The meeting room fell into considerable chaos.
Compared to earlier, when all hope was pinned solely on Rentaro Satomi—
Now, the upper brass of Tokyo Area were finally moving, desperately issuing orders one after another.
After all, in the current situation, there were still things they could do.
Rentaro was also rushing back to the Tokyo Area as fast as he could.
Even with the loss of an arm and a 50% drop in combat strength, at least he could still move.
In the entire meeting room, the only ones not panicking were: Seitenshi, Kikunojou Tendo, and Haruto.
Kikunojou stood behind Seitenshi.
And at this moment, he abruptly said:
"Saintess-sama, dispatch the Cursed Children stationed near the Tokyo perimeter to the collapsed Monolith area to hold the line."
Once this suggestion was voiced—
The previously agitated crowd instantly burst into praise.
"Lord Tendo makes a great point! Using the Cursed Children as the first line of defense will surely be twice as effective with half the effort!"
"Although untrained as Initiators, the Cursed Children's raw strength alone makes them a huge asset!"
"Brilliant idea! This will drastically enhance Tokyo's defensive capability and increase our survival chances!"
Those were the more polite ones.
Others had completely dropped their masks.
Faced with immense panic and pressure—These people became hysterical.
Like drowning men, grabbing at any blade of grass. Clinging to anything, no matter how fragile. And without a care for who else they might drag under.
"Just let those monsters fight the Gastrea! That's what they were born for!"
"We've spent a fortune supporting them—now it's time they finally did something for humanity!"
"Saintess-sama, issue the order! Don't hesitate! The Cursed Children are just monsters—they're not even human!"
"If they die, not only will they stop the Gastrea, but we'll save a ton of funding and no longer have to worry about them ruining the city's appearance!"
Words like these were the cruelest kind of irony.
What aid had the Tokyo government ever given those children?
None. Not even the minimum standards for survival.
And that "funding" they kept complaining about—They probably had no idea what it even entailed. They just spoke thoughtlessly, treating the Cursed Children as monsters.
And now—
They wanted to use those same "monsters" to fight for their survival.
Seitenshi's expression was grim.
These upper-echelon members of Tokyo Area were supposed to be the clearest-minded. And yet even they were this absurd.
Then… was there really any hope left?
She felt sorrow too.
Those children were never monsters.
Why did they deserve to be treated like this?
Kikunojou, seeing Seitenshi hesitate to issue the command—Assumed it was because of her compassion.
But this was no time for hesitation.
Even though he was loyal to Seitenshi, he was prepared to overstep his bounds.
He would give the order himself.
But at that moment, Kisara Tendo suddenly slammed her palm on the table and stood up. She sneered as her cold gaze swept across everyone present.
She used to think it was just the Tendo family that was rotten to the core.
But now, she saw it clearly—
The entire Tokyo Area was shrouded in darkness.
These people truly deserved destruction.
Kikunojou glanced at Kisara, pausing briefly, before turning back and issuing the order:
"Pass down my command—gather all Cursed Children from within and around Tokyo Area and dispatch them to the collapsed Monolith zone."
With his command, staff immediately began moving.
Seitenshi tried to stop them—
But just then…
"Hahaha…"
A soft, mocking laugh rang out.
Everyone subconsciously froze and turned toward the source of the voice.
Haruto was sitting there, laughing so hard that tears were forming. That laughter echoed in the meeting room— And it made everyone's hair stand on end.
"Hey, you bastard—what the hell are you laughing at?!"
Finally, someone couldn't take it and roared at him in rage. And once someone started, the outrage poured in like rain.
"Who the hell are you? What gives you the right to even be in this room?!"
"Tokyo is on the brink of destruction! If you're useless, fine—but don't get in the way of those who can act!"
"Get out! You lunatic! You're irrational, totally unreasonable!"
But the louder they yelled—
The harder Haruto laughed.
The barrage of condemnation slowly faded.
In the midst of Haruto's laughter, everyone present began to feel a deep, chilling dread.
An unexplainable fear settled in their hearts.
Then Haruto stopped laughing.
"Sorry, I couldn't help it. You people are just too damn funny."
He said this with a smirk still on his lips—And looked at them like he was watching a bunch of monkeys.
"Oh, by the way, let me tell you something hilarious."
He got up and walked to a computer connected to a drone.
The screen was currently turned off.
The battle to reclaim the relic had already ended in complete failure.
Haruto began rewinding the footage—To the moment when the Civil Guards were retreating from the Tokyo Area.
He pointed at the screen and asked curiously:
"Don't you all find something strange about this scene?"
Everyone looked at each other.
Just footage of Civil Guards withdrawing—what could possibly be strange?
But Kikunojou's face looked like he'd just swallowed a dead fly.
Seeing the others' confusion—Haruto nearly burst into laughter again.
What a cruel joke.
"You go on and on about the Cursed Children… and didn't even notice what was missing, hahaha!"
Only then did everyone seem to snap out of their fog.
Suddenly, a cold chill ran down their spines.
This was the edge of the Tokyo Area.
Where were the Cursed Children who were supposed to be stationed here?
Why… weren't they visible at all?!
People frantically reviewed the footage—And their faces turned increasingly pale.
"You call them monsters—and yet act in blatant contradiction. When disaster strikes, you turn to those monsters for help. You want them to protect you. And the funniest part—knowing they possess great power, you insult them as monsters… but never once considered they could turn on you.
If a monster lived next door, even the slightest disturbance should spark immediate alarm. You'd fear being devoured.
But when these 'monsters' vanished from your sight for this long—you didn't even notice. Is that how you treat monsters?"
From the moment the game began—The SCP Foundation from the main world had already intervened in this parallel reality.
All non-Initiator Cursed Children had been taken away by the Foundation.
Even the Initiators who later went missing during missions—Were retrieved by the Foundation the moment they were in danger.
And in that time—
The Foundation had cracked the Gastrea virus.
They could now suppress it, and even partially harness it. All the Cursed Children had undergone vaccination.
By now, they were probably finishing their Foundation basic training courses.
If these Tokyo officials merely hated the Cursed Children—They might've lost their humanity. But at least they'd have retained a beast's instinct—the foundation of survival.
Instead—
They were arrogant. Conceited. Blind to the danger.
They didn't fear the monsters they hated.
The Cursed Children were too easy to control.
To them, the girls were tools to be beaten and scolded at will.
Not worth a second thought.
Ha.
Humanity's virtues had been completely eroded—
While its flaws remained intact.
"Lose humanity, and you lose much. Lose beast nature, and you lose everything."
"Who are you really? And where are the Cursed Children now?!"
Kikunojou's brows were deeply furrowed.
He hadn't felt this level of emotion in public for decades.
He knew all too well how hopeless Tokyo Area was in terms of combat power and Gastrea threat.
That collapsed Monolith—
Would take at least a month to fully restore.
And with only the existing military forces in Tokyo Area—They stood no chance of holding out for that long.
Only by sacrificing the Cursed Children…
Could they possibly buy a sliver of survival.