Terra Tinkers Construct is fine.

Uh, um...

Although it's unclear why this grown man's roar also contained a strange, high-pitched, twisted quality, and his running posture subtly involved clamping his thighs together, giving him a peculiar appearance.

But after thinking about it, Milan stepped forward and fired a shot.

The flames intensified.

The threat inside was temporarily eliminated, but the fire was growing more and more fierce—it was clear that Azazel was beyond saving. In this last remaining warehouse, Milan took out blocks of dirt and directly sealed off several places where smoke and fire were seeping out.

The terrible condition of the room was immediately cleared up.

Meanwhile, under Helag's command, the last few boys who had participated in the defense battle, though wounded, proudly held their heads high and helped each other down the secret passage to the basement as if being inspected.

Helag was left speechless, both amused and exasperated.

Only Nain opened her mouth, her previous high spirits gone, and whispered, "I'm sorry, it's my fault."

“I judged that we couldn’t hold the front, so I abandoned most of the things that couldn’t be moved temporarily. It was also my decision to set fire to block them… I’m sorry, Father, I couldn’t save the clinic.”

“…Raise your head, Naon.”

But looking at his adopted daughter's face, blackened by smoke and still somewhat dazed, Herag had no intention of blaming her. He simply reached out and tidied Nain's hair with heartache and relief, and said in a deep voice, "No need to apologize. Equipment and supplies can be found again, but your safety is priceless."

"You did a good job, you did a good job!"

Nai's eyes, which had remained unwavering even in the face of danger, suddenly reddened at this moment.

"Let's leave through the underground passage before the fire spreads further."

A subtle warmth emanated between the father and daughter, which seemed somewhat out of place in the environment where the crackling of flames could still be heard at any moment. Milan coughed and said to Naiyin's bewildered gaze, "Go directly to the canned goods' hideout and tell them I sent you. It should be safe there now."

"Indeed."

Herag nodded and looked at his adopted daughter: "Then you..."

"Grandpa, you come too."

Hellagur: "...What?"

He turned to look at Milan, and neither of them noticed that Nai's eyes gradually became clear and bright, as if they were sparkling with an indescribable light; he was just about to say something when Milan raised her hand to stop him.

"The surface is already so lively, it's hard to say what the situation is underground now. We can't guarantee it will be the same as when we came up."

"Besides, the agreement with Rhodes Island is a matter between us. Azazel has already fulfilled his duty. The safety of the children is more important to you than my matter."

"Go do what you're supposed to do."

At this point, Milan smiled as the metallic silver parts of the armor reflected the shimmering firelight.

"As for this place, you don't need to worry. I'll leave those two guys here, and in the end, we'll just dismantle everything and bury it under firepower."

"As for me, I should go and join Rhodes Island."

"……I see."

Herag saw everything, but he didn't say much. He simply nodded with apology and deep trust.

"I understand."

"The rest is up to you, Milan. Be careful."

Chapter 99 - The Collapsed Guardian (11/80)

————After parting ways with Milan————

Regardless of her, Ace's, and the other operators' wariness, the canned crew hadn't caused any trouble along the way, and all their reactions corroborated the intelligence Milan had provided.

Led by Alexei, the group quickly overcame the series of troubles along the way and arrived at the "Chernobyl Energy Institute," which was located in the same place as marked on their own map.

Just as Kelsey said, this is an institution that has not received much attention for a long time; just as Milan said, the degree of neglect here is even more severe than they had anticipated.

Even though Chernobog's situation was so dire—after several reconnaissance trips upon their arrival, they found that there wasn't even a single guard in sight!

This surprised elite operators like Amiya and Ace, whose intelligence reports highlighted the importance of this place.

"No surprises."

Alexei explained, "The lord has scouted this place many times. There should be a garrison stationed here on rotation. Even with the recent abnormal situation, there should be at least four squads of military police."

"Just recently, the adults made things clear to the military and police, forcing them to pay attention to the territory controlled by the rioters of the Integration Movement. They suffered a huge setback, which is why they had to recall their personnel from here."

"Ah, is that so?"

