Rust - Chapter 963



Only Krnovel

Rust [RUST] – Episode 963

Maru realized that this shaking was not a simple vibration.

“earthquake···?”

I feel a bit strange.

It was definitely similar to the feeling I had back in Japan, although it was faint.

Woodddddddddd—-

Although the Vladivostok Tower had its overall defenses improved through remodeling, it was not easy to withstand earthquakes that shook up, down, left, and right. This was especially true because the building had not been designed to withstand earthquakes or to isolate earthquakes from the foundation.

[Earth. Earthquake.]

[It’s okay. The lab has been reinforced. And this side has been renovated to block out mental waves. Even if the building collapses, it’ll be okay here.]

The scene where Ki-soon is trying to comfort Na-ju-yeon, who is turning blue, is revealed in a distorted screen from time to time.

‘A major earthquake?’

Even as the shaking grew stronger, Maru focused on the sensation he felt. It wasn’t like the great earthquake he had felt when he escaped from Japan.

Wood—-

Even though the vibration that had been shaking for about 15 seconds gradually died down, the feeling was not completely erased, like residue stuck in the anus.

And then the voice of the artificial intelligence Diana rang out.

[Current time 11:23 AM. A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Detroit and Windsor. The epicenter is estimated to be 10 km underground···.]

It was a 5.8 magnitude earthquake. I always heard news of earthquakes measuring 6 or 7, so I was relieved to hear that it was a 5.8 earthquake.

But even a 5.8 earthquake was no small feat. Walls of old brick buildings and roofs of wooden buildings collapsed, and gas and water pipes burst in some places.

In an instant, the roads became a mess, including places where the roads were blocked or cracked. Fortunately, there was no looting of stores or robberies–

–Kaaaaaaah!

–Caw, caw!

Maru’s eyes caught sight of crows that had flown in just before the earthquake and were still circling the sky in excitement even after the earthquake had ended.

[There have been no incidents of theft, robbery or looting in Detroit and Windsor.]

Even as Diana reported the damage, Maru’s expression did not brighten.

It felt like the earthquake hadn’t ended yet. Maru had never let this feeling pass him by. Even now that he had gained control of the Garden of Death, it was the same.

“Mobilize all airships to evacuate the people. Order them to send recovery support to the surrounding ant kingdoms.”

[Emergency evacuation order has been issued.]

After the earthquake, Detroit and Windsor, just across the bridge, were in shambles. The bridge didn’t collapse under the magnitude 5.8, but there were cracks here and there.

Although it was still safe enough, people didn’t think so. The large airship was changed into a passenger module to carry people instead of the cargo it was carrying.

“Where is there no earthquake damage?”

[The northern Canadian stronghold of Fortress and the area around Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec.]

“What are the chances that the earthquake will reach there?”

[The current earthquake is completely inconsistent with existing records and there is insufficient information to make a prediction.]

Maru made a decision right away. Evacuate first.

“Let’s disperse and evacuate to that side for now.”

[All right.]

After analyzing the situation and determining that the danger had passed, they could return. Maru’s quick decision led to the evacuation.

There was minimal damage to the Vladivostok Tower, with a few cracked windows, problems with solar panels on the windows, and cracks in the underground parking garage.

The building had been remodeled to be able to withstand missiles and bombings to some extent, so it seemed to be unaffected by a magnitude 5.8 earthquake.

Even though they were inside the obviously safe Vladiak Tower, that subtle feeling didn’t change. As the strange feeling continued, Maru made a decision.

“Evacuate everyone in Vladiak Tower.”

[Simulation results show that the Vladivostok Tower can withstand an earthquake exceeding magnitude 6.5.]

Above all, if we were to evacuate so hastily, the only way would be to freeze most of the research and then evacuate. That meant leaving behind the bio-terminals and samples, including the brain-drum device.

“doesn’t care.”

[Initiate emergency evacuation procedures.]

I never thought this would happen, leaving the move to the floating city behind.

Through this incident, AI Diana and Samantha realized that the Holy Kingdom is vulnerable to disasters such as earthquakes.

This was because they could not evacuate in this emergency. The main bodies of the artificial intelligence Diana and Samantha were in the supercomputer.

The module that Tria was in was removed, but the weight of the module they were in was close to several tons. Even if they were to disassemble and move it, a tower crane would be needed. An emergency escape was out of the question.

[······.]

[······.]

