Chapter 72
「Were you able to prepare family registries for the beastkin we recovered from Russia?」
「I managed to arrange it through my connections. It’s a nice business, cooperating in covering up murders and then selling off those family registries. No waste, which is why it’s so nauseating.」
「Yet you’re taking advantage of it, aren’t you?」
「I can’t put a price on the children’s lives. Well, we’re too immature to call ourselves adults. Is the agreement between the beastkin and the country all right?」
「Not at all. After all, it’s unauthorized use of force, not only domestically but also overseas, albeit illegally. Furthermore, there was a discrepancy with the reported combat power, so they must be in a panic by now.」
「Did you do something that dangerous?」
「I was having a butterfly festival to defeat the underwater specialized cyborgs. As expected, I can’t move as fast as on land.」
「Just the water spray is enough to cause strange phenomena. The fishermen were dumbfounded.」
Momiji smiles a little as she imagines the sight of Reina chasing after the underwater cyborgs with her butterfly and physical abilities. No, from the perspective of the ones being chased, it’s not a laughing matter. It’s sheer terror to have an ordinary butterfly woman catch up to you. They must have been desperately using screw engines or NMMs, yet they never dreamed that they would suffer such a ridiculous defeat.
April 21st. A week has passed since then. Reina swirls the coffee in her mug with a slightly melancholic expression. In a room at Kōmitsu Solutions, Momiji pours her own tea and speaks.
「We need to finish this as quickly as possible, including that aspect. The only reason we can be assertive right now is that we’re relentlessly playing our trump cards and forcing others to wait and see. The moment they know our true strength, we’ll be devoured.」
「The forces that have taken an interest in us?」
「Mostly small ones. But there are a few, albeit a minority, that are backed by underground forces or large corporations in different fields that aren’t influenced by the ‘Reformists.’ You know, like Hakuhodo.」
「They’re an advertising company. Based on that, it seems they’re not interested in the global situation but solely in the immortality technology.」
「For us, the plan is to use the application of the already developed immortality technology as leverage to demand financial support. Other organizations, unlike us, need to start from scratch in building dedicated facilities.」
However, this strength that Kōmitsu Solutions possesses can also turn into a weakness. That is the limitation of resources and equipment.
For example, let’s say they want to produce cyborg prosthetics. However, that requires production facilities, people who understand the technology, and materials. Furthermore, funding is also crucial. There aren’t many organizations that are crazy enough to pour almost all of their company’s money into that, understanding that the future is heading towards destruction.
Therefore, even with the technology recovered from the future, it is extremely difficult to utilize it at the 2040 stage.
But there are exceptions to this. Either limit it to small-scale production or design it to be produced using existing facilities.
The mass-produced Apollyon falls under the latter. It is intentionally designed to reuse existing machining lines to some extent. This was a desperate measure to ensure production would be ready by 2055, even in a situation where most of the world doesn’t believe in destruction.
This hasn’t changed even as Apollyon evolves. That’s why Kōmitsu Solutions can currently start producing the Apollyon base, and other companies are in a similar situation.
「So, what about the beastkin girl you recovered? I heard she called him ‘Father’ as soon as she met him.」
「I explained that she’s a relative, but it’s 50/50 whether he believes it. He’s starting to get a bit suspicious because of Kana’s words and actions.」
「This is the worst. I wanted to finish without letting him know anything.」
「Recently, whenever she finds a gap, she’s been visiting his house. It’s troublesome. The only saving grace is that I can see him under the pretext of bringing her back.」
「Wait a minute, I haven’t heard about that.」
As they frantically respond to the sudden information, their conversation continues. They are the actual top of Kōmitsu Solutions and the strongest second-generation beastkin. They are the challengers to destruction, hidden in the shadows, posing as the Prophet’s confidants.
Therefore, their conversation naturally converges on the 「next」 step.
「So, what are you going to do after showing my power this time?」
「This incident has changed how some people around us view us.」
Until now, Kōmitsu Solutions was just a supporter of Orange. An entity that indiscriminately spreads new technologies.
