The Genius of Cloning in the Academy City

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As I entered the heart of Point C, I found the terminal for accessing the records repository.

Strangely enough, this place seemed to double as a prison, unexpectedly housing a lot of people.

Could they possibly be subjects of human experiments?

An ominous feeling crossed my mind.

One by one, the individuals emerging from their capsules began to regain consciousness.

“W-Whoa…! I’m alive… I thought I’d never see the light again…”

“Mom! Dad! Where are you!”

Cries of various ages echoed around.

Most were young, appearing to be in their late teens to early twenties, with elementary school-aged children and the odd middle-aged person or elderly person scattered among them.

“What year is it now? This can’t be real!”

“I’m finally alive! Those bastards kept waking me up, using me for experiments!”

Some were cheering, while others sank to the ground in despair.

I completely understood their feelings—our Violets had felt the exact same way when we escaped the wicked laboratory in Laplacian.

“But there’s no time!”

“Yes, let’s get them to the airships!”

I shouted powerfully, “Everyone, listen up! We are the Ariel Group! You are now free!”

In an instant, all eyes were on me. I quickly added, “But there’s no time. You must follow my orders!”

A young man cautiously raised his hand. Even in the chaotic situation, his politeness was impressive.

“Ariel Group? That’s a name I haven’t heard before…”

“Well, we’re a newly formed organization from a year ago! Behave, and you’ll be sent back home!”

“There wasn’t such an organization five years ago…”

Someone asked suspiciously, but I mumbled my way past it.

After all, every time we introduced ourselves, everyone reacted like we were speaking nonsense.

Listening closely, it seemed like they had been trapped long before we fell into this world.

By the way, the girl with black hair who first woke up kept hovering around me.

“So, you’re fighting against the Foundation? Is that true?”

“Yes, we’re currently engaged in an all-out war with them.”

Initially, she was asking us various questions, but now she was fixated on Irene, interrogating her.

When talk of the war with the Foundation came up, the sparkle in her eyes was something our Violets didn’t miss.

It was a suspicious reaction, but right now, I had no time to think about that.

“Wow… You’re amazing, sis! If only your speaking was a bit less stiff, you’d be perfect! So, clans operate special forces nowadays? But why are all of you girls? And why are you using a voice modulator? Oh, there are guys too. How fascinating!”

“That’s not all. We also took down Magnavis.”

“You’re joking, right? You’re good at jokes! Hehe.”

I felt a pang of irritation at her sudden change in attitude. I don’t know how many years she was locked up, but she’ll be shocked when she gets outside. By the way… how old is she, calling me ‘sister’ like that?

“So how old are you?”

“Oh, so you want to know, Terrifying Sister? I’m a high school girl! A fresh young lady!”

“Doesn’t seem like it.”

At my abrupt comment, her previously carefree expression suddenly froze.

Her eyes, shining with that strange light, glinted.

“Hey, I told you I’m a high school girl!”

Just as I tried to interrupt her sudden seriousness, someone tapped my shoulder.

Irene subtly raised her spear, pointing ahead.

“Oh, people!”

First, we needed to send the people to a safe place.

“Come on, everyone! Follow us! The airships are waiting at the entrance. Once we get out of here, we’ll send you back home or decide your future from there!”

Someone asked with a trembling voice.

“How can we trust you?”

“If you don’t want to trust us, you can stay here!”

Anyway, they had no choice. Following our Violets’ escort, the line of people continued to exit the isolation area.

The people staggered a bit, but surprisingly, they were able to walk on their own. We initially planned to carry them out on stretchers.

Near the exit, medical personnel and skilled healers, including Daphne, were on standby. Luckily, there didn’t seem to be anyone showing serious symptoms.

I wasn’t sure how effective the Foundation’s hibernation tech was, but they seemed to have been maintained pretty well.

“Thank goodness, no matter what!”

As people glanced around, following our guidance to escape the lair, I began to connect the terminal.

After a thorough search from Point A to Point C, we found and secured the terminal access room.

The main records repository terminal was an assembly of massive machinery. Information from the previous briefing came back to me.

According to the Scholarship Officer, the giant pillar in the center acted as a communication antenna, right?

“It’s a shame we can’t take the whole server. How could they keep their own server in orbit…”

Sophie El, who had been shaking her head, pulled out a thin, flat object from her clothes.

Under the light, a thin square piece sparkled in rainbow colors, transparent like spring soap bubbles.

“So, we just need to plug this in here?”

“Yes, as far as I remember, that’s what they said!”

What Sophie was holding was an unusual access storage device.

It resembled a floppy disk one would find in a museum.