AI Diana and Samantha were quiet while conducting emergency evacuation operations. If the earthquake was over, there would be no problem as they would be relocated to the floating city within a few days.

No, is there really no problem? Up until now, they had no particular sense of crisis. Vladimir Kalin, who ruled over death. So there was Maru.

It was because they had the world’s strongest military force and strategic nuclear weapons. They had gods, a multi-ethnic army, and the best weapons, so of course they were safe.

If those in charge of artificial intelligence were dangerous enough, it would mean that the Sacred Kingdom was on the brink of destruction. But that wasn’t the case.

It was a dangerous situation, regardless of military power. In historical records and future prediction simulations, there was no case of a dangerous earthquake in Detroit or Windsor.

[His Majesty has ordered an evacuation.]

[I guess that means there is a possibility of danger.]

Both Diana and Samantha knew of Maru’s unique sense, although he stopped using it after he started dealing with death.

When he gave an illogical order like this, it was probably because of his unique intuition.

[The evacuation of researchers has begun.]

[The main research lab and laboratory are separated by a barrier wall.]

[Emergency security system initiated. Armed guard device authorized to operate.]

[Robot guards, including automatic turrets, have begun operating.]

Diana and Samantha’s voices echoed throughout the supercomputer room.

‧

The combined population of Detroit and Windsor was nearly 4 million.

Considering that the population of the Holy Kingdom does not exceed 5 million, it would not be wrong to say that the Detroit + Windsor area actually makes up most of the Holy Kingdom’s living area.

It was partly because of the crowds that flocked to Detroit and Windsor because of the Free Canada affair, and partly because of people who came to fill the places left by the exodus to the floating cities.

“Let’s evacuate the patients and the refugees whose roofs or walls have collapsed first.”

[How about moving to the floating city now?]

The hood was like this anyway. He suggested that we start moving to the floating city. It was a good idea. The finishing work wasn’t completely finished yet, but it wasn’t a bad idea to start moving now.

“Let’s do that.”

[Let’s get started right away.]

Migration through evacuation has begun.

‧

The floating city on Lake Superior was picturesque. A bit different from the original design, the city was made up of seven pieces, resembling flower petals unfolding.

A shape with six petals surrounding the central module in the middle. Each petal can support a population of at least 1 million, and more than 2 million, so the entire floating city can support a population of well over 10 million.

Although he could have easily brought all the citizens of the Holy Kingdom, Maru strictly observed the conditions for moving into the floating city.

Active duty military personnel and their immediate family members.

Research staff, technical staff and their immediate family.

In the case of relatives, when they have specialized knowledge and skills.

This was the basic condition.

They had to have no criminal record and no anti-social, anti-national, or unethical thoughts.

The number of people who migrated to the floating city thus reached one million.

“Mom, are we going to live here now?”

“okay.”

“Can I choose the wallpaper?”

“Let’s find out together.”

[Researchers and technicians are requested to gather at Vladiak Tower 2 in the center.]

“I heard that there is upgraded equipment.”

“Research equipment is important, but the materials and samples we used before haven’t arrived yet.”

“I’ll be back soon.”

It was perhaps fortunate that the migration to the floating city and the evacuation to earthquake-safe areas took place simultaneously.

“It seems like it’ll take a long time to get to Ottawa.”

“I’m glad it’s Ottawa. I wish I had gone to Montreal or Quebec.”

In Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec, many areas of infrastructure were not restored.

“What about electricity?”

[We will connect by tomorrow morning. We will return when Detroit is deemed safe, so please excuse the inconvenience.]

The refugees nodded their heads at the polite voice coming from the guide robot.

“Damn, the water isn’t coming out.”

“I’ll bear with it since they’re giving me bottled water.”

“Are you telling me to wash with raw water?”

“When I was at home, I told him to wash, but he didn’t.”

Although it was okay compared to the half-destroyed Mississauga and Toronto, it was true that the infrastructure was a mess because it was a city where Kim Yang and the punitive force had been fighting against mutant monsters.

[The electricity and water connections are expected to be completed within three days.]

If it had been normal, it would have been difficult to recover this quickly, but the Holy Kingdom had an army of rat engineers and worker ants.

Click- click- (This way. It’s disconnected here.)

Kik-kik- (takes the pipe.)

Sizzle? (What are you talking about? You brought a pipe?)

Kikrik- kikrik- (brings a pipe.)

Although they could not communicate with each other, the work that had been going on underground progressed quickly. Above all, the rats had now completely sprouted thumbs.

