D.I.O

Chapter 202

Once Dongsoo left the apartment, he fell into thought. He didnt show it, but Dongsoo was taken aback when he saw Lea, as he knew who she was.

Dang mother you sure knew how to pick the right person. You definitely surprised me.

At first, Dongsoo didnt recognize Lea. He wasnt used to seeing an overly thin frame, bloodshot eyes, caked hair, and dirty clothing whenever he met Lea in DIO.

However, after being cleaned and fed under Dongsoos care, Leas appearance slowly changed to one Dongsoo was much more familiar with. Now that she was showering daily, she looked more like a teen idol than a shut-in.

Cruze.

She was one of the Heaven above the Heavens; she was Cruze Schmidt. In their search for a gifted and talented child, his adoptive parents had gone overseas!

Anyway, how come she doesnt recognize me? Her memory is so sharp am I truly that insignificant?

Dongsoo grumbled. Unless there were issues with a players body, such as being hunchbacked or having some physical disability, the character model in DIO mirrored the users true appearance. Hence, Dongsoo looked the same as his in-game character, Lancelot. Even if two people didnt know one another well, after they met a few times, they should still recognize the other party. Yet, Lea seemed entirely unaware, so Dongsoo hesitated and missed the timing to introduce himself properly.

Anyway, its a bit strange. Her initial physical condition was so horrible, but she instantly improved after eating well and washing for a week.

The many wrappers from Leas dependence on delivery food had piled up throughout the apartment, but that was because Lea had stayed inside for a long time. She didnt eat much anyway, so her choice of only eating fast food deteriorated her health. This led to her becoming dangerously skinny with a bad complexion, but in just a week, her cheeks took on a rosy color, and her skin was glowing; it was to the point where Dongsoo thought, Did I feed her a rejuvenating, life-saving medicine?

Bang!

While he was busy thinking about this and that, the building near Dongsoo exploded with a deafening blast.

What the-!

Startled, Dongsoo hid behind an elevated flower bed installed on the side of the road. Shards of shattered glass from the buildings windows flew in all directions.

Kyak!

W-whats going on? Was it a gas explosion?!

Ah, it hurts it hurts!

Someone, call 911!

The busy street, where many people came and went, became a chaotic mess. The explosion had destroyed the building, and the resulting fragments shot out and hit those nearby. With the thought that there might be a second explosion, Dongsoo lowered his stance and took out his cell phone. He was planning on contacting the fire and police department, but to his dismay, his phone didnt work.

Its completely dead?

Not only did he not have a signal, but the LCD screen itself wouldnt turn on. It was as if he had broken his phone after ducking behind the flower bed.

Whats with my phone it wont turn on!

Is my phone broken? Why isnt it turning on?

My car stopped running!

Screams began to sound out from everywhere. As he heard this, Dongsoo felt his blood run cold.

Have all electronic devices become disabled?

Dongsoo quickly stood. The situation seemed dire. In Dongsoos mind, if someone had artificially caused this situation, this wouldnt be the end.

Ting! Boom!

At that moment, a nearby building collapsed. A mechanical sound accompanied the collapse. Soon, a giant thing made from a type of white metal appeared.

Eh?

It was a gigantic mechanical robot.

***

There were certain events that many people thought about, but in the end, these situations did not occur. These events were an impossibility, things that only happened in movies. The likelihood of such things taking place was less than 0.00001 percent if not zero percent.

For example, take a situation where a UFO suddenly appears on Earth and befriends a human boy. Or, in another instance, transforming robots, powerful enough to shake the entire universe, descend onto Earth and fight each other. However, for whatever reason, the robots get crushed and smashed by tank shells and missiles fired by modern human forces.

This sort of extraordinary event was occurring on Earth. It was a response against the Union.

Zing!

Zing!

Dimensional rifts opened here and there, and mechanical machines began pouring out. Among them were mechanical robot soldiers that looked like humans and mechanical weapons similar to modern tanks and fighter jets. However, these robots werent manned by anyone - they moved automatically. The human-shaped robot soldiers held laser guns that had the same appearance as modern rifles. If a Master who had conducted many missions saw these robots, the player would have instantly realized that the new arrivals were T-41-type mechanical robot soldiers, often used by space pirates across the universe.

Oh, is this a magic performance? How did those things appear out of thin air?

Wow, look at that!

A number of these mechanical robots landed on a busy street in Chongqing, China. They stood before a crowded department store, and people gathered at the unusual, sudden sight of the [Robots].

Whats going on?

Is it a movie shoot?

The local Chinese and foreign tourists started converging in front of the mechanical robots. Clearly, they displayed no fear or avoidance of the mechanical robots.

Hey~ Mister Robot! Is anyone inside!

A woman with western features cheerfully waved her hand in front of one of the larger mechanical robots. And, following her movements, the robot soldier moved its arm.

Clunk!

It pointed its gun at her

Hmm?

and fired a bullet.

Bang!

The woman collapsed helplessly as the projectile, traveling more than three times the speed of sound, blasted her head off.

Uh, huh?

That? What?

Even after the womans death, the surrounding crowd took a moment to process what had occurred, not immediately reacting to the impending threat. In the first place, the entire situation felt surreal. A bipedal mechanical robot appeared in the middle of a bustling city and shot people this was something that could only be seen in Sci-fi movies.

However, the mechanical robot soldiers had no reason to be considerate of their targets. Thus, the peoples response was seen as something fortuitous, as they could carry out their mission more comfortably.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The mechanic robots started aiming and firing at those around them. The people panicked and screamed, having finally figured out their situation. However.

Brr! Boom!

The massive explosions soon drowned out their screams.

