Chapter 114: Surviving in the Abyss
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 114: Surviving in the Abyss
『…Starfall. A star of the Military State has fallen.』
The golem’s tone as it reported the lieutenant general’s death was darker than ever before.
『The murder of a general officer is a grave crime that cannot be excused by any means. Even if they… invaded with some seditious intent. The authority to expose their crimes and punish them is granted to the Military State alone. Everyone here is a felon who has caused a Starfall. You have become enemies of the State.』
“Hah, damn.”
I was hoping it wouldn't know anything, but it seems it snuck out of the cafeteria and witnessed a few things.
Then again, with all that commotion, it would be stranger if it didn’t know. Besides, if a general officer went missing, the Military State would grow suspicious anyway.
I spoke cautiously.
“So, the bottom line is…”
『…This unit cannot confirm what directives will be issued, but one thing is certain. There will be no more supplies from this point forward.』
“Damn it!”
I knew it! No matter the circumstances, we fought a general. There was no way they wouldn't take action!
While I was kicking myself, the Regressor, who had been leaning against the cafeteria wall, muttered grimly.
“In that case, I have no reason to leave this golem intact, do I?”
『…I did not hear that correctly, did I?』
“I was going to destroy them all, but since the warden was here, I left one… but now that I think about it, you said that wasn't the warden, right? If we’re on hostile terms now, there’s no need to keep a golem around, is there?”
Reaching a hand over her head to grab Chun-aeng, the Regressor trudged toward the golem. The golem backed away, speaking urgently.
『Negative. Please wait. This unit wishes to object to your judgment.』
“Object? What’s to object? Eyes of the State. Nothing good has ever come from leaving you things around. Goodbye, farewell.”
『Wai—!』
Just as the Regressor was about to slice the golem in half, I held up a hand to stop her.
“Wait, Shei.”
“What now?”
“We’re trapped in this cafeteria anyway, aren’t we? Is there really a need to deal with it right this second?”
“There’s even less reason not to.”
Tsk, tsk. She only sees one side of the coin, this Regressor.
The golem is trapped in the cafeteria. This means the Military State’s means of gathering information are limited. In that case, it’s better to leave it alive than to destroy it. We can use it as the sole channel to feed them false information.
Planting false information to make the enemy let their guard down. That’s the basis of information warfare.
False. In. For. Ma. Tion.
I mouthed the words, trying to convey the message to the Regressor.
“What? Stop mouthing words and just say it.”
“Ah, damn it! We’re so not on the same page! I said let’s keep it because we’re going to use it!”
I ended up just shouting it.
The Regressor finally reacted with a belated “Ah,” and a dumbfounded sound came from the golem.
『…Use me, did you say?』
“Whoops.”
Whoopsie-daisy.
We ended up tying the golem’s arms and legs, blindfolding it, and locking it in a box. Given that we were now at odds with the Military State, it was a necessary measure.
Sorry, Captain Abbey. But you can disconnect the synchro, so you’ll be fine, right? Just think of it as a vacation. Kick back and relax with a nice, cold beer.
Afterward, we gathered in the classroom to discuss our next course of action. Everyone except for the injured Callis was present.
“Alright. Consider our supplies cut off as of today.”
For once, the Regressor was standing in front of the chalkboard. It was an incredibly awkward sight, one that felt like it would cause some kind of cognitive dissonance.
An elementary school graduate… holding a pointer?
The Regressor tapped the chalkboard with Chun-aeng and spoke.
“From now on, we’ll be rationing our food.”
Written on the board was an inventory of our remaining food.
Remaining food supply: 42 cans of beans. 2 cans of meat.
The numbers were despairing, the ratio even more so. Canned beans might be nutritious, but you get sick of them if you eat too many, and more importantly, 42 was not nearly enough.
“There are a total of five people here who need food. Even if we conserve it and eat one can a day, we’ll be out in forty-two days.”
“Hmm? Yourself, the Lieutenant Colonel, Teacher, the kid, Miss Dog, and Miss Cat. The vampire lady is a vampire, so if we exclude her… isn’t that a total of six?”
At the Undying’s correction, the Regressor waved her hand and explained.
“Ah, count me out. I have the Bountiful Table.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a treasure from the old empire, before it was fractured. If you stock it with ingredients beforehand, it provides three meals a day. Before coming in here, I stuffed it with a ton of ingredients. About ten years’ worth.”
“What! You’ve been eating delicious food all by yourself!”
“But there’s a restriction. It’s an extra-dimensional pocket, so once something goes in, it can’t come out. And only I can pick up the food from the plate. This treasure was originally prepared for the emperor alone.”
The Undying grumbled.
“What kind of useless treasure is that?”
“I agree. Treasures from the old empire are all like this. Luxurious and convenient in their own way, but with so many restrictions they’re hard to use for anything else.”
The Regressor shrugged nonchalantly. I posed a question to her.
“Can’t you just give us a bite each?”
“Once or twice, maybe, but I don’t want to do it every time.”
“Tch. Then you shouldn’t have bragged about it.”
As I grumbled, the Regressor put on a confident expression and got to the real point.
“Of course, I didn’t bring this up for nothing. I’ve prepared separate provisions for you all.”
The Regressor created a rift in the air and rummaged around inside it. What emerged from her personal pocket dimension were sacks full of food.
Grains like rice, potatoes, and flour. Three chunks of salted meat, jars of liquor and spices, and even twenty cans of meat.
And it wasn’t just the spices and liquor; they were all high-quality goods, their value comparable to their weight in gold.
