9 9 301 Black and white push into his field of vision as if wrestling at odds. The two colors seem to have their own consciousness. They fight with each other for some unknown glory.
14 14 301 He opens his eyes—white and black collide and fade to gray. Two figures stand in the gray light.
15 15 301 Then the figures begin to speak.
16 16 301 1 Doctor A Hey, which group of refugees from the park is this? The report says those refugees are designated as test subjects. Is this all we got? Seems like they're just picking at random. 1
17 17 301 Doctor B Quit being picky. Good thing we found one with such high adaptability. Get ready for surgery. 2
18 18 301 Doctor A ...Alright. 1
19 19 301 Doctor A Poor kid. Spending most of his life in a fabricated world. 1
20 20 301 Doctor B So what? It's just supply and demand. Some people want "genuine" entertainment, not just robots following a script. 2
21 21 301 Doctor B When there's enough people interested, the entertainment industry looks for families to buy their kids and send 'em off to the park for others to watch. 2
22 22 301 Doctor B Who knows... Had it not been for the virus, they might have become superstars. Then we'd be the ones jealous. 2
23 23 301 Doctor A ...And if they didn't? Won't they just end up back with their families that sold them in the first place? 1
24 24 301 Doctor B Of course. Can't say their lives would be any better than it is now. 2
25 25 301 Doctor B Now, at least they can survive and become "Constructs". Whether they like it or not, they have a new goal. 2
26 26 301 Doctor B Now that the virus is wreaking havoc outside, people are eager to be told that everything is fine. Soldiers are fighting bravely on the front line. We're still in the same Golden Age as before. There's nothing to worry about. 2
27 27 301 Doctor B I'm sure he'll find hope in doing so. 2
28 28 301 Doctor B Alright, enough with the chit-chat. Time to begin the operation. 2
32 32 301 PanelActor1Shake 1 One of the gray figures gets larger as he approaches. Suddenly, Roland feels a heavy blow to his chest, followed by another.
33 33 301 PanelActor1Shake And another. And another. And another.
34 34 201 1 500365 17
35 35 301 1 Roland ...Rgh. 1
36 36 201 1 500138
37 37 301 1 Roland reaches out in irritation to push away the figure hammering on his chest.
38 38 301 He feels a hard iron plate. The plate is cracked. He sees wires and flashing red light between the cracks.
54 54 301 The red-eyed mechanoid roars as Roland pushes it to the ground. With the sound of metal colliding, Roland hears something hit the ground in the commotion.
55 55 201 1 500365 17
56 56 301 1 Roland Huh...? Is this Sector H7M? What's a set like this doing here...? 1
57 57 301 Roland Where's my script? How do I get to the next scene? Requesting instructions... 1
58 58 301 He forcefully stands up and raises his hand in a daze. Finding nothing on his ear, he lowers his hand.
59 59 301 Roland ...No. The park. It's already... already destroyed. 1
60 60 301 Yes, the facility where he lived, the place that had deceived him for some many years was destroyed by those mechanoids.
61 61 301 But after that? What happened? Where is he?
62 62 301 Roland No time for questions. It's too dangerous here. I need to get away from those monsters... 1
63 63 204 1 7
64 64 301 Roland But... Go where? 1
65 65 201 1 500013
66 66 401 2 1508
67 67 301 1 Mechanoid? Raaargh—Rrrgghh! 1
68 68 201 1 500365 17
69 69 301 1 Roland ...Rgh! 1
70 70 202 1 2 1
71 71 301 The mechanoid on the ground stands up as if being controlled by something and charges Roland once more.
72 72 301 Before he has time to realize what's going on, his body reacts.
90 90 301 Responding to the enemy's movement, he punches its core with all his strength. His other hand reaches into the cavity and tears at its insides, pulling out a static eruption of wires.
91 91 301 Fast. Instinctive. The bloody hand-to-hand combat almost seems natural.
95 95 301 1 Roland? Good fight! Outstanding skill, Roland! You're a natural at killing your own kind. 1
96 96 301 Holding the wires in his hand, Roland hears a round of applause and the familiar childlike voice.
97 97 201 1 500365 17
98 98 301 1 Roland ...No, I... 1
99 99 301 PanelActor1Shake A sudden pain races through his arm. Roland looks down. He sees several cracks in the metal plating that now composes his bare arm. Liquid flows out of the cracks.
100 100 301 But it is not red. It is light blue. He suddenly remembers what it is—vital fluid.
