NIKKE, When the Milky Way Blossoms

All around them, pairs of eyes hidden within the buildings were greedily eyeing the bulging backpacks on the three of them, eager to pounce.

[A group of minors; judging by their height, some are either underdeveloped or the oldest is no more than twelve years old.]

A total of twenty-seven boys and girls were marked on the mental map by Anik, and the artificial intelligence's expression unexpectedly showed a conflicted look.

According to human moral standards, should I show feelings of pity or similar compassion?

Why do you care about this? No matter what you do or think, as long as your word choice and mannerisms sound like a human being, no one will suspect you're an AI. Don't underestimate the diversity of humankind.

Wandering aimlessly down the street, Phoenix answered Anick's questions while observing the surrounding traffic.

According to his superiors, he has to stay in this neighborhood for the next few days, and the rest of the team, including Niki, will be sent here in batches to meet them.

But who is this lieutenant?

This trip to the far north is still going on for who knows how long, so how could we let that scum, Krau, run amok and cause trouble on his territory?

Even if it takes digging three feet into the ground, he will dig this thing out within ten days and then bury it back.

"I have a question for you, little friend."

A few minutes later, unable to find any address signs such as house number or street number, Phoenix, who had no idea where he was, simply walked to the side of the street and headed toward a few kids playing marbles.

"Excuse me, what's the street number?" the lieutenant said, then deftly pulled two pistol bullets from his pocket and chuckled.

Is Block 32588 far from here?

Bullets are always a valuable commodity in the outer area. Two bullets may not seem like much, but they are more than enough to exchange for a few Perpetual Fruit Candies.

Seeing a pie falling from the sky, one of the clever kids immediately jumped up from the ground and grabbed it from the adult's palm, fully demonstrating the fake friendship between the children.

"This is 28000. To get to 32000, you need to go west and cross four major regions."

After saying that, the little kid probably knew that there was no place for him in this pinball game, so he didn't even pick up his own beads and hurriedly ran towards his home.

The child moved so fast and seemed so nervous that even Helen could tell he was afraid the other children would try to take him away.

"Outer perimeter area..."

The kind-hearted blue-haired girl subconsciously pursed her lips and murmured with a look of reluctance.

"...It's different from what was reported in Ark News."

"Yes, it's completely different from the city of Ark."

Watching the child run off into the distance, the lieutenant nodded in agreement and sighed sincerely.

"It's truly a vibrant place."

Chapter 188 This is so rude!

Cautious, intelligent, cunning, decisive...

When Phoenix saw the child with the bullet fleeing the scene without hesitation, and when Anick explained to him that the boy and girl hiding in the shadows had given up the pursuit because of the bullet.

The lieutenant firmly believed that only humans living in the outer regions possessed the courage and wisdom to fight Lecher for survival.

All they lack is a reason.

A reason to shed blood for it.

"let's go."

The man, in a good mood, turned around and called out to Lapi and Helen, who were still gazing into the alley.

"Time is a bit tight, I'll spend more time with you later."

Upon hearing Phoenix's call, the two girls quickly turned around and hurried after the commander who was heading west.

Although they didn't know exactly what the commander meant by "time is tight".

But since his superior hadn't said anything explicitly, Lhabi, as the adjutant, certainly wouldn't pry.

As for Helen, after the "education" from Mihara that morning, she successfully recognized her subordinate position and obediently followed behind her superior, silently keeping up.

……

……

Cement, wood, glass, bricks—materials commonly found on the ground are undoubtedly valuable resources for the Ark.

Therefore, cheap metals account for at least 99.00% of the materials used in the construction of the entire outer perimeter area.

Only a very few entertainment venues use luxurious wood and glass.

This is a city of metal in the truest sense.

Compared to the haste of his first nighttime reconnaissance of the outer perimeter, this time Lieutenant Phoenix was able to observe the details carefully and immediately grasped the advantages of the outer perimeter.

Dirty, messy and poor.

Beneath the three main characteristics of slums lies a crucial strategic message.