Amiya was somewhat surprised: "Mr. Alexei, has Mr. Milan always seemed so... astute and calculating?"

She used a very interesting word, which made the acting leader of the canned food squad, who had been silent all along, turn his eyes to her—unlike when she was paying attention to Milan, Amiya could sense that these guards under Milan's command, even with the equipment he distributed, did not have the same supernatural power as him.

They are still just ordinary Terrans... and in some ways, they are probably far less capable than the operators who participated in her operation.

But Amiya could sense from them that these people's attitude towards her and Rhodes Island was completely different from that of their leader—even without any real contact, Amiya could feel Milan's almost caring closeness to her, and her seemingly unfounded trust in "Rhodes Island".

And they… Amiya sensed not only a vague distrust, but also a subtle scrutiny and arrogance.

Arrogance seems to stem from their self-awareness, though it is so faint that they may not even be aware of it themselves, but Amiya's specialized mental abilities in the realm of "emotions" can particularly sense this.

As for the examination...

Surely they're not going to be questioning why their leader treats them differently, are they? Hahaha...

...Could that really be the case?

"If you're trying to ask me about adult matters, please forget about it."

Alexei said calmly, "I don't mean to be rude to you, but we will not reveal what the adults have not told you under any circumstances."

"For now, we are only assisting you by following your orders, which may even include temporarily obeying your commands and participating in battle; but beyond that, Miss Amiya, please don't put both of us in a difficult position."

"Ah, is that so?"

Amiya's rabbit ears twitched, and she smiled somewhat awkwardly.

"Hey, what kind of attitude is this!"

One of the guard operators in Ace's team couldn't help but say angrily, "We're partners, we didn't beg you to come!"

"Guard!"

"But, Boss..."

"Quiet!"

"..."

Seeing Ace's imposing expression, the Guardian Operator reluctantly shut his mouth; Amiya quickly tried to smooth things over, and Ace also apologized, saying, "I apologize on behalf of my teammates. Young people are impetuous, please bear with them."

"Please rest assured, this will not affect our cooperation."

The scattered can-print tumors (I) The members of the Umbrella Japanese Kick II team all turned their attention to him. Alexei waved his hand and said calmly, "Assisting your operation is the order of the adults. It is valid until there are new orders or the operation is over. We will not be swayed by this matter."

"And I can actually understand that guy's thinking."

Ace: "What?"

“I can understand that he has a clear understanding and pride in his identity, the organization he serves, and the goals he aims for, which is good.”

The Guardian operator looked up in surprise, then turned her head away and muttered something under her breath.

"I just don't understand what the adults saw in you that made even someone like him look at you with such disdain."

After passing through the unguarded research facility, the Rhodes Island team and the members of the canned goods immediately dispersed as planned to ensure the area's safety; the remaining members escorted Amiya and the medical operator into the facility, where Ace took the lead, carrying an internal route map of the Rhodes Island organization.

Alexei then said, "Let's pick something we can talk about."

"The canned food organization was never important to the adults from the beginning. It was just a group of people who were more reliable than the local gang members, so they just randomly picked some people to form the organization—workers, marginalized people, and refugees, because they were short of manpower."

"Yes, that's who we were from the beginning."

"It's ridiculous. We, as subordinates, have always enjoyed the resources provided by our superiors, but we have never really done anything for them. Even in battle, we can't even reach his level. We are only given the opportunity to assist him."

“Even before that, he used a pseudonym when facing us. He even learned the more credible name Milan from you.”

"And the purpose of the entire canned food organization, including us, seems to be to help you this time—this is no secret among us. The adults said a long time ago that he never intended to stay in Chernobog for long, and after this operation, the canned food organization will most likely lose its purpose."

Alexei spoke calmly, but the Rhodes Island operators felt that something was amiss just by listening to him.

"So I can actually understand his thoughts, and I'm even a little envious, because after today, we don't even know where the future lies—although from our perspective, it's not appropriate to be too demanding, there's something I still have to say..."

"We are actually not important to adults at all... Isn't that ridiculous?"

Amiya didn't find it funny.

She suddenly felt a chill run down her spine—indeed, even without actively activating her abilities, she could sense Milan's emotions in front of her.

