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Project Classical Walpurgis Night Part 1

A few days later, Kou went out shopping again, this time he was accompanied by Nyanta, Aki, Blue, and Asia. They enjoyed a rare moment of peace, something they hadn’t experienced in a long time.

However, that tranquility was short-lived.

Kou had been summoned to Astraea’s battle command center, there, he found himself in an awkward situation. Aside from the usual members, both Jenny and Blue were present.

「Kou. You already know why you were called here, don’t you?」

Blue spoke, her gaze sharp and piercing.

「Hm? Ah… You guys sure catch on quickly…」

It seemed his scheme had already been exposed before he could even put it into motion.

「You’ve been really kind lately, Kou. But it feels like you are tying up loose ends.」

Aimer murmured softly.

「Is it really that strange for me to be nice?」

「The way you’re acting now… It’s unusually considerate. You’re acting differently from when you act as Outis too.」

Blue added, voicing everyone’s suspicions. She, too, had noticed Kou’s change in behavior. It seemed that his trying to act out of character had made everyone suspicious of Kou.

「Are you planning to do something you can’t tell us?」

「You may not be planning to die, but you’re preparing to do something dangerous alone, aren’t you?」

Aki looked at him with pleading eyes, while Nyanta, uncharacteristically serious, spoke in a formal tone, without her characteristic ‘nya’ at the end of her sentences. That alone made this situation pretty tough for Kou to endure.

「I know you’ve been talking with Matt a lot. I won’t pinch your cheek, so just be honest. What are you planning?」

If even Jenny was pressing him for answers, there was no use resisting.

「Alright… I’ll tell you everything.」

「You are a terrible actor and an even worse liar, Kou. It’s easy for us to catch you in the act, so you better come clean.」

Hearing Aimer’s words, everyone except Kou nodded in agreement.

「Could you not say that out loud…?」

He had already been called out for his bad acting countless times during Outis’ final battle, and even he had to admit it was true.

「Keeping secrets is pointless, okay?」

Aki said, gently but firmly driving the point home.

「Alright, I’ll tell you. I’m planning to go to Planet Libya. I already told you before the Asia War that I was planning to go there. At that time, I decided to postpone it due to Astraea’s prediction that the war would start here. In the end, the war broke out just as predicted. However, now that the war has ended and the Mercenary Association is finally on the path to normalization, this might be my only chance.」

This was something everyone except Blue and Jenny already knew.

On the monitor, the image of Asia and Astraea appeared.

「See? You never call me when it’s something important! I’m joining this conversation too!」

「As I told you before, the people of Metal Iris would never allow such a thing.」

The two couldn’t help but insert themselves into the discussion.

「As expected of Astraea!」

「Seriously. And what did Kou say back then?」

「He dodged the issue with a ‘Well… you know…’」

A cold stare from Blue bore down on Kou. He quietly averted his eyes.

「The situation is different now. Astraea is the flagship of Trireme, and the name of Admiral Aimer is known throughout the whole planet. I can’t afford to leave Asia unguarded.」

「I already declined the title of admiral hundreds of times. Just call me Aimer.」

「Are you planning to go to Libya without using me?」

Aimer was angry, she didn’t like when Kou used a title to refer to her. Astraea, on the other hand, was surprised she didn’t expect Kou was planning to go without her.

「I’m considering using either Eunomia or Eirene for the mission.」

「Why? They are my sister ships! We are identical! The Astraea should be just as suitable!」

The unexpected response made Astraea’s voice rise in agitation.

「Eunomia is mostly unknown, so even if she disappears most people won’t notice, and if Eirene were to head into space, people would probably assume it’s just another test for a new Panjandrum.」

Eirene’s name had become synonymous with weapons of mass destruction, especially Panjandrums. The mere mention of her name now evoked both fear and awe. Eirene herself wasn’t particularly pleased with her newfound fame, but she couldn’t deny that it was largely deserved.

「That reasoning is unacceptable.」

Astraea was clearly unwilling to back down.

「If I’m honest, I’d like to use you too, Astraea. But it’s too dangerous. I can’t bring everyone along. This isn’t like the time when I founded Trireme. And if all of us suddenly disappeared at once, it would raise suspicion.」

「Then, for the sake of this planet, we cannot allow you to go to Libya, Kou. Isn’t that right, Asia?」

「That’s right. No matter how you twist the logic, the conclusion is the same—Kou is the one person who absolutely shouldn’t be going. Besides, Libya is in this planet right now!」

「Yeah, that’s true. Which is why Matt, Eunomia, and Libya should be the ones explaining the situation.」

A transmission came in from Eunomia. Appearing on the screen were Matty and Libya.

Libya was in the form of a Therianthrope with dragon-like characteristics. She was seated in a traditional Japanese seiza posture, an apparent gesture of remorse.

「I’m sorry, Aneja…」

Libya bowed her head in apology.

「Enough with the Aneja thing. Don’t just call me your elder sister when it’s convenient for you. Start with an explanation.」

Asia was taken aback by Libya’s unusually serious demeanor. But it seemed she particularly disliked being called Aneja. Libya had a habit of addressing her that way whenever she was nervous.

「I compressed my consciousness into this bioengineered body. But since it’s only my consciousness, my processing power remains tied to my main body on Planet Libya. Unfortunately, the Stones have already analyzed and deciphered it.」

「And I want to help her. She’s done so much for me, it’s the least I can do.」

「I want to save her too. But why does Kou need to go? Ah, I see. Only an EX rank Development Engineer can access your main body, right?」

「That’s exactly it, Asia. Matt wouldn’t be able to do it.」

「In my case, I was able to unlock my restrictions through a quantum chain in a higher-dimensional domain. My bond with Kou made it possible. But in your case…」

「Exactly. That’s why both Kou and Matt are needed. And besides, my consciousness is already here.」

Libya pointed at herself.

「So Kou will unlock the access rights, and then Matt and your main body will complete the process? That… might actually work.」

「That’s the plan. The problem is…」

Kou and Matt both glanced at Libya with pained expressions.

Libya’s face darkened, metaphorical vertical lines of despair practically visible across it. She shot a hesitant look toward Astraea.

「…I’m sorry, Astraea.」

「Please don’t suddenly direct this at me. And don’t start with an apology—it makes it sound even worse!」

Astraea was now absolutely certain that Libya had done something truly reckless.

「Spit it out. What did you do?!」

「Alright, Asia. I’ll explain. I used the last of my autonomous will to execute a plan. Its name—Classical Walpurgis Night. I merged the core OS of the Murders system designed by Astraea with the Fennel OS, creating a self-sustaining combat-capable autonomous machine… and a Mythology Weapon that can be automatically manufactured.」

「So it’s that Mythology Weapon you mentioned before. But why call it Walpurgis Night? Don’t start projects with such ominous names! Classical—so it’s a reference to Greek classics? Goethe’s Faust, then?」

「The moment you said automated manufacturing, I had a really bad feeling about this… And let me guess—the Aberration Arms and Aberration Silhouettes were developed as a result of this research? So now you can create weaponized limbs, and the Silhouettes are no longer bound to humanoid forms? Not to mention, this entire project demands human sacrifices…」

Asia voiced her concerns about the ominous-sounding Walpurgis Night, while Astraea looked utterly devastated by the impending disaster.