Chapter 39

Anis, a Nikke from the Counter's Squad, has been feeling ...uneasy lately.

One of the reasons for this unease is her commanding officer.

As they march towards the coordinates where Pilgrim—codenamed Snow White—would appear, her gaze shifts towards the leader of the squad, Rapi, who leads at the front, and the tall young man following behind him. Beneath the young man's feet are gathered a pack of wolves, but her gaze remains fixated on his broad back.

"...Hmmm~~~~~"

"…What's wrong, Anis?"

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing."

Her fellow Nikke, Neon, wearing a puzzled expression, subtly inquired if something was amiss, but Anis waved her hand to convey that everything was fine.

The source of this unease, this "moya moya" feeling, probably lies with her commander.

(Tl Notes: She's JELLY~~~~)

In retrospect, their first encounter wasn't normal at all.

Soon after their previous commander's death, he was appointed as their new commander without any proper handover or transition. He might have had his own reasons for his initial attitude, but Anis, who was filled with suspicion, doubt, and mistrust, acknowledged this within herself, and her suspicions only grew stronger.

First of all, she had never been fond of the idea of a commander. No, it would be more accurate to say that she had despised them.

Commanders, who did not accomplish much but complained even at the slightest inconvenience, and were quick to reprimand even a lack of respect, were individuals she did not appreciate.

This had been Anis' perception and evaluation of commanders, based on her past experiences and encounters.

However, despite all of this...

"…Really, What's wrong with me..."

Once again, the similar complaints escapes her lips.

Despite being the kind of person who gets injured easily and becomes immobile immediately, her commanding officer, compared to a Nikke like her, had an incredibly fragile human body.But, he had pulled off events that made her wonder if he was truly the same species as those commanders. Heck, he had done it multiple times.

Even as a Nikke, she had experienced the brink of death numerous times in just a few months, but the commanding officer, who stood before her, had frequently been at the forefront of battle, holding a assault rifle.

At this point, he didn't seem like a normal human.

She quickly recalled the simple profile of her commanding officer.

He seemed to be born in Ark, but curiously, there was no mention of which district. It was probably just an oversight.

Born on September 14th, he was 22 years old. Despite his age, that rugged appearance would likely cause him trouble in the future. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

He stood at a height of 188 cm. You could tell just by looking at him. While his height didn't differ much from Rapi and Anis, it was still enough to make them look up to him.

As for his weight, well, that didn't matter. Just looking at those muscles told her that he was heavy.

.

.

.

.

.

"…Ngh~~!"

(Tl Notes: How lewd`~~~)

"Anis? Are you really feeling unwell!?"

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing! It's nothing at all!"

She responded to Neon, who was getting suspicious, with a haste and vigor that exceeded her previous reply. But her cheeks turned red as the image of the commanding officer's office suddenly resurfaced in her mind. It was probably the day after he had been discharged.

—The commander being a nudist... of all things.

She had gone to the commander's office to borrow the shower, and they happened to cross paths just as he had finished showering, wearing only a towel around his neck. He confidently exposed his entire body without reservation. Could it be that with a large body came a large sense of exhibitionism, too?

"Nh, nnh!!"

"An-Anis!? Sensei, Rapi! Anis has been acting strange since a while ago!!"

"What's wrong?"

This was indeed strange. Neon called out to Rapi and him as they were advancing at the front. The young man immediately responded. Following that, Rapi, with caution, led the wolves and followed him.

"N-Nothing's wrong! It's nothing! It's nothing, so hurry up, okay!?"

"Rapi, Neon. Can you handle maintenance and checks?"

"Understood. Anis, undress here."

"Here?! Even with the Commander present!?"

"...He's facing the other way. This will also serve as a short break. Don't worry; he won't peek."

He then turned his body on the spot and, while facing away from them, they knelt down to help her undress.

—Not showing any interest at all too is annoying.

Naturally, turning his back was a gentlemanly gesture. However, the complete lack of reaction and his composed expression were strangely irritating.

He must have lit his cigarette. Along with the scent of purple smoke, they heard the metallic sound of the oil lighter's lid closing.

With her cheeks puffing out in annoyance, she began to undress herself, making sure the sound of her clothing reached his ears.

"—There, there."

He seemed entirely uninterested in her, even though he should be seeing her as a woman. Rather, he was more focused on the wolves surrounding him.

—Could it be that he's not interested in women and prefers men instead?

Annis couldn't help but entertain such a misconception, but his romantic interests were indeed directed towards women.

"...Everything seems normal."

"That's a relief, Anis."

"I told you, didn't I?"

Having completed maintenance and checks, Anis pouted as she started to put her clothes back on. Acknowledging this, Rapi approached the young man, who had been emitting purple smoke, and gently patted his shoulder.

"Commander, we're done. Shall we depart?"

"Hmm? Oh, I see. Anis."

"What is it?"

He called out to Anis, who had neatly arranged her ample bosom, and tilted his head slightly as if wondering why her voice sounded grumpy. However, he continued speaking.

