Chapter 47 - EP.2 Mountains of Corpses, Seas of Blood

Siren led the two swordsmen to an abandoned water treatment facility. Empty reservoirs gaped grotesquely, and inside one lay a cleverly concealed chamber.

Thick dust filled the hideout, as though no one had set foot inside for a long time. But that also made it an excellent refuge, completely sealed off from outside threats.

"Here we are."

Her voice echoed softly, perhaps because the space had originally been a reservoir.

"A fine place."

Siren nodded at Ash's words and immediately flipped a switch on the wall. The blue light on the ceiling flickered several times before giving off a faint glow.

"Luckily, it still works."

Bathed in pale blue light, the three sword wielders gazed at one another for a moment.

"... Then let us begin our discussion."

Ash was the first to move amid the chilly silence. Slowly, he drew his blade.

"What the—!"

Zero hastily drew back, moving a hand to his waist.

"Do not be alarmed."

Ash addressed him in a low electronic voice, setting his blade on the table in the center of the hideout.

"I merely wish to make things clear."

Having placed his blade on the table, Ash took a step back. Zero glanced between him and the weapon before speaking quietly.

"You want me to put down my sword?"

"We are hardly overflowing with trust for one another, are we? I believe this much is necessary if we are to focus on each other's words rather than hands."

"..."

As the two swordsmen faced off in a tense battle of nerves, Siren hesitated briefly, then drew her blade and set it beside Ash's. Zero looked from Ash to Siren and let out a quiet sigh.

"... It feels rather like stripping naked."

"You must never let go of your sword, even for a moment."

"Life has not been kind enough to allow it."

Muttering those few words, Zero drew his somewhat shorter blade and laid it on the table.

The three differently shaped blades formed a triangle on the tabletop. Amid the strange sense of kinship and taut tension, Ash spoke.

"How about we take turns asking one question and answering it? We must answer each other's questions sincerely, without the slightest lie."

"A good idea."

Ash nodded.

"Very well. Since I proposed it, you may ask first. Ask whatever you wish to know. I shall hold nothing back."

Zero considered this for a moment. The first question he finally asked was rather unexpected.

"How is Big Brother Rudolph? Is he alive?"

An unusual light shone in Ash's optical sensors.

"... Quite an impressive first question."

"That does not answer it, Ash."

"Ah. Forgive me."

Ash gave a brief nod.

"He is alive, and receiving treatment. An old acquaintance is looking after him, so you need not worry."

"I... see. That is a relief."

"Then it is my turn."

Ash took the data chip from inside his clothing.

"What is this?"

Staring at the data chip, Zero answered Ash's question.

"An administrator access key for Dreamweaver, Memoryphilia's proprietary memory-editing algorithm. More precisely, you could call it a kill switch. One capable of resetting everything."

"A kill switch..."

"... Did you truly know nothing about it? About what that chip means?"

"I was told nothing. I merely accepted a commission to return this chip to its 'rightful owner' and put an end to the conflict."

"Who in the world gave you such a commission?"

Ash shook his head.

"It is my turn to ask."

"What... But you just asked your question, did you not?"

"Did you not ask whether I truly knew nothing?"

"... Ah, damn."

Zero let out a faint groan.

"Now, my next question."

Ash turned the chip between his fingers so that its holographic label, [DREAMWEAVER], was visible.

"Why do you need the kill switch?"

"..."

Zero realized something.

One question, one answer. Despite its apparent simplicity, this rule demanded enormous mental effort: the total amount of information one gained could vary drastically depending on the question asked. This was more than simply taking turns. It required the cunning to read the other person's cards while keeping one's own concealed as much as possible.

They had exchanged only a few brief questions and answers, yet a disparity in the information they had gained was already emerging. Ash was a far more difficult opponent than he had expected.

Zero sighed faintly beneath his mask.

'He has me dancing to his tune. Right from the start.'

Zero pushed those thoughts into a corner of his mind. It was his turn to answer now. After a moment's consideration, he slowly spoke.

"For Underland."

"... Hmm."

Ash folded his arms.

"Is that not a rather halfhearted answer? What point is there in talking if you take that approach?"

"... It was a little, wasn't it?"

"I shall ask again. Why do you need the kill switch?"

Zero fell silent for a moment. When he finally spoke, much poured out.

"... To save my younger brothers and sisters. Their memories have been altered by Dreamweaver, turning them into puppets of someone called the Maestro."

Anger he could not conceal seeped through his level delivery.

"And they are not the only ones. Countless people in Underland have had their memories altered and now serve him loyally. Some commit murder against their will; others are stripped bare and made into prostitutes. All with a single gesture from the Maestro!"

Zero pointed at the data chip.

"I need that chip to restore their memories. The kill switch that can reset every memory imposed on them."

As Zero poured out his words, almost as though venting his sorrows, Ash quickly pieced together everything that had happened so far.

Rudolph's sudden arrival. The ninjas who had pursued him and attacked the rest stop. The data chip Santa had handed over. The tiger-masked ninja, Zero. Memoryphilia. Dreamweaver.

Within Ash's main core, all the scattered fragments of information began fitting together into one enormous picture.

'I see. So that was it.'

Rudolph was no mere thief. He was a righteous fixer who, together with Zero, had stolen the kill switch—the only key to saving so many brainwashed people.

Unaware of this, Santa had simply tried to settle everything by 'returning' the data chip.

