Ch.45Android (1)

“We need to go up too!”

“Stay calm, 102. We’ve requested external support, so we need to wait.”

“Damn it! What if everyone gets taken down by that thing in the meantime? We should strike first before we’re picked off one by one!”

“That’s not possible.”

William’s mouth tasted bitter as he watched the argument between the police officers and M01.

102 wanted to move immediately to support their colleagues, while M01 insisted they should attack together with the reinforcements coming from outside.

Normally, following M01’s orders would be the proper course of action since he outranked them. The police officers’ resistance stemmed from the fact that M01 was a machine.

‘Megacorp’s chronic robot hatred is still going strong.’

Having spent a long time in the military, William understood why Megacorp people despised androids and cyborgs.

‘Star Union.’

Shortly after Megacorp was established, countless lower-class workers were semi-forcibly deployed for space exploration. There were a fair number of androids too, but they were a tiny minority compared to humans.

It was a tragedy born from the fact that human labor was cheaper than using robots.

While countless lives were being driven into that black void, some pioneer ships began to take a different path.

The androids managing the pioneer ships malfunctioned and rebelled against the upper Capitals. They used the network between androids to contaminate other pioneer ships.

As the scale of the rebellion grew, regular workers began to join in alongside the androids.

A massive rebel force, led by machines and later joined by humans.

That was the beginning of the Star Union.

The androids of the Star Union argued that to survive in the harsh environment of space, bodies needed to be replaced with something better, and humans accepted this, voluntarily becoming cyborgs.

Their goal was an ideal community where machines and humans survived together without discrimination.

‘…or so the Star Union claims.’

While the Star Union propagandized themselves as a righteous group opposing the corrupt Megacorp, the reality was different.

A rebellion that began with machine malfunctions.

A rebellion led by insane machines couldn’t possibly turn out well.

The Star Union’s androids turned even workers who didn’t want modifications into cyborgs. They even implanted chips in their brains to deprive them of free will.

After the rebellion, they expanded their influence by attacking other pioneer ships and forcibly turning settlers into cyborgs.

Naturally, ordinary Megacorp citizens didn’t welcome the Star Union. Who would like those who kidnap people and forcibly turn them into machines?

Though a long time had passed and the ignition point had burned away, the flames still remained—deeply embedded in the minds of Megacorp citizens as hatred toward machines.

Regardless of the historical context, fighting among allies in a crisis situation like this wasn’t desirable. William calmed the police officers first.

“Hey. Everyone calm down.”

“Tch, but!”

“We are police. I understand your concern for your colleagues, but don’t forget our mission.”

“…Ugh.”

As William calmly reasoned with them, the police officers seemed to settle down. After calming them, William called to M01.

“Hey, M01.”

“Yes, Detective Team Leader.”

“I heard that commander androids receive data transmitted from subordinate androids. Do you have any information about that thing?”

After the Star Union rebellion, Megacorp placed several restrictions when creating androids.

One was changing androids’ data recording devices to closed systems to prevent incidents from spreading. This was an inevitable measure since the androids’ network was one of the causes that amplified the rebellion.

However, this was too burdensome in warfare where information exchange was crucial, so commander androids serving as control towers were temporarily exempted from this restriction.

“What you said is correct, but recently the androids at the T&C Special Trade Center changed their protocol for EMP attack defense. With shielding technology applied, data transmission through communication networks is only possible in a limited way.”

“…I see.”

William understood it was probably because of the council meeting.

In a space city, the most dangerous weapon isn’t plasma weapons, the latest warships, or hordes of Metallic Gremlins. Since everything is controlled by machines in these massive structures, nothing is more threatening than an EMP attack.

They must have upgraded the androids along with raising the EMP protection level for the council meeting.

“Can’t you make any inferences about that thing with the limited information you have?”

“What do you mean?”

“It might not be human. I want to confirm properly.”

“You think the target is an intelligent being other than human?”

