Infinite Dendrogram - Volume 18 - Chapter 2.5

Interlude

Gaol

Somewhere in this world—at the infamous gaol, to be more specific—something unusual was occurring.

The nameless town that the prisoners inhabited was currently devoid of any signs of life.

All the gaol’s residents save for a select few had died and vanished from this world.

The townscape, styled straight out of a western movie, was completely barren. The only things of note here now were the automated item-dispensing vending machines, leaking light and sound onto the ghost town’s streets. Even those had something strange about them, though, with some of the machines displaying confirmation or selection screens as if people had vanished while using them.

The town’s death had been just that sudden and indiscriminate.

“...This is just creepy,” said Gerbera—one of the few Superior prisoners—as she looked out the window of her clan leader’s café, Dice.

Her bored, listless tone and her casual pose, with her chin resting on her hand and her elbow on the counter, hid it well, but there was no exaggeration in her words—she was actually creeped out.

That comment was directed at the person sitting next to her, taking sips from a caramel macchiato.

“Hee hee! A GODlike day for a GOD like me! How wonderful it is to drink such a perfect caramel macchiato here in the gaol! Good job, Sechsy!” spoke the cross-dressing boy—King of Plagues, Candy Carnage. His manner of speaking was about as inelegant as a person could sound.

“I am glad you like it,” replied Sechs—the owner of this establishment.

Next to Candy, there was a hammer-like measuring flask about as big as himself.

Even though the object resembled a measuring flask, it was hard to tell if that was actually what it was. The transparent spherical section was split into multiple layers, each of which looked like slowly turning petri dishes growing some kind of culture. In several places on the sphere’s surface, there were holes apparently spraying something invisible to the naked eye into the air around them.

Gerbera knew that this object had caused the deaths of everyone in the gaol except for them.

The strange measuring flask was King of Plagues’ Superior Embryo. A rare triple hybrid as well as a “twin” simultaneously belonging to two categories that branched out from the Arms type, it was a Type Legion/Weapon/Calculator, and its name was “Pestilent Divinity, Resheph.”

True to its name, which it shared with a deity of plagues that had left a mark on both Egyptian and Abrahamic texts, this Embryo was a potent exterminator even by the high standards of Superiors.

Gerbera knew several of its capabilities.

Its core traits were “malignancy mutation” and “contagion magnification.”

Once Resheph was supplied with cells or materials from living organisms, it could automatically research, develop, grow, and release bacteria that exerted certain effects against them.

The most terrifying thing about this Embryo, however, was the fact that the bacteria it released could not be controlled in any way. The most Candy could do was set a limit on their multiplication and lifespan, or take samples from certain creatures and analyze them to exclude them as targets of the contagion. That was exactly what Candy had done with himself, Sechs, Gerbera, and Alhazred in this situation.

But that was the extent of the control he had, and it was uncertain how far the contagion could spread without such limitations. It was possible that without the involvement of the control AI, the bacteria he’d left outside of the gaol would still be spreading even now.

...That means that this café is crawling with germs, doesn’t it? Gerbera thought. That’s just dirty and depressing... I can’t even drink my coffee like this. Stirring the coffee in her favorite dolphin-themed cup, she heaved a sigh.

Released without any limitations, the modded bacteria demonstrated extraordinary effectiveness.

Resheph was currently releasing three types of pathogens.

First was “Soiled Future,” which simultaneously inflicted heavy disease and binding-based debuffs.

Second was “Collapsed Present”—a carnivorous bacteria which ate the infected organism from the inside.

And the third was “Punctured Past,” which improved the activity of the other pathogens already infecting the body.

The resulting triple biohazard had exterminated the prisoners without even giving them a chance to resist. Enhanced by the “Past,” the “Future” was too strong for all but those with considerable debuff countermeasures, while the “Present,” since it was nothing but a bacteria that consumed flesh, would continue ravaging the body even if the infected drank an Elixir.

As the Superior Job of the pestimancer grouping, King of Plagues also had the Underground Prosperity skill, which further increased the vitality and infectious capacity of the pathogens. It was possible that the bacteria would continue to spread until they buried the entire gaol.

Candy had no means of controlling them once they were released, so not even he could stop them now.

Even if he were capable of it, though, doing so would require him to want to stop the contagion in the first place. The fact that he would never consider doing that, combined with the very fact that his mind birthed an Embryo like Resheph, placed him among the most unhinged Masters even by Superior standards.

It was what had gotten him the nickname of “Legionkiller,” as well what had led to every building in the small country he’d extinguished becoming a ruined gravestone to the people who had once lived there.

Wait... Gerbera thought. We gave him our hair for his Embryo to analyze. That was so he could exclude us as targets for his bacteria, but...that means he can also create bacteria that only targets us. He’s got us by the throat.

It suddenly occurred to Gerbera that Candy held her life in the palm of his hand, but then...

