episode_0177

There’s a common saying that revenge is empty. Why is that? The reason was simple. “Because they don’t have family or friends!” The avengers in novels, movies, and games are always lonely. This is because wicked villains harm their family, lovers, friends, and teachers. Even if the protagonists kill the villains, they can’t fill the empty spaces. “How sad…” “You can’t replace what you’ve lost!” Then Violet 789 shook her head and said. “No! You can fill it! There’s already someone who overcame their wounds and triumphed.” “Who is it?” The other Violets, curious, asked. 789 replied with a confident expression. “The Count of Monte Cristo!” Upon hearing the answer, the Violets finally understood, muttering “Aha.” Befitting the great senior of all avengers, the Count found a happy ending after a long revenge. The reason it was possible was one thing. “A beautiful girl!” That’s right, the answer was a beautiful girl! Next to Edmond Dantès was a young, beautiful slave girl who could fill the void left by his ex-girlfriend, who had married his enemy and become an old woman! Thanks to her, he was able to overcome the emptiness of revenge and move towards happiness. “Now that I think about it, all our friends are beautiful girls too, aren’t they? How exciting!” “Yay!” Looking back, all my friends were beautiful girls. Girls who made you feel good just by looking at them! Anyway, from the example of this great avenger, we Violets learned one lesson. That after finishing a meal, you should prepare dessert and coffee!

Our great undertaking was not revenge, unlike the Count’s story. Still, we needed to think about future plans. “If it fails, it’s terrorism; if it succeeds, it’s a revolution! It absolutely must succeed.” As the ominous image of ‘failure’ rose within the Violet network, Unit 1, feeling displeased, shook its head and mumbled. Unit 2 heard this and replied. “That’s obvious. We already talked about it, remember? If it fails, it’s just an unlimited destruction operation.” As the words “unlimited destruction operation” left Unit 2’s mouth, the Violets instinctively shuddered. This plan was a mutual annihilation strategy, devised on the assumption that everything would go to the worst possible outcome. The core of the plan, centered on the drum-barrel Violets buried throughout the Academy City, had these keywords. Though it was only a hypothetical worst-case scenario, one they hated even to think about. If, by any chance, my friends were to die or get hurt… The network vibrated ominously. It was because Daphne, who had been hurt by Martina’s gang, came to mind. As our collective psyche grew uncomfortable and nauseous, the Violet network churned as if an earthquake had struck. Yes, the thought of my friends not only getting hurt but dying, it’s terrible just to imagine. Unit 3, deeply troubled, gnashed its teeth. “Ugh! No! If that happens, we’ll return it in kind. We’ll blow up the families of everyone who did it!”

Though it was an extreme measure, if they pushed themselves, it wasn’t as if there were no methods. Because there were many weapons in the world more powerful than improvised bombs. “Even if we have to steal the Federation’s weapons of mass destruction…!” According to my shallow knowledge of the setting, the Federation military uses many strange weapons of mass destruction. Small nuclear weapons that can be loaded into cannons and missiles are an example. Beyond the barrier, they were said to occasionally use such weapons against hordes of demonic beasts. No matter how powerful an Awakener might be, it didn’t seem likely they could survive being hit by nuclear weapons repeatedly. If you detonated enough to scorch an entire city black, would they really be able to withstand it? No, this is too gloomy and wicked a thought. Bad thoughts needed to be driven away. We hammered each other’s heads. A loud wail! Clear, sharp pain washed over us like a wave, shaking off the ominous thoughts. We stroked our bruised heads with refreshed expressions. “Right! Let’s stop with the bad thoughts. We will definitely win!”

After winning, we’ll transfer to Aegis Academy by any means necessary. We’ve already devised a method. Adela might be sad if we do bad things, but even if it means leaking test questions or manipulating grades, we will definitely go to a good academy with our friends. And then, we’ll have a wonderful and fun school life. “Club activities! School trips! Delicious school lunches!” The Violets sat and giggled. Just then, Kalia entered the factory and looked at us with a strange expression, examining us. “…Is something good going on?” “Yeah!” We chuckled and lay down in our spots. “Oh, right. Let’s contact Professor.”

