Surviving a Hot Air Balloon-07（熱気球からの生還）

This work is a fiction designated R-18G and contains brutal language, but does not promote criminal acts.

The names of all characters and places in this work are fictitious and have no relation to any real person or place.

All characters are adults.

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Two staff members emerged from the wings, carrying a sturdy-looking steel frame with transparent glass embedded in it.

The steel frame, fitted with 12mm thick tempered glass, had a considerable weight to it.

That's why they needed strong staff members like them.

They aligned the 14 bolts protruding from the tank body with the bolt holes in the glass panel and attached it.

Then, they screwed hexagonal nuts onto the bolt threads and finally tightened them firmly with a wrench to prevent water from leaking from the tank.

Once the glass panel was attached, the tank was complete, enclosed on five sides by steel plates and on the front by tempered glass.

Tempered glass was used so that it wouldn't break under the water pressure from the large amount of water that would be filled in it.

Therefore, it was impossible to break this glass from the inside with bare hands and escape.

In other words, the only way for her to escape was to open the hatch above.

(Phew, finally, my show is about to begin. That interview earlier was a bit of an over-the-top performance, but it's enough to make the audience nervous.)

One of the staff members tapped on the glass of the tank from the outside with his finger.

It was a signal that all preparations were complete and that they could start filling the tank with water.

Mai returned an OK sign with her eyes.

Confirming this, the staff member turned to the host and informed him that they were ready, then opened the water supply valve next to the tank.

The sound of rushing water echoed through the studio as the tank began to fill.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, both in the audience and watching on television.

The tank is now beginning to fill with water. Will she be able to survive this ordeal?!"

舞台袖から現れたスタッフは２人掛かりで頑丈そうな透明のガラスの嵌った鋼鉄製のフレームを運ん来た。

鉄製のフレームは厚さ12㎜の強化ガラスが嵌っている為それなりに結構な重量が有る。

そのため彼らのような屈強なスタッフが必要なのだ。

彼らは水槽本体から突き出した14本のボルトとガラスパネルのボルト穴の位置を合わせて取り付けた。

そして六角ナットをボルトのネジ山にねじ込んで最後に水槽の水が漏れないようにレンチで固く締め上げた。

ガラスパネルが取り付けられると５面を鋼鉄の板で正面を強化ガラスで囲まれた水槽が完成した。

ガラスは大量の水が張られので水圧で割れることの無いよう強化ガラスが使用されているのだ。

そのため内部側から素手でこのガラスを割って脱出する事は不可能である。

つまり彼女が脱出するためには頭上の扉を開くしか無いというわけである。

（ふぅー、いよいよ私のショーの始まりだわ。さっきのインタビューは少しわざとらしい演出だったけど、観客達をハラハラさせるのには十分ね）

スタッフの一人が外から水槽のガラスを指でコンコンと叩く。

それは全ての準備が整ったから水槽に水を入れ始めてもいいかという合図であった。

舞は眼でOKの合図を返す。

それを確認したスタッフは司会者の男を振り返ると準備が出来た事を告げ水槽横の給水バルブを開いた。

シャー！という水音がスタジオ内に響き渡り水槽への給水が始まる。

「さあ、観客の皆様、そしてテレビをご覧の皆様。

いよいよ水槽に水が注がれ始めました。果たして彼女は無事生還出来るのでしょうか！！」