Ch.376[Episode 376] Supply Base C

Sir Dominic and Sir Dominica, Unryu Hime.

And Remi and Dr. Phantom.

While these five were forming a team to rescue Lady Alice…

“Ugh… ughh…”

Lady Alice woke up in one of the container boxes in the 3rd Supply Warehouse of Supply Base C.

“Wh-where am I?”

Lady Alice looked around immediately after waking up, but the container box was sealed shut, and she couldn’t see anything.

She was confused by this sudden change in environment, but there was still one more thing she needed to be confused about.

“Are you a newbie?”

“Wh-who’s there?”

Lady Alice turned her head toward the source of the voice.

Though she couldn’t see clearly due to the darkness, her eyes, now somewhat adjusted to the dark, vaguely revealed the silhouette of a human figure.

“Who am I, you ask?”

The presence in the darkness snickered at Lady Alice’s question and revealed their identity.

“I’m Hostage F.”

“…?”

Lady Alice’s face contorted with confusion, as if wondering what on earth that meant.

“Oh, wait a moment. You’re new, so you’re probably not used to the darkness. I’ve been rude.”

Hostage F asked Alice for a moment’s patience, then produced a Zippo lighter from somewhere.

With a click, a small light spread through the darkness.

“Is that better now?”

Hostage F said to Alice.

Alice observed Hostage F under this faint light.

He was somehow ordinary-looking but had pointy features all over—how should she describe it? He looked like a cylindrical log that had been whittled here and there into a human shape.

“Hmm. These days, all the hostages are handsome men and beautiful women. In my day, they were all rugged people.”

Scientists, guards, or office workers, Hostage F explained.

“Where is this place?”

Hostage F seemed quite knowledgeable about this place.

Lady Alice decided to gather information about her location first.

“Here? This is the 3rd Supply Warehouse in Supply Base C.”

“Supply warehouse? Why am I in such a place?”

“Well, because you’re a hostage.”

“…?”

Lady Alice thought the conversation was going in circles for some reason.

“So, why am I a hostage?”

“If not that, then why else would you be here?”

“That’s what I’m asking you!”

Lady Alice spoke aggressively, clearly frustrated.

Hostage F blinked a couple of times at Lady Alice’s attitude, then pulled something out of his pocket.

It was a cell phone.

“Just a moment. Normally, we’re not supposed to use phones while being held hostage, but I need to use it just this once. Don’t report me to the higher-ups.”

Saying this, Hostage F began dialing a number.

“Ah, Boss. Thank you for your hard work. Yes. Yes. I’m doing my hostage role well. Yes. Oh, why am I calling? Nothing major, just wondering if there’s a list of today’s hostages.”

Hostage F held the phone respectfully with both hands and bowed repeatedly.

Even though the person on the other end couldn’t possibly see him, he acted as if it were necessary.

“Ah. Yes. Yes. Just a moment. Hey! What’s your name?”

“Huh? A-Alice.”

“Alice? Hmm. Yes, Boss. She says it’s Alice. ‘A-L’, not ‘E-L’. Yes. Yes? Oh, I need to know that too? Hey! Does it start with A or E?”

“A.”

“Yes, Boss. She says it starts with A. Ah. Yes. What? Oh. I understand. Thank you, Boss. Yes. Yes. I’ll buy you a canned coffee next time. Yes. Take care.”

Hostage F turned off the phone as soon as he ended the call.

“You’re right. They say there’s no such hostage today.”

“That’s what I’m saying! So why am I here—”

Lady Alice raised her voice to express her dissatisfaction with the current situation.

Of course, her complaint-filled words were cut off midway.

[WARNING/WARNING/WARNING/WAR]

[Agent-side players are infiltrating Supply Base C!]

[All terrorists, hostages, and bombs please return to your original positions!]

“Oh, dear.”

Hostage F clutched his head as if troubled.

“What does all this mean?”

Lady Alice asked Hostage F about the current situation.

“What does it mean?”

Hostage F tied his hands and feet with rope in practiced movements as he spoke.

“It means a match has been arranged.”

As Hostage F finished speaking, the sound of several people running could be heard outside.

Lady Alice stood dazed for a moment after hearing the sound, then suddenly began shouting that there was someone inside.

