The walls of the building Anis had pointed to appeared to be made of aluminum or some other metal with interference material. As soon as they entered the interior, all the antennas displayed on Moore's mobile device disappeared, indicating that they were out of signal.
Neon tilted her head, not understanding why they had moved to a building surrounded by walls made of material that interfered with communication and radio signals.
"Why are we here?"
"It's just the right place for a discussion."
Though they had just descended from the elevator, Moore had a cigarette between his lips, and he ignited it with an oil lighter, letting the purple smoke fill the air. He gazed at Anis while holding the cigarette between two fingers of his left hand, which was clad in hard-knuckle gloves.
"...Is this about Shifty?"
"Yeah. Shifty is monitoring us. Commander, Exia is the only one who knows we come to the surface, right?"
To her question, he nodded slightly and casually surveyed the interior of the building. The desktop screens, long abandoned, were cracked, and scattered documents covered the floor.
He picked up one of the documents and briefly glanced at its content; it appeared to be some kind of specification. He, not familiar with such matters, couldn't quite understand, but it was probably something that had been manufactured or experimented on in this building. Losing interest, he casually tossed it aside.
"...It's not just me, but all of us. We should have only informed Exia about our coming to the surface, but Shifty contacted us immediately after we got up here... Honestly, it's bothering me."
"Yeah, that's true. So why is Shifty monitoring us?"
With a somewhat theatrical tone, Anis gazed at all of them as she asked, and Neon, along with an exasperated sigh, turned her gaze toward Moore and then back to Anise.
"Sensei, Anis... aren't you becoming overly suspicious? Maybe she's just interested in us, that's all?"
"True, that possibility can't be completely ruled out. But—"
"—It might not be that way."
Neon's point made sense as well, but the situation was the situation. Before Moore, who was puffing on the cigarette and starting to voice his thoughts, Anis quickly picked it up.
As she let out a deep sigh, there seemed to be a slight shadow in her hazel eyes, and Anis began to speak in a matter-of-fact tone.
"We're drawing attention at ARK. Do you know what ARK is? It's like a rat's nest, where all kinds of slander and conspiracies run rampant."
Listening to Anis's voice, which sounded unusually vivid, Moore couldn't help but feel that beneath her outward cheerfulness, she had become a somewhat neurotic and paranoid individual, likely due to some past experiences. While the exact circumstances that led her to feel this way were unclear, it was easy to deduce that something significant must have happened.
.
"...I can't trust anyone anymore."
.
Anise muttered her true feelings softly, as if something had suddenly dawned on her. Her honest words should have been preceded by "everyone except for all of you" rather than just "everyone."
"...Including me?"
Oh no, this is bad, Moore thought.
By the time he felt that way, it was too late. And Anis, who had just uttered those words, didn't possess the dexterity to retract her earlier statement. With a small sigh and a puff of purple smoke, Moore tossed the cigarette butt into a portable ashtray.
"Well, I am a spy, so..."
"Both of you—what's going on?"
Anis's earlier remark had clearly struck a chord, but now she seemed to backtrack, leaving Moore to try to make sense of the situation.
Moore didn't necessarily wish for them to become best friends, but he wanted to put a stop to the situation before it got worse. Just as he was about to do that, the mobile devices they had just stowed away in their body armor pouches began to vibrate. The vibrating mobile devices signaled incoming calls, and Moore, along with Rapi, Anis, and Neon, took out their respective devices and unlocked them.
.
.
Exia: "Hii~~Everyone, the atmosphere seems gloomy."
.
.
Despite being in an area with no signal, how was this connection even possible? The sender was Exia. And where was Exia observing them from? Moore scanned the building's interior, but to his knowledge, there were no operational surveillance cameras.
In the corner of his vision, he noticed Anis holding her mobile device with both hands, tapping the screen with an intensity that was clearly sending a message, and for some reason, it got sent and posted in the squad's group chat.
.
.
.
Anis: "We spying on us too?"
Exia: "No."
Exia: "This is monitoring..."
Anis: "It's pretty much the same thing, isn't it!?"
Exia: "You can trust Shifty..."
Anis: "What do you mean?"
Exia: "She maxed out on Final Quest..."
Anis: "Huh? What does that have to do with this?"
Exia: "I love Final Quest... There are no bad guys."
Exia: "This is the truth."
