Chapter 126
The flames of nuclear explosions dye the earth. The players, transformed into nuclear bombs, are launched, hitting their enemies and detonating everything around them. The truly frightening part is that these bombs are endless.
The board for sliding on magma has a large intake on the bottom, and through heat and pressure-resistant metal pipes, it’s supplied to the 「synchronization」 device in the backpack. There, it seems that players are reconstructed from magma and extracted as nuclear bombs. The high thermal energy makes atomic conversion easy, they say… What an incredible thing to say.
「Yee-haw, firing 48 nuclear bombs!」
「Missile types, attack as far back as possible! There are sensors, so don’t worry about misfires. Do it!」
『Reporting, with 12.08 million players currently logged in and 124,356 fired. Nuclear bombs are precious, so fire more of them! They only cost 1,000 yen each anyway!』
And the words flowing through the communications are even worse. It’s the first time I’ve heard someone say nuclear bombs are precious. Diagonally ahead, Lucas is continuously firing a nonsensical Gatling gun that shoots 200 nuclear bombs per minute or something. Its trajectory is closer to a grenade launcher being fired in rapid succession than an artillery shell. You might wonder if it can cover any distance like that, but the answer lies in the unbelievable destruction crater that shouldn’t exist on that Infinite Horizon – this vertical hole.
A gigantic vertical hole with an unknown diameter spanning kilometers. Yes, it’s vertical, so gravity works downward, and even without propulsion, it can reach far.
Therefore, rather than a nuclear artillery shell, it’s better to increase the explosive power of each nuclear bomb… or so Nakamoto explained to me. He himself is also scattering nuclear bombs with a Gatling gun. Right now, this is the world’s number one production and consumption site for nuclear bombs.
We slide down the nearly perpendicular magma slope on our boards, shaving it horizontally. I’m glad I had snowboarding experience. The others are also sliding down in a spiral pattern, and occasionally an Apollyon that fails and falls into the hole can be seen opening a parachute to return.
Nuclear bombs are detonating everywhere, and while nearly losing balance from the repeated vibrations, we descend underground. But along the way, Apollyon Fusions, Strains, and Machine Beasts emerge from the magma again. 「UYK」 is generating them within itself in an attempt to resist. Their numbers increase exponentially as time passes.
『Spinal cord attack unit, reached 10 km below ground, at the back of the throat! Use nukes to cut a path to the spinal cord!』
『This is 7 km below ground, confirming mass emergence of Machine Beasts and Strains! Commencing response!』
『10 Type-17s, 20… How many more are spawning!?』
『Shoot them dead as soon as they pop up! It’ll be a problem if we get caught in a pincer attack!』
Tension runs through the reports. At the same time, large lumps appear in the direction I’m advancing, popping out. They carefully extend vines while repeating evaporation and reconstruction. The bulb-like central part has large metal fangs growing from it.
「You should conserve ammunition.」
「Go on ahead, Cameraman. It’s boring to get cut off midway.」
However, an Apollyon Fusion that charged in barehanded from the side pulls it out and throws it into the center of the vertical hole, and a nuclear bomb hits it, exploding with force. Hearing Teo and Kanata’s voices, I simply shout 「Thanks!」 and slide down.
It seems to have taken less time than I thought, likely due to the artificial planet dropping and scraping off the skull. As I continue descending for a few more minutes, I see the light of chain-reacting nuclear bombs in the depths of my field of vision. It’s the vanguard unit trying to gouge out the flesh all the way to the spinal cord at the deepest point. As soon as I see that, I notice the magma at my feet disappearing and turning back into metal. In other words, this isn’t a hole opened by the planet, but rather one of the internal structures originally possessed by 「UYK」. Following Greg and Nakamoto, I take off my board and start running. At some point, Lucas and the others were nowhere to be seen.
「If we can’t use boards, that means there’s no more nuclear bomb resupply from here on out. The vanguard unit will probably have to switch to destruction with incendiary weapons as well. Let’s run.」
The slope has also become much more gradual at some point without me noticing. We’re likely in an area with a tongue now, and beyond this point, if we jump over the hole connected to the throat and esophagus and dive into the blasted hole, we’ll reach our destination.
『Te-te-re-te-te, crack, bzzzz…』
「Greg!?」
But at that moment, a giant Strain that looks like a mantis and reptile combined, sprouting from the wall, knocks Greg away. Along with a devastating sound, the BGM cuts off and communication is lost. Nakamoto’s crimson Apollyon Fusion leaps powerfully and severs its spinal cord with a single strike from behind its scales. It’s a movement that seems too well-practiced as if he’s done it many times. From the other side of the corpse, a machine with one arm shattered and its cockpit-containing chest greatly distorted returns, but its communication is slightly unstable.
