ch105

“…Shit?”

I had a terrible dream.

A fleeting mistake, the unpleasantness of having the remnants of a past where I briefly failed to restrain myself dredged up one by one rises. …It even felt like exaggerations far from the truth were added, resulting in tremendous distortions.

“No, that’s……!!”

I wanted to actively argue that it absolutely wasn’t like that, but I didn’t even know who I should convince… Anyway, it was fucking weird.

It must be all because I got caught up in some shitty, useless criminal escapade while feeling unsettled from taking my meds and worrying.

My stress levels were already through the roof because there were so many hiccups for such a crucial fresh start, and now sleep disorders are tormenting me too.

They could have at least given me a little bit of future information, but what is this?

“…It’s all your fault.”

…? If there is anything wrong, I will correct it immediately. –

Scolding Zero as a way to vent didn’t change anything.

If anything, it was closer to a negative action. It hadn’t even been that long since I comforted him, saying that everyone makes mistakes, but suddenly pinning the original sin on him couldn’t possibly be the right way to educate him.

“…Sorry, I was mistaken for a moment.”

It was a truly awkward and pathetic apology, but he returned to standby mode faithfully without a word of complaint.

Just please don’t go astray.

Rustle… Rustle.

Lying back down on the plush cabin bed, I touched and checked various parts of my body where the tingling scent of a compress lingered.

My back and shoulder, which I hit when I fell, my fingers that were gripping the gun so tightly they felt stiff, and above all, the unsightly bruise on my stomach.

Thanks to the bruise patch I had secretly taken from the medical room on the way back, I barely felt any sensation that could be described as pain.

But that didn’t mean I had enough time to get rid of all the accumulated fatigue.

“Ugh… cha!”

I whipped my muscles, which were trying to slack off irresponsibly, to get up, snatched the drink that came with the late-provided Cartridge Meal, and brought it to my mouth.

No one would say anything even if I lay in bed and charged up on carbonation, or poured it half down my collar, adding a sticky coating to the cabin furniture as a simple expression of whimsy and annoyance, but now was the moment to have a light snack and show some courtesy.

The aftermath of the daring robbery was handled very quickly, accurately, and cleanly.

…Except for the fact that the criminals, who soared into the sky for a miraculous escape amidst the corporate forces, rescue teams, and railway maintenance workers closing in, melted into an ultra-high-calorie explosion and turned into nutrients for the desert.

Did the travel insurance itself have a contract where the compensation increased the longer the delay?

Anyway, the anger of the companies that were actually going to have to pay damages for the first time in years was quite considerable.

While the border guards were interviewing the passengers, the brought-in technicians were busy rushing to the tracks and the train to cover up the damaged parts, and the accompanying attack helicopters were… really combing the surrounding area.

Judging by the occasional gunshots, it seemed like there were scavengers loitering around looking for something to pick up or wild animals gathering at the scent of blood, and I could once again realize that being in the wrong place at the wrong time was a capital offense.

In any case, the tracks were repaired with parts prepared like fitting together block-shaped toys.

The train, which had its holes plugged with some kind of strange foamy spray, barely started again.

…So, what about my interview, who caused more chaos than anyone except for the robbers?

The excuse I had prepared, ‘It was an improvisation as a former police officer~,’ didn’t even see the light of day. Before I could even open my mouth, the person in charge who approached me first bowed his head at a right angle and left.

“……”

Slurp! The tingling liquid went down my esophagus.

It had been a long time since we passed the tiresome pseudo-Quicksand Zone. The outside scenery was plastered with a chaotic mess of makeshift buildings.

If Harvest Planet felt like it was accommodating refugee camps inside the walls, within the city, this place welcomed visitors with a gloomy village that naturally formed and parasitized from around the outer walls.

Even the types of advertisements flowing in through Cyberware were drastically different.

Originally, there were many adult advertisements, product advertisements, and consumption-encouraging promotions, but now, business cards for Credits loans and insurance services are already coming in haphazardly.

