Moore left the window open instead of using air conditioning to smoke cigarettes, and apart from the gunshots that sounded like distant blitz from the shooting range outside the base command headquarters building, there was no other significant noise in the commander's office, which had fallen silent.
Crushing his cigarette, Moor looked at Rapi, who was sitting on the opposite sofa.
"...I want to confirm a few things... Is that okay?"
She nodded faintly in response.
With that, Anis was the first to move. Pointing to herself, she asked Rapi,
"...What's my name?"
"Anis."
"No issues there."
"I'm Bucephalus."
"...I'll 'remember' it, Neon."
"...Why Alexander the 3rd's favorite horse?"
Moor couldn't help but comment on that, showing that he was knowledgeable about ancient history.
"Fuhn fuhn!! You are my precious slave!!"
"Oh!! Also, you owe me two million credits!"
As they continued to exchange lies one after another, Moore sighed and lit a new cigarette.
Now, what should they do? While thinking, Moore moved the unlit end up and down, and Rapi, who was sitting across from him, immediately took out a turbo lighter from her pocket and leaned forward.
He also leaned forward and, just as he had done the other day, held out his hands to the offered turbo lighter, allowing her to light the cigarette and produce purple smoke.
"...It seems it wasn't in vain."
"...You remember, huh?"
"Yes."
Upon hearing her words and recognizing the tone she used, Moore also became convinced.
"...Did they really erase your memories?"
"They did. I 'remember' it clearly."
"...You kept it hidden."
She nodded slightly, and a crease appeared on Anis's forehead as she returned the gesture.
Moore, too, held his cigarette to his lips and furrowed his brow deeply with two fingers.
"It seems that memory erasure doesn't always work, huh?"
"It worked on Mihara. I met her about an hour ago, and it seemed like she didn't know who I was."
"...Yeah, that's normal."
"But what if they find out about this?"
With a seemingly nonchalant expression, Neon looked at Moore, Anis, and the troubled Rapi, and Rapi replied in a matter-of-fact tone,
"They'll probably try again. But if the same thing happens again..."
"...You'll be disposed of. In a way, you're an irregular."
Continuing with the emotionless tone, Anis added to her statement, and Rapi nodded in agreement.
There are no exceptions, and Moore, who had no counterarguments to Anis' words, exhaled the purple smoke towards the ceiling as he leaned back on the sofa's backrest.
"Commander..."
The cigarette that Rapi had lit for him was already halfway burned. After inhaling the purple smoke into his lungs and exhaling it toward the ceiling, he addressed her.
"Whether to report this matter to the commander is up to the commander's judgment."
"...Even if you say that..."
Reporting it would lead to uncertainty about the consequences, considering the recent incident. Moore, who had just been thoroughly educated on the matter, hesitated in his decision.
Suppose they assume that they would report THIS to higher-ups. Based on their reactions, this seems to be a very HIGHLY unusual case.
Perhaps there hasn't even been a precedent for such an occurrence.
If a report of such an existence were to be submitted, they would most likely carry out memory erasure once again. But if the memories still couldn't be erased...
"...They won't dispose of you right away... You might become a research subject, to put it in a milder way."
"...I think that's likely."
It seemed that Anis agreed with his prediction.
Moor ebriefly glanced at Rapi, who was sitting on the opposite sofa.
He couldn't help but imagine the scene where her head was opened, her brain, the only living part of her, was extracted, and it was placed in a container filled with some liquid, like a specimen.
"...It's probably best to stay quiet. I have no interest in using my subordinates as research materials."
"Huh? Is that really okay?"
"...It's probably not okay. But if it ever comes to light, don't worry; I'll take responsibility. ...I doubt it would lead to execution, but there might be a dishonorable discharge or something. ...If it were to come to execution, though, a gun execution would be preferable."
With a shrug of his shoulders, he indicated that any form of execution other than a gun execution would be extremely dishonorable, as he crushed his cigarette butt into the ashtray.
"Yeah... if it comes to that, I'll have to sell you out, Commander."
"Yeah, go ahead and sell me out. There's a principle that 'Nikke must absolutely obey the Commander's orders.' Tell them that I ordered you not to report the memory erasure on Rapi to the higher-ups, even though I knew it didn't work."
"...Huh? Are you sure about this?"
Seeing Moore speaking so specifically, Anis asked to confirm. In response, he nodded firmly.
"I couldn't protect you... or more specifically, Rapi. I don't know if this will make up for it, but... this is all I can do."
The guilt of everything having ended while he was unconscious still weighed heavily on his heart.
