Chapter 5: You’re the Only One Passing Through This Narrow Path

Chapter 5: You're the Only One Passing Through This Narrow Path

The Safety Rope.

For explorers operating in hazardous environments like mountains or caves, this is considered an indispensable tool.

However, in this strange and constantly changing cave, the meaning of the safety rope requires careful contemplation.

"The rules mention three safety ropes. One at the big slide, one at the great cliff, and one that passes through three areas: the great space, the blood vessel, and the heart. Among these, the last safety rope is broken and must not be touched, especially if you're lost."

Takakai didn't touch the safety ropes fastened tightly to the wall. Instead, he sat down and observed them carefully.

"What area are we in now? The big slide must be a very long slope, and this place doesn't look like that. The great cliff is even less likely. So, maybe we're in the blood vessel among the three areas?"

Fujiwara Chika, who was also seated and observing alongside Takakai, spoke with curiosity.

"But this safety rope doesn't seem broken at all."

Takakai shook his head. Even after a brief examination, he didn't find the rope to be in what could be called a "damaged" state.

"No, this rope is indeed broken."

Chika shook her head, dismissing Takakai's assumption outright.

"Broken?"

Takakai was stunned, unable to understand why Chika came to such a conclusion.

"Takahashi-kun, look closely. The rope shows signs of frayed stitching, with many of the originally sturdy threads already snapped. Moreover, the rope's color has significantly changed—some parts are darker, while others are lighter. Ropes like this fail to meet safety standards and are no longer usable because they are broken."

"After all, safety ropes are what ensure the lives of explorers. Before every trip, they must undergo thorough checks—stretch tests, swing tests, even electrostatic inspections. Every aspect must be perfect. Even minor color changes on the rope's surface cannot be overlooked."

"On top of that, I just checked: the original carabiner that this rope came with has been removed, and it's been tied in a knot. Combined with the damage, by safety standards, this rope is undoubtedly defective and unusable. Any explorer would toss it into the trash immediately. I have a close acquaintance who's into extreme sports, so I know all of this very well—it's absolutely certain."

At this moment, Fujiwara Chika explained seriously to Takakai.

While Chika was explaining, Takakai recalled the knowledge about safety ropes that Xu Sheng had once taught him through transferred memories and realized it was accurate.

He had unconsciously been thinking about the rope from the perspective of an ordinary person. Perhaps simply being blessed with knowledge wasn't enough; he needed to read more specialized books to reinforce the skills Xu Sheng had imparted at any time.

"If that's the case, we'll follow the direction of the rope, pick a path, and keep moving forward until we reach the end."

After silently reminding himself, Takakai stood up and made his decision.

"But according to the rules, isn't this rope supposed to be very dangerous?"

Fujiwara Chika was surprised by Takakai's decision and immediately questioned him.

"Yeah, the exact text of Rule Twelve says: [The safety rope at the blood vessel connecting the heart to the great space is broken. Do not grab it when moving forward, especially if you are lost.] This means that if we reach out and grab this rope, something bad is bound to happen. And if we're lost and still cling to it, it'll be even more dangerous. Unless that rule contains a false element, this rope is extremely dangerous to us right now."

Takakai nodded slightly, glancing along both sides of the cave in the direction of the rope. However, no matter how he looked, he couldn't see the end of the rope. Then, he turned back to Chika, the corner of his mouth curling into a faint smile.

"But, does the rule say something like 'this safety rope will lead us to the wrong place'? It's true that it's dangerous, but at the same time, it's the only fixed coordinate we can find here. By following this rope, we'll definitely reach either the great space or the heart."

Just what might they encounter along this path?

Takakai didn't voice this thought.

Instead, he signaled for Fujiwara Chika to follow him, then randomly chose a direction and moved forward.

"Oh, I see now. Analyzing the visible and invisible information from the text... this is just like playing a game, like a game..."

Perhaps out of lingering anxiety, Chika mumbled a few sentences as she followed Takakai, then fell silent and obediently continued behind him.

It was impossible not to notice how Fujiwara Chika now seemed so different from the lively girl Takakai had once known. The impulsiveness, stubbornness, and irrationality she displayed in the original manga were nowhere to be found in the girl walking behind him. Instead, she was surprisingly compliant. Ever since her initial mistake, she had become very cooperative.

Perhaps this was the multidimensional complexity of personality in different circumstances.

As this thought crossed his mind, Takakai noticed the path ahead was becoming narrower. He bent down to move forward.

