The operation ended up being put on hold for the day.
The next morning, when it was time to begin the operation, all three of them finally gathered in the room at once.
Sati, who had fled the room as if running from her embarrassment, had come as well to take part in the operation.
It seemed she still had not gotten over yesterday's embarrassment, but she must have come because of what she had said yesterday.
She knew it had to be done, so she did it.
After lecturing Manu so impressively yesterday, it would have been awkward if she herself failed to show up just because of her feelings.
And with three combat-capable Replicas gathered in the room, I finally felt a little more reassured too.
[Ariel] [♡10]
[Sati] [♡2]
[Manu] [♡0]
This was where the three of their Affection stood at the moment.
At some point, Ariel's had recovered to the exact value it had in the game.
Sati's had also gone up a point without me noticing.
Manu's was displayed as 0, as one could see, but considering her attitude yesterday, it might actually have been a negative value below 0, like Sati's on the first day.
All right. I should start by saying this.
"Thank you for deciding to join the operation."
"...It's not something I deserve thanks for."
When I thanked her sincerely, Manu replied in a low voice, shrinking into herself as she rubbed her own arm.
Perhaps because Sati had chewed her out so harshly yesterday, she looked far more dejected than I had expected.
And then there was Sati silently watching Manu from beside her.
"I'm not trying to pick a fight here, but..."
"Yeah?"
Even though Manu had decided to take part in the operation, Sati still seemed dissatisfied as she turned to me.
"Is it really true that she'd be better off alone?"
Judging by the way she spoke, she seemed doubtful of Manu's ability.
I nodded at Sati's question.
"Yeah. I can say that for certain."
"...Hmph."
At my answer without a trace of doubt, Sati gave a short, sulky huff and slightly turned her head away.
Her pride was probably a little hurt at the thought that someone so unmotivated was above her.
If you got down to it, it was simply the difference between an annihilation-focused combat style and focused attacks...
Still, Ariel and Sati had been the two who worked hardest after I came back, so Sati's discomfort was understandable.
"Then did all three of us have to come?"
Sati curtly asked why Ariel and she had needed to come at all.
"Well, even if the two of you don't participate in combat, I want you to gather as many Power Stones and batteries as possible."
Only then did I explain why I was sending the two of them along for Manu's one-woman show.
"What, you're going to use us as porters?"
"Uh... put that way, yes. Sorry."
At Sati's pointed remark, I hesitated briefly before answering honestly and apologizing.
It would be nice if resources just streamed down the results screen like they did in the game, but reality was different.
In reality, we had to put the resources into sacks and carry them back, so the more people we could send out at once, the better.
"Hmph. You decided that was the better option, right?"
"Yeah, that's right."
Right after my honest apology, Sati asked another short question.
I answered her serious question calmly.
"...Then we'll do that. Ariel, you don't have any objections either, right?"
"No. It's the Leader's order."
After hesitating for a moment before accepting it, Sati turned to ask Ariel for her opinion too.
Ariel, who had always been obedient, naturally agreed.
It seemed that even if Sati did not know what kind of person I was, she thought highly of my judgment when it came to operations.
In truth, all I did was assign them appropriately based on their weapon types and abilities, then send them out on operations.
Still, making them do nothing but carry supplies seemed like too much of a blow to their pride, so I decided to add a few words.
"Also, there is another role besides being porters."
"What is it?"
At the mention of another role, Sati showed interest, asking while crossing her arms with an indifferent look on her face.
I held out my index finger toward her and decided to give her something that was not quite a mission, but close enough.
"Watch carefully and see why I chose Manu."
"Huh?"
Sati's eyebrow twitched at the new order, and she looked down at me with an expression that seemed to say, What are you talking about?
Manu's sortie today would probably demonstrate such unmistakable efficiency that it would thoroughly douse her complaints.
After the two of them left and some time passed,
the harsh, noisy sound of the manually operated elevator's interlocking gears echoed through Under City.
Part of me looked forward to the results of today's operation.
I just hope her pride isn't hurt too badly.
Sitting in the room with my chin propped on my hand, I worried about Sati, who could not help but feel a little discouraged.
*
The sound of gears, something she heard every day as though it were part of her routine.
On the elevator, as the view of Under City gradually grew distant, she headed for the surface while making idle small talk with Ariel. But today, one uncomfortable presence had joined their otherwise ordinary operation.
