32 I Start Chapter 3

Author: Bishamon Mine
Raw: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n0664js/35/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

◆◇Sight: Suzusaki Suzuhi◇◆

 

When I return from the VR space to real space, gooon, gooon, a bell that even feels solemn is ringing.
And from Ill-san drone, a broadcast is made in an unknown woman’s voice.

“Notice to all players. Just now, 〈Critical Quest〉 “Inori (prayer)” has been cleared by player ID Suu. Fate Link: Legendia Online will now begin Chapter 3, “This Will Surely Be the Beginning of a Miracle.” In thanks for your continued patronage, we have prepared a present campaign for everyone. Please continue to enjoy Fate Link: Legendia.”

Here my vision displays “Obtained 250,000 Union credits, 250,000 merit points.”

“Suu-san!”

Yachimata-san hugs me.
The headgears collide and my neck goes guki.
I took the headgear off in the VR world, but yeah, in real I haven’t taken it off.

“Ah———sorry!”
“I-I’m fine. I’m glad Alice is okay too.”

❝Suu-tan, you suddenly collapsed so I jumped!❞
❝Are you okay? Suu-san❞
❝Did you clear something called a Critical Quest?❞
❝What kind of quest was it?❞
❝Thanks for the present!❞

“Um, what kind of quest it was, I can’t wrap it up right now…… for now I heard about people called the Star Cluster Empire? What kind of people they are.”

❝Star Cluster Empire? What’s that❞
❝What kind of people?❞

What do I do, is it okay to say everything. No, I think that’s bad after all.
So I decide to point.
At the test tube with a girl in it.
That’s already been seen, so I think they’ll pick up the unspoken intent.

❝I see❞
❝Ah——got it❞
❝Is Suu-san’s person not in danger?❞
❝Don’t go Suu-tan going pukaa in a test tube okay❞

“Thank you for worrying. Today I want to consult with Alice about various things going forward, so I’d like to end the stream here.”

❝I see, that’s important huh❞
❝Got it❞
❝Good work❞
❝Really, take care of yourself❞
❝The present helps, rascal!❞

“Thank you. But if it looks like we can’t handle it I think we’ll consult with everyone too. When that time comes, please, somehow.”

❝What’s with you all of a sudden❞
❝You’ve got serious eyes❞
❝Of course leave it to celery❞
❝Leave it to us, baribari❞

“Then that’s it for today’s stream. Sorry.”

❝Good work~❞
❝Thank you for your work~❞
❝See you~❞

Alice operates the camera with a window she made in the air and ends the stream.

I confirm the stream has completely ended and speak to Yachimata-san.

“Yachimata-san, I have something I want to talk about.”

I say to Yachimata-san while taking the headgear off to the back of my neck.
Yachimata-san takes off her headgear too——and maybe she guesses from my look, she turns a serious expression on me.

“——Yes.”

But, before that.

“Just, wait a bit——I have something to do.”

Yachimata-san is tilting her head, but when I head for the test tube she gets a convinced expression.

“Understood.”

I operate the monitor beside the test tube the way Inori-chan told me.
The vibrating sound wrapping the area stops——and the metal sphere wrapping Inori-chan’s head lifts.

Inori-chan’s fairy-like face becomes visible. Only the hair length is different from when I saw her in VR, incredibly long. It might reach the floor.

Yachimata-san catches her breath.

“A pretty girl——”

Inori-chan’s beauty, even Yachimata-san who keeps looking at a pretty face in the mirror every day says “pretty,” so it must be something else.
Well, Inori-chan’s body is an artifact, so maybe they made cute as written.

In the test tube, Inori-chan’s eyelids slowly open.
The irises like gold gears floating in Inori-chan’s pupils begin to turn.

Yachimata-san is startled by the mysterious eyes.

“What is that, those pupils——the Union three races-san don’t have that either?”

The Union three races besides Animanoids look completely human——yeah.
Inori-chan is apparently not human by the Galactic Union’s predecessor——Star Cluster whatever, so I guess it was okay if she didn’t look human.

