Chapter 93

□■＜Jand Grassland＞

The battle in ＜Jand Grassland＞ was drawing to a close.

Franklin's monster army, which numbered 55,000, had been reduced to half by the hands of the 【Destroyer King】, and the remaining half was gradually being eliminated by the well-prepared ＜Masters＞ and the still formidable 【Destroyer King】.

Moreover, the unique monsters that Franklin had created, not mass-produced, were also defeated: 【RSK】 by Ray Sterling, and both 【DGF】 and 【KOS】 by the 【Destroyer King】.

Not only in ＜Jand Grassland＞ but also in the city of Gideon, the battles were coming to an end.

The monsters and PKs had been almost completely eradicated, and the 【Music King】, the greatest force on the Imperial side, was now in Despenalty.

The tide had already turned, and the defeat of the Imperial side led by Franklin was certain.

Under normal circumstances, the surviving Imperial forces would have retreated, ending the battle, but the fight was not over yet.

Because the Imperial forces were the "Suicide" series.

Biological weapons programmed to advance and kill until they die.

Therefore, to eliminate all of them, the kingdom's ＜Masters＞ continued to fight, and the ＜Embryo＞ Baldur of the 【Destroyer King】 continued to fire.

The "Suicide" series, located a short distance from the kingdom's ＜Masters＞, were being blown apart by Baldur's bombardment at this very moment.

One ＜Master＞ was watching this scene.

"Amazing, isn't it, Ray's brother's ＜Embryo＞?"

The ＜Master＞—Luke—was watching Baldur's bombardment, almost as if he were a spectator at a fireworks show, observing the battlefield.

This was not unique to Luke; it was common among almost all the lower-level ＜Masters＞ on the battlefield.

When the majority of the higher-level ＜Masters＞ broke free from the barrier and arrived at the battlefield, the rookies were ordered to retreat.

It was more out of consideration for the rookies, to prevent them from becoming Despenalty, rather than to clear the way for the higher-level fighters.

Luke, too, knew that without the support of the 【Union Jack】 and Liz, he could not keep up with the higher-level combat speed, so he accepted his withdrawal.

"Massive firepower... but it doesn't quite seem to fit with your brother's ＜Embryo＞..."

While muttering this, Luke was still aware of Baldur's overwhelming power and performance.

The precision of not hitting Ray even once while firing such intense bombardment was impressive.

Indeed, among the rookies on this battlefield, Ray was the only one still fighting.

He had raced across the battlefield, heading towards Franklin, the ringleader.

Luke had seen Ray and the 【Destroyer King】—Shu—having a conversation.

It was not a spoken conversation but one conducted via the 【Telepathic Cuffs】 that Shu had handed to Ray before leaving the arena, which Luke understood.

Ray wanted to head towards the Pandemonium where Franklin was seated, and Shu had decided to help him.

Both were resolute, making their own decisions based on their own will.

This made Luke feel a bit envious.

He was still watching Baldur's bombardment, as if savoring the aftertaste.

"……?"

Luke suddenly noticed something.

It was right in the center of the crater where Baldur's bombardment was raining down.

"That is……"

In the midst of the flames and dust, there was a familiar silhouette.

The silhouette quickly disappeared into the dust, but Luke understood that it was heading towards the Pandemonium.

He also understood why it was heading there.

Luke sighed.

He knew it was his mistake.

He knew it was because he had left her in a daze.

But, at the same time, he thought,

"Better to act than to hesitate..."

It was a little better, he thought.

◇◆◇

□■＜Jand Grassland＞ Monster Factory Pandemonium Upper Level

Franklin, the ringleader of tonight's terrorist plan, was smiling.

The situation had already turned, and the modified monsters, which had outnumbered the kingdom's forces, were being eradicated by the overwhelming destruction and the will to protect Gideon.

Still, Franklin was smiling.

He was smiling while facing a single ＜Master＞—Ray Sterling—on top of his ＜Embryo＞, the Pandemonium.

"The 【Destroyer King】 is doing a great job. You could have just rested in the back, couldn't you, Ray-kun?"

Franklin deduced that Ray's appearance was to confirm that half of the 【Destroyer King】's movements were a decoy.

The flashy movements of the 【Destroyer King】 had drawn Franklin's attention, allowing Ray to land here.

The fact that Ray, riding on Silver, managed to reach here without being caught in the bombardment was proof of this.

Additionally, the monsters that Franklin had placed as sensors in various parts of ＜Jand Grassland＞ had been destroyed by the bombardment.

The monsters that were used for video relay around the Pandemonium were also destroyed, so no one could see the confrontation between Franklin and Ray.

"But, the 【Destroyer King】... I see."

Franklin also had information that could justify the 【Destroyer King】 helping Ray.

It was a name.

Franklin, who possessed the 【Analytical Eye of Wisdom】 and could read the status of the 【Destroyer King】, could also see the name of the 【Destroyer King】.

The name Shu Sterling.

"I have one question, Ray Sterling. Do you know a ＜Master＞ named Shu Sterling?"

"He's my brother."

Franklin nodded in agreement with the answer... and smiled wryly.

