Chapter 35「The Pulse of a Single Entity’s Nerves Echoing Toward Magnetic North」
“—Wait a second‚ World-san!
I didn’t order the ‘Super High-Speed Semicircular Canal Mixer Shake Platter’ on today’s menu!!”
I desperately clung to the edge of the cold steel rack of the raft
that had become our new “home‚”
the ‘Extra-Large Muddy Water Float.’
The library that had just saved us from oxygen deletion
was slowly‚ but surely‚ sinking into the muddy depths beyond the mist.
What came rushing in instead was Sector 14—
a “vertical torrent” swirling around the observation tower where Momiji-chan waits‚
as if the laws of physics had completely lost their way.
“…Shut up‚ Nagisa!
Keep your center of gravity in the middle! The bones of this boat are screaming right now!”
Rin-chan‚ gripping the rudder of the makeshift engine‚
shouts back while being relentlessly drenched in spray.
“I know that‚ but!
My ‘Sense-of-Balance Parfait’ is about to flip over with the whole bowl!
Look‚ even the AC adapter-kun on my right leg is in agony‚
shaking like it wants to ‘close up shop’ already!!”
“…Nagisa-san‚ the trembling in your right leg… is part of a resonance phenomenon.
…According to my calculations‚ the cycle of this torrent
is perfectly synchronized with the intense magnetic anomaly around the observation tower…”
At the corner of the raft‚ shielding a waterproof notebook from the spray‚
Haru-kun speaks in a calm—yet intellectually curious voice.
He fixed his body to the raft’s frame to protect his swollen purple right ankle‚
crouching low‚
trying to read the “patterns” in the raging water with his pale gray eyes.
“Synchronized…?
Haru-kun‚ forget the hard words‚
just tell me what course of the ‘sashimi meal’ I’m on right now!”
“…Statistically speaking‚ the sashimi plating is already complete.
…All that remains is to crash into that asphalt debris ahead
and be ‘served.’”
“Don’t say things like that!!”
At that moment‚ an especially large wave
violently slammed against the side of the ‘Extra-Large Muddy Water Float.’
The plastic bottles that I once used as my right leg‚
now tied to the four corners of the raft
as “buffers (fenders)‚” let out a muffled “squish” as they absorbed the impact.
Thud.
The tremendous jolt
pressed my body hard against Rin-chan’s back.
On her white shoulder‚ visible from her sleeveless water-resistant jacket‚
the rope marks carved yesterday were starting to darken under overload.
Our soaked uniforms clung coldly—yet tightly—to our skin.
What came directly from Rin-chan’s exposed shoulders and back
was a violent yet supple body heat‚
like an engine carrying our lives forward.
My immobile left arm (marshmallow state)‚
when it bumped against her slender waist‚
sent an indescribable heat of a “single entity”
flowing straight into my core.
“…Ngh‚ Nagisa!
Don’t let go. You’ll be thrown off!”
Rin-chan’s hoarse yet powerful voice rang by my ear.
Droplets from her black hair trickled hotly down my cheek.
Right now‚ we truly were acting as a single “entity (structure)‚”
trying to carve through the vertical sea of the world’s malice.
But it wasn’t just natural threats—clear “killing intent” blocked our path.
“—No way‚ right!?
Rin-chan‚ that observation tower isn’t welcoming us at all—
it’s pushing us back with everything it’s got‚ like ‘You’re not getting through!!’”
I hooked my defenseless right leg—having given up the ‘Nagisa Hover’ to the boat—onto the raft’s metal frame‚
shouting as I endured the violent swaying.
Beyond the mist‚ the Sector 14 observation tower was right in front of us.
Where Momiji-chan was.
But the path leading there had turned into a despairing vortex-washing machine
that drove my “excitement index” below zero.
“…The system… is rewriting space itself…!
The rudder… won’t respond…!”
To forcibly change the direction of the heavy engine acting as a propeller‚
Rin-chan shoved a fragment of the steel rack tied in as a makeshift tiller
with her full body weight.
Her shoulder muscles‚ beyond their limits‚ creaked in agony.
“Rin-chan‚ your face is bright red!
Your veins are popping out like today’s ‘special menu’!
I’ll help too!”
Shielding my useless left arm‚
I tried to yank the edge of the rudder with my free right hand.
“…Idiot‚ don’t touch it!
With your strength… you’ll just get thrown off…!”
“But still!
This is totally like a ‘broken arcade game steering wheel’!
No matter how much force I use‚ it won’t turn even a millimeter to the right!”
“…It’s useless‚ Rin-san‚ Nagisa-san.”
Haru-kun raised his notebook high.
