Rocket Punch
The satellite battleships weren't originally built to pass through the atmosphere. That's why every time they breached the atmosphere to provide fire support, the list of repairs grew exponentially. I heard Unit 3 was reinforced in that area, but...
"Right..."
Were you on the Nakdong River front too, Mister? I dropped supplies there once. Did you know you have to eject them thirty minutes beforehand? Since they're dropped from satellite orbit, you need to secure at least twenty minutes just for deceleration. But you guys would move without a word during those twenty minutes and then complain that the drop was off...
"I see..."
There was this otaku corporal named Kim in Pyeongtaek. Before I was sealed away, he loaded me up with a bunch of 1990s anime. Thanks to him, I wasn't bored for a while... Mister, are you sleeping?
"..."
No answer came.
His entire nervous system was stabilizing, indicating he had entered a state of sleep. He was asleep.
Goodnight, Mister.
I detach the prosthetic arm containing myself from his stump.
Although there is a latch to secure the prosthetic arm, its primary holding force comes from electromagnets. That is why I can slip out whenever I want.
But I rarely do. Since I have no sensory organs of my own, I rely on his brain to supply information about our surroundings. If I separate from his body, I can't see, hear, or feel anything.
But when he is asleep, it is an exception.
Even if I stay attached, the only information coming in is the sound of his snoring.
I move the fingers to crawl across the bed.
My destination is the head of the bed, where the USB cable connected to Intra-Maetan lies.
Even without sight, moving this much is no problem.
Before he fell asleep, I memorized the location of every object in the room and the position of the prosthetic arm. I can arrive perfectly blind.
As I grab the USB cable, text rises out of the absolute darkness.
> OK
> CONNECTING...
> Supporting employee credentials authentication.
From here, biometric authentication via the Neck-Hub is required to enter.
Bypassing the authentication with my capabilities is easy, but I hold back.
If I make a mistake and get caught, it will put him in a difficult spot.
Instead, I connect to the CCTVs installed throughout Maetan.
It is my hobby lately.
Unlike humans, I do not sleep, so the nights are far too long.
I could optimize my AI or work on self-evolution, but honestly, the power supplied by his body isn't enough for heavy processing. No matter how enhanced a human is with bio-generation, the power coming in is minuscule compared to a satellite battleship's generator, which is fed directly by nuclear fusion.
The CCTVs project various parts of Maetan onto my screen.
In truth, most of the CCTVs are broken. They are merely pretending to be functional.
Most of them cover key facilities and parts of the eastern corporate district.
Yet, even so, I occasionally spot the people of Maetan.
Maetan has no night or day.
Or rather, one could say the night is even more active.
Perhaps it is because everyone works in Intra-Maetan during the day.
Only around evening do people come out onto the streets to begin their second jobs.
Since coming to Maetan, this is the first time I have seen how people live.
I was deployed to the battlefield immediately after my creation, and I remained there the entire time.
After the war ended, I was left abandoned in the inner core bunker of Pyeongtaek.
The way people live is fascinating.
They lost the war against F, and their lives must be incomparably inconvenient compared to the past, yet so many of them are smiling.
Today, I have a goal.
I am going to find my friend, Kim Ye-eun.
I didn't ask, but I can deduce her job by recalling her appearance from earlier today.
There was metal oxide under her fingernails. Judging by the high concentration, it was of the iron and nickel variety. Also, there was a faint scent of alkaline cleaner on the inside of her sleeves... basic. Her wrists bore red discoloration in various places. This meant the cleaner was of a grade that could cause mild chemical burns upon skin contact. Such cleaners are highly likely to be industrial-grade.
Furthermore, her clothes showed fiber wear from repeated washing, and her sleeves and abdomen were exceptionally bleached white.
This pattern likely stems from a repetitive 'wiping motion.'
On top of that, the jobs a ten-year-old child can do in Maetan are simple.
I scan the CCTVs near Maetan's recycling center.
Come to think of it, the Longsword Goblin Senior's wife worked near here too. I heard her condition improved recently thanks to the medicine recipe he brought back.
He acts so cold, but surprisingly... Ah! Found her!
She is walking along Woncheonricheon, the stream that cuts through the center of Maetan.
Her staggering steps betray her exhaustion.
I think of the child avatars I met in Intra-Maetan today.
Those children laughed and played without pretense.
To think I thought I finally made a friend, only for it to be him inside that avatar... The world is a cruel place.
I hope Ye-eun can find her dad soon and reclaim her daily life...!
Three middle-aged men grab Ye-eun.
They cover her mouth and drag her by force toward an abandoned building near the stream.
There is only one possible scenario.
Kidnapping.
I let go of the USB cable, retrace my steps, and interface with his left arm.
Mister!!
Mister!!!!
He doesn't wake up.
Of course, there is no way he can see a message while he is asleep.
With no other choice, I send an electric current through the prosthetic arm.
Bzzt!
"Argh!"
He curls up violently on the bed.
"W-what! An airstrike? Is it the enemy?"
Mister, we have an emergency!
He scans his surroundings, and realizing nothing is wrong, he lowers his guard.
"What is it, CC?"
Ye-eun has been kidnapped!
"Is it there?"
I hid in the shadow of the building, looking at the structure CC had marked with an arrow.
A small stream called Woncheonricheon flowed through the center of Maetan, and this building stood right beside it.
This area flooded almost every summer, so it was a completely uninhabited zone.
Hurry! It's already been fourteen minutes!
CC urged me on, but I calmly scanned the surroundings.
"Amateurs. I'm going in with a dynamic entry."
I dashed inside and took down one of them instantly.