101 101 201 1 500375
102 102 301 1 Roland? Take a look. It's as you think. You've become a mechanoid. All you can do is act. You no longer have to result to cutting yourself to find out. 1
103 103 201 1 500365 17
104 104 301 1 Roland I... No... W-why... 1
105 105 201 1 500375
106 106 301 1 Roland? Oh, Roland. Running so long, you've lost your mind? 1
107 107 301 Roland? Let me refresh your memory. 1
108 108 301 Roland? Young Roland, an actor raised in that big park, lost his future because the park was destroyed by a virus. 1
109 109 301 Roland? However! He was saved by the forces of mystery and was declared suitable for a very powerful operation! Even though the process was tortuous and inhumane, in the end, he was transformed into a soldier known as a "Construct"! 1
110 110 301 Roland? No longer stuck in the shadows of the past, he found his own value in the new world. He fought day and night to protect Earth and resist the Punishing Virus! But it is not without its downsides. Working year-round on the taxpayer's dollar, that is. 1
111 111 301 Roland? This job has given him a new lease on life and a new will to survive! The knight has found a new king and new goals, and can carry on the fight the same as before! 1
112 112 301 Roland? He came into contact with the real world and finally realized that all the legends of knights he had read in the park were nothing more than pulp fiction fabricated by third-rate authors. So he took up his sword as a real knight and encouraged himself to march forward in the name of virtue! 1
113 113 301 Roland? Oh, what a marvelous ending! Absolutely splendid... You've used this kind of future to deceive yourself in the past. Have you not? 1
114 114 401 1 36
115 115 301 Roland? Humans excel most at fooling other humans. Of course, that includes you. 1
131 131 301 PanelActor1Shake The first thing to recover is his pain module. A drilling pain in his skull surges through his head and to the rest of his body. He steps back and leans on a giant piece of scrap metal.
132 132 204 1 17
133 133 301 PanelActor1Shake 1 Roland Rgh... Ouch! Arrgh...! 1
135 135 301 Then, the visual module resumes operation.
136 136 301 Looking up from the dark ruins, he sees a large group of mechanoids nearby. Bright red lights shine from their broken frames as they viciously pummel a pile of metal with their fists. Flying mechanical debris passes by Roland's eyes. Roland can vaguely hear wailing below them.
137 137 301 Roland ...Oh, right. This place is a scrapyard. 1
138 138 301 Becoming a Construct, fighting day and night, and playing the hero that saves Earth. A future that seemed bright.
139 139 301 Then disaster struck. Large mechanoids corrupted by the Punishing Virus destroyed the defense line... Toppled buildings... And shattered the stability of daily life.
140 140 301 That's it. That's all. This wasn't the first time he had seen it.
141 141 301 Those scientists who are determined to save the Earth are now nothing more than the mud beneath the mechanoids' feet. Those brave soldiers either lost their lives to the Corrupted or became their servants.
142 142 204 1 1
143 143 301 Roland As for me... Ha, I escaped here with the army, but that only caught the attention of more Corrupted. 1
144 144 301 Roland But... it doesn't matter. Just pretending to be dead seems to have saved me a lot. I can't be a soldier. At least I'm an excellent actor. I can still escape, escape to unknown places, and then live. 1
145 145 301 Roland As long as I live, I can... I can... 1
146 146 301 —Can what?
147 147 301 Roland I can return to a normal quiet life...? 1
148 148 301 Roland looks at his broken arm and the red light in it, and smiles.
149 149 204 1 2
150 150 301 Roland ...Haha. Who am I kidding? Corrupted? 1
151 151 202 1 1
152 152 301 RImgBg1Shake Suddenly, he collapses onto the ground.
153 153 301 Maybe his M.I.N.D. has recovered some processing power, or maybe his hearing module has finally clicked into place. As Roland lies on the ground, the faint wailing suddenly becomes clear in his ears.
154 154 301 The place looks like a scrapyard, but with the sound of so many fleeing Constructs, it's bustling with noise. The loud yelling, crashing and bursts of sound remind Roland of some New Year's programs he had seen in the park.
155 155 301 But the sound goes on for too long.
156 156 301 Construct Ahhh... AHHHH!!! Rghhh!!! That hurts!
157 157 201 1 500252 1
158 158 301 1 Roland Oh, right. I said that line a few months ago. 1
159 159 301 Construct What's that racket?! Someone break my hearing module! That thing is too damn loud!
160 160 204 1 2
161 161 301 Roland Haha. that's a good one. I had the same problem when I first became a Construct. I probably said the same thing. 1
162 162 301 Construct No! Why would I do that! I've had to kill my friends just to survive. Now I gotta...
163 163 204 1 1
164 164 301 Roland But I never said that, though. I have no friends. I can try saying the line a few times, though. 1
165 165 301 Roland This actually sounds pretty catchy. I'm sure a remix would top the charts for at least a week. The title of the album may be "Roland and His Friends among the Scrapheap" or something like that. 1
166 166 301 Roland Should I help those people? I could try making them feel better by saying help is on the way, and they'll be saved soon. After all, acting is my forte. But damn, my whole body is killing me. I can't even move. Besides, looking like this, how could a freak like this fool them... 1
167 167 301 Listening to the sound of all the screaming, he taps his finger. It's almost as if his pain is resonating with the screams, numbing the pain emanating from all around his body.
