045

Ep. 45

–

"We have to go up too!"

"Please remain calm. Number 102. External assistance has been requested and must be put on hold."

"Damn it! What if everyone gets hit by that guy in the meantime? "You have to attack them first before they are all destroyed!"

"It's impossible."

William's appetite grew bitter as he watched M01's argument with his fellow police officers.

Number 102, who wants to move immediately to support his colleagues, and M01, who wants to attack with reinforcements from outside.

Since M01 is higher in rank, it is normal to follow his words. The reason the police did not comply and protested was because M01 was a machine.

'Megacorp's chronic hatred of robots still remains.'

William had been in the military for a long time, so he knew why Megacorp people hated android cyborgs.

'Star Union.'

Not long after Megacorp was established, many lower-class workers were semi-forced into space exploration. There were quite a few androids, but compared to humans, they were only a very small number.

It was a tragedy that occurred because humans were 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 ship made an error and rebelled against the upper capital. They used the network between androids to contaminate the androids of other pioneer ships.

In this way, the scale of the rebellion grew and ordinary workers, not just androids, began to join in.

A huge rebellion led by machines and later joined by even lower-class workers.

That was the beginning of Star Union.

Star Union's androids argued that to survive in the harsh environment of space, they had to replace their bodies with better ones, and humans accepted this and voluntarily became cyborgs.

Their goal is to create an ideal community where machines and humans survive together without discrimination.

'… is Star Union's argument.'

Star Union advertised that they were a righteous group opposing the corrupt Megacorp, but in reality, this was not the case.

A rebellion that started from a machine error in the first place.

There was no way a rebellion led by crazy machines would go so poorly.

Star Union's androids even turned workers who did not want to be converted into cyborgs. They even went so far as to deprive them of free will by implanting chips in their brains.

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

Naturally, the general citizens of Megacorp were not pleased with Star Union. Who would like people who kidnap people and force them to become machines?

Hundreds of years had passed and the ignition point had already burned down, but the flames still remained. This is because of the aversion to machines that is deeply rooted in the minds of Megacorp citizens.

In any case, regardless of the historical context, it was never desirable for the same sides to fight against each other in a crisis like the current one. William calmed down the police first.

"hey. Everyone calm down."

"Tsk but!"

"We are the police. "I understand your concern for your colleagues, but don't forget your mission."

"…Ugh."

When William spoke calmly, the police also showed a more genuine attitude. After calming the police down, William called M01.

"hey. M01."

"Please speak. "Detective team leader."

"I heard that the Commander Android receives data from subordinate Androids. Is there any information about him?"

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

One of them was to change Android's data recording device to a closed type so that accidents could not be linked.

Since the network of androids was one of the reasons why the rebellion grew, it was a natural measure that had to be taken.

However, because the burden was too great to do so even in a war where information exchange was important, only the commander androids acting as control towers were allowed to temporarily lift the restrictions.

"What you said is correct, but recently the androids in T&C Special Trade Center changed their policy to defend against EMP attacks. "Because shielding technology is applied, data transmission using the communication network is only possible to a limited extent."

"…Right."

William was convinced that it was probably because of the board of directors.

The most dangerous weapon in the space city is not a plasma weapon, a state-of-the-art battleship, or a horde of metallic gremlins. As it is a huge structure where everything is controlled by machines, there is nothing more threatening than an EMP attack.

In celebration of the board meeting, the level of EMP protection was raised higher than usual, and the androids were probably also changed.

"Then you can't infer something about him with that limited information?"

"What do you mean?"

"That guy might not be human. "I want to check it properly."

"Do you think the target is an intelligence other than a human?"

"I caught a glimpse of him when 112 was being dragged away, but he wasn't a person."

"Not a person?"

"It had an appearance close to a monstrous beast."

"okay. I'll check."

As M01 said that, a green light came on in his eyes. It was an indication that the information sent by the androids was being decoded.