"..."
"..."
Short red hair and green eyes.
Listless eyes, and an attitude to match.
Even when everyone was together, Sati had thought this woman was some kind of strange bitch. But after speaking to her a few times, she had realized it whether she liked it or not.
She was the kind of Replica Sati could never become close to.
After turning the lever diligently, Krrrk.
With the sound of something catching, the sight of the surface—now completely reduced to ruins—appeared before them.
Contaminants floated through the air, along with a suffocating toxic stench.
According to the records they occasionally found, the catastrophe on the surface had all begun with Power Stones and batteries.
There were records calling them a hope that would offer a new answer to the fuel shortage crisis, but...
At this point, fuel shortages aren't even the problem.
In the end, what that hope had brought was not humanity's salvation, but an outcome that was practically extinction.
Swallowing her bitter feelings, Sati picked up her gun.
Her memories from before becoming a Replica were not clear, but she remembered that it had been incredibly suffocating and painful.
According to the records, it was probably the result of something released into the atmosphere by an explosion at a Power Stone and battery factory.
"Let's go."
There was no point thinking about the past, no matter how much she did.
For now, all she could do was move forward.
Today, the guy had given them three coordinates.
She did not know why he had designated three locations when he usually only marked out two.
Did he suddenly need a lot more Power Stones and batteries?
But aside from adding that one Replica, there had been no noticeable change in the city lately.
With her doubts unresolved, they arrived at the first designated coordinate.
As expected, a pack of mutated monsters was prowling around the area.
"Then Ariel and I will fire first, so..."
As that guy always told them to do, they made a plan to launch a preemptive attack so that they would not get hurt.
"No need."
But as if making all their efforts to hide pointless, Manu walked right out into a place where the monsters could see her clearly.
"What? Hey! What the hell are you doing—?!"
At the unexpected situation, Sati immediately raised her gun and rushed out to support the damn woman.
What did she mean she was better off alone? She was completely reckless...
Boom!
But what greeted them as they burst out from between the ruins was a violent single blast and a flash of light.
And a black cloud billowing upward.
"First coordinate cleared."
Having reduced the remnants of civilization to ashes without a hint of concern, Manu spoke in the same detached way she might talk about something ordinary.
Unlike Ariel and Sati, who needed to put several shots into each monster, Manu had cleanly ended everything with a single shot.
"What the...?!"
"What's next?"
For a moment, Sati was stunned by the unbelievable sight.
Then she looked at Manu, who approached with an indifferent expression, seeming to ask what she should do next. Sati gritted her teeth and replied.
"...Recover the Power Stones and batteries."
"Got it."
At her next instruction, Manu casually entered the smoking wreckage and began filling a sack with resources.
Her indifferent attitude was enough to give Sati chills.
To be honest, Sati's pride had been deeply wounded when the Leader said Manu alone would be better than the two of them.
Maybe he had said it just to knock them down a peg.
That faint doubt still lingering in her mind vanished completely along with her thoughts after that one shot.
Now I understand.
This was not some grand plan to prepare for increased consumption in the city or for future resource use.
It was simply because having that bitch around shortened the time needed by that much.
He had merely made a rational decision as the Leader.
Damn it.
As she picked up Power Stones and batteries embedded in corpses or scattered over the ground, Sati clenched her teeth where no one could see.
Yesterday, she had lectured Manu so smugly from a position of superiority, but once Manu was actually sent on an operation, she was far better.
It was the same at every designated coordinate afterward.
That woman would boldly step out to the front and clear everything with a single artillery blast, again and again.
As a result, they could collect even more resources while fulfilling the objective of not getting hurt, all without any troublesome combat.
The gap in firepower was overwhelming.
That was why it was even more frustrating, unbearable.
Why did it have to be someone like her who was more useful?
Ariel had the clear goal of restoring Under City together with the Leader.
Sati knew well enough, having watched until it made her eyes hurt, that the two understood each other deeply.
That woman had proven herself today as well, but she would become someone necessary because the Leader already knew her abilities so well.
Then what about me?
How necessary am I to this city?
That thought flooded her mind.
The strength suddenly drained from the hand clutching a battery.
Maybe I...
Maybe I am not particularly needed here.
She found herself thinking that.
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