Chapter 3

Chapter 3

‘Wasn’t this body’s power supposed to be sealed?’

At least the last time I checked, I had definitely disabled most of my abilities to stop the progression of the disease.

Just in case, I hurriedly checked the status of the combat modules I was wearing.

‘Just as I thought, not a single module is active.’

Out of the 26 types of combat modules installed in me, not a single one was activated.

And of course, that made sense—my disease was caused by a malfunction in the nanomachines.

The more I used these combat modules, which operated based on nanomachine power, the faster the disease progressed.

Naturally, I had no choice but to shut them all down.

‘Wait, hold on. That means……’

The moment I realized it, I was horrified.

If none of my combat modules were currently functioning, then that means the moment I sliced through those Blood Wolves bastards in a single blow with my blade……

‘Was it purely this body’s physical strength? Without the support of any combat modules?’

Unbelievable.

What an utterly broken monster.

Even though every member of the Stingray family was designed as a ‘perfect human’ through the pinnacle of genetic engineering, this guy was an even greater monster among them.

‘If not for this damn disease, the protagonist would’ve died in Volume 2.’

As I was thinking that, the silence was finally broken.

The howls began.

The Blood Wolves began snapping out of the shock from the butchery that had unfolded right before their eyes.

“Th-this bastard! You were an ‘Adaptee’?!”

“D-don’t be scared! We’re the same, aren’t we?! Fuck, don’t be scared!”

“Damn it, Smith! Smith is……!”

“We’ll get revenge! We’ll strip every piece of cyberware and organ from your body and sell them, then hang the leftovers at the entrance to the Black Market!”

Adaptee.

It was a term for those who had successfully assimilated with combat nanomachines—specifically, ‘Adam’—and become superhumans.

Naturally, Adaptees gained physical abilities dozens of times stronger than normal people and obtained special powers, even allowing them to face the supernatural and paranormal monsters known as 【Arcane】.

However, the production of nanomachines in this world was over 95% monopolized by our Stingray Corporation.

And especially ‘Adam’ was restricted to very limited recipients.

‘There’s no way these guys became Adaptees through legal means.’

Come to think of it, I remembered the novel describing how they became Adaptees through illegal nanomachines made by Miyu.

Recalling that unimportant fact a bit too late, I pointed my sword at them.

The situation had already escalated—might as well go with the flow.

“You were the ones who drew weapons first. After all the times you’ve broken the Black Market’s rules, you’re going to whine over this?”

“You bastard……!”

“If you quietly back off now, I won’t chase you. I don’t want more of a scene than this either. But if you choose otherwise…… I can’t guarantee the outcome.”

I said it like I hoped they’d retreat, but I could feel my body wanting the latter.

Damn it, you psychotic killer.

I won’t let you run wild anymore. I’m the one in control of this body now.

“Kill him! Beat the bastard to death!”

“Uaaaaaah!”

Despite my warning, they charged at me without hesitation.

One of them pulled out a gun and aimed.

Another drew a knife.

Yet another swung a nail-studded baseball bat—who knows where he got it from. Somehow, the bat spun and spewed fire as it rotated.

‘Fast.’

As expected, their movements were beyond what an ordinary human was capable of.

If even low-ranking members had this level of combat ability, it was no wonder other gangs were being pushed around by the Blood Wolves.

But this level only worked against back-alley thugs.

There was no need to even bring in the real heavyweights who ruled the underworld of New Valhalla City for comparison.

“At this rate, they wouldn’t even measure up to first-year cadets at the Academy.”

The sword in my hand drew its trajectory on its own, guided by instinct.

The direction of the blade's charge was toward the enemy's neck.

‘No. If I kill any more here, the story might get twisted.’

Dealing with the Blood Wolves was supposed to be the protagonist’s job, not mine.

If I wanted to avoid consequences later, I had to just show a clear gap in skill and end it here.

Suppressing the desire to see blood with great effort, I forcibly corrected the sword’s trajectory.

The blade twisted direction in a movement that defied the laws of physics.

I barely managed to slice an arm instead of the neck.

“Uwaaahhh! M-my arm!!”

The three gang members who had charged at me screamed when they finally noticed their dangling arms.

I had intended to only lightly graze their muscles, but maybe because it was my first real fight, my instincts didn’t follow my will properly.

The result was a far more gruesome scene than I had planned.

“I warned you. I said I couldn’t guarantee the outcome.”

“H-Hurgh!?”

When I glared at them, the three whose arms had been slashed backed away in a panic.

But it seemed they hadn’t completely lost the will to fight.

They shouted from behind a comrade holding a pistol.

“Shoot! Shoot him in the forehead!”

“What are you doing?! Hurry up and shoot!”

“Shut up! All of you shut up!”

The gunman looked like he wanted to run away immediately.

But his comrades held him back, forcing him to aim the gun at me.

Despite the panic on his face, his aim didn’t waver at all.

He was probably equipped with a pistol-aim assist module.

If he pulled the trigger, the bullet would fly straight at my forehead.

I asked him,

“Are you going to shoot? Really?”