When the test tube lifts, blue liquid overflows from inside.
The room becomes soaked all at once.

When Inori-chan slowly sits up, cords and hoses come off pachi pachi pachi.
It looks like a girl being released from chains.

Here further, a message displays in my vision.

“By reviving the Datanoid Inori,
you have obtained the ★★★★★5 SSR title 〖From the Galaxy, With Love〗.
NPP and NPC favorability up. NPP and NPC will take your actions favorably.
Obtained 500,000 Galaxy credits, 1,000,000 merit points.”

A title and reward with Inori-chan being revived as the condition?
The reward is higher on this side——then for the management, reviving Inori-chan was important?

Seeing Inori-chan sit up, Yachimata-san panics.

“For now, the outfit is sensitive——please wait a moment.”

Yachimata-san takes a blue one-piece out of her convenient bag.

“But——after this it’s the sea, so maybe a swimsuit is better?”

Yachimata-san takes out a gaudy swimsuit that was clearly used for gravure shooting.
I absolutely could not wear something like that.

“No, no matter how you think about it, for safety it’s a pilot suit——w-wait a moment please.”

Inori-chan, checking her body’s movement, turns to Yachimata-san.
Then Inori-chan suddenly goes still as if frozen, and stares at Alice for a while.
After murmuring “Similar?”, after a while she tilts her head and greets Alice.

“Nice to meet you. But it’s fine, This unit’s body is made of biological material too but most of it is machine so it can endure water pressure, and I can stop breathing for several hours. I can also operate in space with my bare body.”
“Th-that’s an amazing body……”
“This unit was formerly Imperial Army special forces, and fought parallel-world people (Vector) with my bare body.——As I thought, I’m broken here and there. After all, over a thousand years with no maintenance, it didn’t last.”
“This is a pilot suit.”
“I don’t need it?”
“Even if safety is fine, the appearance isn’t fine.”
“I see.”

Inori-chan puts on the suit she is given, obediently. “It looks military, but the functions have deteriorated quite a bit compared to the old ones,” she says while.
When putting on the suit, maybe because her body is broken, she seems to have a little trouble moving her legs.

I turn back to Alice and ask.

“Think we can fix Inori-chan’s body with merit points?”
“I think it’s probably possible, but Galaxy credits might be better. Shall we look for a mech technician-san in Highlane.”
“I see, that would be better. As expected of Yachimata-san.”
“Um——I’ve been wondering for a while……”

Yachimata-san puffs her cheeks and purses her lips.
W-what is it? Should I say “moe moe kyun”?

“……Why won’t you call me Alice?”
“Eh———!?”
“Suddenly going back to ‘Yachimata-san’ is painful.”
“B-but that means not the ID Alice, the name Alice, right!?”
“I’m asking you to call me by my name.”
“Th-th-th-that’s, too much for me!!”

Alice lowers her gaze a little, eyes down.

“What’s ‘too much,’ is it full of scary, am I a monster or something, that’s awful.”
“No, that’s not it!”
“Then please call me Alice. If you don’t I’ll cry that something awful was done to me.”
“I cannot let that stand!”

If she cries over such a bad rumor, my heart will not be calm.

“Come on, A li ce.”
“A-A-Ali”

Alice puffs her cheeks even more dissatisfied.

“Am I Muhammad Ali or something?”
“Because——Ali, Ali, Ali, Ali……”

Alice sulks even further.

“Arrivederci? I’m about to cry, you know?”

P-please stop. I clench my fists and close my eyes.

“A-Alice!!”
“Yes! Suzuhi!”

I get my own name thrown back at me and think I might nosebleed from my nose and die of indignation.
I cover my mouth and nose with my hands and turn my face away. Well the headgear is in the way though.

That one was too effective. Super effective on Suzuhi.

After taking a deep breath for now, I tell Alice what I heard in the VR world.

