Emerging from the exit, they found themselves in a village stretching along the riverbank.
Rows of round wooden tubs were lined up beneath the eaves of the houses. They were filled not with clear water, but with a shimmering, pale gold fluid.
"Otama’s Anomaly Zone"
Kuon checked the ledger. "Normally, these tubs are for collecting rainwater, but here they serve as vessels for 'Record Fluid.'"
When Koyoi peered into one of the tubs, the surface did not reflect her own face. Instead, she saw scenes she didn't recognize: a snowy slope, a crumbling shrine, the silhouette of someone’s back.
Asahi started to reach out, but Kuon stopped him. "Don't touch it with your bare hands. It'll trigger memory assimilation."
Just then, a young girl came running from the heart of the village. Her sleeves were rolled up, and she clutched wooden ladles in both hands.
"Are you travelers? The tubs are acting wild! Please, help me!"
The girl’s name was Otama. She told them she served as the village "Tub-Keeper."
She led them to a plaza where over a dozen tubs were foaming violently. Thin threads of light erupted from the liquid surfaces, tangling together in the air.
"It hasn't stopped since this morning," Otama said, biting her lip. "Usually, they only show specific records, but now images from other towns are getting mixed in."
Kuon took a measurement of one tub and made an immediate assessment. "It’s the aftereffect of the Chain Reaction. A different system of 'Record Fluid' is flowing back from upstream."
Asahi took a ladle and steadied the rim of a tub. Koyoi opened her drawstring pouch, using the temperature of her "Drop" to settle the agitated surface.
However, the large central tub refused to subside. The liquid rose, churning until it formed a shape resembling a human figure.
"That..." Otama whispered, her voice trembling. "That looks like my grandfather’s back. He only passed away yesterday..."
Koyoi stepped forward. "It only looks like him. Do not call out to it."
Kuon added, "If you call to it, the form will stabilize. The record will manifest as a 'Pseudo-Persona.'"
Otama closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her hands shook as she gripped the ladles, but she did not let go.
"I am the Tub-Keeper. I won't call out to him. I’ll return these mixed records to where they belong."
Asahi nodded. "That’s strong resolve. Let’s move together."
The three of them, along with Otama, rearranged the tubs into a circle. Using the large central tub as the core, they began transferring the fluid to the surrounding tubs in sequence. It was a procedure designed to disperse the backflow and halt the growth of the Pseudo-Persona.
Koyoi kept the beat, Kuon read the concentrations, and Asahi and Otama handled the transfer. After much repetition, the churning in the center finally went quiet.
On the surface of the liquid that remained, no one’s face was reflected. There was only a single, pale golden ring rippling gently.
Otama slumped her shoulders and smiled. "You saved us. Now I can look into the tubs again tomorrow without fear."
Koyoi gave a small nod. "The anomaly isn't over, but we’ve returned it to a manageable state."
As they were leaving, Otama handed them a wooden tag.
[IN CASE OF BACKFLOW: DO NOT CALL OUT]
The words were written in short, bold strokes. In moments of survival, the words that endure are always brief.
On the path back to the train, Asahi spoke up. "That girl... she’s strong."
"It’s less about strength and more about precision," Kuon replied. "She knows exactly where to draw the line."
Koyoi tucked the wooden tag into her pouch. Her "Drop" gave a single, deep pulse.
Just before the departure whistle blew, Otama came running up one last time. In her hand was a new wooden tag.
[WHEN THE NIGHTS MIX: ARRANGE THE TUBS IN A CIRCLE]
Koyoi accepted it and offered her thanks. "If the backflow happens again, you’ll be able to hold your ground with this."
Otama stood tall, shoulders squared. "My village won't be swallowed by records anymore. Even if it does, we now know how to bring things back."
The train began to move. Outside the window, Otama held her ladle high, waving them off.
In this encounter, what the three prioritized was not a hasty advance, but establishing a new procedure. At the very beginning, Kuon clearly defined the boundary between confirmed and unconfirmed information.
Acting on that distinction, Koyoi reflected the classifications in her ledger. Asahi kept his blade sheathed until the records were organized, focusing instead on keeping a clear retreat route.
The greater the crisis, the more the stability of the whole depends on clarifying the first step rather than increasing the number of tasks.