On an ice satellite (16)
"Hyun-woo!"
As soon as I got off the cockpit, soone called out to and hid behind . It was Nadia, who playfully wagged her tail—a feature not common to most people.
"What's going on?"
"That woman keeps bragging!"
Nadia, feeling encouraged by the backup, shot a sharp glare and pointed towards the broker standing near the cargo bay door. The broker scoffed, arms crossed, as she watched Nadia hiding behind .
It seed that the broker had teased Nadia a bit while I was away.
"She kept saying things like Hyun-woo wouldn't be who he is today without her, and how important her existence is to him, all while mocking ...!"
"Well, it's not entirely false..."
"What."
"Did you hear that, Woof-woof?"
Nadia, frozen in shock, and the broker, who seed inexplicably proud of herself. While what she said wasn't wrong, actually saying it made feel quite odd.
I knew she was obsessed with credits, but not that she was this thick-skinned.
Patting Nadia on the shoulder to calm her down as she growled, I headed towards the crevasse. With the flashlight from the orbital vehicle turned on, a landscape appeared where the ice revealed its bluish core.
With snow particles clinging like sugar sprinkled on the surface and a vast expanse of ice, it could deceptively be called majestic.
However, it was night, and the floor had split, leaving an abyss so deep its bottom was indiscernible—more daunting than awe-inspiring. Moreover, I had grown tired of ice. My days of marveling at such scenes were long past.
"We need to cross this."
"... Hyun-woo, are you okay to go? Aren't you still in pain?"
Nadia, having exacted revenge by sticking out her tongue at the broker, softly touched my arm. She seed discontent with the idea of having to go, pouting about everyone constantly tasking with things.
I generally didn't wish to step forward, but I had no choice. Only a few could move unhard.
Everyone was injured, so I had to step up. Before answering, I slowly clenched and unclenched my fist.
The arm once pierced by a black spike had nearly healed as the biocells properly settled, and the muscles overworked while capturing the monster tram had significantly recovered. While not at 100%, I was about 70% of my usual self.
Judging from this, I could manage to cross the crevasse without much trouble.
"It's fine. The biocells are worth the price. I don't feel any pain now."
"That's a relief—or wait! The cells ca from that woman, didn't they? Just wait, Hyun-woo. I'll make lots of money and buy you sothing better...!"
"Isn't staying uninjured the main thing? And why buy it for ? I could buy it myself."
What was that even supposed to an? Anyone could think I was so pitiful person sponging off a friend's money. Actually, soone seed to have taken it that way, as I caught a peculiar gaze from Eric.
"Were you that kind of person? I thought you were diligent...."
"No, it's not that."
"I didn't take you for one...."
"I said it's not like that. Anyway, is it okay for you to co along?"
When I gestured towards Celestia, Eric let out a heavy sigh, seemingly also displeased with the situation but resigned to it.
Just as he was about to say sothing, Celestia stepped forward.
"Don't worry, I won't be a burden."
I didn't think less of anyone, but if one essential figure had to be ntioned, it was Celestia. She was pretty much the only hope for everyone present here.
To leverage the reputation of Mysotis, Celestia's presence was indispensable.
Admittedly, as a person, I wished Celestia didn't get involved in any risky situations. Of course, contrary to my feelings, if sothing unexpected occurred, the ones at risk would be Nadia and .
Celestia's suit and ours only shared the sa category but were entirely different in performance.
"Who's worried about who? I can barely fend for myself."
"If you think that way, that's a relief. Gather what you need and follow. According to intel, there's a lift not far away that we can use to cross to the other side."
Considering it had long been abandoned and might not function properly, it would still be enough to serve as a bridge, Celestia finished saying as she turned and led the way.
Eric followed with another sigh, and I and Nadia joined after instructing Carry to stay put.
― Dumb duo. Be careful out there. Don't get stupidly injured again.
I chuckled at the broker's communication and simply replied that I understood before raising my eyes to the icy path. This wasn't a terrain accessible by the orbital vehicle.
Not due to the crevasse, but because countless inverted icicles had ford above.
These inverted icicles likely ford over a long period, possessing a toughness unlike ordinary ice that wouldn't easily break. Though logically unreasonable, people attributed it to blue crystal deposited underground.
Apparently, it alters the surrounding molecular structure with its imnse energy. Though I didn't understand the scientific details, I knew one thing from experience.
Attempting to force an orbital vehicle through would inevitably trap it, thanks to the unyielding inverted icicles.
"Nadia, watch your step."
"Okay, you too, Hyun-woo."
We needed to walk more carefully than usual. The earthquake had weakened the ground.
Another earthquake could strike suddenly, or the ice floor could collapse without warning. We had to be careful if we didn't want to fall to our deaths.
Celestia glanced back, slowed down, and approached us.
"Can I ask you a question?"