Before the sense of intimacy mixed with nostalgia, Milan first and foremost possesses an aloof and indifferent quality.

Amiya vividly remembered that this aloof demeanor was very similar to the Doctor's aura at a certain stage, which she was familiar with.

But when facing other people, when facing this land... both the Doctor and Milan seem to have had a feeling of looking down from a distance that is too far away, as if from an unknown time.

She seemed to suddenly realize something.

But Alexei's next words interrupted his thoughts and brought him back to reality.

"So... forgive my rudeness, I didn't mean any harm."

"I just want to know what the adults have placed their hopes on you, and why such a god-like figure like him is paying so much attention to you."

"I would like to know."

Nothing unexpected happened after that.

She made her way smoothly through the institution, and following the route given by Kal'tsit, she found the device called the "sarcophagus." Using the method Kal'tsit provided, she opened the sarcophagus—just as Amiya had expected, the very familiar Doctor was revealed in a dissipating mist.

Although it's called a "sarcophagus," it looks like a very high-tech instrument; and the doctor inside, dressed in a cleanroom suit, doesn't appear calm at all.

Her concern for the doctor immediately overshadowed the wild thoughts that had been swirling in her little head.

She was also very fortunate that, following Milan's advice, she had brought a professional medical team with her—which immediately proved useful in the face of the doctor's far from optimistic situation.

"...I don't actually think the doctor's condition is too bad."

The medical operator, codenamed Medic, twitched her cat ears and said helplessly, "So Amiya, you're too worried. You get flustered whenever it comes to anything related to the Doctor."

"Look... your breathing is returning to normal, your blood pressure is normal, and all other indicators are OK, so you should be fine."

The medical staff glanced at the indicators on their device, then turned their attention to the person they called "Doctor," and after a short pause, suddenly said, "You're awake?"

"Amiya, the Doctor is awake!"

"PhD!"

The little rabbit immediately ran over excitedly, its face looking like it was about to cry; [Doctor] blinked blankly, instinctively trying to get up, but the medical operator quickly said, "Don't move! Be careful! Your body hasn't fully adapted yet!"

"..."

The Doctor blinked, glanced at the cat-eared medic, then at Amiya who had excitedly approached, and said calmly and impartially in a halting voice:

"Who...are you...?"

Amiya had considered many ways to reunite, but she never imagined it would be like this—with her and Medic's help, the doctor, who was gradually able to walk again as his senses returned, changed into the clothes that had been prepared in advance.

It was a Rhodes Island uniform that included an inner garment, with a specially made hood covering the head and face.

Amiya was still troubled, her ears drooping in disappointment, muttering to herself, "What on earth happened..."

Suddenly, an operator ran in from outside. Seeing the door was open, she poked her head out and shouted, "Amiya! Are you all set? There's been an unexpected situation outside!"

"Eh?"

Amiya's ears perked up immediately. She quickly looked at the Doctor, and seeing his blank, puzzled expression, she realized what was happening and asked, "What happened? What unexpected situation occurred?"

"It's an enemy attack! People from the Reunion Movement! They're the same kind of thugs we encountered on the road earlier!"

After glancing at Ace, the female knight codenamed Nearl, and Alexei who had also come here, the operator paused and said, "They don't seem to be coming directly for us. They seem to be a large group of people who have been wandering around here... But there is no doubt that they are not friendly. Our people and the people from the canned goods are already fighting them outside."

"The Reunion Movement, it's the Reunion Movement again. What exactly does the Reunion Movement want to do..."

Amiya's small face showed anxiety as she looked at the operator in charge of communications. The operator shook his head and said with distress, "Dr. Kal'tsit had instructed all on-site command to minimize remote communications. Now the equipment has stopped working, as if something has switched our communication channels."

"It looks like a large-scale anti-radio wave device, which is different from the method that Sister Arc usually uses."

"...It seems we have no choice but to fight them off."

Amiya thought for a moment, then suddenly looked up at the Doctor and said seriously, "Although it was my willfulness, but..."

"I hope that the doctor will take command."

"...Walking at night is such a hassle."