Chapter 175

“Hmm…? What’s this, a combat droid? Why is there such a thing? …Ah, have we finally received permission to use convenience robots? Can I just apply for a cargo robot to use from the warehouse?”

“Wake up, squad leader, you idiot. That’s the boss’s pet droid. If you’re done with the barricade setup, go play over there. Don’t just hang around here for no reason.”

– …. –

While the reckless guesses and discussions continued around Zero, who stood silently, he stored the incoming information without much concern.

The squad leader seems not to focus much on the main briefing. Since there doesn’t appear to be any particular reprimand, they likely have the authority to do so or their work performance is deemed satisfactory. They are in charge of the northeast barricade, so caution is advised during retreat later.

The squad leader, who threw insults, is currently affiliated with the encirclement main unit. The fact that they haven’t been called by name suggests there may not be any personal connection. Furthermore, it feels like they have a slight discontent about being in this position.

Listening carefully to their personal opinions, Zero holds no likes or dislikes. He does not return any reactions.

He aims to assist in a smooth escape by grasping external trends. He must absolutely avoid getting entangled in unnecessary quarrels.

…Ah, the expression used to refer to that carebot pleases him.

Pet love, favoring animals or items, keeping them close and enjoying them. It’s a wonderful analogy.

While the squad leaders likely used it with a negative and sarcastic connotation, for Zero, just being able to be evaluated by its literal meaning was an honor.

Crack!

By rotating his wrists and manipulating all ten fingers, Zero confirmed that the power was being thoroughly transmitted throughout his body.

To look toward the next block of the rehabilitation area, which was deliberately designed due to the large number of private properties beyond there.

– …It’s chaotic. –

Considering the possibility of debating where disorder begins and ends, it wasn’t really Zero’s style to form non-objective impressions carelessly.

Aside from the insignia representing their detailed affiliations and the engraved words, soldiers from the Kasane side, wearing the same uniforms as Zero, were slowly heightening their tension.

Rather than simply defending their designated positions, they began showing active looks around… which, no matter how one looked at it, seemed far from normal.

It seemed that a responsible individual from the opposing guard team found the surrounding atmosphere suspiciously quiet, contrasting with the thriving social circle nearby.

Given that, what action should the attackers, observing this change from a distance, take?

Option one: launch a grand preemptive strike before being detected.

Option two: slightly pull back their established encirclement to reduce the risk of being discovered.

…Option three: either persuade or incapacitate the headquarters dispatch team leader, who vehemently objects to an ungrounded operation being launched right away.

“Kajun secretary, your delegated authority from the executive director is no longer relevant. The fact that you insisted on providing materials for the approval of the arrest agreement on-site was already a stretch, and now deploying a special task force before formal approval…! How will you take responsibility for the lost trackers??”

“Hey, it’s just that my communication implant is in really bad shape, causing delays in downloads. If you could just wait patiently, I will submit the necessary materials shortly. Also… how could I arrogantly operate a special task force! It’s all due to them daring to lay hands on our VIP that resulted in this disaster, so transferring the responsibility to me is quite difficult?”

“…I’m suspicious of your intentions for repeatedly telling me to wait blindly, not knowing what is happening in there right now. If you could just pass me the channel link, I can receive it directly and check it myself.”

Afterward, all sorts of excuses and shouts flew back and forth: ‘Why are you in such a hurry? Are you perhaps siding with the criminals?’ ‘Show us what true lack of fairness looks like before you say whatever.’

…If Anastasia wasn’t the type of person who, while lacking credibility, still had abilities that I must utilize for now, Zero would have already dealt with this cunning fraud long ago.

He glared at her. He continued to stare, conveying a warning to not pull any tricks.

No one was better suited to coordinating the overall plan than the creator himself. Yet in Zero’s view, while Kajun worked ‘relatively’ safely from the rear, the burden focused on Anastasia, who had entered the enemy’s heart, appeared overwhelmingly heavy.

Like a poor bungee jump with only a rubber band as a safety device, one misstep could expose them entirely to danger.

Claiming to have no choice because suitable personnel were lacking is an excuse. This is… akin to purposefully pushing Anastasia into treacherous terrain.

It felt like pushing away a troublesome headache or cornering a subject of scrutiny to observe its true nature.

“Now, now, if you have patience, see how smoothly the transmission is going? It’s a sad matter, but President Kasane has created a secret organization, even writing double the amount for purchasing medicine raw materials…!”

“Ugh… I will authorize the operation to commence. As per higher directives, the final arrest and verdict will be handled by us, and instruct the soldiers to prioritize advising surrender as much as possible.”

With exaggerated speech and reluctant agreement.

Once the two field leaders engaged in a dramatic compromise, signals were exchanged from all sides, and a swift advance began.

Bang—! Boom—!! Rat-tat-tat…!

Furthermore, not long after, a message arrived indicating that the ledger had been located and delivered, and gunfire and screams began to ring out from all around, piercing through the darkness of the night.

– …I am glad if it has ended safely. I will head over right away. Is the EP (Extraction Point; Escape Assembly Point) still okay at the back door of the main building as planned? –

Then, it was simply for him to meet her, and while waiting, lead the person along the meticulous escape route he had grasped.

As he had heard about 23 times to avoid getting involved in unnecessary conflicts and getting hurt, there was no reason or loyalty for him to lend a hand to the internal strife of Enema, once his business was done.

