Story Reader / Affection / Karenina: Scire / Story
—!
Hearing your orders, the Construct soldiers nod knowingly, forming into groups of three and scattering, slowly surrounding the dispersed Corrupted.
Even when their limited firepower cannot damage the Corrupted significantly, the soldiers' concentrated barrage still manages to push the Corrupted back closer and closer to the planned location.
The Construct soldiers stop shooting. Their guns are still drawn, but the soldiers know that the fight is over.
—!!!
Without the constant pressure from the Constructs' firearms, the Corrupted immediately revert to their frenzied stage, hoping to charge in and tear their enemies apart.
But they quickly find themselves standing on nothing—the ground below their feet suddenly collapses, and the new giant hole devours them whole.
You were right... That floor couldn't support so many Corrupted and collapsed.
That seems to be the roof of an old shopping mall. The deserted structure failed the moment it could not withstand the weight of the Corrupted, burying everything that was standing on top.
It is because of her accurate assessment that the Corrupted could be so effortlessly dispatched—every bullet is a valuable resource at a time like this.
In that case, the Corrupted in this region are all eliminated.
We're used to it. I reckon the Engineering Force are the hardest-working ones right now. The materials for the reconstruction are still on their way, while so many are still in need of a roof...
You have been seeing Karenina going back and forth between different parts of the conservation area ever since she demolished that unstable building, and you have rarely seen her rest.
You happen to have a construction materials list that requires Karenina's approval before submitting it to Babylonia, so you decide to find her after this mission.
Confirming Karenina's whereabouts on your terminal, you are surprised to find out where she is.
If trashes can be used to measure the advancement of human civilization, then the "hill" that is a landfill before you tells the story of how quickly the Golden Age was developed.
Amidst this dead mountain, the lively girl who suddenly appears is all the more noticeable.
Carefully, Karenin retrieves a black panel from beneath a pile of trash.
Get the fork out!
In the blink of an eye, Karenina pulls the panel away with a "Woosh!", and the rubbish stacked above it only sways ever so slightly.
Hmph! Perfect...
Before she can finish feeling smug, the still pile of trash suddenly rushes toward her like an avalanche, almost drowning her—the panel only survives since she raises it above her head at the last minute.
Hearing your shout, the Inver-Devices above Karenina's head poke through the trash pile that has buried her all of a sudden.
Almost simultaneously, she jumps out nimbly—
W-what are you doing here?!
Hmph, of course! How can this junk even hope to hurt me... I was just caught by surprise.
Karenina skips to your location. Only at this distance can you tell that her face is covered with dirt, from where you cannot say.
But she does not seem to care. Her smeared face highlights her sparkling eyes in the sun.
Even more sparkling is the panel in her hand... blinding, even.
Hm? This? This is a solar thermal collector from ages ago. It was used to collect and store solar energy.
It's pretty cold at night right now... The Scavengers who moved out might have a place to stay, but they have nothing to keep them warm. I want to make a simple heating device with this and a few other things.
Karenina fiddles with her hair by her ear, her gaze darting around.
After all, it's too dangerous for them to make a fire in their shelters... The Engineering Force'd have to clean up their mess if they start a fire...
Karenina blinks and looks at you in disbelief.
You? This isn't commanding a squad. It takes alertness and awareness, not wit.
It takes experience and imagination to determine if what you found is valuable... if it's "treasure" or "trash."
As she speaks, she bends down to grab a small, inconspicuous device from the pile and throws it your way.
The port for an energy converter. It's a bit damaged right now, but I should be able to fix it.
I used to go treasure-hunting in the slums with Grandpa back in the slums. We would find all kinds of parts to assemble machines that we didn't know.
Karenina takes the port back and easily fixes it before attaching it to the panel.
Even unassuming junk... can become treasures that help people in the hands of engineers.
You look around and see a small object glistening in the sun. Picking it up, you find a chip with an intricate circuit attached to it.
Taking the small trinket from you, she flips it around in the sun. Light passes through its translucent shell, scattering into a rainbow of colors. But Karenina eventually shrugs.
It's just a small bulb for decoration, not something useful, unfortunately. At most, it'd give off a little bit of light... if it isn't broken. Definitely "trash."
Disappointed, you take the small bulb back, ready to throw it back into the trash pile.
Hold on... Don't throw it away!
Karenina grabs it from you before observing it closely and smiling.
I suppose it's fate that you picked it up. Leave it to me! I'll turn this small glass ball into the shiniest light there is!
We can probably place it... Alright! There!
Looking at where Karenina is pointing, you find a familiar structure hidden behind some buildings.
That's it. Isn't a Ferris wheel decked out with lights? Let's put this up there to join the party.
Sure, but the structure of this Ferris wheel is sturdy. We can keep it up there and not worry about it falling down.
If the power system still works, we might even be able to turn it back on. And then... Tch. Now's not the time to think about that!
Turning away from the Ferris wheel, Karenina bends down to collect the "treasure" she found.
Me? Nah. I just recalled that night at Venus Splash Park when I didn't...
Suddenly, Karenina freezes unexpectedly and blushes.
W-why is my face so dirty?!
Karenina hurriedly rubs her face with her hand—she seems to have noticed her appearance from the reflection of the solar panel.
Why didn't you say something?!
It's not alright! How stupid are you?!
You want to say something more, but the supervisor from the conservation area suddenly calls you. Sounding urgent, he notifies you that the CPF has stopped working properly all of a sudden.
...The wattage of the CPF dropped drastically out of nowhere? How the hell... I see. I'll be right there!
You two place the things you have found in a cart, and then you make your way to the Central Purification Filter.