Ignoring those and looking ahead, I could see the black pillar soaring beyond the clouds into the sky, the orbital elevator.

The faint green light emitted from the central power plant was reflected and diffused on nearby buildings, clearly showing why this place was nicknamed Emerald City.

It wasn’t just the fact that the sun, which was shining brightly even when we departed, had abandoned us that added to the gloomy atmosphere.

This is the new capital and refuge, the roof of the well-to-do human race.

I was facing it after a very long time… and ironically, it was the first time I was setting foot in this pandemonium. Welcome to Neo Haven.

Thank you for using Astra Express A-185. We will soon be arriving at Neo Haven, Neutral Sector Station 6, so passengers please…. –

“I finally made it…!”

I hastily picked up the Suit and combat boots that I had thrown off for a good night’s sleep and put them back on.

It was finally time to move.

…I don’t mean that I’m going to implement a long-term plan that I’ve been preparing, or that I have a secret weapon to unleash as soon as I arrive, I’m just saying that I really have to get off the train, so please don’t misunderstand.

I don’t even have any connections, and if I get a delivery or get a job, I’ll have to register my residence under someone else’s home address right away, so I can’t just go around causing trouble.

“We apologize for the unfortunate accident, representing all the staff! Have a safe trip…!”

“…I’m not going to make any complaints or anonymous reports, so you can go back to work.”

Unlike the brazen announcement, the staff member, who was probably worried about just letting the first-class passenger who had been shooting around go, kept bowing and following me, so I waved my hand to indicate that it was okay.

They already said that they could provide any service within their discretion, so I had already filled a bag with snacks as a gift for Mary, so I couldn’t ask for anything more.

Clang… Clang!

Only the footsteps of one person and one Droid echoed on the steel platform.

I was incredibly awkward, wondering if they were even discriminating in the disembarkation process, but if I thought that there was another first-class passenger besides me… it would be more convenient for each other to go separately like this.

“…!! —!”

“Oh?”

I could see the two who had formed a temporary joint front waving from beyond the cabin window way over there.

I coolly brushed off Asif with a nod, and Rosalyn… no matter how much she shouted from the other side of the window, I couldn’t hear her.

As if she understood my subtle expression, she belatedly realized that there was a problem with communication and mouthed something loudly.

Let’s see… ‘Ne. xt. ti. me. I. wo. n’t. lo. se?’. …I don’t have any particular memory of it, but is friendly competition something you can do alone? I awkwardly smiled to show that I understood and said goodbye.

I don’t even expect the support of a real game system, so I wish there was a way to peek into their inner thoughts or feelings.

Everyone was so unique that there were almost no named characters who were commoners like me who worried about tomorrow, so it was damn hard to keep up with the constantly changing rhythms!

“…Ahem!”

“Ah, sorry. …Have a good day!”

I quickly passed through the checkpoint after receiving a not-so-subtle nudge from a police officer whose uniform, with the abbreviation NHPD (Neo-Haven Police Department; Neo Haven Police Department) emblazoned on it, was shining brightly.

Hmm… the Riot gear I was wearing had the letters HPPD on it, so it didn’t really feel the same, but seeing such a plausible example again made me interested in a career change…… not really.

This is a complicated neighborhood where even the police are jointly operated with funding from three Mega Corps, so you have to do political infighting as a basic, and I’d have to be crazy to crawl in there.

So, it’s better to aim for a freelance mercenary who only chases clean money that won’t cause any problems even if you eat it.

If it’s okay with you, would you like to stop by a nearby repair shop before we leave? I believe it is necessary to replenish the ammunition used and reinforce the armor. –

“…I know you’re worried, but not now. It’s already more than three hours later than the original scheduled arrival time, so I only told them not to come out to meet me earlier, and I’m even afraid to call them.”

It’s not for nothing that I prepared a comprehensive gift set of snacks for the little princess.

I didn’t even keep my promise to go play…? Anyway, I didn’t keep it, and I even kept being late until the day I arrived, so I’d be lucky if she wasn’t sulking.

