Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!

Chapter 1839 - 1837: The Price of Survival (Can Delivering Packages Be Addictive?)

Driving all the way forward, Captain Amamiya Ryōtan quickly arrived outside the city gates. Unlike other Mobile Cities, Fenrir did not move immediately, but stayed here continuously. In addition, outside the city gates, many people were seen waiting.

They looked like a group of refugees who had traveled long distances to get here. The Soldiers guarding the gate took out a stack of stickers and distributed them, and those people respectively took the stickers and pasted them on their arms, then closed their eyes and muttered prayers. After a moment, these people picked up the stickers pasted on their arms again.

Most of them sighed helplessly, yet among them, someone suddenly raised a hand.

"Great, I am qualified!"

As he said this, a man strode forward, waving his hand enthusiastically toward the Soldiers.

"Look, this should be enough, right!"

"No problem."

Hearing the man speaking, the Soldier nodded.

"Please go inside to handle the formalities."

"Wait, I, I have relatives... can they come with me?"

While speaking, the man pulled a few people from the crowd. Seeing these people, the Soldiers nodded as well.

"We will conduct a DNA test and then determine the situation."

While speaking, a Soldier waved his hand, the closed gate quickly opened, then the Soldier led these people inside. Meanwhile, Captain Amamiya Ryōtan also drove to the gate front and waved to the Soldier.

"Captain Amamiya."

Looking at Captain Amamiya Ryōtan, the Soldiers hurriedly saluted.

"Thank you for your effort. Who are these?"

"My guests, I will personally explain the specific situation to the higher-ups."

"Alright, please enter."

Soon, the group entered the city, and the gate closed again, and finally, the people outside began to stir.

"What’s this joke, let us in!"

"Let us in!"

A group of people even wanted to break through the Soldier’s blockade and rush into the city, but they were knocked down by the Soldiers. Seeing this, Misaka Mikoto couldn’t hold back anymore.

"How can they do this, this is simply..."

"Okay, sit down."

Watching Misaka Mikoto’s hair tips start to spark again, Fang Zheng slapped.

"This has nothing to do with you, and you can’t do anything about it."

"But, but this is too..."

"Excessive?"

"............"

Faced with Fang Zheng’s answer, Misaka Mikoto nodded, while Fang Zheng chuckled.

"Indeed excessive, so what?"

"Eh...?"

"Besides excessive, do you have anything else to say? Cruel? Cold-blooded? But what choice do you have?"

"Yeah..."

Hearing this, Captain Amamiya Ryōtan also sighed.

"I don’t want this either, but there is no other way. The resources Fenrir can obtain are limited, we must prioritize supply to the God Eaters, because God Eaters are the Source of Power and Guardian of Fenrir, this is more important compared to ordinary people."

"Jernie is the same."

Feli also spoke quietly.

"Martial Artists hold the highest status and are not subject to legal constraints, but even so, once the Contaminated Beasts attack the city, all Martial Artists must defend the city at all costs."

"Ability matches responsibility, but the treatment to be enjoyed is also the same."

Fang Zheng shrugged, glanced at Misaka Mikoto.

"You must understand, if it were you, one person could eliminate dozens of Wild Gods or Contaminated Beasts, but for ordinary people, perhaps even ten people couldn’t defeat one. It’s a simple calculation, when a city is in crisis, obviously those shouting ’awesome’ at the back won’t protect the city. Of course, they can provide logistics support and psychological encouragement, but truly facing threats and resisting them will always only be those powerful individuals."

"But this really is..."

"The world is inherently like this, in case of resource scarcity, sacrificing one part to preserve another is the fundamental principle of survival of the fittest. It’s like when a major disaster occurs somewhere, there are injured people needing treatment, but there are only a few doctors who can perform the surgery, how do they choose? Certainly to save those critically endangered lives first, as for other less severe injuries, they can only wait their turn. Do you think this is correct?"

Hearing Fang Zheng’s question, Misaka Mikoto pouted.

"Of course, that’s not wrong..."

"That’s right, indeed not wrong, but suppose I told you, among them some could preserve their limbs if there was enough time and manpower, yet due to the doctors’ choice, they have to amputate their limbs, then what?"

"This.........."

Hearing this, Misaka Mikoto suddenly found herself speechless.

"It’s the same with Tokiwadai. I can tell you honestly, the resources Tokiwadai uses on its students are enough to raise tens of thousands of LV1 Ability Users to LV2, but what does that mean? The admission requirement for Tokiwadai is LV3. Do you think that’s a decision made impulsively by the higher-ups? The difference in power between raising ten thousand LV1s to LV2 and raising one LV3 to LV4 is enormous, and I believe you know this very well. If there were unlimited resources, Academy City could indeed make everyone an Ability User, but first, do you have unlimited resources?"

........

This time, Misaka Mikoto was finally speechless, while Feli curiously glanced at them but said nothing more. Hearing this, Amamiya Ryōtan also had a moment of reflection, but he too remained silent and drove to the parking lot at Fenrir headquarters.

"Do you all want to head inside the headquarters first or take a look around outside?"