Its pages were filled with frantically scribbled data of wildly fluctuating spatial magnetic fields.
“Current flow speed: 12 meters per second.
Magnetic deviation: plus 80 degrees… calculated statistically.
At this rate‚ the probability of not crashing into the observation tower
and docking safely is—below 0.2%.”
“0.2 percent!?
That’s lower than perfectly scooping every last cornflake
from the bottom of a parfait!
Haru-kun‚ can’t you repair that into a more optimistic number!?”
“…I can’t lie in calculations.
…Before we reach the observation tower‚
we’ll be swallowed by the world’s initialization (format).”
In Haru-kun’s voice‚ that “tone” I hated most
had faintly returned.
“…Don’t mess with me…!”
Rin-chan growled‚ clenching her teeth.
“…Probability… I’ll fix it… by force…!!”
Giiiik…!!
The steel rack fragment screamed.
But the ‘Extra-Large Muddy Water Float‚’ carrying our three lives‚
was mercilessly pulled away from the light where Momiji-chan waited‚
toward the shadows of dark reefs.
“—No way!!
At this rate‚ before we even ‘greet’ the observation tower‚
we’ll get turned into ‘garnish for sashimi’ on that asphalt corner!!”
Clinging to the raft’s metal frame‚
I endured the beating pain rhythm from my tightly bound right leg.
Ahead‚ jagged road debris sharpened like fangs approached.
“…Tch… too heavy…!
The magnetic anomaly… is generating induced current in the rudder shaft…
locking it…!”
Rin-chan’s slender arms trembled white at their limits.
“Rin-chan‚ this won’t work!
With my ‘God’s Right Hand (self-proclaimed)’ emergency strength‚ one more—”
Just as I leaned forward—
“…Don’t‚ Nagisa-san!
Don’t move! If the center of gravity collapses…
this raft will capsize instantly.”
Haru-kun‚ guarding his notebook with his life‚
said calmly—his voice still flat as ever.
At that moment‚ my ‘Sixth Sense Parfait’
felt something calling from deep inside my backpack.
“…Ah! That’s it‚ Rin-chan!
We have ‘that thing’ we fixed in the deep fog!”
Keeping my immobile left arm tucked tightly at my side‚
I hurriedly searched my soaked backpack with my right hand
and pulled out the brass compass.
“Nagisa… something like that… now is not…”
“No‚ look! The compass needle!
It was swinging wildly like a ‘dog’s tail waiting for snacks’ earlier…
but now it’s trying really hard to point to one place!”
The compass needle I held up had stopped its mad spinning‚
and was now trembling—yet powerfully—
“pulsing” toward the observation tower beyond the mist.
“…It’s synchronized.”
Haru-kun leaned forward‚ narrowing his pale gray eyes.
“The needle’s oscillation: 0.2 Hz… this isn’t geomagnetism.
It’s the biological signal (vital) being transmitted from the observation tower—Momiji-san’s…
…in other words‚ her ‘pulse of survival.’”
“Momiji-chan’s… heartbeat…?”
I held the compass
straight beside Rin-chan’s face.
“Rin-chan‚ this is it!
Momiji-chan is saying ‘This way!’
She’s pulling our hands forward!”
“…A hacking (overwrite)‚ huh.”
In Rin-chan’s eyes‚
the sharp light of an engineer that could burn through despair returned.
“…Fine.
If geomagnetism is dead‚
we’ll set Momiji’s ‘voice’ as magnetic north.
…Nagisa‚ Haru!
We’ll repair this compass—from just a pointer—
into a ‘nerve (sensor)’ to move the rudder!”
To overturn that 0.2% despair‚
our three-person “direct neural repair” began.
Rin-chan quickly leaned in‚
bit down hard on the end of a short wire with her teeth‚
and began wrapping it precisely around the compass pivot.
But the torrential magnetic chaos
didn’t make such delicate work easy.
“—Time‚ time!
That last shake was a ‘motion sickness parfait with extra spicy sauce’!!”
I desperately clung to the steel rack frame
creaking beneath our feet.
The raft twisted in the current‚
writhing like a living creature.
“…Shut up‚ Nagisa.
If my hands slip even a millimeter‚ we’ll be ‘deleted’ on those reefs.”
From Rin-chan’s overstrained shoulders‚
even under the cold spray‚
rose a violent heat like a warning signal.
The rope-marked areas‚ once darkened‚
now flushed red with heat.
“…Nagisa-san‚ Rin-san’s torque is insufficient.
…To connect the compass as the rudder’s ‘nerve (servo)’ against magnetic repulsion‚
we need a stronger… pivot as a ‘single entity (team).’”
