Chapter 79

Stakeout.

In a dictionary sense, it refers to the act of covertly following someone to monitor their actions or gather evidence needed for an investigation.

Therefore, in criminal investigation studies, a basic form of “tailing without being detected by the target” is taught.

For instance, if one is following someone on foot, they should match the target’s walking speed, avoid making eye contact and look slightly down, utilize any environmental objects that can conceal their shape, and always be cautious when turning corners, among other things…

From that perspective, it seemed like a suitable method for a humanoid tin can to use those principles to pursue suspicious groups.

…Yeah, if only Anastasia’s multi-resistance gloves, which she deliberately adjusted, weren’t so conspicuous.

In a dim alley, a man who was surveying the surroundings before leaving the building after completing his task let out a brief grunt.

It was an expected action, as the soldiers guarding the main road occasionally conducted checks in places like this in search of their hostile forces, which had yet to reveal themselves despite their prolonged wait, and a communication warning had just come in.

“Hmm…”

“What’s wrong?”

Even though the atmosphere was devoid of any signs of life, he found it oddly hard to relax.

After all, the only moving objects in sight were a cylindrical cleaning robot busy tidying the dirty ground and… a robot ripping down illegal posters plastered against the wall in the shade.

“…No, I was just thinking how humanoid types like that are used as cleaning robots nowadays.”

He mumbled a different reason to brush off the unsettling sensation that he found hard to express specifically. However, it was not a false signal sent by his tense body while carrying out a secret operation.

“You seem to be worried about everything. It’s probably for different purposes. If the installation is done, we should move to the next location quickly. The lady from headquarters asked us to finish up before the parade reaches the square.”

“Hmm… right.”

The sensation the man felt was déjà vu.

While hesitating, he realized he had no time to waste, and a carebot that had been tailing them since they left the main road now tossed a rolled-up piece of paper at the real cleaning robot before the men entered the office building, stating they had “completed the installation.”

– ……. –

Conserving memory for the voice module, it maximized the power of its scanners and central processing unit.

The faint shoeprints left on the tiles, the disturbed dust bunnies, and the nuance of the spoken words led the tin can to believe that they must have hidden some tangible equipment around here, not just a program.

There were no signs of unauthorized entry into the locked offices or rooms.

Nor did it believe that any suspicious items would be left in the hallway, which could be traversed by residents or employees at any moment.

The tin can reviewed the mission outline that it had received from Anastasia.

They had clearly stated that they would interfere with the parade in retaliation for being wrongfully accused of terrorism.

Underground organizations are fundamentally usurpers.

Ambitious individuals aiming to breach the impenetrable walls of corporate power and settle into the upper ruling class by any means necessary.

But Five Eyes, among those groups, was a collective that primarily focused on the banner of state reconstruction, so could they really resort to retaliatory actions like bombing civilian buildings or direct attacks, which had no significant connection according to corporate expectations?

– Is this the place…. –

The tin can stood in front of a door that bore traces of Five Eyes agents coming and going.

There were no detectable vibrations or signs of life from within, but it was no time to let its guard down. The thermal detection equipment attached to the carebot was essentially just a non-contact thermometer to check the temperature of water or drinks, so certainty eluded it.

Creak…!

As it roughly shoved the door open, it rolled in.

Its clever choice to minimize the area of exposure to potential fire while making an attack was… sadly of little use.

What appeared before the combat-ready tin can were items that seemed rather tame to be used for terrorism.

A terminal that looked to act as a signal receiver was left conspicuously on a box, and near the open window were… a searchlight with eyes painted on it and a large speaker.

The chaotic scene reminiscent of an event venue’s storage prompted it to flicker the scanner.

– Quite a… peaceful way of resistance you seem to prefer. –

Having no personal grievance, but since it had decided to assist its owner today, the actions required were clear, and it felt no hesitation.

With a satisfying snap, the tin can yanked out the power supply cord connected to the lighting and sound devices and promptly moved to search for more suspects…

– Ah? The equipment. Was it connected properly? The place that Team 4 just turned on has changed to no signal? –

– I’ll contact the field. Ask if they were discovered. And has there been contact with that gate terrorist, who caused this ruckus? –

– …If I win, will they take an interest?! I’m busy, so I’ll hang up!! –

– …The pride of hackers is utterly incomprehensible. –

After finishing a brief call with the girl dispatched from headquarters, the branch manager immediately reached out to the field agents.

If they were a company’s henchman, they would cut them off; otherwise, they would respect field judgment.

A long tail would also lead to being caught without exception.

As twilight gradually fell and the darkness of Christmas began to settle over the city, the Five Eyes side finally managed to perhaps grasp the entity they had been chasing, which they believed to be corporate-related.

Sometimes pretending to be a cleaning robot lying on the side of the road. Occasionally just acting like an uninvolved droid passing by.

