ăBut I feel like we got through most of them? ă
ăTo be honest, that one was the easiest. ă
There had been things such as javelins launched from the sides, suspended ceilings, and collapsing walls. Up until this point, they had pretty much encountered all of the standard booby traps. However they hadnât encountered any teleportation traps or alarms. That was probably due to the fact that those traps didnât exist in Drifters. Besides, setting up alarms was probably too tedious.
ăWell no, if those were truly dangerous traps, Tatsuya and I would have come up with a different solution.ă
ăWhatever you say, but those traps were honestly just like toys.ă
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Mercenaries in Apocalypse Volume 1 Chapter 29
ăThe collapsing walls only had enough power to simply prevent you from moving. ă
ăThere wasnât really a straightforward method to deactivate it anyway.ă
ăWell I just thought since it was difficult to deactivate it, one might as well just forcibly break through it.ă
If itâs an Indiana Jones type of trap then youâll just get caught in it and youâll have to find a way to escape. In addition, these ruins are clearly a theme park attraction, so none of the traps were going to result in a fatal wound. The suspended ceiling and collapsing walls were just like camera shutters and sliding doors. If something large were to get stuck between, its safety mechanism would activate and it wouldnât move any further. So, no one was really going to end up with a close call.
However, it wasnât like there werenât any downsides either. The suspended ceiling and collapsing wall were made of robust rocks so it was a pain to get through. If you got hit by one of the propelled javelins and spears youâd temporarily become paralyzed and confused. The situation wasnât life-threatening but it did seem like the place was specifically designed to take a toll on oneâs stamina and sanity.
Incidentally, the worst one was a line of spears trap that Judith had activated.
ăFor some reason I laughed when the trap was activated by the red laser.ă
ăThat doesnât seem normal.ă
Along the way, they had come across something that seemed like right out of a spy movie in which it looked like a security system had been put into place. When they turned a corner they encountered a hit and away trap. In the end, Hiroshi managed to break through and they all narrowly escaped.
ăYeah, well.ă
ăYou wanna say something donât you?ă
ăI think itâs safe to say that this entire place is rigged with traps. Where do you think the next one will be? ă
ăThis is pretty standard but I think itâll be securely placed in an unexpected place, such as that strange new rail car over there.ă
Just as Haruna said, in the depths of the room was a strange sparkling new rail car. It ran along a rail. There wasnât a roof nor any ground. One would be surprised, but if one looked closer a safety net had been placed and was camouflaged. Seeing this, one wouldnât know to either be relieved at the fact that even if they fell they would be saved by the safety net or if they should be worried by the fact that a safety net had needed to be installed.
They had been sure that these were some ancient ruins but no ancient ruins would have a rail car without a single speck of rust. Or perhaps, this had been done on purpose, knowing that whoever noticed would no doubt be unsettled.
ăWell that definitely looks rigged, letâs go check it out.ă
ăIf itâs how I think it is, weâll be attacked by a bat and then itâll make us stumble and fall to the depths of the earth.ă
ăIt could also be a jet coaster. Thereâs probably a vertical loop up ahead and a lot of twists and turns. ă
ăBut, passengers donât usually fall off do they? ă
Everyone voiced their predictions about what possibly awaited them in the rail car.
ăWell, compared to all the traps up until now this, too, shouldnât be a big deal. If anything, itâs some type of jet coaster.ă
ăRight. Now the problem isâă
ăI wish the rail car had more space.ă
Today was the second time that everyone was huddled together. Hirshi unconsciously let out a sigh. They werenât as tightly packed as before but there was no room for wielding a weapon.
ăThereâs another problem. Itâs gotten late.ă
ăAh~thatâs true. Itâs around dinner time.ă
ăRight, what do ya say we take a break and then we ride the rail car in the morning.ă
ăItâs inconvenient if we donât know what lies up ahead.ă
ăEven if you say that we donât know if the rail car is the last trap. These ruins keep attacking our stamina and sanity. I donât even feel like putting up with this tomorrow.ă
Everyone was tired from the dayâs events but it was possible that if they continued tomorrow, Hiroshi would make up an excuse to not ride the rail car.
ăThis is too troublesome, so letâs just flip a coin.ă
ăIs that alright? At any rate neither is a good option.ă
ăThen weâll do a ghost lottery to decide who goes where. Hiroshi-kun and Tatsuya-kun should go in the front.ă
They were the ones who would be able to absorb the most damage so it was appropriate for them to be in the front. The coin that Tatsuya flipped had landed on heads, that meant that they would ride the rail car today.
