Author Notes:
Q: Does the author dislike the protagonist?
A: No, the author actually loves them and just wants them to overcome hardships and challenges.
*Thank you for the typo report, Eri Noru.
(Tl Notes: Talkative or Chatterbox is the same)
------
─ It shouldn't have any memories of combat. But I am certain that it have recorded it.
Talkative watched in bewilderment as the young man before him, who had just cut off his right leg below the knee with his own hands, rolled onto the street while holding a blood-soaked knife, heading towards Yuni's recoilless rifle.
Kneeling down, Moore grabbed the recoilless rifle, slung it over his shoulder, and with his fingers, he disabled the safety mechanism and placed his finger on the trigger.
In general, firearms manufactured by the three major corporations of the Ark have individual fingerprint authentication settings, making it virtually impossible for others to use them. However, whether Yuni had disabled this setting or for some other reason, the trigger could be pulled without any issue.
─ With a smile curling at the corners of his mouth, an expression of joy that resembled a hungry beast finding its prey.
─ It's as if he's identical to the people who continue to charge forward, roaring madly, even as their limbs are torn off and their skin and flesh are burned, stepping over the bodies of their comrades.
─ Where have I seen this scene before? There is definitely a sense of déjà vu in this recording.
As Talkative was still confused by the vivid memories from the past that seemed to be embedded in the defeated Raptures, Moore fired the recoilless rifle slung over his shoulder.
The shaped explosive shell that flew out of the barrel headed straight for Talkative's torso. Upon impact with the skin, the impact fuze at the tip of the warhead activated, detonating the explosive at the base of the shell.
An explosion, a super-high-speed metal jet, and the Munroe-Neumann effect occurred, leaving a hole as evidence of penetration in Talkative's body.
(Tl Notes:the focusing of blast energy by a hollow or void cut on a surface of an explosive.)
{─ You...!}
The impact damaged part of Talkative's armor, and small and large fragments scattered around. One of those fragments pierced Moore's right eye, which had been wide open to avoid missing the enemy's movements.
Although a hole had opened in his torso, Talkative quickly activated his self-repair function, and the hole closed rapidly.
The counterattack was in vain, yet Moore continued to wear a smile of joy.
"How's that... I did it!"
─ What is this human doing?
Unexpectedly, a hole was created in Talkative's body, but it didn't pose a significant problem. Nevertheless, the man before him showed no signs of concern.
Why was he resisting when he must have realized he couldn't win?
The entity continuing its futile struggles was beyond Talkative's understanding.
He threw the recoilless rifle on the spot and forcefully pulled out the annoying fragment embedded in his right eye.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the gel-like vitreous remains that had mostly filled his eyeball, which was swaying grotesquely connected to the optic nerve, tore it off, and threw it on the ground. Then, Moore reached for his leg holster with his right hand, gripped the pistol, and aimed it at Talkative as soon as he drew it.
His field of vision had narrowed. But with one eye, he could still fire the gun. He could still counterattack. He could still attack the enemy.
As if saying so, without any sign of hesitation, he disabled the safety and pulled the trigger multiple times. Dry gunshots echoed, but there was no way a pistol bullet could cause significant damage to Talkative.
{─ It's a meaningless struggle...!}
"Meaningless!? Do you know what WE are doing? This is a fight to the death between you and me!! Stop babbling and come at me, you talkative bastard!! I'm going to kill you!!"
Continuing to pull the pistol's trigger multiple times, and when the magazine was empty, he withdrew a spare magazine from his leg holster and replaced it. As Moore performed the magazine change, Talkative found a fitting scene from the hundreds or thousands of battle records left by the defeated Raptures.
There were undoubtedly humanoid beings, not those imitating dolls. Nevertheless, with the battle recorded where hundreds of Raptures were defeated, Talkative was convinced.
─ Aren't these individuals similar to those people? No, that can't be. It must have been decades since that battle. But still...
{─ You can't be... those people...}
─ Suddenly, a hole was pierced in Talkative's torso. Almost simultaneously, a gunshot or some kind of gunfire resounded in his eardrums.
