NOVEL WEB Chapter 10: And Thus, They Disappeared into the Depths of the Hole
Those who had briskly entered the building were wandering around the dark dumpsite with their phones at the ready.
In their minds, they think of themselves as hunters.
They had come to find out “something” about this place and raise their life up from the bottom of the pits.
However, the waste disposal site that Hiroki cleaned up during his daytime labor, just as the researchers at the university had assured him, had not a single piece of trash on it.
Other than “that” pile on top of the hole, that is.
After a while, the people scattered around the dumpsite gradually gathered at the pile of trash nearly piled on top of the hole.
There was nothing else in the dumpsite that they could consider as “their target”.
[I wonder if there’s something in this pile of trash……]
[Do we have to dig through this? I kinda don’t wanna……]
[H- However, it would be bad if we just go back like this!]
[That’s right! You lot do something! You’re men, right!?]
[Oi! Shut your mouth! Stop yelling!]
Hearing their conversation, the unlucky guy couldn’t help but retort in his mind.
“Stop yelling, your face!”
He couldn’t help but click his tongue at the stupidity of the people he had been sent with.
“After making all that loud noise when you broke through the wall, how effective did you think keeping your voice down now?”
[As expected, how about we search that house over there instead?]
[Ehh? I heard that there’s a very strong guy there though?]
[Wouldn’t it be alright? Even a yakuza would be helpless if you smash their heads with steel pipes while they’re asleep.]
[Yeah, yeah, don’t be scared. With our group, we should be able to do it, right?]
[Besides, the guy over there might be loaded with cash, you know? This company is making a lot of money, right? Why don’t we have him give us some of his blessings…… Eh? Oi! The fuck is that!?]
Just as the discussion was about to take a dangerous turn, the pile of trash started moving.
[The pile of trash……]
[Oi, oi……]
[Amazing……]
While they stared in amazement, the pile of trash quickly decreased in height, swallowed by the hole.
Thereupon, everyone in that place understood.
They don’t have any choice but to understand.
“This” is the secret that the moneylender wanted to know.
[……Oh no, I have to take a video…… D*mn it, it’s too dark!]
[Stupid! Take a d*mn picture of it then! A picture! Open up the phone’s flash!]
[Ahh, sh*t, I didn’t make it in time!]
[Ah, ahh—— Ahh—- ahhh—- ahhh—-………..]
They were so stunned by what had happened that when they came to their senses and tried to take a pic with their phones, the pile of garbage had already disappeared into the hole and the silence of the night had returned to the area.
[D*mn it!]
The unlucky guy missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
He almost wanted to punch the ground in frustration, but barely held on as the thought of hospital bills being added to his debt crossed his mind.
Thereupon, the unlucky guy pondered. What should he do? Should he call back and report it?
……Even if he reports this incident to the moneylender, would he believe what he just said?
Thinking about this, he came to a conclusion.
“No, he would never believe it.”
The moneylender had the eyes of a person who didn’t believe in anyone.
In the first place, there is no way that someone who believes in others can become a successful moneylender.
Without conclusive evidence, their investigation here would fail.
If it fails, his debt wouldn’t be reduced at all.
With this in mind, he panicked. What should he do? What could he do? Think. He needs to think.
As he was pacing around the hole, unable to think straight, one of the scums said he’ll go inside the hole.
If he isn’t mistaken, the unlucky guy thinks that he should be the guy who dropped out of highschool after six months.
[I used to be a part-timer, cleaning a hospital, but I got fired after two months. I think I remember seeing a machine that looked just like this hole……]
[Heehh…… Seriously?]
The unlucky guy also listened to the dropout’s unexpected story.
[There are these pipes all over the hospital, and when the doctor writes a paper and puts it in a capsule, he puts it into through these pipes and it gets delivered to the pharmacy. It looked really convenient.]
[Errr? And so? What does that have to do with anything?]
[Doesn’t this seem like something like that? Like, there’s a pipe underneath this hole, and it easily sends the garbage to another place.]
[Seriously!? Then this hole would be really quite amazing!]
[Yeah, that’s why they’re keeping this a secret.]
It certainly seemed like a reasonably convincing hypothesis.
Indeed, rather than a nonsensical story about a mysterious hole that swallows everything, a mechanism that transports garbage from this remote place to another through a pipe certainly is easier to understand.
Each of them has their own circumstances.
The heavy pressure brought by the moneylender.
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The fatigue of walking around in the darkness of the night.
The horror of the phenomenon that occurred before their eyes.
Thus, they clung to it.
The hope that was dangled in front of them.
They jumped at the reasonable hypothesis.
They believed it……
No, they wanted to believe it.
[Well then, I’ll be going ahead. I’ll be taking home the evidence and start my life over.]
As the highschool dropout disappeared into the hole, the rest of the group also became impatient.
That’s right.
They had come here to start their lives over.
If they freaked out and went home now, they would be chased by debt collectors all over again tomorrow.
[D*mn it! I’ll be going in too!]
As another person followed suit and jumped into the hole, it became the decisive catalyst that controlled the atmosphere of the place.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
[Oi, oi, oi…… They seriously jumped in……]
Hiroki, who had been watching the intruders’ actions on the monitor with a can of beer in his hand, was at a loss for words as he watched the figures jump into the hole one by one.
The last remaining one, a human with an ear that seemed to be cut off by a blade, also showed signs of hesitation, but still ended up jumping into the hole.
[Ehh…… What should I do here……?]
It’s not that Hiroki didn’t want to know what was deep within the hole.
On several occasions, he had tried a string to a cheap digital camera and thrown it into the hole, and even sent a smartphone attached to a drone.
However, all of them failed.
The camera he pulled up by the string showed nothing but darkness, while the drone he sent never came back.
After that, Hiroki just abandoned the option of going into the hole.
Now, he just accepts that the hole in his yard is “that kind of hole”.
He collects the garbage that the hole wants, and throws the garbage into the hole.
Thereupon, Hiroki receives compensation that is more than enough for him.
In Hiroki’s mind, that’s good enough for him.
The people who jumped into the hole were most likely working for either the yakuza or that moneylender.
There’s also the possibility that they are related to the construction company’s director.
[Hmmm…… This turned out to be quite the pain in the ass……]
Putting aside if it’s just a bunch of weak hooligans attacking him when he goes out, when they’re going as far as invading his property, Hiroki thinks that dealing with them is troublesome.
[I guess I’ll have to think of some other way……]
Hiroki blurted out such a thing, but there was no way that he could think of an idea out of his alcohol-clouded mind.
[I’ll have to consult with someone smart……]
Suddenly, the face of a researcher that talks really smartly came to his mind, whom he got to know when he asked for an analysis from the university.