“I don’t understand everything, but I understand. In other words there was once a war with a parallel world, and we won. But the weapon used for that——or rather Iris-san, made this side perish too. Well, as the management has been saying.”
“Yes. They’re hiding Iris-san, but the management isn’t saying any lies.——However, the problem for me is Inori-chan and Iris-san’s existence.”
“Yes, honestly I think it’s too awful.”
“Only, the ones who did awful things to them were the Star Cluster Empire. And the Galactic Union’s first marshal was apparently trying to save Iris-san——so maybe, just maybe, Mystery Management made me take that quest to save Inori-chan——forcibly connecting my VR to the space Inori-chan is sealed in is a possibility…… not zero?”
“There Mystery Management is too mystery so I don’t know. There is also the possibility they just want to use Suzuhi and Inori-san?”

I put a hand to my chin and think.

“Yeah. So about future policy——Mystery Management seems to want to proceed as a game no matter what, so I think we’ll ride that. Until we reach Sagittarius A* our goal is definitely the same, and we can borrow Earth factions’ power, and it’s better to borrow the Galactic Union’s power peacefully too.”
“Yes.”
“——But once we reach Sagittarius A*, I don’t know what happens from there. Whether Mystery Management wants Inori-chan happy or unhappy. Whether they want Iris-san happy or unhappy. Depending on what feelings the management has, I’ll decide whether I walk with the management or break with them.”
“I think there’s no problem.”
“This conversation is being intercepted anyway, so I think I’ll convey that I have no intention of openly opposing them.——Right, we’re being intercepted, Ill-san.”
“Yes, My Master.”

Alice gives a bitter smile and flicks Shogun’s drone on the forehead. Shogun’s drone wobbles like a daruma.
Watching the wobbling Shogun, Alice says “You’re the worst, Shogun, Ill-san” and throws Shogun and Ill-san far away.

“Now, we have to go get the 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉.”

When Alice stands and says that, Inori-chan asks, “You want the 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉?”
So I answer.

“Ah, yeah. That’s what we came to get.”
“Understood.”

Inori-chan closes her eyes and seems to concentrate on something.
Then, from the stairs leading to the floor below——a huge number of bracelets fly in.

“Yes!?”
“W-what’s going on!? These are all convenient bags!?”
“With the psychic powers 〖Perskinesis〗 and 〖Psychokinesis〗, I gathered every 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉 in this building and the next building.”

“Eh, amazing. ……Thanks……. Or rather Inori-chan can use 〈psychic powers〉 too?——Hn? That’s……”
“——Datanoid-san can’t use sealstones and shouldn’t be able to use psychic powers……”

“I am also a successful example of a special experimental subject.”

Saying that, Inori-chan jingles and drops a huge number of 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉.

——“Special experimental subject”…… “successful example”…….

While minding yet another unsettling word, I try to pick up the 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉 Inori-chan gathered for us.
Then, the others are all bracelets, but there are two necklaces.

“This is——?”
“I don’t know either. First time I’ve seen them.”

Alice doesn’t know either, pinching a necklace and tilting her head.
Then Inori-chan answers for us.

“Those are large 〈Key to the Spacetime Warehouse · Large〉 that can be used on Versus Frames. A door opens of a size even a human can enter.”
“There’s something like that!”

Alice says, excited.
I see, if we have this we can do various things.

“Inori-chan, can we have these?”

When I ask Inori-chan, she nods and answers.

“This unit does not ride Versus Frames.”
“I see. Then I’ll take them.”
“Yeah. For Suzuhi, This unit will do anything.”
“……Ah, thanks?”

While I’m thanking Inori-chan, Alice puffs her cheeks.

“Suzuhi…… please don’t get all deredere.”

Eh, deredere…… the other party is a girl——no, whether I get deredere over girls or not aside. I’m not getting deredere right now though…….

“Then there are two, so want to use them, me and Alice?”
“Ah, yes! Matching, huh!”

When I hand Alice one of the necklaces, she suddenly gets a happy expression.
They say a woman’s heart is an autumn sky, but a woman who doesn’t understand women’s hearts. Sixteen nights.

“This necklace, is it not dangerous even if G hits in combat?”
“It’s a safety material.”
“———Good.”

