Nikke, something’s seriously wrong with this evacuation point! Chapter 30 30: The Trigger

A new mission had been issued.

Andrews let out a heavy sigh. From his perspective, this was nothing but an unnecessary disaster for Charon and Liliweiss.

After the last operation, the Raptures had clearly beco more alert. And yet, the higher-ups were now ordering Liliweiss to enter that city again, this ti, with a high-profile objective: eliminating Gluttony.

Gluttony.

Even among Tyrant-class Raptures, it was a nightmare existence. A tyrant-level entity humanity had never defeated even once. No known weakness. Every appearance was like a moving mountain crawling across the land.

Liliweiss's performance data was absurdly strong, but that didn't change what this mission really was.

Human command didn't care about her lifespan. They simply wanted to use her while she was still intact enough to eliminate humanity's greatest threat.

Without Gluttony, humanity's overwhelming firepower could eventually wipe out the Raptures. That was the logic.

And the email Charon received reflected exactly that urgency, this was now frad as a matter of human survival. If Gluttony wasn't removed, humanity's extinction was only a matter of ti.

Naturally, the request Charon had previously made, the elevator gate opening sequence, was also included.

In the face of "humanity's survival," such a request barely mattered anymore.

There was another condition, however:

Charon and Liliweiss were strictly forbidden from operating together this ti. Remote command only.

No problem on paper. In that environnt, an untrained human would only be a burden anyway.

Still–

"Then the mission is clear. Eliminate Gluttony and retrieve the Mid-Station materials. Agreed?" Charon asked.

"No problem." Liliweiss imdiately replied, springing up from her bed.

She had just eaten an apple personally peeled by Charon. Her condition, ntally and physically, was at its peak.

"I could probably punch Gluttony right now!" she said confidently.

Charon only smiled faintly.

At that mont, the door opened.

"You two look cheerful," said Abe, walking in with a tablet. "Especially you, Liliweiss. Even though your body has undergone a full 'purge,' that doesn't an there are no remaining issues. You still need another full day of re-examination. Co with ."

Liliweiss instinctively looked toward Charon for help.

Charon simply shrugged.

This was non-negotiable. The operation was too important, VTC, governnt research institutes, and multiple corporations would all be involved in final verification.

So Liliweiss was taken away.

Charon turned to leave as well, he needed to find Andrews.

But the mont he stepped out, soone was already waiting.

"Karen…?" Charon blinked. "If you're looking for Liliweiss or Professor Abe, they've already left."

"I know~" Karen smiled sweetly. "I'm just bored. I've got nothing to do now that NIMPH testing is over."

She leaned forward slightly, her presence impossible to ignore.

Charon sighed. "If you're bored, go play BOOM on the backend terminals."

"Do you really dislike that much, Commander?" Karen asked softly, almost wounded.

"…That's not it," Charon replied. "Just say what you want."

"Oh, so direct as always." Her voice dropped, playful, but her expression shifted.

Serious now.

"I'm here to warn you," Karen said quietly. "The governnt's elevator unlocking sequence… is wrong."

Charon's expression froze.

She placed sothing into his hand.

A device, the size of a fingernail. Weightless.

"Take this. When the gate locks, have Liliweiss attach it. It will forcibly override the system."

Charon narrowed his eyes. "You're admitting you had another purpose from the start."

"Yes," Karen said calmly. "Because so people in the higher-ups… want Liliweiss erased imdiately."

Not killed by Raptures.

Erased by humans.

Charon let out a humorless laugh.

"So they're afraid of her."

"She's too powerful," Karen said. "To them, she's not a weapon. She's a potential coup."

Charon exhaled slowly. "And the backdoor in her NIMPH?"

Karen didn't deny it.

"There is one. A built-in override. If triggered, it causes progressive paralysis, ending in full shutdown within fifteen minutes."

Charon's smile sharpened.

Fifteen minutes.

The sa ti required to reach the Mid-Station.

Karen continued, "That's why this device exists. It lets you bypass the lock at the exact mont she becos unstable."

She t his eyes.

"For what it's worth… I don't think Liliweiss should die in a Rapture battlefield."

Charon said nothing for a mont.

Then he closed his fingers around the device.

"…You people are really sothing."

At the sa ti, deep within a hidden governnt channel, a ssage was quietly delivered to selected officials.

[Operation proceeding as planned. The "Trigger" has been delivered. Whether you press it, or when, is entirely up to you.]