Return and a New Beginning
An Arc Reactor obtained from Ark 74, and nearly 300,000 Cash.
And I also have the core obtained from the Carapace Lord here...
All the way back, I agonized over how to use these vast resources so that people would say I used them well.
The first thing that came to mind was, naturally, strengthening our combat power.
Using the Arc Reactor and Cash to upgrade the core specs and equipment of the ECHOs.
Even in the battle against the Carapace Lord, Pomen's Exclusive Weapon, Queen's Calamity, proved its worth.
If we hadn't had it?
We would have struggled significantly against the massive swarms of zombies in the forest battle.
Not only that, but the Hellfire grenades used to clear out the creature's nest were an immense help. The effectiveness of the AP-5 armor-piercing incendiary rounds used to take down the higher-tier entities went without saying.
"C-Commander?"
The thought occurred to me that all of this was thanks to Karen's abilities.
Naturally, I reached over and stroked her head, and I saw Karen look up at me, her face flushing red.
Regardless, the journey back to the Ark was surprisingly peaceful.
"Commander, a zombie."
"...Just a typical zombie? I'll handle it myself."
With a series of clicking and snapping sounds, the monster moved, its head lolling to the side.
I had seen so many of them now that they were boringly familiar.
Bang—!
I took the thing out with a single shot from the White Tiger and earned 100 Cash.
Perhaps because we had completely subjugated a quasi-named entity like the Carapace Lord, the only zombies we encountered were ordinary ones that even a mass-produced ECHO could suppress without difficulty.
Seeing as the frequency of encounters had decreased significantly, it felt real that this area had been cleaned up to some extent.
[Po... Po-po...! ]
Passing through Hongwei-7, I met up with Podic and caught up.
While we were fighting the Carapace Lord's forces, it seemed Podic had been slaughtering zombies outside the forest, following my orders.
So, as a reward for being so obedient, I treated her roughly, pulling hard on her mouth, her drenched, sloppy pussy, and even her huge nipples and boobs. She trembled in ecstasy, looking absolutely delighted.
Unfortunately, perhaps Podic's Cash recovery(?) wasn't complete yet, as I only obtained 4,000 Cash from the interaction effect. Considering I had obtained over 10,000 Cash before with each session... it was a slightly disappointing result.
No, actually, the previous time was abnormally high.
After departing from Ark 74, we had to trek on foot for more than 5 days.
It was a forced march on the level of a thousand-li march, walking 50km a day, but perhaps because of the physical enhancement?
It was more bearable than I expected.
And so, nearly fifteen days after embarking on the Carapace Lord subjugation operation, we were able to return to our beloved Ark 69. Now, it was time to seriously strengthen our home.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Hngh! Nngh... C-Commander...!"
Rai lay face down on the bed in her small room, breathing heavily.
One of her hands was directed toward her damp honeypot.
Trembling in the afterglow of a climax—she had lost count of how many times already—while imagining the Commander's face, she closed her eyes and called his name longingly.
"Ah, aaah...!"
The Carapace Lord expedition was taking longer than expected.
Was that why?
The mass-produced girls were becoming slightly anxious, but Big Sis Moi tried to soothe their fears, saying, Large-scale expeditions like this usually take over a month at minimum! So, there was nothing to worry about.
But...
The Ark without the Commander was cold and desolate.
Everyone showed only ritualistic smiles and did only their assigned tasks, and Wanderer, the Ark's Central AI, was quiet, as if she weren't even there.
And the more that happened...
"Hngh! Nngh! Ah, aaah...!"
Rai's longing for the Commander only heated her body and heart further.
[The Commander has passed through the Ark sector. Estimated arrival within 15 minutes.]
At that moment, Wanderer's voice echoed to all the ECHOs within the Ark.
Rai, who had been trembling in the afterglow of her orgasm, bolted upright.
"Rai! Did you hear... you were doing it again, weren't you?"
"Y-Yes."
"Anyway, get ready quickly. The Commander is here!"
At her sister's words, Rai hurriedly wiped herself down and changed her clothes.
She wasn't the only one.
The entire Ark was buzzing.
Though it was only three mass-produced ECHOs, including Alpha. Their faces were filled with unmistakable joy.
"The Commander is back!"
"I heard, Alpha. I wonder if everyone is safe and unhurt?"
"Of course they are!"
Like welcoming family returning after a long time, excitement and worry mingled on the ECHOs' faces.
Soon, the massive gate dividing the Ark sector opened, and as a familiar face appeared, cheers erupted from the waiting ECHOs.
"Commander—!"
"Helena! Arva!!"
Did Wanderer tell them?
As the Ark gate opened, the ECHOs inside were already waiting for us, having heard the news.
Moi, Rai, Alpha, and the mass-produced ECHOs.
Seeing them all safe and sound, it seemed fortunate that nothing unusual had happened within the Ark.
[Some stray zombies attempted to enter the Ark interior, but Moi handled them.]
"That's a relief."
I nodded at Wanderer's report.
I'm glad I intentionally left Moi behind.
[Additionally...]
I listened to Wanderer's report on the changes that had occurred in the Ark while we were gone.
The most important thing was that the growth of the spring wheat and barley was nearly complete.
This meant that the Ark could now truly produce bread on its own.
However, since the number of mouths to feed had increased, there was a need to expand the size of the indoor farm.
And it seemed I would need to manufacture a few more mass-produced ECHOs to manage the farm.
[Nutritional stabilizers are sufficient for the ECHOs, but...]
