[At the same time, on Topaz and Svarog's side.]
[Topaz was led to an open area—an enormous activity ground with only a few dim lights barely providing any visibility.]
["I really didn't expect it to be in a place like this… But I don't see any mechs or weapons at all? These surroundings are all solid rock walls—could it be…"]
["Correct. Those weapons are hidden within the towering rock faces." Svarog confirmed Topaz's guess.]
["No wonder! No wonder we couldn't find any so-called armory no matter where we looked—" Topaz suddenly realized something and jerked her head up. "Wait! You just said these weapons have always been hidden here? Meaning… during the war between Jarilo-VI's builders and the Legion, these weapons were never used at all?"]
["These automatons have never left this place since they were built. When the Company withdrew from this planet more than seven hundred years ago, no one knew anymore how to activate this batch of weapons."]
["According to the design blueprints left by the Company, the builders created the first batch of imitation automatons. But in the resistance army led by Alisa Rand, the main force was still flesh-and-blood humans."]
["…Oh, I see. The legends about this world are getting more and more fascinating."]
——
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
"Hah? Isn't the Company being way too shady here? They didn't even tell the Belobog people how to activate the automatons?"
Sanemi Shinazugawa had only put himself in their shoes for a moment before he started getting angry. It felt like spending a fortune to forge a Nichirin Blade for killing demons, only to be told after it's made that the sword is just for display—you have to kill demons with your fists, but the money still has to be paid in full.
"In that case, shouldn't the Company's debt be reduced or something?"
Shinobu Kocho also felt this was extremely unfair. For the people of Belobog, it was like spending the money, losing lives, and then having their descendants unknowingly bear seven hundred years of interest—maximum loss all around.
"Reduce it? Shinobu, are you still not seeing the Company's true face at this point?" Sanemi sneered coldly. "In the Company's eyes, there's only money and that whatever… Amber Lord. Beyond that, they're no different from man-eating demons."
"Demons kill your body, but the Company wants to squeeze every last drop of value out of you. These bastards don't care about 'sacrifice' or 'resistance'—they only care about money. They love using their bigger fists to bully people under rules they set themselves!"
"…"
Shinobu silently lowered her head. At first, she had thought that if one day the Company expanded to Earth, they could use the Company's technology to help completely eradicate demons… but now it seemed she had overlooked a crucial issue from the start—what would the price be?
The Company's exploitation was probably far more terrifying than demons. They had no fangs, yet they displayed their "fangs" in invisible ways. Facing fellow humans like this, Shinobu felt utterly powerless.
——
[After saying that, Svarog posed a question to Topaz: "If the Company does not intervene, this world will head toward its end—is this conclusion something you firmly believe in?"]
["..."] Topaz lowered her head in thought for a moment before finally nodding: "I believe it."]
["Before coming here, I reviewed countless cases and reached the same conclusion: every world that has ever been corrupted by a [Stellaron] has ultimately been unable to escape the fate of destruction."]
["Even with help from the Astral Express, even if everything appears fine on the surface… these are only temporary windows of reprieve."]
["Long-term crises usually lurk beneath the surface of prosperity, unnoticed by ordinary people."]
[Svarog nodded: "Understood."]
["Understood? That's it? You're not going to share your own opinion?" Topaz's tone carried a faint hint of anticipation.]
[Svarog stated that it did indeed hold views completely different from Topaz's, but that wasn't important. It was merely a tool, not a decision-maker; it only wanted to confirm whether Topaz's answer was sincere.]
——
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End.
"…Destruction, heh. Looks like this young girl didn't reference the Xianzhou Luofu case at all."
Serie's fingertip lightly tapped the armrest of her throne; her nail clinked crisply against the marble: "The Xianzhou is a civilization that coexists with 'calamity.' Over their long existence, they have probably grown accustomed to crises on the level of [Stellarons]."
"The Stellaron crisis on the Luofu—the real killing blow wasn't the Stellaron itself, but Phantylia… A single Stellaron alone couldn't stir up much trouble for the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus."
"But Lady Serie…" Sense suddenly spoke from the side. "But because of that incident, the Xianzhou Luofu completely offended Phantylia and the forces of Destruction. In the long run, that's also a massive crisis lurking beneath the surface, isn't it?"
"If that Lord Ravager ever returns in full force and joins hands with the Abundance followers, then I'm afraid…"
The Luofu had only just emerged from its recent crisis; on the surface everything was calm, but with the forces of Destruction and Abundance watching hungrily, it actually fit Topaz's description of a "long-term crisis."
"Hmph, then there's even less need for outsiders to worry. The Astral Express won't sit idly by. If the Luofu faces trouble, the other Xianzhou won't remain indifferent either. And Elio—the one who orchestrated the entire thing among the Stellaron Hunters—has a far longer view than anyone. If the Luofu truly has problems, he will have arranged things in advance."
——
[After Topaz left Rivet Town, her whereabouts became unknown. She had deployed a large number of subordinates to occupy the area and conduct asset evaluations.]
[Himeko suggested avoiding direct confrontation with the Company people. Gepard strongly agreed and decided to activate a type of stealth explosive automaton to knock out a group of Company personnel without anyone noticing.]
[The automatons worked effectively. Soon the group arrived at a high platform and met Svarog.]
[It had not clashed with the Company people and informed the group that Topaz was just ahead. As for Topaz's views, it reported them honestly: "In her eyes, incorporating Belobog into the Company is the only path of [Preservation]. Though I hold a different view, with my current computational power I cannot find evidence to refute it."]
[Even so, Svarog still hoped both sides would avoid armed conflict as much as possible.]
["Of course, the Express crew never advocates conflict. But once it escalates to blades clashing, we have never flinched. We've come this far that way, haven't we?" Himeko said with a faint smile.]
[The group took the elevator to the nearest plaza, where Topaz had already been waiting for them for some time.]
["Finally here~ I was starting to think you wouldn't make it." Topaz turned around, looking at the three approaching people. She let out a curious "huh?": "The lady beside Miss March… why does she feel so familiar?"]