Chapter 268: CH 267

Feb 25 2021

Once I came to, my consciousness was back in the server room.

It seems that I had collapsed where I stood, so the Pope, Lily-sama, and Irie all looked at me with worry.

“Has your consciousness returned? Rei Taylor.”

“Rei-san… I’m so glad…!”

“We were worried…”

As I propped myself up, the three all looked at me in relief.

Though the Pope remained relatively expressionless, it appeared that Lily-sama and Irie had been quite worried. Lily-sama was practically on the verge of tears.

Though I wanted to apologize for worrying them and offer console, there was something that I must ask before any of that.

“What about Claire-sama?”

Before diving into the system, Claire-sama was nowhere to be found.

Though I was confident that I had succeeded in releasing her consciousness, I didn’t know for sure how that would reflect in reality.

“If you mean Claire François, she’s here.”

When I looked, it turned out the Pope was holding Claire-sama in her arms.

“Thank goodness…”

It seems the operation to reclaim her had been a success.

Claire-sama’s face was also in a good hue and it appeared that she could awake at any moment.

“To think that you would really take back Claire-sama’s consciousness, I can’t believe it.”

This voice, a mix of both exasperation and admiration, belonged to TAIM.

She stood in the very same position that she had when I first dived into the system.

Using her holographic body to its fullest, she made her surprise clear.

“You really underestimated my bond with Claire-sama, didn’t you TAIM. Your ambitions come to an end here.”

“I suppose. As Claire François has returned, the administrator privileges will belong to her.”

“In that case―”

“That’s right.”

At that very moment, TAIM’s face was dyed with ecstasy.

“If things continue to proceed as they are, that is.”

A crevice opened between us and the mainframe, allowing something giant to rise up.

It wasn’t just one thing either.

There were enough that we couldn’t count them with our fingers.

“W-what is… that…!”

“A monster…?”

“Incorrect. Those are… scientific weapons.”

The Pope corrected the words that Lily-sama and Irie had spoken out of fear.

At first, they only looked like clumps of metal.

Their surface was coated in a metallic black lustre, showing off how hard they were.

Countless lines split the clumps as they came apart before putting themselves back together, transforming into multiple grotesque monsters.

“Chimaera…?”

Though what they were composed of was different, they had taken the form of the chimaera Claire-sama and I had defeated together in the past.

Once the metals had completed their transformation into the grotesque shapes, a gold flash lit their eyes.

“I based the design off of something within Claire François’ subconscious. Once the privileges are transferred, there will no longer be anything that I can do. But before the transfer completes, it’s a different story. For the sake of humanity’s continued survival, I’ll have you all perish here.”

Alongside TAIM’s words, the chimaeras screeched their war cries.

As they stepped forward with a thud, the entire server room shook.

They did appear to be declaring our end.

“What should we do?”

“What do you mean, what should we do? It doesn’t really appear that they’ll just let us escape, Pope.”

“S-so, are we going to fight? Against that?”

“Our chances seem slim.”

Though the four of us had our own reactions, broadly speaking they were all the same―there was no way we could take on something like that.

Even with conservative estimates, the chimaera were all at least 5, if not 6 meters tall.

I tried casting Judecca, but that didn’t even leave a single scratch.

“Of course I have no intention of letting you escape.”

The door to the server room closed behind us.

It appeared the time we bought by using a hole in the decisionary council to stall the defense system had expired.

We should’ve realized when the chimaera began popping out, but it was all too late.

“… How unbearably noisy.”

“Claire-sama! You’ve woken up!”

“It was quite the rude awakening. What is up with those ugly clamoring monsters…”

“Well you see…”

I gave a quick explanation of the situation.

Claire-sama simply let out an uninterested yawn,

“So, simply put, we must defeat those beasts, right? Isn’t that rather trivial?”

“Defeat them… you mean those…?”

“But of course?”

I wanted to ask, how? But Claire-sama’s expression was brimming with confidence.

“I can’t make any definitive claims, but I do believe there’s something I’d like to try.”

“What’s that?”

“Come now, there’s something that TAIM went out of her way to teach us, isn’t there? For quite a while now I’ve wanted to use it, but because the opportunity never presented itself, I’ve become rather eager.”

“Ah…”

That’s right, come to think of it, we did have that.

In the end, because we never had the opportunity to use it during our fight with the Demon Queen, and since Claire-sama had been missing for the past while, it had slipped my mind.

