Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

Gao Hai didn't care much, since he was the one having fun, so he went straight to asking about the important matter.

"Yes, I did find something. Um, sorry, I got your clothes wet..."

Fujiwara Chika nodded slightly, took out a flyer from her waist, then noticed that Gao Hai's chest was wet, and lowered her head to apologize softly.

"Okay, let's not keep repeating these meaningless statements. Hmm, let me see..."

Completely unconcerned, Gao Hai casually remarked, then unfolded the flyer in his hand.

The colorful and beautifully designed promotional flyers caught Gao Hai's eye.

-

At the same time, in the dormitory area.

Shijou Maki opened the door and entered the four-person dormitory room first. She carefully searched the room to make sure there was no one inside and no listening or monitoring devices. Then she nodded to Kaguya at the door. Kaguya then walked in, turned around, closed the door, and locked it from the inside. She then brought a chair to block the lock.

"Are you sure it's safe here?"

Kaguya asked in a very serious tone.

"At least among the places we can go, this is the safest place."

As she spoke, Maki rummaged through her backpack and quickly pulled out a cassette player.

After the Shirakawa Apartment instance ended, Takami, Kaguya, and Maki prepared various items in their backpacks. Maki brought a cassette player in case they encountered some special situations in the instance, as this item had been largely obsolete in modern society.

For example, right now, she and Kaguya secretly sneaked into the archives area on the second floor of the base and stole a cassette tape and a document.

"Play it."

After searching the dormitory again and repeatedly confirming that it was safe, Kaguya nodded to Maki and said.

click -

Extending a finger, Maki gently pressed the play button, starting to play the tape she had taken from the archives.

Chapter 40: As everyone knows, investigation teams are always getting wiped out.

Sizzle—sizzle sizzle—

Amidst the cacophony, one could hear sounds of equipment being fiddled with, footsteps, and some indistinct conversations.

After Maki and Kaguya checked their surroundings one last time and confirmed that nothing was watching, Kaguya, still feeling somewhat uneasy, scattered the ashes at the door and in several corners of the room. Then, worried that the sound from the cassette player might have some kind of eerie effect, she discussed it with Maki after some thought. Kaguya would listen to the cassette alone, while Maki would stay away, cover her ears, and keep a close eye on Kaguya's situation, taking immediate action if anything seemed amiss.

This is about the best preventative measure the two girls can take. Whether it will work or not depends on their luck.

call……

Kaguya Shinomiya had to admit that although she could maintain a blank expression and pretend not to care, her heart was racing and her palms were sweating uncontrollably as she faced the unknown terror alone.

Normally, Kaguya would immediately wipe away her sweaty hands and wash them to avoid any lingering odor. But right now, she had no time to pay attention to that; her attention was completely focused on the tape recorder in front of her.

[A1 confirms normal communication, no background noise]

A deep male voice came from the tape recorder.

[Command center confirms communications are normal and there is no background noise.]

[A2 confirms communication is normal]

[A3 confirms communication is normal]

……

[A6 confirms communication is normal]

The voices of seven people rang out in succession. One of them sounded like the person in charge of remote command, while the other six belonged to the same squad and were preparing to launch an operation.

Is this a log of the operation? Could it be an audio recording of the explorers investigating the Red Nut Grotto?

Realizing this, Kaguya became even more cautious.

[A1: Exploration Operation, codenamed "Cave-01", now preparing to begin recording]

[a1: Each member conducts a final equipment check]

[a2-a6: Inspection complete]

[A1: All members have completed their checks and are ready to depart at any time. Command center, please reply.]

[Command Center: Received, proceed]

[a1: Begin action, starting to enter the "entrance" area, the next area to pass through is the "fork in the road"]

[...(For about 10 minutes, no one spoke; only muffled footsteps and slight noises could be heard.)]

[A1: Command post, how long have we been advancing?]

[Command Center: 16 minutes 22 seconds]

[A1: The situation here does not match the intelligence we received beforehand. The distance from the "entrance" to the "fork" should not be this long. We should be able to see the "fork" within 10 minutes.]

[a4: And it shouldn't smell this bad either; this place smells like it's stuffed with a thousand rotting rats.]

[a3: And it's quite cold here. I remember the travel brochure advertised that this place is mild in winter and cool in summer. Could it be false advertising?]

