Chapter 51 - EP.2 Mountains of Corpses, Seas of Blood 5

"To be honest, that is very difficult to believe."

"Did I not warn you?"

"Even so, the owner of an ancient civilization? Are you saying you somehow leaped across well over a thousand years? No human could live that long..."

Zero suddenly looked at Ash.

He was not human.

He was a machine.

"... But in your case, I suppose it might not be entirely impossible... Ha, honestly, what am I even saying...?"

Ash addressed the bewildered Zero.

"Then how about this? I actually came from another world. A world without Sanctum, cyberware, Grotesques, or Sentinels."

"Are you making fun of me?"

"I spent quite some time debating whether to tell you, precisely because I feared you would think so."

Ash added,

"But there is one thing I can say with certainty. The Thirteen Swords of the Cloud Dragon you learned is unquestionably Kunlun swordsmanship."

"Yes. I know. It is Kunlun-Combat, after all."

"No. Not Koon-loon—Kunlun. Kūnlún."

"Koon-loon?"

"Kun... Never mind. Let us leave it at that."

The two swordsmen fell silent for a moment.

Underland's damp wind passed between them, moaning softly.

Having gathered his thoughts in the meantime, Zero spoke.

"For now... I shall believe your first answer. That you owned the ancient civilization. That seems the more plausible of the two, at least."

"You believe me?"

"Yes. You do not seem like someone who would joke about such things. Besides, from my perspective, simply knowing you are not an Omni-Cell pursuer is enough."

'Come to think of it, did he say he escaped from a research facility?'

With a vague understanding of Zero's circumstances, Ash nodded.

"You need not worry about that. As I told you before, Omni-Cell is as good as an enemy to me."

"... An enemy. Might I ask why?"

"Revenge. Though this conversation has given me another reason."

"Another reason? What sort of reason...?"

Just as Zero was about to ask,

"Mr. Ash!"

A woman's voice rang out, quiet but urgent.

They turned to find Siren running toward them from the hideout.

She flinched at the sight of Zero's black-and-crimson eyes, but quickly turned away, apparently deciding that was not important right now.

"What is it?"

Reaching them in moments, Siren held out the PDA in her hand.

"Memoryphilia is making its move."

The PDA's screen showed a live feed that looked as though someone was secretly filming it with a drone.

The location was Club Inferno—or rather, the plaza directly outside it.

On the screen, gang members who appeared to belong to Memoryphilia were busily handing things out to the people gathered in the plaza.

Credit cards.

Cheap stimulants.

Guns. Even explosives.

Mercenaries and ninjas stood in endless lines, then entered Inferno laden with the supplies they had been given.

It looked like an army mustering recruits on the eve of a great war.

"That's not all."

Siren operated the PDA, bringing up another view.

This time, the images appeared to be surveillance footage of Underland's main thoroughfares.

In every pane of the split screen, armed Memoryphilia forces were erecting barricades.

"... They are cutting off the escape routes," Zero murmured.

Ash questioned him.

"Which escape routes?"

"Every location they are blocking is a major thoroughfare one must pass through to reach the surface. In other words, they are sealing off Underland."

"What? Is Memoryphilia truly that large an organization? Large enough to seal off Underland?"

"They are a large organization, but not to this extent. They must be spending every last credit they have saved."

Zero rummaged inside his clothes.

"To recover this."

What emerged in his hand was the kill switch.

Ash looked between it and the PDA's screen, then raised his head to face Siren and Zero.

"We must make our move as well."

They both nodded at once.

* * *

The hideout, with its blinking blue emergency lights, had become an operations room charged with urgency.

Siren placed a large data pad on the old table in the center.

"Let us assess the situation. Ah, but first..."

Ash had approached the table to study the hologram when he turned his head. The three ninjas stood there, looking somewhat awkward.

"You are all awake. Are any of you feeling unwell?"

The one in the middle stepped forward.

"We are all well."

The wolf-masked ninja, the second eldest, continued.

"My younger siblings here cannot speak. They lost their vocal cords during the experiments... With your permission, I would like to thank you on their behalf."

"Of course."

At that, the second eldest and the two ninjas flanking him bowed deeply, their movements perfectly coordinated, as though rehearsed.

"It is thanks to you that we were able to awaken. You have our sincerest gratitude."

Ash nodded.

"Courtesy demands that I respond to your thanks with due formality, but as you can see, the situation is urgent. I ask your understanding."

"Yes. Of course."

"Then raise your heads. We must now discuss what comes next."

The three ninjas quietly straightened and took their places behind Zero.

After watching them for a moment, Ash turned to Siren.

"What is the precise situation?"

Pointing to the holographic map above the table, she swiftly explained.

"At a rough estimate, over a hundred people have gathered at Inferno. Most are mercenaries blinded by money, but there are quite a few hardened ninjas among them."