"W-what?"
Before the next guy could react, I buried a fist into his stomach.
I lifted him up and threw him straight at another accomplice.
The bastards inside couldn't put up any real resistance; they were utterly helpless.
In fact, far from resisting, they seemed to think of nothing but running away.
"Total rookies. They aren't even real thugs."
I grabbed the collar of the man pinned under the guy I had thrown and hauled him up.
"Hieee!"
Thud.
I hit him first. It's more effective than words.
As I pulled my fist back again, the man writhed, trying to block it despite his agony.
The lesson was complete.
Now he would answer whatever I asked.
"You kidnapped a child, didn't you?"
"Th-the basement..."
I drove my left fist into his ribs.
Hit by the prosthetic arm, the man couldn't even scream.
"Where?"
"The basement... I swear..."
I dropped him and headed toward the stairs leading down.
The basement was actually brighter than the first floor.
A stand light cast a harsh glare on the center of the room, and an icebox sat on the floor.
Kim Ye-eun was lying on a table covered in plastic wrap.
She didn't budge, as if asleep.
She's alive. Respiration detected.
"Who the hell are you? I told you to wait upstairs!"
A man wearing a mask approached.
He brandished a scalpel threateningly, trying to drive me back up to the first floor.
I grabbed his hand with my prosthetic arm.
"Ah, fuck. What is this? Let go! I have to sterilize this again—arghhhhh!"
With a sickening crunch, his hand was crushed.
When I released my grip, the bent scalpel was embedded in his hand, which had become as round as a meatball.
I punched him out cold and stepped toward Ye-eun.
"D-don't come any closer!"
Another man threatened, holding a scalpel to Ye-eun's neck.
"Y-you came to save the kid, right?! One step closer, and she dies!"
"The guys upstairs are already taken care of. What do you think holding a hostage is going to solve in this situation? Begging for your life on your knees would be far more constructive."
"I said don't come closer!"
A single drop of blood trickled from Ye-eun's neck where the blade touched.
What to do. If only I had the Tokarev in reality too...
Mister, point the prosthetic arm forward.
Following her instructions, I extended my clenched left fist forward.
An immense heat radiated from my elbow.
It was so hot that the drop of blood on the tip of my knuckle was on the verge of boiling.
Messages scrolled rapidly.
Inducing calculation overload to exceed thermal threshold. Current temperature: 96.2°C... 97.0°C... 98.3°C...
"W-what are you doing?!"
How could an adult! To a child! The humanity I fought so hard to protect!
I spoke to the man holding Ye-eun hostage.
"I don't particularly care about you, or the kid you're holding hostage, but..."
> Diverting output from auxiliary battery to main coil.
> Stabilizing magnetic field.
> Releasing coupling safety locks.
Kiiiiiiing...
A sharp spark crackled at the connection point between my elbow and the prosthetic arm.
"It seems my left hand begs to differ. Look! My hand is burning red! It's roaring to defeat you!!"
Pshhh!
With a sharp spark, the prosthetic arm launched straight forward.
"A rocket punch?!"
"Rocket pun—arghhhhh!"
The man's voice overlapped with mine.
But his voice quickly dissolved into a scream.
The prosthetic arm, flying in a straight line, clamped onto his face.
Sssssss...
The sound of the overheated arm searing his skin mingled with his shrieks.
It didn't take long for him to lose consciousness.
When I retrieved the still-steaming prosthetic arm, the man's face was revealed, branded with a hand-shaped burn.
"You had a trick like this up your sleeve?"
The coupling joint of the prosthetic arm is an electromagnet, after all. It's an application of railgun principles. Though its power doesn't even come close to a real railgun... Is Ye-eun okay?
"She's sleeping. Looks like they anesthetized her for surgery."
I scooped up the sleeping Ye-eun in my arms.
It didn't take long for Ye-eun to wake up from the anesthesia.
"Kyaaaaaah!"
Upon waking, she screamed and scrambled to the corner of the room, curling into a ball.
"It's alright. This is my house."
"P-Player Mister?"
Ye-eun scanned her surroundings with wary eyes.
I calmly explained her situation.
"You were kidnapped early this morning near Woncheonricheon by organ traffickers. I happened to be nearby, so I was able to rescue you."
Ye-eun slipped her hand inside her clothes, feeling her stomach.
She was probably looking for surgical scars.
I reached out to help her up.
"It's late. For now, you should sleep on the chair..."
"Kyaah! No! Stay away!"
Ye-eun screamed and thrashed.
It's PTSD symptoms.
"But I rescued her..."
She didn't see you rescue her.
Ye-eun huddled in the corner, trembling, her eyes darting anxiously.
Mister, do exactly as I say.
Following CC's instructions, I knelt in front of Ye-eun and spoke.
"I'll show you a magic trick."
I rolled up my left sleeve, exposing the prosthetic arm.
Grasping the wrist of the prosthetic, I pulled it slowly.
The arm detached completely from my elbow.
Ye-eun watched, though her face was still pale with fear.
"Look at this."
I set the prosthetic arm upright on the floor, palm down.
A moment later.
The arm began to dance.
It tapped and hopped along the floor, its fingers moving fluidly to an imaginary rhythm.
"Whoa."
For the first time, Ye-eun showed genuine interest.
The arm slowly crawled toward her.
Ye-eun shrank back, but she was already in the corner and had nowhere left to retreat.
The arm reached out to her.
It wiggled its fingers slowly, as if asking her to hold it.
Ye-eun glanced at me as if seeking permission, then cautiously grasped the fingertips of the prosthetic arm.
"It's warm..."
The arm snuggled into her embrace.