by Kamiya Yuu
Even Marie, who did not have the superhuman senses Naoto had, was able to physically sense something climbing up from the underground.
“—You’re kidding!!”
Naoto gasped.
“That thing—that giant weapon’s rising while destroying the underground!”
“You’re kidding!”
Marie shrieked, and Naoto yelled back,
“This isn’t something to joke about here!!”
“What’s the Tokyo ‘army’ doing now!? Were they all wiped out!?”
Impossible Marie gritted her teeth.
—Truly, that weapon was a Super-Dreadnought level weapon.
It had numerous cannon ports, and armor even RyuZU’s scythe could not cut through.
However, it was just extremely large. There was no chance of it winning in a battle of waves. If the damage below the city and the battle between the giant weapon and the ‘army’ aren’t taken into account, it would be possible to overcome the gigantic weapon even if it was impossible to ensure zero casualty.
That was Marie’s initial plan, but—
At that moment, Vermouth, who was left only with the head, yelled frantically.
“Hey, don’t tell me the ‘army’s duking it out against that weapon…!?”
“You’re noisy. There aren’t other ways of doing this, right!?”
Marie clicked her tongue in a scathing manner as she retorted back,
But Vermouth frowned hard, as if he had a migraine.
“Spare me already, ghost Princess. Did you just ignore the most important thing here!? Are you kidding me!?”
“—What are you saying!?”
“Why did you think I deliberately sent this message through electromagnetic waves. The research in Shiga that violated the International Treaty, the contents of the research that was the reason for the purge; that’s electromagnetic technology. Isn’t that monster’s a mass collection of that technology!?”
Electromagnetic technology.
A past technology that was advanced for its time, but was never used in these current times.
The reason for it to be scrapped was that the electromagnetic waves used would cause the nano-sized gears, widely prevalent in intricate machinery, to malfunction.
—Wait.
Marie felt a chill run down her back, and gasped.
All the countless incidents she heard this entire week appeared in her mind.
I didn’t think too much about that There were many of these possible excuses, but—
The purged Grid Shiga.
The forbidden electromagnetic technology research that once occurred there.
The technicians that were exposed and purged without reason, who continued to live on.
And also, the nauseating words the Mie governor said that lingered in Marie’s mind.
—The government doesn’t know anything. That thing they created isn’t just a threat.
That,
That weapon.
The capabilities of that weapon.
“Control electromagnetic fields—is it a giant electromagnet!?”
“—Ahh!?”
At that instant, Naoto pressed down his ears as he let out a shriek.
—All the city functions, and—
Halter, RyuZU, AnchoR, Vermouth…anything that required gear technology.
—Broke out.
● ● ●
Gear Era 1016, February 8th, 5.47am.
An earthquake-like tremor roared, creating a massive phenomenon. At that time,
All the people escaping to the center of Grid Akihabara witnessed that scene.
A large trail of blue light pillar permeated through the sky that was breaking dawn.
Following it was an extremely loud rumble. The entire Grid Akihabara was shrieking.
And then, from the place where the pillar of light, like spreading ripple waves, all machinery that was made using clockwork technology gradually ceased to function.
Though a few minutes passed after this, it felt as if 1,2 hours had passed to those who experienced it.
The gigantic iron spider let out a bellow as it devoured the city and appeared.
● ● ●
In the dim, cramped room, there was a monitor hanging on a wall, displaying the situation outside and the machine’s reports in a hurry, updating.
“It has reached the surface. We’re unable to affirm the threat level. Continuing to search for the enemy.”
“Main cannon has cooled by 14%, energy recharge at 3%.”
“Recalculating time it takes to recharge completely.”
He was slumped in his chair, receiving the continual stream of reports, and raised his chin.
The adjutant beside him said, seemingly wanting to affirm,
“If it is as you expected, my Lord, the two units of the Initial-Y series should be here…”
The man who was asked, the old man with graying white hair answered with a lethargic tone,
“…Even if it is ‘Y’s inheritance, they aren’t omnipotent in a still world.”
The glittering metal-colored eyes on his thoroughly wrinkled face stared at the monitor sharply.
And the adjutant, a young bespectacled man man suddenly spoke up solemnly,
“My Lord, may I ask something?”
“Of course. Say it.”
