Chapter 10

# Chapter 10

"Stand over there."

"...?"

"Right. Like that. Spread your arms."

"!"

"Good."

"!!!!"

I positioned the mascot and stared toward the sea.

Yeah.

Not even close.

"If a whale about a hundred times your size tries to swallow you, can you escape?"

"?"

"Probably not, right? Keep doing what you were doing."

"..."

The mascot glared at me, then resumed picking things up from the ground.

Good.

It was doing exactly what I'd asked.

I looked away and thought.

First, let's organize everything.

I couldn't climb the cliff.

Wandering around the shore did nothing.

If I went into the sea, a bizarre giant whale ate me.

"This place is ridiculous."

I was completely trapped.

I opened the notebook and read again.

Let's collect the useful entries.

[9. STOP READING AND GET OUT AND RUN!!!]

[9. Are you awake now? Looks like this is as far as I go, so I'm going to die.]

[11. This place is way too difficult for someone missing an arm... I'll write whatever I can.]

[11. The cliff looks impossible to climb no matter how I look at it. But I can see footprints, probably No. 9's, leading toward the sea... I'll try the sea.]

[19. My ability can't fool the monster, so I'm searching for another method.]

[19. Can't climb the cliff. It gets blocked if you go high enough. The beach loops endlessly. Am I really supposed to act insane and go into the ocean?]

[19. This might sound crazy, but I can write in the notebook underwater. I'm doing it right now.]

[19. I can hear something farther inside.]

[19. What the fu—]

[24. Hello. I am ■■■, an employee of the Management Bureau. Do not lose hope.]

[24. At present, Floor 3 appears to consist of the seafloor, beach, and cliff.]

[24. If you enter the ocean, a gigantic monster attacks. Unless you possess a special ability, there does not appear to be any way to pass it.]

[24. However, if you can get past that monster, you will immediately find the exit.]

[24. Please use your ability to its fullest and find a way past the monster.]

[30. Does that make any sense? Then whether you can pass this floor depends entirely on what ability you happened to receive?]

[30. That's unfair. Is that really the only answer? I'll find another way.]

[30. Like everyone said, the beach really does loop endlessly. Nothing works.]

[30. I BROKE THROUGH THE CLIFF! If you keep ramming your head against the cliff, eventually you can get through.]

[30. There's some kind of forest here. If you walk through it, you eventually reach a cabin. I'm sleeping here for a day.]

[30. I feel strangely refreshed.]

[30. I don't like the cabin. I need to fix it. Especially the ceiling. The ceiling.]

[30. The ceiling is filthy. I have to fix it.]

[30. Wipe away the grime, sweep away the dust, reveal the future...]

.

.

.

[30. And he said, I will build myself a great house and spacious chambers, and cut out windows for it, panel it with cedar, and paint it red. He lined the inner walls of the house with cedar boards from the floor to the ceiling and covered the floor with cypress boards.]

[30. You absolutely have to climb onto the ceiling and look outside. Beware the trees.]

[38. How the hell did No. 30 climb that cliff? I fell twice and gave up.]

[38. I'll just trust No. 24 and try getting past the whale monster. There's already a path. No reason to try something else...]

.

.

.

[111. I escaped. It couldn't find me when I didn't make any sound. But is this really the intended method?]

[111. I don't have any useful advice. The underwater monster seems to have smell, sight, and hearing. If one of those is weaker, maybe its hearing, like the others said.]

[111. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. Let's survive and meet on the next floor.]

[128. I climbed up there once too. Don't those trees seem like they're alive and moving?]

[128. Watch the trees. Seriously, watch the trees. If they catch you, dying won't be the end of i—]

I lifted my eyes from the notebook.

The mascot was swinging a stone axe.

It had made one surprisingly well.

"?"

"Looks perfect."

"...?"

"Yes, yes. That's enough."

The mascot looked suspiciously at the stone axe in its hands.

"???"

"Right. You're taking that with you."

"..."

"Yes, yes. I know. Thank you for being considerate."

