Chapter 294 – Storm’s Envoy (4)
The atmosphere at the meeting point, which should have been heartwarming, was extremely sharp.
The person who attacked us was a Self-Defense Force officer belonging to the Japanese government army in Hokkaido. The military uniform and rank insignia he was wearing proved it.
He ran from building to a point where it was difficult for the drone to chase, and eventually hid in the sewer through a manhole, but was unable to resist the stalker’s pursuit.
[Chick show!]
When he was in danger of being caught, he left a short will and committed suicide with a pistol.
“He was proudly wearing a Self-Defense Force uniform while attempting an assassination.”
I quietly chanted in front of the corpse of the officer I had recovered.
The young people who seemed to have been invited for the welcoming ceremony were so scared that they couldn’t even raise their heads properly.
The helicopter, which had some grotesque parts, had a massive presence that became even more impressive when it landed, and the intimidation of the combat robots with their fierce eyes was murderous.
Still, some of the welcome group executives were not afraid and approached the Jjambap.
“You must have been very surprised, but I really don’t know how to apologize.”
“Administrator, I swear this incident has nothing to do with us.”
It was sad to see him trying to lighten the mood somehow. Should we say this is the sorrow of a middle manager who has no authority but must take responsibility for an accident?
“I believe it.”
“Thank you!”
He seemed surprised that he believed me even after I asked him to trust him.
“These days, fights between separatists and the old government are common. “I just unluckily got caught up in it today.”
“I’m glad you understand! Really, I don’t know what kind of face these guys who drove out to Hokkaido without even looking back are trying to get us to join.”
The executive spoke with a mixture of gratitude and anger.
Even in a normal society, it is not easy to prevent accidents at large events.
Moreover, in today’s world, it is almost impossible to control snipers without leaks.
“That’s right. That is correct.”
I smiled and walked past the officer and stood in front of the officer’s body.
He squatted down, grabbed his hair, and turned his bloodless face upward.
“…”
The welcome group’s reaction to the sight of me casually touching a corpse was conflicting.
The executives in front accepted it calmly, probably because they had been cleaning up corpses before the war, while the young people waiting in the back had stiff faces.
“Keuhum!”
Artemis, who had been quiet one step behind, looked uncomfortable. It seems to be a complaint about the unhygienic behavior of touching a corpse that had escaped into the sewer.
But in her public settings, she always respects my authority. She doesn’t stand next to me, and she doesn’t hit me.
“Does anyone know this person?”
“It’s famous.”
Several people spoke in unison.
“He’s been making noise nearby for some time. ‘Now is the time for all Japanese to come together and rebuild the country!’ All this nonsense.”
“What is reconstruction! If you listen to the people who fled from Canto, they stole supplies and conscripted people as troops.”
National reconstruction is a noble cause, but for those who are abandoned and have this and that taken away, it must be a source of anger.
“I see.”
I nodded.
While planning this messy assassination, he wears a military uniform that reveals his identity and acts alone as an officer without any subordinates.
There was a high possibility that it was a solo crime for show by someone inspired by patriotism.
“I heard a lot about you from Artemis. “In this world, we are one of the few trustworthy trading partners.”
“Oh my, those are great words!”
The welcome group, who repeatedly bowed, only focused their eyes on me. I didn’t even dare to look at Artemis’ face.
“Let’s move slowly. It’s embarrassing to keep people standing behind you. Time was delayed.”
The welcome group, which must have practiced for several days, is stiff and hesitant. There are no flags or welcome signs held awkwardly in their hands.
“Yes! Please get on board.”
The welcome officer opened the limousine door and motioned to us. The car was washed so diligently that all surfaces were shiny and dazzling.
There were several bike convoys stationed around it. When I look at the composition, there is one scene that comes to mind.
“It feels like a parade after being elected president.”
“He is the president of idiots.”
Artemis sarcastically said.
This is because it was not a neat police motorcycle, but a tuned bike that was used by biker gangsters to break the law.
“The roots are the Yakuza, so what can we do? Let’s just accept it as a feeling of enjoyment.”
A welcome group executive approached us whispering in Korean.
“Well, I mean the guards…”
The expression on his face was subtle, as if it was awkward to use an honorific title to a robot.
“Is there some problem?”
“Originally, I was planning to take that one separately.”
The executive trailed off, pointing to the vans parked on one side. Strangely enough, it was also using a police vehicle.
It was a characteristic of this era that the equipment became a hodgepodge as they were used according to what they captured, but it was a bit funny.
A young woman dressed as a tour guide was frozen in front of her robot, holding a large firearm that was half her body weight.
