Story Reader / Affection / Vera: Garnet / Story
Once again, you arrive at the border of the conservation area. Under the lead-gray sky, you walk through the field of mechanical parts left by Constructs and mechanoids.
Ugh... Looks like this mission is going to be a hassle. We've got quite a few battles ahead of us.
No matter. More battles mean less wounded. I guess it's worth it.
Oh, dear! What's wrong? Dear Commandant? I'm not in the mood right now. Ask too many questions, and I'll have a special room in the field clinic with your name on it.
Last time you didn't want to help clean up the aftermath. Alright, perfect. This time I need someone to do the "beforemath."
Oh, dear! What gave you that idea?
Whatever. Doesn't matter. You always have a way of getting right to the point, Gray Raven Commandant.
Of course not, my dear Commandant!
You do not need to turn back to see Vera's face to know the expression she is giving you.
You have no other choice but to follow Vera's orders and continue onward.
Rargh—!
Right at that moment, a Corrupted rushes forward. Without any other targets nearby, it is clearly aiming at you as Vera watches from behind.
Urgh—!
As it approaches, Vera's banner spear remains unflinching.
Rrarrggghhh—!
Just as the Corrupted is right in front of you with its weapon in your face—
Urgh...
Suddenly, the banner spear comes flying through the gap below your arm.
Not bad, Gray Raven Commandant. You sure make for some great bait. You don't move an inch!
Heh, well don't stop here. Keep going.
These Corrupted lack advanced cognition modules, only going after humans. All you need to do is continue onward, and Vera will take care of them one after another.
However, unlike last time when Vera would leave you to do the dirty work, she is sure to swiftly kill each Corrupted herself, leaving no room for danger.
Vera threatens you with a sweet smile as if to warn you not to act rashly. Even if you want to do something, you will be immediately struck by her banner spear.
Well, then.
Hey, wait a sec.
Right as that thought crosses your mind, Vera suddenly stops you in your tracks.
Take this.
You stop and look back. Vera tosses you a small pistol.
There's a spike in the Punishing Virus concentration up ahead. A horde of Corrupted is heading this way. Playtime's over.
Take this pistol. Don't get yourself killed.
Turning back, the horde of Corrupted arrives right on cue. Compared to their forces, your pistol seems like nothing more than child's play.
What are you worried about? Someone of your caliber should be able to protect yourself.
Vera lifts her spear and begins to swiftly pierce through the horde of Corrupted like an unstoppable force. However, with the deluge of Corrupted attacking from all directions, she has no time to look out for you.
Does she expect you to carry the same weight against this many Corrupted? This...
Step back, load, aim...
Stabilize, deep breath...
Fire!
Huh!
As you shoot, Vera swings her spear horizontally at the enemies. The sheer brute force of the attack slices straight through their metal frames.
Heh. Not surprised.
The gunfire causes several Corrupted rushing toward Vera to shift their sights onto you. Dropping their defenses for just a second, Vera seizes this window of opportunity and draws an arc with the tip of her spear, cleaving the other group of mechanoids in half.
Think you can work on that aim next time?
You nod and raise your hand. With your aim steady, you pull the trigger at Vera.
At the shooting range, you would have received a stern lecture. But on the battlefield, there is no time for instruction.
Hers was a command.
This time, your aim is tried and true. You shoot a Corrupted closing in on Vera from behind.
Not bad. I guess you pass.
I've still got over a dozen more of those bastards. Get moving.
If you've got energy to speak, you've got energy to fight. Why don't I give you a few more?
Alright. If that's the case—
Look, 1 o'clock. See that little runt? Get rid of it.
Without saying a word, you aim and fire. Vera steps a foot forward and launches her spear in the same direction.
After running around as bait, you have already gathered a large horde of Corrupted that now stand before you like a red sea.
Like the staff of legends, Vera's banner spear prepares to part the red sea.
Your bullet signals her to begin.
The bullet hits a small Corrupted resembling a transmitter, which was causing Corrupted to gather here in the first place.