Everyone’s circumstances are like a strange weather phenomenon: when someone lies in warm sunlight, another gets soaked in cold rain. Perhaps fate is a limited resource. If one side takes the good, the other is left with only the bad or feels a lack. Perhaps that’s why, while Violet melted like pudding in happiness, far away, Captain Klein Dias was experiencing what it felt like for the air to solidify around him.

He reported in front of superiors of dizzying rank. “…This concludes my explanation regarding the incident that occurred in the Vittorio Arcade Dungeon.” The windowless room at the Federation Army base was incredibly stifling. Captain Klein concluded his testimony cleanly, despite the immense pressure. He had already been called for investigation multiple times, so explaining was not difficult. The problem was what would happen afterward.

After finishing his explanation, he stood rigidly amidst the heavy pressure. The officers belonged to the Military Intelligence Bureau. There was even a Lieutenant General; among the intelligence officers, only the Commander held such a rank. The Captain was tense, wondering what would happen next. He had already coordinated with his subordinates regarding Violet’s identity, but it was uncertain how the higher-ups would actually receive it. Moreover, a mobile unit on an operation involving a dangerous relic had been annihilated. Indeed, how would the Intelligence Bureau and command react to this situation? Since it was an incident involving the four great clans, they might try to bury it quietly. The Federation was reluctant to get entangled with the four great clans, much like an allergic person avoids sensitive triggers. However, someone had to take responsibility. The military, like other authoritarian organizations, had a habit of passing responsibility for failures downward.

“So, Magnabyss? And the prisoner is in our hands?” “Yes, that’s right. We hear the prisoner is under strict surveillance.” As he tensed, wondering what would be said next, the general officer seated in the center rose and approached him. The Captain’s heart pounded rapidly. The Commander raised his hand. The next moment, the Lieutenant General patted the Captain’s shoulder and said. “You’ve worked hard, Captain. You may leave. You’ve done a great service.” “Ex…cuse me?” As the bewildered Captain stared at the Lieutenant General, he spoke with great fervor, as if deeply enraged. “If what you say is true, those clan bastards have finally crossed the line. How dare they interfere with a sacred national defense mission. We cannot let this stand. Indeed, we cannot! I will personally take responsibility and push this case forward.”

When he came to his senses, the Captain was outside the room. He couldn’t quite recall what the Lieutenant General had said after that. The Commander had smiled and said a few more words, but what were they? “I regret what happened to your subordinates. I know someone in the Veterans Affairs Department, so I’ll put in a word for you.” Though it was clearly good news, Captain Klein walked out feeling an inexplicable sense of suffocation. On his way out, he bumped shoulders with someone at the entrance. “Ugh…!” He flinched at the unexpected heavy impact he felt immediately after the collision. Was it an Awakener? When the Captain looked up, he saw a man with a gloomy aura and a physique a head taller than himself. Feeling a sense of repulsion from that aura, the Captain instinctively stepped back. The Awakener officer glanced at him briefly, then ignored him and walked past. He turned his gaze, but his eyes moved strangely. His focus was off. ‘My vision is blurry. Is that…?’ The Captain thought. That was the same sensation he had felt when he saw the armed girl in the Vittorio Dungeon. It was a phenomenon unique to perception-inhibiting equipment. There weren’t many people in headquarters who wore such things. “Is that man also from the Intelligence Bureau?”

