In the Third Galactic War, the Free Planet Alliance was, how should one put it?
If described kindly, they were people who only took what benefited them. If described unkindly, they were the very embodiment of cunning capitalism.
They were technically located along the border between the Empire and the Human Composite State, but they were quite far from the main frontlines.
The reason was simple.
The territory they occupied lay on the outskirts of the galaxy, and there was no real need to provoke them.
Supplies passed through there, and it served as a base for mercenaries, but that was all.
To begin with, each nation had populations exceeding one or even two trillion. Thinking that attacking the Free Planet Alliance alone would influence the war front was utter nonsense.
On the other hand, swallowing them first was hardly worthwhile either. Their people possessed an ingrained rebellious nature and considerable defensive strength, enough that, if cornered, they might not inflict serious damage but would certainly become an irritating thorn in one's side.
A true chicken rib.
Perhaps because of that, this tragic news was nothing short of a disaster for the Empire, the Human Composite State, and even the Council, the Free Planet Alliance's external political body.
The problem was not simply that people had died.
Put simply, everything had become a blank slate.
“Why would anyone invade the Free Planet Alliance? There are a hundred times more reasons not to.”
“A manual for what to do if Creatures suddenly go berserk and hundreds of millions of Imperial and Composite State citizens start dying? You think something like that exists?”
“Just send me home. This place is hell!”
For the admiral of the 4th Fleet, who had unintentionally become involved in this massive incident, along with the diplomats urgently dispatched from nearby planets, only one phrase kept circling through their minds.
We're completely screwed.
A media blackout?
There was no chance of that happening.
The press was already portraying the Creatures as if they were the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, regardless of whether their reports were true.
As Jin Crow had once compared them to "the man-eating lions of Africa," the notoriety of Creatures had skyrocketed after this incident.
From Jin Crow's perspective, however, this was how the world should have been.
Frankly, how could he not be furious?
Someone had suddenly been thrown into the body of a mentally unstable instructor in a place with absolutely no connection to him, desperately trying to save the world, only to look around and find everything in complete chaos.
Ta-da, welcome to the Creature leisure industry.
...People actually said things like that.
Ta-da, we're going to use Creatures to drive a wedge between the Empire and the Human Composite State.
...And they said things like that too.
Even without going to such extremes, most people treated Creatures the same way they treated dangerous animals in a zoo.
They knew they were frightening, but that was all.
Now, however, people had finally realized the truth.
The beast they had believed would remain locked inside its cage forever could leap over the bars at any moment and tear out their throats.
“Did everyone manage to get some sleep?”
“Thanks to all this, I got a whole hour.”
“Lucky you. We only managed thirty minutes.”
“Phew... let's finish this quickly.”
“If possible.”
The diplomats from each nation, meeting behind closed doors, gathered in the relatively intact Imperial embassy and began discussing the endless aftermath.
Naturally, since this was not something that could be resolved in a day or two, they practically attended the meeting armed with cartons of cigarettes, turning the room into something resembling a raccoon's den.
It got so bad that a passing civilian saw smoke leaking through the window and reported a fire.
“That concludes my report.”
Meanwhile, Jin Crow had very little to do.
Officially, he was a soldier on leave and the man who had made the greatest contribution to resolving the incident.
Furthermore, he belonged to the Rosen faction.
Perhaps because of that, although an investigator dispatched by the Human Composite State Ministry of Defense requested a private meeting with him, it was merely a formality.
“I see. We'll probably have to cross-check everything, but I believe your testimony contains no falsehoods, Instructor. It has been an honor to meet you.”
“Yes. Then.”
He concealed what needed concealing and fabricated what needed fabricating.
Everything had already been coordinated with Ideale.
In particular, as expected, Ideale had been highly cooperative regarding Nectar, allowing him to bring her back to the Central Special Service Academy without much difficulty.
She's too kind.
That's why she's one of the good guys.
Fortunately, Ideale was the only one informed that Nectar was an artificially cultivated human. The doctors who had performed the examinations were local medical staff, and after Jin Crow quietly approached them and offered a "small token of appreciation," they immediately promised to keep silent.
If money can't solve something, it simply means the amount wasn't enough.
Sure enough, that saying continued to prove true.
Of course, Ideale had looked somewhat uncomfortable about the matter, but what else could they do?
It had already happened.
If it were ever revealed that Nectar was an artificially cultivated human possessing Mother AI's brain, her destination would be nowhere except a laboratory.
In the end, her kindness chose silence.
Having somehow settled the issue concerning Nectar, the very first thing Jin Crow dealt with was the cadets' future.
“Is there really any reason to rush them back? If you're worried about public safety, the 6th Fleet has already sent two divisions as reinforcements.”
Considering how busy the 4th Fleet already was, Ideale suggested delaying their return slightly.