Exia: "Those who don't believe... know too little about games."
Anis: "Whether we believe or not is for you to decide!"
Neon: "Not 'us,' but 'Anis,' right?"
.
.
.
Moore felt a headache coming on. Perhaps it was a chronic headache. Reading the messages on the screen, Moore unintentionally released his grip on the shotgun's handle and used his right hand to rub his temples.
Usually, especially when teasing Rapi, they would cooperate. Despite that, their conversation seemed challenging. Moore couldn't help but be impressed about the absurdness of it.
Glancing away from the confrontational Anis and Neon, he returned his gaze to the mobile device's screen, where Exia had given instructions.
"...There's a broken airplane to the north. Let's move."
"Roger."
Coordinates were sent to the mobile device. Confirming it, Moore put the device away and gave orders. Rapi nodded and started heading outdoors.
As he tried to catch up with them, Moore stopped, turned back, and let out a sigh.
"Anise, Neon. If yu are not moving, I'm leaving you behind."
Still locked in a glaring contest, they both looked away from each other and began following Moore.
"...Is it going to be fine?"
"If it looks like they're starting something more than a catfight, I'll stop them,"
They were not children, and it was safe to assume they had enough sense. Moore used the term "catfight," but the two of them were like lions, resembling more of a fierce scuffle than a cute kitten tussle.
Silence reigned in the group as they walked. Rarely did Moore not hear anything from Neon and Anis, even though they had engaged in a snowball fight during their previous mission. This time, the atmosphere was heavier.
They had not yet encountered the Rapture, which was fortunate, but it was oddly reassuring that they were not under threat from the Rapture. Moore pondered why the Rapture didn't attack during such times when they could be on guard.
-----
They continued towards the coordinates Exia had sent.
The paved ground beneath the high piles of machinery and vehicles in the scrapyard must have once served as a runway or something similar. Moore noticed half-wrecked transport planes stored in the hangar. The wings were broken, and the fuselages were damaged. This was likely the "broken airplane" Exia had mentioned.
"Hmmm..."
"There doesn't seem to be anything in particular."
Aside from the stored, decommissioned transport planes, there was nothing else here. Although the wreckage of military vehicles and armored cars was scattered around. Moore mumbled as he surveyed the area, and Rapi nodded in response.
"Should we expect any contact?"
"Just to be safe, let's stay alert."
"Squad, stay alert around the area. We never know when the Rapture might attack."
"Okay. I'll watch the east, and Neon, could you please watch the west?"
Anis, in her usual cheerful manner, began her vigilance, pointing her grenade launcher. However, when Neon heard Anise's request, she blinked multiple times.
"Me? Why me?"
"Huh?"
"I might pretend to watch the west but shoot in the east. After all, I'm a spy!"
Seemingly still holding a grudge, Neon's words undoubtedly referred to their earlier exchange inside the building.
But the current situation demanded vigilance. Anis, who understood that personal conflicts were not allowed, let out an exasperated sigh even at this behavior.
Even that response seemed to irritate Neon even more. Her tone grew harsh.
"I can't believe it! You're entrusting vigilance to a spy... Isn't your sense of crisis too low?"
"Hey, are you looking for a fight?"
"Yes, I am. What's it to you?"
"...Come over here for a second."
"No, I don't want to. Anis should come instead."
"Ugh... You two... ---Damn."
Moore was about to intervene, considering if he should stop them. However, the mobile device suddenly vibrated, causing him to audibly curse under his breath. He pulled out the device from its pouch.
.
.
.
"Exia: 'Beginner, aren't you going to stop them?'
Moore: 'I was about to, but you butted in.'
Exia: 'Ah, I see, sorry about that.'
Exia: 'Anyway...'
Exia: 'Rapi.'
Exia: 'Open that box...'
Rapi: 'Box?'
Exia: 'Yes... in the cockpit... in front.'
Rapi: 'Roger.'"
.
.
.
Moore was puzzled by the source of these messages and whether someone was monitoring or hacking their devices. Still, he decided to follow Exia's latest instruction to open the box in the cockpit, although he didn't quite understand why they had to do so.
"Why do we need to open this box?"
"There must be a reason."
Moore sighed, realizing that scolding Anis and Neon wouldn't do any good at this point. He instructed them to stay vigilant while he followed Rapi into the transport plane's cockpit. Inside, among the rusted instruments and cracked displays, they found an orange box.