Incidentally after this, players who learn there are 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉 in these ruins will rush in in huge numbers, but…… we took them all, so apparently not a single 〈Key to the Dimensional Warehouse〉 is found.
Among them there were even military figures, they say.

Sorry!

Thus we return to planet Highlane.
And we immediately find a mech technician-san and have Inori-chan examined.
Incidentally Inori-chan, saying her too-long hair is in the way, hacks it off with a knife.
It’s a terrible hairstyle, so we’ll have to send her to a salon later.

Inori-chan goes into the maintenance dock.
The short technician-san with a long beard, a body like a sake barrel grown limbs, who is examining her body, drops a huge wrench in shock.

“W-what is this girl’s body!! A trade fair of “lost technology” or something!?”

At the technician-san’s surprise, Alice tilts her head and asks.

“What’s lost technology?”
“Technologies whose existence is confirmed but that cannot be reproduced at present! And among them, what’s used on this girl is all ultra-classified level——in the first place this girl, you said she used psychic powers, but psychic powers can only be used by old humanity and you players, you know!?”

Yeah I thought so. Somehow, Inori-chan is a pretty special person…….
I ask.

“Think you can fix her?”
“There’s no way I can fix her!”
“Can the military fix her?”
“I said it’s technology that cannot be reproduced! I used to be a military mechanic. But even the military cannot fix something like this!”
“Is that so———”
“……But well, if you just want normal activity, you can swap parts. I’ll return the original parts and such to you. If you want to fix the lost technology, find a way to fix it. I’ll swap all the crazy places and the places in bad condition.”
“Um, Inori-chan, is that okay?”
“This unit is fine if Suzuhi is fine.”
“Then——please. Only, our budget has a limit so I’d like to hear the price first, we currently have 3,050,000 credits.”

Then Alice raises her hand,

“I have 15,000,000 credits too.”

she tells us.

“Alice, thank you.”

When I bow my head, Alice says as if it’s nothing.

“What are you saying, it’s my problem too already.”

Inori-chan bows her head too.

“Alice, thank you.”
“There’s no way I can hear a story like that and leave it. We’re comrades so please don’t worry.”

she says a little strongly. She really doesn’t want us to worry, I guess.

“Hmm. I don’t know what background you have, but with that budget you can prepare something decent. If you make unreasonable requests there’s no upper limit, a hundred million, a trillion, no ceiling. But for civilian use, 3,000,000 will buy you quite a lot——aah, you’re players, right? From a place called Hapou or something.”
“Hapou——? Ah. Japan.”
“Nihomu, huh.”
“Well, that’s fine.”
“There, 3,000,000 credits should be worth about 30,000,000 yen.”

Ugeh, that’s a pretty amazing price…… I could buy a house.——But thinking of high-end biological parts and machine part swaps, is it reasonable?
Nooo, it’s still really expensive. But well, I don’t feel like being strangely cheap either.

“Then please.”
“Then, split, okay Suzuhi.”
“Ah, yeah, that’s right, please.”
“Yes!”
“Well Strider discounts and such apply too so it’ll be a bit cheaper. I’ve already taken the information on the Datanoid Inori, so go back to an inn today. I’ll prepare the parts so come here in three days, and from there you’ll stay in our dock another three days. The repair finishes in six days.”

Kinda like a hospital, really.

“Understood. Please take care of it.”

Thus we return to town and decide to take an inn where Inori-chan will stay going forward.

The truth is, we cannot bring Inori-chan to Earth.

Currently the Galactic Union and Earth’s countries have not established diplomatic relations. So we cannot prepare something like a passport.
So if you take Animanoids, Datanoids, Humanoids to Earth they become illegal stayers with no nationality, apparently.
And even human rights are a subtle line.
——I searched and looked it up just now.

“I wish they’d establish diplomatic relations already.”
“Indeedee.”

After this I go back to Earth, but.
I suddenly think, if we can’t bring Inori-chan to Earth, what about items, and remember that when you sell, tariffs apply.
Then the two leftover Dominant Ogre sealstones (the ones I plan to sell to Vic), “won’t tariffs apply?”, I think, and leave them in a Highlane safe-deposit box.