NIKKE, Swordmaster Ark Succubus Daily

“Oil, greasy…” Li Zuoyi was shocked.

“Given the current situation, the pistol you just lost is also a very important piece of combat equipment,” Labi said, stating the cold, hard facts with a blank expression.

"...I'm sorry, I'll reflect on my actions."

Li Zuoyi, whose smug smile had been twitching just moments before, slumped over to retrieve the tossed-out pistol, muttering to himself, "Greasy, isn't it? I think that line was pretty cool..."

The commander walked a little further away.

Anis watched the commander's retreating figure: "Still nervous, Lapi?"

"No... I feel much better."

“I know all this. Lhabi has always kept his feelings hidden in his heart.”

"Thank you, Anies."

"The commander seems to be cooperating as well."

Anis stopped raising his voice as he had before and asked, "Do you think we can really survive going to that fortification?"

"I don't know." Lhabi wasn't confident either.

She touched the spare ammunition hanging at her waist. "But even though it's an S-level area, there should be plenty of weapons and ammunition there, at least better than the current situation."

"After all these years, can it still be used? And what about the size of the bullets..." Anies frowned.

"There's no need to worry about the size of the bullets. The bullets produced on the Ark are the same type as those used when humans were still on Earth, only much more powerful."

Lhabi repeated, "At least it's better than it is now."

“I understand.” Anies took a deep breath. “Staying here will definitely kill us, but going there will give us a 99.9% chance of survival, or 0.1%. It’s definitely better than now.”

“I only figured it out later,” Labi said, looking at the commander who was walking back. “The commander should have made this decision from the beginning.”

"Hmm—that's really impressive." This was the first time Anies had praised a commander.

Li Zuoyi, who had retrieved the pistol, regretted throwing it so far. He handed the pistol to Lapi, saying, "You can keep it."

Lapi was somewhat surprised that the commander would give her the gun, and nodded earnestly to the commander: "I will make good use of it."

"Why give it to Lhapi? You could give it to me too." Anis felt slighted.

Li Zuoyi scoffed, somewhat disdainfully, "I saw it all just now, Lapi is a sharpshooter. You're using a grenade launcher, how could you possibly be accurate?"

This was revenge for being mocked by her before.

"I'm so angry!!"

For the first time, Anis wanted to punch a commander.

Even though her former commanders had used even harsher language, she always silently accepted it and never argued back.

Why does this happen?

Chapter Four: Hope

"If you want to fight me, then try your best to survive. Now it's time to go."

Li Zuoyi picked up the black cloth bag and held it to his chest.

"You should throw this away now. It looks quite heavy," Anis advised the commander, seeing that he was still going to carry the bag. "If you lose your life, it won't matter how important it is."

"I reject."

This was the first time Anis had seen the commander so serious, a stark contrast to his previous carefree demeanor.

"I'd rather die than throw them away, and there's no difference anyway. A man has to keep his promise. I said I'd take them back..."

"Commander, Lecher has spotted us!" Lapi raised his gun and shot down two Lecher planes that were attacking.

But behind those two Lechers were countless red lights flashing with a dangerous aura!

"Run away!"

Li Zuoyi led the escape, and even with his load, he was not much slower than Niki.

After the three of them walked around several blocks, a very wide road came into view.

At the other end of the road, a pale gray fortress, the size of several football fields, stands quietly, seemingly untouched by time.

Numerous armored vehicles and helicopters of various types were still neatly parked in front of the fortress, making it practically a small, fully armored force.

They seem to still be waiting for humans to drive them towards Lecher.

“This is the defensive fortification that humans once built…” Anis was shocked by the sight of the building. “Even with such powerful things, they were still driven underground by Lecher.”

“Yes,” Labi said. “If it weren’t for the first Niki unit—the Goddess Unit—humanity might not have had time to hide underground.”

"When did Lecher disappear?" Li Zuo turned around and saw only a terrifyingly empty city, as if Lecher's metallic screech had never happened.

"Really? Where did they go?" Anis looked around and saw that Lecher, who had been relentlessly pursuing them, had suddenly disappeared. The silence was unsettling.

Lapi gripped the gun handle tightly, a bad premonition rising within him. "Commander! Here..."

"Let's go! Something's not right here!" Li Zuoyi shouted.

However, before he could run more than a few steps after turning around, the ground began to shake violently.

The source of the shaking was the gray fortress behind them.

Li Zuo turned around and saw a horrifying scene.

The numerous armored vehicles and helicopters that were originally parked in front of the gray fortress began to tremble, and mechanical tentacles emerged from their steel shells, as if they had been parasitized.

These mechanical tentacles intertwined, causing the armored vehicles and helicopters to deform and recombine in an incomprehensible way.

They began to merge into one.

The ear-piercing screeching of steel scraping against steel echoed throughout the city, and the resulting vibrations even caused buildings to collapse with a roar.

As the monster grew to several meters in height, its bizarre octopus-like appearance and its almost maddening mechanical noises all weighed heavily on the three people's nerves.