"Is this a Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR)?"
Rapi asked him to step back a bit, raising Moore's curiosity.
The box labeled "CVR" had several cables connected to it and a warning message that read "DO NOT OPEN." Below that were a series of model numbers. Rapi, with a furrowed brow, gestured for Moore to step back, and he complied, moving away from the cockpit.
As Rapi began working, the sound of the rusty metal lid being removed echoed through the cockpit. Moore watched her for a moment, and after she had finished, he asked, "Did you find anything?"
"No, there's nothing here," she replied.
She then took out her mobile device, sent a message, and promptly received a response from Exia. According to the message, they were instructed to head north again.
Following Exia's instructions, they left the hangar and headed north. As they began their advance, Moore's mobile device began to vibrate. However, it wasn't a text message but a different type of vibration coming from his holster.
He took it out, tapped the screen, and answered a video call from Exia. As he did, a close-up of her face, with dark circles under her eyes, filled the screen.
.
.
.
"Heeey..."
"What do you want?"
"What's your plan, anyway? If it's a message, send a message. If it's a video call, make it a video call. Could you decide?"
.
.
.
Just as Moore initiated the call, Anis appeared by his side, glaring at the screen without hiding her displeasure. She shook her head from side to side, as if to express her frustration.
[Ah... even though you've been accumulating stress by suspecting own comrades... I'm against taking it out on others.]
Neon chimed in, saying, "That's right! That's right!"
As Moore grappled with how to respond to Exia's comment, he noticed Neon nodding in agreement behind him. However, Exia's gaze, now directed to Moore's right side, was where Rapi's image appeared on her screen.
[...Ra...pi...]
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Rapi was addressed directly, causing her to tilt her head in confusion. And then, Exia continued, delivering a shocking revelation.
.
.
.
.
.
[...You haven't had your memories erased... Rapi...]
This statement left Moore and everyone else in stunned silence.
-----
Author Notes: I couldn't help but think about scenarios like, "A box in the cockpit? Usually, there's no such thing... Wait, could she be talking about the flight recorder?" while playing through this chapter as a mere reader.
The walls of the building Anis had pointed to appeared to be made of aluminum or some other metal with interference material. As soon as they entered the interior, all the antennas displayed on Moore's mobile device disappeared, indicating that they were out of signal.
Neon tilted her head, not understanding why they had moved to a building surrounded by walls made of material that interfered with communication and radio signals.
"Why are we here?"
"It's just the right place for a discussion."
Though they had just descended from the elevator, Moore had a cigarette between his lips, and he ignited it with an oil lighter, letting the purple smoke fill the air. He gazed at Anis while holding the cigarette between two fingers of his left hand, which was clad in hard-knuckle gloves.
"...Is this about Shifty?"
"Yeah. Shifty is monitoring us. Commander, Exia is the only one who knows we come to the surface, right?"
To her question, he nodded slightly and casually surveyed the interior of the building. The desktop screens, long abandoned, were cracked, and scattered documents covered the floor.
He picked up one of the documents and briefly glanced at its content; it appeared to be some kind of specification. He, not familiar with such matters, couldn't quite understand, but it was probably something that had been manufactured or experimented on in this building. Losing interest, he casually tossed it aside.
"...It's not just me, but all of us. We should have only informed Exia about our coming to the surface, but Shifty contacted us immediately after we got up here... Honestly, it's bothering me."
"Yeah, that's true. So why is Shifty monitoring us?"
With a somewhat theatrical tone, Anis gazed at all of them as she asked, and Neon, along with an exasperated sigh, turned her gaze toward Moore and then back to Anise.
"Sensei, Anis... aren't you becoming overly suspicious? Maybe she's just interested in us, that's all?"
"True, that possibility can't be completely ruled out. But—"
"—It might not be that way."
Neon's point made sense as well, but the situation was the situation. Before Moore, who was puffing on the cigarette and starting to voice his thoughts, Anis quickly picked it up.
As she let out a deep sigh, there seemed to be a slight shadow in her hazel eyes, and Anis began to speak in a matter-of-fact tone.
"We're drawing attention at ARK. Do you know what ARK is? It's like a rat's nest, where all kinds of slander and conspiracies run rampant."