However, that thought disappeared entirely after Jin Crow uttered a single sentence.
“Do you know why the cadets came to the Free Planet Alliance?”
“Hm?”
“To hunt Creatures.”
“...Send them back immediately. On the fastest transport ship available.”
The names Dokgo Ran and Baek Hui-young passing through both their minds at that moment was probably no coincidence.
The former had always been a mad dog.
The latter was an emerging dark horse.
Simple insanity... and genuine madness.
What a hellish combination.
Wasn't it enough to make one's heart swell?
Those people were his cadets.
The Knights of the Stars.
In the end, with unanimous agreement from Jin Crow and Ideale, the cadets were carefully escorted by military police and safely returned to the academy.
Suppressing the urge to put a cigarette in his mouth, Jin Crow instead saluted Ideale before turning away.
“Loyalty!”
Even now, he still could not grow accustomed to the reverent gazes soldiers occasionally directed toward him.
Of course, he knew exactly where they came from.
Maybe I shouldn't have done it.
Rain poured down.
Then, the moment his eyes drifted toward the morgue, the humanity still remaining within him stirred.
Had this merely been another war between the Empire and the Human Composite State, perhaps he could have viewed it with greater cynicism.
A great war fought over territory and interests was necessary.
Paradoxically, that necessity was precisely what made it so disgusting.
But this incident had not been about interests.
At least, the reason those people had gripped their guns, swords, and spears—why they had burned alive aboard exploding warships and fought even as Creature claws and fangs tore out their organs—was to protect someone.
The calculations made by nations were merely the change left over.
Every one of those individuals had thrown themselves into the jaws of disaster to stop the Creatures.
They were heroes.
Even more people will die in the future.
He felt no guilt.
Even knowing the future, he could never change it so that no one died.
There was only one thing he could do.
Win.
If only for the retirement I plan to enjoy afterward.
He placed a cigarette between his lips, and as smoke escaped into the air, countless complicated emotions tangled together.
His goal was the complete extinction of the Creatures.
Whether what awaited afterward was a return to reality or growing old in this world, he did not know.
But one thing was certain.
No matter what future he envisioned, it would only become possible if he won.
Tap.
He crushed the half-smoked cigarette inside his portable ashtray, then brushed back his hair, now damp from the humidity.
“The sky is clear.”
Savoring the sight of warships from every nation floating beneath that clear sky, along with the occasional distant screams of Creatures, he continued walking.
“Loyalty! Greetings, Instructor!”
“Is Professor Lillian inside?”
“Ah, yes.”
After meeting Ideale, Jin Crow headed toward a massive cargo warehouse requisitioned near the hangar.
Originally, it had stored cargo destined for transport ships, but after being requisitioned, it had naturally been remodeled however Professor Lillian's research team desired.
And the result was...
-Grrrrrrrrrr!
-Kyaaaaaaah!
“Hey! Bring me Drug Number Seven!”
“Normal sedatives aren't working? Then bring something stronger!”
The warehouse had transformed into a bizarre place where Creatures, their entire bodies restrained by chains and shackles, were transported inside massive containers made entirely of solid carbine alloy, while researchers in protective suits dissected Creature corpses.
“Ah, you're here. Yaaawn.”
“Lillian.”
As usual, Professor Lillian approached with her long, disheveled hair, thick-rimmed glasses carelessly resting on her nose, and vapor drifting from the electronic cigarette hanging from her lips.
Jin Crow looked at her and asked,
“The specimens?”
“I secured them first thing and sent them to the lab. You risked your life to obtain them after all. Yaaawn.”
Apparently having stayed awake for several nights, she rubbed at the dark circles beneath her eyes while drinking from the energy drink in one hand.
The specimens they referred to were none other than the corpses of the Queen and the King.
“I heard the Empire was testing the waters too?”
“They must have realized how dangerous the Creatures are. Naturally.”
Feeling his throat grow dry, Jin Crow took out his hip flask and swallowed a mouthful.
Naturally, following the military doctor's advice, it contained nothing but pure fifty-proof whiskey without any awakening drugs.
One had to take care of one's health, after all.
As he lit another cigarette, Lillian also took a draw from her electronic cigarette.
“Think you can make a T.D. out of that?”
“Well... it's not impossible, but I wouldn't recommend it. There are already way too many research teams contacting our lab...”
She was not exaggerating.
To begin with, ownership of the Queen's and King's corpses belonged not to the Human Composite State but to Jin Crow personally.
Naturally so.
Countless people had witnessed him killing them with his own hands.
The ownership was unquestionable.
The problem was that this incident had accelerated Creature research dramatically.
Until now, Queens and Kings had only ever been observed.
This was the first time anyone had secured their corpses.
