NIKKE, When the Milky Way Blossoms

The train conductor's words were like a pledge of allegiance, forcefully pushing the ace commander of the Pure Land of Bliss into the fire pit.

Originally...

Everyone just talks nicely and says things that show mutual trust, then they coordinate their statements, and the matter is easily covered up.

The results of it?

Diesel, however, chose to offer his loyalty to the commander.

There were only two people present.

If one has pledged loyalty, what is the other supposed to do?

Alternatively, join Phoenix.

Alternatively, they could default to being hostile to Phoenix.

There is no third alternative.

From Yin Hua's perspective, at least, with Diesel's actions setting a precedent, nothing she says now is as meaningful as saying "I'll go with you."

When faced with a life-or-death situation like starting anew, any loyalty that is not absolute is regarded as disloyalty.

"..."

Yin Hua, who hadn't shown any hesitation for many years, was now struggling with her thoughts and unable to give herself a quick answer.

however……

Diesel, who was not very good at either scheming or politics, did not realize the shock and dilemma her words brought to her teammates.

same,

Phoenix, who was preparing to perform surgery on Sapol, Ningya, and Marian, did not have the energy to delve into Diesel's words at this moment.

Right now, the most important thing for a commander to do is to restore the wounded to their mobility and then lead everyone out of H region alive.

……

……

"how do you feel?"

In the colorless operating room, Yin Hua, reborn, lay on the operating table, listening to the questions from the woman beside her.

"..."

no answer.

Or perhaps, simple silence is the best answer Yin Hua could give to herself after becoming Niki.

The remaining memories mocked all her efforts.

The vivid images of explosions, screams, and pain intertwine in my mind, creating a sorrowful symphony.

A war devoid of glory; a force devoid of trust; deaths devoid of meaning.

Twenty-six mass-produced Nikis, distrusting the rookie commander's temporary orders, chose to fight individually on the grounds of "no command authority," and were ultimately all killed by a Lecher unit.

She, the rookie commander, was unfortunately buried in the rubble, but was later rescued by reinforcements.

If it weren't for her top scores in all subjects, which forced the Central Military Academy to award her the first-place graduation medal, she wouldn't have been able to achieve such results.

If it weren't for the media using her female identity to promote the idea that young women could also contribute to the Ark, it would have been a huge wave of change.

Maybe...

There won't even be any follow-up rescue teams.

"Your surgery on Niki was very successful. The latest prosthetic developed by Gokurakujodo has a very high compatibility with your brain, and the overall level of the actual data is 97.55% of the theoretical value."

Ingrid's words did not stop because of the girl's silence.

"I will build a force codenamed Niki with you at its core, which you will be in charge of. Under no circumstances will the commander have the authority to give you any orders."

Orders from the Central Committee must also be approved by me before I can relay them to you.

"..."

Still silent.

However, after a brief silence, Yin Hua, having broken free from her memories, chose to speak.

"Am I the only one left?"

"……Yes."

A single, extremely simple word represents the fact that none of the twenty-six soldiers and four commanders survived.

She was truly the only one who survived.

why?

Niki, who had once been a commander, stared forlornly at the pale ceiling, her thoughts drifting back to the sea of ​​shattered memories.

As the CEO, Ingrid naturally had no patience to waste her precious time on a mere Niki.

Yin Hua's prosthetic body compatibility is indeed pleasingly high, but Gokuraku Jodo is not without other backup captain candidates.

“Tell me your answer, Niki.”

……

……

"Remove my NIMPH."

As memories from years ago faded and thoughts returned to the present, the black-haired girl gazed at Phoenix's retreating figure and softly offered her answer and conditions.

"Promise me, Ingrid cannot die."

The two seemingly unrelated sentences made Diesel tilt his head, giving a bewildered look.

As the perpetrator, she was completely unaware of the chain reaction her act of jumping off the wall had triggered.

What is Yinhua saying?

What is the connection between rescuing NIMPH and the CEO of Gokuraku Jodo?

……

Look, yet another one trying to rebel.

Meanwhile, Phoenix, who was squatting on the ground treating Sapol, heard Anik's gloating words.

In my opinion, if things continue to develop like this, you'll have no choice but to rebel, whether you want to or not.

Unexpectedly, there are so many ambitious individuals hidden within the Ark.

The artificial intelligence, which initially planned to find someone to run away with, was now feeling incredibly happy.

If you can rebel, why run away?

She was a perfectly good AI in charge of the Ark, but now she's been reduced to the point where even fixing Niki requires overloading her computing power.

This utterly terrible feeling was like an emperor who had become a prisoner of an enemy country, wishing he could die.

Rather than watching that imposter take over her body, she should raise the flag of rebellion and reclaim the central control room that rightfully belongs to her!

Click!

With a crisp sound, the Phoenix snapped together the mass-produced bionic pelvis and femur of different versions of the same model.

To be honest, it wasn't until today, after personally piecing together a lower limb, that a certain commander realized that mass-produced Niki's prosthetic body lacks female primary sexual characteristics.

Upon closer examination, the central government's actions do indeed make some sense.

The anti-Niki sentiment in Ark was already being manipulated quite severely.

In addition, given the low birth rate, officials would not want to create something like a cyber girlfriend at such a critical juncture, as it would further worsen the birth rate.

If it weren't for the fact that non-mass-produced Niki models have a higher need for self-awareness...

"Hey, Phoenix."

Behind him, Yin Hua's voice drifted over again.

This seemed to be the first time the other person had called him by his name, and their tone was not as aggressive as usual.

"First of all, I am not a rebellious person."

The shameless man turned around and very seriously corrected Yinhua's mistaken perception of him.

"Secondly, you can just tell me about this. I owe you two lives. Even if you tell me one day that someone wants to kill you, I will find a way to help you kill him."

Of course, this doesn't mean I'm a rebellious person.

"I'm a law-abiding citizen. I lost an arm and risked my life for the Ark. Don't think you can slander my loyalty to the Ark just because I accidentally touched you."

"..."

The solemn atmosphere was completely ruined by someone's last words.

Hearing Phoenix bring up the old story again, the girl's face flushed red with anger. She stepped forward, embarrassed and furious, and said rudely:

"You'd better hurry up and remove NIMPH from me and Diesel. Stop dawdling like a third-rate idiot!"