This was a hacking device for the Foundation that the Scholarship Officer had somehow obtained.

—Who on earth made this?

—That’s a long story. Let’s just say it’s the last terminal left by an unnamed laboratory harboring a grudge against the Foundation…

I didn’t know who made it, but this item was said to be an Ether-based storage device, capable of holding data equivalent to an entire server’s worth.

“How does such a perfectly fitting device even exist…”

“Right? Let’s get started! Security authentication is going in!”

Nodding, I lifted the head of a man covered in blue bruises.

He was the facility’s head. According to the Scholarship Officer, I needed a specific high-ranking biometric to access the terminal.

“It won’t… No, you can’t do this! Do you even know what you’re doing? This is a…”

“Shut up. I won’t kill you!”

-Wham!

What needed to be done was simple: press the man’s head against the authentication device to unlock it.

The monitor flickered, and green lights began to glow.

“It’s true, the procedures are going as shared before the operation.”

“Right? It was almost as if you’ve done it firsthand, detailing everything perfectly.”

“Ahem! That, that’s right?”

It was amazing. The Scholarship Officer hadn’t just explained how it worked; she had told us in detail how to avoid a self-destruction situation.

Because of that, we were able to avoid the terminal blowing up or anything like that.

No matter what, this knowledge is now ours!

Once the complicated procedures were neatly completed, the only thing left was to insert the disk.

The blue-lit monitor displayed a black window, followed by a white progress bar appearing.

[Transferring data – 0%] the text displayed, as the previously empty bar slowly began to fill.

“Finally!”

1%, 2%, 3%. We held our breaths, watching the numbers tick up in the blink of an eye. If it continued like this, we’d have all the data in our hands.

Just then, a state of emergency alarm rang through the network.

The Violet Command Center frantically shouted warnings to the Violet Air Squadron.

“Emergency! Emergency! An unidentified object approaching the Arturia Academy!”

“What?!”

“Intercept failure! It broke through!”

The facility head, covered in bruises, suddenly burst into a maniacal laugh.

“Hahaha! Foolish girls. Did you really think the Foundation would hand over knowledge so easily? Like grave robbers in ancient tombs, you will bury your bones here!”

“Shut your mouth!”

Just as I tried to drag the facility head along with Sophie out of the terminal access room, the ceiling above us suddenly plunged into darkness.

-THOOOM!

“Ugh! I’m… I’m suffocating!”

As the earth-shattering sound of an explosion tore through the air, I barely escaped through the falling debris to find the Foundation facility crumbling like a sandcastle before me.

“They fired missiles!”

“Sigh… I guess it failed after all…”

I offered a few words of consolation to Sophie, who wore a defeated expression.

“It’s okay! We’ve already secured the other facilities!”

How foolish to destroy their own facility.

“To destroy their own building with their own hands is proof of how cornered they are.”

“Our victory is certain!”

The Command Center issued its orders in a resolute tone.

“Immediately strengthen the air defense network!”

But even if the interception failed, it didn’t matter.

The remaining two sites were strongholds dug deep into the mountains and equipped with robust defenses.

The defenses meant to block external attacks had now become our shield against the Foundation’s prying.

“Do you think they can break through there with missiles?”

I chuckled inwardly.

**

Two cryogenic capsules were rushed into the underground hangar, sliding across the cold metal floor.

After inspection, the capsules moved toward a towering structure at one side of the hangar, guided by the engineers’ hands.

It was a structure that seemed to pierce the sky, but in reality, it was merely the most extreme transport method in human history.

“A few hours ago, didn’t you show reluctance to our proposal, Director 02?”

A subtle tension was embedded in the Secretary-General’s voice. His gaze followed the hands of the engineers as they worked frantically.

“However, I never imagined you would suggest such a radical plan first. Using that as an emergency insertion tool.”

“I only made the optimal judgment from the perspective of the current defense director. Having been approved by the control algorithm, there is no logical grounds to raise objections.”

Director Quavina, inhaling the electronic awakening agent deeply, struggled to suppress his uncomfortable feelings inside.

The irony of having to use the mad creation of Laplacian to guard the Foundation’s central records was not lost on him.

“The research results from Arshith and the previous Foundation analysis team were accurate. They are constantly evolving in both tactical and physical capabilities. Given that enemies are currently operating fighter jets, the Foundation’s aerial strength cannot effectively approach. Support is expected from the Federal Air Force and Restraid, but we’re out of time.”

As the director continued explaining, he suddenly fell silent. The realization hit him that the operation he had suggested was fundamentally no different from the self-destruction acts committed by the Ariel Group’s madness-induced clones.

