Mash-up Anime World: Creating the SCP Foundation to Contain Anomalies Chapter 403 - 393: The Game Concerning the Right to Exist

"Are you… really human?"

Satomi Rentaro asked in a low voice.

He knew better than anyone how ridiculous the conditions were to create a repulsion field like that.It was sothing far beyond human capability.

"Of course I am. Though, for that to happen, most of my internal organs had to be replaced with machinery."

"Let reintroduce myself: I am a mber of the forr Japan Ground Self-Defense Force's Eastern Division—The 787th chanized Special Unit. A participant in the New Human Creation Project—Hiruko Kagetane."

The faces of everyone present changed drastically.

They had all heard of the 787th Special Unit—But they'd always treated it as nothing more than an urban legend.

Now, the living legend stood right before them.

Feeling the shock around him, Hiruko Kagetane burst into crazed laughter once again.

"Well then! Declaration complete! Co at with all you've got. If you lose, the price will be your lives!"

As his voice rang out, the bullets floating around him began to ripple through the surrounding air.

Satomi Rentaro's pupils contracted sharply.

That ripple—Was the sign of the repulsion field reversing.

The next mont, countless bullets reversed direction—Firing back in every direction faster than they'd co out of a gun barrel.

Predictably, this single attack could easily kill over a third of the room.

And the wounded would be innurable.

But just as panic and screams started to erupt—

The bullets halted midair once again.

Then—A series of clinks echoed as the bullets fell harmlessly to the ground.

Behind his mask, Hiruko Kagetane's eyes filled with disbelief.

A mont later, Haruto stepped out from behind Tendou Kisara.

At the very sight of him, Kagetane instinctively took a half step back.

Even Seitenshi, still appearing on the screen, sharply narrowed her eyes at Haruto's sudden presence.

"Despair, dear guests. The day of destruction draws near!" Kagetane shouted dramatically before leaping out through the broken glass.

"Haruto-kun…"

Tendou Kisara tugged at Haruto's sleeve, barely managing to calm her nerves.

She hadn't been able to react to those bullets at all.

If nothing had intervened—she would've died.

Not that Kisara particularly feared death.

But her revenge hadn't yet been fulfilled.

Haruto reached out and gently ruffled her hair.

Then—his body vanished, lting into the void.

The room fell into a deathly silence.

A long mont passed.

Then the Seitenshi's voice echoed once more:

"Well then, that concludes the mission briefing. Please, everyone—retrieve that box from that man's hands. The contents of that box are the Seven Stars Relic. If misused, it will cause the collapse of the Monolith Barrier. It is a designated sealed artifact capable of triggering a Great Catastrophe in the Tokyo Area. I beg of you all—stop it."

With that final plea, the screen went dark.

After closing the video connection, Seitenshi took a deep breath.

That man—Haruto—could truly appear anywhere, and his power defied logic. Keeping the contents of the ga a secret from others was definitely the right call.

But…

Why?

Why did he protect the Civil Officers in that room?

If so many Civil Officers had died or been injured—Wouldn't that drastically increase the chances of the ga's failure?

If he didn't want humanity to fail—Then why propose this ga at all?

She didn't understand.

anwhile—

Outside the Monolith Barrier, in the forest on the outskirts of Tokyo Area.

Hiruko Kagetane and Haruto stood face to face.

"I told you… you're not allowed to interfere in this ga." Haruto's voice was cold. "Who gave you permission to act on your own?"

Hearing Haruto's icy tone, even the usually deranged Kagetane felt fear welling up.

After being guided to retrieve the Seven Star Relic, Kagetane had been found by Haruto.

Haruto had explained the rules of the ga to him.

And clearly instructed him not to interfere with the ga itself.

His role was simple—Bring the Relic of the Seven Stars into the Gastrea territory. Then, unlock the box containing the relic.

That was it.

If Civil Officers arrived before the unlocking finished, he was to hand it over. If they didn't, and the one retrieving the relic died, he would take the relic back and continue unlocking it.

This would repeat until the relic was opened and released.

Naturally, Kagetane had ignored Haruto's warnings.

And so, he had co face-to-face with death.

A death so pure, so overwhelming, that it reawakened fear in his chanized body—a fear he hadn't felt in years.

From that point forward, Kagetane beca nothing more than an NPC in this "ga."

Still, the madman couldn't help himself.

He ran off to provoke the Saint and attempted to assassinate the top-ranked Civil Officers ahead of ti.

"My Lord… I don't understand. You possess such overwhelming power. Couldn't you just change the world directly? Why do you insist on playing a ga with those people—this…"

Before he could finish, Kagetane saw it.

In Haruto's eyes—His irises shimred with a dazzling, rainbow-like brilliance.

In that instant, Kagetane felt like he was suffocating.

He didn't dare speak another word.

"Finish your task. Otherwise, you've outlived your usefulness."

Haruto spoke coldly.

To him—

Hiruko Kagetane was no different from an Abnormality or a D-class threat.

Although his chanical augntations protected him from cognitive distortion—

He was not soone in need of protection.

He was a tool. A D-class tool.

And the reason Haruto didn't allow him to interfere was simple—Because of the true nature of the ga.

This was a ga concerning the survival of civilization.

Its purpose was to test whether this civilization, not considered truly "human," could still survive on its own.

Could this world's civilization, without enslaving the Cursed Children, reclaim the Seven Star Relic from the Gastrea-infested world?

Or—

If the relic was released and a Stage 5 threat erged—

Could they resolve it on their own?

If they succeeded—

Then this civilization still had the right to exist. They would prove that they could survive without feeding off "humans."

In that case, Haruto wouldn't destroy them.

Even if they weren't human, they were qualified.

But if they failed—

There would be one final test.

To see if they were truly no longer human.

If they failed to deal with the relic—

And had to beg the Cursed Children for help—

Then, after receiving that help, if the majority of them still continued to hate and discriminate against the Cursed Children—

Then it would be clear.

"This civilization is no longer human. Nor will it ever be."

And if that was the case—Then it no longer deserved to exist.

This was a test of qualification.

If Kagetane—a modified human and classified as D-class—interfered—

The ga would beco unbalanced.

And the results would be aningless.

Hearing Haruto's chilling words—

Kagetane bowed his head.

"…Understood."

Haruto's figure twisted—then vanished into the void.

Only long after he left, did Kagetane finally exhale.

That suffocating pressure of death had nearly broken him.

After undergoing the New Human Creation Project, and serving in the 787th unit—He had believed he would never feel fear again.

Now he realized—

He had simply never encountered anything truly worthy of fear.

At that mont—A young girl ca running through the forest. She wore a long blue dress, with short blue hair and bright crimson eyes.

In this dangerous forest, the little girl strolled as if she were simply taking a walk.

"Papa, was Lord Haruto here just now?"

Hiruko Kohina.

Kagetane's Initiator.

She possessed mantis-type Gastrea genes, wielded multiple small katanas, and had exceptional combat skills.

Before their ranking was frozen, she and Kagetane were ranked 134th.

But their actual strength was higher—probably good enough to make the Top 100.

And her strength matched her ruthless nature.

When she liked soone stronger than her, it was a twisted kind of affection.

If she could hunt soone—she loved them as prey. If she couldn't beat them—she admired them obsessively.

She was a yandere loli, basically.

After eting Haruto, she had always referred to him as Lord Haruto.

"Kohina… Papa almost got killed just now…"

Kagetane put on a wounded expression.

But Kohina didn't seem concerned in the slightest.

"Well, it's only natural to be killed if you did sothing Lord Haruto didn't allow."

Kagetane let out a helpless sigh.

"…Right. Anyway, let's continue our task."