NIKKE: The Apocalypse Arrives, But the System is 100 Years Late

She was none other than Mihara.

Ever since she broke away from Syuen's forces at Missilis Industry, she had chosen to follow Mo Chen and remained at the outpost base.

She had since been assigned to the Disciplinary Unit, which was responsible for enforcing punishments on Nikkes or humans who violated rules.

It was a role that perfectly suited Mihara's abilities.

Additionally, she also worked part-time as the squad leader for the patrol team, tasked with patrolling the perimeter of the outpost to prevent Rapture invasions and inspecting incoming Nikkes for mental stability, physical conditions, and other abnormalities.

Mo Chen had anticipated that, with the outpost making such significant progress, there would inevitably be infiltrators attempting to sneak in—either to gather intelligence or sabotage operations.

Therefore, strict monitoring of new arrivals was necessary to prevent enemy infiltration.

When the wandering Nikkes heard that this was the outpost's patrol team, they were initially skeptical.

But after confirming it, they were overjoyed, some even leaping into the air. The exhaustion and hardship from the past few days seemed to vanish.

A few Nikkes were so overwhelmed with emotion that they began to cry.

For them, this was no less than a near-death escape.

Although Nikkes were controlled by NIMPH, their emotions were still intact.

They could feel fear and anxiety, yet due to their programming, they had to follow orders—even marching to their deaths. Otherwise, they would be executed on the spot.

Part of the Disciplinary Unit stayed behind to clean up the battlefield, finishing off any surviving Raptures and collecting scraps to be transported back to the outpost as construction materials.

Another team began transporting the wounded Nikkes to the outpost.

Only then did the wandering Nikkes realize they were less than ten kilometers away from their destination.

While relieved, they also felt deep sorrow.

So many of their companions had likely failed to reach this place they had been dreaming of.

"Mihara."

At that moment, a pink-haired Nikke came bouncing over, grabbed Mihara's hand, and playfully licked it, her bright eyes practically forming heart shapes.

"Stop it, Yuni."

Mihara gently stroked Yuni's cheek and smiled.

"The Commander said we shouldn't be too intimate in front of others. It doesn't leave a good impression."

"Yuni is very obedient."

Yuni nodded quickly, acting like a well-behaved child.

However, she soon looked troubled.

"But why doesn't the Commander let me get close to him? He clearly has so much fun with Mihara. Why won't he join us?"

"Don't be impatient," Mihara said, smoothing Yuni's pink hair and adjusting the accessory on her head.

"The Commander has a lot of work to do right now. Once he's less busy, we'll go find him together, okay?"

"Okay!"

Yuni's eyes sparkled as she licked her lips, her expression hungry—like a predator eyeing its prey.

"As long as I can play with the Commander, I'll do whatever Mihara says. But it can't take too long, or I won't be able to wait any longer."

The other Nikkes, watching this exchange between the two, blushed and secretly thought it was too bold.

Meanwhile, Ludmilla was focused on the person they referred to as the Commander.

Was this Commander really so popular?

"Yuni, did you bring the item I asked for?"

Mihara suddenly remembered the task she had given Yuni.

"Got it."

Yuni pulled a bottle out of her pocket, holding it carefully in her hands as she showed it off to Mihara like a child presenting a treasure.

Ludmilla noticed that it was a spray bottle but couldn't tell what it was for.

"Go help them," Mihara said, pinching Yuni's cheek.

"If any of the Nikkes die, the Commander will blame you."

"Yuni doesn't want the Commander to blame her."

Clearly worried about upsetting Mo Chen, Yuni clutched the bottle tightly and hurried over to the wounded Nikkes, spraying the contents generously over the ones who were barely clinging to life.

The Nikkes looked at each other, unsure of what Yuni was doing.

These Nikkes were already on the verge of death—their life signs were fading, and their support systems had collapsed. Even if they were sent to the repair bay now, it would be too late to save them.

However, a miraculous scene unfolded.

After being sprayed with the mist, the Nikkes who were on the brink of death gradually began to stabilize their breathing. Their life signs improved, and even their damaged mechanical structures began reconstructing themselves at a visible rate.

The stray Nikkes had never seen such advanced technology before. They gathered around in astonishment, marveling at the process.

They had heard of repairing parts through replacements, but they had never seen something that could be fixed just by spraying a few times.

It was difficult to comprehend!

After all, machines weren't flesh and blood—they couldn't regenerate out of thin air. That wasn't science; it was practically magic.

However, once the principles behind it were understood, it no longer seemed so far-fetched.

In reality, it was similar to the recovery medicine seen in NieR: Automata—a type of nanobot-based repair technology. On a microscopic scale, these nanobots repaired the damaged systems using resources from the subject itself or surrounding materials.

Ludmilla was secretly astonished.

From what they were saying, this recovery spray had been given to them by that commander.

She had never heard of anything like this before.

Could it be that during the time she was away, the technology in the Ark had evolved once again?

"Is this... magic?"

Ludmilla felt a slight tug on her arm and turned to see Alice staring up at her with wide, amazed eyes.

"Mm."

"Wow, that's amazing! Queen, let's hurry to the Sanctuary!"

Alice was already too excited to wait any longer.

With the Disciplinary Squad leading the way, the journey was smooth and uneventful.

Ludmilla looked at the mountains of Rapture corpses scattered along the road and couldn't help but feel a chill.

How many Raptures had they killed to pile up this many corpses?

She figured that even if she spent her entire life hunting Raptures, it wouldn't amount to one percent of what had been taken down here.

Noticing Ludmilla's expression, one of the Nikke squad leaders leading the group mistook her concern for fear and reassured her with a smile.

"Don't worry. All the Raptures around here have already been cleared out. It's perfectly safe."

Ludmilla nodded, but she couldn't resist probing further about the squad's strength.

From what she'd seen, these Nikkes were highly disciplined and well-trained—probably elite forces stationed at the outpost.

"Oh, no, no! We're nothing like elites," the Nikke squad leader said, scratching her head sheepishly and grinning. "We just go on patrols and help clean up small fries. The Commander's main force is the one that's truly amazing."

This wasn't the elite?!

Ludmilla froze for a moment.

Their precise coordination and tactical execution were beyond what ordinary squads could achieve.

"Oh, that?" The squad leader laughed. "That's all thanks to the Commander's training. We're just..."

Before she could finish, someone called out to her, seemingly with urgent business.

The squad leader apologized, "Sorry, I've got something to take care of. Ah, by the way, tonight we're having a celebration! Enjoy yourselves!"

Ludmilla's curiosity about this mysterious commander only grew stronger.