As Siren spoke, Zero enlarged the live feed floating beside the hologram.

It showed the plaza outside Inferno.

He pointed out two particularly conspicuous figures in the crowd.

"Two senior figures are gathering at Inferno as well."

The first person Zero indicated was a hulking middle-aged man in a worn exploration suit. Seemingly oblivious to the commotion around him, he walked into Inferno while fondling the breasts of the woman tucked under his arm.

"His name is Jack Five. A retired Pathfinder. He now handles Memoryphilia's 'security.'"

Zero's finger moved to the other figure.

It was a woman in a black dress, her reverse-jointed cyberware legs particularly striking.

"Aria?" Siren murmured at the sight of her.

"You know that woman?"

"Oh, not personally. She's just a famous ninja in Underland."

She continued, watching Aria in the hologram.

"I doubt there's anyone in Underland who hasn't heard of her. A deranged killer, but undeniably skilled—that's her reputation, I'd say."

"You seem well informed."

Siren turned toward Zero at his remark, only to flinch involuntarily at his black-and-crimson eyes.

"Yes, well... But I didn't know she was still active."

"Aria currently serves as the Maestro's bodyguard. Most likely bought off with money. Or... her memories were altered."

Zero went on to single out several more people, reciting information about those who warranted particular caution. Most were active ninjas in Underland.

Piece by piece, the information came together.

The enemy numbered over a hundred.

Renowned fighters had gathered as well.

"And the Maestro?"

At Ash's question, Zero pointed to the very top of Inferno.

"Likely in the 'Chamber of Contemplation,' the VIP lounge on Club Inferno's top floor. That is Memoryphilia's heart. I have never been inside myself, so I cannot be certain, but the signal amplifier is very likely there as well."

"I see."

"That is the general layout. So..."

Zero ventured a question.

"What would you suggest we do?"

"Hm?"

At that coaxing tone, Ash looked up at Zero. His black-and-crimson eyes were shining with an incongruous eagerness.

Even Siren was doing the same.

She, too, was watching Ash with bright, expectant eyes.

"... Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Are we using a broadcast again? Or, I don't know, the REST-men?"

Ash understood why they were gazing at him so intently. Apparently, they had been quite taken with his previous lure operation.

But he shook his head, dashing their expectations.

"Facing an enemy as thoroughly prepared as this is no simple matter."

"Ah... I suppose not."

"Though I do have experience facing such an enemy..."

"I knew it!"

Siren beamed.

"Let's go with that!"

"Without even hearing it?"

"It's your plan, isn't it, Mr. Ash?"

Zero picked up where she left off.

"What is the plan?"

Ash stroked his chin for a moment before answering in his electronic voice.

"I would hardly call it a plan..."

His teal optical sensors flashed.

"Perhaps you could call it... the Central Plains approach?"

The Central Plains approach.

At those enigmatic words, everyone present stared blankly at one another.

* * *

At Club Inferno's main entrance, the Memoryphilia guard on duty yawned repeatedly. Not because he was bored. Quite the opposite.

'Fuck, how many more are coming?'

Mercenaries and ninjas kept pouring in without end.

Managing them, handing out supplies, and ushering them inside had become a nonstop task.

The man was utterly exhausted.

After a quick glance around, he sidled over to lean beside the steel doors. Slouching really was the most comfortable way to stand.

Then something caught his eye.

Far away, a shaft of light appeared in Underland's darkness.

"What's that?"

Squinting, he made out what looked like vehicle headlights. Apparently someone else had caught the scent of money.

But something was wrong.

Specifically, the speed at which the lights were approaching.

"Hey! You see that? Why's it going so fast?"

Several nearby guards turned at his shout. To them, too, the approaching vehicle's speed looked fucking alarming.

In the blink of an eye, what had been a mere point of light became an enormous shape.

"Huh? Wh-what?"

The vehicle finally came into view.

It was no ordinary vehicle.

It was a fully customized armored vehicle, sheathed in steel to cross the deadly Outer.

By the time they realized what it was, it was already too late.

CRAAASH!!

The armored vehicle—the Revenant—tore through Inferno's main entrance like paper and burst inside.

"Wh-what, what the fuck!"

Amid the deafening crash, shock wave, and flying debris, guards tumbled in every direction. The lobby became a scene of utter chaos in an instant.

At the center of it all, the Revenant's rear hatch opened.

The first to emerge was a humanoid wearing a black exploration suit.

Five others followed.

Four masked ninjas and a beautiful woman.

Six people in all stepped out.

Every one of them wore a sword.

As the six newly arrived swordsmen surveyed their surroundings, radiating a razor-sharp menace, Ash, standing in the center, spoke in a low electronic voice.

"Then let us begin."

At his words, they all drew their swords.

The Central Plains approach Ash had spoken of...

Was a frontal assault.