Although I had obtained a harvest that far exceeded my expectations, my questions hadn't been completely answered. Separate from resolving the current situation, I felt the need to figure out what Saint Nephthys Corporation's objective was.
After finishing my business in the student council building, I went outside and took as many photos of the Obelisk's crest as I could. This, too, was something that had been weighing on my mind.
If you combine a wolf, Egyptian mythology, a woman, and Abydos...
Doesn't that blatantly point to Shiroko?
In a world where prophecies are real, it was only right to take pictures and save them, just in case. Shiroko becomes a key figure at a point where the story diverges into territory I don't know, which made me all the more concerned.
With that in mind, I made full use of the 400-megapixel camera on my phone. Not that I don't always put it to good use.
This is... Hmm, should I ask Himari for a separate analysis? Or maybe Rio would be good. She's probably just building cities with embezzled money with nothing better to do right now, anyway.
After taking the pictures, I got back in the vehicle to head to the second excavation site. I hadn't noticed when we came inside, but now that I was out, I could see a long line of what looked like containers set up outside the tents.
"Hey, what are those containers?"
"...They are temporary hangars to protect the tanks from sandstorms."
"Hmph?"
I'd wondered what he meant by protecting them from sandstorms, but it seemed they were just for convenient tank maintenance. In any case, my curiosity was satisfied.
"So, are the tanks stationed here because of the desert monster?"
"That is correct. We have only engaged it in combat once at this excavation site, but as it could appear at any time, we recently expanded the scale of the Anti-Decagrammaton Battalion and have them deployed in a dispersed formation."
"...Anti-Decagrammaton Battalion?"
"I do not have the authority to access detailed information on that matter. I only know that the force organized to combat that monster... Bina... is called the Anti-Decagrammaton Battalion."
...This was a little interesting. I couldn't quite remember if Kaiser PMC originally had a force called the Anti-Decagrammaton Battalion, but in any case, it meant Kaiser's upper echelons knew about Decagrammaton.
Did Gematria bother to pass on that kind of information, or did Kaiser find it out on their own...?
If it was the latter, Kaiser's capabilities might have been far greater than I'd anticipated.
It's just that we happened to strike their weak point perfectly, so their scale has become pathetic, and now they're in a position where they have to focus all their remaining strength on Abydos.
"...Mika."
"Hm?"
Hina nudged me and pointed to her phone screen. Seeing that it was Momotalk, I realized Hina wanted to say something without the Kaiser automaton in front hearing us.
[It seems likely that Kaiser has a lot of combat records against that monster... Bina. Wouldn't it be helpful if we could get them?]
[You have a point, but Kaiser Corporation isn't the type to just hand them over for nothing.]
[If you don't get the information you wanted, you could use that as leverage to obtain the records.]
[Ah, I already found what I was looking for back there.]
Hina flinched at my nonchalant reply, her expression immediately hardening.
[You hid it on purpose.]
[Less on purpose, and more that I was planning to check the other site before saying anything. My plan was to tell them the deal was done after we looked around over there.]
[In that case, what about going with the logic that we found nothing at all to get the information...]
[Hmm, well...]
It was a viable option, if it weren't for the fact that Black Suit was monitoring me. But since Black Suit and Kaiser were collaborating, it made me hesitate.
The powerful exploit the powerless. The knowledgeable exploit the ignorant.
It wouldn't be impossible to brazenly adopt Black Suit's logic, or even to realize the logic that the one with greater power exploits the one without. In fact, I had already succeeded in tearing Kaiser apart in response to the "adult methods" used by the Kaiser President, and then used threats backed by my superior power to extract information.
But, would the President, the very man the General Student Council President was wary of, have failed to predict a situation where I might find the information and keep my mouth shut? Pushing my luck like this to get more information didn't sit right with me; there were too many unresolved points.
[On second thought, being straightforward about it might not be so bad. We learned enough during the Kaisergate incident to know that Kaiser has some important business in Abydos, which means resolving this situation benefits them too.]
[It certainly depends on how you frame it, but they must secretly want Bina subjugated, so you're not wrong. As long as Kaiser owns the entire Abydos district aside from the high school grounds, they're just as desperate as anyone.]