From a height of 1.9 meters to just 1.4 meters, this section of the path, only about 10 meters long, had a significant drop in height.

With her height of about 1.5 meters, Chika only needed to stoop slightly to continue, but at 1.8 meters tall, Takakai had to hunch over more to get through.

"Phew..."

Takakai let out a long breath, continuing forward under the light of his headlamp.

The walls of the cave were gradually closing in.

The space was becoming narrower and narrower.

Clunk—

Despite his efforts to lower himself, Takakai's helmet lightly bumped against the rocky ceiling of the cave.

The tunnel ahead continued to shrink.

"Takahashi-kun... this place..."

Chika couldn't help but speak from behind, beginning to doubt whether they should continue down this path.

Takakai didn't immediately respond. Instead, he crouched down and slowly turned back toward her.

In the cold light of their headlamps, Takakai could see Chika's slightly pale face and her trembling frame.

She was clearly nervous. In this increasingly narrow and dark cave with no visible end, Fujiwara Chika—who had likely never faced true danger before—was showing fear and vulnerability.

"If the cave ahead narrows to the point where we have to crawl and can no longer turn back, we must remain silent and stop talking. Do you understand?"

Takakai placed a hand on Chika's shoulder and spoke to her seriously.

"Mm... I understand."

Chika nodded firmly, understanding that Takakai was referencing the rules for narrow areas. Though her fear hadn't completely subsided, she tried her best to continue following him.

"Good. Just remember this—under no circumstances should you grab the rope. If you accidentally touch it, it's fine, but never grip it. Alright, let's keep moving. Don't linger too long in this narrow section."

Takakai turned back toward the cave ahead.

He removed his backpack, clutching it in his arms, and continued forward.

The path ahead grew narrower and narrower.

Gradually, Takakai was forced to bend even lower to move.

In a cave this tight, avoiding contact with the safety rope was nearly impossible. However, after a few accidental brushes against it, Takakai had confirmed that merely touching the rope didn't seem to pose any immediate danger.

Behind him, Takakai could still hear Chika's slightly tense breathing.

She followed closely, cautiously, like a small puppy.

Takakai wanted to turn back to check on her, but the path had become too confined. With the ceiling less than a meter high and the rocky walls nearly pressing against his shoulders, it was impossible to turn around. He had no choice but to let go of the thought.

A faint smell of blood began to waft through the air.

Takakai noticed that bloodstains had started to appear on the safety rope. It looked as if someone with a bleeding hand had gripped the rope tightly, leaving blood-soaked marks.

Dark red handprints began to appear on the rocky walls, with streaks of blood spreading wider and wider.

These bloodstains were fresh.

It was as if someone had just passed through here not long ago.

Someone injured had traveled this path, leaving behind traces of their presence.

Clack—

Takakai's helmet got stuck again.

It seemed to have hit a protruding rock, but something felt different—it seemed softer than stone.

"Phew..."

The silence was absolute.

In this narrow cave, the quiet was so profound that he could only hear his own breathing and heartbeat.

Takakai tilted his head slightly, trying to avoid the obstruction.

Thud—

He hit something again.

The sensation was the same as before.

One hand clutching his backpack, he raised the other to adjust his helmet.

Cold and stiff.

His hand touched something that had already turned cold and rigid.

"..."

He lifted his head and looked up.

There, he met the pale, eyeless face of a boy, bloodshot streaks spreading where his eyes should have been, staring straight at him.

The boy clung to the ceiling of the cave, one hand pressed to his chest, his fingers just barely brushing against Takakai's helmet.

[Grab the rope, get out, don't give up—everyone will make it out!]

[Follow along, don't fall behind, don't let go—just hold on!]

[We'll make it out, we all will—everyone will get out!]

It was as if those voices were echoing in his head.

Takakai turned his gaze to the boy's other hand.

The boy's arm clutched the safety rope, gripping it tightly as if he would never let go.

Takakai looked ahead along the path.

He saw countless hands.

One after another, hands tightly grasping the safety rope, stretching into the darkness.

Lowering his head, Takakai dropped to his knees, letting them touch the ground, and shifted into a crawling position, continuing forward.

Thud—

A leather shoe bumped against his helmet.

Thud—

A finger reached out and tapped his helmet.

Thud—

An open mouth, full of teeth, brushed against his helmet.

Takakai didn't lift his head.

But he could hear their breathing.

The people clinging to the rope, moving forward step by step. The ones who had fallen here. The steady, rhythmic breathing of those people echoed in the confined space.

