Section Thirty-Four · Why Can't I Skip the CG... / Section Thirty-Five · When the Meat Comes Knocking...

Section Thirty-Four: Why Can't You Skip the CG...

Miss Surtr obtained her Little Rabbit Impact two seconds later, and the headbutt was even heavier than she had expected. She had to ease off slightly to keep her body's automatic backlash from hurting Amiya. At the same time, her outstretched arms naturally dropped, and she ruffled Amiya's hair.

Excellent hair quality, nice feel, very good.

It felt just as familiar as ever.

"Sister Surtr, Sister Surtr." Amiya rubbed her little head against Surtr's chest reluctantly, then released her arms and stood up straight. Her sharp Caster rabbit ears bounced cheerfully. "Doctor Kal'tsit said you're coming back to Rhodes Island with us this time. Is it true? Is it true?"

She looked extremely excited, her still-childish cheeks flushed bright red. The image of Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals' leader had vanished without a trace. At that moment, she looked completely like a girl in her early teens.

And she really was a girl in her early teens—she was only fourteen this year. As one of her teachers, Surtr had never wanted her to become as mature and composed at this age as she was in the game. Amiya should have been lively, innocent, and full of fantasies. She should not have had to bear a mountain of responsibilities on her slender shoulders, making this transmigrator look like a useless wreck.

Surtr had succeeded to some extent. With her protection, Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals' initial operation to take over Babel Tower's legacy had proceeded quite smoothly. After all, Terra was an unreasonable world, and whenever any unreasonable individual or faction affected Rhodes Island's interests, they naturally had to speak with Surtr's fists.

Her fists were hard. Thus, while she was teaching Amiya, even though she never returned to Rhodes Island's main vessel, few fools had dared to risk angering her disguised identity—the former Babel Tower member and current freelance mercenary known as the Fire Giant King—and come to Rhodes Island to cause trouble. As a result, several years ago, before she headed north to search for Talulah, Amiya had nearly been raised into a salted fish while receiving a plentiful education.

Yet the Lord of Fiends was still the Lord of Fiends. After leaving Surtr's protection, Amiya's talent allowed the Caster girl to shine once more. Rhodes Island's newcomers and Babel Tower's old members soon accepted her, and after she properly handled several important contracts and a number of vicious emergencies, her leadership no longer drew questioning or worried gazes.

—Amiya, in the end, I still couldn't let you live the life someone your age should have. Even if not in Arknights, then at least on Terra. A little girl like you should have been able to play with girls your own age at school.

"Mm, I'll be returning to Rhodes Island this time." Surtr nodded. Her thoughts were slightly complicated, but she rarely displayed such emotional intelligence. She gestured to the side, introducing the white rabbit to the black rabbit.

"This is Yelena. I've already spoken to Kal'tsit about her, and she'll be joining Rhodes Island as well. She'll return to the main vessel with us."

Amiya's childishness vanished completely in an instant.

Her back straightened slightly, while the blush on her face and the gentle light in her eyes silently faded. Her smile shifted in an instant from "sincere delight" to "gentle and cordial." Her slightly softened rabbit ears stood upright again, and the aura of a leader quietly returned to her.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Yelena. I'm Amiya from Rhodes Island. Let's work hard together from now on." She extended a friendly hand toward Yelena.

Yelena raised an eyebrow. Her cool, aloof face seemed unaccustomed to smiling. She accepted Amiya's invitation and gave Amiya's fingers a brief shake.

"Frostnova," she replied. "I'll use this codename from now on. I used it before, too."

"Frostnova...?" Amiya tilted her head, a faint glimmer flickering in her eyes. "Sister Surtr told me four years ago that there was a famous Snowpriestess Princess in northern Ursus whose codename was Frostnova... So that's how it is. Miss Frostnova and Sister Surtr knew each other that long ago."

"I'm sure we'll get along wonderfully!"

"Mm, I think so too." Yelena turned her head and gave Surtr an inscrutable look.

Surtr didn't really understand what it meant.

But this sort of thing happened often, so she didn't pay it much mind. Amiya and Yelena seemed to be getting along quite well, and the first impression between the two rabbits seemed to be fairly good. That meant her current objective had been accomplished. Next came the cleanup work in Chernobog.

Ah... Damn it, where was the skip button? Couldn't this post-battle CG be skipped?

"Amiya, how are you planning to handle Chernobog?" Miss Surtr asked.

Then Amiya, who had still been clinging to her like a dodder vine half a minute ago, corrected her seriously.