No, she’s a kid who’s constantly experiencing new things every day, so I wonder if she even remembers me, who she spent about a week with half a year ago? She hasn’t been calling much lately either.

Vroom…!

Clunk.

Skillfully. I called a nearby unmanned taxi… or rather, a Driverless Cab as they call it here, through Cyberware.

I entered Ms. Sylvia’s address exactly as she told me, without missing a single syllable.

It’s really convenient that the game UI was similar to Cyberware in times like this.

If I had time, I could have tried using the Neo Haven’s famous hell train, but let’s postpone that for another time.

So now, let’s start to meet the faces I miss….

Beep!

[ For smooth vehicle operation, luggage weighing over 150kg must be loaded into the trunk! In addition, an additional fee will be charged due to the decrease in energy efficiency rating! ]

…Moving to the trunk. –

“……Damn it, wait. You have to see the capital while you’re here too. I’ll fix it in a second.”

A really trivial.

An illegal act that I’m more worried about the disapproving looks I’ll get during the investigation than the fine if I get caught is passing by. We were loaded onto the iron horse and moved along the main street.

Now that I see it… the taxi only goes on the main roads in safe areas, leaving shortcuts and alleys alone, so it’s ambiguous to see anything in particular.

Of course, there are various subsidiaries and different stores, and citizens boasting chaotic styles.

Checking out famous landmarks is good, but you can do that with the city network, so I wish Zero could see the back alleys where real history flows or meetings that change the flow, or the dangerous conflict zones, but it’s a little disappointing.

…Wait, is my mind-tendency-too gray? But in reality, missions without risk have proportionally low rewards, so I believe it’s not… wrong. Hmm.

[ Arrived at destination, General Residential Area Dover Street 47th Avenue. Thank you for using our service! If normal payment is not made within 3 minutes, the vehicle will automatically begin driving to the nearest police station…. ]

“What a load of crap.”

I paid about 5,000 Credits including the surcharge and quickly jumped out of the taxi.

What, you thought I hacked it? I only temporarily paralyzed the disrespectful regulation to move the luggage, but I didn’t touch the fare calculation itself.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far, it’s that unmanned services are usually more ruthless.

And… seeing as how things are even like this despite ExaTech churning out low-end machines pretty diligently, maybe it’s not that the service fees are expensive, but that the minimum wage has hit rock bottom….

…I might be lucky to be in a technical profession.

“Shall we go? The McQueen family’s three data entries are registered properly, right? Don’t act rudely. They’re all good people.”

After confirming Zero’s affirmation, I ascended the short landing and rang the doorbell of the impeccably maintained first floor of the villa.

I don’t know how much Mr. Schneider has saved up, but judging from this… there should be enough space in the room I’m staying in for Zero to huddle.

Click!

As if expecting a visitor, the door lock released with a cheerful sound, without any questions asked.

The current time is 9 PM. I don’t know when the peak time for modern bars is, but they certainly won’t be home now, so Ms. Sylvia will definitely be the one to come out….

“Oniiii-chaaaaaan—!!”

“Ughheuk.”

Before I could even greet Ms. Sylvia, who was beaming and happily welcoming me at the door, a cruise missile launched from inside slammed mercilessly into my gut.

My back, bent backward, trembled, and my invincible abs, which had even deflected bullets, screamed, asking if they deserved to be treated like this, but you have to understand that I couldn’t just coldly stop the little lady.

Mary, in her fluttering pajamas that amplified her adorableness twofold, gleefully rubbed her face against my suit… then noticed an unknown gaze and lifted her head.

“…?”

With a child’s unique intuition, she immediately found the source, looking at Zero once, then at me.

Again at Zero, and finally, she met my eyes.

Her sparkling eyes widened as if they were about to pop out, making it too easy to read the emotions contained within.

……Ahem, that’s not a toy for you. Even your father would be horrified by the veteran warrior he’d be fighting.