I’d been worried about the enemy retaking the network after our hijacking, but it seemed a hard fork had occurred instead.
Apparently, a new, incompatible network had been created.
I didn’t really get the technical side of it.
Regardless, it meant the hostages wouldn't be tracked, and they wouldn't suddenly turn into large-breasted women and try to shoot me. So, I figured it was fine.
"Requesting pickup."
"Hmm, Lord Groom... I have some unfortunate news..."
I had a bad feeling about this.
"I shall burn the surface clean before sending the transport craft."
"I thought so!"
The hostile organisms outside were the real problem. We only survived because it was us out there!
Still... I couldn't help but wonder. Why was the security here so lax? It wouldn't have been strange to find planet-class Zorks stationed here.
Hmm, come to think of it, I’d been to a planet with a similar environment before.
...Planet Shiramber.
Wait, even Zorks couldn't survive on that planet! Yes, because of the monstrous local wildlife. It wasn't just things like Stingray-types or Sandworms. There were supposed to be even more ghastly creatures there.
Which meant...
"N-No! You mustn't burn it all!"
I was too late. Wifey's missiles, meant to scorch the surface, had already been launched.
The building shook.
Fortunately, the impact wasn't enough to make the structure collapse. But Claire looked at my face and muttered a question.
"...So, is this an explosion ending this time?"
"If only it were that simple..."
My concerns immediately became reality. A heavy thump-thump rumbled through the ground.
"Ah, there it is..."
Melissa cornered me.
"Commander... what were you thinking? I won't get mad, so just tell me."
"Well, I was wondering what the insects outside were eating. They can't be herbivores. No matter how you look at it, they're Scavengers..."
"C-Commander... what are you getting at?"
"Basically, for that many insects to survive, there has to be a population of large organisms with enough calories to sustain them~"
"TELL US THAT SOONER!"
CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!
The ceiling of the facility was suddenly ripped away.
Something looked down at us from above.
"BUUMOOOOOON!"
It was a Giant Elephant. It was roughly the size of the entire facility. It had a single eye, and for some reason, its mouth was packed with fangs. When it spotted us, it actually grinned.
Oh, you want some, you jerk!?
I stared it down while still seated in my Humanoid Fighter. In moments like this, it all came down to fighting spirit.
"L-Look, there’s someone on the same level as a wild animal..."
"Isono, it's sad, isn't it? That's our Idiot Lord."
Shut up, Isono and Nakajima! If you've got so much to say, you deal with it!
"Lord Groom! Preparations for the attack are complete!"
Ren, who also hailed from a planet crawling with wild animals, was quick to react. When it came to dangerous creatures, it was kill or be killed. That was the Law of the Jungle.
Not that we actually had a jungle here.
"BUUMOOOOOON!"
The elephant bellowed, and thorns began sprouting from its trunk.
...Okay, that was definitely different from what I’d imagined. It caught me a bit off guard.
The elephant swung its trunk down like a crane truck equipped with a spiked mace—not that I'd ever seen such a thing.
"Scatter!"
Even as I shouted the command, I began sprinting up the trunk the moment the spiked mass slammed down. Like hell a sloppy attack like that would hit me!
I slashed away repeatedly as I ran up the length of the trunk. The flesh was soft, but the thing was just too damn big.
Hyah-hah! I just had a great idea!
"Ren! Aim for the wound!"
A heavy bang echoed through the air as her anti-materiel rifle pierced the trunk.
"BUUMOOOOOON!"
The elephant, likely having never experienced a piercing round before, screamed in agony. I closed in on the opening and tossed a grenade inside.
"Later!"
With that, I slid back down to safety. A muffled thud followed, and the elephant's trunk was torn clean off.
"GYOOOOOOOON!"
The elephant turned to flee. However, the surrounding insects caught the scent of its blood and began swarming up its massive body. The elephant thrashed, crushing many of them, but more and more kept climbing. In the wild, even the strong become meat once they're weakened. It was the simple law of nature.
I spotted several more elephants nearby. They ignored us entirely, focusing instead on eating the insects. One locked eyes with me, but when I projected a surge of bloodlust, it looked away and hurried off.
Yeah, the ranking had been established.
Me. Number. One.
"He became the King of Animals here, too..." Claire said, sounding utterly dumbfounded.
"Absolutely not."
I had no desire to be the king of such a deathtrap planet.
"Hey, Commander. In the end, there weren't any Zorks, were there? Are Zorks weak against animals?"
"Nah, they probably just figured the natural threats here were roughly equal to their own forces. That’s why they kept the humans locked inside for their experiments—in a facility that could be stepped on by an elephant. They probably felt that even if the whole place was wiped out, they wouldn't really lose anything important."
I didn't know the specifics of the experiment yet. The people we rescued had said some ominous things, but I figured we’d find out soon enough.
I looked up at the sky as the transport craft finally arrived.
A few days later...
"Lord Groom, I’ve discovered the Republic's goal. It appears it was a New Model Manufacturing Experiment."
"Why do those guys only do such disgusting things?"
"Malice is likely a factor, but the primary cause is that they’ve overdone the modifications. It seems the Crabs can no longer evolve. Ordinary humans have become precious templates—though it seems they can be multiplied via cloning."
So the Crabs were at an evolutionary dead end. Give me a break. They’d completely swapped their means and their ends.
The Empire performed modification surgeries too, but even the Beast Race and Chlorella Treatment were voluntary at the start.
"How is One-oh-one?"
"She is well. The people of the Republic have taken to calling her 'Princess'."
That was probably because Tatiana was constantly by her side. In the end, the whole situation had turned into a joke.
Thinking about it, if every household had a Jester, society might actually be a lot brighter...
It felt like my descendants were destined to multiply like crazy.
Anyway, I’d been caught off guard because things had been far too peaceful. I never would have guessed that Mother was using this entire place as a decoy.
This was where our real crisis began.
Yes, this was an Extermination War.