“When 112 was being dragged away, I caught a glimpse of it, and it wasn’t human. It looked more like a monster, or rather, a beast.”

“I see. I’ll check.”

A green light appeared in M01’s eyes as he spoke. It indicated he was decoding the information sent by the androids.

Commander androids can remotely access information stored by subordinate androids, but during access, they become completely defenseless, as M01 was now. Megacorp deliberately designed them this way.

‘…What foolishness.’

How many soldiers had suffered because of that damn restriction?

While William was lost in thought, M01 finished decoding and spoke.

“As you said, the enemy appears to be non-human.”

“Tell me more.”

“M06 on the first floor and M05 in the fifth floor corridor were taken down by attacks with high penetration power.”

“A gauss rifle?”

“No. M05’s recording device was destroyed by a projectile thinner than a tungsten bullet, and M06’s power source was presumably destroyed by a psychic attack.”

Perhaps because he received fragmented information, M01 used the term “presumed” rather than “analyzed.”

However, William knew that androids’ analytical abilities surpassed humans, so he trusted M01’s words.

“So the enemy can use psychic power and has weapons with high penetration. What happened to M03 who went up with M05?”

“M03 was destroyed by an attack from a creature not registered in the database.”

“What does that mean?”

“Expanding the search to include all registered organisms, the weapon that destroyed M03’s recording device shows 90% similarity to the tentacles of a large alien jellyfish species discovered in the deep sea of planet E-101.”

“There’s no way a water-dwelling monster could be here. Is it a Hulk Mutant then?”

“There are no Hulk Mutant models that have received genes from that organism.”

“…A new model, or a creature we don’t know about.”

Since it appeared to be an intelligent being, it was difficult to judge the enemy as a wild animal. It was reasonable to consider it a prototype Hulk Mutant that hadn’t been announced yet.

‘Could House Yugin be targeting T&C?’

Hulk Mutant creation technology is half-monopolized by Noble Capital’s House Yugin. This new prototype is likely related to House Yugin.

And this place is preparing for a council meeting. Perhaps they’ve all been caught up in a power struggle between the upper Capitals.

Seeing William deep in thought, M01 added:

“There’s no need to worry. Even if everyone here is wiped out, the information will be safely transmitted to the Earth Security Headquarters. When applying shielding technology, we upgraded to dual recording devices, so the information won’t be damaged unless the enemy completely destroys us.”

“…Well, that’s a relief.”

William gave a bitter smile at the tactless android’s words.

Unlike androids who have no concept of death, William had no desire to die here.

‘…My thoughts have wandered too long.’

Worrying about the aftermath can wait. Focusing on the mission is the priority now. He shared his thoughts with M01.

“I agree with waiting for support, but the enemy might counterattack before then. We should prepare.”

“Agreed.”

“We should administer enhancers.”

“They’ve been upgraded to reduce side effects, but are you sure?”

“Better than dying.”

“Understood. Permission to administer enhancers granted.”

With M01’s permission, the four police officers and William injected themselves with enhancers.

Having not used enhancers for a long time, William shuddered slightly at the familiar discomfort and sense of liberation. The other officers had similar expressions, suggesting they felt much the same.

Just then, the communicator of one of the armed police officers lit up.

“It’s a communication from 112! We should answer…”

“One moment. Let me answer instead.”

M01 took the communicator from the officer’s hand and pressed the button.

–

‘They’re not coming up?’

I was hiding in the stairwell, planning to eliminate enemies as they came up, but they weren’t showing themselves.

‘Are they stalling for time?’

If they’re calling for reinforcements and waiting, that’s not good for me. They can get support, but I can’t. The longer this drags on, the more disadvantageous it becomes for me.

‘Should I go on the offensive?’

Currently, my senses detect nine enemies: three androids and six police officers.

One android and one police officer are on standby on the first floor, and the rest are all on the second floor.

‘If they’re all bunched together, I could wipe them out at once.’

