176-160 Abandoned mine (1) (1/2)

We made it to the point where we turned around last time without any problems, but the speed was slower than last time.

The reason was the mapping.

Yuki is struggling with the azimuth gauge, and it seems that the slightly curved pathway is quite difficult to draw.

A square is 20 paces on a side, and if you walk diagonally, it's about 28 paces. ...... Ah, but it depends on the angle. ......

He seems to be mapping with a sense of about 10 meters per square, but just listening to his mumbling, he seems to be having difficulty.

Even so, he seems to have gotten a better sense of the situation and has increased his speed, but it's still much slower than walking normally.

At this rate, it seems that the range of exploration will be affected by Yuki's mapping speed and her patience. I don't think I could last an hour.

We're going to have to take breaks quite often, aren't we?

Well, mapping is nerve-wracking, so it's probably for the best.

When I whispered to Haruka, she nodded her head as she watched Yuki scratching her head and trying her best.

However, it would be difficult to take turns mapping with someone else.

Their stride lengths are different, and their senses of angles and so on are also not the same, so there is a high possibility of inconsistency.

We're at the end of the road, which way should we go?

This is where we turned back last time.

If there is a fork in the road, then mapping is necessary, so I turned back, but there is not much difference between the two roads, and there is nothing to guide me.

”Take whichever you want. We don't have a clue.

Then we'll take the left.

Why?

What do you mean?

Toya responded to Haruka's words without pause, and I asked him why, but he said it was just a hunch, no reason at all.

Well, it's not worth bothering about, and there's no reason to oppose it.

We'll go in the direction Toya has chosen.

The abandoned mine is an artificially dug hole with no unnatural unevenness, making it easy to walk through.

The slope tends to go down gradually toward the back, but the slope is quite gentle.

But there are no pillars in this tunnel, right?　Is it okay if it's not supported?

”It's pretty hard to the touch, so it should be fine.　But it must have been hard to dig, because it's mostly rock.

I wonder if that's why they brought in so many workers.　If you're falsely accused and forced to work hard in a place like this, you might understand why you become undead.

I don't know how much labor it takes to develop a mine like this, but we've killed at least 100 undead so far.

To think that those people were forced to work, dig these mines, and then die: .......

Feeling a little chilly, I rubbed my arm.

”Nao, what's wrong?

What's wrong, Nao?” Perhaps wondering what I was doing, Haruka approached me.

No, it's just that I feel like a lot of people died here.

”Nao, are you scared~?

Yuki said with a teasing smile, but I don't like it, do you?

I don't expect anything in particular to happen, but the crematorium, the graveyard in the middle of the night, the feeling of death, the feeling of .

”Don't worry, Nao. Ghosts are common here.

”......, of course.

I'm not sure if that's something to be relieved about, but it's certainly a situation where you can't say 'I'm afraid of ghosts'.

I'm sure you're not the only one.

I understand the feeling, but... I'm going to cleanse you, so don't worry about it.

You've already killed a lot of undead, but you're still sensitive in a weird way, aren't you Nao?

I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's a good idea.

Our women are too tough.

--No, I'd be annoyed if someone said, ”Oh my God, that's scary! I'd be annoyed.

If you think about it, it's probably a good thing.

Back to the topic at hand, the reason why there are no pillars supporting the ceiling is because of magic. As the digging progresses, it seems that the surrounding area is hardened by earth magic to prevent collapse. It's like a shield construction method.

So there's no need to worry about collapses?

It is a very safe construction method used in modern tunneling.

If it's earth magic, it can be solidified without any joints, so it's probably safer.

But didn't Diora say that they couldn't get any specialized engineers to work here?　It was top secret.

............ I'd better be careful.

No shoddy work, ever.

Yeah. Nao, if it looks dangerous, use earth magic. I'm busy mapping.

Okay. Natsuki, let me know if there's anything you're worried about. We'll take precautionary measures.

Yes, sir. I don't want to be buried alive.

We can use earth magic to get out of here if we have to. Still, the less danger, the better.

Even today, I hear that accidents involving burial alive in mines occur frequently in China, so you can never be too careful.

I speared the walls around me, checking for fragile parts as I walked.

It's changing a bit, but is it ...... a trial dig?

I don't know.

After a while, there were tunnels on either side of the road, but they were less than ten meters deep, and we could see the end of them by light.

The depth of the tunnels is less than ten meters, and you can see the end of the tunnel with a light.

You wouldn't normally dig a tunnel with such a complicated shape, would you?

What about it?　Isn't it possible that the tunnel will naturally become more complex as we dig for the vein?

”I see, there it is.