Chapter 79: Unexpected luck (1)

The girl, who had been hesitating for a while, finally stopped walking.

I, who had been walking with her, naturally turned to look at the child.

“………..”

The childcare classroom, located in a corner of the cathedral.

The girl couldn’t easily enter the door from which the noisy voices of children were leaking.

I gently patted her small shoulder.

“It’ll be okay.”

I know what she’s hesitating about.

But since I had already heard the story, I just calmly soothed her, telling her there was no need to worry.

“Come on, let’s go inside.”

The girl, still looking up at me with a slightly anxious expression.

But as I gradually coaxed and soothed her, Clarice soon hardened her resolve and slowly opened the door.

Creak-

Inside, there were little kids running around freely.

But soon, one by one, they noticed the girl and paused. For a moment, silence fell in the classroom.

“…..”

“………”

But that was also brief, and as if by agreement, they began to flock towards us.

“Clarice!”

“Where did you disappear to by yourself! We were worried!!”

“Y-You didn’t leave because of us, did you?!”

The girl was rather taken aback by their intensity.

“Th-That’s….”

Then suddenly, one by one, they began to burst into tears.

In the midst of the chaotic sea of tears, the children’s apologies continued in stuffy voices.

“Sob, I’m sorry…”

“I’m sorry for calling you a robot….!”

At that sight, I recalled the story I had heard from the childcare teacher a while ago.

‘When they heard Clarice had disappeared, they were all crying and making a fuss. They said it was their fault and begged me to bring her back.’

It was certainly as she had said. They weren’t bad kids by nature. They just… felt that her difference was strange.

If there were adults who properly taught them that being different wasn’t wrong… they could apologize so sincerely like this.

While everyone was crying around the bewildered girl, one of the children revealed a secret.

“Actually, Max said you were pretty, so… sniff, I was afraid you’d become closer to him than me, so I said mean things without thinking….!”

“Wait! Hey!! Why would you actually say that!!!”

As the red-faced boy fumed, the children quickly started bickering as they usually did.

Among her peers, who were once again noisily getting along, the girl also quickly blended in.

Children are truly fickle. They fight so easily, and they make up just as easily.

Seeing her fitting in so naturally, as if by magic, I thought I probably wouldn’t have to worry about the girl’s peer relationships in the future.

“……..”

I watched the scene for a while, then quietly smiled and left the classroom.

=======

After taking Clarice to the childcare classroom, I was crossing the cathedral, heading somewhere.

“They just arrived?”

“Yes, everyone is waiting in the cathedral’s front yard.”

Receiving the report from the priest following me, I quickened my pace a little.

And so I arrived at the cathedral’s main gate.

Unlike the warm scene I had just encountered, an intimidating atmosphere unfolded here.

Dozens of military androids, lined up in the cathedral’s front yard without a single error.

When I appeared, they all saluted in unison.

“Free City 8th Special Operations Squad. As of today, we have been assigned to the mission of protecting the Church of Radiance’s core code. We look forward to working with you.”

The commander unit at the front reported in a mechanical voice.

I answered in a slightly dazed voice.

“Yes… Welcome to the church.”

To explain how this came to be, I must first start from right after the war between the androids and the conglomerate ended.

The mayor of the android free city, Zion, RX-937, had said so.

[“Since Clarice still wishes to stay at the cathedral, we intend to respect that choice. But that child is still a very important focal point for all our kind. Zion also has an obligation to assist in her safety.”]

So after Nexus Initiative collapsed, some of the androids were deployed here instead of returning to Zion. To protect the cathedral where the girl was staying.

“……”

I carefully observed their appearance.

Certainly, the atmosphere of having been active in real combat until just now was palpable.

The bloodstains and bullet marks remaining on their exteriors.

And unlike ordinary androids, their appearance, which was closer to a robot made purely for combat, also added to the intimidation.

‘He said they were all close to the strength of Class 8 mercenaries.’

All of them were military-body androids.

