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

When they arrived at their quarters, Anis immediately felt her vision go dark.

"Ah... this is where we're staying?"

"Wait, did I open it the wrong way?"

Staring at the place in front of her, which resembled a run-down slum ready to be demolished, Anis couldn't believe it. She wondered if she had taken a wrong turn somewhere.

The place was not only tiny but also in terrible condition.

Even if the once-mighty Apple miraculously came back to life and was incredibly bold, they wouldn't dare cut corners to this extent, provoking both human and divine wrath.

The walls were peeling, and the worn spots showed the weight of history.

The doors and windows were shattered, with scattered debris highlighting how long civilization had forgotten this place.

The bed was in tatters, with torn strips of cloth showing a spirit that refused to be broken…

Okay, I can't keep this up, it was just too rundown!

The windows and doors were broken, the walls were crumbling, the electrical appliances were fried, the bed was falling apart, and the floor was full of holes—fine, but why was the house shaking?

The "creak, creak" sound echoed through the room.

Anis turned pale.

"Is this even livable?"

The walls were trembling, creaking loudly as though the slightest breeze could cause the entire structure to collapse, leaving its inhabitants to die a tragic death.

What was even worse was that inside, there was literally nothing—just bare walls, nothing at all.

"Yeah, how could this possibly be a place for people to live?"

Mo Chen agreed, clearly unhappy.

"Right, right."

Seeing that Mo Chen was on her side, Anis was suddenly energized.

"This is obviously a place for livestock!"

"You're the livestock!" Mo Chen shot back.

As they looked around at what would be their future home, the mood was grim, and they all wore expressions of utter disappointment and frustration.

Even Rapi, who was usually unbothered by living conditions, couldn't hold back her discomfort.

"…What about the dining hall? Where do we eat?"

Neon looked around, having already searched through the quarters. She couldn't hold it in any longer and asked.

She hadn't eaten a thing since boarding the plane, and now she was starving.

Although Nikkes didn't technically need to eat due to their mechanical structures, their human instincts still drove them. They still felt hunger, sweated, cried, and so on.

"There should be something... probably. Ah, here's some canned food and combat rations,"

Anis pulled out some food from under the bed, covered in a thick layer of dust. It looked like it hadn't been touched in ages.

"It's expired."

Literally expired food.

"Ah…"

Neon looked disappointed.

But she wasn't giving up. She took the can from Anis and inspected it again.

Yep, it was expired.

For some reason, she felt like her stomach was already growling.

"If it's just a little expired, it should be fine, right?"

"Hmm, definitely fine. If by 'a little expired,' you mean two years past the date."

Neon's face fell as she finally gave up on the struggle.

"Ah, right, the bathroom."

Neon suddenly remembered another important thing. Ever since the incident at the power plant, Neon had become very particular about staying clean and hygienic, terrified of being called smelly.

Anis followed suit.

She scanned the area and her eyes landed on a dark, unassuming corner where there was a small, private space with a glass door hanging precariously.

"Is it… over there in the corner?"

"Well, of course. There has to be a bathroom, right?" Neon said as she skipped over toward it.

"Creak creak—"

The old, rusted valve made an unbearably squeaky noise.

"There's no water!"

Neon came out of the bathroom, utterly defeated.

No water meant no shower, and no shower meant smelling bad.

Just the thought of it made her curse the person who had sent her to this place.

It was just too vile!

Meanwhile, Mo Chen sneered hard.

"…The environment is really harsh."

Anis, like a monk who had seen the world's sufferings, no longer held any hope for the conditions here.

"By the way, there's one more thing I'm concerned about..."

"...What?"

"Is the commander also going to rest with us in the dorms?"

Neon looked worried. "If that happens, it'll be a problem."

Anis perked up at once.

"Live together?"

Neon hesitated.

"Well, no matter how you look at it, staying together is a bit…"

Anis nodded in agreement.

"The privacy issue, yeah, that's true."

"Right , right."

Neon sighed.

The thought of possibly having to sleep in the same space as the commander made her anxious.

It wasn't that she disliked him, it's just… she wasn't used to it. Not at all.

Anis patted Neon on the shoulder with a big smile.

"So, Neon, you go stay somewhere else."

Neon was utterly confused.

"…? Huh?"

Anis: "I mean, if we're going to live together, privacy would be an issue. So, it's better if you go."

Neon's realization hit her, and she protested loudly.

"Hey! That's not what I meant! And why should I go out?!"

"Well, what do you mean, then? Hmm," Anis gave her a suspicious look, "You 're not planning to live with the commander, are you?"

Neon: "How could that be!!"

While Anis and Neon were arguing, Mo Chen was in his commander's office, reviewing the data on the forward base.

He was stunned when he saw the full picture.

The base wasn't just occupied by humans and Nikkes, but also smugglers, roaming bandits, and even the local underworld from the surrounding regions. 

It was a complete mess!

Even more concerning was that nearly half of the Nikkes stationed at the base had been brainwashed by Sin, turning them into her puppets.

Although these Nikkes had been detained and sent for psychiatric treatment, it would take time before they could recover, essentially losing half of their combat strength.

At this moment, a message came through from the Ark, specifically from Eunhwa.

It was about Sen.

After the Ark's security department scanned the relevant files, they obtained Sin's personal data and memory records.

She was a Nikke produced by the Missilis Industry and she possessed a unique ability to manipulate others.

She had been sent to the surface for combat missions several times.

But without exception, in every mission on the surface, the commander died, the Nikkes died, and she was the only one left alive.

The Ark conducted an investigation into her actions.

Strangely, there was no direct evidence to prove that Sin was responsible.

Due to the nature of her abilities, the Ark ordered her to be locked up in the Rehabilitation Center, which was the most dangerous maximum-security prison.

But somehow, she managed to escape several times.

The reason she targeted Mo Chen was simple.

She had heard that a new commander had arrived, and in order to prevent the events at the Outpost from being exposed, she decided to act first and treat the commander as one of her own.

She had thought that the commander would just be a lazy, weak, and incompetent person who could be easily manipulated with a little charm.

But she hadn't expected to run into Mo Chen.

And that's when things went terribly wrong.