Chapter 118
How am I supposed to feel as I watch this? That’s what I think as I witness the Space President desperately trying to eat French fries through his nose, choking in the process. The fries seem to be getting stuck halfway, likely due to insufficient softness, and the president is forcing them into his nostrils with an overly desperate expression. Come on, you’re halfway there!
The door closes with a grating sound to prevent oxygen from escaping. The interior is dimly lit, with wires crisscrossing the floor. The only light comes from the screens, revealing two people inside. One of them is the usual old man, Tanaka. The old man glances at me, raises one hand, and returns to one of the three compartments. The faint sound of a keyboard can be heard coming from there.
「He insists on being stubborn about the ‘handover’ documents because he can’t accept them… Judging from his behavior, it’s really getting to him mentally, don’t you think?」
「I’m about halfway to not caring anymore thanks to the nose fries.」
「You know, this came along with a document apologizing for underestimating Kōmitsu Solutions. The president enjoys streaming this while trying to look cool.」
「Demon.」
Momiji sits up from her previously slouched position. As she turns to face me, I notice that although she looks better than in Ver-1.00, her body still bears scars, and her prosthetic limbs appear to have undergone multiple rounds of emergency repairs. As I approach Momiji, she extends her arm, exposing cables and artificial muscles, bringing my face close to hers. Then she flicks my forehead.
「Ouch!」
「Halfway isn’t enough. It has to be 100%. Look, Reina and I started all of this. So the responsibility lies with us.」
「But I-」
「No, if we were serious about controlling the situation, we should have installed an automatic shutdown system in Apollyon. Or we should have hidden Kana and sent her to secure Kanji as quickly as possible. It’s true that the Strains and Kanji’s prophecy were unexpected in the original plan. But it’s our responsibility for not properly dealing with them.」
「Isn’t that too convenient for me?」
「On the contrary, isn’t it too convenient to demand that we take responsibility without even getting your consent?」
I can’t argue with that. Momiji’s words, now resembling a mature adult woman, carry persuasive power. However, it doesn’t mean my emotions are sorted out or my questions are resolved. So, I open my mouth to avoid creating an awkward silence, starting with the most impactful topic.
「Is it true that you were tortured?」
「It’s true. By ‘Thunder’ and ‘SOD’…」
「Why???」
「Well, simply put, terrorists are more dangerous and a higher priority to capture than some suspicious group talking about the future, right? So while they were conducting serious interrogations on those guys, we used an insider to conveniently fabricate a story that ‘Kōmitsu Momiji and her associates, who were detained together, died by suicide without revealing any information.’ Of course, we used fake corpses and various other tricks.」
「You’re a hundred times tougher than I imagined…」
「I’m even tougher. Take a look at your body. Notice anything strange?」
「No, but… Wait, what!?」
Following Momiji’s suggestion, I examine my own body. My clothes are the usual, but when I peek underneath, I see a expanse of silver metal. What the hell is this? I touch and feel my entire body, and even my hair is a clump of low-quality fibers. Pulling it doesn’t trigger any pain sensation. I hurriedly remove my mask and peer into a nearby glass of water. Reflected in it is a metal face with minimal functionality. Eyes, seemingly gouged out from a Machine Beast, move around in surprise. As I put the mask back on, I exclaim in astonishment.
「What the hell is this!?」
「I was wondering if we could artificially create ‘SOD’. Remember how you could choose your race when logging into ‘HAO’? That’s achieved by controlling the ‘synchronization’ between 2040 and 2060, enabling the reconstruction of a body that wouldn’t be possible otherwise. I thought about applying that to create a fifth race that’s more like a mechanical human. Plus, with this version, there’s a high possibility of being unable to log in completely, so I wanted to at least equip you with a mechanism that allows you to log in.」
「Can I log in alone?」
「We’ve embedded an ‘HAO’ ID into your spinal cord, making it mistakenly recognize this as Orange’s body.」
They’re doing truly amazing things. But what’s the point? Will the ‘SOD’ hordes charge in the next version? I have a strong image of ‘Kurage’ being unable to defeat snipers, so it doesn’t feel very meaningful to me. Moreover, based on what I heard from Teo in Ver3.00, the next update is supposed to end everything.
Just as I’m about to ask about that, Momiji fiddles with the terminal in her hand. After the French fry video disappears, what appears next is Hiniru dressed as a woman, performing a mysterious dance. But that doesn’t seem to be her objective, as she moves on to the next thing.
「I’ve completely cut off the live stream. This is today’s main topic. It’s the ‘handover’ for you, who are still oddly depressed.」
She hurriedly cuts off a livestream with over a million real-time viewers. The comment section is filled with discussions about terrorism and ‘HAO’ in various languages, but there’s no time to pay attention to that. That’s right, it all comes down to this. In this situation, if there are words that resonate with me, they won’t come from others. They’ll come from someone closer, someone who has been through similar experiences. A fellow idiot who has tasted the same pain.
‘Alright, recording started. Nice to meet you, Ver-2.00. Feeling down?’
There he was. Many years must have passed since 2040, as he has the appearance of a full-fledged adult. His right eye is tightly bandaged, likely due to some incident, giving a painful impression. He sits in front of the camera, his head in his hands, wearing a clouded expression. Slightly hunched over, he begins to spin words with a tragic sentiment. I listen intently, not wanting to miss a single word.
‘Actually, I’m feeling down too… As punishment for messing up yesterday, the development data for Super Mecha Battle 5 was deleted…’
No, what the hell is he talking about?
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