With his one remaining eye, he turned towards the direction where the gunfire had come from, the rooftop of a building. There stood a white figure holding an enormous sniper rifle that looked ridiculously long.
"─ Anti-ship rifle...!?"
{─ Pilgrim?}
As if in response to Rapi's and the target's words, the figure on the rooftop continued to shoot at Talkative, spewing an enormous muzzle flash from the muzzle brake while aiming the next shot at Talkative.
Another hit resulted in further holes in the massive body.
{─ The repair function won't make it in time... SHIT!}
Perhaps realizing the sudden shift in the situation, Talkative leaped away, glaring at the figure on the rooftop, and disappeared from Moore's and the others' sight in an instant.
"...Huh?"
All Moore could do was watch him disappear while gripping the pistol in his right hand.
─ Unmanageable anger filled his mind.
"Hey... come back. Come back, Talkative, you talkative bastard! The fight isn't over yet!!"
What are you ending on your own? We were ready to fight even if it meant cutting off our own legs. I even gave you my right eye.
What a fucking cheater. If so...
"Don't mess around, you Basta*d! It's all ruined...!!"
Return my feeling of the best time in my life.
As if to say that, he roared, and the echoes of his fury reverberated around. The white figure had disappeared in the meantime.
Sensing the threat had passed, Rapi rushed over, and immediately, a tourniquet was applied to Moore's right leg. First aid was necessary, but he couldn't move freely, so he was dragged by Anis away from the location of the battle.
In the ruins-like warehouse where they relocated, Rapi began first aid on Moore's right leg, and Anis attended to his face.
"...Damn...! ...It's okay. Rapi, keep going. Tighten the tourniquet with the kit even tighter. There's nothing below the knee anyway. Even if it necrotizes...!"
Rapi, with a solemn expression, nodded and tightened the tourniquet even more forcefully, causing Moore to grit his teeth and endure the pain, although groans escaped him.
"Hold on, Commander. It's okay, it's okay. When we get back to the Ark, make sure to go to the hospital."
His eyeball had completely detached and was lost, and Anis was taking care of his right eye, which had been sliced open. The white fabric covering half of Moore's face was stained with blood, seeping from the concealed right eye area.
Despite the severe pain he must be experiencing, he was being held down, and even though it was probably just a comforting gesture, Anis spoke calmly, trying to soothe the pain. She knelt down and hugged him, stroking his head.
Any normal person would have died from such combat-related injuries and massive bleeding that had occurred over ten minutes ago. Yet he was still alive.
Clearly, he was abnormal.
(Tl Notes: YOU THINK!?)
The muscle fibers crammed into the severed area seemed fresh. Rapi observed the spots where blood was still dripping despite the tourniquet's tightness and, after removing her gloves, wrapped layers of bandages around the severed area. A fluid bag for transfusions was attached to his body with duct tape as a makeshift solution, but it was just buying time.
"...First aid is done. But it's only first aid. Please receive treatment once we return to the Ark."
"I... don't like hospitals..."
"Please... receive... treatment..."
He mentioned the word 'hospital' with a grimace, but it was almost certain that he would end up in the hospital. That's if he made it back alive.
Rapi suddenly felt like sighing. Moore reached out to a pouch on his body armor — the designated place for cigarettes and an oil lighter.
She placed her hand over his outstretched one to stop him, then took out a thin stick from somewhere and placed it between his lips.
"I don't really like these lollipop painkillers..."
"Please bear with it. It might just be for comfort, but it will ease the pain."
She gave him an immediate-acting lollipop painkiller to replace nicotine and tar. Afterward, Rapi stood up.
The situation wasn't good. Not only Moore, who was injured in his right leg and right eye, but Mihara and Yuni had also suffered damage.
Even if they wanted to call for reinforcements, communication was blocked. It was like leaving it to fate, but Rapi considered going to a large facility with radio towers and attempting communication with the Ark from there. However, there was a significant problem, and she turned her gaze to Moore.
"Sensei, please don't push yourself."
"It's... fine. Neon, the iron pipe rolling over there... yeah, that L-shaped one. Bring it to me."