Chijijik-

Snap- (weld the other side too!)

Sizzle- (I know. You’re doing it.)

Since being supplied with rat-specific tools, the rats have become quite capable of doing things like welding pipes on their own.

Sizzle- (My daughter-in-law recently gave birth to a grandson, and well, his thumb is two joints long.)

Chiiik? (Really. Oh. How about connecting with our granddaughter?)

The thumb, which had been about half a segment long, began to develop distinct segments over several generations, which meant that the mice were beginning to use their forelimbs as hands.

“They said it would take a few days, but the water came out right away.”

“Without even breaking the road?”

“Have you seen the construction?”

“No. I didn’t even hear any construction noise?”

“That’s amazing. What kind of technique is it?”

“It’s not about the technology. It’s about Greg, the plumber next door, who lost his job.”

“Come to think of it, Matthew, who was working on undergrounding power lines and communication networks, also said that his workload has been greatly reduced.”

“That’s strange. Since the infrastructure is damaged, it would be normal for there to be a lot of infrastructure construction work.”

Emergency infrastructure reconstruction in Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec is complete with the help of engineers from rats and ants.

‧

Urrrrrr-

Just a few days later, a 5.4 earthquake shook Detroit and Windsor again. Most people were evacuated, but the ants and rats did emergency reinforcement work, so there was little damage.

Krrrrrr-

And then, over the course of a week, there were earthquakes of magnitudes 5.7, 5.5, and 4.9.

[Isn’t the earthquake ending now? It’s getting weaker.]

Ki-soon, who was in the Vladislav Tower isolation laboratory, said with a sigh of relief.

“It doesn’t seem like it will end easily.”

The Joseph Meyer brainwashing samples, including Gisun, could not be transported to the floating city. They had to be transported under strict control, and if an earthquake occurred during transport or the seal was broken, a major accident could occur.

[Is that how you feel?]

“Yeah. It’s similar to what I felt in Japan.”

[This is driving me crazy. Japan is a magma paradise under the island. Liquefaction? That’s why it’s easy for that to happen, but that’s not the case here.]

Even though the Empire detonated a strategic nuclear weapon, it did not affect the Holy Kingdom, which was located 1,000 kilometers away from the Ring of Fire.

“They said that it was something that couldn’t even happen through simulation.”

Maru didn’t relax.

Who knew Japan would collapse like that?

Who knew such a huge sinkhole would form in Tokyo?

[Don’t worry, I’ll be keeping a close eye on this brainwashing.]

“That’s right. If anything happens, the brain and samples will all be turned into fertilizer.”

[Hey. I have one too?]

“If you die a heroic death, I will resurrect you.”

[Crazy. Is this true? Are you serious? Didn’t you say you wouldn’t do that?]

“If we keep living and dying, won’t things get better?”

Maru’s expression, which had been giggling and teasing, suddenly hardened.

[Hey- Are you serious? I···.]

“···It’s coming.”

The smell of the air changed. The atmosphere changed, as they say the air changes just before a major earthquake.

Kaaaaaaah!

Kaaaak!

Crows flying in the sky.

And at the same time the ground shook like waves.

once-

Twice-

thrice-

The sound of thunder follows.

Kurrurururur—-

A thunder that comes from the ground, not from the sky.

A low, deep rumble began to spread along with the vibration.

Quadddddddddddd—-

The building next to the Vladislav Tower collapsed limply as if it had been blown up. The collapse continued like dominoes.

[Hey- Us- This-]

Ki-soon, who was pale, grabbed the wall and screamed.

pop-

Clang-

The moment the special glass window broke due to the vibration and twisting, the floor jumped out through the burst window.

Whirlyrick-

Death rose from the tip of the floor and grabbed the Vladiak Tower. The view of the floor hanging in the air.

Kwarrrrrrrrrr-

Urrrrrrrr-

Detroit was falling apart in real time.

‘Fuck.’

Maru unfolded a garden of death towards the Vladislav Tower, which was teetering precariously.

“Just the vines. Tie the outside with the vines!”

In the Garden of Death, black vines began to coil around the exterior of Vladiak Tower.

Ppachik-

Black vines covered the side of the tower, as if wrapping a bandage around it.

Woojikkeun-

Ki-soon’s screams grew louder as the vines wrapped around the pillar, like a cast, to protect it from bursting and breaking.

[Eww–]

After the earthquakes that seemed like they would never end began to subside.

The only building left in the vicinity was the Vladivostok Tower.

.