Fujiwara Chika almost immediately dropped the clothes she had just collected, suddenly turned back, and grabbed Takumi's hand, desperately pulling him into the guard booth.
Because the Rescue Team Badge was still worn on his body, the Rescue Team member who had already returned to the guard booth also came out, reached out, and grabbed Takumi's shoulder and arm, trying to pull him into the guard booth as well.
The Rescue Team uniform rapidly appeared on Takumi's body. At the critical moment, he did not hesitate to intensify his use of the Obsession Item, directly changing his identity from Explorer to Rescue Team.
But that swollen humanoid that was gripping him did not let go.
Not only did it not let go, its grip was clearly growing stronger, to the point that Takumi actually could not keep his balance and was about to be pulled down onto the ground.
What was going on?
The Rescue Team's rescue targets should have been Explorers and Tourists. Even if this thing had already changed into something different from the anomaly in the upper area of the Big Slide, it should still have been following that rule. So why was this thing still refusing to let go?
[Explorer… I… came to save you…]
That thing was still muttering as it spoke. Every time it opened its mouth, a large amount of water gushed out, mixed with pus and giving off a nauseating stench.
At that very moment, Takumi's entire body was lifted up and dragged into midair.
On one side were Chika and the Rescue Team member, gripping his hands and shoulders. On the other side was that firefighter, clutching his leg.
The force on both sides exceeded human limits. With both the Rescue Team member and the firefighter exerting strength at the same time, Takumi immediately felt as if he were about to be torn in half.
"Fujiwara-san, let go!"
Clenching his teeth, Takumi shouted. After hearing his words, the girl immediately looked at him. Upon confirming Takumi's expression, she let go at once. Takumi then pulled out a scalpel from his watch and, turning around, struck in one motion, severing that firefighter anomaly's hand on the spot.
Splash!
With the pulling force from behind suddenly gone, Takumi fell straight into the water, then was dragged into the guard booth by the Rescue Team member.
The instant Takumi got inside, Fujiwara Chika slammed the door shut. At that moment, the firefighter's severed hand had just grown back. It only managed to take a single step forward before being shut outside the door.
Thud—
A heavy knocking sound rang out from outside.
This guard booth itself seemed to possess some kind of special power. The anomaly did not try to break down the door. Instead, it obediently knocked, just like the security rules described, merely attempting to enter by knocking.
[Explorer… don't give up…]
At the same time as the knocking sounded, that thing continued to emit indistinct sounds.
[We… will save you… out…]
[Don't give up… you definitely… can still get out…]
[Hold on… we… will save you…]
Amid the heavy knocking, the words spoken by that thing seemed to carry a hint of grim resolve.
Takumi, sitting on the ground, closed his eyes.
His head began to ache.
Even though he was maintaining a seated position on the ground, he began to feel blood rushing to his head, as if he were being hoisted up into the air, as if he were hanging upside down for a long time.
He seemed to hear some kind of sound.
It was not a sound coming from that thing outside the door.
Rather, it was a dull sound transmitting toward him through the rock wall.
[Hold on!]
[Don't give up!]
[We will definitely save you and get you out!]
In the darkness, someone behind him, in a place he could not see, was shouting at him again and again.
No, no, that was not right. Completely wrong…
That was not me.
That image, that scene—the person in it was not me.
Who was it?
Who, exactly, was there?
[Don't give up, Andres!]
[Hold on a little longer. We will save you and get you out. Hold on—please—no matter what, you have to hold on.]
[This time we will definitely succeed. Don't give up. Let's try again—let us try again, okay?]
Where did that happen? And when did it happen?
Andres…
Was that person's name Andres?
What exactly did he do? Why was I seeing this—why was I feeling such a scene, as if—just as if…
"Takumi-kun, are you okay?!"
Fujiwara Chika's worried face enlarged right in front of Takumi's eyes.
Their cheeks were almost touching, close enough that taking one more step would have resulted in a kiss.
Under normal circumstances, Fujiwara Chika would naturally never do something like this to a man—especially a man she had known for only a single day. But at this moment, facing Takumi, a comrade who had gone through life-and-death situations multiple times, the girl had completely forgotten about her sense of embarrassment. She tightly gripped his shoulders, almost pinning Takumi to the ground on the spot.
"Don't do that. I'll think you're trying to confess to me."
Takumi blinked, his consciousness fully returning, and spoke with a slightly teasing tone.
He already knew what had just happened to him.
A core obsession.
The second instance's core obsession.
While passing through the [Blood Vessel], he must have come into contact with the second core obsession within the Red Nut Grey Cave.
Although he did not know why he could no longer clearly remember the process of that contact, that encounter had still brought him a certain influence. On top of the identity he had originally been "playing", another identity had been added—one that did not require clothing or speech to perform, yet could be directly recognized by anomalies. Because of this, that firefighter had refused to let go of him no matter what. In the eyes of that thing, the identity he possessed was one and only one.
That identity was…the identity of the very first trapped person—the initial event at the root of everything—during the operational period of the Red Nut Grey Cave, before the supernatural incidents began.
Andres.
That person's name was Andres.
At this moment, Takumi learned the name the second core obsession had in life.
However, unlike the little girl from the first game, Andres's name did not seem to draw attention, nor did it cause him to be attracted by the core obsession. That anomaly seemed as if it were already asleep. Even though Takumi already knew so much about it—he even knew what it was called—it still did not cast even the slightest bit of attention his way, nor did it impose any curse upon him.