In the end, the first thing I'd done after leaving the elevator and reading the notebook...

Was hold a strategy meeting with my reliable friend, the mascot.

And the conclusion we'd reached was...

"If anything happens, come tell me."

"!!"

"Right. You obviously can't actually talk. I mean come back and act out what happened."

"!"

I was sending the mascot ahead.

Honestly...

I felt incredibly guilty.

But when I asked, the mascot had agreed immediately without hesitation.

So I decided to accept its goodwill.

"And I'm sorry."

"!!!"

The mascot shook its head violently as if saying there was nothing to apologize for.

"According to the notebook, there's an enormous whale-like monster ahead. And if it catches you, you'll die horribly."

"..."

A horrible death.

Honestly, it had been the most painful death I'd experienced so far.

Countless mouths inside that thing's mouth.

Those mouths tearing my flesh apart.

"If I go in alone, I don't think I'll accomplish anything... so I have to ask you."

"!"

Again, the mascot nodded firmly as if telling me not to worry.

We looked at each other for a moment.

Then the mascot picked up the crude stone axe we'd made and strode into the sea.

"Hey."

"?"

It turned back.

"I'm sorry."

Either way...

I was sending it straight into a death trap.

And the mascot knew that too.

"..."

It stopped.

Then it walked back toward me.

It patted my back several times.

As if telling me not to worry.

"..."

After patting me, the mascot turned and entered the water again.

"..."

A long time passed.

The mascot didn't return.

***

"..."

I stared blankly at the horizon.

Should I die?

But how?

Go back in there and get killed?

The memory of one of those mouths tearing off my jaw returned.

No.

I couldn't go back there to die.

I'd rather starve to death.

"..."

No.

Maybe the mascot was still fighting desperately in there.

It was strong.

"...Bullshit."

I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them.

If the mascot still hadn't returned...

It was probably dead.

Then what was I supposed to do?

How could I get past that monster and reach the exit?

I thought until my head hurt.

Then...

"...Right."

A thought suddenly came to me.

The back door.

According to the creature moving corpses on the second floor, every floor had a back door.

Based on the notebook, the front exit of the third floor was probably the door guarded by the monster.

Then...

Couldn't I simply use the back door?

And if so...

Where was it?

"..."

I looked up at the cliff.

According to No. 30, you could break through it.

Then maybe the cliff was the back door.

I knew.

It was desperate speculation with almost no evidence.

But what else could I do when all I had was regression?

Going back in time didn't magically give me a way to defeat that monster.

Then maybe I should die here...

Return to the beginning...

And keep the mascot alive.

"..."

No.

I couldn't do that yet.

First, I needed to find the exit.

Then, if I became certain I could escape...

I would kill myself and regress.

Maybe I should've bought one of the shop items after all.

No.

Probably not.

A telescope that could see far away...

Or a flashlight that could always shine in darkness...

I still couldn't imagine either one being particularly useful here.

"..."

Let's go.

I took a deep breath and looked at the cliff.

Steep.

Could I really climb that?

"...Whatever. Worst case, I fall and die."

If I died, I'd return anyway.

And I had no intention of abandoning the mascot.

I slowly started climbing.

"Ngh...!"

It was more manageable than I expected.

Yeah.

More manageable than...

THUD!

"Agh!"

I hit the ground.

My backside burned with pain.

"Damn it."

Fine.

Worst case, I died.

I gritted my teeth and climbed again.

Again.

And again.

I kept climbing until all my fingernails tore away and my hands bled.

Finally...

"Got it...!"

My head struck a hard invisible ceiling.

I remembered No. 30's message.

He said if you kept ramming your head against it, eventually you could get through.

I started smashing my head against the ceiling.

Thud.

Thud.

Again and again.

"Damn it...! Break already...!"

I gritted my teeth and kept slamming my skull upward.

Again.

Again.

Until it broke.

Then...

CRACK!

Something gave way.

Fresh air struck my face.

"Haa...!"

I pulled myself up.

Then looked ahead.

Somehow...

I was standing in the middle of a forest.

No.

