Editing Amaryllis in the Ice Country:Chapter 6 (section)

===Part 3===

The next day.

I put my elbows on the icy table, listlessly recalling all that has appeared the past few days.

One, two, three, four, five…six.

Six died. I can’t count them all with a hand, and I fold up the thumb to indicate a sixth.

It’s not the first time we have seen deceased in the village. In this cruel underground world that’s sealed in ice, the deterioration of robots is rapid, and there is a dire shortage of replaceable parts. Ever since we found that the Snow White spare parts were starting to be depleted, about one or two die every year since we started ‘extracting’.

—But six…

Never since the ‘end times’ a hundred years ago did we encounter so many deaths at once. All the villagers really get on well with each other, so the entire village is filled with sadness.

And there’s another reason as to why my heart feels so heavy.

—“Gappy’s so amazing…contributing for our masters, even until the very end…”

Daisy’s words echo in unison with Gappy’s.

—“Have, I contributed anything, to masters…”

To serve our masters, to live for them, and to die for them. This is our mission as the villagers, or raison d’etre. Gappy died after he fulfilled his mission. There is nothing to be ashamed of. This might even be the highest honor of them all, to die for this honor.

—But.

I can’t help but feel some doubt in my heart. The image of my kind masters, and that footage that seem to paint them completely different.





“—llyis!”





While I’m still brooding over this.

“Hey, Amaryllis! You hear me…?”

I lift my head, and before me is the blond flirt. He’s shaking my shoulders with a look of shock.

“Ah…” I finally recover. “Ah, sorry. Just thinking about this.”

“You alright? Quick, give me a wakeup kiss…ack.”

I give a good old wake up punch at the face of this shameless flirt, and turn to everyone else. Viscaria, who’s late, arrived before I knew it, so all the members are present.

“Sorry. Then, let’s get started.”

I sit on the chair again, clear my throat, and say,

“We’re holding an emergency meeting. Chief isn’t around, so this Senate meeting will be held by me, the Vice Chief…first, look at this.”

Tok, with my fingers, I tap at the table, and the holographic visual appear without a sound. It’s a combined picture of the Pillar graphs and the contour groups.

“Four days ago, we have an earthquake that really devastated us. Again, I shall offer my respects to the six compatriots who died…and here is the problem.”

I let the graph glow.

“Due to the earthquakes and frostbites over this period, the casualties keep increasing in numbers. The result is that our parts supply is strained to the limit. We have sixteen parts that cannot be changed anymore. We still have replacements, but even that has limits.”

“We’re probably going to see some dead next week.”

Eisbahn chimes in, “Too careless your words are.” Götz chides.

“Now then, as for the countermeasures that can work…”

I show the solutions on the screen.

■ Solving the parts shortage

(1) Cut down on supplies issued.

(2) Extend sleep mode.

(3) Carry out another extraction



“—These are the rough thoughts I have.”

Once done with my explanation, “A question, if I may ask?” Götz raises his hand.

“Yes, sure.”

“Personally, I’d say that I have no specific objection…but any of these will require the Chief’s permission, surely?”

“Hmm.”

Verbally smacked, I nod away.

“That’s true…we can’t make formal decisions without the Chief…”

I look at the table. Normally, the Chief’s head will be rolling around before me, but at this time, the only things are materials for the meeting.

“This is worrying…”

We lost contact with the Chief completely since days before that ‘earthquake’ happened. Even through the emergency contact installed in all the villagers, he hasn’t responded. This is really unprecedented.

“Probably caught in a collapse, trapped somewhere.”

Eisbahn nonchalantly notes.

“But even so, we can at least figure out where he is through the beacon’s signal, right?”

“So that means the beacon is also damaged now, isn’t it?”

“But how is it possible for that hard, sturdy beacon to break that easily…”

The beacon is an installation made convenient to search for people in danger, so of course, it’s very sturdy.

“What do you think, Viscaria?”

“Well…”

The robot most proficient with technology tilts her head, extending her feelers out.

“I can think of another possibility. Some place where electromagnetic waves can’t reach.”

“A place where electromagnetic waves can’t reach? But the entire village’s basically covered, right?”

“Yeah, so it’s a small possibility.”

—Eh, but…?

A certain memory awakens in my mind. A place where electromagnetic waves can’t reach. A place where a beacon can’t respond.

“Ah!”

I get up, and raises a possibility.

“The Secret Room!”