“Ugh! Y-you think I can’t shoot you, you bastard?!”

“Think carefully before you decide. Just so you know, I’m giving you all a chance right now.”

“Uwaaaaah! Shut up! Shut uuuup!”

“Seems like you’re not listening.”

He had clearly lost his ability to judge due to fear.

That sight calmed my killing intent a bit.

I didn’t feel his blood was even worth seeing.

Lowering my sword tip, I slowly walked forward.

I passed them and continued down the Black Market street.

The Blood Wolves couldn’t even shoot, nor did they dare make eye contact with me.

As I brushed past them, the smell of ammonia started to rise.

I could see an unidentified liquid leaking and soaking into the street.

“Tsk.”

I furrowed my brow at the filth.

Nearby vendors and pedestrians were secretly peeking out to observe the situation.

By tomorrow, word of this incident would probably spread throughout Sector E.

Of course, I didn’t care in the slightest.

No matter what the lower-class dwellers of Sector E said, they couldn’t put a scratch on someone from the Stingray family.

I glanced behind and jerked my chin.

“Lead the way, Weapons Dealer.”

“Huh… Y-yes?!”

“Street 58-1. The Talking Vending Machine.”

“Ah, yes! Y-yes, sir! Right!”

The weapons dealer quickly rushed over, careful not to step on the chunks of meat scattered on the ground.

“Th-this w-way! Y-yes!”

“What are you saying? Can’t move your tongue properly?”

“N-no, sir! I-I’m sorry, my lord!”

He kept bowing his waist repeatedly as he started leading the way.

At some point, he’d even switched from calling me ‘mister’ to ‘my lord.’

The way he trembled was almost pitiful.

No—actually, that’s a lie.

Seeing him like that made me feel absolutely nothing.

To stand above all others.

To inspire fear in all.

For Aaron Stingray, that was simply a given.

The place he led me to was an abandoned factory complex about 200 meters away from the Black Market.

Just like the weapons dealer said earlier—“you’ll recognize it right away”—the vending machine was sitting in a rather absurd location.

“That it?”

“Yes, sir! Blood Wolves often lurked around that spot! People like us weren’t even allowed near…”

“That’s enough explanation. Let’s go.”

Saying that, I pulled out a wad of credits from my wallet and tossed it roughly at the weapons dealer.

He frantically picked up the money from the ground, bowed deeply with gratitude, and then ran off.

After confirming he was gone, I approached the vending machine.

A white vending machine that sold combat modules. And every item marked as “sold out.”

It matched the description I had read in the novel exactly.

[“S-sorryyy… a-all the items are sold out… i-if you could come back next time, I-I’d be very grateful…”]

A female voice with zero self-esteem played from the vending machine.

That, too, matched the novel’s description exactly. No doubt this was the one I was looking for.

‘How do you open this again…?’

I vaguely remembered something about pressing the buttons in a certain order to reveal a secret passage.

I tried to recall the details from the novel, but quickly grew tired of it all. Maybe it was because of the recent knife fight—my condition was getting worse by the second.

I was starting to get irritated.

I shoved my hand recklessly into the gap of the vending machine. Then I pulled with all my strength.

Screeeeeech-!

[“W-what are you doinggg…?! P-please stop that at once… I-I’m not trying to give orders or anything… I-I’m sorry, but such violent actions… um…”]

The voice from the vending machine stuttered in panic, but I didn’t care and pulled even harder.

Eventually—CRACK!—the front panel of the vending machine came off.

What appeared inside was not machinery, but a secret passage leading underground.

“Cough, cough!”

Damn it.

I had been fine just a moment ago, but now that damn coughing fit was back. It felt like my lungs were being shredded with scissors.

I covered my mouth with a handkerchief and coughed up foreign matter. Bits of blood-soaked metal stuck to the cloth.

“Huff…”

My mind was starting to go hazy.

Before I lost all strength, I took out a few tranquilizer pills and swallowed them without water. Then I braced against the wall and carefully descended the stairs.

One step. One step.

At the end of the shaky descent through the underground passage, a pale light was leaking through.

I kept walking toward the source of that light.

Soon, a new space appeared.

But my vision was blurring, and I couldn’t make out what was where. The smell of chemicals and oil mixed in the air made my head spin even more.

Crash!

A loud collapsing sound came from somewhere, but I didn’t have the energy to care. For some reason, the tranquilizers weren’t working.

I spoke in the general direction where I felt some presence.

“Modular… Miyu…!”

The voice I forced out with all my might sounded like the dying squeak of a rat.

It was oddly humiliating, but I still shouted with all I had.

“H-help… c-cough! I’m… requesting…!”

Stumble.

Suddenly, my legs gave out and my vision crashed to the floor.

Before I knew it, even my nerves had gone numb, and I couldn’t feel the impact of hitting the ground.

“A-are you alrighttt…?!”

Instead, I felt something soft and gentle catch my body.

A strangely sweet scent tickled my nose.

And then—.

An unfamiliar system message blocked my view.

But before I could even fully understand what it meant, I lost consciousness.