Any research team claiming to study Creatures could hardly contain its excitement.
“I'll never let anyone take them. Heh.”
Professor Lillian felt exactly the same.
Despite hating troublesome things in everyday life, what drove her was her thirst for new knowledge and research.
Jin Crow instinctively glanced at her as a strange madness flickered across her face.
Then he simply lost interest.
She'll handle it.
If possible, he would have preferred giving them to Professor Risu-jong.
Unfortunately, that was easier said than done.
He was...
Well.
The very image of a rebellious researcher.
Not someone you could meet simply because you wished to.
Nor the type whose convictions could be shaken by squeezing his research budget.
A true stubborn intellectual.
He's an ally to the Knights of the Stars.
But I have no idea how he'd treat me.
There was no need to meet him in a hurry.
Turning that thought over in his mind, another forgotten name suddenly surfaced.
Wait.
Come to think of it...
Captain Satra.
Had he heard anything about her?
Not long after Tita Zenorua rightfully took the position of Godmother and became the new boss, the Murder Company found itself busier than ever.
Naturally.
What had their role always been?
The blade hidden deeper than the underworld itself, eliminating everything that threatened the Family.
Although Volk had begun appearing publicly, that itself was nothing unusual.
Whenever the Murder Company needed to reveal itself, it was always the wolves under his command who stepped forward.
This time, however, even Volk could not hide his bewilderment.
After all, something like this had never happened before.
“You want to join the Company? Why?”
It all began after he was briefly treated at a civilian hospital because of his injuries.
Publicly, he was merely a mercenary belonging to a small PMC.
By coincidence, he ended up sharing a hospital room with Satra, who also possessed forged identification.
The moment he was discharged, she followed him outside and stopped him.
Hidden beneath his military cap and the mask covering the lower half of his face, he returned her question with an awkward smile.
Beneath his wrist, however, the dagger remained ready to slit her throat at any moment.
She's a wanted criminal.
She was not the first person like this.
Far from it.
There had been many.
Fools who viewed the Company's strict secrecy as nothing more than a convenient refuge.
And Volk was hardly a compassionate alpha who would gently send away a stray dog daring to enter the wolves' pack.
Then—
Splat.
Perhaps because rain had fallen, the ground had turned into mud.
She slammed both knees into it and lowered her head.
Her next words caused Volk to hesitate.
“...I have nowhere left to go.”
“What?”
When she raised her head, he saw dull eyes beneath her tangled violet hair.
“All the comrades who followed me are dead. My body has already been ruined beyond repair.”
Every soldier who had followed her had been wiped out during the battle against the Creatures.
Her body had deteriorated even further, and pus seeped through the gaps of the implants installed by a low-quality ripperdoc.
She was going to die a miserable death anyway.
But she wanted revenge.
No.
Perhaps it was merely punishment for herself—for repeatedly making foolish, pathetic choices.
“The Human Composite State will hunt me forever. The Red Hand will do the same.”
She no longer even knew where to direct her anger.
Toward the Human Composite State that had abandoned Planet Rermal first?
Toward the Red Hand that had deceived her with pitiful hope?
Or toward the Creatures that had stolen everything in the end?
In a calm voice, sounding as though she might put a noose around her neck at any moment, she spoke.
“If I'm destined to die a miserable death anyway, then I'd rather become your dog. I have to survive, even if it's like that.”
This was the only path she could still see.
To survive, abandoning even the honor she had pursued all her life as a soldier, and witness the future.
Even if nothing awaited her at the end...
That was still what she wanted.
“Then... I can repay my debt to him as well.”
At those words, directed toward a single man, Volk slowly erased the bewildered smile from his face.
Instead, he looked down at her with utterly cold eyes.
Then, without the slightest hesitation, he swung his dagger toward her neck.
“...Kgh.”
“How arrogant.”
The dagger stopped precisely against her throat.
He did not even need to infuse it with Psionic energy.
One simple slash would end her life.
Even so, she did not move.
Calmly acknowledging that her life rested at his fingertips, she merely endured in silence, like nothing more than a wounded stray dog waiting for the alpha wolf to decide whether to take her in.
Swish.
At last, Volk withdrew his dagger.
Then, looking down at her with eyes colder than ice, he spoke.
“From today onward, your name is Jane Doe.”
Jane Doe.
An unidentified woman.
The name given to the lowest-ranking member of the Murder Company.
Silently repeating it to herself, she nodded.
“Follow me. It's already too late for regrets.”
Following behind Volk, she disappeared into the darkness of the alley.
And not long after they vanished—
“You bunch of idiots! You just stood there and let a wanted criminal receive treatment and walk away?”
“Spread out! Find her, no matter what!”
Military police from the Human Composite State, who had only just realized Satra's identification was forged, rushed after them.
But they were already too late.
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