Chapter 57 - Zero-One

As I spoke the agreement, those two words seemed enough for the Pact to come into effect.

[What is this!]

Wong Jiayin flickered red in the HUD which was the only visible change I personally noticed. My buddy 37 obviously noticed something more though.

There was a vague sense that 37 caught a lead once he got past his shock and I let my partner pursue it, not commenting on his focus turning away from the physical world.

Not that I really had the mind to ask what the Pact might have done since I was busy staring at the alien that suddenly rose up from behind the other Partner.

It was giant with long horns and wicked blades for arms. Only the low buzz of the wings emerging from the lower body like a skirt triggered my memories—this was probably not an alien but a giant nightmarish praying mantis. An insect that was more than 6-meters long with serrated sickles for arms that were half as long as Wong Jiayin's height of 1.6 meters.

This was probably the ace in the hole Jiayin had when she asked for the duel.

A had me jerking back in unpleasant surprise and confusion. I ignored the minuscule information it returned, only focusing on…

"A body?"

That giant praying mantis that looked like an alien life-form was the other AI that was bonded to Jiayin—01.

A high maniacal laugh reached my ears. The eighteen-year-old had her hands to her belly, her torso bowed forward from the strength of her malicious mirth.

"Hahaha! Level 50 is the threshold. You may be better at energy manipulation but you must have only spent your time in this world improving that single aspect. I am at a higher Level, I have worked hard to evolve…

"We are Zero-One and we will burn Gaellia to the ground in order to win!"

I unconsciously floated back a bit when I saw the girl and mantis's eyes glow with an ominous light.

Hey, their relationship seemed a bit uneven compared to mine and 37. It was the signs I noticed before that made me hold back and this was looking more like I had been right.

Instead of a mutual soul bound, 01 and Jiayin's looked like the eighteen-year-old was being manipulated like a puppet. It didn't help how the mantis was behind the girl, like a puppet master with its forelimbs raised as if tugging strings.

"Partner Thirty-Seven, Nori Kuroy, we will take your death as nourishment. It was our luck to find a Neutral Partner that will greatly advance our evolution." the AI said. Considering her mandibles were not made for the human tongue, it was quite obvious 01 was communicating via telepathic projection.

"Hey hey, you're just looking at me like a sack of EXP now," I said in a joking tone while my brows were furrowed.

"Enough talk. I will have your blood shower this city and feed Jiayin's Darkness!"

Crap.

I immediately had a ring of materialize around me like will-o'-wisps, the spell having gained the shade of green common to my mana after I received the Grimoire.

Sending the green spheres like bullets to the praying mantis that was growing larger, I clicked my tongue and retreated as it was also protected by a shield, wanting to not have this encounter right on top of the occupied city.

The recollection of the destroyed Pearltower was still vivid in my memory, and I had been fighting with that wind drake outside of the outpost-turned-settlement too.

"Where are you going?!"

This was long past the time to shoot quips at my opponent; I stayed silent as I barrel-rolled over the swipe that could have separated me into two. I pressed a hand over the flat of its scythe-like limb before pushing mana into it.

A spell with the same fundamentals of only it required physical contact. It was like an MRI and PET rolled into one, only the 'tracer' I used for the latter was my own mana. I did not like to use it on living beings because it could be categorized as a "Healing" Magic and might increase the risk of Mana Madness.

But it didn't matter if I hurt 01, because she wouldn't live long enough for the side-effects of to surface.

Jiayin was one thing but 01? 37 and I have never really brought this up, but it was a mutual understanding that while the AI could not exist without me, I could live without the AI.

I sent a large through the distance between us, the speed of my attack making Jiayin's look like it went through molasses, frowning when the shield lit up in sparks.

"You know nothing!" 01 laughed. "Pity for you that you were paired with N-37! Maybe it would have been different if you became a Hero."

'Hero' this. 'Hero' that. I don't give a fuck about being a hero!

Even with a shield, I wasn't so concerned about my "disadvantage" since the shield would eventually run out of power and I'd have a 5-second interval to land the killing blow.

"Hey, where are you going, you stupid bugged coding!" I exclaimed as the praying mantis surprisingly was the one to retreat. I unraveled the spell I had constructed as the 01 pair finally did something contrary to their relentless efforts to murder me.

I cast my senses out, the fact that we were in a Pact making it easier for me to pinpoint Jiayin and the fact she was heading back to the abandoned church.

What were they—

"Hey, I'll let you be a Hero for a moment!"

… For fuck's sake, where's a giant can of insect-killer when I needed it? I'm about to swat a bug down for being an annoying pest!

Why do they keep aiming for Crown City?!

01 was pissing me off.

As the attack that was formed between its mandibles was launched toward the city below, I didn't even bother forming the old spell that I knew wouldn't work. Instead, I slapped together a few shapes based on theories I was familiar with, manipulating vectors at a distance.

The met the invisible panel in the air and bounced back, rebounding to the praying mantis at twice the speed.

*Skree!*

01 screeched in surprise as the attack hit her in her face, going right through the shield. Unfortunately, since it was her own energy, there was minimal damage done.

"YOU!"

I flew in the air, keeping a distance from its sharp and dangerous limbs as I used the new "shield" to keep from 01 reenacting a kaijū movie on Crown City. Offensively, I was also not shirking, throwing magic attacks as I kept an eye on the red HP bar of my enemy.

were mixed in with my much more varied Wind Magic. and pummelled and cut at the shield, steadily lowering its power levels.

"Nori Kuroy," there was a hint of unease in her voice now. "What are you? How can your energy manipulation be at this power in only a month?"

I didn't respond, seeing I've chipped away their HP until there was only a quarter left. It had taken a while, mostly since 01 refused to be baited to leave the sky over occupied areas of the city and I was trying to keep collateral damage to a minimum.

This was not like the fight with the wind drake where I was the underdog. That I wasn't too hassled enough that I could still think about preventing collateral damage told me I could crush 01 like an ant if I really felt the need to.

I was pretty sure 37 was also helping by distracting the praying mantis unless her intelligence dropped with a physical body.

A vague impression of agreement was sensed from my partner which answered that.

"It doesn't matter," 01 suddenly dismissed, "Try to survive this!"

The praying mantis flared, arms raised up and facing the city below us.

I so I was between the giant nightmarish monster and Crown City, looking up at 01 in physical form.

"Enough," was all I said.

Raising my hand that wore the ring focus, I calculated the damage output I'd need to deplete her HP bar to 0% and surpassed it.

The wind whipped and tugged at my clothes and cloak as I drew my mana for one last spell to end this ridiculous farce of a fight. Mana bled from my form, covering me in green light, before it changed into the shape of fire.

With the circle of the spell formula completed, a bird-shaped from Fire and Wind Magic tore itself away from my form and flew true to the giant insect, growing in size as it traveled.

A bird cry was heard and 01 wasn't even able to respond before she was already reduced to particles, immolated in a flash fire.

The inferno seemingly disappeared as soon as it burnt its target to dust.

I shot toward the abandoned church, leaving a sonic boom in my wake as I appeared before the eighteen-year-old Partner.