***

These mechanical robots appeared all over Earth and immediately started slaughtering anyone around them. There werent too many robots. In each of the thirty or so locations where they warped, between three to 20 robots appeared. So, their total number was only 200 to 300.

Since these mechanical robots were made from special alloys, they were naturally impervious to modern human bullets and chemical weapons. However, unlike the firepower that advanced demons and Masters could output, modern humans could resist this level of force. In essence, the robots were only utilizing basic armaments that were commonly used by pirates that roamed the universe.

Basically, these mechanical robots were resistant to heat and shock, so they couldnt be damaged by personal firearms, but they werent durable enough to survive a formidable physical impact, such as artillery fire or missiles. Even if humanity didnt take any collective action against these robots, their relatively small numbers meant that humankind would ultimately defeat them.

However, in stark contrast to the overall picture and the robots eventual demise, the robots were currently freely slaughtering the people around them. They appeared in crowded downtown areas, so the loss of life was truly astronomical.

The mechanical robots didnt take any strategic action. If a human were nearby, theyd seek them out to be killed.

In other words, their actions were close to an act of [Terrorism].

Moreover, this was their one and only purpose.

***

How did this happen?

Tan, DIOs top operator, gritted his teeth at the massacre unfolding on his screen. Of course, he didnt feel apologetic or guilty about the peoples deaths. He didnt value human life. The problem was that while the mechanical robots slaughtered humans, some of the more valuable users would be swept away in the carnage. Even in this brief attack, two Masters had died!

What happened? How were they able to warp into our territory?

This attack was inconceivable. The planets managed by the [Union] were equipped with all manners of anti-warping defensive measures, so the fact that mechanical robots could descend upon Earth meant that the Noblesses defense systems had been breached.

Whos behind this?

Its the Legion.

Ugh, those old-timers.

Tan gnashed his teeth in annoyance. The Legion was an immense power that ruled over hundreds of planets and owned ten Terra-class ships. They were one of the three terrorist groups, often referred to as the Unions Great Adversaries, that were hostile toward the Union. Like the Grotesque, the Legion was a terrorist group that constantly presented issues for the Union.

As it stood now, the Union viewed the Legion as just another terrorist group, but when the Mech God, Dekarma, was present, the Legion was so formidable that even the Union couldnt easily deal with them. If the Union focused all of its forces on the Legion, the Union could annihilate its foe. Yet, the damage taken would be so substantial that the Union wouldnt be able to defend itself against the other terrorist groups.

After the Legions Mech God did something forbidden and was killed by the God of War, the Legion lost most of its power. Nevertheless, the Legion continued to exist and remained hostile toward the Union.

Did the Legion break through our security systems?

The Legion was an organization made entirely of machines. These machines were born from artificial intelligence created in the distant past, so long ago that no one truly knew when. These machines possessed special traits, such as [creativity] and [thinking], which allowed them to be capable of [imagining], unlike the artificial intelligence that existed on Earth.

These machines could think for themselves and develop a civilization, and since they could produce Legion mechs without anyones help, they could proliferate at a somewhat infinite pace as long as they possessed the required resources. Since the Legion were essentially containers of information, they could easily crack and infiltrate any computer and mechanical systems.

Even so, it was still puzzling as to how they could break through the Unions anti-warping defenses, especially at this specific moment and time.

By the way, why arent the Enforcers mobilizing?

Ah, thats because the mech robots invading Earth are within the boundary of being categorized as 2nd stage civilization beings. Theyre using a [legal] loophole, so to speak. If there were more robots, the Enforcers would probably come to stop them, but it seems the Legion are adjusting their numbers to fly under the Enforcers radar.

Human casualties, and in turn, the reduction of users, were the Unions main concern, as the Legions forces that descended on Earth werent at a [Humanity Destruction] level. There would be some damage, but humans could fend off the Legions relatively small numbers without any need for intervention. In addition, the Legion had no intention of gaining any benefit from these attacks and wasnt interfering with human souls, so the Enforcers wouldnt mobilize. Undoubtedly, humans were dying, but the Enforcers wouldnt care about that. Humans perished all the time from wars, skirmishes, and diseases. What did it matter if a few thousand or hundreds of thousands were killed by the Legions attack?

But the Enforcers will probably show up if we intervene, right?

Of course. Were constrained by Union Law. The Reaper Organization also issued a warning not to move recklessly.

As users began to play an active part in the wider universe, forces from every corner of the universe started taking an interest. While the Noblesse had a strong voice in the Union, there were also many factions who opposed them. In addition, even amongst the Noblesse, some did not like Tan and other pure-blooded existences, so Tan couldnt do whatever he wanted.

In the end, I guess theres only one thing we can do.

Wasnt that always the plan?

Indeed, but I thought the Grotesque would have been the ones to push us to mobilize, not the Legion. Theyre both our enemies, so that essentially makes them allies but Im certain they arent working together.

This turn of events happened because Merlin defeated Madness and Sirius in succession. Madness had essentially become a lost child within the dimensional rift realm, and Sirius was given access to utilize Armageddon power. The Grotesque possessed more than 100 Numbered Slayers like Madness and Sirius, but they felt a sense of crisis when users defeated two of their Numbered, with the players originating from a training system. In other words, the two Numbered Slayers were defeated by existences that werent even Noblesses or higher-level beings; they had been defeated by humans who had gone through a mysterious training system.

If we take our planned course of action, well probably cause an uproar, right?

Melton looked like a young boy wearing a baseball cap, and he smiled after hearing Tans question.

What can they do, though? Since the attacks will become more direct and frequent, everyone will start relying on us more.

Yeah, thats right.

Tan nodded his head. And then, he radiated a blue aura.

Send in the Masters.