Maybe calling it a sea of trees would be more accurate.

I rubbed my aching hands and looked back.

The endless ocean still stretched behind me.

Wasn't this supposed to be inside a building?

How could something like this...

No.

There was no point trying to understand anything in this insane place.

I should simply accept what I saw.

I pushed through the dense trees.

"..."

After walking for some time...

A cabin appeared ahead.

So this was the place No. 30 entered before dying.

I was about to look away when...

"...?"

A sudden shadow fell over me.

I looked up.

"...What the..."

There was a ceiling.

It was unfortunate that I had no better way to describe it.

But above the forest was a gigantic ceiling made of wood.

"..."

I stared blankly upward.

Then writing carved into the ceiling slowly became visible.

[He made the ceiling of the great temple with cypress wood, overlaid it with pure gold, and decorated it with palm trees and chains.]

[And because they could not bring him near because of the crowd, they removed the roof above where he was. After making an opening, they lowered the mat on which the paralyzed man was lying.]

Right.

They needed sunlight to bring them to Him.

They had to see the sunlight.

Which meant...

That roof was in the way.

I began climbing a tree.

My missing fingernails made climbing agonizing.

But when I thought about saving the sick...

Strength seemed to fill my entire body.

I had to show them sunlight.

I reached the top of the tree.

I had to save them.

Only I could do it.

I grabbed the ceiling and began tearing it apart.

Fortunately, the ceiling was made from crudely interwoven branches.

It wasn't too difficult to pull them away by hand.

The exposed flesh where my fingernails had been scraped against the branches.

The pain was enough to twist my face.

I ignored it.

If my suffering could help others...

Then of course I had to endure it.

I kept tearing at the ceiling.

Eventually, I made a hole just large enough for me to fit through.

After opening the hole like a madman, I climbed onto the roof while it creaked dangerously beneath me.

But what choice did I have?

Destroying this ceiling was my duty.

I stood on top of it.

Then I started jumping.

Thud.

Thud.

If I put my full body weight into each jump...

Surely I could destroy the ceiling somehow.

I kept jumping like my life depended on it.

Then...

"..."

My eyes reached the distant horizon.

For the first time...

I saw something beyond the sea.

On a canvas painted entirely in deep blue...

There was a single dot.

An island.

And at that exact moment...

The memory of No. 30's message struck me like lightning.

[30. You absolutely have to climb onto the ceiling and look outside.]

"...!"

My mind snapped back to normal.

What the hell had I been thinking just now...?

CRACK!

At the same time, the floor beneath my feet collapsed.

My body dropped.

Before I could even scream...

CRUNCH!

Sounds that should never come from human ankles echoed through the forest.

"Kh... Aaaagh...!"

I screamed from the pain and squeezed my eyes shut.

Then I forced myself upright.

The trees were moving.

There was no wind.

Yet the trees swayed like they were dancing.

"...Beware the trees."

I repeated No. 30's warning.

Beware the trees.

Pain and adrenaline crashed through me at once.

My thoughts accelerated wildly.

"I... I figured it out."

I looked around.

I had to die.

I had to die before the trees caught me.

Desperately, I crawled across the ground.

I searched for anything that could kill me.

"Please... please...!"

Tap.

Something touched my elbow.

A rock about the size of my fist.

"..."

I looked back.

There still wasn't a hint of wind.

Yet the trees continued dancing.

They were coming toward me.

"Ngh...!"

I pressed my forehead against the rock.

Pulled my head back.

Then smashed it down.

THUD!

My vision instantly went black.

My head shook as though I'd suffered a concussion.

"Ngh... ngh...!"

I pulled back again.

Then slammed my forehead down once more.

Something hot ran down my face.

I looked back.

The trees were still dancing.

Closer.

I smashed my head down again.

CRACK.

An ominous sound came from my forehead.

I didn't stop.

No.

I couldn't stop.

I had to die.

I had to die...

And cross the sea.

CRACK!!!

With that thought, I slammed my head down one final time.

Unimaginable pain exploded through me.

And my consciousness ended there.