[A1: Don't interrupt. I've already seen the "fork in the road." We've walked at least 500 meters, which is completely different from the initial intelligence we received. Are you sure the person who gave us the intelligence was trustworthy?]

[Command Center: That's why we need manpower to conduct on-site reconnaissance]

[a1: This is really good news. We will be going up the "gentle slope". To be honest, I don't want to say it, but I have a bad feeling about it.]

[A6: Didn't you already say it, Captain?]

[a1: shit……]

[...(A silence lasting about four or five minutes, with only the sound of footsteps continuing to be heard)]

[a2: ...Damn it, this place is so oppressive.]

[A4: A national-level tourist resort, huh?]

[A1: We have passed the "gentle slope" area and arrived at the "plain". We are about to enter the "giant slide". Let's finish the activity quickly!]

[A4: Why are there so many clothes missing here? Is someone hosting a huge party here?]

[a3: They really found a great place.]

[A1: Command post, we have arrived at the entrance to the "giant slide." The slope ahead is about 30 degrees. How do we get down?]

[Command Center: Look around, you should be able to find a safety rope. It's a tool left behind by the park staff, and it connects directly to the "giant slide." You can use that rope to reach the "giant cliff" area.]

[A5: Captain, we found them, they're over here]

[a1: Great, a thicker No. 6 safety rope. They say this thing can lift an elephant?]

[a2: So, do we need to do some math here to see if the combined weight of the six of us exceeds that of an elephant?]

[a4: Hey, that sounds like a good idea]

[a1: Stop messing around, keep moving. I really don't want to stay in this awful place for another second.]

[...(The voices disappeared again, followed by the sound of ropes being pulled, accompanied by footsteps and various other rustling noises. This silence lasted for more than twenty minutes, during which only the sound of footsteps and heavy breathing could be heard. Then, gradually, the sound of dripping water began to appear, about once every three minutes.)]

[a1: Successfully reached the cliff (faint background noise begins to appear in the voice)]

[Command Center: A1, your communicator is malfunctioning? Check it.]

[A1: I just checked it and didn't find any obvious faults. Maybe the signal here is a bit weak?]

[Command Center: This is a wired connection; you still have the cables attached to you. Theoretically, this shouldn't be a problem.]

[A4: Now that you mention it, it's true. All seven of us are connected by a thread, running from the entrance to this wretched place all the way here. By the way, how long is that thread again? Two thousand meters or three thousand meters?]

[A3: Hopefully this thing is long enough, otherwise it'll be terrible if it gets stuck in the middle of that cliff. By the way, our task is just to install sensors at the entrance of the "blood vessel," right? We don't need to climb that hundreds-of-meters-long dog hole, do we?]

[a1: No need, let's take action]

[...(Here the background noise increases further, and amidst the jarring din, a faint, low groan-like sound can be heard.)]

[a5: Captain, there are people ahead]

[...(Suddenly all sound disappeared, including background noise; Kaguya could only hear the sound of the tape recorder running.)]

[a1: I saw it! The person in front stopped, raised their hands, and knelt on the ground!]

[...(A sudden burst of even more piercing noise erupted, and the chaotic din began to mask the voices, making it increasingly difficult to discern the person's voice.)]

[Command Center: Squad A, please reply. You have not responded to messages for 10 minutes.]

[a1: Trapped inside?]

[a3: Go...]

[a2: It's even more crowded here]

[a5: Who am I?]

[Command Center: Squad A, please respond]

[...(The audio is becoming increasingly noisy and intermittent. The team's voices can be heard intermittently, but due to the audio malfunction, they are difficult to discern accurately. It can only be barely determined that the team members are talking to each other.)]

[a6: No... I can't move... I can't go back...]

[a2: Who...is speaking...can't get out...where...]

[a1: Help...why are there so many...people...?]

[a4: I can't see... I can't see anymore... Talk to me... I'm behind you...]

[A5: Follow behind... Command Tower, please... understand...]

[a3: He...left...I can't leave...]

[a1: Hands...I saw...on the hands...]

[...(The piercing noise completely drowned out the team members' voices, leaving only the command center's voices still discernible)]

[Command Center: Please respond! Squad A, please respond!]

[Command Center: Initiate Procedure 2, immediately begin operations against Squad A...]

[Command Center: It has been confirmed that Team A's signal has been completely lost]

[...(After a final, barely noticeable bit of background noise, the audio ends)]