The commander android can view the information stored by subordinate androids from a distance, but while viewing it, he is completely defenseless like now. Megacorp made it this way on purpose.

'…What a stupid thing to do.'

How many soldiers were harmed by those damn restrictions?

While William was lost in thought, M01, who had finished decoding, opened his mouth.

"As you said, it is assumed that the enemy is not a normal human."

"Tell me in detail."

"M06, which was hit on the first floor, and M05, which was hit on the 5th floor hallway, were hit by attacks with high penetrating power."

"Is it a Gauss rifle?"

"no. In M05, the record storage device was destroyed by a bullet thinner than a tungsten bullet, and in M06, it is assumed that the power source was destroyed by a psychic attack."

Because fragmented information was received, M01 used the term 'speculation' rather than 'analysis'.

However, William believed M01's words because he knew well that the android's analytical ability surpassed that of humans.

"This is an enemy that can use psychic power and has a weapon with high penetrating power. "Then what happened to M03, which went up with M05?"

"M03 was destroyed by an attack by a creature not registered in the database."

"What does that mean?"

"After expanding the scope to include creatures registered in the database, the weapon that destroyed M03's record storage device is 90% similar in shape to the tentacles of a large alien jellyfish-like creature discovered in the deep seas of planet E-101."

William also knows about planet E-101. I heard that it is an ocean planet full of water that prime capitals from Mars are eyeing.

"There is no way there is a monster living in the water here. "So the opponent is a Hulk mutant?"

"There are no models of Hulk mutants that have been transplanted with the genes of this creature."

"…is it a new type or a creature we don't know about?"

As it was considered an intelligent being, it was difficult to judge that the enemy was a wild animal. It was reasonable to assume that it was a prototype of the not-yet-announced Hulk Mutant.

'Could it be that the Eugene family is trying to attack Mr. T&C?'

Since the Eugene family had a semi-monopoly on the technology to create Hulk mutants, William's guess was not particularly wrong. He speculated that there was a secret struggle between top capitals over the board of directors.

If the mysterious enemy had read his thoughts, he would have been amazed that the process was completely wrong but the result was right.

M01 added, perhaps misunderstanding that William was lost in thought.

"There is nothing to worry about. Even if everyone here is wiped out, the information will be safely delivered to the Earth Security Team. "When we applied the shielding technology, we also upgraded two record storage devices, so unless the enemy completely destroys us, there will be no loss of information."

"…That's a good thing."

William smiled bitterly at the tactless android's words.

Unlike androids who have no concept of death, William had no intention of dying here at all.

He told M01 his thoughts.

"I agree to wait for support, but the enemy may counterattack before then. "I think it would be a good idea to be prepared."

"I agree with that point."

"It would be a good idea to administer a reinforcer."

"The side effects have been reduced thanks to the upgrade, but is it okay?"

"It's better than dying."

"All right. "Administration of reinforcers is permitted."

M01's permission was granted, and the four police officers present and William administered strengthening agents.

William, who had been administered a reinforcer for the first time in a long time, trembled slightly from the familiar feeling of discomfort and liberation. Looking at the other police officers with similar faces, it didn't seem that different from him.

At that time, the communication device of one of the armed police officers lit up.

"This is a communication from number 112! I have to…"

"Wait a minute. "I will take it for you."

M01 took the communicator in the policeman's hand and pressed a button.

–

'It's not coming up?'

I was hiding on the stairs and tried to eliminate the enemies coming up, but I couldn't even see them.

'Are you wasting time?'

If you're waiting on the other side for support, it's not a very pleasant experience. Support may come from over there, but not from me. As time goes by, the disadvantage is on my side.

'Should we attack from here?'

The number of enemies currently perceived by my senses is nine. There are 3 androids and 6 police officers.

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

'If they're crowded together, they can be wiped out in one go.'

'Monster's Tentacle' is the most powerful weapon I have.