In the direction Rapi was looking, Neon was fitting Moore with the helmet and headset she had recovered. Moore, holding the lollipop stick in his mouth, was pleading with her. It appeared that in the corner of the warehouse, which seemed to have served as a storage area, there was an iron pipe lying around, and Moore pointed to it, prompting Neon to pick it up and bring it over.
"Give me my gun."
"But..."
"It's okay. Trust me. ...With this, I can walk."
Using the rusty iron pipe as a makeshift cane, he got up, then grabbed the assault rifle Neon was carrying and slung the sling strap around his neck and left side.
Neon would carry the backpack, and they were ready to depart, but...
"Hey, Rapi, maybe it's better if I carry the Commander..."
"No, it's not. He needs to be ready for a surprise attack."
Under normal circumstances, the radio tower was a distance that could be reached in about two hours, but due to his injuries, Moore could only walk slowly, unlike his usual pace. Already, about three hours had passed since they set off, and they had only covered half of the distance.
Anis, concerned about his condition, made a suggestion to Rapi, but Rapi shook her head. While the reason was understandable, Anis was visibly uneasy, and she turned to look back at Moore, who seemed on the verge of falling behind.
Truthfully, Rapi would like to lend him a shoulder and, if possible, carry him for transportation. But the situation didn't allow for it.
They took another brief break, replaced the empty fluid bag, and continued to move forward, the only option to keep Moore alive as he continued to bleed.
"Commander, I'm sorry. I know it's painful, but..."
"Don't worry about me. Let's keep moving."
His complexion was far from good, to say the least. It was clear evidence that he had lost a lot of blood. Despite being out of breath and covered in cold sweat, his response was unwavering.
So, when they proposed using Mihara and Yuni's abilities to alleviate the pain, he declined.
"If the pain goes away... I might faint and die. So it's better this way. I can still feel alive. I'd be in trouble if I couldn't return."
"...You're strong..."
.
.
.
----I WILL stand on the battlefield again.
.
.
.
Although Moore didn't explicitly say this, it sounded like he did, and Mihara directed a somewhat envious gaze towards him.
Author Notes:
Q: Does the author dislike the protagonist?
A: No, the author actually loves them and just wants them to overcome hardships and challenges.
*Thank you for the typo report, Eri Noru.
(Tl Notes: Talkative or Chatterbox is the same)
------
─ It shouldn't have any memories of combat. But I am certain that it have recorded it.
Talkative watched in bewilderment as the young man before him, who had just cut off his right leg below the knee with his own hands, rolled onto the street while holding a blood-soaked knife, heading towards Yuni's recoilless rifle.
Kneeling down, Moore grabbed the recoilless rifle, slung it over his shoulder, and with his fingers, he disabled the safety mechanism and placed his finger on the trigger.
In general, firearms manufactured by the three major corporations of the Ark have individual fingerprint authentication settings, making it virtually impossible for others to use them. However, whether Yuni had disabled this setting or for some other reason, the trigger could be pulled without any issue.
─ With a smile curling at the corners of his mouth, an expression of joy that resembled a hungry beast finding its prey.
─ It's as if he's identical to the people who continue to charge forward, roaring madly, even as their limbs are torn off and their skin and flesh are burned, stepping over the bodies of their comrades.
─ Where have I seen this scene before? There is definitely a sense of déjà vu in this recording.
As Talkative was still confused by the vivid memories from the past that seemed to be embedded in the defeated Raptures, Moore fired the recoilless rifle slung over his shoulder.
The shaped explosive shell that flew out of the barrel headed straight for Talkative's torso. Upon impact with the skin, the impact fuze at the tip of the warhead activated, detonating the explosive at the base of the shell.
An explosion, a super-high-speed metal jet, and the Munroe-Neumann effect occurred, leaving a hole as evidence of penetration in Talkative's body.
(Tl Notes:the focusing of blast energy by a hollow or void cut on a surface of an explosive.)
{─ You...!}
The impact damaged part of Talkative's armor, and small and large fragments scattered around. One of those fragments pierced Moore's right eye, which had been wide open to avoid missing the enemy's movements.