Listening to Anis's voice, which sounded unusually vivid, Moore couldn't help but feel that beneath her outward cheerfulness, she had become a somewhat neurotic and paranoid individual, likely due to some past experiences. While the exact circumstances that led her to feel this way were unclear, it was easy to deduce that something significant must have happened.
.
"...I can't trust anyone anymore."
.
Anise muttered her true feelings softly, as if something had suddenly dawned on her. Her honest words should have been preceded by "everyone except for all of you" rather than just "everyone."
"...Including me?"
Oh no, this is bad, Moore thought.
By the time he felt that way, it was too late. And Anis, who had just uttered those words, didn't possess the dexterity to retract her earlier statement. With a small sigh and a puff of purple smoke, Moore tossed the cigarette butt into a portable ashtray.
"Well, I am a spy, so..."
"Both of you—what's going on?"
Anis's earlier remark had clearly struck a chord, but now she seemed to backtrack, leaving Moore to try to make sense of the situation.
Moore didn't necessarily wish for them to become best friends, but he wanted to put a stop to the situation before it got worse. Just as he was about to do that, the mobile devices they had just stowed away in their body armor pouches began to vibrate. The vibrating mobile devices signaled incoming calls, and Moore, along with Rapi, Anis, and Neon, took out their respective devices and unlocked them.
.
.
Exia: "Hii~~Everyone, the atmosphere seems gloomy."
.
.
Despite being in an area with no signal, how was this connection even possible? The sender was Exia. And where was Exia observing them from? Moore scanned the building's interior, but to his knowledge, there were no operational surveillance cameras.
In the corner of his vision, he noticed Anis holding her mobile device with both hands, tapping the screen with an intensity that was clearly sending a message, and for some reason, it got sent and posted in the squad's group chat.
.
.
.
Anis: "We spying on us too?"
Exia: "No."
Exia: "This is monitoring..."
Anis: "It's pretty much the same thing, isn't it!?"
Exia: "You can trust Shifty..."
Anis: "What do you mean?"
Exia: "She maxed out on Final Quest..."
Anis: "Huh? What does that have to do with this?"
Exia: "I love Final Quest... There are no bad guys."
Exia: "This is the truth."
Exia: "Those who don't believe... know too little about games."
Anis: "Whether we believe or not is for you to decide!"
Neon: "Not 'us,' but 'Anis,' right?"
.
.
.
Moore felt a headache coming on. Perhaps it was a chronic headache. Reading the messages on the screen, Moore unintentionally released his grip on the shotgun's handle and used his right hand to rub his temples.
Usually, especially when teasing Rapi, they would cooperate. Despite that, their conversation seemed challenging. Moore couldn't help but be impressed about the absurdness of it.
Glancing away from the confrontational Anis and Neon, he returned his gaze to the mobile device's screen, where Exia had given instructions.
"...There's a broken airplane to the north. Let's move."
"Roger."
Coordinates were sent to the mobile device. Confirming it, Moore put the device away and gave orders. Rapi nodded and started heading outdoors.
As he tried to catch up with them, Moore stopped, turned back, and let out a sigh.
"Anise, Neon. If yu are not moving, I'm leaving you behind."
Still locked in a glaring contest, they both looked away from each other and began following Moore.
"...Is it going to be fine?"
"If it looks like they're starting something more than a catfight, I'll stop them,"
They were not children, and it was safe to assume they had enough sense. Moore used the term "catfight," but the two of them were like lions, resembling more of a fierce scuffle than a cute kitten tussle.
Silence reigned in the group as they walked. Rarely did Moore not hear anything from Neon and Anis, even though they had engaged in a snowball fight during their previous mission. This time, the atmosphere was heavier.
They had not yet encountered the Rapture, which was fortunate, but it was oddly reassuring that they were not under threat from the Rapture. Moore pondered why the Rapture didn't attack during such times when they could be on guard.
-----
They continued towards the coordinates Exia had sent.
The paved ground beneath the high piles of machinery and vehicles in the scrapyard must have once served as a runway or something similar. Moore noticed half-wrecked transport planes stored in the hangar. The wings were broken, and the fuselages were damaged. This was likely the "broken airplane" Exia had mentioned.
"Hmmm..."
"There doesn't seem to be anything in particular."