168 168 301 Miraculously, the pain seems to subside along with the rhythm of the song.
169 169 301 Or perhaps the Punishing Virus has already destroyed his ability to feel pain.
170 170 202 1 1
171 171 301 Now that his body was completely infected by the virus, a white light seems to shine in front of him.
172 172 201 1 500020
173 173 301 1 Mechanoid Make your wishes a reality. Your values a reality. Join us... 1
174 174 301 Peeling away from the white light, he sees a giant mechanoid. By the sound of its fragmented speech, it seems its vocalizer is broken. Its frame is badly damaged, but by the look of the huge smile carved into it, it appears to be a publicity mechanoid.
175 175 301 This smiling face occupies Roland's vision. It approaches step by step with its fist held high, but Roland is powerless to move.
176 176 201 1 500252 1
177 177 301 1 Roland Crushed by a hulking beast as the end of the act... How original. Hahaha... 1
178 178 301 Roland Ha... Just get it over quickly. 1
179 179 301 Roland closes his eyes and spreads his arms and legs, as if to expose his weakness to the mechanoid in front of him and as a gesture for it to kill him. If anyone saw him now, they'd surely sigh and wonder how he managed to look more relaxed than someone on death row.
180 180 201 1 500020
181 181 301 1 Mechanoid Make your wishes a reality. Your values a reality. Join us. Our company will. Make all your wishes. Come true! 1
182 182 201 1 500252 2
183 183 301 1 Roland Wishes... heh... 1
184 184 301 Just listening to the recording, the publicity robot in front of him seems to be smiling and inviting Roland to join some mysterious company. But after being corrupted, it looks more like a cruel executioner with red eyes. He involuntarily clenches his fist at such a thought.
189 189 301 If someone tells you to make a wish...
190 190 301 What would you ask for?
191 191 301 Strength? Money? Power?
192 192 301 Perhaps most people would be quiet and think it over first in order to sort through thousands of wishes and then pick the one with the highest priority.
193 193 301 Even though it's just a casual question, and there is no promise to make their wishes come true, humans will still foolishly waste their time putting their wishes in order just in case they were ever to meet a genie.
194 194 301 Humans are such greedy creatures that they don't even realize it most of the time.
195 195 301 Are you talking about me...? I'd think it over quietly, but I'd never come up with an answer.
196 196 301 Because I don't have any wishes.
197 197 301 I was convinced that the pursuit of purpose is human instinct. Only in the journey of pursuing a purpose can one truly live and have a life.
198 198 301 That's why I worked hard to tell the lies of an actor and pursue a peaceful future with my family.
199 199 301 For the sake of my purpose... I deceived so many people, including some kind soul, including myself.
200 200 301 In the end, I just witnessed a big lie. Just like those lies, I saw this Golden Age get easily destroyed by the Punishing Virus.
201 201 301 After that, I was transformed into a Construct. I didn't want to be, but I was saving the world like a real hero.
202 202 301 For a moment, I even began to think that it was suitable to live as a Construct and make world peace as my new purpose.
203 203 301 But as you can see, the Punishing Virus destroyed all hope of achieving my new purpose. Faced with the Punishing Virus, Constructs and cutting-edge technology were far more fabricated than any lie.
204 204 301 Just like my life as a human.
205 205 301 And now, I have lost even the faintest wish to live on.
206 206 301 Roland ...So I've chosen not to struggle or be hopeful. Maybe I will consume all my energy and then rot in this scrapyard. Doesn't that sound just fine? 1
207 207 301 Closing his eyes, his vision turns into a black hole. Behind this void, a huge fist is about to fall.
244 244 301 Roland dodges the giant fist as it slowly falls, then exerts strength in his wrist once more and pulls out the metal pole. Attached to it, he sees a massive core and a tangled mess of wires.
245 245 301 It is the Corrupted's core. Even though the mechanoid is huge, the crack in its frame exposed its core. Seizing the opportunity, Roland is able to easily pry it out and weaken it.
246 246 301 Roland had noticed it when he first saw the mechanoid approach. All he had to do was lay on the ground and wait for it to approach. From that angle, the core was fully exposed. All he had to do was pluck it out with a gentle flick of the wrist.
251 251 301 Roland Heh... How... How'd I know to do that... 1
252 252 301 Roland Whatever. It doesn't matter. Now... Right. Now I need to look around and see if... 1
253 253 301 He tosses the core onto the ground and forces himself to his feet. Looking around, confused, the wailing sound still continues, but it seems to be muted by something.
254 254 301 Roland ...? 1
255 255 301 Roland notices a mysterious white color floating through the pile of abandoned frames. Just by looking at it, the wailing sound seems to deafen.
256 256 301 It is a strand of hair. No, two strands. Roland sees long white hair tied into two bunches floating through the scrapyard.
257 257 301 1 AniZhuanchangBegin It dazzles like cold artificial sunlight. But in this dark abyss, he can't avert his eyes.