...Oh, wait. If he wants me dead, I’ll die either way.

...she realized that regardless of whether he made his contagion targeted or indiscriminate, she couldn’t escape it...

Huh. So there’s no point in caring about it... Ugh...

Following that thought, she let her head drop on the counter, fully aware that she’d been making that gesture far too often recently.

Wait, but what about our leader...? Oh...yeah. Gerbera considered Sechs, who’d given Candy his hair just like she did, but then realized something else.

He can just change his cells around if he feels like it. Actually, I don’t even know if bacteria can do anything to slimes...

Gerbera had been told that Sechs and Hannya had once teamed up to defeat Candy. She could only assume that Sechs’s slimy nature had rendered the pathogens ineffective.

But then what about Hannya...? Oh, I think I know...

She considered the other Superior and soon realized that she, too, stood a chance against Candy.

One of the core traits of Hannya’s Sandalphon was the randomization of the local space. Since Candy was the epicenter of the contagion, anyone facing him would likely die before they got close.

However, Sandalphon potentially allowed Hannya an almost instantaneous approach, as well as the safety of being a kilometel up in the air.

I guess she wins against him in the game of compatibility... I know I can’t do that...

The bacteria targeted any organisms regardless of whether or not Candy acknowledged them, making it impossible for Gerbera’s Alhazred to defend against him.

...I guess I could do something when I’m right next to him...like I am now. However, the only reason they were this close in the first place was that they were allies.

Facing Candy Carnage properly meant crossing a country-sized biohazard exclusion zone. Many tians and Masters alike had tried to do so and failed in the attempt. Even The Hero’s sword couldn’t sever the thread of KoP’s life.

It was thanks to this that Candy Carnage had become the greatest tian genocider, and how his King of Plagues job had reached the high level of 1,680.

Well, Alhazred’s out for a walk and we’re allies now. I can’t kill him, and I wouldn’t even want to try, Gerbera thought. Imagine the grudge he’d hold if I managed it, though... she sighed.

Candy had actually killed Gerbera once, but she now had enough perspective to know that it had been her own fault for walking into a battle where he had the advantage.

...Seriously, though—how did the Superior Killer do it? It was difficult for her to imagine how an Embryo that did nothing but fire living bullets could take out King of Plagues.

As all these thoughts about Candy were running through Gerbera’s mind...

“Okie then! I’m gonna log out for now! My skin needs some beauty sleep.”

...Candy said, standing up.

“Very well,” said Sechs. “Thank you for your work today.”

“The bacteria will spread on its own, so don’t you worry a bit. Starting now, the gaol’s gonna be a GODlike heaven where logging in = death!”

...Sounds more like hell to me, Gerbera honestly thought.

“See you two lateeer!” Candy said with a wink before finally logging out.

“...He’s finally gone,” Gerbera let out in a tired voice.

This certainly wouldn’t be the last time she would see Candy, though. After all, albeit temporarily, Candy was a member of Illegal Frontier.

“This is so depressing...” A clan with that thing in it is not the place to be, she added in thought before laying her head on the counter again.

Then again, Candy’s not the only one with a few screws loose. Just look at our leader. The man who’d welcomed her into the clan and talked to her more than anyone else here was plenty unhinged, as well.

...Does that mean that Rascal, Zeta, and Emily are all comparatively normal? Seriously...? Isn’t it kinda bad if the least crazy people in your group are a mummy and a murder child...? Now that I think about it, even Rascal is a perv who owns a robot maid, but I wonder how normal he is otherwise...? She’d upset some people if she said those words out loud, but no one could hear or confront her about them as long as they stayed in her head.

I guess I must be the most normal one after all... Again, no response.

“Wait, leader...why’d we kill everyone in town anyway?” she asked.

“Oh, did I not tell you?”

“All you told me was to ‘prepare for the move.’”

“And that is the entire reason. We are preparing to move.”

“Hm?” Gerbera tilted her head. If Infinite Dendrogram had emotes, a question mark would have been hovering above her head.

“In a few days, we are breaking out of the gaol.”

“...I’ve been wondering about this for a while, but is that really something you should be saying out loud?” Gerbera was worried that the gaol’s warden—the control AI known as Red King—would hear about their plans.

Naturally, she had completely forgotten that she had said the same thing back when she’d first arrived here.

With a smile plastered across his face, Sechs said, “Actually, the control AIs know everything avatars see and hear.”

“HUH?! Are you serious?! But I bathed here!” Gerbera exclaimed, covering her (nonexistent) chest.

This café had a sizable bath that she’d occasionally used alongside April. Prism People were fully water-resistant, remaining undamaged even if completely submerged. When bathing with April, though, Gerbera had never once even considered the possibility that it would damage her. If Flagman hadn’t made her water-resistant, Gerbera’s carelessness might’ve caused April to be lost forever.

