214: The whereabouts of Magatsuki and the others

"Lord Vee, Lord Sata, Lord Johalis"

The renovation of the Carnival Viper was successfully completed.

We considered all matters concerning our activities at the Shiblasmith system to be concluded.

Thus, right now, we were conducting a brief survey of the upcoming system—Vanillasid, and the Imperial Planet Vanillasid—while simultaneously planning our course and outlining our schedule upon arrival.

Just then, Memokshi appeared, his usual expression replaced with an unusually solemn look.

Something had happened.

"Memokshi, what is it?"

"Not an emergency."

Yet it wasn't an emergency.

Still, Memokshi—despite being a machine intelligence—had changed his expression?

Ah, well, probably something I'd rather not hear about.

Sensing the same unease, Vilijanira and Johariss both straightened up, adjusting their postures accordingly.

"The individual colony where Magatsuki went berserk. The investigation conducted over there has been completed."

"……"

"Please, tell us."

"Understood."

Hmm, well, it's not exactly an urgent matter.

But given the actions of those people over there, it's definitely the kind of news that'll make today's meal taste terrible.

I've come to accept that much.

Still, I can't just ignore it.

They went to the trouble of summoning Meqoxi after all.

"Unfortunately, since they were selling evidence of their own crimes, the investigation didn't seem particularly difficult."

"Are you saying the crime scenes weren't just in the Siblasmith system, but also across various nearby systems?"

"Yes. However, they didn't personally kidnap people—they apparently bought the services, which is another unpleasant detail. So, there's actually a separate criminal group responsible for the actual abductions. Right now, the Imperial Army and law enforcement agencies from various star systems are joining forces to dismantle them."

"We're not involved in this case."

"That's right."

There's plenty of evidence footage of the crime.

There's also plenty of evidence of illegal transactions.

It seems like they're apprehending suspects one after another, like pulling up weeds by the roots.

Ah, it looks like some of the people who were active under the former Viscount Nerialnitech in the Nerialnipotz system were involved too.

Huh... interesting... looks like the charges against those already captured are piling up now.

"What about the funding source for that private colony?"

The unfortunate thing is that most of it seems to have come from legitimate investment ventures. In addition to the previously mentioned transactions, and to a very small extent, they also appear to have been generating funds by using that private colony as a site for criminal dealings. For now, these activities seem to be under control.

Yet, despite earning enough to afford a personal colony, all he could think of was this...?

It's clear now why people say humanity and talent are entirely different things.

What about the man who was rampaging under the influence of Magatsuki?

"He was apparently a maintenance worker employed by that individual colony. Whether he knew the true nature of the colony remains unclear."

Well then, from here begins the main point, insofar as it concerns us.

According to Memoqsi,

the man who rampaged at the individual colony was a hired maintenance worker.

Judging from the documents left behind, he appears to have been involved in tasks such as external cleaning and maintaining communication equipment.

Given the colony's isolated nature, it's likely that news from outside rarely reached them, so he probably didn't know about Magatsuki.

On the day of the incident, he was reportedly working outside the colony... which means he may have encountered Magatsuki and picked it up there.

"Regarding the attack procedure... Whether it's Magatsuki itself, or a person brainwashed by Magatsuki... they're making excellent use of their knowledge."

"That's right. Since they were already fairly isolated from outside contact, being attacked using this method would have made eliminating them one by one quite easy."

As for what followed... They seem to have systematically destroyed key points—communications, escape routes, security—before fully exploiting their physical capabilities, using surprise attacks, ambushes, frontal assaults, traps, and anything else they could manage, leaving no survivors.

Ugh... Just thinking about what might have happened if something like this had occurred at another colony... It's absolutely terrifying.

"But does that mean Magatsuki's arrival was just a coincidence?"

"At first glance, it seems that way. But there are also hints emerging that make it hard to say for certain."

"What do you mean?"

Mekoshi pointed to a section detailing connections with the Siltorilichi star system.

It appears that part of the human trafficking was conducted between the Siltorilichi star system and Earth.

Additionally, some of the funds seemed to be funneled through investments.

There was likely suspicion that the humans who ordered the production of Magatsuki were also from the Siltorilichi star system... The possibility of them being targeted could no longer be ruled out.

"...Memoqui, what about the other Magatsuki?"

"One of the five was taken by the client and has gone missing. Of the remaining four, we managed to locate and secure three. We are currently preparing carefully for their destruction. As for the last one... its whereabouts are unknown. However, based on its most recent movements, it is believed to be near the Vanilla Sid system, and likely has awakened as a Magatsuki."

"......"

And the possibility that one Magatsuki has already awakened and is active within the Vanilla Sid system.

You could handle it however you want if you actually encounter it, but conversely, if you don't run into it, there's nothing you can do about it...

That's a troublesome situation.

"Information about Magatsuki has already spread throughout the empire. If touching it is as deadly as death itself, and control or even negotiation is impossible, then even those working behind the scenes with knowledge would likely push for it to be exposed to the public..."

"Just like with the incident involving the individual colony—someone unfamiliar with it picks it up, and it goes wild again."

"Yes."

We're all scratching our heads, trying to figure out what to do—me, Viridiana, and Johalis too.

Scratching our heads...

"Well, at this point, we can only go with whatever we can manage on the spot."

"That's right. We can't do anything beyond keeping watch."

"Yes, it seems that's all we can do."

When the opponent is out of reach, there's simply nothing we can do about it.

We'll just have to trust the locals on the ground and leave it in their hands.

We reached that conclusion and let out a sigh.