"It's not 'handle'; it's 'help.'" Amiya shook her head with great solemnity. "Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals is a private medical company. Its goal is to resolve all kinds of problems faced by the Infected and attempt to overcome the century-old challenge of Originium Infection. Now, an infection wave is about to break out, so Rhodes Island needs to contain and prevent it. I already have a plan. And now all we need to do is..."

"Doctor, are you there?" she called loudly toward the back of Miss Surtr.

"I've been here the whole time." A gentle, intelligent female voice came from a drone hovering nearby. There was no doubt that the voice belonged to Persephone. That shameless woman was probably currently playing the role of a "wise and benevolent scholar."

"Nice to meet you, Amiya. I'm Persephone. Unfortunately, I don't remember anything from before I awoke inside the Sarcophagus. However, I have a little girl here whose codename is Red. She told me that I'm one of the people in charge of Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals. I assume you can explain that to me."

Amiya's eyes widened slightly. It wasn't only because of Persephone's words, but also because the voice had come from a drone rather than from the person she had assumed was standing beside Surtr.

"Doctor, you lost your memory...? Oh, Sister Surtr didn't explain it to you? I thought that since you two were so close, Sister Surtr would definitely have stayed by your side right away... Sister Surtr?"

Her Sister Surtr was currently twitching at the corner of her eye in speechless exasperation. This nonsensical woman clearly couldn't understand how, in the eyes of outsiders, she and that shameless woman could somehow be considered to have a "close relationship."

But she said nothing and did not refute it. After all, she and Persephone truly were comrades who had shared life and death—many times over.

"The Sarkaz woman beside you was extremely busy until ten minutes ago. The crisis in this city was essentially resolved by her alone. Therefore, I infer that she had no time to contact me. However, my purpose in 'handling' this city should be the same as hers—the city is about to be struck by a Catastrophe, and leaving in time is impossible. Therefore, the only solution is to evade the disaster and minimize the damage in time."

"Is that... is that so?" Amiya seemed somewhat awkward—as though she had accomplished something and was showing it off to her mother, only to discover that her teacher had actually been the one correcting her test paper—but that dejection lasted only an instant. She quickly adjusted herself and returned to her appearance as Rhodes Island's leader. The only difference was that her sharp ears drooped slightly more than before.

"I understand. Since Doctor and Sister Surtr already have a contingency plan, Chernobog's situation should be handled properly... Doctor, are you in the Sarcophagus right now? I have an entire Rhodes Island medical team with me. Is there anything we can do?"

Keyboard tapping and mechanical sounds came from the other side of the drone. Within seconds, Amiya received a precise answer.

"A group of injured patients will arrive at the Azalean Clinic in ten minutes. According to my calculations, the clinic's personnel and space will both be at capacity by then. I hope Rhodes Island's medical team can arrange for them. Also, my knowledge of Rhodes Island is still extremely limited. If possible, could you come to the Sarcophagus?"

"No problem, Doctor." Amiya nodded seriously. "I'll be right there. PRTS also needs to establish a connection with you, Doctor. Is there anything else I need to know?"

"No. Follow the drone. It will guide you." The drone wobbled, then turned its rear rotors and flew toward the other end of the street. Its speed was neither fast nor slow, making it a highly competent guide.

"See you later, Sister Surtr. I'll go see Doctor first." Amiya nodded at Miss Surtr, then, after receiving her permission, looked toward Yelena. "Miss Yelena, would you like to see how Rhodes Island operates?"

"Sure. I'll go." Yelena did not object.

Then both little rabbits looked toward Surtr.

Surtr: ?

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

—If not, I want to go do another mission. This CG has been playing for long enough.

"Sister Surtr, you could actually relax a little..." Amiya began, then shook her head and smiled. "There's nothing else. We'll handle the remaining trivial matters, so you should rest for now, Sister Surtr."

She took Yelena's hand and ran off.

That left Miss Surtr standing there in a daze, her face full of confusion. She felt that she had already begun to lose track of what this group of women was doing when Amiya and Yelena started responding to each other. The atmosphere was harmonious enough, but something about it felt strange. Still, that wasn't important. Things like this had happened often before, and this occasion was no different.

"Ridiculous..."

She turned and left. In her perception, the wisp of flame attached to Misha had not moved for some time. She intended to go take a look—to see those siblings, and W as well.

If I'm still pushing things tomorrow, I'll consider entering double-update mode_(:з"∠)_

Section Thirty-Five: When the Meat Delivers Itself...

A long time ago.

A very, very long time ago.

Beneath the night sky, the Flame-haired maiden and her molten greatsword strolled across the vast wilderness. As she advanced, a desolate town in the midst of revival was gradually left behind. Also left behind were banquets, cooking smoke, and the wistful thoughts of beautiful fantasies.