Although a hole had opened in his torso, Talkative quickly activated his self-repair function, and the hole closed rapidly.
The counterattack was in vain, yet Moore continued to wear a smile of joy.
"How's that... I did it!"
─ What is this human doing?
Unexpectedly, a hole was created in Talkative's body, but it didn't pose a significant problem. Nevertheless, the man before him showed no signs of concern.
Why was he resisting when he must have realized he couldn't win?
The entity continuing its futile struggles was beyond Talkative's understanding.
He threw the recoilless rifle on the spot and forcefully pulled out the annoying fragment embedded in his right eye.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the gel-like vitreous remains that had mostly filled his eyeball, which was swaying grotesquely connected to the optic nerve, tore it off, and threw it on the ground. Then, Moore reached for his leg holster with his right hand, gripped the pistol, and aimed it at Talkative as soon as he drew it.
His field of vision had narrowed. But with one eye, he could still fire the gun. He could still counterattack. He could still attack the enemy.
As if saying so, without any sign of hesitation, he disabled the safety and pulled the trigger multiple times. Dry gunshots echoed, but there was no way a pistol bullet could cause significant damage to Talkative.
{─ It's a meaningless struggle...!}
"Meaningless!? Do you know what WE are doing? This is a fight to the death between you and me!! Stop babbling and come at me, you talkative bastard!! I'm going to kill you!!"
Continuing to pull the pistol's trigger multiple times, and when the magazine was empty, he withdrew a spare magazine from his leg holster and replaced it. As Moore performed the magazine change, Talkative found a fitting scene from the hundreds or thousands of battle records left by the defeated Raptures.
There were undoubtedly humanoid beings, not those imitating dolls. Nevertheless, with the battle recorded where hundreds of Raptures were defeated, Talkative was convinced.
─ Aren't these individuals similar to those people? No, that can't be. It must have been decades since that battle. But still...
{─ You can't be... those people...}
─ Suddenly, a hole was pierced in Talkative's torso. Almost simultaneously, a gunshot or some kind of gunfire resounded in his eardrums.
With his one remaining eye, he turned towards the direction where the gunfire had come from, the rooftop of a building. There stood a white figure holding an enormous sniper rifle that looked ridiculously long.
"─ Anti-ship rifle...!?"
{─ Pilgrim?}
As if in response to Rapi's and the target's words, the figure on the rooftop continued to shoot at Talkative, spewing an enormous muzzle flash from the muzzle brake while aiming the next shot at Talkative.
Another hit resulted in further holes in the massive body.
{─ The repair function won't make it in time... SHIT!}
Perhaps realizing the sudden shift in the situation, Talkative leaped away, glaring at the figure on the rooftop, and disappeared from Moore's and the others' sight in an instant.
"...Huh?"
All Moore could do was watch him disappear while gripping the pistol in his right hand.
─ Unmanageable anger filled his mind.
"Hey... come back. Come back, Talkative, you talkative bastard! The fight isn't over yet!!"
What are you ending on your own? We were ready to fight even if it meant cutting off our own legs. I even gave you my right eye.
What a fucking cheater. If so...
"Don't mess around, you Basta*d! It's all ruined...!!"
Return my feeling of the best time in my life.
As if to say that, he roared, and the echoes of his fury reverberated around. The white figure had disappeared in the meantime.
Sensing the threat had passed, Rapi rushed over, and immediately, a tourniquet was applied to Moore's right leg. First aid was necessary, but he couldn't move freely, so he was dragged by Anis away from the location of the battle.
In the ruins-like warehouse where they relocated, Rapi began first aid on Moore's right leg, and Anis attended to his face.
"...Damn...! ...It's okay. Rapi, keep going. Tighten the tourniquet with the kit even tighter. There's nothing below the knee anyway. Even if it necrotizes...!"
Rapi, with a solemn expression, nodded and tightened the tourniquet even more forcefully, causing Moore to grit his teeth and endure the pain, although groans escaped him.
"Hold on, Commander. It's okay, it's okay. When we get back to the Ark, make sure to go to the hospital."