However, it wouldn't be entirely accurate to say that Moore had purely altruistic motivations to absolve his guilt. Nevertheless, he made it clear that he would take responsibility.
"....Commander, that's cheating, you know? I was angry at Rapi before, but now I can't even be frustrated at her anymore."
"...Huh? Anis... were you angry?"
"Well yeah! ...If you're going to keep it a secret, you should've just told us from the beginning. If you were going to speak, it would've been better to do it when the memory erasure didn't work. By coming back halfway and leaving the rest to us... well, to be precise, to YOU, Commander, Rapi have put us in a difficult situation."
Rapi was taken aback by Anis' observation.
It seemed that she hadn't even considered the fact that all the responsibility would fall on Commander Moore, and she immediately dropped her face after raising it momentarily.
"...Anis, you're not unhappy about Rapi coming back, right?"
"There's no way I could be sad about it! I'm happy! Very happy! Extremely happy! ...Look at Rapi. How long do you think it took to become friends with a personality like hers?"
Moore hadn't counted how many cigarettes he had smoked in this short period of time. As he held a new cigarette in his mouth, he alternated his gaze between Anis and Rapi.
---Although he didn't say it out loud, and it was impolite to Rapi, he couldn't help but feel sympathy and agreement for Anis's struggles.
"I've finally have friends I can trust, and said friend has returned safely. Of course, I'm happy... but that's one thing, and this is ANOTHER. The reason I was angry was as I mentioned earlier. Honestly... I don't like it."
"...I'm sorry. I didn't think that far."
"It's fine. Just don't do the same thing again."
"...I'm not taking Rapi's side, but she must have been confused too. Don't be too hard on her... I don't think the same thing will happen again. ...Now, let me reiterate the orders. None of you should hide the fact that Rapi's memories are intact. That goes for the base's mass-produced Nikke units as well."
When he issued the order again, the three of them responded solemnly.
There was no turning back now. If it were to come to light, Commander Moore would bear full responsibility. However, by using the principle as a kind of protection, the likelihood of disposal for these three would be extremely low.
(Tl Notes: What a MAN and GIGACHAD.)
This was for the best. Moore thought this as he lit his cigarette with an oil lighter.
"...Ah, but I'm a spy... Is it also forbidden to report this to CEO Ingrid?"
"...That's a no-go. Reporting it would ruin everything."
"So that means... I'm a double agent!"
"WoW~~, ThaT's cool~~~."
Watching Neon, whose eyes were shining with the birth of a new attribute or role, Anis praised her in a monotone voice. Meanwhile, Moore, while exhaling purple smoke, returned to his interrupted maintenance of the assault rifle.
"Anis and Neon, please take Rapi for a tour... I mean, guide her around the base."
"Huh? Why?"
"...Let's do things properly. Rapi has just arrived. Shouldn't she be dragged around by scary seniors, for the 'formalities'."
"Oh, I see. Yeah, got it. We'll do it properly. Come on, rookie, follow us."
"And make sure to wipe MY glasses properly later!"
"Be careful. ...Oh, Rapi."
As they were about to leave the commander's office, Moore, who had issued the order, stopped Rapi.
It happened just as she was about to step out into the corridor from the commander's office. In response to the familiar voice, Rapi turned back to Moore.
"...Welcome to your squad. And... welcome back."
"---Yes. I'll continue to rely on you. Commander."
Her earnest nod showed that she hadn't changed from before. Relieved, Moore saluted, and then he watched as she left the commander's office.
----
"Jigiganzama~~ gaettegideguredajinbaidanda garane!!"
(It means. Commander~~~ I'm REALLY worried you won't be coming back anymore~~~~)
"....Who is it? Who made Anis drink this much Nikke's beer. She's totally wasted."
"Commander, Anis drank it all by herself."
"Ah, Shall we record a video~?"
That night, a celebration had been planned in the commander's office to welcome Moore's return and discharge from the hospital. However, Anis, who had consumed a substantial amount of Nikke-exclusive beer, had become thoroughly intoxicated. It seemed that various anxieties and accumulated stress she had been carrying since Moore's injury had exploded.
She had been crying while embracing Moore's head against her ample chest. Neon, finding it amusing, naturally aimed her mobile device's lens at the scene.
-----
Author notes:
Please note that the latter part of the text appears to contain playful banter and humor among the characters, with Anis getting drunk on Nikke beer, a reference to an in-game alcoholic beverage.
Commander Moore is definitely strong with alcohol (I'm sure). He's so strong that he could probably do shuttle runs even after drinking something like vodka without any problem.
