Chapter 29: New Security Team
New Security Team
[Welcome. We've been expecting you.]
Rose greeted me alongside a squad of security robots. Though the commander had arrived, there was no need for a senior officer's command like "Attention!" These weren’t humans—they were machines. They had been standing by in a fixed position for hours before my arrival.
As I’ve mentioned before, the security robots are designed with intimidating features to enhance their efficiency in subduing threats. Sunken, exaggeratedly hollow eyes, a wide, slashed mouth lined with sharp teeth, and fingers like steel hooks. It wasn’t just one or two of them watching me—there were many. Instead of feeling reassured, an eerie uneasiness crept up on me.
[Still not used to them, I see] Rose observed.
"Well, look at their faces. Plus, they’ve threatened my life before. But whatever. It’s all in the past, and I’ll use what’s useful."
[Let me formally introduce them: the new shelter security team.]
At Rose’s cue, the security robots collectively snapped into a salute position. They wielded the gas-powered penetrators I’d seen at the factory not too long ago—the weapons that fire massive steel spikes using high-pressure gas.
The heavy weapons, weighing over 6kg, seemed a perfect fit for the bulky security robots. Some were even carrying flamethrowers, the kind a human would need two people to lift. Compared to the shotgun shells loaded with salt, these were far more reassuring.