Chapter 488: The Thing That Speaks "O Human, O Human"

Author's Preface

Watching a certain V-Tuber's stream makes my work completely stall while draining an inexhaustible amount of time, so it's a real problem.
Just the fact that it's a character you can converse with in real-time makes them "strong", doesn't it?

『Wonderful! Congratulations on breaking through the First Shell Layer "Greeting Gate"!!』

"Yeah, thanks, thanks. So anyway, I want to go home."

『First, as a reward for defeating the First Shell Layer Command Trial Target (Boss Enemy), we will present you with this "Amberjack Pass: Level 1"!』

"A Wakashi, huh. So anyway, I want to go home."

Yellowtail makes for good simmered daikon radish, but I personally prefer a simple grilled collar—no wait, that doesn't matter.
Given that it's named after a promotion fish, does that mean if the level goes up, I'll receive corresponding benefits?

『Adding "Score" on top of that... Ah, and here is the reward item, "Manned Extravehicular Activity Protective Armor Replica."』

"Ah, thanks. So anyway, I want to go home."

Reading the flavor text, it seems to be a replica of a spacesuit from the Divine Age? I can spot some intriguing lore text about how it fell out of use but was eventually put back into service...

『Now then, I will transfer you to the Second Shell Layer "Teaching Path"!』

"Hold it right there."

I've been repeatedly telling you I want to go home! I won't let you pull the classic "NPC ignores dialogue to force event progression" card on me!!

『Oh come on... l-look, the dazzling wisdom of the Divine Age is waiting for you, you know?』

"I never said I wasn't interested; I've got the spirit to learn. I'm just saying let me commute instead of forcing me to board here."

『Mmmmmmm... no, you are right. "Isana" is an entity that stays close to humanity and guides them... Yes, I must not do anything that binds those footsteps. Understood, but with that said, in order to record the coordinate data for your next visit, I will still perform the transfer to the next Shell Layer itself, alright?』

"Hmm, in that case, go ahead."

『Then activating Directional Gravity Acceleration Teleportation!!』

"Hmm???"

Wait, what was that sudden sense of wrongness just now? Accelerating with directional gravity to teleport? Wait, you don't mean Teleportation? Because going by the wording alone, that sounds like an insanely brute-force...

"Uoah."

"What—"

"Intelligence Float."

What,

『Now then, to the Second Shell Layer... Ascension Please!』

"What the hell is that supposed to meeeeeeaaaaaaan………………!!?"

Following a split second of floating, an intense pressure slammed into us like we had just been hurled with all the strength of an invisible hand, sending us blasting straight up into the air.
Looking down, I got a bird's-eye view of the "Greeting Gate" stretching all the way to the horizon. And looking up, a section of the ceiling that also served as the sky slowly began to slide open.

Flailing wildly while somehow managing to stabilize my posture, I shoved Araba—who was currently trying to swim through the air—to calm him down, all while staring upwards.
At a speed far, far faster than running on foot, myself, Araba (plus Nereid), and Saina passed straight through the ceiling of the First Shell Layer... and witnessed the Second Layer.

"A grassland?"

"What is the meaning of this!?"

"It is necessary to execute Intelligence Analyze."

"Your Intelligence Vocabulary is stupid, Saina."

"Hmph, Intelligence Comprehension..."

You piece of junk...!
Setting that aside, it wasn't a half-assed job where we were just tossed into the air and told "Okay, teleportation complete." Multiple shutters closed beneath us, erasing the hole as if it had never existed, and we slowly touched down onto a grassy ground, looking around at our surroundings...

"I don't think this is what 'open terrace' means."

『I-It is an aesthetic consideration! This was actually a huge trend during the Divine Age, you know? Yes, what you might call totally rad...!』

That's a dead slang term even in real life, isn't that practically ancient literature in Divine Age terms?
Feeling an indescribable emotion at the sight of a vending machine, a drink bar-esque setup, and a set of desks and chairs just left out in the open in the middle of a grassland, we nonetheless took our seats at the completely exposed table.

"It's a given that I'm going back home for now, but putting that aside, I have a few system-related questions. You good with that?"

『Please, ask away.』

Then without reservation.

...

......

.........

............

"───Well, guess that's the gist of it."

To summarize, nothing starts unless I raise the level of this Amberjack Pass.
Especially getting it to Level 3 where I unlock fast-travel privileges—isn't that an absolute priority? Though I'm going home for now.

"Ah, and one last thing........."

I wasn't really expecting much, but I figured I might as well ask. Pulling that gun-shaped object out from my Inventoria, I took advantage of Araba and the others getting excited over the drink bar to throw one final, one-on-one question at Isana.

"───Can you repair the corrupted data inside this?"

The jobber... I mean, some kind of data left behind by Edward Oldcling. No matter how you looked at it, this was the final research result of a man who—yeah, you clearly exited the stage by knowing too much—and it is currently stored inside this BC-Beacon in a corrupted state.
If it was just unreadable in places, I could give up and accept it as mere flavor text. But if it's completely unreadable, then the possibility of "Repair" opens up. If this is the Leviathan—which could easily be called the grand headquarters of Divine Age technology—shouldn't repairing it be entirely possible?

No, with a piece of content like the Amberjack Pass popping up, I didn't actually expect to be able to view it immediately... all I wanted to know was whether it was possible or impossible.

『.........Fufu, is that so. I suppose there is a good reason why that person continued to call him a close friend until his very last moments.』

Sure enough, Isana's response was accompanied by a smile.
It looked like a mocking sneer, a gentle smile, and a bitter grin all at once. The impression it gave shifted every time she blinked; a chaotic swirl of emotion you would never expect from an AI character.