「Thank you, sir!」
「Don’t mind it!」
And up to that point, it seems to have been within the Strains’ expectations. The moment Greg appears, six diverse Strains break through the metal walls in four directions and pounce. Ah, they knew that the crimson machine was incredibly strong and would help its allies. So they targeted Greg and seized the opportunity.
I also thrust my blade, pinning down the movement of one Strain. The blade pierces the scales far more easily than a regular mass-produced Apollyon could imagine, yet the remaining five continue moving. Nakamoto activates MNB and, as if dancing, pierces the spinal cords of three Strains in one rotation. That was the extent of it.
The fifth Strain bites into the leg of Nakamoto’s crimson mass-produced Apollyon Fusion, and the last one thrusts its tentacles into the defenseless cockpit. The dozens of tentacles easily penetrate the armor. Through the monitor, I confirm blue fluid mixing with red.
That’s right. No matter how strong, there’s nothing that can be done when recklessly attacked by six Strains. No matter how powerful Nakamoto is, he’s still human in the end.
I feel a sensation as if my head, excited by the ridiculousness of humanity up until now, is suddenly becoming calm.
「0120—――!」
…It was just a feeling. The answer to Greg’s mysterious shout came from behind. They crush the enemies that spring forth with a single blow as they advance. Both machines were crimson. They approach while wielding hammers.
「Orange and Greg are safe too.」
「0334 and 1192!」
「No, wait, wait, wait, that’s the most efficient, but certainly that’s…」
While saying that, I match my pace with theirs and proceed deeper. One of the pilots – I don’t know which is which – very seriously explains it to me when he hears my question.
「It seems you haven’t heard from Kōmitsu. It all started with your question, ‘Can’t a red machine become three times faster?’」
「Me again!?」
「However, a triple-speed function was difficult. So you thought. – Then Nakamoto just needs to become 3,000 times himself.」
I’m an idiot (self-criticism). What the hell, 3,000 times with cloning technology? So a quarter of the forces this time are Nakamoto? Nakamoto divided into 3,000 equal parts. I see, so that’s why there were four per person. With 3,000 × 4, the required 12,000 Apollyon Fusions are assembled. Idiot. Apologize to the Strains; Nakamoto is the one who’s dividing more.
Greg, as if he can’t wait to introduce the teachers to me, explains in an excited voice.
「The one on the right is Teacher No. 0334! He’s a bit weak in close combat, and his recent hobby is plastic models! The one on the left is Teacher No. 1192. He’s a bit weak in shooting and recently won the Super Mecha Battle 5 world championship!」
The machine on the right instantly kills enemies with a hammer, while the machine on the left annihilates enemies with an assault rifle. Look up the meaning of the word 「weak」 in the dictionary. And quite a bit behind, about 100 crimson machines appear. Wow, those are all Nakamoto. An army of Nakamotos shouldn’t be allowed to exist; it’s at a level that should be regulated by international treaties.
『Spinal cord unit, approaching imminent arrival! Running out of nuclear bombs, so breaking through manually! Enemy resistance is fierce, requesting support!』
『Rear guard half-destroyed! All units, prepare for complete pincer attack!』
『Communication from the surviving area on the surface! They say they will provide assistance, however meager!』
『Confirming underground nuclear explosions in 12 locations including Australia and Germany! At the same time, they appear to be dispatching forces toward the 「UYK」 Apollyon Fusions on the surface!』
『Shouldn’t only civilians be left there!? …Trying to play hero.』
The communications also grow desperate, and hearing those words, I run my machine forward. It’s far lighter than it looks, easily exceeding the speed of a car as we advance through 「UYK’s」 body. I can see with my own eyes that we’ll soon reach the throat.
That’s evident because a huge hole continues into the ground ahead. On the opposite bank, there’s a forcibly pried open hole, and crimson machines continue to battle enemies. Is that the vanguard unit that’s forcibly prying open a hole and advancing toward the spinal cord? As I’m paying attention to that, I hear a coughing sound from the communication.
「Guh…」
A sound like coughing up blood follows. When I ask if he’s okay, Greg starts talking without answering.
「I feel like I’ve become the protagonist. Right now, I have the comments from your stream flowing through my communication via Hereafter Corporation… When I left the research lab, the human population had already fallen below 500,000, so it’s unbelievable. For me, it’s like having all of humanity watching.」
It was a sudden speech, but I’m not oblivious enough to not grasp his intention. However, not wanting to accept that fact, I read ahead and words of denial naturally came out of my mouth.