“Yes—My Lord, you retired from active service 3 years ago, and retreated yourself to the underground, didn’t you?”
“Are you unhappy about an old retired man suddenly reappearing at the forefront again?”
“Yes, no, that’s not what I mean at all. It is the ultimate honor to be serving under your command, my Lord. This mere subordinate here just have a single doubt—you were thoroughly opposed to this operation no matter what before this, my Lord. May I ask, why did you decide to return?”
“…So you finally found something you had to ask no matter what.”
“Huh?”
The old man ignored the adjutant’s voice as he narrowed his eyes.
He recalled the encounter underground with the boy.
—He did not have any evidence.
No, there was no need for such a thing.
However, he understood. He had firm belief when he saw that boy and that automata.
—That’s ‘Y’
Was it reincarnation? Successor? Neither mattered. It was all the same. He had no interest in that.
However—when the boy absolutely denied everything about the world, he insisted that his subjective view was the right one. When the man saw those eyes that had no doubts at all, he was able to instinctively determine that he was the mastermind who caused the current state of the world.
That was just the cruel—yes, the displeasure he had from his inner heart.
The unprecedented hope for the future, the disappointment in history, the despair over the world. Thus, having resigned himself to such fate, he decided it was fine even if his life was to end.
—However, the metal-colored eyes were filled with utmost fury and vengeance.
With a deep, hoarse voice, he muttered,
“Watch it all end like this. You shall know about the wills of us commoners crawling on the surface—you monsters.”
Afterword (Collab)
“…Now then, do you mind explaining the long delay between publications while playing catch?”
–At a certain place and time, the editor-in-charge S asked with his eyes half-opened.
“Hohoho…when did it seem like we’re playing catch here–?”
“This is dodgeball. We’re using iron balls, huh, hoho.”
Kamiya and Himana, battered for some reason, smiled fearlessly.
“The last time, the distance was the obstructing factor, but now that Tsubaki’s in Saitama now, I can beat him up whenever I can.”
“And thus this is a mystery! This me who returns every beating is still here! Long live the code of Hammurabi!!”
“…Can’t both of you get along a little
better?”
“It is as you say, but a certain round glasses guy who extolled about world peace had a dispute in a band and caused it to disband, you know?”
This is the result of wanting to eliminate international borders (Role sharing). To the glasses guy in heaven, can you see it?
“To summarise, for anyone like us to see a clear point of compromise, they would have to use sign language (asserts)”
“Yes, this thing called peace is too idealistic. Humans can only understand each other by beating each other up–”
“Well, whatever. The result of no publication is that you’ll be in financial trouble, you know?”
“”War leaves only debts behind. (serious looks)””
In response to the editor-in-charge’s words, the two men with swollen faces nodded in unison.
“…I just thought of it.”
–And Shino, who had been watching on till this point, spoke up.
“It’s about a certain work of Mr Kamiya at another company. I think Mr S is the one in charge of promotion, commercialization and contract signing with Mr Kamiya’s wife. Also, it seems Mr S noticed that there are moves for an anime adaptation…is it because you know of how busy Mr Kamiya is that you don’t intend to release Clockwork Planet?”
–He noticed something he should not have.
In the midst of this silence, the editor-in-charge S was the only one to continue on leisurely.
“I see. Looks like I have no choice but to collect the manuscript. I’ll like to have the 3rd volume earlier, okay?”
As they watch him stand up to leave with a heinous smirk, Kamiya and Tsubaki stood up to roar,
“Hey, wait, editor-in-charge! We could have finished this earlier if I wasn’t so busy, right?”
“Aren’t you the source of all evil who made Kamiya ‘so busy’ that he can’t return back to writing!?”
And then, both of them exchanged handshakes with fiendish smirks, just like a mirror.
““Let us kill off the mastermind behind this war♥””
And with a common goal, both of them chased after the editor-in-charge at full speed.
…Shino watches the trio quickly disappear, and nod deeply.
“I see. So conspiracies do exist after all, huh~”
–Yes, world peace is still a distant thing. He muttered in his heart
* * *
Clockwork Planet - Volume 02
Original Authors: Yuu Kamiya & Tsubaki Himana
Illustrator: Shino
English Translation by Teh_Ping
* * *
Epub made by Toshiya.