“The encirclement hall cannot operate, and ground vehicles are time-constrained. Teleportation equipment has been excluded due to instability… thus, there’s only one option left.”

“This is insanity.”

“I admit it is abnormal, but hasn’t it already passed the verification for human transport insertion tools? The safety of the cargo is guaranteed. Layhan himself anticipated this system’s practical use.”

Wiping the cold sweat rolling down his ebony forehead with the back of his hand, Director Quavina held back the words he felt pressured to silence.

‘If we’re to face madness, we must also show our own madness if we’re to go to extremes.’

That’s right, we needed to think outside the box. We have to do something crazy.

They have already transcended the boundaries of common sense and are acting. Then we must break free from conventional thinking as well.

Otherwise, we cannot stop that infinite multiplication army challenging the authority of the four clans while wearing the skin of humans.

‘Regardless of intent, if the records repository falls, the Foundation will collapse. If the Foundation collapses, our dream of amassing knowledge to awaken hope from outer space will go up in smoke!’

Even with a conscience burdened by guilt, the director had no choice but to accept the decision made by the other board members, the Secretary-General, and the control algorithm.

A solemn expression was etched on his face.

The huge hangar’s ceiling opened with a heavy noise.

“Launch.”

Thus, Luminex fired a ballistic missile carrying humans into the sky.

-BOOM!

The missile tracing through the black night sky left a long trail of yellow flames and white smoke.

It was the same model that had instantly reduced the Arturia Academy base to ashes just moments ago.

Just before reaching the vast heavens, the missile’s warhead detached at a perfect angle.

The modified aircraft transitioned into a gliding phase right after. It tore through the air and broke the sound barrier in an instant.

The shockwave echoed through the air like a scream. The Violet Air Squadron, who were patrolling the vicinity, were astonished and immediately took up defensive positions, but they were already far beyond the range.

The aircraft, now surpassing the speed of sound and flying at supersonic speeds, precisely altered its course to settle above the target point.

This entire process took less than three minutes. Had it been a standard ballistic missile, it would have collided with the ground by now.

This modified aircraft for special cargo displayed a terminal phase unlike its original form.

Drawing a spiral in mid-air, it gradually slowed its speed as if autumn leaves were dancing, rotating to the ground.

As it reached the terminal phase, a large parachute opened, followed by a soft sound of landing.

-THUD!

The two special cargoes landed perfectly on the target point.

**

5411, patrolling the outskirts of Point B, was the first to detect the anomaly.

The squad immediately sent an emergency signal to the command center and approached the grounded aircraft.

“These stupid air squadron fools! Can’t they intercept that thing?”

“Ah, for real! It was too fast! Its flight trajectory was incredibly abnormal!”

As the 5411 and squad members rushed toward the scene in an argument with the pilot, they witnessed the capsule doors opening with a hissing sound.

A humanoid silhouette emerged from the dim steam.

“Huh? Is that… an arrow?”

“Guarggh!”

That sight was the last thing the Violets would ever see.

“I’m dead!”

“What? When?”

The Violet soon faced the chilling presence of the enemy.

A stunning storm of graceful and deadly arrows pierced through the Violets as if they were merely sewing.

“KYAAAAAAAAH! What the heck is that!”

“It’s an arrow!”

At the same time, the Violet Squad, leading the civilian evacuation operation, faced an impossible scenario on the tactical map.

A red dot appeared on the map, as if it were a mere illusion.

“What’s that? The Foundation’s secret weapon?”

“Huh…”

As a Violet blinked, she suddenly realized the shocking fact that her numbers had dramatically increased around her.

“Why am I here!”

“Yikes! We’ve been ambushed!”

“What? Since when!”

As the death signals of the Violets poured through the network, the commanding Violet rubbed her eyes, denying reality.

The friendly markings on the tactical map were scattering and disappearing like grains of sand.

Before her eyes, the Violets witnessed the yellow dots representing the Violets—signaling their presence—disappearing in real-time.

Squads, platoons, then companies… How is this even possible?

“Emergency! This is an emergency! They’re coming! They’re coming! Save me!”

“Stop them! What in the world is that!”

Screams echoed as one after the other. In this absurd scenario, Violets blinked in disbelief.

“The Foundation had monsters like this?”

In the dusty battlefield, the two divisions of Violets witnessed them.

Their hazy silhouettes became vividly clear.

Archers wielding bows and claymores, and a swordsman wielding a saber.

“What are you!”

The head of 1542, threatening them, abruptly found her head soaring through the air.

The two entities charged toward the entrance of the stronghold from their respective positions.

“They’re coming! Prepare for battle!”

It was the moment when glorious predecessors of the past descended to cleanse their future descendants.