Moore left the window open instead of using air conditioning to smoke cigarettes, and apart from the gunshots that sounded like distant blitz from the shooting range outside the base command headquarters building, there was no other significant noise in the commander's office, which had fallen silent.
Crushing his cigarette, Moor looked at Rapi, who was sitting on the opposite sofa.
"...I want to confirm a few things... Is that okay?"
She nodded faintly in response.
With that, Anis was the first to move. Pointing to herself, she asked Rapi,
"...What's my name?"
"Anis."
"No issues there."
"I'm Bucephalus."
"...I'll 'remember' it, Neon."
"...Why Alexander the 3rd's favorite horse?"
Moor couldn't help but comment on that, showing that he was knowledgeable about ancient history.
"Fuhn fuhn!! You are my precious slave!!"
"Oh!! Also, you owe me two million credits!"
As they continued to exchange lies one after another, Moore sighed and lit a new cigarette.
Now, what should they do? While thinking, Moore moved the unlit end up and down, and Rapi, who was sitting across from him, immediately took out a turbo lighter from her pocket and leaned forward.
He also leaned forward and, just as he had done the other day, held out his hands to the offered turbo lighter, allowing her to light the cigarette and produce purple smoke.
"...It seems it wasn't in vain."
"...You remember, huh?"
"Yes."
Upon hearing her words and recognizing the tone she used, Moore also became convinced.
"...Did they really erase your memories?"
"They did. I 'remember' it clearly."
"...You kept it hidden."
She nodded slightly, and a crease appeared on Anis's forehead as she returned the gesture.
Moore, too, held his cigarette to his lips and furrowed his brow deeply with two fingers.
"It seems that memory erasure doesn't always work, huh?"
"It worked on Mihara. I met her about an hour ago, and it seemed like she didn't know who I was."
"...Yeah, that's normal."
"But what if they find out about this?"
With a seemingly nonchalant expression, Neon looked at Moore, Anis, and the troubled Rapi, and Rapi replied in a matter-of-fact tone,
"They'll probably try again. But if the same thing happens again..."
"...You'll be disposed of. In a way, you're an irregular."
Continuing with the emotionless tone, Anis added to her statement, and Rapi nodded in agreement.
There are no exceptions, and Moore, who had no counterarguments to Anis' words, exhaled the purple smoke towards the ceiling as he leaned back on the sofa's backrest.
"Commander..."
The cigarette that Rapi had lit for him was already halfway burned. After inhaling the purple smoke into his lungs and exhaling it toward the ceiling, he addressed her.
"Whether to report this matter to the commander is up to the commander's judgment."
"...Even if you say that..."
Reporting it would lead to uncertainty about the consequences, considering the recent incident. Moore, who had just been thoroughly educated on the matter, hesitated in his decision.
Suppose they assume that they would report THIS to higher-ups. Based on their reactions, this seems to be a very HIGHLY unusual case.
Perhaps there hasn't even been a precedent for such an occurrence.
If a report of such an existence were to be submitted, they would most likely carry out memory erasure once again. But if the memories still couldn't be erased...
"...They won't dispose of you right away... You might become a research subject, to put it in a milder way."
"...I think that's likely."
It seemed that Anis agreed with his prediction.
Moor ebriefly glanced at Rapi, who was sitting on the opposite sofa.
He couldn't help but imagine the scene where her head was opened, her brain, the only living part of her, was extracted, and it was placed in a container filled with some liquid, like a specimen.
"...It's probably best to stay quiet. I have no interest in using my subordinates as research materials."
"Huh? Is that really okay?"
"...It's probably not okay. But if it ever comes to light, don't worry; I'll take responsibility. ...I doubt it would lead to execution, but there might be a dishonorable discharge or something. ...If it were to come to execution, though, a gun execution would be preferable."
With a shrug of his shoulders, he indicated that any form of execution other than a gun execution would be extremely dishonorable, as he crushed his cigarette butt into the ashtray.
"Yeah... if it comes to that, I'll have to sell you out, Commander."
"Yeah, go ahead and sell me out. There's a principle that 'Nikke must absolutely obey the Commander's orders.' Tell them that I ordered you not to report the memory erasure on Rapi to the higher-ups, even though I knew it didn't work."
"...Huh? Are you sure about this?"
Seeing Moore speaking so specifically, Anis asked to confirm. In response, he nodded firmly.
"I couldn't protect you... or more specifically, Rapi. I don't know if this will make up for it, but... this is all I can do."
The guilt of everything having ended while he was unconscious still weighed heavily on his heart.
