Chapter 4 - The Cloud Dragon Sets Forth

Deep darkness lay over the waste disposal yard.

The humanoid’s sudden appearance brought everything to a momentary standstill. Bewildered, wary, and gripped by an inexplicable unease, the REST-men glared at the figure atop the hill. Ash met their eyes without flinching, his teal optical sensors flashing.

A brief, silent standoff.

Ash’s gaze swept over the gathering before settling on Akina’s small figure. He also saw the left arm she had fought so desperately over—what would probably be the final part of his body.

Memories suddenly flickered through his main core. Every day, the girl had left the workshop, returning much later covered in dust and laden with all manner of junk. At the time, he had simply assumed that was her everyday routine.

But now, seeing her surrounded by thugs and trembling like a leaf, he thought otherwise.

'You risked your life with every journey.'

Ash knew a little about this world. He had not experienced it firsthand, but the data cards had made that knowledge possible.

This world—Sanctum—was like hell. It called to mind the Buddhist realm of asuras, where the strong preyed on the weak and death was an everyday occurrence.

And this frail girl had ventured through such a place alone. Through this very waste disposal yard, which even Sanctum’s citizens shunned above all else.

Every day.

With her life on the line.

To repair him. To repair Ash.

Behind the bright smile she always wore lay shadows just as deep. Realizing this, Ash let out a brief sigh.

'Heavenly Lord of Primordial Beginning...'

For the first time since coming to this world, Ash understood what he must do.

His gaze turned to the thugs. They all bore a peculiar emblem on their shoulders: interlocking yellow gears. Though he had never seen it before, he knew what it meant.

[DATA RECALL: R.E.S.T.]

[DATA RESEARCH. . . NOW<<<]

The information stored about them in his database unfolded in an instant.

//*

R.E.S.T.

Recycle Equipment Support Team.

A private organization authorized to operate by the Sanctum Administration.

Responsible for recovering the bodies of deceased Pathfinders and salvaging their equipment, cyberware, and, when necessary, biological organs for reprocessing.

(That’s what it says, but they’re a much shittier bunch than that! In reality, these psychos deliberately kill even people with minor injuries or illnesses and steal their equipment, so watch out if you run into them! They’re absolute fucking bastards!)

*//

With Akina’s personal comments included, it was immediately clear that these were villains whose deeds would outrage heaven and earth.

His optical sensors shone coldly.

With a smooth motion, the humanoid looking down on the humans below leaped from the mound of waste. Despite his enormous steel body cutting through the air, his landing was eerily silent.

"F-fuck, what the hell?"

The chilling atmosphere heightened the tension.

"What the hell are you, you tin-can bastard!" a REST-man shouted.

Ash gave no answer. He merely scanned his surroundings for a moment, then pulled something from the waste, apparently having found an object to his liking.

It was a heavily rusted metal pipe.

He swung it a couple of times, then addressed the REST-man who had shouted.

"I am called Ash now."

It was ridiculous.

A humanoid had appeared out of nowhere, picked up a pipe, and announced the [ASH] printed on its own head as though it were a name.

The REST-men, who had been tense at this unexpected development, burst into laughter.

"What’s this fucking moron talking about?"

"Hahaha! You picked up a pipe and think you’ve got yourself a weapon?"

Derision. Mockery.

That was all it was.

But their laughter did not last. Very slowly, Ash assumed a swordsman’s stance, the pipe held in his right hand.

In an instant, a strange, indescribable atmosphere seized the yard.

Suffocating pressure.

A chill that made their knees go weak.

The sharp sensation that their lives might be snatched away at any moment.

Killing intent.

A vicious desire to kill that could only come from someone who had fought through blood-drenched battlefields for decades.

"What the fuck, you want a fight?"

The largest man among them stepped forward. At a glance, he seemed ordinary enough, but he had one distinguishing feature.

Metal arms gleamed ominously under the lights, even in the dark alley. He was a cyborg who had replaced both arms with cyberware.

"Who the hell are you trying to impress, you goddamn tin can!"

BANG!

He slammed his hands together, producing a powerful crack that split the air. Ash merely stared at him, his stance unchanged.

Apparently displeased by this, the hulking REST-man charged, spewing curses.

As the distance between them closed, a low, brief tearing sound rang out.

SHFF!

The huge man, who had looked ready to bring his fist crashing down at any moment, stopped moving altogether. Bewildered disbelief filled his eyes.

A moment later, his upper body slid to the ground along a diagonal cut.

He had been cleanly sliced in two.

By the very rusted pipe they had mocked a moment ago.

A rusted pipe...

Had cut through a person?

"A-aaagh!"

"This is fucking insane...!"

Witnessing their companion’s quiet death, the REST-men hurriedly drew their weapons.

Pistols, to be precise.

"Light him up!"

BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!

Muzzle flashes flared, and a hail of lead began.

But Ash was already gone.

His figure seemed to blur like smoke, then moved through the bullets with strange, unpredictable motions.

Just when he seemed to be moving sideways, he was suddenly in front of them. When he appeared to retreat, he slipped into their flank in an instant.

Strangest of all, no matter which direction he moved, his body always faced his enemies head-on.

Like a dragon roaming among the clouds, the footwork was fluid and gliding, yet unfathomably strange.

Dragon-Form Steps.

"What is this? What the hell is this!"

"Hit him, you bastards!"

"Fuck, fuck!"

The REST-men pulled their triggers like mad, but not a single bullet touched Ash.

Then, instead of gunshots tearing through the air, only hollow clicks rang out.

They had run out of ammunition.

Time to reload.

And with that, attack and defense changed hands.

Ash’s optical sensors flashed.

In place of his fluid, elusive movements, he burst forward in a straight line.

Flying Dragon Chases Lightning.