"If something's wrong, let me know right away. Don't push yourself or endure it, alright?"

"....I understand."

That was something I should say to you. Anis stopped herself from saying it aloud, merely nodding slightly, and then bid farewell to the young man and Lapi as they headed back to the front of the march.

—Here we go again.

Watching him walking side by side with her friend intensified her feelings of jealousy.

------

"—It seems we've reached the vicinity of the coordinates."

"...We knew that from the terrain data, but..."

Moore couldn't help but sigh audibly, white breath escaping his lips. He hadn't expected to be engaged in activities bordering on mountaineering in this equipment.

With snow covering everything, they progressed along the mountainside while following the data collected by Ludmila's team to arrive at the coordinates with the highest likelihood of encountering the target.

While the altitude wasn't extremely high, even the faithful wolves accompanying them took a seat and began to rest, sticking out their tongues and exhaling white breath as they did.

"We have a high probability of encountering her in this area. We'll set up an igloo and—"

"Sensei! Please look over there!"

Following Lapi's suggestion, they decided to set up an igloo and wait until they spotted a figure that appeared to be a Pilgrim. But suddenly, Neon raised her voice.

She pointed in the direction that lay far down the slope—a gentle snowfield spread out in that direction.

But--

"There's a person..."

"Where is it?"

To confirm, Moore took out binoculars from one of the pouches. Neon pointed the objective lens in the direction indicated, and there, they recognized a silhouette of a person sitting with their back turned. The silhouette was indeed shaped human, but it was covered in white cloth, making it hard to discern clearly.

"...Is it luck, or..."

"...There are days like this too. Lately, it's been a streak of bad luck..."

"Alright! Let's call out to her—"

"Wait."

Anis also squinted her eyes and presumably used the binoculars' zoom function to identify the figure. She was about to raise her voice immediately, but he stopped her.

Observing the figure around the sitting person using binoculars, Moore's forehead gradually formed deep vertical wrinkles.

"...what a suspicious smell."

"Huh!? Me!?"

"Ah no, I don't mean that... Look closely. There are no footprints."

"Yes. Commander, may I have permission to shoot?"

Rapi slightly pulled the lever of her assault rifle to check if the first round was loaded into the chamber while seeking permission from him. In response to her request, he nodded.

"W-We're just going to shoot right away!?"

"There might be traps. Rapi, you don't need to hit. Shoot a few rounds nearby and see the reaction. Can you do it?"

"Leave it to me."

Perhaps these two got along well. Maybe their thought vectors were similar.

Considering the distance and the elevation difference between the mountainside and the snowy plain, this was sniper territory. Still, when Lapi said, "Leave it to me," Moore also trusted her and nodded.

To stabilize her posture, Rapi lay down and shouldered the buttstock of the assault rifle onto her right shoulder. Beside her, Moore knelt down and measured the distance to the target, conveying it to her.

Just as she prepared to pull the trigger after receiving the measurements...

—The figure sitting in the snow suddenly exploded.

Rapi hadn't pulled the trigger yet.

Moore was relieved that he hadn't approached closer, or he would have been blown away. However, he couldn't let his guard down, as he heard the roar from behind. Processing began in his mind as a result of that, and his entire body was alerted. 

"—Another avalanche!"

Amidst the curses that escaped his lips, the wolves sensed the danger and darted away.

"Everyone, run!! Commander, give me your hand!!"

Lapi urged everyone to retreat and reached out to Moore. She grabbed his hand, intending to lead the way down the gentle slope of the mountainside. However...

"—Rapi! Let go!"

"—I absolutely won't let go this time!"

"—I'm telling you to let go! It's dangerous!!"

When Moore shouted angrily from behind, a sense of unease washed over him. He broke free of Moore's grip and felt a kick to his back, sending him tumbling down the slope.

He came to a halt partway down and looked up.

"—Talkative!!"

Against the backdrop of an approaching avalanche, a familiar, grotesque Rapture exposed its massive form and confronted Moore. 

[—Nice to see you again.]

"—Oh, I've been waiting for this, you chatty bast*rd! Alright, let's kill each other! Let's have a bloodbath!!"

Low, eerie sounds echoed from the distorted mouth of the grotesque figure. In response, Moore raised his assault rifle.

Despite the obvious difference in size, he showed no sign of fear.

In fact, he seemed excited, welcoming the reunion with his long-awaited opponent.

As the avalanche closed in, he began to pull the trigger of his assault rifle.

Amidst the echoing gunfire, the sight of the white waves about to engulf Moore and Talkative entered Rapi's field of vision. She instinctively reached out towards him, but the moment her fingertips touched the cold snow, her vision was enveloped in pure whiteness.

----

Author Notes: The Commander is going in for the kill in seconds... I didn't realize he was this combat-ready. (Well, he was.)

For Lieutenant Moore, Toocative is like an idol. Maybe even someone he'd want to be a fanboy for. It's quite clear now.