—The terrain is solid and complex.

As long as the tactics are reasonable and the personnel are highly skilled, even if the Ark wants to send Niki to advance when its firepower is insufficient, the casualties will inevitably be extremely high.

Even if we allow the Ark to advance slowly, so what?

Occupying territory requires setting up defenses, which means having enough manpower, and those manpower need to have a certain level of combat skills.

What Ark lacks most is nothing but combat skills.

Once the elite troops push forward, the supply lines behind them will inevitably become as fragile as paper. By simply extending the battlefield depth, forcing the Ark into a protracted war, and then conducting a few rounds of guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines, it is estimated that the Ark's rear defenses can be completely breached.

After just half an hour of viewing, Phoenix made a confident judgment.

—The Ark can't get in.

Given the excellent matchmaking system underground, the only way for those inside the walls to win by force is to remove the near-death restrictions on all Nikis, allowing more than 10,000 Nikis to push across the walls with overwhelming force.

But here's the problem.

The Ark Bugs might not have the guts to remove the near-death restrictions from thousands of Nikis all at once.

That's a force of over ten thousand Nikki. Even if half of them are eliminated, as long as a leader emerges from among the five or six thousand Nikki, it's hard to say who will be overwhelmed by the Nikki first, inside or outside the walls.

In summary, the outer perimeter region actually faces only one major challenge:

This steel city was not self-sufficient. Food, water, electricity, supplies—everything flowed out from inside the ark.

If the supply is cut off, the ecological environment of the outer edge area will immediately collapse.

"Disaster……"

After figuring out the advantages and disadvantages of both sides, Phoenix shook his head with a hint of regret, unable to come up with a solution.

Immediately, under Helen's inquisitive questions, the lieutenant, who had promised to teach her, had no choice but to casually answer with other knowledge, dealing with the girl all the way to District 30000.

32588 is the address of the bakery at the entrance/exit of the smuggling route.

The man's real destination was actually the 30955 Red Light Hotel, which was where Anis and the dozen or so girls lived.

The thought of seeing his wife, whom he hadn't seen for half a month, immediately made him pause his thoughts and plans for the future. He felt his heart burning with anxiety and urgency.

Although every single one of the wives was craving their own kidneys, there was one particularly sharp-tongued wife who had never managed to get her hands on any.

But after not seeing his lovely Anise for half a month, the longing that welled up in the man's heart was absolutely genuine.

Fei is a very affectionate man, but he is also devoted to his wives. He is wholeheartedly devoted to each of them.

He and the loyal and righteous Lord Wei are absolutely birds of a feather, a den of snakes and rats, kindred spirits who wish they had met sooner, and the student surpasses the master.

despair.

"This is it."

Standing at the head of the line beneath the Red Light Hotel, a certain Commander surnamed Fei, whose only thought was to embrace his wife, glanced up at the brand-new hotel sign and stepped inside with a smile.

At that moment, the lieutenant simply didn't have the emotional intelligence to consider the feelings of Labi and Helen.

This grown man led the two girls to the entrance of a hotel bathed in pink lights, his tone visibly excited and eager, coupled with his complexion that suggested he might be suffering from kidney deficiency…

He looks like a lecherous glutton.

The audio started playing in his mind again without warning. Not understanding what was wrong with his brain, Lapi only felt two flames burning fiercely on his cheeks.

[Double flight! Double flight!!!]

Vulgar thoughts relentlessly surged in the sea of ​​ideas, and Lhabi's reserved nature could hardly bear such terrible words; he was almost ashamed to the point of fuming over "his own thoughts."

On the other hand, although Helen was a pampered aristocratic lady, how could a girl not know about the secret scandals and illicit affairs in high society when she got together with her best friends?

Why did the commander bring them to a place like this...?

That's incredibly rude!

……

Outside the door, the girls, lost in their own thoughts, were still at a loss.

Inside the door, Lieutenant Phoenix, hurrying up the stairs, strode towards the hotel's reception room/office.

Click!

The old-fashioned door lock was opened by a man.