By removing this signal, the instinct-driven Corrupted will lose their senses of direction soon, and the two of you should be able to defend the front line.
—Raaargh!—Rrrgghh!
However, Vera's ambush distances the two of you from each other. Without the protection of her banner spear, a new horde of Corrupted begins to surround you.
After fighting alongside Vera, you finally begin to understand her fighting style. You do not panic like last time. Instead, you take a deep breath, steady your feet, and approach her as you fire your gun.
On the battlefield, she is like an unrestrained dancer. If you wish to be her partner, you must rise to her sense of autonomy. If she is out of reach, you must dance your way to her side.
Step by step, you press the line. Forward and back, you make your way to her side. Falling back one last time, your back is finally at the hilt of her spear.
No enemies will ambush you from behind, nor will they ambush Vera. Indeed, this peace of mind is like two partners dancing in step.
Soon after, Vera begins moving again. This time you move in the direction of more Corrupted—
...
After dancing with the rose for who knows how long, your arms begin to ache from holding the pistol right as all the Corrupted have been completely eliminated.
Right.
You see Vera's mouth move, but you cannot hear what she says from this distance. However, you cannot mistake her affirmative tone for anything but confirmation.
There is no response. Vera, who is standing in the distance, just kneels down and rummages through a pile of scraps. The answer is clear.
Right as you are about to run over to her side, a small robot moving ever so slightly in the distance attracts your attention.
Change direction, step over the scraps, aim, fire—
You destroy it in a single shot. This time, you have the hands of a surgeon. The Corrupted transmitter quickly collapses onto the ground.
Just as you turn to walk toward Vera, you feel your body suddenly become heavier.
You stagger forward.
Finally managing to stabilize yourself, you cannot help but squat down. That is when you realize the issue...
Walking through the scrap metal, you have gotten used to treading unstable ground.
That is why you ignored the steady rumbling that had begun to occur underfoot.
Unsuspectingly, you are now standing on a gigantic Corrupted!
[player name]! Don't just stand there!
Vera has reacted to the situation at hand way before you have. Realizing what is happening, she quickly runs over to the other side of the Corrupted.
The Corrupted rises from within the ruins, and you almost lose your footing if you have not kneeled to lower your center of gravity. Based on your field of vision, the height of the Corrupted must be over ten meters, with you right on top of it. Jumping down from this height poses too much of a risk.
Prioritize killing the Corrupted or find a way to save yourself? You will have to make the call and relay it to Vera—
Urgh—!
However, the Corrupted leaves you no time to deliberate. It most likely discovered you after receiving a signal from the transmitter you destroyed. After standing up, the Giant Corrupted immediately begins to shake violently.
As for you, the violent shaking sends you flying off the Corrupted.
Brace for landing!
In the case of a high-altitude descent, commandants have undergone safety training for a descent protocol in tandem with a Construct. Vera makes the same call and immediately initiates the descent protocol.
Follow your training, hold your breath, stay calm, pay attention to your limbs. Adjust your landing posture bit by bit——
Rargh—!
Only to be smacked by the Corrupted's erratically swinging arms.
Train as you will... No amount of training would prepare you for being struck mid-air by a Giant Corrupted.
Compared with the pain from the devastating blow, the feeling of weightlessness takes precedence in your mind. For a brief moment, you cannot tell whether you are falling toward the gray earth or flying up into the gray sky. Your whole world is spinning, and your arms are at their limits.
Krrr... Krr... You hear the Giant Corrupted moving its feet clumsily and stirring through the mountainous pile of scraps.
Hmph.
The metal scraps have probably hindered Vera's approach. A steel plate right before you is covering her crimson hair.
Ka-cha! The tip of the banner spear breaks the steel plate in two.
It is Vera. She smashes the steel plate and dashes forward. Nothing stands in her way as she indiscriminately destroys every obstacle in her path.
However, she is too late—a miscalculation with fatal consequences.
The last thing you see is yourself crashing into the ground.
A broken piece of rebar sticks out of the ground. The sharp broken spike looks like the gaze of death.