It was a charge too swift for the eye to follow, as though he had leaped across space itself.

"Ghurk!"

Before anyone could register it, another REST-man fell with a dying cry. A fountain of blood erupted from his body, staining Ash red.

That was only the beginning.

The REST-men clustered together fell one after another. Even seeing it with their own eyes, they could scarcely believe it.

Soon, only one remained.

The yellow-toothed man who had been the first to kick and threaten Akina.

All that carnage in the time it took to reload once.

"Uh... uuuaah...!"

The overwhelming spectacle before him had left him utterly stupefied.

"M-monster... It’s a monster...!"

Yellow Teeth instinctively searched for a way to survive.

Looking desperately around, he spotted Akina staring blankly at Ash. Come to think of it, the two seemed to know each other.

Couldn’t he use her as a hostage, then?

He reached for her.

"Hey! Get over here! You bitch—"

But before his hand could touch Akina, a flash of light streaked past.

SHLACK!

His right hand flew into the air, accompanied by a fountain of blood.

"AAAAARGH!"

Ash had closed in before he knew it and swung the bloodied pipe, cutting precisely through his wrist.

"Aaaah, aaaaagh!!"

He clutched his spurting wrist and screamed. But even that did not last long. Ash took his head off.

A ghastly crack rang out.

Silence engulfed the waste disposal yard.

Traces of slaughter lay scattered all around. The aftermath alone was horrific enough to send chills down one’s spine.

It was far too cruel, too filled with killing intent to be called the swordsmanship of a Kunlun Sect Taoist, one who supposedly kept company with the pure, serene energies of Mount Kunlun.

And rightly so.

Ash was no Taoist.

He was merely a blood-soaked swordsman who had abandoned everything for revenge.

"..."

Ash looked at the pipe dripping blood, then turned his head. His coldly shining teal optical sensors settled on Akina.

"Lady A, are you unharmed?"

At his voice, Akina flinched involuntarily. Such was the terror inspired by the humanoid drenched in blood.

Watching her, Ash’s optical sensors flickered faintly. Suddenly, memories of the past overlaid Akina’s frightened face like static.

It had happened after he cut down the bandits in some mountain stronghold. There had been a terrified girl then, too, just as there was now.

Kunlun’s Blood Immortal had extended his hand to the kidnapped girl, asking her to come down the mountain with him. She had screamed and backed away.

["Stay away from me! You monster!"]

He had been her savior, yet also an object of terror.

'Why do those memories return now?'

An inexplicable bitterness consumed Ash’s processor. Even after coming to the Underworld, he had not changed in the slightest.

Then it happened.

"Mister," Akina said.

"You’re... Mr. Ash, right?"

Ash slowly nodded.

"I am."

Suddenly, Akina’s face rushed closer through the glitching static that overlaid memory and reality.

She had thrown her arms around Ash’s steel body, filthy with blood and grease.

"...!"

At her unexpected action, he felt as though every system had stopped.

"Did you come to save me?"

"... Something of the sort."

"Really?"

"Indeed."

"... Thank you. I was so scared."

The girl was telling the truth. Even now, she was trembling faintly.

Ash hesitated, then released the blood-soaked pipe and gently patted her back.

He felt warmth.

Now that he thought about it, it had been so very long since he had felt warmth like this. Not only in this life, but in his previous one as well.

That faint warmth shattered the glitching static that had shown him his past.

After a while, Akina spoke.

"Mister, what exactly are you?"

"I do not understand the question."

"I haven’t installed any combat software yet. How can you fight like that?"

How should he explain it?

After a moment’s consideration, Ash answered.

"My body merely remembers."

"Huh? But I’m the one who put your body together."

"... That is not what I meant. More importantly..."

Ash turned to look at the mechanical arm lying on the ground.

"Is that my arm?"

"Oh! Right!"

Akina released him from her embrace and quickly fetched it.

"This is really expensive. It even has a built-in blade! Want me to show you?"

With an awkward movement, she worked something on the mechanical arm. The back of it split open, and a long blade shot out.

"Isn’t that fucking awesome?"

"... It does seem wondrous indeed. But where in the world did you obtain such cyberware?"

"I stole it."

For a moment, Ash was speechless.

"Hehe. Let’s get your left arm attached already!"

"... Lady A. Might we move elsewhere first? From what I know, these thugs belong to a rather substantial force."

"Oh, right!"

Akina hurried over to his side.

"I think we’ll have to abandon the workshop, too. It’s a little earlier than planned, but what can we do?"

Ash nodded.

"I agree."

"I know someone. He’s an old man who used to be a pretty big-shot Pathfinder, but now he’s retired and just hangs around running a bar. He’s in the Gateway District. Shall we head there for now?"

Ash nodded at Akina’s ceaseless chatter.

"As you wish. But this Gateway District..."

"Hm? Oh. Right. It’s in Sanctum."

"Sanctum..."

The waste disposal yard where they stood was part of Sanctum’s outskirts.

Without thinking, Ash raised his head.

"You mean that place?"

"Yes."

Not far away, structures resembling immense walls—or cliffs—made of light rose endlessly toward the sky.

Their overwhelming scale and strange beauty were beyond comparison with any majestic castle or mountain range.

As he gazed at the citadel of light as though bewitched, he felt a faint warmth at his fingertips.

Akina had taken his hand. When he turned to look at her, she spoke with a hint of embarrassment.

"Um, I still can’t stop shaking..."

Without a word, Ash closed his hand around the girl’s small one. Seemingly pleased, Akina gave him a bright smile.

"Hehe. Shall we go, then?"

"Let us."

A girl and a humanoid.

Leaving the darkness of the waste yard behind, the two set off toward the city ablaze with dazzling, multicolored light.

They could not yet know where those steps would lead.

But one thing was certain: neither walked alone.