Catching the scent, Azzy’s ears perked up and she began to drool. The Undying’s eyes went wide. Even I was so captivated that I had to straighten my posture.
“This should be enough, right?”
The Regressor gloated. Having subsisted on unsatisfying meals in this isolated space, I swallowed hard and said.
“Whoa, what is all this? You’ve been hoarding this stuff the whole time?”
“You were receiving supplies. There was no reason for me to use my limited resources.”
“So you’re bringing it out now that the supplies are cut? Couldn’t you have done it a little sooner? If we’d had this from the start, we wouldn’t have lived like this for the past few months. You greedy thing.”
“Greedy? I guess you don’t need the food, then? In that case, I’ll just put it back…”
“No. You’re the greatest prisoner in history.”
Before the Regressor could change her mind, I gave her a series of thumbs-ups while inspecting the food.
Looking again, it wasn’t just the liquor and spices that were high-grade. The rice was celestial grain, said to make you feel as if you’d had a full meal from just a single grain, and the flour was the finest wheat from the Golden Plains, each particle shining with a golden hue.
The potatoes, prepared for self-sufficiency, were a hardy variety that could fill an entire field if planted. We couldn't grow them in the Abyss, but if there had been soil, we could have held out with this alone.
“And the meat is from black pigs raised in an oak forest on wild acorns and herbs… This is insane. We can live like kings with this.”
“Don’t get too excited. They may be high-quality, but the food won’t last forever. We have to survive on this for the remaining nine months.”
“Nine months? Why nine months specifically?”
The Regressor paused at my question, as if debating whether to share this information.
‘If we’re going to hold out for the remaining time, it’s better to have a set period. I’ve already revealed the nine months. There’s no need to make them more anxious by hiding things.’
Her hesitation was brief. The Regressor answered.
“Nine months. After that… you’ll probably be able to escape this place. Someone is coming.”
“Someone? Who?”
“Someone exists. Someone who can destroy this Abyss…”
“With force? By pounding on it?”
“Not like that. I mean someone who can literally, conceptually, erase it from existence.”
‘The strongest earthweaver of this era, the agent of Mother Earth… the Sky-Devouring Earthwyrm, she who will become the nightmare of the Sanctum.’
Even from the fragmented thoughts I could sense, I could indirectly feel her majesty. To think that even this bratty Regressor held a degree of fear and reverence for her.
As if not wanting to even think about it, the recollection was cut short. But that alone was enough for me to indirectly sense a terrifying level of danger.
But still…
Why is she thinking of fighting something like that?
“…Anyway. I heard from a certain informant that she plans to eliminate this place. When she lifts the curse on this place, this land will return to its original form.”
‘The certain informant was me from the last timeline. A lot has changed in this timeline, but this won’t. Not with her intense will.’
Nine months. The declaration that we could escape if we just held on for that long was significant. Even the Undying was greatly relieved to hear it.
“Ooh! That’s great! Nine months is more than manageable!”
Tyr, who had entered this place of her own volition, was also pleased, though she didn’t show it outwardly.
‘…I don’t particularly dislike this simple, cozy life here. But it must be different for Hu. He must miss the warm sunlight and the wind brushing past his ears.’
Her gaze turned to me. A faint smile beautifully adorned her lips.
‘Yes. Since I have this life back, perhaps a leisurely journey through the outside world wouldn’t be so bad.’
Haha. This is a bit much. Why do I feel like I’m about to become a world tour guide?
In any case, the reaction was positive. The Regressor was encouraged by the optimistic response.
“Anyway, that’s all I have to say. Any questions?”
I raised my hand and asked.
“What are you going to do about Nabi’s mana herbs?”
“We’ll figure something out by then.”
“You don’t have a plan again?”
“Don’t worry too much. If it really comes down to it, I’ll personally…”
‘If I can’t cure her addiction by then, it can’t be helped. I’ll keep her breathing until the end, then give her a peaceful death before we leave. I was planning to overthrow the Human Regime as soon as we get out anyway, so I just need to root them out before they can find a new Cat King. It’s not like I can take care of Nabi forever…’
What the hell? She talked as if she’d raise her forever. Was saving Nabi purely for practical reasons?
Just as the Regressor was about to make a cold declaration…
Meow—.
Just then, we heard Nabi crying from outside the door. The Regressor looked puzzled and opened the classroom door.
“Nabi? What’s wrong—?”
But when she opened the door, Nabi was already gone. Instead, a single, glittering crystal orb was rolling on the floor in front of the door. It looked like it had been taken from the wreckage of the golem in the control room.
‘What is the meaning of this… No, that can’t be right. Nabi is the Cat King…’
Her reflexive wariness didn’t extend to the Beast King.
The Regressor’s face softened for a moment, and she gently handled the crystal orb. Then she blurted out.
“…I’ll figure something out.”
“Huh? What do you mean, ‘something’?”
“I said I’ll figure something out! We have sixty mana herbs left. We can think about it in sixty days!” the Regressor snapped.
She gets attached so easily. To think she’d be moved by such a small gift.
The thorns around her heart are just incredibly sharp; once you get past them, she seems to carry that affection into the next timeline.
Come to think of it, wasn’t she friendly to Tyr from the very beginning? She did say they had formed a deep bond in the last timeline.
“By the way, did you know?”
But I have no intention of staying in a place like this for nine months. I spoke with confidence.
“We don’t have to wait nine months. Ninety days will be more than enough.”