The ones lying above him, one after another, bodies stacked to fill the path. Their breathing.

It was steady, just like it always had been. As if everyone knew what to do. A soft inhale, followed by a gentle exhale.

Thud—Thud—

Takakai continued forward in silence.

He stretched out his hand.

He pushed aside a broken arm lying in his way.

He avoided looking at the white maggot crawling out of the nose of the girl slumped against the wall.

He crouched lower to avoid the two bodies pressed together, their flesh reeking with a nauseating stench of decay.

The passage was too cramped to avoid everything. His helmet scraped against a stray eyeball and some rotted, blackened flesh, smearing a pasty, sesame-like substance onto its surface.

"Why are there so many people here? Are they all people who can't escape..."

Chika's voice came from behind.

"Sorry, I was just too tense. Takahashi-kun doesn't need to respond to me."

"It feels like continuing like this will lead to a nightmare, ha ha, though I don't know if we'll survive."

"Did Kaguya-san really join this game? Is she okay facing all this? She's actually not that brave..."

It seemed like, to dispel her fear, the girl behind her started talking more after a few deep breaths.

"These people are stuck here, and in the end, their only thought is to leave, right?"

"Compared to them, do we really have anything special?"

"Is it too pessimistic to say this... but really, right now, I can't be optimistic, ha ha..."

One could feel the despair in her voice.

For a cute girl like her to show such fear, it was easy to stir up a protective instinct and a desire to act for men.

However, at this moment, Takakai really didn't have the energy to talk with her.

He just lowered his head a little more and continued walking toward the front of the cave, passing over the corpses that lay on top of his head.

[Why am I here?]

A line of red blood appeared next to Takakai.

[It's too dark, too narrow, where is this place?]

[I have to get out, I must get out]

[I'm not a tourist, I'm not a tourist, I]

More bloodstained words appeared.

Accompanied by a sound that seemed like a whisper, a noise rang out.

Takakai continued to crawl forward.

He focused solely on the path ahead, looking at the narrow, pitch-black passage in front of him.

"Those sounds... aren't they following us?"

"Or, are we going in the direction the sounds are moving?"

Chika's voice from behind became increasingly tense.

Takakai remained silent, continuing to crawl forward.

Hiss...

He could hear his own breath becoming more urgent as his strength gradually drained.

How far had they gone? How long had it been?

He couldn't determine the answer.

In this place, where there was no light, people completely lost track of time.

So what about the mission's time limit? Although 15 days sounded broad, he couldn't know how long he had been in the cave.

The thought flashed through his mind but didn't affect his current state.

Takakai continued to crawl forward.

And at this moment, a painful cry came from behind.

"Takahashi-kun, I... I think I'm stuck..."

He heard the sound of struggling.

"Takahashi-kun?"

In the trembling voice of the girl, Takakai continued to crawl forward for a while.

"Wait... wait a moment, Takahashi-kun, I'm stuck, Takahashi-kun..."

She didn't dare to scream too loudly, seemingly afraid that the noise would attract something else, and could only painfully speak to Takakai.

But Takakai just kept crawling forward, passing through the narrow area in front of him, and moving toward the wider space ahead.

His breathing now seemed much heavier.

The stone walls on both sides and the corpses above his head, in this moment, seemed to press in closer, as if they were going to crush him in the tunnel.

But at this very moment, a pair of hands reached out from the front, grabbed his shoulders, and pulled him forcefully forward.

"..."

It seemed like something made a noise behind him, then quickly vanished.

Takakai, with his backpack, sat up from the ground, then saw Chika, sitting in front of him, looking slightly dirty.

"I, I'm an explorer, I'm Fujiwara Chika. I came to explore Heart and then left Nutty Dutty Cave."

Before Takakai could speak, Chika nervously looked at him and spoke first.

"I'm an explorer, I'm Takahashi Takakai. I came to explore Heart and then left Nutty Dutty Cave. When did you get here?"

Takakai let out a quiet sigh of relief, speaking as he turned back to look at the tunnel he had just crawled out of, now completely empty, with no one there.

"About... two or three minutes? Takahashi-kun, you still haven't come out. I've been worried for so long."

Chika gently patted her chest, which was tightly squeezed by her protective suit, and answered Takakai in a softer tone.

"Really?"

Takakai nodded slightly, not saying anything more. He stood up and looked at the large cave ahead, with many stone pillars scattered around.

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