novelraw Chapter 171
Chapter 171
Chapter 171
No one from the Lunar Development Agency argued back against Emotion's harsh criticism.
They didn't want body modification. They wanted to settle things on their own. Even if it meant dying in battle, they didn't care. Honestly, their logic was completely broken.
Emotion must have judged that their mental state wasn't normal, because she didn't take anyone's opinion into account for the modifications. Kait had no objections to that. He just thought she could've phrased it a little better.
Besides, both Vengeance and Kissinger χ (Kai) far exceeded the previous models in terms of performance, so there was no room to be angry.
From being evenly matched with Divin, they had been upgraded to a level where they could potentially scatter Divin's fleet depending on the situation. Normally, that should've been a highly satisfying outcome.
"And yet you still seem dissatisfied."
"Yeah. I am."
"Because you can't tear them apart with Kissinger's hands?"
"That's... probably true."
In the end, they understood it themselves. With only the numbers from the Lunar Development Agency, they could never reach the point of wiping out the Divin species. Anger fades over time. The number of enemies to destroy and the number of lost comrades to carry on for—both were simply too great.
Eventually, it would become routine. Their passion for revenge would wear away, or they'd die of old age still fighting, or fall in battle. None of it led to a future, none of it had any value.
"What's your ultimate goal for revenge? The extinction of Divin? Or dying with the satisfaction of having kept on fighting?"
Kait's question must have touched a nerve. It was probably something they'd all thought about, but never reached a conclusion on. Who exactly were they taking revenge against?
Would it be enough to kill the perpetrators? Who were the perpetrators to begin with? The ones who gave the orders? Who were they? They didn't know. All they had was this vague notion that Divin was the enemy.
Giolgu, the one called Captain, let out a wry smile.
"That was awfully direct, Mr. Kait. But we had nothing else to cling to. Logic came after the fact."
"I see? I've had my own moments without hope for the future. So I can understand that feeling, at least a little."
Witnessing the slow demise of Earth, he had decided to go see the ends of space while he still could. What was in Kait's heart back then was undoubtedly despair. Though mixed with the joy of being freed from a stifling society, it might've been a strangely positive kind of despair.
They hadn't given up on humanity as much as Kait had. That's why losing Earth and being left behind with the Moon must've felt like a deep despair. Clinging to revenge against Divin was the only way they could move forward.
"Re-Eden Plan."
"That's...!"
"You've heard of it, right? Apparently, both we and you are involved in that plan. We've also confirmed that the one leading it is the Emperor of Divin. In other words, we can say the root of it all traces back to the Emperor."
That's exactly why it was the role of those with a broader perspective to help clarify the objective.
"Launch a surprise attack on the Emperor of Divin and defeat the ship. If you need a direction for your revenge, that might be the best compromise."
At Kait's words, Giolgu and Dr. Wu fell into thought. Dan and the others didn't object either, so it seemed like a reasonably consistent plan for them.
As everyone nodded in agreement, a quiet question was raised.
"Why are you telling us all this? Is it because we're in the same position?"
"That's part of it, but I also have a slightly more personal reason to side with you."
"A reason to side with us...?"
"Captain!"
A sharp rebuke from Emotion. Her voice, usually calm and flat, was uncharacteristically raised, which startled Dan and the others.
But Kait didn't mind. Smiling, he shook his head and continued.
"When I joined the Federation and drove Divin out of our Earth, and when Divin destroyed your Earth—those events happened around the same time, apparently."
"And that means...?"
"No way!"
Just as expected, it was Dr. Wu who caught on. Emotion didn't try to stop it anymore. She only stared sharply at Kait.
"It's highly likely that I'm the one who drove Divin away and made them abandon the Re-Eden Plan. In other words, I'm indirectly responsible for the destruction of your Earth."
The air froze.
Of course it did. It was like saying their ally had actually been the mastermind all along. Dr. Wu, her face pale, asked in a trembling voice.
"S-So you're helping us out of guilt, is that it?"
"Guilt? Not at all. I don't think I did anything wrong."
If Kait had known about 9th-Terra in advance and still chose to eliminate Divin, then being resented was only natural. He had accepted that. But the truth was, neither Kait nor anyone in the Federation knew about their existence.
So technically, he wasn't even at fault. He could've just cooperated silently and accepted their gratitude. That's what Emotion was angry about. But Kait had no intention of dodging the question or lying.
"Living as Earthlings, knowing nothing, doing as Divin wished, and then being destroyed—I didn't choose that. As a result, we severed ties with them, and for some reason, they chose to destroy your Earth. That's all there is to it."
"That's all? That's all, you say!?"
"...What do you think their goal is?"
With the furious group before him, Kait continued calmly. He understood why they were angry. But Kait had his own point to make.
"The Ninth Earth. Why do you think they created multiple 'Earths'? Did they just want to observe us like fish in an aquarium?"
Kait didn't think so. He believed they had some reason that compelled them to create Earths.
The root of it was likely to return to the Federation.
At first, they probably wanted the Federation to recognize their value and raise their citizenship status. But that was deemed taboo, and they were exiled. To reverse the exile, they had to prove their ideas weren't wrong. That's why, even after being exiled, they clung to the 'Earths' they had created. That much, he understood.
What he didn't understand was the existence of 9th-Terra. According to information from Asheido and the councilor Terapolapaneshio, they created 9th-Terra after their exile. Their time-interference technology had already been discarded by then. The method and reason for creating it—those were unknown. And that's exactly why they needed to be known.
"Th-There's no way we'd know that. We'd have to ask them."
"Exactly. That's why I want to capture the Emperor of Divin. Not kill him."
This wasn't just about avenging themselves. They needed to know why they were created, what scheme they had been raised under. Without that knowledge, even those from the other Earths who perished in ignorance would never find peace.
"I don't know! I don't know!"
It was Dan who shouted louder than anyone. His eyes blazing, he glared at Kait.
"I get that you're right! I kind of get it! But still, I don't care what Divin was thinking when they made Earth! I don't even want to know!"
"And?"
"All I know is that you're one of the ones who destroyed our Earth!"
That made sense. It was easy to understand.
"Fight me, Kait Crouch!"
A tangible enemy standing right in front of him was easier to grasp than some distant, unreachable foe.
Kait couldn't help but let out a wry smile at such a perfectly expected reaction.
"Fine, let's do it."