“This… there’s no way we can win…” Anis stared blankly at the enormous monster.

Because of Niki's unique brain structure, she cannot feel fear, but she also lacks the confidence to survive.

"Transcendent-level Rachel..." The data faded from Rabi's eyes, and even she could not maintain the calm on her face.

The danger level of Rachel increases progressively from five levels: Selfless, Servant, Master, Lord, and Tyrant.

But there is one type of Lecher that is different.

It was originally a low-level Lecher, but due to some coincidence, its level was raised to a high level.

This type of Lecher is called the Transcendental.

Now they may be facing someone who has surpassed Lecher, who has reached the lord level.

Without any support, the survival probability of the two-person team is zero, while the commander's survival probability is one in ten thousand.

"Listen carefully, what I'm about to say is not a request, but a command."

Anis and Lapi heard the commander say this.

"Buy me some time."

“I knew it,” Anies said quietly, glancing away.

Anis and Labi had other teammates before, but they all died.

Most died from suicide attack orders placed by their former commander.

Some also died from the rearguard orders.

Now only she and Lapi remain.

Anis wasn't exactly disappointed; she just felt like an idiot for having had expectations of this commander.

"Understood." Labi pulled back the bolt, his face now calm again.

Anis sighed, "I will also help the commander buy time to escape."

Li Zuoyi gripped the sword hilt tightly with one hand and said earnestly, "Five minutes, buy me five minutes."

Anis didn't speak; she began firing grenades at the still-deforming Lecher.

She didn't care anymore; whether it was five minutes or ten minutes, she was going to die anyway.

"Understood." Lhapi nodded and raised his gun to fire.

Just as the monster began to transform, Lapi saw a core-like object emitting a red light, but he didn't pay attention to it at the time.

But when she saw that the transformation and reassembly of the armored vehicle and the helicopter all revolved around that core, she regretted that she might have missed the only chance to destroy it.

Since it was her mistake, she should be held responsible for it.

She wanted the commander to escape.

but,

"I made a promise to you that if you unfortunately perish in battle, I will bring your heads back to the Ark," the commander said. "Therefore, please try to avoid head injuries."

After saying all this, he left.

“Thank you, Commander.” Lapi was very grateful for the commander’s promise.

"Do you really believe he'll come back?" Anis asked as he reloaded his weapon. "Maybe he'll go back to the Ark crying and completely forget about us."

“The premise is that we bought him enough time.” Lhapi did not give a direct answer.

In this situation, the chance of a lone commander escaping the city is only one in ten thousand.

"makes sense."

Anis's grenade launcher continued to blaze, and with each explosion, her excitement grew: "That's true!!"

Although it was an impossible hope, it gave Anies a reason to continue fighting.

Hope is a truly terrifying thing.

With a sharp mechanical screech, the Transcendent-class Rachel had completed its fusion and transformation, becoming an oversized mechanical octopus.

Its tentacles have 'suction cups' that are actually machine guns and cannons, and helicopter rotors are fixed to the tips of the tentacles, turning them into meat grinders that reap all life.

Using the ruins of the collapsed building as cover, Labi and Anis used the Ark's specially made high-explosive bullets to block the advancing octopus Rachel.

The two men's powerful firepower did indeed temporarily immobilize Octopus Rachel, but the special bullets would eventually run out.

The relentless bombardment, devoid of any tactical considerations, lasted only a few dozen seconds before they were forced to resort to using regular Nikki ammunition.

The bullets from the ordinary Niki were effective against the average Rachel, but against the seemingly lord-level Octopus Rachel... just look at the sparks flying off the thick armor.

Even so, with their rich combat experience, Labi and Anis managed to slow down the advance of Octopus Rachel by drawing away its firepower back and forth.

However, without a commander overseeing the overall situation, their mission ultimately could not be accomplished successfully.

Chapter 5 is just one shot away

The overwhelming firepower from the machine guns and cannons emanating from the tentacle 'suction cups' ensured that every cover they carried was destined to be destroyed.

At the same time, their bodies were also damaged to varying degrees.

Anies lost his right arm; sparks flew from the wound, revealing the complex network of his internal organs. Countless other minor injuries were also visible throughout his body.

Lapi was in slightly better condition, but due to a malfunction at the connection point of his ankles, his mobility was reduced, making him the primary target of the mechanical octopus's attacks.

"Lavi, watch your head!" Anis shouted a warning.

Lapi quickly rolled away, dodging the mechanical tentacles that came crashing down from above.

'Da da da!!'

With his rifle magazine empty and his ammunition at zero, Lapi threw the useless rifle at the tentacles like a grenade, which temporarily repelled the pursuing tentacles.

Every weapon Niki carries will be used to eliminate Rachel.

If she were attacked like that again, she would be unable to retaliate.

So, Lhabi closed his eyes.

She will activate a unique hidden mode.

Within the Ark, she was also a special case, with only a very few people aware of this mode.