Deceiving potential enemies while eavesdropping on their murmurs and disabling the installed equipment, the tin can realized the moment to withdraw had arrived.

– I may have been too absorbed. –

Even if they had been playing tag near the busy parade route, the distance to the command center where the hacker mercenaries had gathered was a bit far.

By focusing on the trivial task of hindering anti-corporate organization activities, it had totally neglected the major issue of going to meet its owner.

The opposing side also didn’t seem keen on engaging in a serious battle, so as it turned to head back, while organizing the gathered information to report to Ahsa,

Creeeak….

– ……. –

As the tin can tried to turn and leave, it realized the suspects it had been pursuing were actually reversing their course and starting to approach it.

With loud, obvious footsteps, it sensed that a group of people had quietly formed a shallow encirclement around it.

Being trapped in the heart of the enemy camp without a suitable weapon was absolutely not a good scenario.

The judgment was swift, and having made the decision, there was no room for hesitation.

Boom!!

“Damn!! Catch it!”

“Who’s the idiot that suggested it was just a collection squad?! That’s clearly a homebrew robot!!”

At the thunderous sound the tin can created as it kicked off the ground, voices echoed through the alley, and without waiting for anyone to say who, everyone relevant charged in.

The only fortunate part was that seeing their opponent’s ambiguous connection to the corporation made them hold back their firearms to avoid attracting unnecessary attention.

“Gah!!”

– Might I ask you not to touch my body recklessly? –

A field agent suddenly emerged from the corner, swinging a hammer toward the pelvic area of the airborne carebot.

However, the hit, which carried a conventional intention of wanting to first immobilize mobility and then have a talk, returned in vain against the non-mechanical response of the tin can.

“What?!”

“What kind of dog is that…?”

The airborne mechanical body shot upwards again.

What was once regarded as a heavy block flipping over its head seemed to sprout wings as it ascended vertically.

It gained momentum by landing on a protruding sign.

Grabbing hold of the slack wire, it used the rebound to launch itself toward the next foothold.

From the moment it sensed those prickly enemies laying around, the tin can did not even consider executing a simple escape plan.

If they were that careless, they would have been wiped out by the corporation long ago.

It was rather fortunate that it could observe their activities based on clear intelligence this time, allowing it to provide meaningful data if Anastasia were to become involved with them again…

Creeeak—!!!

– ……? –

The arm that had been grasping a low-rise building’s rooftop railing began to tilt.

No, it was more than tilting. The body that had been soaring against gravity was once again bound to the chain and was plummeting toward the alley floor.

The cause was… a single thrown hand axe that had arrived just as it thought it had escaped.

The prediction that the corporate hounds wouldn’t fire blindly, being fully aware of the surroundings, was accurate, but the emergence of someone with such precise throwing skills was an unforeseen variable.

But where had they aimed that allowed itself to fall so cleanly?

There was no need to conduct a self-diagnosis. During the fall, the tin can realized that two of its fingers, which had been gripping the railing, had been neatly severed from midway.

Creeeak!

Kugugugung…!!

To prevent further damage, it scraped down the outer wall to slow its descent and managed to land safely on the ground.

“…Alright. Shall we have a calm discussion now?”

“Uh? Hey!! What the hell is your crazy owner thinking?! You went out of your way to come here, and you’re just…!!”

– ……. –

The leader, presumed to have thrown the axe, dusted off his hands while muttering.

The cry from a girl who had been shouting angrily into her terminal just moments ago.

The nearly completed encirclement.

None of it influenced the tin can’s thoughts.

In a state deeply engulfed by a profound discomfort that felt akin to being marrow deep for a human.

It could only stare blankly at the freshly severed fingertips, trying to organize its thoughts.

Clearly… it was true that it found the carebot body it currently used regrettable.

However, that was merely an indulgent complaint that a sentient AI granted new life by its beloved owner, which only the tin can could make. It could not allow other lowlifes to damage or belittle it.

What’s more, it had defied Anastasia’s order to stay home, fearing it might get damaged… to receive a wound that it could neither hide nor excuse?

– …Adjusting combat grade. Upgrading from potential threat to high-risk enemy. –

Despite the grandiose wording, the tin can understood it would be difficult to kill them out of mere vendetta.

Whether it could overturn the vast power gap was a secondary concern; the damage to a robot’s extremities would at best be considered property damage. In contrast, if a machine were to kill a person, the responsibility would undoubtedly fall on the owner.

While the tin can pondered whether it was alright to antagonize such an organization with its rash judgment,

The echoing voice in its ear allowed it to determine a response strategy.

– Tin can! You fool!! I told you to stay safely at home, so what are you doing out there?! Did you run into Five Eyes? You’re not broken again, are you?! –

“High-risk enemy, huh… it’s an honor, but do you have no armaments? Your owner must be quite ruthless.”

– …Consider yourselves lucky. This time, I am granting you a reprieve because of that ruthless one. –