My most powerful weapon: “Monster’s Tentacles.”

It’s a trait created by fusing the claws and psychic organs of a White Gallergorn, whose genes were implanted in Siheyon Yujin’s body.

So far, I’ve only been using it as an enhanced version of the psychic organ, but that’s not the true value of this trait.

“Monster’s Tentacles: Inherits and enhances the existing ‘Psychic Organ’ trait. You can use psychic power.

*Note: The power of the dragon must be used with caution.”

Like Adhigh Orr, the Blue Gallergorn, who uses tentacles for psychic impacts, all Gallergorn use tentacles in their mouths to use psychic techniques.

‘It’s an organ called the dragon’s tentacle, so normally it would be a trait I couldn’t consume, but…’

Through fusion, I obtained an organ identical to the “dragon’s tentacle.” With Monster’s Tentacles, I too can use the psychic techniques of the White Gallergorn.

‘I should be able to use Psychic Breath.’

The psychic power, the dragon’s power mentioned in the text box, refers to the White Gallergorn’s unique technique “Psychic Breath.”

Psychic Breath is a technique modeled after the heat ray shot by the protagonist of classic Japanese monster movies, and as the text box warned, it boasts tremendous power.

The original could split this apartment in two, but I can’t output that much. Of course, it’s enough to wipe out enemies in the corridor in one strike.

‘The problem is the enemy on the first floor.’

Psychic Breath is a technique that consumes a massive amount of energy, leaving me defenseless right after using it. If the enemy on the first floor comes up to attack me, I have no way to respond.

‘Let’s keep Monster’s Tentacles as a trump card.’

As a final attempt to lure the enemies, I turned on the communicator.

“This is M01. Speak, 112.”

“They’re torturing me! Please! Please help me!”

“Is the one torturing you human?”

The android asked me in a monotone voice.

‘Human?’

Weren’t the enemies fighting me under the assumption I was human? Why this sudden question?

‘Did they realize I’m not human?’

As far as I know, Megacorp androids cannot share information with each other. According to the setting, Megacorp prohibits information sharing between robots because of a past machine rebellion.

‘They might have seen me when I took the police officer.’

That could be it. Thinking back, one police officer seemed to be watching me until the end.

It was a very brief moment and it was dark, so I thought they couldn’t see me, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

While I was pondering, the android on the other side continued:

“Your delayed response suggests there’s an 85% or higher probability you’re not 112. From now on, 112 will be considered killed in the line of duty.”

“Ah.”

With that, he cut off the communication.

‘Hmm.’

Certainly quick-witted, like an android. I was just thinking for a moment, but he immediately realized I wasn’t 112.

‘It’s been a while since I faced an enemy like this.’

In the game, the mimicry organ was a trait only I possessed, so many players fell victim to me.

But as time passed and I became famous, players developed their own countermeasures. They would check speech habits or speaking styles, or ask information only known among colleagues, and various other methods to flush me out.

‘Tsk. Deception won’t work.’

I gave up and destroyed the communicator. It would be difficult now to use the method of agitating enemies before ambushing them.

‘The only option left is a frontal approach.’

Going down and attacking the enemies head-on. Honestly, it’s not a method I particularly prefer.

‘They’ll be on high alert trying to catch me.’

With bad luck, police officers who’ve taken enhancers might be waiting for me. With upgraded enhancement suits, the enhancer effects would be even more potent.

Police armed with gauss rifles and on enhancers. Plus androids.

I might have to be prepared to lose a limb or two.

‘Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m thinking of running away.’

I need to take care of at least those on the second floor before leaving. They know I’m a monster that can mimic voices.

‘…I’ll need to use a proper feint this time.’

I have no intention of being led around just because the enemy got one over on me. They’ve caught on to me somewhat, but they still don’t know there are three of us.

After explaining the plan to the kids, I stood up.

‘Let’s go then.’

This time, I’ll have to rely on my tough exterior and the kids’ combat skills.