That changed with this battle. It became an armed organization that deploys second-generation beastkin with clearly abnormal abilities and possesses the fighting power of first-generation beastkin capable of urban warfare. With the added bonus of bringing beastkin from a certain place in Russia.
And with the announcement of the offline event, it is revealed that they have secured a connection with Hereafter. In other words, it has now been proven, not only from the future but also from reality, that they are a powerful organization that moves to disseminate information about the future.
「We are now super important people. And the event that we will hold with all our technology invested. Naturally, many people will be lured in, and you know the rest, right?」
「Oh, evil…」
「Don’t back down. Also, always keep in mind the possibility that one more person may come.」
Momiji lowers her voice to warn Reina about the latter part. Reina responds with a mixed expression of familiarity and bitterness, saying she understands. They know without saying it out loud. The way to end the 「Scorch Wars.」 In other words, crush the head of the extremists at an early stage and nip it in the bud.
To begin with, the 「Scorch Wars」 is a conflict between groups that have benefited from 「HAO」-related activities like Kōmitsu Solutions and those who abhor the very system of 「HAO」 itself. The trigger was when those who were religiously, psychologically, and ethically opposed to the act of 「fixating」 the future joined hands, and such a thing wouldn’t naturally occur in a peaceful 2040 Japan. In other words, it can only happen when led by a leader with strong ideals.
In other words, if they can pluck that out at an early stage, it will fizzle out. The true purpose of the exhibition is to force a swift assault rather than expanding their forces. This will also secondarily put pressure on the 「Reformists」 and use them as leverage in negotiations.
Reina believes that Momiji’s plan has a high chance of success. As a means to end it as quickly and swiftly as possible, if it’s a plan by Momiji, who has an overwhelming intellect, she thinks they should stake their lives on executing it. That’s how much she trusts her.
But, that being said.
『Ah, next, I’m going to conquer the Infinite Horizon!』
A silly voice echoes through the room. It’s a 10-second video posted by Orange’s account. As soon as Momiji receives the notification, she hurries to play it.
The 10-second video shows a pamphlet for the New Technology Exhibition, with Orange announcing that he will conquer the Infinite Horizon. That’s all, just that, but it forces them to modify their plan.
Orange’s prophecies need to be absolute. In other words, Momiji and the others need to run around to make Orange’s prophecies absolute. However, in her plan, they have no intention of conquering the Infinite Horizon in this round. In the first place, they were planning to ask Hereafter to start Ver3.00 after the exhibition, and even if it started, it might be in a state where they can’t head to the Infinite Horizon like in Ver2.01. But the prophecy is absolute. They must make it possible to conquer the Infinite Horizon around the time of the New Technology Exhibition.
「Kana… That girl!」
Reina intuitively identifies the mastermind and slumps her shoulders. Momiji’s body trembles for a while, and then she mutters, 「…We’ll do it.」 Rather than being furious, she declares it with the spirit of going all the way if she’s going to take the poison. In her hand, she grips a memory card. It’s the information she obtained by negotiating with Urairo Aika at the end of Ver2.01, the manufacturing method for 「Moses’ Sword.」 She intends to operate it based on its original purpose. This is also related to the answer of why there was an underwater specialized cyborg named Durand.
Orange’s superiority is fading. By the next Ver, large companies will have almost finished creating a system to prevent information leaks from 「HAO.」 Although they increased their workload in the form of fake Oranges, it’s difficult to leak technology from other companies at this point. No matter how strange Mishima Kanji’s actions are, it’s impossible to newly disclose technology from here on, and his credibility as a prophet will gradually decline. That’s why they needed to make his video a reality.
「We’ll do it! We’ll cancel the tournament and make it a battle royale. And the stage won’t be the venue, but the Okhotsk Sea at a depth of 1,800 meters, the part that’s supposed to be the Infinite Horizon.」
「Let’s conquer the Infinite Horizon from both 2040 and 2060!」
The battle continues to escalate. But no matter how far it goes, the one stirring things up is this man, Mishima Kanji.
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