Chapter 26 – Rainy Day (5)

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 26 – Rainy Day (5)

The interior of the building was dark.

There weren’t many lights on the stairs, so the shadows were very darkly drawn.

We slowly descended the dark staircase.

“Siwoon, can you make some water for me?”

It seemed like the dried blood was uncomfortable.

Andrea stuck out her tongue and made a disgusted expression.

Almost her entire body, including her giant mechanical arms, was covered in red blood.

“That’s why you should’ve brought a gun too.”

“Ah, that wouldn’t fit in my car. Honestly, I can carry this with me by expanding the trunk, you know.”

Andrea replied, waving one of her arms. The size was always impressive, no matter how many times you saw her.

Water, huh.

I stopped in the middle of the stairs.

I concentrated briefly.

Shortly after, a mass of water floated in the air through my palm.

It was a strange sight, but also very familiar to us.

Andrea wiped away the blood droplets on herself one by one.

With her mechanical arm’s size, it would have been difficult to clean thoroughly, but it didn’t take long for Andrea to look clean.

In the past, when we were actively working on missions with colleagues, I often made water masses for Andrea.

Since we entered the building, we had encountered a total of six people.

Of course, they were all fugitives.

Terrorists, bomb-makers, gang members.

The spectrum of crimes was diverse.

Although now they had all been turned into meatballs by Andrea’s hands.

Before we entered here, Eve had mentioned it.

Seven biosignals were detected inside the building.

So it was natural to know who the remaining one was now.

We took our steps again.

Eventually, when we reached the end of the stairs, a worn and spacious room greeted us.

The concrete walls enclosing all sides were the same as the rooms we had seen so far.

But there was one difference.

In the center of the room, a woman was sitting on a chair.

Maya’s eyes met ours.

* * *

In a very ordinary and peaceful atmosphere, Maya spoke up.

“You came?”

The outer shell, slightly cracked from the turret’s bullets, was still intact.

It was all thanks to chasing straight after causing a commotion on the streets.

Moreover, since we came riding Andrea’s red supercar, it was expected.

There wouldn’t have been time for her to repair or treat it.

“How did you manage to follow me here? Did you put a tracking chip on me when you hit me?”

Maya asked, rubbing her abdomen.

It was the area I had hit hard earlier.

“Or did you learn net hacking? You seem to have changed a lot too.”

“People change.”

I replied, but in truth, I hadn’t changed.

It was all thanks to Eve’s help.

Personally, I always thought I was the same as before, whether now or then.

But in the present, where I had to conceal Eve’s identity, I couldn’t tell the truth.

I pretended to have studied enough to keep up with the conversation.

“Behind… Who’s that? I’ve never seen that face before.”

“A friend.”

“A friend, for now.”

In response to my answer that she was a friend, Andrea added something else.

Though the phrase “for now” bothered me.

At the moment, it wasn’t important.

The conversation paused, and a brief silence began.

“…Friend, huh.”

Maya tilted her head slightly.

Though her expression was blank, a very small sound escaped from her lips.

A distant, scraping sound. It was the sound of teeth grinding.

She hadn’t even thought of releasing the fist she was clutching tightly under the chair.

Maya sighed.

“…Haa.”

In the relaxed atmosphere again, Maya continued speaking.

“I understand. I’m also… aware that I’m a bit strange right now.”

Did she come to her senses again after being hit by my powerful physical magic (a punch) on the street?

Just like when she walked away, she seemed much more normal than when we first met.

Maybe this could be resolved with words.

With that thought, I addressed Maya.

“Then come with me─.”

Maya’s voice cut off my words.

Madness flickered in Maya’s eyes.

“But it can’t be helped. I just want you to only look at me. I wish you would only look at me again.”

Maya stood up.

At some point, multiple blades protruded from her wrists.

“It’s okay to be greedy, just look at only me. Always. Forever.”

It was then that her expression changed from blank to determined.

A thin line appeared at the corner of Maya’s mouth.

The atmosphere wasn’t conducive to conversation.

…I guess I’ll have to fight after all.

From a general perspective, it was a spacious room.

But to me, it felt very cramped.

It was because we were located underground. If a powerful magic were to be used causing the ceiling or walls to collapse, everyone would perish.

No matter how skilled a mage I was, or Andrea was an excellent singer, or Maya was a talented Chrome Psycho, if the situation turned that way, no one would survive.

It was fortunate that Andrea was with me in this regard.

If I had come alone, it would have been very difficult.

Thinking up to that point, I heaved a sigh of relief.

I turned around to thank Andrea for coming along.

But for some reason, Andrea’s expression was subtle.

It seemed like something was bothering her, or she looked like she was reflecting on something.

Was it because Maya’s condition was more serious than she had thought?

Hmm.

That couldn’t be it.

After all, we had encountered several Chrome Psychos while working on missions together.

“Why the expression?”

“…Well, if you’re too greedy, it can be a bit like that. I’m suddenly feeling remorseful.”

I didn’t really understand why she was feeling remorseful in the current situation.

Andrea rubbed the back of her neck.

Her mechanical arm was so large that one finger covered her entire neck.

“Ready to fight?”

“Of course, we shouldn’t kill, right?”

“Uh, I’ll ask you for a gentle arrest.”

