落とし穴１４８堀：夏の怪談リバイバル 夏の夜は深く (Part2)
"Seriously, there were only two of them left. I could have just left them alone..."
"If we're going to win, isn't it better if everyone survives?"
While we were talking, fifteen seconds passed, and Yuki-san respawned. Since he had a recovery potion, I watched as his health regenerated to a safe level.
"That said, I have no idea how the enemy is moving."
"Well, at least they shouldn't be near us."
"Judging by the sound of the gunfire, they're over there."
"I suppose so. But..."
As far as the eye could see, there was tall, dense grassland. In a situation like this, finding the enemy was a Herculean task.
"Should we move?"
"No, I want to avoid moving carelessly and getting spotted. We have the numerical advantage. Let's stay calm for now..."
*Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat-tat!*
Gunfire!? Was it the enemy? I frantically scanned the area...
"Alright, I did it!"
"Nice work, Zargis."
I heard those voices, and "Your team win" flashed across the screen.
"Huh?"
"Well, I was lucky enough to spot the enemy and just kept firing. That worked out well."
"Decisiveness is important."
We managed to pull off the win, but I hadn't expected Zargis to steal the spotlight at the very end.
"Phew. We managed to hit today's quota, at least."
"Indeed."
"I never thought we'd be able to win in the middle of the night, when all the battle-hardened veterans are lurking."
"True. But my hands are still shaking. I honestly didn't think I'd be able to take them both out in succession like that at the end."
As we exchanged these thoughts and drank the water I'd prepared on the table, I suddenly realized something.
"Oh, look at the time."
"Hm? Oh, it's already 3:00 AM."
"No, it's past 3:40. It's closer to 4:00, actually."
That’s right, it was nearly 4:00 AM. The world outside was still shrouded in darkness, but dawn couldn't be far off. Man, games really make you lose track of time. Just as I was thinking that...
"Whoa. Is it already this late? I'm going to sleep. Good night."
Zargis logged off immediately. Did he have work tomorrow? Ah, right, today. That’s rough. Well, it seems Yuki-san told everyone to go a bit easy on him, but with people like Comet and Narjia-san around, that’s easier said than done.
"Let's... get some rest, too."
"Agreed."
"It's only about three hours, but we should still try to sleep."
With that, we didn't even bother heading to our respective bedrooms; we just collapsed right where we were. I was at my limit. I rolled up a cushion to use as a pillow and fell asleep on the spot.
"Good night..."
And so, our long day came to an end... or so I thought, but it felt cold. Was the air conditioning too high?
Thinking that, I slowly sat up and, while fumbling for the remote, felt a strange sense of unease.
"Hmm? What?"
The table felt rough. It wasn't that I had reached into a pile of trash, but the table itself seemed to have changed into something coarse, covered in bumps and ridges. As my sleepy vision finally cleared, the full picture of the table came into view.
It was definitely the table I had reached for, but it had been replaced by something incredibly dilapidated. Not only that, but the area around where I had been sleeping had completely changed. The layout was the same as the room we had checked into, but it had deteriorated significantly from the pristine Japanese-style room it had been. It looked as if it had been abandoned for a long time; there wasn't a trace left of the beautiful room we had occupied just moments ago.
Once that realization hit, I finally understood that we were in an abnormal situation.
"...Still, panicking won't help. First, I need to wake up Yuki-san and Taizo-san."
Fortunately, Yuki-san and Taizo-san were sleeping in the same room.
"Yuki-san. Taizo-san. Please wake up. Something strange is happening."
"Hm? Wait, what is this?"
"What is it? Hmm? Where are we?"
Both of them woke up the moment I called out to them. I was grateful for their quick reflexes. If I had been alone, I would have been in a full-blown panic.
The night hadn't broken yet. What in the world was going on? Well, the most likely culprit was a prank by one of the Goddesses. Honestly, it was starting to feel kind of fun.
The inn had finally transformed into a ghost story. How would Yuki, Taiki, and Taizo overcome this anomaly? How would they lead it to a resolution? And would their wives be able to achieve their goals?