CH 365

We proceeded through a narrow passage that Mirai could just barely fit through, aiming for the lowest level of the research facility. Up to this point, things had gone smoothly without any interference from the Guardians or the giant beast weapons, but a major obstacle appeared on the next level.

“Looks like we’re not going to make it through here.”

Jean decided this because the route was blocked by a thick-looking door.

“Feri, can’t you open it?”

In times like these, it is up to Feri who is familiar with the technology of ancient civilizations.

“This looks like a door, but it’s actually just a wall that can’t be opened or closed.”

“Whoever made this must have a pretty bad personality.”

Linnecarlo said.

“We’ll have to do something to get through here, won’t we?”

“The map shows that we can go through here, so there is a good chance that the route continues beyond the wall.”

“Let’s break down the wall and move on.”

“No, you can’t. I’ve done the calculations, and there’s a very high probability that this floor will collapse if the attack is enough to destroy that wall. It seems to have been made for that purpose.”

“It seems they’re as smart as they are crooked. Feri, is there any detour route?”

“I think the closest route won’t be too much of a detour.”

“Then take the most roundabout route you can find. Let’s go that way.”

I couldn’t understand what Jean was saying, so I asked him to explain.

“Jean. It’s not that far of a detour if it’s the closest route, so why are we taking the furthest route?”

“Think about it. Why do you think they walled this off? It’s because they want us to take a different route, right? If you think about it, it’s inevitable that there are traps on that other route. The other party will probably assume that you will bypass the closer route from here, so don’t you think that the farther route is safer?”

“Where did you get that idea?”

“It’s possible that there are traps on the longest route, but it’s better to choose the safest route possible.”

Not only me, but even Feri was impressed with Jean’s thinking.

“It seems that Jean has a natural talent for reading people’s thoughts. Rafishal and I were never good at psychology, so I’m honestly impressed.”

Even though Feri praised him, Jean didn’t seem to be in a good mood. Maybe he doesn’t care about his natural talent.

As Jean had suggested, we took the longest route to the lowest level. After careful consideration, Feri chose a route that was quite complicated, climbing up and down. I don’t think the other side would have expected that we would go through such a complicated route. There were no obstructions or traps, and we were making good progress.

However, such smoothness did not last long. An unexpected situation soon appeared.

“I thought we’d be lucky if we made it all the way to the bottom, but I guess we’re not so lucky.”

Jean said, but he didn’t seem too discouraged, as if he had decided that nothing would go wrong.

“The route is submerged. Mirai can’t go underwater, what should we do?”

Kiyone asked Jean.

One part of the large floor was a puddle of water, like a pond, blocking the way to the lower levels. Unlike Fugaku and Musashi, the ride-hover Mirai doesn’t seem to have the ability to move through water, so we can’t go on.