Arakawa, Koki...

　The demon tribe runs through the snowfield as far as the eye can see. The centipedes, whose hardness of skin is stronger than the armor of their main power suits, are in the lead, and countless demons are about to attach themselves to the front gate of the Antarctic base, the home base of the new world.
　The raiding force included the Arakne tribe, and on their backs, the Mantis knights led by Mr. Akator were riding and escorting the human reinforced infantry accompanying the Centipede tribe.

''It's a complete monster movie, this...''

　The overwhelmingly massive wave attack on a holed-up human base, it's just like your favorite movie from the pre-mortem world. The biggest difference is the fact that the monsters communicate with each other in the same way as the humans and use sophisticated tactics, which makes the enemies feel desperate.

I'm going to be able to tell you what to do. The second squad of volunteers from G-88 has arrived at Hakone base, and they'll be transferring to the South Pole using a simple gate in 10 minutes.

Will there be more?

It's a good thing that I'm not the only one who's interested in this, because I've found out through my exploration magic that the relatively shallow part of the enemy base can be moved by a power suit height. I've heard that they are going to attempt to force their way through by means of tribes that have armor much more robust than the suit.

So you still don't know what's going on at Hakone Base, what we call the "mid-level" or below?

"Hmm, there's so much electronic interference that the reconnaissance satellites are useless. I've heard that the probe magic is too deep for us to grasp the situation. However, since the Merkava survey team will be joining the raiding party, we may be able to use magic inside the base.

　Isn't the quintessential magic that versatile........ No, even now it's active enough to be useful, so this kind of thinking would be rude. Rather, carrying a mass of water the size of a Mermaid-class or making a canyon disappear by changing the environment is something that would normally be impossible.
　When this is over, I should ask my mother to formally thank you both for your help.

Alice, are you all right?　Are you sick by any chance?

I'm fine...

　The weak voice startles me and I turn around to see Alice raising the visor of her helmet and wiping the cold sweat off her face as she looks blue. Unintentionally, she goes to press the switch on her communicator to contact the Captain, but she sees an empty container of packed juice lying at Alice's feet.
　You're an idiot, aren't you?　You've had too much to drink!　I would yell at Shingo that even though I'm thirsty, there's a limit to the amount of juice in four 320 ml packs, but I can't say that to Alice.

''I think you've had too much to drink.

It was good...

　It was good, that's good. Well, if I'm nervous, I'm thirsty too. But that doesn't mean I can't go to the bathroom at this stage. The reinforced exoskeleton for the power suits we're equipped with is equipped with a function that allows us to use the toilet. I've used it a few times myself, and probably Claire and Ellis have used it as well. However, it's not fair to ask an old Alice to just do it, is it?

The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that it's not very good, but there's a medicine for when the exoskeleton thing is at its limit, do you want it?　They say they force it to break down and expel it out of your body as sweat, but they say it gets pretty sweaty and choppy.

...drink.

"I've got a med pack at my feet, so you'll have to take control of my suit.

'Yeah...'

　Apparently, there's not a moment to lose. Let's see, I'm pretty sure the blue one is a painkiller and the red one is a hemostatic agent, so the white one is the one. As I was handing the container labeled "decomposing agent" to Alice, I received a message from the Captain.

'Sir, the Centipede tribe has begun their invasion of the gate!　As soon as the dissolved entry point is large enough, we'll be there.'

Yes, sir!　The timing is up to you.

　As I handed the pills to the captain, Alice grabbed the container with a trembling hand, picked up a colored pill from inside that she instinctively knew she shouldn't put in her mouth and swallowed it down. The label that I read when I took it out of the medical pack said that it would begin to disintegrate soon, so in a few minutes, Alice's condition will be fine.

Hmm.....

　That sigh is a sigh of decomposition that has begun to decompose!　No, I don't mind either way, but it bothers me a lot. Alice may have heard the voice in my slightly perverted mind, but when our eyes met, she turned her head away. I'm sorry.　Wait, brainwave control means it's processing my thoughts and actions........ Could it be that Alice can partially read my thoughts?　Alice trembles as she thinks about it in a daze. Hey!　I knew it was what I was thinking...

"Congratulations, Congratulations!　Missile alert!　He just shot me!

