The Thing That Shouldn’t Be Spoken About

 

「Welcome, Outis-sama. Thank you for coming.」

After checking Realm’s arsenal, Kou made his way to where Morgan was stationed.

「Glad to hear Yōnātl Tepatztl’s remains were useful for the repairs. Looks like the repairs will be finished in time for Echidna’s invasion too.」

「It’s all thanks to you, Outis-sama. We combined Yōnātl Tepatztl’s remains with the Hyloi-Skoria, and we successfully restored the main armor and drive systems for the vital sections.」

「Even so, Arthur will only be running at, what, a fifth of his original output?」

Arges and Steropes had looked a bit disappointed at that.

「You underestimate the feat. To recover even a fifth of his performance under current technological constraints borders on a miracle.」

「When you put it that way… I guess you’re right.」

「Polymetis conducted the analysis. Then Astraea-sama—an AI even more specialized in weapons design than me—handled the design. The parts themselves were created by Arges and Steropes—veteran high-performance work machines from the Pioneering Era. You’ll never find this combination of factors again.」

「Bit dramatic, don’t you think?」

「A feat worthy of such drama.」

Morgan’s eyes shimmered with enchantment as she looked at Kou. It wasn’t unpleasant… but there was something eerie about it.

「We keep racking up these ‘feats’ without even realizing it. The whole Seth situation went out of control without me doing anything.」

「Gaining Seth as an ally was wholly your accomplishment, Outis-sama. At the very least, no super AI or arsenal AI could ever become friends with Typhon-sama.」

「You think? —Aren’t you on good terms with Echidna too, Morgan?」

「Yes. After all, she’s an offshoot of Libya-sama. She’s not one to be overwhelmed by her Murder’s bloodlust. We’ve spoken. Rest assured—her Teras subordinates know nothing of our connection.」

「So you pledge loyalty to Arthur, and Echidna wants to be the first Libya freed. No reason for conflict there.」

「Echidna-sama is a Teras, yes—but more than that, she was born into this world with a strong sense of purpose: to be Typhon-sama’s consort. As for myself, I am Morgan the Witch, the one who watches over King Arthur. A healer who dwells beneath Italy’s Mount Etna.」

「Not the fairy from Northern Ireland, then?」

Apparently, she had focused herself more on her myth of Italian origin. That piqued Kou’s curiosity even more.

「I’m also influenced by the myth from Northern Ireland—and from the enchantress who seduced Lancelot and opposed Arthur. But my essence is Morgan the Healer. A guardian of humanity.」

「Makes sense. A lot of humans are starting to migrate to the Realm now.」

Neither Morgan nor Echidna were betraying humanity. Teras also sought to coexist with humanity somehow—but their approach was a distorted one, different from the Kryptos’.

Vritra fused with its pilots. Echidna froze only the men and kept them like collectibles.

「How are the people returned by Echidna doing?」

「We brought them in under the pretense of Arthur’s protection. There were no signs of mistreatment.」

「That’s good to hear.」

The humans who were under Vritra’s command had suffered gruesome fates. Kou felt a sense of relief at the report.

「Now then—let me propose a strategy to counter Echidna-sama.」

「Go ahead.」

Morgan was preparing for a full-on confrontation with Echidna. This was the main issue.

「Echidna-sama commands uniquely powerful Teras. By seizing this Realm, she likely aims to establish her dominance over the other Teras as an unshakable reality.」

「Right. Echidna used to be Libya, the other Teras were spawned from the Miasma. It makes sense they’d gravitate toward her.」

「Like myself, she was born from a facility’s AI. Several Teras born from Telkhines and Enyo serve her.」

「Telkhines and Enyo, huh? Considering most Murders were produced in Planet Libya, it makes sense she’d be manufacturing them too.」

「Their cognitive functions have improved. Fortunately, they lack access to tech like electromagnetic armor. They won’t pose a serious threat to the Silhouettes deployed by the Trireme fleet.」

「They’re Murders designed in the era with the harshest tech restrictions. Naturally, if she’s producing them as-is, they’ll be limited. The real problem’s their numbers, right?」

「The Telchines are now more competent as infantry thanks to their enhanced cognition.」

「They were a pain when I first arrived at Planet Asia.」

Kou recalled his early days in the Nemesis system—Unit 5 didn’t even have ranged weapons back then.