"A ＜Superior＞ brother and a Maiden user brother. Similar stories do exist, don't they?"

"……?"

"So? What did you come here to do with your brother's help?"

"I have three things to do."

"Oh, so many. I know one, though."

Franklin pointed to a spot on the floor of the Pandemonium.

There, a young girl—Elisabeth, the second princess of the Alte Kingdom—was lying unconscious.

"You came to save her, right? With her in your arms, your brother can't destroy the Pandemonium, can he?"

Elisabeth was the Achilles' heel of the Pandemonium.

Without her, the 【Destroyer King】 would mercilessly fire directly at the Pandemonium.

Franklin was paying attention to prevent Ray from rescuing her.

"So, what's the second thing?"

"I have a question for you."

"A question, huh."

This was within Franklin's expectations.

If Ray had come only to rescue her, he could have done so by surprising Franklin while riding on Silver.

If the purpose was to defeat Franklin, a surprise attack would have been sufficient.

However, since Ray had dismounted from Silver and was calmly having a conversation, it was natural to assume that the conversation had a purpose.

"What do you want to know? A recommended hunting ground? The habitat of a ＜UBM＞ I know? Or maybe some inside information about our country?"

While saying this, Franklin thought it was none of these.

"Why did you do this?"

This question was not in Franklin's expectations.

"Why... Don't you remember my purpose?"

"Your purpose was to show the kingdom's people the sight of the ＜Masters＞ on the Imperial side losing miserably and Gideon being ravaged, to crush their will to fight, right?"

"Well, you do remember."

"That's not what I want to know."

"Then, what is it?"

With a sly smile, Franklin asked, and Ray looked him straight in the eye and asked back.

"…What do you think of the people of Tien?"

Caught off guard by this question, Franklin then snapped his fingers as if he had understood.

"Ah, is that it? The question of whether this ＜Infinite Dendrogram＞ is a world or a game?"

Ray nodded at Franklin's question.

"I see, I see... Ahahahaha!"

Franklin burst into laughter, laughing so hard that he seemed to be gasping for breath.

"---Anyone who thinks this is just a game is either a fool or a child who takes the explanation seriously."

Franklin said this with a face devoid of any smile.

"Game? There's no way it's a game. The reality, the modeling, and the life. Everything except the system itself transcends the realm of a game. To be honest, it wouldn't look like a game if it weren't for the system that clearly says, 'This is a game.'"

"……"

"I don't know what this 'is.' My guess is that it's a human experiment phase of a national... no, a world-scale virtual world construction plan, but it's too far ahead of the cutting edge, so that possibility is low. Perhaps it's a real different world, or even an intervention by aliens, as someone suggested."

"…Then, what do you think of the people living in this world?"

"AI with a level of consciousness indistinguishable from humans, or real people from another world, or something akin to 'life.' At the very least, they are not simple flickers of bits."

Franklin paused for a moment,

"That's why I'll say this. If this were Earth, and I were in the same situation, with the same conditions and the same abilities... I would have carried out this plan. Even if thousands of people died."

He stated this with certainty.

"Is that what you wanted to know, Ray? As a Maiden ＜Master＞, you must have been wondering why I came up with such a cruel plan."

"How can you do such a thing...!"

Ray asked, his voice strained, in response to Franklin's answer.

It was a question asked by someone who recognized the lives in this world as real, in the face of the tragedy that was about to unfold.

Therefore, Franklin answered honestly.

"Because I don't want to lose anymore.

Because I don't want to be on the side that gets manipulated.

Because I want to live freely, create freely, and enjoy the world freely.

I don't want anyone to tie me down.

I have decided to crush anyone who obstructs my way, no matter who they are."

Franklin's words ended there.

He had answered all of Ray's questions with those words.

They might be ambiguous and incomprehensible to anyone other than Franklin, but to Franklin, those words contained everything.

Ray understood this, and then understood one more thing.

Because Franklin was willing to cause all kinds of tragedies to avoid losing, he had to be defeated at all costs.

Franklin could potentially cause all kinds of tragedies to stick to his way of life.

"Well, that's the end of the second thing. So, what's the third?"

Franklin, returning to his usual tone, asked Ray.

"…It's,!"

Before Ray could answer the question, the Pandemonium shook.

It wasn't that the Pandemonium moved.

It was shaken by the impact of a "bombardment."

"Is this the 【Destroyer King】's attack? Even though the princess is still here? Did he get impatient, eh?"

A question escaped Franklin's lips.

Because in front of Franklin... where the princess had been lying just a moment ago, there was no sign of her.

Ray had done nothing.

Franklin was certain it wasn't Ray, as he had been paying attention.

Someone else had rescued Elisabeth, erased their presence, and escaped with her.

Franklin had a suspect in mind for someone who could do such a thing.

"＜Superior Killer＞... I see, so 'you' were also a decoy."

While Franklin was focused on Ray's movements and conversation, the ＜Superior Killer＞ had rescued the princess.

Franklin couldn't determine whether this was planned from the beginning or whether the ＜Superior Killer＞ had joined in response to Ray's movements.