ăAlright. But as soon as weâre done with the rail car weâre looking for somewhere to set up camp.ă
ăThere should be a save point place around here so thatâs fine.ă
Haruna lucked into getting to sit behind Hiroshi and she happily climbed into the rail car with him.
This was the second time of the day they stood so close to each other. Next came Mio, Makoto, and finally the Norton sisters were at the very back.
ăâKay weâre moving now, so hold on tight!ă
At Tatsuyaâs words, everyone scrambled to hold onto something. They werenât sure how fast the rail car would be going and on top of that there was no safety bar or seat belts. It was kind of frightening.
ăA bat!ă
It was just as they thought. Hiroshi and Tatsuya tried to shoo the bats away with their weapons. There wasnât enough room so the rest of the group couldnât engage.
ăWha-?ă
Suddenly a bat that Tatsuya had shooed away grazed past Harunaâs head. Just as she lowered her head to avoid it, the rail car made a sharp turn.
ăWhaâïŒă
Because of the force, Haruna lost her balance and was lurched forward. The force of gravity was too great that she couldnât hold herself back. She landed right behind Hiroshi and clung to his back.
ăâŠâŠ!ă
Hiroshi felt he was going to let out a shriek in response and quickly gulped to hold back his scream. Even though he had a phobia of women, he thought it would be far too rude to scream at Haruna since he had known her for so long and they both got along so well, especially in this situation. This would take a toll on his sanity meter. But as long as it didnât reach zero it would be back at its max once this scenario was over.
He had no choice but to put up with it as much as he could.
As he thought about the situation in game terms he noticed that he would soon be in the danger zone as he looked ahead at the rail track. At his rate he would be pushed into Haruna and his sanity meter would be in the critical zone. He had to get back his points or elseâŠ
ăKyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!ă
ăHold on waiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!!ă
ăThis vertical loop is too scary!!ă
ăWheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!ă
This had been a jet coaster, after all. It had been startling to feel the rail car suddenly pick up speed and feel oneâs feet momentarily leave the floor during the vertical loop.
ăWhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaïŒïŒă
ăThis so so so so scary!!ă
ăEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeïŒïŒă
Haruna and Mio no longer cared what others might think and screamed with all their might and both clung to Hiroshi. A bat swooped by and Haruna and Mio clung even tighter to Hiroshi and in the end Hiroshi finally let out a scream.
ăâŠThat was very scaryâŠă
ăSo-sorry Hiroshi-kun. I still canât stand properly.ă
The jet-coaster had been scarier than standard ones, and because of that, their legs shook, and they couldnât let go of Hiroshi. The slight heat emanating from his body gave them a sense of comfort.
ăâŠâŠă
Hiroshi didnât respond. His face was completely pale and he was burnt out. He was probably the only one who hadnât feared the jet coaster but that fact didnât comfort him at all.
ăAt any rate, I think thatâs enough. Letâs call it a day.ă
ăR-right. Itâs great that this area seems like a suitable campsite.ă
While saying that, they turned around andâŠ
ăâŠâŠă
ăâŠâŠă
ăPrimula and Judith passed out, with their eyes openïŒïŒă
The Norton sisters didnât seem to fare well with theme park rides. It was quite a surprise to see them in their current state.
ăIs the group back yet?ă
ăWell, they left early in the morning to go collect sand butâŠă
ăIs it unusual if they donât return in 1-2 days?ă
ăNo, thatâsâŠă
ăOh, by the way they took the golem carriage. I guess that means they wonât return by sundown.ă
The queen discussed the circumstances of Hiroshi and his group while slightly frowning. Moreover, the group had indeed left around dawn to go collect sand but they had not yet returned. She wondered if they had encountered any difficulties.
ăHave you received any messages from them?ă
ăWell, we did receive one from the Norton sisters. It said that if the groupâs plans changed they would return, but I guess itâs too late for that. ă
ăI didnât expect them to take longer than this.ă
ăIndeed.ă
ăIâve witnessed the extent of their abilities, therefore I donât believe theyâd be so reckless to place their lives in danger. I wonder what theyâre doing.ă
The queen frowned. It was very unusual for them to take this long. She was somewhat worried about them. But after allâŠ
ăAh, I found an oyster.ă
ăOh, an oyster! It isnât venomous?ă
ăIf we apply heat to it, we can eat it whenever we want.ă
ăSmoked oysters are delicious, arenât they?ă
ăFried oyster, fried oyster.ă
The group had finally recovered from the fright the jet coaster had given them. They had found some oysters within the ruins and had decided to make a meal out of them. The queen probably didnât imagine that the group was calmly preparing dinner.