「Don’t die.」
「I will die. No matter what, I’ll turn into referenced information and end. That’s why I’m truly grateful. I’m glad I could fight this final battle while laughing. Do you understand the meaning of that bet?」
「Kana and the others said they didn’t understand.」
「Well, the reason why it took that form is certainly a mystery. But I understand the policy of doing such a thing. He want to make this final battle a festival. Not a tragic special attack, but a grand event where we crush ‘UYK’ while laughing like idiots. That’s why he went out of his way to combine things, specify that BGM, and turn players into nuclear bombs. You did everything you could.」
「…」
Greg’s one-armed mass-produced Apollyon Fusion defeats enemies with a variety of kicks, and the two Nakamotos crush the dangerous spots. But as we advance, the number of enemies increases, and as if to block the hole to the spinal cord, Strains cover the front like an avalanche and approach us.
「Thank you. Thanks to you, we’re no longer miserable dead soldiers.」
「…Yeah.」
「I’ll go on ahead. Enjoy the future.」
The gray machine that recklessly advanced toward the swarm of enemies fires its last nuclear bomb. With a flash, metal entrails explode, and a path is created. However, even as they try to stand up, Greg’s machine embraces the bodies of the Strains. His machine acts as a shield to avoid involving us in the explosion, resulting in countless wounds.
And without hesitation, he took his final step.
Ahead, there was a large hole connected to the esophagus. Still embracing the Strains, he disappeared into the depths of the hole. I will never hear that BGM again. In response to his dying wish, I stop looking down and start running.
「Go, Orange!」
「Thank you!」
Enemies endlessly spring forth to fill the hole opened by the nuclear bomb and obstruct us. The two Nakamotos swing their hammers to stop them. Taking advantage of that opening, I activate MNB and jump over the large hole with all my might. With a thud, the machine shakes, and my machine successfully crosses to the opposite bank.
And beyond that was also hell. The figures of mass-produced Apollyon Fusions tearing apart countless enemies with their bare hands or hammers. They seem to have dug quite a distance, but lacking that last push, they ran out of ammunition and are trying to cut a path through close combat. So I finally equip the weapon I had on my waist to my arm.
‘UK-0000’. It had the appearance of the original intended operation method for the ‘Kōmitsu Solutions Manufactured Apollyon Fusion Incendiary Weapon Model UK-02’. The gun I had been using was originally a Gatling gun meant for Apollyon Fusions, disassembled and modified for use by a mass-produced Apollyon. The appearance of bundling ten UK-22s together gives me confidence in its destructive power. What would happen if I dual-wield this weapon that can greatly wound Strains with a single shot and fire it in rapid succession?
「We don’t mind, aim at us too! The target is straight ahead at 12 o’clock!」
「Roger that!」
Hearing Nakamoto’s shout, I aim at the center of the path and activate the Gatling gun. With a dull rattling sound, it gradually begins firing 1,200 rounds per minute while emitting a high-pitched scream. The firepower is so immense that multiple Strains are shot down together, and the remaining force scrapes the walls, splattering blue fluid.
「Reach them…!」
The storm of bullets doesn’t stop. The flooding is already severe, with 「UYK’s」 blood overflowing up to the machine’s ankles, and finally, with a crunching sound, a faintly glowing wall can be seen from within the viscera. That, too, is peeled away with a high-pitched metallic sound, finally revealing its center.
It’s the axis of the huge, countless extending spinal cords. As that appears, with a size likely equivalent to several Apollyon Fusions, enemies emerge from the walls with even greater vigor than before.
《Shed Armors System activated》
As I run out of ammunition, I purge the armor and become lightweight. I unhesitatingly charge forward on the path opened in a straight line by the sweeping fire, holding a single spear. I slip past the countless approaching enemies using the overwhelming mobility of MNB. However, the pursuing enemies are still not enough to deal with, but they were there.
『This is Shiroinu Reina in charge of the right eye socket! Brain destruction achieved!』
『Luck in charge of the left eye socket, same here.』
With those voices, the enemy’s generation speed noticeably drops. Taking advantage of that opening, I advance at full speed and jump. In front of me was the Earth itself and the spinal cord of the lifeform 「UYK」 that had annihilated humanity. I punch the softened spinal cord with all my might, ejecting bodily fluids with a dull sound. I continue with kicks, destroying the spinal cord, and thrust the spear called the forced inverse dive equipment into it.
『We’ve also succeeded in inserting three forced inverse dive equipment into the eye socket side!』
『No abnormalities in all machines’ backpacks. Pull the trigger on the signal! 3, 2, 1…』
What will happen to humanity from now on? Will it end with a happy ending after defeating 「UYK,」 or will there be more complications? I don’t know anything. No one knows what the future holds. But to even consider that, we have no choice but to defeat this thing first.
The future is not yet determined, and that’s why it’s the future. Therefore…
『0! 』
「I won’t let you determine a future of despair!」
With those words, I pulled the trigger on the control stick.
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