第１８９６堀：崖下調査の報告と可能性 (Part2)
"The southern region—or rather, most of the central part—is nothing but wilderness. But look at the southern tip. You can see forests spreading out there."
"You're right."
As Agil pointed out, judging from the photos Luna had taken, this wasteland stretched for roughly 5,000 kilometers from north to south, and beyond that, a vast expanse of green land appeared to unfold.
"In other words, I suspect the environment beneath the cliff is an extension of the southern tip's ecosystem."
"The environment beneath the cliff is the same as the southern tip? But does the cliff actually connect all the way to the south?"
"No, the map doesn't even show this cliff. It’s only 600 meters wide at its widest point, after all."
"I suppose at the scale and resolution of a world map, it wouldn't show up."
"If we could zoom in, or if the resolution changed dynamically like a map of Earth, we might be able to see it. But there's no way it's been rendered in that much detail."
On Earth, world maps appear to zoom in because the display switches images based on the zoom level. That would require taking photos at every specific magnification, and Luna would never do that, nor would she bother writing a program for it. She’d only provided the bare minimum.
"Right. Well, we’ll definitely need to get into space eventually. I’m praying Hivia’s space development program goes well."
"Agreed. But putting that aside, the southern tip is indeed lush with greenery. Given that, your theory is that the cliff connects to the south and has inherited—or rather, been colonized by—that environment?"
"Exactly. I mean, it’s possible the area beneath the cliff is a closed-off, unique environment like the plateau, but personally, I’d like to bet on this theory."
"Bet on it, huh? Why?"
"Because the vegetation isn't as bizarre as it is on the plateau, and it matches the flora found in Oue."
"I see. Now that you mention it, the reports did say there were many plants in common with Oue."
Well, in Earth terms, it’s the southern hemisphere, close to the equator and the tropics, so that makes sense.
"By the way, what about the temperatures?"
"Temperatures? Ah, it is quite humid, isn't it? I’ve been recording them, of course. Though, Oue is also incredibly humid, so I hadn't paid it much mind. Let’s see... it’s hovering between 24 and 34 degrees Celsius."
"A ten-degree difference?"
"Yeah, the wasteland is between 26 and 34 degrees. The other areas—Oue, the space beneath the cliff, and the plateau—are all sitting between 24 and 28 degrees."
Hmm, I suppose that’s to be expected. Still, hearing the temperatures again reminds me how truly sweltering Japanese summers have become.
"Did something about the temperature bother you?"
"No, I was just wondering if there was a discrepancy with Earth."
"Was there?"
"Not really. If anything, it just reminded me that Japanese summers were actually hotter."
"Excuse me? Japan? That’s way further north than the equator, isn't it?"
"Yeah, but temperatures of 27 to 35 degrees in the summer were normal."
"Whoa, isn't that insanely hot?"
"It is. Some people even died from heatstroke."
"And you managed to survive that?"
"Well, we had air conditioning, didn't we?"
It strikes me now that without cooling appliances, there would have been countless casualties. After all, there were actual cases of people dying from heatstroke.
"Ah, I see. Anyway, moving on—if the environment at the southern tip isn't an anomaly and shares similarities with Oue, then it’s natural to think the environment beneath the cliff originated from the south. It’s not exactly a freak occurrence."
"True. We’ve already confirmed that the vast forest of Oue doesn't extend here because the wasteland acts as a barrier, so looking toward the southern tip is the logical conclusion."
"Exactly. Which means if we head south beneath that cliff, we might just reach the great forest at the southern tip."
"That makes sense. Though, I wish we could figure out why the monsters are migrating north before we get there."
"That... honestly, it’s difficult. As of now, there’s no route from beneath the cliff to the surface, and there are no signs of disturbance. In other words, there’s no evidence that the monsters have been moving through the area beneath the cliff."
"Hah, so we should consider another location as the source, then?"
"For now, yes. Still, we’ve managed to conduct some research, so the plan is to establish a starting point and investigate east and west from there. We’ll start from there."
"Fair enough."
The investigation has only just begun. Even so, seeing a path forward makes it feel a bit more manageable. Up until now, everything had a way of resolving itself too easily. This, however, is what normal feels like.
The investigation of the southern region is a steady, painstaking process, but we are gradually uncovering various facts. This is what actual exploration and surveying are supposed to be like.