"Let’s take a walk outside first and enjoy the scenery."

Fang Zheng quickly gave the answer, and Amamiya Ryōtan also smiled slightly.

"No problem, please take this."

As he spoke, Amamiya Ryōtan took out a badge.

"What’s this?"

"This is a kind of pass. With this pass, you can enter the headquarters. Just tell the guards you were invited by Amamiya Ryōtan, and they will know what to do."

At this point, Amamiya Ryōtan nodded to everyone.

"Well then, I have some matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave first."

Watching Amamiya Ryōtan depart, Fang Zheng stretched lazily and then turned to look at the girls behind him.

"Alright, let’s take a stroll. It’s rare to come to a new city; we might as well enjoy the scenery first."

Hearing this, everyone collected their thoughts, putting aside what they had seen before, including Misaka Mikoto. She was initially upset about those people being treated roughly, but with Fang Zheng’s prompting, even Misaka Mikoto began to understand a bit more. After all, she had the same issue. You have to know there are still more than ten thousand Little Misakas. If Misaka Mikoto had to pay for their upkeep, she certainly couldn’t afford it. Furthermore, with so many clones, Misaka Mikoto found it hard to explain to the outside world.

If it wasn’t for Fang Zheng’s help, Misaka Mikoto truly wouldn’t know how to handle these sisters.

Just thinking about a thousand sisters lining up at her doorstep asking to be adopted... Misaka Mikoto somewhat understands the mindset and thoughts of those people.

On this side, Fang Zheng led Misaka Mikoto and others for a walk. Meanwhile, on the other side, Amamiya Ryōtan returned to Fenrir headquarters and took the elevator to the top floor.

"Minister John, I’ve returned."

"You’re back, Ryōtan."

Looking at Amamiya Ryōtan, the blonde man sitting behind the desk nodded. He was Johannes von Silczak, the minister of Fenrir’s Far East Branch.

"I heard you’ve brought some people back? Are they Qualified Individuals?"

"No, Minister John."

Amamiya Ryōtan shook his head.

"Honestly, I’ve come this time because of these guests. They aren’t God Eaters, but they possess power far beyond that of the God Eaters..."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Minister John’s eyes flashed with interest, and he sat up straight.

"Tell me more in detail."

"Yes."

Amamiya Ryōtan nodded and continued to report.

"Not long ago, I left Fenrir intending to search the settlements for suitable Divine Machine Qualified Individuals. However, when I arrived at one of these settlements, it was under attack by Wild Gods, and there were several people battling them. Their fighting style was unlike anything I’d ever seen before."

At this point, Amamiya Ryōtan closed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"First is a girl named Misaka Mikoto, who appears to be only fourteen or fifteen years old but can manipulate Thunder freely. With just a casual strike, she can reduce a Wild God to charred remains. I’ve never seen such an ability nor heard of anyone possessing such power."

"Hmm... that’s quite interesting."

Listening to Amamiya Ryōtan’s report, Minister John’s expression became intrigued.

"Continue."

"Yes, and then there’s a girl named Kuroko Shirai. Her ability is even more fearsome. She can traverse space at will, and from what I could see, she seems to be able to appear or disappear anywhere at ease, and she can even move people she’s in contact with to different locations. I’m not sure if there are any limits to this ability, but from what I’ve seen, this power is quite formidable."

For Amamiya Ryōtan, Kuroko Shirai’s ability left an even deeper impression than Misaka Mikoto’s. After all, controlling Thunder is something some advanced Wild Gods can do, but this kind of Spatial Movement... it’s the first time Amamiya Ryōtan has ever witnessed it.

"There’s also a girl named Saten Ruiko who can wield a sword with ease to slay Wild Gods, and that sword transforms from another girl! This is also an ability I’ve never seen before. Among these people, there’s also a girl named Feli Rose who possesses a power to observe the entire battlefield and communicate through a Telepathy-like ability. If I am not mistaken, this could be the ’Nen Aura’ ability rumored to be from the Mobile City in the south."

"Hmm..."

After hearing this, Minister John frowned deeply, contemplating.

"Is that all?"

"No, these are not the main points. In fact, besides these girls, there’s a man named Fang Zheng, roughly in his twenties. According to Mr. Fang Zheng, he’s traveling across the continent with those girls. Moreover, if my guess is correct, they must originate from a very powerful Mobile City, with many other Ability Users as powerful as them."

"So you’re suggesting...?"

"I think Fenrir should make contact and communicate with them. There might be opportunities for collaboration."

Indeed, this was the true reason Amamiya Ryōtan invited Fang Zheng and others. Fenrir’s location was utterly barren, making it challenging to collaborate with other places. Now that such an opportunity has appeared, Amamiya Ryōtan couldn’t let it pass. But he’s merely a commander of a unit, and for real diplomatic matters, he needed the Minister to handle it himself.

"It is indeed an interesting prospect. If what you say is true, then behind these people must be a very formidable entity..."

Contemplating for a moment, Minister John nodded.

"Alright, I understand. I will take charge of this matter."