Their specs were on par with the main combat forces of a conglomerate.

It was because they had such strength that they could dare to wage an all-out war against Nexus Initiative.

“……..”

Someone among the priests, who were watching the inspection together, muttered with a slightly nervous face.

“Are you really going to let those robots into the cathedral?”

I understood his concern. Considering the deadly aura they exuded, it was a natural thing to say.

Most of the church members would inevitably find the androids of Zion unfamiliar.

The only android the church had directly recognized and accepted so far was Clarice, and the believers who had originally stayed in the suburbs and were later revealed to be androids were so close to humans that they couldn’t be distinguished from the residents in the first place.

These stoic military machines were too different in appearance and military power.

No matter how much they came expressing goodwill, it was still unfamiliar to treat them as definite allies.

Moreover, an internal enemy is much more difficult to deal with than an external attack.

If they were to harbor different intentions, the church would fall into great trouble.

But… I decided to believe in their goodwill. If I couldn’t, I wouldn’t have helped Clarice in the first place.

Besides, considering the possibility of future dangers, that number of military androids was a force too precious to give up.

So, just as I was about to persuade the priests, a man from the group of priests strode up to the android commander.

“……..”

“……..”

It was Lonzo, the leader of the saved ones.

He stared intently at the lined-up androids, then offered a handshake.

“Lonzo of Los Salvados. A pleasure.”

“Squad command unit, AX-6642. Thank you for your hospitality.”

As the former mercenary, who stood at the forefront of the church’s protection, extended his hand first, the wary atmosphere of the others also softened slightly.

When I later asked him the reason for his action, he replied like this.

“If God, and the Saintess, have permitted them, there is no reason for us to refuse.”

Certainly, Lonzo was also at the scene when we went to rescue Clarice, who had been kidnapped by city mercenaries, so he was a member who had witnessed the miracle of even a machine being saved.

Thanks to his action, the trouble of reassuring the other believers was lessened somewhat.

And so, the cathedral accepted its somewhat grim new family.

========

A few days after the commotion that had unfolded over several days had subsided, and the believers had grown accustomed to the androids staying at the cathedral.

In the regained daily life, an unexpected call came to the church.

“A creditors’ meeting?”

[“Yes. A meeting of the major lienholders and rights holders of Nexus Initiative, which will soon go bankrupt, will be held soon.”]

To put it simply, it was a kind of victors’ conference.

A place where the predators who had worked together to choke the life out of their prey would now decide how to divide the spoils.

Since a conglomerate of Nexus Initiative’s size had fallen, from prime affiliates to real estate and patent rights… the rewards to be extorted would be enormous.

Since everyone would try to get a spoonful of that honey pot, prior coordination was essential to avoid a messy fight.

Perhaps that conference was more important than the war.

Because the reason Nexus Initiative was destroyed instead of the androids was precisely this compensation.

But the Godfather’s story didn’t end there.

[“So, to the point. Eve, why don’t you come along and observe that meeting?”]

“What? Me…?”

[“Yes, I’m not trying to give you a role. But experience is important, isn’t it? An opportunity to see one of the top 100 groups being dismantled doesn’t come easily. So I thought, how about just watching things from the side?”]

To me, who was flustered by the unexpected suggestion, he added.

That it would be a good experience to get acquainted with the influential figures of the city who had intervened in this incident.

Since they were people I might have to deal with in the future.

Even after hearing that, I was still a little hesitant.

Because honestly, I wasn’t sure if this would be helpful in running the church.

No matter how large it grows, the essence of the Church of Radiance is a religious organization.

Doesn’t this feel a bit different from a necessary experience?

At that moment, something flashed through my mind.

It was something I had been hearing consistently from Rachel lately.

It was the news that the Godfather now wanted to step away from managing the group and enjoy life with his wife, leaving everything to someone trustworthy.

So perhaps… the story about him passing on the group from before, he might not have given up on it yet.

This meeting would be an invaluable education for the next CEO of the company he desires.

“…….”