Aside from the stored, decommissioned transport planes, there was nothing else here. Although the wreckage of military vehicles and armored cars was scattered around. Moore mumbled as he surveyed the area, and Rapi nodded in response.
"Should we expect any contact?"
"Just to be safe, let's stay alert."
"Squad, stay alert around the area. We never know when the Rapture might attack."
"Okay. I'll watch the east, and Neon, could you please watch the west?"
Anis, in her usual cheerful manner, began her vigilance, pointing her grenade launcher. However, when Neon heard Anise's request, she blinked multiple times.
"Me? Why me?"
"Huh?"
"I might pretend to watch the west but shoot in the east. After all, I'm a spy!"
Seemingly still holding a grudge, Neon's words undoubtedly referred to their earlier exchange inside the building.
But the current situation demanded vigilance. Anis, who understood that personal conflicts were not allowed, let out an exasperated sigh even at this behavior.
Even that response seemed to irritate Neon even more. Her tone grew harsh.
"I can't believe it! You're entrusting vigilance to a spy... Isn't your sense of crisis too low?"
"Hey, are you looking for a fight?"
"Yes, I am. What's it to you?"
"...Come over here for a second."
"No, I don't want to. Anis should come instead."
"Ugh... You two... ---Damn."
Moore was about to intervene, considering if he should stop them. However, the mobile device suddenly vibrated, causing him to audibly curse under his breath. He pulled out the device from its pouch.
.
.
.
"Exia: 'Beginner, aren't you going to stop them?'
Moore: 'I was about to, but you butted in.'
Exia: 'Ah, I see, sorry about that.'
Exia: 'Anyway...'
Exia: 'Rapi.'
Exia: 'Open that box...'
Rapi: 'Box?'
Exia: 'Yes... in the cockpit... in front.'
Rapi: 'Roger.'"
.
.
.
Moore was puzzled by the source of these messages and whether someone was monitoring or hacking their devices. Still, he decided to follow Exia's latest instruction to open the box in the cockpit, although he didn't quite understand why they had to do so.
"Why do we need to open this box?"
"There must be a reason."
Moore sighed, realizing that scolding Anis and Neon wouldn't do any good at this point. He instructed them to stay vigilant while he followed Rapi into the transport plane's cockpit. Inside, among the rusted instruments and cracked displays, they found an orange box.
"Is this a Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR)?"
Rapi asked him to step back a bit, raising Moore's curiosity.
The box labeled "CVR" had several cables connected to it and a warning message that read "DO NOT OPEN." Below that were a series of model numbers. Rapi, with a furrowed brow, gestured for Moore to step back, and he complied, moving away from the cockpit.
As Rapi began working, the sound of the rusty metal lid being removed echoed through the cockpit. Moore watched her for a moment, and after she had finished, he asked, "Did you find anything?"
"No, there's nothing here," she replied.
She then took out her mobile device, sent a message, and promptly received a response from Exia. According to the message, they were instructed to head north again.
Following Exia's instructions, they left the hangar and headed north. As they began their advance, Moore's mobile device began to vibrate. However, it wasn't a text message but a different type of vibration coming from his holster.
He took it out, tapped the screen, and answered a video call from Exia. As he did, a close-up of her face, with dark circles under her eyes, filled the screen.
.
.
.
"Heeey..."
"What do you want?"
"What's your plan, anyway? If it's a message, send a message. If it's a video call, make it a video call. Could you decide?"
.
.
.
Just as Moore initiated the call, Anis appeared by his side, glaring at the screen without hiding her displeasure. She shook her head from side to side, as if to express her frustration.
[Ah... even though you've been accumulating stress by suspecting own comrades... I'm against taking it out on others.]
Neon chimed in, saying, "That's right! That's right!"
As Moore grappled with how to respond to Exia's comment, he noticed Neon nodding in agreement behind him. However, Exia's gaze, now directed to Moore's right side, was where Rapi's image appeared on her screen.
[...Ra...pi...]
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Rapi was addressed directly, causing her to tilt her head in confusion. And then, Exia continued, delivering a shocking revelation.
.
.
.
.
.
[...You haven't had your memories erased... Rapi...]
This statement left Moore and everyone else in stunned silence.
-----
Author Notes: I couldn't help but think about scenarios like, "A box in the cockpit? Usually, there's no such thing... Wait, could she be talking about the flight recorder?" while playing through this chapter as a mere reader.