『The repair has already been completed but... I am sorry, I took the liberty of applying a Special Grade Concealment Lock.』

The whale woman spoke.

『That is the Truth of this world; wisdom wholly unnecessary for those who do not even possess the means to cross the sea of stars.』

"You're saying there's no need to know?"

『No, no, that is incorrect, New Mankind (Human). The shortest path is not always the correct answer. You all must take a detour.』

"Specifically?"

『The acquisition of Amberjack Pass: Level 5, as well as the acquisition of the necessary qualifications.』

Ah, sounds like a pain. Putting the Pass level aside, maybe I should just leak this info to Library and let them handle it instead... well, keeping it on hold is fine for now.

"I see, well, it's not like I'm in a desperate rush to find out, so I'll just clear it at my own pace."

『In that case... will you be exiting the vessel for now?』

"Ah, wait a sec, gonna go shop with my Score."

The floating Isana did a little stumble animation mid-air, but it's my nature as a gamer, so forgive me.

◇ 

External entry attempts were physically repelled, and attempting to communicate only resulted in a window displaying a bureaucratic apology. Several days had passed since that appeared, and the Players had already exhausted every possible avenue of approach to the Leviathan.

"Uoah, a magical girl is sitting hugging her knees on the sandy beach... what is that."

"Ah, that's the leader of 【Library】. Apparently, for the past three days, they've been logging in just to stare at the Leviathan like that."

"You can really feel the sorrow radiating from that picture..."

A sight that would be indescribable if it were their real-life appearance was barely neutralized by the fact that the avatar was a fancy girl in pink.
The Professor, who hadn't even touched their real-world work for the past few days, was once again staring at the Leviathan from the coast today............ and because of that, they were the very first to notice the Leviathan's "change".

"............Ah?"

How should it be described? Should it be called a massive gate, or perhaps the "mouth" if applying biological anatomy to the ship—the massive lower front section of the spaceship was slowly opening.

Thanks to the top-tier players, led by 【Library】, approaching it for verification, it was already known that the Leviathan was currently hovering several meters above the sea surface, fixed in place.
However, the vast majority, utterly overwhelmed by its massive, awe-inspiring presence, had their eyes glued solely to the upper section of the Leviathan, or the anomalous, out-of-spec "horn" protruding from its bow.

".........!!?!?"

Baaam! With an agility entirely unimaginable for someone of their real-world age, The Professor whipped out a pair of binoculars from their inventory, peered through the primitive lenses, and saw it.
Though hard to spot sandwiched between the sea and the colossal hull, light was visibly accumulating within the opened gate hatch. And the moment that swelling light burst, a path of light formed at a terrifying speed, shooting straight from the Leviathan all the way to the beach where The Professor sat.

"Don't tell me..."

Without a definitive answer from the person in question, and with all involved parties dodging questions with awkward smiles, The Professor had formulated a hypothesis.
Whenever one requested entry to the Leviathan, a window would appear with the message: "Currently under preparation, please wait."

There was a theory that it simply hadn't been officially implemented yet. But seeing as the player who had delved deeper into the unknowns of this world than anyone else The Professor knew had gone completely silent ever since the Leviathan appeared, The Professor believed in that possibility—not through logic, but purely through intuition.
And in this exact moment, it was proven to be the truth.

".........SO WHY IS THE TRANSPORTATION METHOD SO HYPER-PHYSICALLLLLLL!!!!"

"Just drop us into the sea! That's so much better!!"

"Ridicule (Fool): Selecting a simplistic method due to a lack of intelligence is a poor strategy. If this unit and its accompanying entities were to be smashed into the sea in our current state..."

"State?"

"We would be pulverized."

"Gyaaaaaahh!!?"

"Araba, shut up! Come on, keep both feet together and balance! Adin! Dva! Tri!"

As three shadows came sliding and flying down the path of light with a momentum that put curling to shame, The Professor's eyes sparkled brilliantly for the first time in days.

"Ha, hahahahahaha!! Hell yes, it's heeeere!!"

Surrounding players cast questioning glances at the magical girl striking a full-body gut pose, but such things no longer registered in The Professor's eyes.
Already, players other than The Professor who noticed the anomaly began gathering one after another. Drawn by the commotion, Giants, Bugmen, and Beastmen all assembled, forming a massive encirclement on the sandy beach just as the three "Returnees" touched down.

A brief silence—one so fragile it felt like the slightest trigger would break it entirely. Perhaps understanding this, standing at the forefront of the returnees, a man wearing a bizarre helmet resembling a spacesuit purely on his head... and for some reason sporting two horns radiating a golden aura from that helmet, made a "hold on" gesture to the gathered crowd.

Then, continuing his silent body language to signal "Look, nothing in my hands, right?" and "Alright everyone, pay attention"—he manipulated his window, retrieved an object that had absolutely no business existing in the Shangri-La Frontier of the past, and aimed its "muzzle" at the sky.

Then, two gunshots rang out, shattering the silence. At the exact perfect timing when the silence of the surrounding players collapsed from the sheer reality of what that sound meant... the man raised his voice and shouted.

"Firearms have been unlockeeeeeeed!!!"

A massive cheer shook the sandy beach.

Author's Afterword

Q. What exactly did Edward know too much about?
A. The gravity that seizes the heart.

Q. What did Julius and Isana learn?
A. That what they had thought all this time was a malicious slap was actually a hand reached out in good faith.

Q. Where is Amatsuki Setsuna's lab?
A. The Ark of Wisdom sleeps alongside the Primordial Mech-Dragon; only Setsuna and the Eternal Flower know the way.