Asia’s Knight

 

Kou rose from Astraea’s command seat and declared:

「Over thirty years ago, Planet Libya fell to the Stones’ invasion. In Planet Asia, Super AI Asia’s cores that were dispersed throughout the planet were seized simultaneously. The Stones prioritized dissecting Asia’s mind. Planet Asia was overrun by the Murders, and the first to be eliminated were the Artifact Consciousnesses, undermining humanity’s very foundation. With the Super AIs suppressed and planetary control effectively lost, humanity faced a hopeless power imbalance—and the old Mercenary Association folded.」

The Therianthropes and Familias looked up at Kou as though he were a savior. Until now, no leader had ever spoken of their suffering so plainly.

「To break that deadlock, we Transferees arrived from Old Earth. But on Planet Asia, which lacked any leadership or direction, the most we could do was support mercenaries through corporate operations. Now, at last, those efforts are about to bear fruit.」

Unusually, Kelly was