“…We’ve caught them again and again, but it seems there are still clan flies remaining within the military. Yes. We will definitely deal with them.” When the man entered the room, the Military Intelligence Bureau Commander was on the phone with someone. Once the call ended, the Lieutenant General spoke with a pleased expression. “I didn’t expect you to come in person. It’s been a while, and you’re wearing a mask; I suppose you have no intention of taking it off. Fine, would you convey to the Colonel that I wonder if he has any thoughts of returning?” The Commander lightly sat on his desk and continued. “As I’ve repeatedly said, forgetting one’s origins is regrettable. You and Colonel Rogers were, after all, the best results we ever produced…” At the Lieutenant General’s words, the masked man, Calyx, replied, not hiding his displeasure. “Watch your mouth, Commander. We are no longer soldiers. Do not forget that, for now, we have merely established an equal cooperative relationship with your faction.” An invisible, rough aura poured from the man. Feeling dizzy from the force, the Lieutenant General laughed and waved his hand. “Hahaha, my mistake. Let’s get straight to the point. So, will you take them? The prisoners.” “Yes, I will. The instruction was that they might be useful later.” “…You should thank Sycamore. Alright, I’ll arrange the handover as quickly as possible.” The Lieutenant General picked up the phone again and gave a few instructions.

Hours later, Calyx boarded a helicopter with an impressive black low-visibility paint job. Federation soldiers, unaware of the situation, pulled a large coffin-shaped restraint device and pushed it into the transport compartment. When the work was done, the helicopter ascended into the sky. It had been flying for a considerable time. While the soldiers in the transport compartment stood guard with their guns, Calyx pressed a button. With a hissing sound, the lid of the restraint device opened. A red-haired woman appeared. Unusually, she had no limbs except for her left arm. “Confirmed. It is the person.” A soldier scanned her face, then stepped back. Calyx asked the woman, who was regaining consciousness. “Lelarchie Belestan, correct?” “Mmph!” Instead of answering, the woman groaned and glared. A gag was in her mouth. Calyx untied the gag bound to Lelarchie’s mouth. “Still so spirited, aren’t you? What is it about that clan and that sorcerer? I’ll admit they’re formidable. They’re like seniors to us, after all. But I don’t understand why you’re so confident, despite having no limbs.” “…” “You have something you’re relying on, don’t you? Surely, you’re not waiting for a rescue team, are you?” No sooner had he finished speaking than Calyx’s sharp gaze caught the subtle shift in Lelarchie’s expression. Seeing this, the man let out a small laugh. Annoyed by the man’s mockery, Lelarchie’s eyes twitched slightly.

“What’s so funny? Hey. If what you’re saying is true, you’d better escape quickly, even now.” Calyx thought. This girl, she was bluffing because she was psychologically cornered. He felt the soldier watching him nervously. Since the identity check was complete, it was time to close the restraint device again and cool her. However, the agent wanted to make the prisoner realize the reality of her situation. “Of course, it’s funny. How many attempts do you think there have been to get you out so far?” “…?” “Three in total, and we dealt with all of them. Normally, I wouldn’t get involved in the Federation’s business, but it was the Boss’s order. You wouldn’t know it from your clan’s perspective, but what can you do? To stop us, you should have brought at least a Vanguard.” “Wh-what did you say?” A report came through the headset that they would soon reach their destination. The soldiers and Calyx took patches from their top pockets and attached them to the empty right shoulder sleeves. Her eyes, which had been darting around in confusion, saw the image on the patch. A combination of black and red squares. Realizing the situation, Lelarchie’s face turned pale. The only group that wore that symbol near the Academy City was a certain crazy terrorist organization that wore its own symbolic logo. “No way, you people…! Th-that’s impossible. To think it was true that you were in league with the Federation.” As she mumbled in dismay, her vision darkened. The cover of the restraint device was closing again. “N-no!…” With a soft hiss, the restraint device closed. As the temperature inside the device cooled, a large amount of drug was injected into her body. Lelarchie lost consciousness. “Confirmed prisoner’s brainwaves, entering cryogenic sleep.” “Keep monitoring. It would be troublesome if the prisoner dies. We’ll keep her in storage for now, but she might be used for a deal with the clan or for research.” Damn them, do they think we’re a garbage disposal? Calyx inwardly clicked his tongue and sat down, reviewing his schedule. Other team members came to his mind. They were currently performing various missions in and around the Rust Room. He hoped it would all go well. The Obsidian Legion’s helicopter flew rapidly over the sea.