Chapter 29. New Beginning (1)
"... That person tried to kill me...."
Nadia sniffled. Her tear-filled eyes were clouded with the injustice of suddenly facing such an ordeal, the distress over her precious tail being ruined, and tears clung to her lashes, suspended by a lingering pain.
She kept checking to see if her tail was still intact and securely attached, fearing it might have fallen off. Thankfully, it was only slightly pressed down by the fur and neither broken nor detached.
Still, Nadia seemed very upset and in pain as she made a whining sound while caressing her tail.
"Cheer up, Nadia."
"..."
"I'm sure that person didn't mean to do it on purpose, right?"
"Huh? Oh, yes...! That's right! It wasn't on purpose, really!"
When I gave a hasty glance, urging her to respond affirmatively, Celestia nodded her head vigorously. She seemed about to say something more but couldn't bring herself to lift her head again after seeing Nadia's red, tearful eyes.
It was an accident due to the suit's performance being too good. I barely suppressed a sigh internally. Nadia's scream echoed so loudly that those waiting below had been in utter chaos.
When the broker kept sending messages asking what had happened, I pacified them with assurances that it was nothing serious, and everything was alright, breaking out into a cold sweat in the process.
Seeing Celestia lowering her head like a criminal, I couldn't suppress a sigh this time. Her actions were contrary to her seemingly competent appearance, which was a bit endearing. I was now certain.
"You're quite different from your looks."
"What did you say? Ah, no, I'm sorry. For now, use this..."
Muttering to myself, Celestia, who had been glaring at me with dagger-like eyes, softened her gaze when she noticed Nadia glaring at her. She pulled out some high-grade medical supplies from her belt bag, which Nadia accepted, her sniffles ceasing entirely.
I was slightly taken aback by how she seemed to recover so effortlessly. The timing was so ironic. Eric appeared to be just as perplexed as I was.
'... Surely not.'
I fervently hoped Nadia wasn't trying to gain something out of it. Her tail, being a sensitive part for beast people, must have hurt considerably when it was tugged like that.
Nadia extended her hand behind her. It seemed as though she wanted me to take the high-grade medical supplies Celestia had just given her. Cold sweat trickled down my back at the complication.
Don't do this. It makes us look like swindlers. I awkwardly smiled and pushed Nadia's hand away. Nadia let out a displeased snort in response.
Watching her with complex emotions for a moment, I agreed with Eric's input shortly after.
"Let's move out now. There are people waiting for us, so it's not a good idea to waste any more time."
Eric handed us a bundle of strong cords. These ropes were meant to link our belts so that if someone slipped and fell, the others could catch them, preventing a fall.
If the supporting anchor itself collapsed, such measures would be futile, but I placed my trust in technology. Although the outer appearance was rusted and blackened, I trusted the interior to be relatively intact.
With a click, the rings were secured to each suit. Eric gave a few strong tugs and nodded his head, signifying that it was good enough.
"I don't enjoy pulling..."
"..."
Celestia flinched.
"Ah, it's being pulled..."
"... Eric, stop tugging."
She chastised Eric for conducting a safety check, even though he was merely doing his job. Eric ended up feeling unjustly accused.
Appearing to have an employer-employee dynamic, Celestia and Eric seemed like a mismatched pair. Eric, the employee, opened his mouth to speak but then shut it tightly instead. He fell silent, casting another look at the connected pipe facility across the gap. Was it a figment of my imagination, or did he seem tense?
Eric shook the ladder leading upwards and signaled that it was okay to climb. We decided to take turns climbing the ladder, and Eric was chosen to go first.
"I've checked, but since it's quite old, the fastenings might come loose midway. I'll go up first, and the next person can follow once I give the signal."
"Alright."
Everyone nodded in agreement, and Eric began climbing the ladder, step by step. The ice fragments attached to the outside of the ladder fell off slightly, but it didn't seem unstable, probably because it was quite securely fastened.
At last, Eric reached the top and gave the pre-arranged signal. Celestia was next to climb the ladder, followed by Nadia, and finally, it was my turn.