However, it wouldn't be entirely accurate to say that Moore had purely altruistic motivations to absolve his guilt. Nevertheless, he made it clear that he would take responsibility.
"....Commander, that's cheating, you know? I was angry at Rapi before, but now I can't even be frustrated at her anymore."
"...Huh? Anis... were you angry?"
"Well yeah! ...If you're going to keep it a secret, you should've just told us from the beginning. If you were going to speak, it would've been better to do it when the memory erasure didn't work. By coming back halfway and leaving the rest to us... well, to be precise, to YOU, Commander, Rapi have put us in a difficult situation."
Rapi was taken aback by Anis' observation.
It seemed that she hadn't even considered the fact that all the responsibility would fall on Commander Moore, and she immediately dropped her face after raising it momentarily.
"...Anis, you're not unhappy about Rapi coming back, right?"
"There's no way I could be sad about it! I'm happy! Very happy! Extremely happy! ...Look at Rapi. How long do you think it took to become friends with a personality like hers?"
Moore hadn't counted how many cigarettes he had smoked in this short period of time. As he held a new cigarette in his mouth, he alternated his gaze between Anis and Rapi.
---Although he didn't say it out loud, and it was impolite to Rapi, he couldn't help but feel sympathy and agreement for Anis's struggles.
"I've finally have friends I can trust, and said friend has returned safely. Of course, I'm happy... but that's one thing, and this is ANOTHER. The reason I was angry was as I mentioned earlier. Honestly... I don't like it."
"...I'm sorry. I didn't think that far."
"It's fine. Just don't do the same thing again."
"...I'm not taking Rapi's side, but she must have been confused too. Don't be too hard on her... I don't think the same thing will happen again. ...Now, let me reiterate the orders. None of you should hide the fact that Rapi's memories are intact. That goes for the base's mass-produced Nikke units as well."
When he issued the order again, the three of them responded solemnly.
There was no turning back now. If it were to come to light, Commander Moore would bear full responsibility. However, by using the principle as a kind of protection, the likelihood of disposal for these three would be extremely low.
(Tl Notes: What a MAN and GIGACHAD.)
This was for the best. Moore thought this as he lit his cigarette with an oil lighter.
"...Ah, but I'm a spy... Is it also forbidden to report this to CEO Ingrid?"
"...That's a no-go. Reporting it would ruin everything."
"So that means... I'm a double agent!"
"WoW~~, ThaT's cool~~~."
Watching Neon, whose eyes were shining with the birth of a new attribute or role, Anis praised her in a monotone voice. Meanwhile, Moore, while exhaling purple smoke, returned to his interrupted maintenance of the assault rifle.
"Anis and Neon, please take Rapi for a tour... I mean, guide her around the base."
"Huh? Why?"
"...Let's do things properly. Rapi has just arrived. Shouldn't she be dragged around by scary seniors, for the 'formalities'."
"Oh, I see. Yeah, got it. We'll do it properly. Come on, rookie, follow us."
"And make sure to wipe MY glasses properly later!"
"Be careful. ...Oh, Rapi."
As they were about to leave the commander's office, Moore, who had issued the order, stopped Rapi.
It happened just as she was about to step out into the corridor from the commander's office. In response to the familiar voice, Rapi turned back to Moore.
"...Welcome to your squad. And... welcome back."
"---Yes. I'll continue to rely on you. Commander."
Her earnest nod showed that she hadn't changed from before. Relieved, Moore saluted, and then he watched as she left the commander's office.
----
"Jigiganzama~~ gaettegideguredajinbaidanda garane!!"
(It means. Commander~~~ I'm REALLY worried you won't be coming back anymore~~~~)
"....Who is it? Who made Anis drink this much Nikke's beer. She's totally wasted."
"Commander, Anis drank it all by herself."
"Ah, Shall we record a video~?"
That night, a celebration had been planned in the commander's office to welcome Moore's return and discharge from the hospital. However, Anis, who had consumed a substantial amount of Nikke-exclusive beer, had become thoroughly intoxicated. It seemed that various anxieties and accumulated stress she had been carrying since Moore's injury had exploded.
She had been crying while embracing Moore's head against her ample chest. Neon, finding it amusing, naturally aimed her mobile device's lens at the scene.
-----
Author notes:
Please note that the latter part of the text appears to contain playful banter and humor among the characters, with Anis getting drunk on Nikke beer, a reference to an in-game alcoholic beverage.
Commander Moore is definitely strong with alcohol (I'm sure). He's so strong that he could probably do shuttle runs even after drinking something like vodka without any problem.