His eyeball had completely detached and was lost, and Anis was taking care of his right eye, which had been sliced open. The white fabric covering half of Moore's face was stained with blood, seeping from the concealed right eye area.
Despite the severe pain he must be experiencing, he was being held down, and even though it was probably just a comforting gesture, Anis spoke calmly, trying to soothe the pain. She knelt down and hugged him, stroking his head.
Any normal person would have died from such combat-related injuries and massive bleeding that had occurred over ten minutes ago. Yet he was still alive.
Clearly, he was abnormal.
(Tl Notes: YOU THINK!?)
The muscle fibers crammed into the severed area seemed fresh. Rapi observed the spots where blood was still dripping despite the tourniquet's tightness and, after removing her gloves, wrapped layers of bandages around the severed area. A fluid bag for transfusions was attached to his body with duct tape as a makeshift solution, but it was just buying time.
"...First aid is done. But it's only first aid. Please receive treatment once we return to the Ark."
"I... don't like hospitals..."
"Please... receive... treatment..."
He mentioned the word 'hospital' with a grimace, but it was almost certain that he would end up in the hospital. That's if he made it back alive.
Rapi suddenly felt like sighing. Moore reached out to a pouch on his body armor — the designated place for cigarettes and an oil lighter.
She placed her hand over his outstretched one to stop him, then took out a thin stick from somewhere and placed it between his lips.
"I don't really like these lollipop painkillers..."
"Please bear with it. It might just be for comfort, but it will ease the pain."
She gave him an immediate-acting lollipop painkiller to replace nicotine and tar. Afterward, Rapi stood up.
The situation wasn't good. Not only Moore, who was injured in his right leg and right eye, but Mihara and Yuni had also suffered damage.
Even if they wanted to call for reinforcements, communication was blocked. It was like leaving it to fate, but Rapi considered going to a large facility with radio towers and attempting communication with the Ark from there. However, there was a significant problem, and she turned her gaze to Moore.
"Sensei, please don't push yourself."
"It's... fine. Neon, the iron pipe rolling over there... yeah, that L-shaped one. Bring it to me."
In the direction Rapi was looking, Neon was fitting Moore with the helmet and headset she had recovered. Moore, holding the lollipop stick in his mouth, was pleading with her. It appeared that in the corner of the warehouse, which seemed to have served as a storage area, there was an iron pipe lying around, and Moore pointed to it, prompting Neon to pick it up and bring it over.
"Give me my gun."
"But..."
"It's okay. Trust me. ...With this, I can walk."
Using the rusty iron pipe as a makeshift cane, he got up, then grabbed the assault rifle Neon was carrying and slung the sling strap around his neck and left side.
Neon would carry the backpack, and they were ready to depart, but...
"Hey, Rapi, maybe it's better if I carry the Commander..."
"No, it's not. He needs to be ready for a surprise attack."
Under normal circumstances, the radio tower was a distance that could be reached in about two hours, but due to his injuries, Moore could only walk slowly, unlike his usual pace. Already, about three hours had passed since they set off, and they had only covered half of the distance.
Anis, concerned about his condition, made a suggestion to Rapi, but Rapi shook her head. While the reason was understandable, Anis was visibly uneasy, and she turned to look back at Moore, who seemed on the verge of falling behind.
Truthfully, Rapi would like to lend him a shoulder and, if possible, carry him for transportation. But the situation didn't allow for it.
They took another brief break, replaced the empty fluid bag, and continued to move forward, the only option to keep Moore alive as he continued to bleed.
"Commander, I'm sorry. I know it's painful, but..."
"Don't worry about me. Let's keep moving."
His complexion was far from good, to say the least. It was clear evidence that he had lost a lot of blood. Despite being out of breath and covered in cold sweat, his response was unwavering.
So, when they proposed using Mihara and Yuni's abilities to alleviate the pain, he declined.
"If the pain goes away... I might faint and die. So it's better this way. I can still feel alive. I'd be in trouble if I couldn't return."
"...You're strong..."
.
.
.
----I WILL stand on the battlefield again.
.
.
.
Although Moore didn't explicitly say this, it sounded like he did, and Mihara directed a somewhat envious gaze towards him.