[Yep. With their foundations outside Abydos practically all gone, the only place Kaiser Corporation has left to stand is here. In fact, they might be even more desperate than the Abydos students, who at least have the option of transferring to another school in the worst-case scenario.]
Perhaps tired of typing everything out, Hina put down her phone, and I saw her flexing her fingers. I casually reached out, took her tiny hand, and began to gently massage each of her fingers.
"...Thanks."
"Ahaha, it's nothing."
So, what was it that Kaiser was looking for... An ultra-ancient weapon, was it?
In any case. As long as that thing exists, Kaiser would surely want someone to take care of the damned Bina. The fact that they hadn't managed to subjugate it despite what must have been numerous battles meant that Kaiser couldn't do it alone, now or in the future.
Even if Kaiser succeeds in finding that weapon because of our intervention, it doesn't really matter.
Thanks to me, Kaiser's power has long since been torn to shreds. On top of that, I have the RABBIT Squad to bolster Schale's strength, as well as our trustworthy Kaya's Defense Office. If Kaiser can't seize control of the Sanctum Tower, that weapon is nothing more than a *gyereuk*—useless. (TN: *Gyereuk* refers to a chicken rib. It's an idiom for something not valuable enough to be worth the effort, but also a waste to just throw away.)
...Come to think of it, could that ultra-ancient weapon also be one of the Nameless Priests' creations? Since it was their OPArt that caused this desert's abnormal phenomena, if the thing Kaiser is excavating also belongs to the Nameless Priests... its mere existence being revealed to the world could spark a conflict.
If not that, it might just go berserk. That possibility seems quite high, too.
"Hey, Mika... you can stop now."
"Hm?"
Ah, lost in thought, I'd forgotten to let go of Hina's hand. But I didn't think I really needed to. We were more or less done talking, anyway.
Seeing me continue to fidget with her hand even after listening to everything she had to say, a resigned Hina silently leaned against me.
Though honestly, for someone who was "resigned," she looked far too pleased. Hina seemed to be enjoying the situation, so I didn't let go of her hand until we reached our destination.
When we arrived, we were greeted by a face that was familiar despite it being our first time seeing it... the director of Kaiser PMC, a well-built tin can commonly known as Director Park Min-chul.
"W-We've been waiting for you, Tea Party Host-nim. We will now escort you and ensure your comfort."
...But this person. No, this robot.
He was surprisingly skilled at diplomacy, his groveling was top-notch. I wouldn't have expected it...
***
I don't know if I should say it was just as I'd expected, but there was nothing to be gained from the second excavation site. In fact, it was a wonder they'd found anything at the other site at all. This was probably the norm.
It was past 11 PM, late at night, when we got out of the Kaiser vehicle that dropped us off in front of the Abydos High School grounds.
After the vehicle departed, I was putting on my gas mask and approaching the school gate when, out of nowhere, I heard a *click*.
"Hm... Halt. Identify yourselves."
Shiroko aimed her gun at me, her gaze defiant. I'd really wanted to see her at least once, but Hoshino told me not to come, so I had to postpone my visit until now.
"Hi, so you're Shiroko-chan!"
"You know me?"
Shiroko tilted her head, and her wolf ears twitched. Her heterochromatic eyes, each a different color, shone brightly even in the darkness.
"Ahaha, Hoshino-chan told me a little about you. Oh, and we're not enemies of your Foreclosure Task Force, so you don't have to be so guarded☆"
"...Ah. You're the help Hoshino-sunbae said would be coming today. Understood."
"Yep, yep. I'm Misono Mika. By the way, could we possibly borrow a spare dorm room? The sand is making me feel all grimy, and I'd like to wash up... Oh, and a room for two is fine."
Taking off my gas mask, I strode toward Shiroko. Her ears twitched, and she lowered her gun. For some reason, she seemed wary of me, which made me a little sad.
"Un... follow me. We have plenty of empty rooms anyway, so using separate ones is—"
"No, Shiroko-chan. One is fine for us. Yes, really."
"...? I don't really get it, but okay."
The current time is a little past 11 PM, which means Hina's birthday isn't over yet. And that means I have a duty to satisfy my clingy club president.
And above all, I refuse to be dragged into a meeting right after arriving and be ground down late into the night...
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