Still, they can't just eat those, right? Draw up a nice blueprint for expanding the indoor farm.
[...Understood.]
I told Wanderer that and looked around.
The Ark was bustling with the voices of ECHOs asking after one another and chatting about what had happened, like friends meeting after a long time.
It was a truly peaceful sight.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Upon returning to the Ark, I headed straight for the ECHO hangar.
There, the Original ECHO Lapis Theron, who had been seriously injured in the battle with the Carapace Lord, slept quietly inside a blue culture fluid.
"How does her condition look?"
"The current restoration rate is 78%. Damage to the main frame and Core is minor, but perhaps due to prolonged exposure to the Z Virus, corrosion is progressing in some of her abilities."
Karen spoke while meticulously examining Lapis Theron's condition. Her voice was serious, unlike usual.
"...And?"
"I think we'll need a bit more time to complete the repairs perfectly."
Was it because they were squadmates?
I could see Cordelia's expression twitching slightly every time Karen spoke.
"Are there any specific materials you need?"
"Um... it would be better if we had some Cnf (Ultra-lightweight High-strength Fiber). And superconducting copper wire as well."
"Why those?"
"I think they would help in strengthening Lapis Theron. Also, the weapon she uses was broken, so I think that needs to be fixed too."
Karen spoke cautiously, glancing at my reaction.
"Ah..."
But did we have those materials in the Ark right now?
As I tilted my head, Karen quickly spoke up, sensing my thoughts.
"If the Commander permits, I will proceed with the work along with the number 008 girls. It will take some time, but we can extract enough materials from the things obtained during this expedition to supplement Lapis properly."
"Is that so? Then I'll leave it to you."
Leaving Lapis Theron's repairs to Karen, I headed straight for the conference room to convene a meeting.
Then, I called Arva, Helena, and Cordelia.
They were the leaders of the Original Squads within the Ark.
"Now, let's begin the combat power analysis meeting."
At my words, the expressions of the three ECHOs turned serious.
"Thanks to your efforts, Commander, the battle with the Carapace Lord fortunately ended in victory. However, the enemies we face in the future will be far more powerful than those we've seen. So... I'm thinking of using the gains from this battle to strengthen your combat power."
The Carapace Lord's core.
The Arc Reactors obtained from Ark 74.
And the massive amount of Cash obtained through this battle.
"First, I want to hear your opinions. Feel free to speak."
I wanted to hear their thoughts on how to utilize these resources.
Was my suggestion unexpected?
Cordelia let out a small, involuntary gasp.
The first to speak was Arva, who had been with me the longest and possessed the deepest loyalty toward me.
"I want more powerful offensive capabilities, like Pomen. I believe that if I become stronger, it will ensure the Commander's safety and solve the squad's lack of close-quarters firepower."
There was not a hint of hesitation in Arva's voice.
"Hmm..."
And I think I understood what she meant.
With Pomen obtaining her Exclusive Weapon, the Arclight Squad's large-scale killing capacity had increased exponentially.
However, their decisive power when facing higher-tier entities was still lacking.
Pomen's firepower is excellent, but...
It wasn't easy when a large number of elite zombies, such as Bone Blades or Brutes, swarmed in.
Moreover, considering the clash with Pro-X... no, Astral, the importance of high-damage melee dealers becomes even greater.
To break through their energy shields, the importance of a powerful melee dealer increased.
A single well-trained melee dealer could change the tide of battle.
In fact, I had been contemplating spending 100,000 of the Cash I currently possessed to purchase an Exclusive Weapon for Arva to make the Arclight Squad complete.
"Alright. I'll think about that separately."
"Thank you, Commander."
Once Arva stepped forward, Helena, who had been quietly observing, spoke up as if she had been waiting.
"More firepower! I need destructive power that can pierce through the enemy's armor in one go! I request a constant supply of AP-5 armor-piercing rounds for my shotgun, sir."
"Firepower, huh..."
It was a typical answer for Helena.
And it was exactly what she needed the most, as she was the one who always crushed the enemy on the front lines.
Besides, the Cerberus Squad...
Their combat style involved Helena, the tanker and bruiser, stirring up the enemy lines, while Silva provided cover fire and Luna supported from the back.
In other words, the leader Helena's combat power accounted for over 70% of the squad's strength.
I should consider an Exclusive Weapon for Helena as well.
Come to think of it, she might even be a higher priority than Arva.
Considering that strengthening Helena's combat power directly correlated with the overall power increase of the entire Cerberus Squad.
Finally, I looked at Cordelia.
"I do not need a separate weapon. Rather..."
Unlike the previous two, she seemed lost in thought for a moment, touching her lips... then, glancing at me, she spoke cautiously.
"I believe the recovery of the squad members is necessary."
Lapis Theron, who was currently recovering from injuries.
Additionally, Sable and Jin, of whom only the genes could be barely recovered during the engagement with the Carapace Lord.
Rather than her own enhancement, she hoped to rebuild the Sacred Front in our Ark 69.
It was something that had to be done eventually, but...
"Alright. But I'll think about that for a bit. I need to check the Ark's surplus resources first before we can proceed with their creation."
"Thank you."
Two Exclusive Weapons, and the production of two Original ECHOs.
And the production of mass-produced ECHOs to manage the growing Ark.
Is that all?
The vehicles obtained from the last expedition also needed repair to make them functional.
Only with that could we bring back the remaining materials from Ark 74.
"Hmm..."
But is all of that possible... with just 300,000 Cash?