Once we all safely reached the top, the biggest challenge awaited us. A crevasse, 15 meters in width, lay open with an unfathomable depth.
Seeing the darkness below, Nadia shivered. Her tail fur stood on end with tension.
"There's no need to rush, so move with utmost caution."
"Yes. Are you going first again this time?"
"It would be best to go the same way as before. Don't forget to spread out to the sides. We need to distribute the weight as much as possible."
After confirming the connection of the rope with Celestia, Eric cautiously placed his feet forward. The dull metallic sound echoed within the pipes as he stepped onto the large circular pipe.
The rust-encased ice fell off and reverberated like a melody, unable to escape the crevasse gap. Eric hesitated for a moment but then resumed moving forward, one cautious step at a time.
As he progressed, his partner Celestia also moved along.
"Let's go too."
"Okay...!"
Initially, I considered using Carry's levitation function to cross it, but our plan was thwarted when the thrusters got damaged by the monsters' attacks. If the thrusters had been intact, at least one person could have safely made it across.
After taking a deep breath, I advanced, ensuring the rope connecting us didn't get so taut as to hinder my ankles.
Whoooooosh...
As soon as I moved a little, a gust of wind blew as if waiting to surprise us. Despite not being particularly strong, the sensation of something pushing against our bodies sent a chill down my spine.
Nadia was already trembling. She was caught up in a cycle of attempting to check below to ensure we were progressing, only to be startled by the daunting depth. Struggling to focus on just moving forward but unable to verify progress, she repeatedly glanced downward, trapped in a vicious cycle.
Creak... Creak...
The metal plates anchoring the circular pipe warped with every shift in the center of gravity. The only lines tethering us were the four ropes attached to each suit. The only light came from the flashlights attached to our shoulders, and the only thing we could rely on was our own bodies.
The 15-meter distance, often traversed within seconds, had never felt so long. The mines had areas with steep drops, and similar situations had occurred, but the difference now was like night and day.
At least in the mines, we had an approximate sense of depth. It wasn't as if we were submerged in pure blackness like here.
...crack
thud thud thud....
Ice fragments clinging to the metal surface shattered into pieces and plummeted below. If they had hit the bottom, a faint sound should have echoed back, yet, no matter how I strained my ears, no such sound arose.
What lay below, I wondered. Was it a deeply carved cave or a chasm so profound that the floor was unreachable?
My heart pounds heavily as I swallow nervously. Despite efforts to steady it, my breath grows faint.
"Fighting monsters... might be better."
At least you can resist them, unlike against environmental factors. Unable to fend off the latter, moving cautiously was all that mattered.
Trying to maintain composure, step by step, I found myself near the midpoint of the crossing before realizing it. The darkness beneath the circular pipe loomed larger and thicker. Despite the intensifying sound of metal twisting, nothing seemed amiss—yet.
"Heh... Hehe...."
Suddenly, inexplicable laughter pierced through. Looking beside me, I found Nadia appearing as if she was losing touch with reality. Her dilated pupils indicated the extent of her nervousness.
Just as I was about to assure her that everything was okay, that she should hold on—
Thunk-!
One of the metal plates below dislodged entirely, sending a faint tremor through the surrounding structure. Luckily, as it had already been precariously attached, its detachment didn't significantly impact the facility itself.
However, it had a tremendous effect on us positioned atop it.
"......."
"......."
We were already anxious, plagued with ominous thoughts. A sudden occurrence like this tightened our hearts as if ready to burst. For a brief moment, my legs felt weak.
...thud ...thud ...thud ...thud
A faint echo from below. It felt like the sound of a securing pin coming loose mid-span.
Thud thud-
tap tap...
Indented ice pellets rolled along the surface and dropped below, ending with no discernable sound just like the earlier metal plate.
Following the trajectory of the descending ice chunks, I instinctively shifted my gaze downward, quickly correcting it back onto the path ahead.
"Nadia, we're almost there. Just hang on a little more. You're doing great."
