Chapter 96
Chapter 96
This Settles the Debt
***
Noah let out a sigh as if she found me impossible, then reluctantly opened her mouth.
[Since I haven’t seen the exact format myself, I can’t be certain, but fundamentally it’s a technology riddled with flaws.]
“Riddled with flaws?”
[The monomolecular structure merely forms a special electromagnetic field and grants anomalous properties.]
Clear Mount and monomolecular blade fell into that category.
[The key point is that the target hasn’t actually transformed into a single molecule (單分子). It only appears to cause such a phenomenon. Since it relies on electrical power as its driving force, the greater the external impact applied, the shorter the time it can be maintained.]
“That sounds like you’re telling me to drag this into a prolonged battle, but the resources available here are limited.”
Fortunately, it didn’t seem to be equipped with something like a small nuclear fusion reactor.
“Any other method?”
[You’re aware that molecules are the smallest units that compose matter, right? Even if those properties are artificially constructed, that’s equivalent to fixing both its characteristics and attributes in place.]
“So…?”
[The moment it transforms into a monomolecular structure, all functions of the target cease. There’s no room for complex mechanical components like pistons or cylinders to operate within a molecule.]
You could think of a nanometer-scale molecule having expanded to the size of a gas. In other words, it became nothing more than a simple lump of mass.
“So it’s in a state where it shares a single property.”
I thought I understood why it had simply charged straight at me. An attack utilizing positional energy had been the only answer. The moment it transformed into a monomolecular structure, it wouldn’t be able to perform any activity.
‘No.’
Hadn’t it used its main cannon just fine as a thrust enhancement device?
“Ah, so that’s how it was.”
The corner of Ga-on’s lips lifted for a brief instant, as if he had realized something.
“That was a useful lecture.”
[W-wait…….]
She sounded like she had much more to say, but I wasn’t the type to wait. After ending the call with Noah, I immediately moved. Dive had already drawn within close range.
I tapped the probe and spoke.
“Dobby, guide me to the tallest building nearby.”
[Aye Aye, Sir]
***
That man—Ga-on, was it?
I had received information beforehand, but that didn’t lessen the shock I felt.
Not only had he crossed a distance of several hundred meters in a single bound, he had even evaded bombardment carried out in millisecond intervals.
Incomprehensible physical ability.
As if that weren’t enough, Ga-on had tried to bisect Dive. It was chilling—he had come right up to the brink of doing it.
He was the very embodiment of the word force.
Was this what the punitive unit of the Mars Defense Force, spoken of only in urban legends, looked like?
At first, I, John, had approached him half out of curiosity and half out of hostility, but now all I wanted was to shake off that monster as soon as possible.
“Come out, come out.”
As if responding to that command, something was caught on the sensors. A signal so faint it seemed as though it might vanish at any moment. Its origin was directly above Dive’s head. More precisely, the rooftop of a 45-story building—
“The rooftop?”
The moment I recognized it, the fall—no, the charge—began. In the blink of an eye, a dot became a line. It looked like nothing short of suicide, but it wasn’t without advantage.
I was able to preemptively secure the spacing I wanted.
Having belatedly read Ga-on’s intention, John let out a low groan.
Ordinarily, the proper approach was to leap to a distance the opponent couldn’t reach and apply pressure from there. But this time, that wasn’t possible. The blade had already been unleashed at point-blank range.
If he retreated, he would be cut.
If he didn’t retreat, he wouldn’t be cut.
It was a simple and clear binary choice. There was no need to deliberate.
It was obvious that the outer armor, transformed into a monomolecular structure, would repel the monomolecular blade.
John had intended to use that opening to counterattack, but the sight that followed left him aghast.
Without warning, the muzzle exploded in the shape of a flower, and immediately after, the barrel was blown away helplessly.
The only part that couldn’t transform into a monomolecular structure.
It seemed Dive’s one and only flaw had been exposed.
Left with no choice, John attempted to respond with the armed sentry gun, but even that came to nothing. As if refusing to grant even a chance to challenge him, Ga-on sliced apart the mount securing the firearm.
Amid his perfectly restrained movements, a flash burst forth and entered the muzzle.
A metal projectile, fired with lightning speed, tore through the interior of the craft, and the auto-pilot system noisily reported the situation. But it was already too late. The hatch was being forcibly opened.
Slice.
The lights of the omnidirectional perception panel went dark, sunlight poured in, and before I knew it, a sword hung at the tip of my throat.
John raised both hands to show he had no intention of resisting, and a cold voice rang beside his ear.
“Will you keep your loyalty and die, or reveal who’s behind you and live? Choose.”
It was a simple and clear binary choice.
There was no need to deliberate.
***
Only after seeing Ga-on walking toward her, leaving behind Dive reduced to scrap metal, did Im Sol truly grasp reality. The one who had won the desperate battle was Ga-on. A result reminiscent of David and Goliath.
“You really won.”
“I only said I could do what was possible.”
As he said that, Ga-on was gripping someone by the collar. It was only natural that Im Sol’s gaze turned to the man—John.
“But why didn’t you deal with him?”
“I have to finish this properly. I hate leaving an itch on the back of my head.”
John was nothing more than a weapon. The one who truly needed to be confronted was the person who had wielded that weapon.
“Killing isn’t always the answer. Sometimes, simply being alive carries meaning. Isn’t that right?”
At the tone that seemed to demand an answer, John nodded involuntarily.
“Y-You’re absolutely right.”
