A New Ambition for the Ark
Moi lay on the bed in her assigned room, staring up at the ceiling.
"So comfortable..."
Life in the Ark was beyond blissful.
Until a few weeks ago, this was something she couldn't have even imagined.
The days spent lying awake at night, plagued by the anxiety that they might be attacked by zombies, Astrals, or other Wanderers.
The cold, hungry memories of sharing rotten canned food or nameless berries with her sister just to barely refill their Core Energy, worrying about whether they would survive until tomorrow.
Since arriving here, at Ark 69, life in the Ark was so satisfying that all of those things felt like a distant past.
"Ah..."
A warm, fluffy bed.
The fragrant smell of bread baked every day by Madeline.
The red strawberries, shining like jewels, which had now begun to be harvested continuously from the indoor farm.
And above all...
The Commander, who cherished them not as mere parts, but as comrades and family.
"Commander..."
Moi trembled slightly as she pictured the Commander's face.
It was because she naturally recalled what had happened in the Commander's office a few days ago.
When she had finished her report on the Black Crow, the Commander had handed her a small brown piece, calling it a magical food.
Chocolate.
That was the name Madeline had told her later.
She said it was a luxury item from the affluent era before human civilization collapsed.
The moment she put that precious thing in her mouth, Moi was swept away by an intense feeling of happiness, the likes of which she had never experienced in her life.
"Haaah..."
Just imagining the taste again sent a sweet thrill coursing through her entire body.
The smoothness that melted on the tongue, the warm and languid sensation spreading through her body.
The Commander had said it was a taste that makes a human heart beat twice, and it was true.
Furthermore, the Commander had set aside separate chocolates for her sister, Rai, to eat as well.
Using his precious Artifact called the Money Compass.
"Moi—! Let's go harvest strawberries!"
"Y-Yes!! I'll be there soon—!"
"Bring Rai too! Let's go together! Madeline said we could eat strawberries today!"
"Huh, really?!"
At Alpha's voice drifting in through the window, Moi sprang up and ran toward Rai's room.
After that day, Moi decided to give her heart entirely to Ark 69.
Until then, she had thought of it as merely a temporary shelter with a unique Commander where it was convenient to live, but now, this place had become the home where she and Rai would live for the rest of their lives.
All because that single piece of chocolate—and the kindness it carried—had melted the ice around her heart completely.
Perhaps that was why?
The instincts of a girl, which had to be suppressed for survival on the surface, began to rear their head little by little within the safety of the Ark.
And the catalyst for this was an old 19+ magazine that her sister, Rai, had secretly brought back during the last expedition.
"Sis, tonight... how about it?"
"I'm in."
Munching on rye bread along with strawberries in the cafeteria, Moi made a secret appointment with her sister and headed straight to Rai's room as soon as her duties were over.
Then, lying on one bed, they opened that dangerous book.
"Hng... mm."
Along with the small whimpers of her sister, whose face had turned bright red, the sound of pages turning filled the room.
They had looked at it so many times that the pictures in the book were now familiar enough that they knew what was on the next page without even looking.
And now, Moi... was naturally projecting herself and the Commander onto the figures of the man and woman.
"Ngh, ah... ah—!"
A picture of a man and a woman rubbing their bodies against each other.
And this led to the erotic memory of the night she had accidentally glimpsed the Commander mixing bodies with Pomen.
At the same time, she recalled the kind face and smile of the Commander, who had given her chocolate and introduced her to the paradise known as Ark 69.
"Commandeeer..."
"Ang, ahh. Commander...!"
"Rai...?"
"It can't be helped... you're the same, aren't you, sister? You want to do it with the Commander, right? Like Pomen?"
"Y-Yes. The Commander's cock. You want it too, Rai?"
Moi saw her sister nod in response to her words.
Soon, her sister's small hand wrapped around Moi's waist, and hot breath touched her ear.
Suddenly, the thought occurred to her: how happy it would be if we sisters were loved by the Commander at the same time?
And without deciding who would start first, the two began to grope and rub against each other, imitating the pictures in the book.
Soft skin touched, and clumsy yet deep kisses followed as they sought each other's lips.
"Haa, ngh..."
"S-Sister... ah—! There... I like it there...! Hng!"
And so, calling each other's names and the Commander's name, they rubbed their bodies together. And this...
[.......]
Was all being seen by Wanderer, the Ark's Central AI.
However, Wanderer did not convey this fact to the Commander. This was because it had no obligation to report the personal deviant behavior of an ECHO to the Commander.
It simply quietly recorded the data changes of the two sisters.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
For a few days following the encounter with the Black Crow, the Ark entered a state of emergency.
Of course, on the surface, it looked very peaceful.
It was just that most of the Ark's resources were being poured into defense facilities and the repair of vehicles needed for external operations.
During that time, resource collection operations in Hongwei-7, led by the Cerberus squad, were carried out twice.
[Po—! Po-po-po-po!]
I joined the operation once to collect some Cash, and it had been a while since I met Podic. So this resource run allowed me to catch up with her and manage her affinity.
Even though the Carapace Lord had disappeared, Podic was still living on the outskirts of Hongwei-7. It was the old motel building where I had been trapped.
Well, no one around here could possibly mess with her anyway.
So, I didn't think much of it.
"Move this to the workshop."
"And these?"
"Hmm— I think these will need separate composite metal separation... send them to the Warehouse in the A-Wing."
Thanks to the resources brought in by Helena's squad operating the Mercury Howl, Lena and Karen were moving without a single moment's rest.
They were barely sleeping an hour out of twenty-four.
If they were humans and not ECHOs, they would have died of overwork long ago.
Feeling sorry for them, I bought a few cans of cola and gave them to the two.