“No need to worry,” said Sechs. “I am sure the control AI feels no lust for humans.”

“But won’t the devs in the studio be able to look over the data the AIs collect?”

“...Devs? Studio?” Sechs said and thoughtfully put his hand on his chin as though he’d just heard a very strange statement, only to remember something and nod before adding, “Ohh. There is no need to worry about that. I am sure of it.”

“...Really?”

“Yes. Also, we can talk about breaking out all we like. I already had a talk about it.”

“You did? With who?”

“Red King.”

Hearing the name of the gaol’s ruler absolutely shocked Gerbera.

“Huh?! You mean, he OK’d our escape?!” She couldn’t begin to understand why Red King—the warden of this place—would even suggest something like that.

“I suppose you could say that.”

“Hm?”

“These were his words...” Sechs said, turning his black eyes elsewhere. “‘Do it if you think you can.’ Well...let’s do just that, shall we?”

With that, Gerbera understood that breaking out of the gaol wasn’t exactly forbidden—there was merely something that prevented it, and whatever it was, the warden had limitless confidence in its ability to keep them inside.

Despite that, Sechs seemed to have just as much confidence that he could escape.

“Ahhh... I have no idea how we’re gonna do it, but you seem really sure that we will,” said Gerbera.

“I am. I would prefer to give you the details by email, though.”

“Hmm... All right. I’ll set up a throwaway and give it to you.”

“Please do. Oh, and let me answer your question about why I asked Candy to spread the bacteria,” he said as he looked out the window to the now-empty streets of the town. “It is so that no one would interrupt us when the time comes for our escape.”

“Interrupt us?”

“Some would simply get in our way, while others might see it as their own opportunity to escape. There is also a chance that these people would have Embryos that may be a major threat to any of us three.”

That was indeed a possibility.

With how varied Embryos could be, it was fairly likely that someone here in the gaol would have one that could counter even Superiors like them. Even if that wasn’t the case, it was possible that new Superiors or pre-Superiors would be sent to the gaol right before their prison break.

“I requested that Candy spread the bacteria to remove such uncertain variables. Since dying makes you unable to log in for three days, that will be how long we have to make our escape. Though, we still have to go around town and kill off the people who did not die from the bacteria.”

That was the explanation Gerbera needed.

It was certainly best if there was no one who could get in their way. Candy’s ability to continuously exterminate vast amounts of people was highly effective for this task, and it might’ve been one of the reasons why Sechs took him into the clan.

Anyway, it looks like I did the right thing, Gerbera thought.

“With that in mind, the two of us should go and finish off any survivors.”

“Uhh... Don’t bother,” Gerbera said, casually waving her palm.

“Hm?”

“Uhh... I only just now found out why we’re doing this, but I knew you were planning to kill everyone the moment Candy started spreading his bacteria, so...” Gerbera said as she pointed at the empty space—no, at the invisible assassin who had just returned. “I made Alhazred kill everyone who survived. All of them.”

It seemed as though she thought nothing of this deed one way or the other. However, on the inside, she happily puffed her (nonexistent) chest, extremely pleased with the levels she’d gained from this.

“It was fine that I did that, right?”

“Of course. Thank you very much. You saved me the trouble, after all.”

“Hey, I just gave the order to Alhazred. It’s no big deal...”

Countless people had died of a disease while an invisible assassin had picked off all the survivors. At this moment, the gaol was less like a prison and more like a hell.

Or, true to Gerbera’s nickname, it might be described as a nightmare.

“Oh. There is actually one person I didn’t kill,” added Gerbera. “Though, honestly, that one’s impossible...”

“Ah. I know exactly who you mean. You can ignore him—I doubt he will be leaving his domain soon.”

Someone who hadn’t succumbed to Candy’s bacteria and someone Gerbera couldn’t kill—this was none other than the last Superior of the gaol, staying firm within his domain away from town.

He’d rejected Sechs’s invitation, ignored Candy’s bacteria, caused Gerbera to steer away from him, and stood still right where he was.

“He will eventually escape by his own means,” said Sechs. “We will go on ahead without him.”

“...Fine by me,” said Gerbera. “But are you sure escape is even possible?”

“No need to worry. It was an uncertain prospect when it was just me and Candy, but with you here, I guarantee that we will be able to escape.”

“...Hmm.” Will I really be much help with that? Gerbera tilted her head and wondered. Though, if he’s right, that means my short—well, actually I guess it was kinda long—stay at the gaol is about to end, huh? There’s no place here that sells sweets besides Dice, so I’m kinda looking forward to getting out.

Albeit still unsure how it would be accomplished, Gerbera started to grow excited for the time when she’d finally leave this place. Soon, it was time for her to log out.

◆

Several hours later, she received the details of the prison break at the throwaway email she’d provided to Sechs. This elicited only yet another confused head tilt. Huh? That’s all it takes?