“Hello! There’s someone in here! Can anyone help me?”

…

“Hello? Help me! There’s someone in here!”

“Wow, whoever’s playing the hostage role today is really acting realistically!”

“I know. That’s a rare, dedicated person these days.”

Outside the container box where Alice was trapped.

The terrorists exclaimed in admiration at Alice’s voice shouting frantically from inside the container box.

“I want to tell today’s hostages to learn from this.”

Terrorist D said with a cigarette in his mouth.

Five minutes until the match started.

He planned to smoke a cigarette before then.

“I know, right? After always hearing bad acting, it’s refreshing to hear such realistic performance.”

Terrorist T said, taking a bite of a chocolate bar he had hidden in his pants pocket.

“Help me! There’s someone in here!”

“Don’t you kind of want to open it though?”

“Yeah. Did something real actually happen?”

Terrorists D and T turned their gaze toward the container box.

“I think we should check it out.”

Terrorist T walked toward the entrance of the container box where Lady Alice was.

And just as he was about to open the door…

“Hey, friends? Got a cigarette?”

Suddenly, an android appeared behind them.

A somewhat shabby-looking android that made beeping sounds.

…

“Phew. That’s better.”

The android, looking like it was made from a pile of scrap metal, put a cigarette given by Terrorist D in its mouth and lit it.

After inhaling deeply, it exhaled black smoke like a broken exhaust pipe.

“Wh-who are you?”

Terrorist D handed the cigarette to the android in the sudden situation, but he didn’t understand what was happening.

Originally, the terrorists were occupying this place for a day at someone’s request.

This meant they didn’t know much about Supply Base C.

“Me?”

The android pointed at itself with a rusty finger.

“I’m the bomb here.”

The android turned around and pointed to an empty space behind it.

There should have been a bomb there, but now it was just an empty space.

“…?”

Terrorists D and T panicked at the bomb’s words.

I mean, what bomb gets up, extorts a cigarette, and then smokes it with such relish?

However, Terrorists D and T had checked the bomb that was in the empty space, and they also confirmed that the bomb was now gone.

All circumstantial evidence pointed to the android in front of them being the bomb.

“Is it okay for a bomb to smoke?”

Terrorist T asked worriedly.

“Won’t you explode if a spark flies?”

“Hey, buddy. Do you want to see me explode?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

The bomb erupted in anger at the terrorists’ words.

“I already live on edge every day, not knowing when I’ll go off, but can’t I sometimes just let go and act boldly like this? Huh? Does making me explode like this satisfy you? Huh?”

The bomb exploded in a different sense, apparently having built up a lot of frustration.

“Do you guys know my daily struggles of being set off? You just stand around smoking and chatting next to bombs, but no one ever offers me a cigarette!”

The bomb turned red as if it might detonate at any moment.

The faces of Terrorists D and T instantly turned as dark as if they might faint.

“C-calm down. If you explode here, they’ll think it’s a bug.”

“Tsk… You’re right.”

The bomb calmed down at the terrorists’ words.

“True. There aren’t many people who give me cigarettes either. Today is actually a better day, and I overreacted. I apologize. My detonation point is a bit low.”

“No, it’s fine.”

The terrorists sighed in relief at the bomb’s words.

The bomb savored the last drag of the cigarette, then dropped the butt on the ground and ground it out with the heel of its rusty foot.

“Since I feel a bit sorry, I’ll help you out this time.”

“…?”

The bomb explained to the terrorists how it would help them.

“I’ll position myself about 10cm off from my usual spot. And whenever they try to defuse me, I’ll move slightly without them noticing. Is that enough as an apology?”

“!”

The terrorists’ faces showed shock at the bomb’s words.

The bomb had declared it would manipulate the match in favor of the terrorists.

The bomb had just made a truly explosive statement.

“Is that really…”

“Okay? What if there’s a problem because of this…”

“Ah, whatever. Then I’ll just explode, I guess.”

The bomb said this as it headed back to its original position.

And it settled about 10cm farther away than its usual spot.

What results would this small change bring?

Terrorists D and T looked at each other, wondering.

Of course, one result was already certain.

“Is anyone out there?”

The matter of Lady Alice in the container box had been completely forgotten.