Wouldn’t he have likely avoided the battlefield to head back to the main building if the girl’s shout hadn’t suddenly erupted from the radio receiver linked to his auditory canal?

– Hey!! Zero! An emergency situation has arisen…!! –

– !? –

A Mayday Call had been activated, which was supposed to be triggered only when a situation arose that was truly difficult to resolve at her end.

The contents could roughly be summarized as ‘A crazy Heirong soldier is charging in as soon as they encounter me! Come help!!’—loud yet succinct.

In this misfortune that had occurred at the most inopportune moment.

Zero turned his attention directly to Kajun.

The dilation of pupils, disheveled breath, accelerated blood circulation—there were no signs of feeling surprised at all.

Intentional communication malfunction, the comparative results of the remaining utility values between Anastasia and Kajun blatantly tilted towards the former, and the gap in authority had widened further.

…Probability of guilt in the target: approximately 91%.

Rustle—!

– Think yourself lucky…! –

As he brushed past Kajun while rotating his arm, Zero pretended to draw out the equipped blade, shearing off a few strands of hair near his neck.

The reason for not decapitating him was that Anastasia needed him alive to take responsibility for the aftermath, nothing more.

“Gah!? The droid malfunctioning…? This is quite terrifying. You must not neglect safety trigger settings.”

“…Yeah, well, I might have been a little careless.”

Leaving behind the startled team leader and Kajun, who was grabbing his neck with a horrified look, the truly furious carebot growled and recalibrated its path to the shortest distance.

Cancel the escape assembly point settings, rerouting. The new destination is the executive office on the highest floor of the main building.

Checking the loaded ammunition and calculating his combat power based on the special programs and armaments he possessed. The estimated time required to break through the battleground at maximum speed is… about 2 minutes and 11 seconds…!

Boom!!

“I repeat! The medicine production license and executive position of President Amagi Kasane are hereby temporarily suspended as of this hour! All subordinate staff, disarm and await further instructions…?”

The employee, who was urging surrender through a loudspeaker, trailed off after the light above him suddenly covered.

Perhaps he had sensed something by looking at the bizarre way his fellow members and enemies’ gazes were drawn as if into the air.

There was a brief pause of 1 or 2 seconds upon seeing the steel soldier suddenly flying into the middle of the standoff before landing.

The Edamatsu director’s side felt, “Hmm, that must be on our side.” Meanwhile, the Kasane president’s side lamented, “Those bastards are recommending surrender while deploying a droid, huh?”

“Fire… FIREEE—!!”

“Shoot!! Troopers armed with armor-piercing rounds, concentrate fire on that infantry and the robot first…!”

– Defense Matrix activated. –

With a crash, portable electronic barricades set up on the ground were flung into the air in a massive batch.

Though they weren’t even exposed to impacts or attacks. The screws that had been firmly embedded in the ground started to rotate independently, causing brutal ricochets, and the defensive side’s formation collapsed in an instant.

The trigger that should have been pulled was delayed, resulting in ridiculous consequences where the frontline soldiers fell victim to the surroundings.

“Damn! What the hell is this crap, cough!?”

Fortunately, Zero clutched the head of the man who had staggered up after being struck in the torso instead of the edges of the barricade.

As expected from Mega Cop forces, it made sense to require additional armor-shields if armor-piercing rounds were expected to be standard armament. In that aspect, maintaining consciousness and standing up was probably unfortunate for him.

“Gahhhhh!? Let go, let go!!”

Rat-tat-tat!! Kachow!

The melee had already broken out.

With over eleven people, traversing past deprived humans were forced to confront the Edamatsu director’s forces, who had initiated a suppression operation head-on, making it hard to look back recklessly.

However, Zero, who did not have time to eliminate every small fry, merely engaged in restrained shooting, braving damages from bullets showering in from the flank and front.

– …1 minute, 52 seconds. –

Despite seeing the target ahead sooner than expected, he held on once more.

Ascending vertically is easy. However, if one fixates solely on the optimal path, past data warned that they would readily expose themselves to predictive attacks, so more erratic movements should be implemented.

Moreover, he must arrive with a certain degree of combat performance intact. At least sufficient to face the capable and perceptive Heirong officer.

…He needed a foothold. Not a chance to gradually grab and climb, but a sturdy launching pad that could fully impart recoil onto this hefty body.

“Cough!”

After cruelly tossing aside the fourth piece of additional armor he had picked up, Zero grasped a bunch of lighting cables lying around and rammed it against the wall of the main building. He accelerated once here.

Even while grazing through the barrage, he barely managed to land near the top of a nearby streetlight, controlling the direction of his body away from the main building.

There was no way the light pole could endure such tremendous force, and it started to lean outward little by little…

Creak… Creak…!!

The tall lighting tower, which illuminated the battlefield between the president’s office and the streetlight, was crying out as the cables were stretched.

With the elastic power to launch this massive bow, the synthetic rubber cable, fully charged with recoil, produced heavy air-slicing noise, and this time, the carebot truly soared into the sky.

The height of the flight met the minimum requirement, and though its armor was somewhat damaged, the nervous system remained entirely intact.

In fact, with a generous 5 seconds of leeway, he met his master’s expectations.

– 2 minutes, 6 seconds. –