Putting it that way, was this thing actually rather gentle?
Takumi had never imagined that one day he would use a word like "gentle" to describe a core obsession—a terrifying anomalous entity that was essentially the instance's sub–final boss.
"I'm fine. It's time to act. Now isn't the time to waste. Are you confident?"
Takumi took a deep breath, placed a hand on Fujiwara Chika's shoulder, and asked her seriously.
"Mission guaranteed to be completed!"
Fujiwara Chika's expression immediately turned solemn. She straightened up and replied to Takumi in a serious tone.
Takumi had already explained all the key points to Chika. At this moment, in the world on Maki's side, the Explorers who had gone into the cave were already on their way back and would soon reach the entrance.
Next, after the Explorers returned to the base and completed the inspection in the Quarantine Zone, Fujiwara Chika would have to put on the Explorer outfit, replace the original three members, and also carry three security uniforms with her. This was to ensure that once Kaguya and Maki arrived, the three of them could complete the clothing change as quickly as possible and then transfer to the security timeline.
The person delivering the clothes could not be Takumi or the Rescue Team member. Takumi had already been subjected to attention, and the Rescue Team member, because it was an Obsession Item derivative tied to him, would likewise be watched by that white-dressed woman who blocked doors and water sources. Once it entered the base, the outcome would very likely be GG.
The knocking sounds outside the door had already stopped.
When the people inside ignored the knocking, that firefighter did not persist. In a sense, this seemed to indicate that even if Takumi and the others were not playing the role of security, the anomaly that knocked on the guard booth door was still constrained by the rules—namely, the rule that "the thing knocking on the guard booth door will give up after a period of time if the people inside ignore it."
Fujiwara Chika took off the Explorer outfit and put on the Explorer Personnel clothing.
After several previous clothing changes, the girl had more or less become accustomed to changing clothes in front of Takumi. Although she was still shy, her body movements no longer showed any awkwardness.
As an aside, while the girl was changing clothes, Takumi temporarily canceled the summoning of the Rescue Team member. Well, how should he put it—although he knew that thing was no longer Tanaka in essence, and was not human and would not have desires, having it present still made Takumi feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Hm. Could this mean that I'm unwilling to let other men see Fujiwara Chika changing clothes?
That way of putting it… wouldn't that mean I'm extremely possessive toward this girl?
Takumi fell into deep thought.
The girl standing opposite him had already changed her clothes, and then directly vanished in front of Takumi.
From that point on, he had no way of seeing the other party's actions and could only rely on the information Maki relayed back to him to grasp the general situation.
"Hah…"
After letting out a long breath, Takumi leaned against the wall and sat down. Through the link, he sent a message to Maki to let her know that Chika had already gone over to her side. Then he began to wait in silence.
Would things go smoothly?
Takumi had to admit that he was feeling somewhat uneasy.
Although Chika had been an extremely reliable teammate throughout their journey, she now had to act alone for a period of time—and moreover, in that dangerous place where he had died during his first run. Takumi was truly worried and simply could not calm his mind.
One minute, two minutes…
Takumi sat there in silence, waiting. His fingers lightly tapped against the floor, his eyes closed, his breathing steady.
Five minutes, six minutes…
The tapping of his fingers sped up slightly, and Takumi's brows knit together as well.
Sixteen minutes, seventeen minutes…
Takumi opened his eyes and looked at the empty guard booth, occupied by no one but himself. A trace of restlessness gradually welled up in his heart.
However, in the end, at the nineteenth minute, he received a message from Maki.
{Oba-san and I have already met up with Classmate Fujiwara. We're together in a small room inside the staff break area right now. Next, we'll change into security uniforms together. The change is expected to be completed in two minutes. Takumi-kun, how are things on your side?}
Maki's voice was no different from usual—still as calm and decisive as ever.
{Understood. I'm already prepared on my end. Let me know the moment you're about to finish putting on the uniforms. We'll try to keep things synchronized and enter together at the same time.}
Takumi replied immediately. He stood up and resummoned the rescue team member, ordering the other party to quickly put on the security uniform. At the same time, he himself began to put on the security clothing that had long been prepared at his side.
Based on the first-run experience and what Susan and Rex said, it could be confirmed that no matter where they put on the security uniform, they would be teleported to the guard booth's location—teleported to the guard booth on the timeline where the security guard was on duty at the Big Slide.
So next, it would depend on this moment.
{We're basically dressed. Only the zipper on the uniform hasn't been pulled up yet. Takumi-kun, a three-second countdown.}
Maki's message came through once again.
And Takumi had already prepared together with her. At this moment, they completed the final three-second countdown.
3, 2, 1—
Everything around them changed in an instant.
In a flash, the guard booth became much newer. Maki, Kaguya, and Chika—three girls—stood at Takumi's side, while that rescue team member stood in front of him, staring at the dilapidated corpse in a security uniform that was sitting on the guard booth's bed.
Although that security guard was twisted and horrifying, as if his entire body had been crushed, and there was basically no such organ as a "face" anymore, at this moment—at the moment when a full five security guards suddenly descended into the guard booth, cramming this small place so tightly that there was no room to move—he still felt that this thing seemed to be a little dumbfounded for a moment.
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