at night, but in any case, when it reached ten o'clock, she would have to leave the guard booth and go outside to conduct a patrol.
Moreover, these rules seemed to differ greatly from the previous Explorer rules.
"Before the disaster and after the disaster?"
Chika closed her eyes and murmured softly as she thought, then raised her head again and looked through the guard booth window at the empty, deathly silent cave outside.
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