Haru-kun stated flatly.
“A pivot…? Alright‚ my turn!
Rin-chan‚ I’m giving you all my ‘assets (body weight)’!”
I dug my right foot into the frame as a stopper
and threw my body onto Rin-chan’s back.
A red lightning bolt of pain shot through my thigh‚
but it felt like sparks of counterattack.
Pressing my chest against her back as she worked on her knees‚
I clung tightly to her slender waist with my one working arm.
“…Cold!
…Nagisa‚ don’t move. You’ll throw off the calculations.”
“It’s fine‚ this is part of ‘direct neural repair’!
Your shoulders are overheating—bright red—
so I’ll cool them with my marshmallow arm.”
I rested my numb‚ cold left arm
on her flushed shoulder.
“…Hah…
Instead of cooling… you’re making it even hotter.
…Nagisa‚ press down on my arm from above!
Eliminate the play!”
“Got it!
I’ll connect my heat directly to the Rin-chan engine!”
“…Torque transmission to the contact point has exceeded 95%.
…Perfect synchronization.”
Haru-kun declared firmly.
On the narrow raft‚
Rin-chan’s back pressed to my chest
rose and fell with rough breaths.
Our two breaths‚ overlapping in the torrent‚
had fallen into the same rhythm.
The smell of sweat‚ rain‚ and brass.
Our three body temperatures fused into one.
Time that once waited only for death
had turned into a countdown for counterattack.
“…Connected.
Momiji’s ‘pulse’ is now the rudder’s ‘nerve.’”
Rin-chan tightened the wire.
The compass needle struck rapidly in sync with Momiji’s pulse.
“…The needle’s vibration forms continuous waves (pulse signals)‚
unlocking the rudder… a perfect servo mechanism.”
Haru-kun murmured in awe.
Responding to that invisible signal‚
the heavy rudder turned smoothly on its own toward magnetic north—toward Momiji.
“Amazing!
The rudder… it’s moving like it’s ‘holding hands’ with Momiji-chan!!”
“…Record update… Day 2‚ beginning final approach.”
Before us stood the Sector 14 observation tower.
Through the spray‚ its massive iron door came into view.
“—Goooo!!
Our ‘Extra-Large Muddy Water Float’ is finally pulling into the terminal platform!!”
Gripping the steel frame until my fingers turned white‚
I shouted as we rushed straight toward it.
The compass needle perfectly captured Momiji’s ‘pulse of survival‚’
pointing straight at the tower door.
The linked rudder guided the raft through gaps in the raging current.
“…Haru! Brace for impact!
Nagisa‚ trust the elasticity of the fenders…!”
Rin-chan’s arms trembled under extreme load.
Even in the cold torrent‚ her shoulders radiated heat like steam‚
burning as proof of having carried our lives this far.
“…Understood… Docking in 3… 2… 1… now!!”
Haru-kun clutched his notebook and shut his eyes.
DOOOOOOOOM!!
A tremendous impact.
The plastic bottle unit—‘Nagisa Hover (inherited version)’—
ripped from my right leg and fixed to the raft‚
slammed into the concrete wall‚
crying out in unison.
But that clumsy “leg”
saved all three of our lives.
“…Phew… Engine stopped.”
As Rin-chan flipped the switch‚
silence replaced the previous roar.
Only rain against the tower
and our ragged breathing remained.
“…Haa… haa…
Rin-chan… we really made it.”
Still gripping the rack with my right hand‚
I gently lifted my immobile left arm
and looked up at the massive iron door.
Pain surged from my right leg‚
but even that felt like the taste of being alive.
“…99.8%…”
Haru-kun paused his pen‚
narrowing his pale gray eyes.
“…Borrowing your words‚
we have completely ‘repaired’ statistical death.”
‘Day 2: Docking successful.
The single entity (team) has finally reached the observer’s door.’
Rin-chan and I exchanged glances.
Her mud-stained‚ rain-soaked profile
looked fearless—and undeniably alive.
Then—
“—Is… someone… there…?”
Not through speakers.
No static noise.
From just centimeters beyond the iron door—
Since the day we first heard that name
through the noise of a soot-covered vacuum tube radio—
the voice we had chased all this time:
Momiji’s trembling‚ real‚ living voice.
My “excitement index”
finally overheated beyond measurement.
“Momiji-chan! It’s us!
Three people’s excitement index—limit-breaking heroes—
have come to knock on your door!!”
At my shout piercing the rain‚
a clear‚ tearful laugh-like breath answered from within the tower.
Our Day 2.
The real “meeting” begins beyond this door.
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