"Uh, uh...!"
My words to Nadia were essentially meant for myself too. If I didn't articulate the silent mantra repeating in my mind, the swelling tension might eventually constrict my breathing.
Our focus was to cross the makeshift bridge of pipe facilities before it collapsed. But we took care not to rush. Hastening to move faster could lead to mistakes, and mistakes could hasten our demise.
I felt the drip of cold sweat on my face gather at my chin. My trembling breath dispersed against the respiratory protection gear.
Having crossed over halfway, it was too late to retreat. What propelled us was the thought that we just needed to get through this.
That thought alone was the only escape valve venting the oppressive pressure constricting our breath.
A step with feet firmly on the ground, ice shards not touching the floor, snow particles swirling amidst the light, another tentative step forward.
Repeating that sequence over and over.
"Yeaaaah...!"
At last, we reached the opposite side. Setting foot on solid ice as opposed to the yielding metal plates released the tension bubbling inside us. It wasn't a bad thing.
The simmering intensity subsided like a balloon deflating with a hiss.
"... I never thought I'd be this glad to touch ice."
"Same here."
Nadia and I fell onto the ground, spread out in silent acknowledgment. Although I knew I needed to get up soon, at that moment, I just wanted to revel in the ground's stability.
"It wasn't too long, but were you very tense?"
"I haven't really gone through such an experience. I've mainly done tunneling in mines. You, on the other hand, seem unfazed."
Shifting my gaze between Eric and Celestia, I found them rather composed. They had crossed the crevasse calmly. Had this not frightened them at all?
Instead of responding, Eric simply gave a light chuckle and extended a hand toward me. I grasped it and stood up. Celestia offered a hand to Nadia, but she refused, looking away in apparent reluctance.
Her reticence seemed to signal residual hurt from when her tail was seized.
Looking slightly forlorn, Celestia's focus briefly remained on Nadia before accessing her hologram interface through her bracelet. A mapped location of the 1st Generation Colony appeared on-screen.
"Looks like it's just along this pipe. We're almost there."
Watching them move effortlessly made me question our role here. I felt a drop in confidence, thinking they might have managed just as well without us.
Picking up on my thoughts, Eric spoke up.
"We brought you along for unforeseen circumstances, so there's no need to feel bad about it."
"I didn't express anything."
"Glad to hear that."
Eric shrugged lightly and redirected himself, motioning to follow. I hastily wiped away now cooled sweat as we trailed him.
As Celestia mentioned, we hadn't walked far when a target site presented itself—a facility seemingly encased within an immense mass of ice.
However, just from initial observation, its prolonged neglect was glaringly evident.
'... At least the information wasn't wrong.'
But it made me wonder if it was at all usable. Having already come this far safely, my only task now was to wait. Staying vigilant, we stood watch nearby.
And soon enough, I realized why Celestia insisted on going herself.
"Could you break the ice here? Just enough not to damage the mechanism inside."
I obliged her request, taking out the plasma cutter I'd carried along. The tool bore a short shaft for portability.
Adjusting the output to lightly emit plasma, I began grooming the ice enclosing the panel. The ice, hardened due to the Blue Crystals' influence, vaporized into steam, causing the edges to fracture.
At last, the ice encasing the verification panel crumbled away.
"Ah, that should do it. Thank you."
"Does this thing even work? And if it does, how are you going to bypass security authentication?"
The door itself was wrecked, so internal access didn't require authentication. But like that, it was no different than an empty shell. Activating the facility hinged upon those credentials.
"Despite being commissioned before I was born, this facility is undoubtedly a product of Myosotis technology. Having me here means credentials are no issue. And with a little energy jumpstart...."
Celestia Myosotis reached for the wall, prompting a subtle click that opened the metal panel. Inside was a lever-like component where Eric inserted a refined Blue Crystal shard, turning it outward to ignite the darkened screen.
Text then emerged on the panel.
【Welcome to Town, the starting point of a new future.】
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=【ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌ )】
This chapter is light-hearted compared to the action packed ones. I like the change of pace.