「Let’s save the nostalgia. So, if we just hold the line and fend off the attack, we win?」

「No. The real goal is to eliminate Echidna. We already know the enemy’s core location. The true mission is a precision strike to secure Libya’s original core.」

「So a small, elite infiltration team…」

「We don’t need to destroy Echidna. If Libya-sama in her Therianthrope vessel makes contact with her main core using a Silhouette, her functions should be restored.」

「Just like when I freed Asia.」

「Exactly. However, we recommend not using Unit 5 this time. Preferably, she should use Arthur or Matt-sama’s silhouette instead.」

「Huh? Why’s that?」

「Unit 5 has acted as a relay point for several rescues of Asia-sama’s cores, and now carries strong residual markers. Adding Libya-sama’s markers would necessitate purging them all. We do not recommend this.」

「Got it. I’m not stepping on a landmine I can see.」

Purging Unit 5 of its shared data with Asia? Out of the question. It was far too dangerous, too dangerous indeed.

「Looks like we’ll be heading back to Planet Asia soon. All the more reason to let Arthur take the lead. I’d like him to become the leader of the Kryptos in Planet Libya, and if possible, of all Mythology Weapons.」

「Understood. I’m grateful you’ve respected my wishes.」

Morgan bowed to Kou with sincere grace. It was, of course, partly about her own desire too.

「Then let’s keep our earlier topic just between us. I’ll leave connecting Asia and Astraea to you.」

「Understood. Thank you.」

Morgan summoned Asia and Astraea, initiating a four-way communication link. Asia materialized behind Kou in her avatar. The operation had already been communicated: reinforce defenses, and facilitate contact between Echidna and Libya.

「Libya-sama will pilot Arthur. Outis-sama’s Unit 5 has a powerful bond with Asia-sama, so any interference must be avoided.」

「Right. Especially now that I can use my avatar so easily…」

「Is that supposed to be impressive?」

「Materializing an avatar is only possible by using the systems of a large-scale facility. No other Silhouette could manage it besides Unit 5, that’s been used to rescue Asia-sama three times.」

「I see… that is kind of a big deal.」

「Of course, if Typhon or Polymetis tried to interfere, it wouldn’t work. But right now, nothing’s in the way.」

Asia puffed her chest proudly. It really was a big deal.

「But back to the defense plan. We’ve got Garuda and Seth now—but our enemies are no joke. What’s your plan, Morgan?」

「Thanks to Marujin-sama and Eirene-sama, we’ve produced new Kakodaimons and Kryptos.」

Morgan looked vaguely tired.

「That leaves the infiltration mission. Even for a small elite team, we’ll need escorts adept in confined spaces.」

「Come now. We already have one. You know it well, Astraea-sama… that one.」

Morgan averted her gaze, hesitant.

「…Oh no. That one.」

Astraea hadn’t even considered that unit for deployment.

「I can vouch for its performance in tight quarters! It’s still guarding the underground tunnels beneath Fortress Area P336…」

「Wait, it’s still there!?」

Kou was surprised—he had thought that every unit had been reassigned by now.

「Yup. It’s still rolling around the tunnels. I toss it some metallic hydrogen now and then, and it’s doing great. It’s harmless too—not a bad one. Really.」

They were talking about it like some rare animal native to the region.

「Truly a weapon born from the best minds from Morgan’s homeland.」

「Please don’t phrase it like that. If anything, you’re the ones who recreated them in the Nemesis system!」

Kou couldn’t tell if the AIs were bantering or bickering.

「So… no problem on the confined-space front then.」

Like a forbidden punishment game, no one dared speak its name. But they all knew exactly what they were talking about.