It is a characteristic created by fusing Gallagon's claws and superpower organs obtained from the White Gallagon's genes transplanted into Sihyeon Eugene's body.

Until now, it has only been used as a reinforced version of a superpower organ, but that is not the true value of this characteristic.

｢Monster's Tentacle: Inherits and strengthens the existing 'superpower organ' characteristic. Can use psychic powers.

*PS: The power of a dragon must be used with caution.

Just as Aadhai, the Blue Gallagon, used his tentacles to create psychic impact, all gallagons use the tentacles in their mouths to use psychic techniques.

'It's an organ called a dragon's tentacle, so originally I couldn't prey on it, but…'

Through fusion, I obtained an organ that looked exactly like the 'dragon's tentacle.' Through the monster's tentacles, I can also use White Gallagon's superpower techniques.

'I could use psychic breath.'

The psychic power mentioned in the text box refers to White Gallagon's unique technology, 'Psychic Breath'.

Psychic Breath is a technique inspired by the heat rays fired by the protagonist of classic Japanese monster movies, and as the text box warns, it boasts extremely powerful power.

The original would split this apartment in two, but I can't produce that much output. Of course, it would be enough to wipe out the enemies in the hallway with one blow.

'The problem is the enemy on the first floor.'

Psychic Breath is a technique that consumes a large amount of energy, so you become defenseless immediately after using it. If an enemy on the first floor comes up to attack me, there is no way I can respond.

'Let's keep the monster's tentacles as our trump card.'

I turned on the communicator to try to lure the enemies one last time.

"This is M01. Please speak. Number 112. "

They are torturing me! please! "Please help me!"

"Is the person who tortures you human?"

the android asked me in a dry tone.

'Are you human?'

Didn't the enemies assume that I was human and fight? Why are you suddenly asking this question?

'Did you know I'm not human?'

As far as I know, Megacorp androids cannot share information with each other. Because of the setting, Megacorp prohibits information sharing among robots due to a machine rebellion that occurred in the past.

'You might have seen me when the police arrested you.'

Maybe so. When I think about it again, I think there was a police officer watching me until the end.

It was a very brief moment and it was dark so I thought he couldn't see me, but I guess that wasn't the case.

While I was thinking about it, the android over there continued to speak.

"Seeing your late response, there is a more than 70% chance that you are not number 112. From now on, number 112 will be considered a death in the line of duty."

"Ah."

After saying that, he cut off communication.

'hmm.'

As expected from an Android, he is quick-witted. Even though I was a little late in answering because I was thinking, I immediately realized that it wasn't number 112.

'It's been a long time since I've had anything like this.'

Since the mimicry system in the game was a trait that only I had, many players fell victim to me.

But as time went by and I became famous, players also came up with their own precautions.

They searched me out in various ways, such as examining my speaking habits and speaking style, and asking for information that only my colleagues knew.

'Tsk. 'It won't be right to cheat.'

I gave up and destroyed the communicator. It is now difficult to use the method of agitating the enemy and then attacking them by surprise.

'The only remaining method is the regular method.'

Go down and attack the enemies from the front. Honestly, it's not my favorite method.

'They'll probably be looking out for me on the other side too.'

If I'm unlucky, there will be police officers who have administered reinforcement drugs waiting for me. Since it is an upgraded reinforced suit, the strengthening effect will be even better.

He is a police officer armed with a Gauss rifle and even given reinforcements. In addition to Android.

You might have to prepare for losing a limb.

'Of course, I have no intention of running away.'

At least we have to deal with all the guys on the second floor before leaving. Because they know I'm a voice imitator.

'…I guess I'll have to use a proper diversionary strategy this time.'

I have no intention of being dragged around just because I got hit by the enemy. They have quite a bit of sense of me, but they still don't know that there are three of us.

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

'Then let's go.'

This time, I think I'll have to trust my tough exterior and the kids' fighting skills.