It was a huge sum of 500 Cash per can, but it was nothing compared to their efforts.
Anyway, thanks to their activity, the operation of the second Mercury Howl became possible, and the old facilities within the Ark began to regain their functions one by one.
Along with that, a big change began to occur in our diet.
Fresh vegetables and fruits harvested from the indoor farm began to appear on the dining table in earnest.
"Phew... finally, I can eat food fit for a human."
[Food fit for a human?]
"Yeah. I can't just fill my stomach with those damn Concentrated Nutrient Pastes now, can I?"
At my grumbling, Wanderer paused for a moment before speaking.
[...Still, for the Commander's nutrition, I recommend consuming the nutrient supplement once a day at the minimum.]
"Right... By the way, what on earth did the humans of the previous Ark eat to survive?"
[They mainly ate root crops. Things like potatoes or sweet potatoes, because they were easy and convenient to grow. The previous Fleet Commander did not operate a separate indoor farm like you, Fleet Commander.]
"No, why?"
I couldn't understand what kind of guy he was.
[Rather than that, he was someone who focused on the energy and resources required for the indoor farm on the Ark's defenses instead.]
"Is he an idiot? Does he not even know how important food, clothing, and shelter are to a person's life..."
A life of eating nothing but Concentrated Nutrient Pastes every day?
The mere thought of it was horrific.
Suddenly, I recalled the contents of the insane notes I had found while wandering around Ark 69 before.
At the time, I just felt that the situation of the Ark was bleak, but now I think I understand why.
There was no way the humans of the previous Ark, who had eaten nothing but potatoes and sweet potatoes for several years, could have remained sane.
Anyway, thanks to Madeline, who presented new breads and dishes every day, I felt like I could finally live. The other ECHOs felt the same.
"Food's ready, food—!"
"Madeline! What's for dinner today?!"
Everyone was enjoying the concept of taste and sincerely looking forward to mealtime.
The operation rate of Ark 69's defense facilities also rose from 20% to 35%.
This was thanks to the ECHOs of the Arclight and Cerberus squads busily moving around, demolishing contaminated facilities and repairing them with Karen.
Then one day.
"The defense facilities seem to have reached a stable track, Commander. I believe it is now acceptable to invest in other facilities."
It was a report given by Lena.
As she said, it was about time to raise the quality of life in the Ark. Still, just in case, I asked again.
"Aren't there still quite a few things that haven't been fixed?"
"Currently, there are only things that are impossible to repair immediately or require time. If there are no problems with resource supply from the outside, I expect the operation rate of the Ark's defense facilities to reach a stable orbit of about 60% within a month."
"Hmm..."
60% can be considered a stable orbit?
Isn't that number a bit too low...?
"To operate higher-level defense facilities, an energy source incomparable to what we have now is required. It's an amount of resources that would be enough to produce several Original ECHOs and still have some left over."
"...It's impossible given the current state of the Ark."
"That is correct."
If that's the case, it means I can invest the remaining resources and manpower into other facilities...
Then what should I choose? Expand the workshop? Or produce a new ECHO?
Then, my thoughts drifted toward the phrase other facilities.
I wondered if that might mean convenience facilities for the Ark.
"Alright. Then let's all vote on what kind of facility we should build."
"...Pardon?"
"Everyone is a member of our Ark 69, right? If there were a lot of people, it wouldn’t be feasible, but we aren't at that level yet. I just want to hear everyone's opinions on what they're thinking."
It was a kind of democratic vote.
To be honest, I had just said it without thinking.
But the reaction from the ECHOs was incredibly enthusiastic.
And that evening, the results Wanderer brought after asking for the ECHOs' opinions far exceeded my imagination.
[Reporting the survey results.]
"Okay, tell me the top three."
[Yes. First place is a public bathhouse. Second place is a cafe, and third place was the expansion of the workshop.]
"......Huh?"
A bathhouse?
There couldn't be a more unexpected result.
I knew that ECHOs basically had self-cleaning and physical maintenance functions.
So I wondered if they really needed the old-fashioned method of bathing using water.
[According to data analysis, it has been confirmed that ECHOs are heavily influenced by human lifestyles. It appears that the act of humans soaking their bodies in warm water to relieve fatigue has a positive effect on the psychological stability and stress relief of ECHOs as well.]
"......Really?"
That was the first I'd heard of it.
But hearing it, it sounded somewhat plausible.
[Yes. In particular, ECHOs who have experienced private interviews with the Commander showed a higher preference for bathing.]
"...What is that supposed to mean?"
Is it because they sweat a lot?
I was momentarily speechless at Wanderer's strange elaboration, but I soon thought it wasn't a bad choice.
This was because I remembered that in Echoes of Humanity — ECHO, there were many side stories or affinity events related to bathhouses.
In particular, most of the events for one of the members of the Dawn Frame squad, who was related to the main protagonist, took place in a bathhouse.
"Hmm... If we were to build a bathhouse, what materials would be needed?"
[I will transmit the data to you.]
After checking the material list Wanderer sent, I nodded.
There weren't as many materials as I thought.
Most were things like stone or wood that didn't have much to do with the Ark's safety, and chemical agents for waterproofing.
At this level, it was possible to build it without any trouble using the resources currently secured.
"Alright, let's build the bathhouse first. Pass the blueprints to Lena and Karen. The location is..."
[I recommend Sector D-4. It is close to the underground water plant in Sector D-7 and is very convenient for recycling the water supply and drainage facilities.]
"Good. Let's go with that."
And so, the construction of the first large-scale welfare facility in Ark 69 was decided.
And on the day that news spread throughout the Ark, I encountered an unexpected person in the workshop. It was the Saintess, Noah.