Celestia's gaze landed on Nadia's wagging tail. We could imdiately guess what her question would be.
Nadia nodded when I asked with my eyes if she would be okay with it.
"Are you curious if it's safe to keep my tail out in this environnt?"
"... Yes. How did you know?"
"Many people have asked."
"Oh."
Celestia let out a small, embarrassed cough. I had assud from her position as a company's head, with her stern deanor, that she'd be particularly cold, yet she seed very human, blood as warm as ours.
Many years had passed since beastn were created under the motto of 'better'.
Their presence always drew attention. At first, people tried to integrate, but as pureblood supremacists beca increasingly vicious, beastn ford their territories, and outside such areas, they remained a minority.
Certain neutral areas like Earth reportedly had many beastn, where their presence wasn't such a novelty, but having never seen it myself, I couldn't really say.
Suits are primarily designed based on a standard human model. While beastn are human too, I refer to humans with no distinctive traits like myself.
Beastn possessed traits like animal ears, tails, horns, or larger physiques which generally made standard suits unsuitable. Horns and tails especially so, like now.
Exposed to external environnts ant she couldn't rely on the suit's protection. Specialized parts exist for space-environnt suits, but they differ significantly from what we wore, making them largely irrelevant for us.
You could optionally add tail-exiting holes or sothing comparable for the suits.
"They say it's fine with their plush, fluffy fur."
Despite appearances, it wasn't regular fur. Designed to create better humans, beastn had tails thinly coated with a substance produced in their bodies, which shielded against contamination.
So it was okay to expose it like this and still maintain cleanliness. That much I learned from Nadia.
"I see... Would it be impolite if I could touch—"
"Yes."
With restrained politeness, Nadia suddenly slapped away the reaching hand with her tail, issuing a firm refusal. Acting almost instinctively, she gasped slightly as she regained her composure.
Silence followed. To prevent misunderstandings, I felt I should step in and hastily explained.
"She strongly dislikes anyone touching it. Apologies on her behalf."
"... No, it's my fault for being careless."
Though Celestia said that, her gaze stayed fixed on Nadia's tail. Feeling burdened, the tail squird around to avoid it, and Celestia's gaze followed its movents.
'Aren't you used to seeing beastn?'
I had never left this ice satellite, so apart from Nadia, I was unfamiliar with other beastn, but running a company, Celestia would have interacted with many beyond Nadia. Her reaction felt unusually fascinated.
Failing to find a hiding place, the tail opted to conceal itself behind my hand. The fluffiness, soft touch.
"Only if we beco friends—no, never mind, let's discuss this later. Right now, there are more urgent matters to attend to."
Celestia stepped back, unable to conceal her disappointnt, allowing Nadia to breathe a sigh of relief, murmuring softly as Celestia receded.
"Hyun-woo, protect my precious tail."
"To an outsider, it would sound like soone threatened to make it into a scarf."
"... You don't think so?"
"No."
"Phew...."
Deliberately ignoring Eric as he shook his head, I soon arrived at the facility Celestia ntioned. But the view differed greatly from what she described.
A rust-ridden ladder turned sooty black, the tallic plates whined a ghastly creak in the wind, and huge circular pipes, heavily corroded, pierced through with nurous holes.
Below, an abyss gaped nacingly among the icy crevice.
"Hmm. It was actually an external connection pipe, not a lift. Was the information wrong?"
"No, Celestia. There was indeed a lift. The remnants are there."
Eric shone his flashlight into a section of the crevasse. There lay a heap of crumpled tal, unrecognizable from its original form.
Though it didn't resemble a lift, assuming the information was correct, it must have been one.
'Can we cross it?'
Regardless of the facility's durability, it was indeed connected to the other side. A crevasse about 15 ters wide. Neither too long nor too short.
'Scratch that.'
Seeing the powdery ice crumble and fall below, I swiftly revised my judgnt. It was long. Very long.
While it narrowed upwards, making it uncrossable in a single leap remained dangerous.
While Eric prepared the strap, a legacy from the SSTC Caliburn, I tapped the ground gently. Fortunately, this spot felt quite solid. At least there was no worry about a sudden collapse.
"The ground won't suddenly give, but it's slippery, so watch your—"
"Ah!"
Before I could finish my caution about parts hardened by ice, Celestia slipped and landed on her rear with a thud.
Though it wasn't a hard fall, her reflexive grab for sothing to steady herself led to seizing what shouldn't have been seized.
Celestia inadvertently grasped Nadia's tail, pulling it tightly.
"... Huh?"
Caught off guard, Nadia's tail squeezed and tugged, stung through her nerves.
"Hiyaaaah-!"
Her piercing cry echoed, causing a minor avalanche atop the distant ice mountain, sending a wave of snow cascading down the slopes.
It was incredibly loud.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=【ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌ )】
Could you even get unluckier?
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