***
Willie, the general project director of Dive, had accepted Gustak’s proposal out of perfectly rational judgment. As fellow alumni of the Mars Defense Force, there was some inclination to grant the favor, but more than that, it was the profit to be gained that tempted him.
It was merely a matter of killing two people.
And those two weren’t even receiving any notable support.
If converted into Outriders, the calculation became simple.
Since Dive was already in operation, it would be easy to conceal both evidence and traces. It would have been stranger to leave the matter to morals and conscience.
He hadn’t expected it to come back around like this.
“You’re saying contact with Dive has been lost?”
“It could be temporary interference, but we must consider the worst-case scenario.”
“And what would that be?”
“Operational halt. Perhaps a defect has been discovered in the craft. Wasn’t that installed on Dive? Considering its power consumption, it wouldn’t be unreasonable.”
At the report from Nodetech’s exclusive mechanic, Al Hamr, Willie’s expression refused to relax. No one else knew, but today was the day of a special operation. Something unusual had undoubtedly occurred.
Come to think of it, at some point Gustak had also stopped responding.
No matter how he looked at it, there was nothing but bad news. It was only natural to worry. The funds poured into the fourth-generation Heavy Armor, Dive, amounted to tens of trillions. If that had just gone up in smoke—
“Send the retrieval team. Before it draws the attention of the Outriders.”
“Understood.”
Almost simultaneously, reports came in from Al and the mercenaries guarding the perimeter. Hearing that a visitor had arrived along with a half-beaten John, Willie felt as if his mind had snapped into clarity.
For reasons he couldn’t grasp, he felt that if it were now, things could still be reversed.
Perhaps that was why—
“Shoot them.”
He did not hesitate to give such an extreme order.
There were dozens of charges he could pin on John. It didn’t matter if they were true or not. Nodetech, obsessed with security to a pathological degree, would accept it without question.
[But…….]
“I would rather not lose you as well. Or is this insubordination? Surely you haven’t made some sort of deal with John?”
Anyone could hear that it was forced reasoning, but Willie pushed ahead regardless. The dead told no tales.
The message confirming the target had been dealt with came shortly after.
Just as he felt relieved, thinking the urgent fire had been extinguished, an employee came running in.
“T-Team Leader!”
“What is all this commotion?”
“Someone from headquarters…!”
It wasn’t particularly rare for Nodetech to send inspectors. It was unfortunate that they had come precisely when Dive had halted, but there was no need to panic.
Weapons development inevitably involved trial and error.
However, before long, Willie’s face turned pale.
It wasn’t because John—whom he had firmly believed to be dead—had been dragged in. The real problem was the one who had dragged him here.
A massive build that seemed as though it might brush the ceiling.
Eight prosthetic eyes, spread like a spider’s legs, moved independently in different directions.
Meeting those crimson-glowing pupils, Willie felt as though his breath had stopped.
He recognized that appearance.
Maximus Quite.
The head of Risk Management Team 2.
Within the company, the authority of Risk Management Team 1, which handled internal security—that is, audits—could certainly be described as absolute. But that didn’t mean the authority of Risk Management Team 2 was any less.
Unlike the internal environment where certain lines existed, the outside world was nothing short of a jungle. It was a structure where one could not survive without strength.
That was why, when it came to notoriety, Maximus held the clear advantage.
Within Nodetech, he was called the Grim Reaper. There was no need to ask why he was here. He was not a man who moved without reason.
“What brings you here?”
“Are you asking because you truly don’t know? If so, that would be incompetence. But judging by your past conduct, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”
“What do you mean by that…?”
“Embezzlement of public funds, attempted murder, retaliatory threats. And ordering the killing of a superior. That last one was particularly impressive. I never expected to hear something like that at the entrance.”
Realizing that Maximus had also heard the order he had just issued, Willie swallowed dryly. When he was told someone had arrived with John, he had assumed it was Ga-on and Im Sol. But it had been the opposite.
“Have you forgotten even basic common sense because you’ve been stationed out here? Or did you commit something so enormous that you were willing to take that kind of risk?”
“I can explain everything.”
“You’d better know more than I do.”
***
It had already been thirty minutes.
Hearing the screams leaking out from the Team Leader’s Office, Im Sol shook her head as if appalled.
When Ga-on had bound John, she had assumed he intended to report the matter to the board or to the Public Enforcement Corps. If that failed, perhaps he would borrow the power of Baekdu.
But instead, the one who responded to Ga-on’s call had been Maximus.
She had once worked at Baekdu herself; there was no way she wouldn’t recognize him. He was not someone who should appear in a place like this.
“You seem to know quite a few people. Should I say you’re qualified to be an advisor to the Public Enforcement Corps?”
“The more allies, the better.”
“Who decided I’m your ally? Don’t act familiar.”
Leaving the aftermath to his subordinates, Maximus stepped outside and glared at the two of them without the slightest hint of goodwill.
From canceling his schedule to coming all the way to Hyphen Colony, every part of the process had been unpleasant for him. It had been meaningless and unproductive work.
But he couldn’t simply refuse. He had a debt to repay to Ga-on.
“This settles the debt.”
“No, it doesn’t disappear. If anything, you could say it’s grown even larger.”
At the immediate reply, delivered as though it wasn’t even worth consideration, Maximus flared all eight eyes wide. Ga-on merely shrugged as if he were incorrigible.
“No wonder you’re from a megacorp. You’re terrible at calculations.”