Santa's choice had certainly been right. He had merely sought to undo the entire conflict to protect himself, his junior, and the rest stop they called home. Ash himself had agreed to the plan.

But there was something neither Santa nor Ash had known: the data chip's true significance and weight.

"It is my turn to ask now, correct?"

Zero's words snapped Ash out of his thoughts, and he raised his head.

"Go ahead."

"Why are you trying to return that chip to Memoryphilia? It must not fall into their hands again. After everything Big Brother Rudolph and I went through to obtain—"

"Because they threatened my home. In the course of events, I realized that this data chip was at the heart of all the trouble. I intended to return it and settle every grievance between us. Truthfully, I was hardly fond of the method, but at the time, there was no other choice."

After turning the chip this way and that in his hand for a moment, Ash raised his head and stared straight at Zero.

"But no longer. I have found a better, more righteous course."

Then he tossed Zero the data chip.

"... H-huh?"

Caught entirely off guard, Zero made a bewildered sound and caught the chip awkwardly. As he ran his fingers over it for a moment, Ash spoke.

"My turn now, is it?"

His mind suddenly blank, Zero stumbled over his words.

"Uh, what does this mean—"

"What do you intend to do once you have saved your brothers and sisters?"

Zero could not keep up with the rapidly shifting conversation.

"Where is this coming from all of a sudden?"

"Manipulating people's memories at will and making them do whatever one pleases? I find that quite distasteful. And the threats against me and my acquaintances were utterly offensive. So I am thinking of wiping out this organization called Memoryphilia. Would you happen to be interested?"

"Uh... what?"

Zero blinked a couple of times, his face blank with bewilderment. Fortunately, his mask spared anyone the sight.

* * *

A brief silence settled over the hideout at Ash's unexpected act. For some reason, Siren was gazing at him with sparkling eyes.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Though Ash asked, she merely kept blinking at him without saying anything. For some reason, her gaze made him distinctly uncomfortable.

Zero, by contrast, had retreated into his own world, interacting with neither of them as he clutched the data chip Ash had given him like a treasure.

After a while, he spoke.

"Can I trust you?"

His voice was full of wariness, but a careful listener could tell that was not all. There was elation at finally obtaining the kill switch. Surging anger toward Memoryphilia. Sorrow for his brothers and sisters, who would be under someone else's control even now.

And finally, a fighting spirit rising in response to Ash's declaration that he would wipe them all out. All manner of emotions seemed to rage within him.

Looking at Zero, Ash spoke in his electronic voice.

"If you say that even after I have handed over the data chip, what more must I prove? Could complete trust even exist between us in the first place?"

He gave a low chuckle.

"At times like these, you simply go. No weighing the odds, no questioning everything. Forward."

"... Forward."

Clutching the data chip, Zero raised his head.

"Very well."

His previously bewildered voice now held a single purpose. A kind of resolve.

"I will stand with you."

Ash gave a brief nod.

"That is reassuring."

"Ah, but there is one thing."

Zero's gaze shifted to the three blades on the table.

"Do we not still have something to discuss?"

He meant their swords. In essence, his question was: Why do you use the same swordsmanship as I do?

Like Zero, Ash gazed at the three swords on the table for a long time.

"..."

After a while, he slowly nodded.

"... Indeed. We have yet to discuss that. But let us leave it for now. Would it not make sense to deal with the matter at hand first?"

"... I suppose you are not wrong."

"Good. Then let us devise a plan. Rescuing your brothers and sisters seems the best place to start. Do you have a strategy?"

Zero shook his head.

"Not particularly. Until now, I have focused on obtaining the kill switch and learning how to use it."

"How to use it? Could you explain in more detail?"

Zero raised an arm and extended two fingers.

"There are two methods. First, insert it into the memory slot of someone whose memories have been edited, then speak the reset activation phrase."

"... That is all?"

"Yes. Big Brother Rudolph said he tested it, so it is certain."

"I see. And the other?"

"The other method uses a signal amplifier said to be hidden in Club Inferno, Memoryphilia's headquarters. It would allow us to awaken many people at once. But as I mentioned earlier..."

"We would have to infiltrate their headquarters. A considerable risk."

"Correct."

Nodding at Ash's words, Zero continued.

"That is why I intended to lure out my brothers and sisters one by one, awakening those within reach with the kill switch."

"How many are there in all?"

"Three."

Three. Presumably, the ones who had attacked the rest stop were all of them.

"A good method. But there are variables to consider. Once we capture one, they will surely tighten their guard. If things go wrong, they might take your brothers and sisters hostage."

Zero let out a deep sigh.

"You are right."

Ash lowered his head for a moment, rubbing his chin. Then his optical sensors lit up, as though something had suddenly occurred to him.

"Memoryphilia is pursuing the data chip. Now, what do you suppose they would do if it were about to fall into hands far more difficult to deal with than ours?"

"... They would try to stop it before that happened."

"Then would they not play their best cards? Your brothers and sisters, for instance."

"Naturally, but... would it not be difficult to create such a situation?"

"Extremely. We would be setting the stage from scratch at this point."

Ash turned his head.

"But do we not have Lady Siren?"

His gaze had come to rest on Siren. She had been quietly listening to their conversation, but now looked from side to side in bewilderment.

"Uh, huh? Who, me? Me? How?"

"My lady."

Ash rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Did you happen to bring your broadcast drone?"