Sniper!　Alice, put the controls back on me!　And anything else, deploy the armament!

　Alice regained control of the suit as instructed, but due to our mutual panic, we took over control in a delicate position. Maybe it was because of the snow, but the power suit's feet slipped and it was hard to hold on. Alice ignites the attitude control thrusters to assist me, but I'd rather just fall down and then regain my posture once I'm down.

'I got my knife out anyway.'

　The knife stored in his arm is deployed. Nice call, Alice!　A program built into the suit's operating system automatically starts controlling your posture, forcing you to hold a knife at the ready and move into melee combat mode. Normally this function is turned off due to the intense stress on the suit, but in this state, it stabilizes your posture more accurately than a human would. But just as I thought that, my suit was blown back with a horrendous crash sound.

I'm not going to be able to get it right.　Alice!　Con!　Are you hurt?!

I'll be fine.

"Cu.

　Looks like we're both okay. In fact, I'm in a bit of trouble for hitting my head, even through my helmet when it blew up. I rubbed my aching head and examined the damage.

The head, torso, arms and legs are all green. Armed and unarmed except for the knife?

Cu, con con. Cue.

Conn liked that knife, and now he's pissed off.

"This knife was given to me by a man from the dragon tribe, right? The pattern was beautiful, too... Maybe I shouldn't have installed it in the car after all.

Con!　Kong Kong Kong. Kyu Kyu.

"You don't want to hang it up in the mechanic's office because it was given to you as a good luck charm, but it actually took a bullet for you. Because,

　I still have no idea what I'm talking about, and yet, as usual, Alice is still having a normal conversation with Con? Well, it certainly worked as a good luck charm, as Con pointed out. I'd rather have this knife shattered, what in the world was it shot at?　I asked the technician, and he told me this is a very hard knife made of an unknown material.

Commander, are you okay?

'Captain, this one is fine. Didn't the Captain get attacked?

'Good, my liver was chilled when it blew up behind me. This one came under fire from a missile launcher carried by an infantryman. By the way, that knife........judging from the bullet holes, it was fired from a railgun. After being shot by that thing, you ducked and then flicked it on the spur of the moment, it's beyond amazing!

Yeah, well...

　The Captain has misunderstood something, but if I explain that part, I'll have to go through the details from where Alice wanted to go to the bathroom. Ah!　I just remembered something incredibly important, the Alice guy can read my thoughts, but I didn't tell him. In fact, the fact that it wasn't mentioned in the frequently updated instructions for the use of the Type-0 suit means that I don't think they even reported it to the medical department. I mean, they've been instructed to report it if something happens, so why would they report it?

"That's a crappy response, or is it just a piece of cake for the commander-in-chief? "Now, the entrance to the building is large enough that we've confirmed the withdrawal of the enemy's defense force... We're going in.

Yes, sir.

　When I looked at the gate, I saw that Chernobog's lead team was already in the process of securing it. Following the captain's suit, I too, with my rifle at the ready, move to the rear of the line. After making sure that the communication is firmly cut off, I ask Alice the question I had earlier.

'Alice, can you read my thoughts?　Oh, I'm not mad at you.

Maybe it's something, but it's not the energy supply from the power supply facility at the base, it's the energy from Kon's magic that fully activates the suit, and yet, despite the presence of Kunki-kun, I'm still in control for a bit.

It's also very subtle...

I think it's because of the device Miki-san got at the ruins on the moon. I read in the archives that the Adamites read the surface consciousness and talked to each other.

'I'm pretty sure Eve said something like that too.

So, that's why I'm happy to know a little bit about what you're thinking, but....

But?

You know, you're thinking about something weird while you're looking at me, and I'm wondering if you're in the bathroom or....

Cu-cons?

'Yeah, I'm a little touched now that I understand Con's words for the first time. Is that squeal for real?　That's what you mean. That's a mistake, I didn't mean it that way. I was worried about Alice's health.

　Without a doubt, this mistake must be solved. And if I don't make sure that no one finds out that I've been suspected like this one, I'll die in society. Really, what do I do........how can I correct this misunderstanding without causing Alice to be embarrassed in a gentle manner?　I wonder if there's a device to erase the other person's memories among the useful items Mom scavenged from the lunar ruins....