“If the escorts board here…”
She, a security robot, tried to lead the way with a face that looked like she was about to cry in front of the vicious pair, but her robots were unmoved.
“The escorts will follow on foot. There was an assassination attempt, and if we were all in the car together, they wouldn’t be able to protect me in case of emergency.”
“Then I will tell you to drive slowly and at your own pace.”
“No, just tell them to step on it like normal.”
“Yes? Then the escorts won’t be able to follow.”
“I will follow you.”
“?”
There would be no end to explaining the mobility of the Stalker series one by one.
“Come on, let’s go quickly! “It would have already been delayed a lot.”
I held Artemis’ hand and headed to the limousine.
Accordingly, the stalker escorts take their place between the limousine and the bike.
The bike riders stayed calm, but kept peeping at the robots near them.
The large size, the face that causes instinctive fear in living creatures, and the vicious weapons they are holding.
First of all, does it seem scary instead of reassuring to know that we are on the same side?
Some people’s legs were shaking as they stood on the ground.
“Well, what is it? “Didn’t the escorts ride in transport vehicles?”
The panicked voice of the limousine driver from ahead could be faintly heard.
They spoke in a whisper, but they could not escape the sensitivity of my ears and the interpretation device.
“The robots will follow on foot.”
“Then do you drive like a crawl? If I did that, it would take a lot of time.”
“You can just step on it like normal.”
“?”
* * *
Buaaaaang!
It’s the sound of bikes surrounding the limousine we were riding in.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Boom!
This is the sound made by stalkers who run at the same speed as a bike.
The eyes of the Seonamhoe riders looking through the window are filled with astonishment.
Because the giant robots were running on equal footing with them, carrying heavy weapons that looked heavy at first glance.
Soldiers of steel run with their bodies pressed against the ground and move their joints at angles that are impossible for humans.
Thud! Thud! Boom!
Every time they take a step, even the sound of the bike exhaust is drowned out by the screaming ground.
“You’re not looking ahead properly. I don’t know if accidents happen like that.”
“Sorry!”
I spoke to the riders outside the window, and suddenly the driver in the front seat answered.
“I didn’t say that to you. Look straight ahead.”
“Haait!!!”
The driver fixed his gaze ahead and grabbed the steering wheel.
“Cook!”
Artemis, who was watching this scene, laughed a little.
At first, the driver drove the car as slowly as a human walking speed.
“So when are you arriving? Step on it harder.”
However, when I told them to speed up and the stalkers did not fall behind at all, their eyes grew bigger.
Afterward, the speed gradually increased on its own, but the soldiers of steel were still on par with the limousine.
The only thing that changed was that the sound of their feet hitting the ground grew louder and turned into a roar.
How long did it run like that?
Among the damaged, decayed, or completely collapsed buildings, a building with an unrivaled presence appeared.
“It’s over there. “We’re almost there now.”
The driver, who seemed to have slowly gotten used to it, said.
There was a hint of pride in his voice, and as we got closer to the building, I understood what he was feeling.
Living in a nice home is the most basic desire of every human being.
However, in today’s world, the standards for a good home have become much stricter than in the past.
This is because existing residential buildings were built based on a time when social infrastructure was maintained normally.
For example, apartments on lower floors are cheaper because they are vulnerable to bugs and noise problems.
But now that the electricity supply has been cut off, there is no option other than the lower floors.
There is no power to run the elevator or a company to repair a broken elevator, so you can’t live in a high rise.
Nearby department stores, schools, and public transportation facilities, which were factors in increasing housing prices in the past, are now meaningless.
A house that has been abandoned for a long time has become a haunted house, or a house with a corpse inside cannot be used even if it is cleaned.
As a result, the competition for good buildings is truly enormous.
Therefore, when I entered the Seonamhoe headquarters building, I was honestly amazed.
“Is it pretty?”
This is because there was a functioning automatic door at the entrance.
In today’s world, automatic doors are a luxury and a display of stable electricity and supplies.
“What do you think is so great about having hundreds of shelters alone?”
“Hey, you shouldn’t think by our standards.”
Artemis graciously overlooks me when I flirt with other women, but shows strong jealousy when I praise other buildings.
There were more people waiting for us inside the building entrance than outside. At first glance, it looks like there are almost 100 people.
As I walked among them with Artemis, all of them bent at 90 degrees in an instant.
“Otsu!!!”
A loud shout made the inside of the building vibrate.
There was only one person who didn’t bow down.
“That man is Takashi Kitano, the godfather of the Southwest Association. “He was the one who invited us.”
Artemis said.
An old man with white hair slicked back is smiling with a straight back.