“Sure, whatever.”

Andrea and I had a brief conversation.

The conversation was interrupted by Maya’s voice.

“What are you talking about?!”

Maya’s attack came like an arrow.

[Syncing data with the visual interface… Complete.]

Eve supported me.

She must have had a peculiar obsession, so I expected her to target me first as a mage.

But Maya made Andrea her target.

“Die!!”

“Ha… what?”

A clinking noise erupted.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Maya’s figure bounced back.

[Translator – Peptobismol]

The shape of red plasma wriggled from Andrea’s mechanical fist.

The air trembled from the shockwave caused by the electromagnetic field.

“Hey, Andrea. You know we shouldn’t kill, right?”

“I just heard it, don’t worry. I hit her very gently.”

The other escapees had turned into meatballs and flown away from being hit a moment ago.

It was questionable what the difference was.

But Andrea’s words seemed to be right.

Maya, who was thrown back against the wall, looked more intact than I had thought.

Yes.

More intact than I had thought.

One of Maya’s arms that blocked Andrea’s attack had already been shattered and disappeared.

Perhaps Maya was surprised too, as she stared blankly at her broken arm.

There was no blood.

There wasn’t that much blood in her cyberware-upgraded body.

Instead, a transparent fluid flowed out like oil with a certain viscosity.

It was a natural result.

Maya, her cyberware having been surgically installed for quite some time, would be considered outdated by today’s standards.

If it were to come out nowadays, there would inevitably be a significant difference in functionality compared to the latest cyberware.

Moreover, Andrea was the type not to spare expenses on equipment.

The reason why all the escapees we encountered on our way down had been blown away by Andrea’s punch was also for this reason.

The situation that followed was not even worthy of being called a battle.

It was completely different in terms of time taken and results from when Maya and I fought on the street.

It didn’t take long before Maya fell to the floor, losing both her arms and legs.

“Okay, that’s it.”

Andrea drew a V with her giant mechanical arm fingers.

“Thanks for your help.”

“What, do you even say thanks between us?”

She took a step back, giving Maya and me some space to talk quietly alone.

I approach the fallen Maya.

Thanks to her cyberware-modified body, even with missing limbs, she seemed unaffected physically.

However, her neural lines were still intact, so she must have been in pain.

Yet, she seemed to feel none of it.

“……”

“Sorry for being late, as before.”

“…You’re not late.”

Her mechanical eyes blink.

I had no idea what reflected in her eyes right now.

It could be thoughts of her past self, or looking at her past.

Maya slowly opens her mouth.

“…Now, kill me.”

With her body modified with chrome, she couldn’t even shed tears.

But perhaps because of the broken internal components, a transparent fluid trickles down her eyes like tears.

“I want to remain in your memory forever.”

As she said this, Maya closed her eyes.

What does she envision for her own future?

Could she be thinking of returning to prison?

So, she might be asking me to kill her.

But my vision of the future was different.

With one hand, I supported Maya’s torso, and with the other, I wrapped it around her neck.

“I don’t want to.”

Before hearing Maya’s reply, I conjure electricity in my fingertips.

Even with a fully chromed-out body, shocking the nervous system was effective for almost anyone.

I looked down at the unconscious Maya.

There was no trace of the cruelty she showed earlier; she looks as if she’s sleeping quietly.

Even in the past, I didn’t want to send Maya to prison.

But the situation back then was unavoidable.

Among those she sought revenge against were high-ranking corporate executives, and many were nominal civilians.

Thinking of the NCPD and Chrome Force that arrived at the scene filled with corpses, sending Maya to prison seemed like the best option then.

It also involved me preventing them from attempting to kill her instead of arresting her.

But now, the situation was different from back then.

There was no NCPD here, and no one else to recognize her.

Andrea, perhaps curious about that aspect, had quietly approached me and asked.

“So, what now?”

“We should consult a bioware specialist.”

If it is indeed a symptom of Chrome Psychosis, then ‘chrome’ was the root cause.

Removing all chrome from the body and replacing it with organic bioware, followed by another implant surgery, could cure her to some extent.

Well, I’ve heard that there are cases where even that wouldn’t work.

But right now, this was the only solution that came to mind.

She was a sore spot for me.

Because I rescued her too late.

Because I remembered she was a character from the game too late.

Because all of this happened.

So, after Maya’s incident, I focused more on helping others like her, like Drake.

I couldn’t turn back time, but if I could help her now, it was the right thing to do.

In the end, I can’t be sure what her future held.

But I hoped there’ll be a better future for her than now.

“Hmm… that seems like the best option.”

Andrea noded.

“Now that it’s all settled, should we go somewhere?”

“…You helped me. If you want— Oh.”

I stopped midway through my sentence.

“Why?”

I received a message at that moment.

“Catherine is home.”

“Oh.”

Andrea also stopped like me.

“……”

“……”

We should go home.

I didn’t forget to contact the bioware specialist to help Maya either.

In any case, that’s how that day ended.

* * *

Then one day.

In the middle of a week of playing VR games without leaving my house.

Someone came looking for me.

“…The boss has made an appointment, but why haven’t you come even once? She told me to bring you in directly. Let’s go, Mr. Shun.”

They kidnappers (Smith and his henchmen) with guns.

[Translator – Peptobismol]