The elevator continued its grinding descent into the deepest levels of the Abandoned Factory.
The brief, confusing encounter with Adam had emphasized that in this world, brute force alone wasn't enough; strategy and exploiting metaphysical weaknesses were key.
Theodore, 2B, and 9S stood in the small metal cage, the tension palpable as they neared the Machine Network Core.
"Okay, plan re-evaluation,"
Theodore muttered, pulling out his final inventory items.
"That Adam guy just demonstrated that this world cheats with metaphysical crap. My STR and AGI are great for combat, but useless against zero-gravity fields and existential angst."
Theodore reached into his inventory, pulling out the Beneviento's Flask—the item that caused localized "confusion" in machinery—and several vials of Holy Water.
"9S,"
Theodore said, looking at the Scanner unit.
"The server core. What's the primary defense mechanism? Is it physical, or is it a logic bomb?"
"It's a dense, networked core, heavily shielded,"
9S explained, his voice tight.
"Its defense is primarily data saturation—it overloads any external hacking attempt with a flood of corrupted information, effectively freezing and destroying the attacker's systems. Physically, it's covered in thick armor plating."
"Right. Data saturation is a logic defense,"
Theodore stated, his eyes gleaming with realization. He held up Beneviento's Flask.
"This thing causes localized confusion in automated systems. If we hit the core with this, it might destabilize the data flow long enough for a hack."
He then held up the Holy Water.
"And this is pure, conceptual light energy. Great against evil or corrupted life forms. These machine bastards want to be 'human,' right? We're going to treat them like corrupted data."
Here were the plans.
Theodore (The Exploit): Use Giant Strength to punch through the outer armor, then use the Beneviento's Flask to overload the core with "confusion."
9S (The Finisher): Immediately initiate his most complex, aggressive hack into the unstable server core.
2B (The Defense): Provide total defense against any Machine Lifeforms still protecting the server room, ensuring Theodore and 9S remain safe.
"This is the fastest path to the True Ending,"
Theodore concluded.
"Ready?"
2B simply drew her katana.
"Affirmative. The mission requires absolute efficiency."
9S nodded, his visor darkening with concentration.
"I will not fail the hack."
The elevator doors hissed open, revealing a vast, dark chamber at the heart of the Factory.
The room was dominated by a colossal, pulsing, black metallic orb—the Machine Network Core.
It hummed with contained data and power, covered in thick armor plating and connected by countless glowing data cables.
The moment the doors opened, the Core reacted. Hundreds of high-level Machine Lifeforms—floating spheres, heavily armored quadrupeds, and even flying units—poured out from the shadows, instantly moving to protect their heart.
[Boss Battle: Machine Network Core]
"2B, DEFENSE! 9S, CHARGING THE HACK!"
Theodore yelled, charging forward with a roar.
2B was a whirlwind of motion. She deployed smoke grenades to create cover and engaged the swarm with devastating, precise strikes. Her Pod unleashed a continuous barrage of laser fire, creating a clean defensive perimeter around 9S.
9S immediately plugged his cable into a reinforced terminal near the core, closing his eyes as he dove into the mental battlefield of the network. He was vulnerable, relying entirely on his teammates.
Theodore flew across the chamber, boosted by Wind Walk, straight toward the Core. The surrounding machines focused their fire on him, but his speed allowed him to evade the slowest, heavy shots.
He reached the Core's outer shell and, focusing all his Giant Strength, delivered a single, thunderous punch against the thickest part of the armor.
KRAK-THOOM!
The metallic plate buckled, groaning under the non-standard, immense physical stress. A hairline fracture appeared, causing sparks and localized smoke.
"Armor penetrated!"
Theodore yelled. He slammed Beneviento's Flask against the fracture.
The flask shattered, releasing a plume of visible, chaotic psychic energy that seeped into the Core.
The entire giant orb began to sputter and glitch, emitting frantic, high-pitched static.
The flood of defensive data overload that 9S feared was instantly corrupted and destabilized.
"Theodore! It's destabilized! I'm in!"
9S shouted, the complex hacking sequence beginning immediately.
With the Core reeling and 9S deep in the network, Theodore pulled out the remaining Holy Water.
He didn't toss it; he infused his Ascalon blade with the glowing, purifying liquid.
He drove the holy-charged sword through the fractured armor and deep into the now-exposed, glitching data core.
WHOOOM!
The impact was instantaneous and overwhelming. The Core didn't explode; it dissolved.
The conceptual purity of the Holy Water, combined with the extreme physical damage, caused the entire networked entity to experience a total, existential collapse.
The machine's desire for 'humanity' was overwhelmed by a force that categorized it simply as 'corruption.'
The massive orb turned to dust, and the hundreds of machines in the chamber instantly went dead.
[Machine Network Core Destroyed!]
[YoRHa Mission Complete: Local Server Offline]
[Experience Gained: 5,000]
[Level Up]
[Free Points Gained: 2]
Theodore pulled the smoking sword out of the dust cloud. The silence was absolute.
He looked over at 2B and 9S, who were staring at the empty space where the Core had been.
"Clean,"
Theodore declared, sheathing his sword.
"That's how you do a clean uninstall."