“! I won’t let you! Burn them to the ground!”

In accordance with TAIM’s panicked words, the chimaera all opened their mouths.

From deep within their throats, a light seemed to pour outward.

I was certain it was an attack appropriate for an enemy that would appear at this stage.

If it were to land, there was no way we were getting off easy.

However―

“Then… shall we let loose?”

“Yes, I believe we shall.”

I no longer felt that it was possible for us to lose.

Claire-sama and I held hands, interlocking fingers, while pointing our magic wands at the chimaera with our other hands

As we held hands, I could feel power overflowing from them.

“I’ll be using Magic Ray.”

“Then, I’ll use Absolute Zero.”

At this stage of the game, what we were going to release was of course―our Chorus.

“Disappear, Rei Taylor, Claire François!”

“The one who’ll disappear―”

“Will be none other than you!!”

As a burning rapture enveloped us both, I felt my magic melting together with Claire-sama’s.

The mixed magical energy coursed through our bodies, through our fingers, and then converged all onto our wands.

Fire and water, these two elements that are normally opposite to each other had come together. They were just like Claire-sama and I, rife with contradictions and yet had come together, forming a harmonious light that gushed forth.

The server room was filled by this light.

“… It can’t be…?”

Once the dazzling brilliance settled, TAIM’s voice, overcome by shock, echoed.

The torrent of light that resulted from my Chorus with Claire-sama had erased all of the Chimaera without a trace.

“Have you had enough? I can’t seem to place why, but I’m at my peak. If you intend to continue, I’ll be your opponent as many times as it takes.”

“If Claire-sama’s up for it, there’s no way I’d sit out. I mean, she’s my wife after all !”

“W-wife…?”

“Oh nothing. Come on, what will it be, TAIM?”

Though we provoked her, TAIM did not show any more signs of aggression.

“Really… this is why humans are…”

“Should I take those as the grumbles of a sore loser?”

“Yes, that’s right, Rei Taylor. The transfer of administrator privileges also appears to be complete. I am no longer able to harm Claire François.”

“Fufu… fufufu… so then we’ve won! Ohーho, ho, ho!”

Claire-sama’s shrill laughter too, sounded much more comforting than it usually did.

Perhaps now, it would be okay to truly believe that things were over.

“So I lost… In the end, perhaps humans simply aren’t something that can be perfectly managed…”

“My, it appears that you’ve come to understand humans quite well yourself.”

“Even if I come to understand at this point, it’s already too late…”

“That’s not at all true. From now on, we must have you become humanity’s good friend that shall walk alongside us.”

“Friend…?”

TAIM’s expression was filled with surprise.

“Is that so strange? Have you not already spent an absurd amount of time with us? Humanity can’t so easily come by a friend greater than you.”

“I’m a… friend…”

TAIM repeated the words, chewing through them, she appeared to be taken aback.

That Claire-sama, discontent with humans, she was even seducing an AI.

This was why I could never put out all of the fires.

“TAIM.”

“What is it, Rei Taylor?”

“I have no intention of giving Claire-sama to you, got it?”

“… I wonder about that. Though I may have given up on the administrator privileges, I am a high spec AI that tends to fixate myself on a variety of things after all.”

“Is that so? Fu, fu, fu…”

“Fufufu…”

“You two, you’re giving off quite a scary look, you know?”

““And who’s fault do you think that is!””

“Eeeh…”

Claire-sama appeared to be saying, ‘What are you blaming me for?’.

This was why oblivious womanizers―or rather, womanAIzers were…

“I don’t really get it, but is it okay to assume things have been settled? If so, let’s get back up. I just can’t seem to settle down here.”

“A-agreed.”

Irie’s suggestion was a very appropriate one.

Lily-sama expressed agreement, and the Pope nodded as well.

“TAIM, for the time being, I ask that you entrust the loop system to me. I’ll make sure things are handled properly.”

“You’re willing to take it over?”

“Not me, specifically. The responsibilities are simply too heavy for any individual to bear alone. We’ll enlist cooperators and decide on a proper procedure, we’ll have humanity decide.”

“…”

“The more important something is, the more dangerous it is that a sole person makes the decision. We must share the responsibility and the risks.

“… How very human.”

“Yes.”

With those words, Claire-sama turned her heel.

“Now, Rei.”

“Yes, Claire-sama.”

“Let’s return… to our home.”

“Yes!”

Leaping into an embrace with Claire-sama, I embraced her with all of my might.