Chapitre 50: Chapter 50: Dust and Rust
"Yeah, that's definitely a bit much."
Neon, standing nearby, was also feeling uneasy, especially when she saw the remains of the Nikkes by her feet. Her face paled slightly, and she instinctively gripped the gun in her arms.
But then, recalling Mo Chen's great ideals, her fear quickly evaporated. In the face of firepower, all enemies were just paper tigers!
"Isn't this a bit much? It's just outright bullying!" Anis was indignant, kicking a Rapture's limb aside. "Who do they think they are, pushing us around like this?"
After ensuring the area was secure, Rapi lowered her weapon and turned to Mo Chen. "Commander, do you have any leads?"
As the one responsible, Mo Chen knew well the truth behind confessing to avoid worse consequences. He mumbled a vague reply.
"Maybe the border needs more idealistic youths like us."
If the others knew it was because of him that they had been assigned here, they'd probably start a rebellion.
"Idealistic youths?" Anis sneered, dismissing it with a wave. "The kind of youths you're talking about are already buried under layers of dirt here."
"Anis," Rapi interjected, "Stop complaining. This is an order from the higher-ups. We have no choice but to follow."
Mo Chen cleared his throat. Rapi wasn't wrong.
There were plenty of "idealistic youths" down here—just look at the increase in points. Unlike the usual kind of youth going up into the mountains or down to the countryside, here, "idealistic youths" went up into the sky or down to the depths of the earth.
Yes, to the heavens and the underworld.
At that moment, a Nikke hurriedly approached from a distance and, seeing Mo Chen, quickly came forward.
"Excuse me, are you Commander Mo Chen?"
"Do you know me?" Mo Chen turned to face the newcomer, curious.
The Nikke in front of him wore a bright blue jacket, almost like the color of paint. Underneath, she had a form-fitting sports top and yoga pants, giving off a youthful, energetic vibe.
She had the pure beauty of a student, with a slightly shy and innocent expression. But there was something strangely familiar about her.
"It really is you!" The Nikke's eyes lit up with excitement. "You're the one who defeated the Raptures, recaptured the power plant, saved the Nikkes, and liberated humanity, right?"
She looked at him like a fan meeting their idol.
"Uh... I suppose so," Mo Chen responded ambiguously.
The Nikke clapped her hands in excitement.
"Great! Oh, right, I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Sin, and I'm the assistant officer here at the forward base. Commander Andersen sent me to assist you."
So it was Andersen, Mo Chen thought. He must have arranged this.
"We've been waiting for you for quite some time," Sin said, enthusiasm in her voice. "Please follow me, I'll give you a tour of the forward base."
"Alright."
Under Sin's guidance, they moved toward the interior of the forward base.
Compared to the desolation outside, the interior of the forward base was in much better shape. If the outside had an apocalyptic wasteland feel, the inside had a cyberpunk vibe.
Aside from the outer fortifications, the area was filled with destroyed factories and unevenly spaced residential buildings. The architecture looked much like the outside, with a weighty sense of history, as if a scroll was slowly unfolding before them.
Here, you could see large, heavy artillery pieces and old, rusted armored tanks. They looked as though they were relics from the previous century.
At the highest point of the forward base stood a large cannon, its surface covered in rust.
"Ah, that? It's a high-energy particle cannon," Sin explained. "It broke down a long time ago, now it's just for show."
"Why hasn't it been repaired?" Mo Chen asked.
Sin scratched her head, looking a little embarrassed.
"You've seen it too, haven't you? The buildings in the outpost are pretty dilapidated, right?"
"Yeah... they're a bit run down."
They weren't just run down—this was worse than a slum demolition.
"That's because these buildings are decades old."
Decades old?!
The group was stunned.
"Then why not repair them?"
In Mo Chen's world, these buildings would be condemned as dangerous structures.
Living in them would be like waiting for your death, either from the sky or from the earth.
Sin awkwardly explained, "The outpost is in a remote area, surrounded by Rapture nests. The route to the Ark was cut off long ago, and supply convoys are often ambushed. It's a miracle if half of the supplies even make it here."
If supplies are difficult to deliver, weapons and building materials are even harder to come by.
That high-energy particle cannon, probably for the same reason, was just for show.
But the Raptures are all too dumb to notice. Who exactly are they showing it off to?
Unless it's for the Nikkes themselves.
Mo Chen suddenly thought of something.
Make the Nikkes believe they're being protected, rather than defending the outpost.
"Wait," Mo Chen caught onto a flaw in the story, "Why not just send a Nikke unit for escort?"
They had definitely encountered some Raptures on their way here.
But the number wasn't anywhere near enough to overwhelm a Nikke unit, even a regular one like Anis's. They could handle it just fine.
Anis, seeing Mo Chen glance at her, mischievously pinched him.
If she knew she was considered part of a "regular Nikke unit," she'd probably be giving him a serious pinch in return.
"The Rapture attacks are getting more intense and frequent. The Nikke units are already overworked and can't sustain the supply runs. And we've lost too many supplies—well beyond the logistics capacity of the Ark. They..."
Sin stopped herself, as if unsure how to continue.
The rest of her sentence hung in the air.
Mo Chen gave a slight nod.
The "intensified Rapture attacks," the "shortage of supplies"—those weren't the real reasons.
The real reason was that the Ark didn't want to bear the cost of supplying the outpost anymore.
Or rather, some of the higher-ups were taking advantage.
Seeing Mo Chen's grim expression, Sin quickly jumped to a hasty conclusion, almost as if afraid he might leave.
She assured him, "But don't worry, Commander! Even without supply shipments, we will continue fighting hard, and we'll take back the surface!"
"Has it been reclaimed yet?"
Mo Chen sighed.
Those shortsighted insects in the Ark. They wanted the horse to run but refused to feed it.
Just relying on "love" to generate power.
They were treating the Nikkes like livestock.
"No... not yet..."
The Nikke who had been so firm just a moment ago now awkwardly scratched her head.
In Mo Chen's eyes, given the chaos caused by those higher-ups who kept demanding things, humanity had already been lucky to survive this long.
It's like they only pray when something bad happens. A rickety operation trying to put on a big show.
It would be a miracle if they had any real combat ability.
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État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone