A Company Is Born

 

The Worker Kurt was riding destroyed the second Ant Commander-type.

「Familia in the back seat. What’s your name?」

「I don’t have one. A Familia is just a Familia.」

「Then you can’t tell individuals apart, can you? Starting today, you’re Karla!」

「Understood!」

「Pass this on to the Familias. Once the Workers doing the extraction have removed the A-Carbuncle, they’re to fall back while supporting the evacuees. And tell the Workers there are weapons in the warehouse.」

「I’ll do it right away!」

Kurt’s Worker swung its two-handed machete, scattering the Ant Workers in its path.

「Maybe because it’s meant for labor, its movements feel constrained. The range of motion is there, and yet… it moves like a human who’s out of shape.」

「Normally, machines aren’t expected to need human-like core strength or flexibility.」

「If I were to design a Silhouette, that’s exactly the area I’d want to pursue.」

「Then please act like someone who intends to stay alive, all right?」

Karla was desperate