Out like a light as usual.
-[gunshots] -[gasps]
[gunshots]
[tires screech]
[gunshots continue]
[gasps]
[Kanata] That guy…
Out in the rain.
[voice] How'd it go?
[guy] Not good.
[voice] That's too bad.
Notify the surrounding nests that we've encountered a Parasitism Ender.
[voice] Understood.
[Kanata grunts]
[Noir] Are we there yet?
[Kanata] Well, no. But we'll be there soon.
[Kanata] Look, Noir!
That's Traders Nest.
You can buy anything you want, from coffee cups to Coffins.
Anything?
[shutter clicks]
Wow.
Sorry for the wait!
Is that everything you need to buy?
Everything I was asked for.
But now for the best bit!
Whoa!
Electrical parts for Coffins!
And linear cylinders for attitude control.
Judging from the diameter, they must be from old-style Coffins.
Sometimes you can get a real bargain!
Here, look!
This one has an Amasia engraving on it.
-This is not the normal Kanata. -What?
No matter how old they get, men still act like kids.
Ouch!
Where did you get that phrase from?
Maria told me I should say that
if you looked like you were enjoying yourself at Traders Nest.
She shouldn't teach you useless drivel like that.
Was I mistaken?
Unfortunately not.
But I don't want to hear it from Maria.
So…
This one.
Wow!
No way.
Nearly got it.
[grunts]
These, please!
[beeping]
You bought a Magus?
[Kanata] What?
I wouldn't really say "bought."
So, you became a Drifter!
[laughs] Guess so.
Look at that!
In that case, this is on me.
It's high-endurance nanofiber.
The connectors are meticulously put together.
It's as good as new.
Really? For free?
Take it as a thank you.
Wow.
Say hi to Tokio for me.
-[doorbell tinkles] -Oh, come right in!
[Kanata grunts]
[gasps]
[gasps, grunts]
Just as you requested.
[guy] Indeed.
[gasps]
Who was that?
Alba?
Apparently he's been flying a Cradle Coffin since the Amasia days.
What?
They say he's responsible for the collapse of Amasia,
or that he's Raintight,
or that he's building his own Magus.
[Kanata] Really?
It's nothing but rumors,
but apparently he's searching for parts
that fit a high-capacity backup chip from the Amasia period.
A high-capacity backup?
What goes in here. Magus memories.
-He seems very knowledgeable. -[Kanata gasps]
-Hey! -[Kanata] I'll be right back!
Alba!
[footsteps running]
[panting] I want to know about Magus memories.
I heard you're an expert.
I was hoping maybe we could speak--
Alba?
I've got no interest in speaking to some kid with no name.
[Noir] Kanata.
That was so rude. I just ran up to him out of the blu--
Noir!
[groans, chuckles]
Better go give that back.
Noir?
[gasps]
Don't do that, Noir!
[grunts]
Bananas!
The real thing.
[Noir] Bananas.
Ellie said she wanted to try them someday.
[sighs]
[beep]
-[thuds] -[Kanata grunts]
[gasps]
The guy from before…
[grunts]
My name is Kanata. I'm from Rock Town.
Can I treat you to a meal? To apologize for earlier.
[machine] Thanks for waiting!
Thanks for waiting! Thanks for waiting!
Thanks for waiting!
A meal?
Did you find some good parts?
[Kanata] Yes, well,
I'm not very good at flying,
so at the very least I want to improve the performance of the Coffin.
But anyway, that's not the point.
I was really hoping to speak to Alba.
I'm not sure when he'll get back today.
I can wait!
What do you want him for?
To ask about a Magus memory.
Hers?
Noir was in a deep sleep for a long time.
She was totally alone in the ruins.
Her memory was completely blank.
I think it's natural for that to happen
when a contract with a previous master is broken.
When a Magus contract is terminated, the memory is reformatted.
But is it possible to not even know who you are?
Besides, she's acting weird for a Magus.
Is it bad enough to interfere with daily life?
No, not that bad… I guess.
A skilled engineer took a look at her, but the cause is still unclear.
It's difficult to analyze memory data with only an external checkup.
Memory is built from the relationships that exist between Magus and people.
The safety features prevent others from reading or overwriting the memory.
Especially for us Type Zero.
[Kanata grunts]
Unless you are from a lab from back in the Amasia period,
you can't find out much for certain.
[Kanata] Seems like a dead end.
That city collapsed 20 years ago…
[shopper] According to Alba,
when the memory of a Magus is stored as data,
it's saved within the primary memory.
Even if the long-term memory is corrupted,
by following the history of the primary memory,
it may be possible to retrieve fragmentary information.
If analyzed over time,
you could reconstruct the long-term memory.
That's how it works?
[grunts]
Don't you think it's better if some things remain unknown?
Even with no memory, isn't it possible to enjoy the present moment?
[Kanata] Of course, that's true too.
[shopper] What do you think, Noir?
[Kanata gasps]
If it's okay with Kanata…
[Kanata gasps]
Okay then.
I'm Ada.
I'll show you Alba's Carrier.
[Kanata] Whoa.
Alba sure likes soy sauce.
Yeah, this is his latest favorite.
MICHAEL'S PURE SOY SAUCE
Amazing.
-[Kanata gasps] -[Ada] It's from the old days.
Those are actual coffee beans.
[Kanata sniffs]
Smells like the real thing.
Can't wait to brag about this when I get home!
[groans]
[Ada] It'll be fine.
Alba will surely take an interest in you two.
[Kanata gasps]
She invited us in, sorry!
I wasn't expecting visitors.
Well, not like you've got any friends.
[grunts]
They're my friends.
If you want to gossip, go somewhere else.
[Ada] Are you throwing a hissy fit? [sighs]
Who are you to call someone else a kid?
Will you get over your fear of strangers
and listen to them, please?
This is Kanata, and this is Noir.
The girl has lost her memory too.
[Kanata] "Too"?
Let me hear it then.
O-- Okay!
[machines beeping]
[Kanata] Is this from the Amasia period?
[Alba] It's a replica.
I scraped together the parts and restored them as well as I could.
I'm going to inspect all of the memories that were installed.
Noir must be put into sleep mode for the process.
Can I do something to help?
No.
Just stay out of the way until the reboot is finished.
It won't take all day.
[sighs]
Don't worry. Alba is a pro.
Okay.
[Noir] Kanata, can I have the camera?
[Kanata grunts]
When I wake up,
I want to remember everything up until now.
Noir.
[Noir] I won't be a dud anymore.
Let's begin.
[beeping]
[chattering, laughter]
We're gonna go broke if we keep this up.
Guess so…
[announcer] Enders appearing within the vicinity.
Call to all Drifters. Extermination requested.
[all gasp]
Say what?
For this many, our pockets will be jangling!
Hey!
Let's make some money and live it up in Desire!
-Count me in too! -You?
[Ada] Enders.
Ada.
-Okay. -What?
[Alba] Parasitism Enders. The longer we wait, the worse it'll get.
Parasitism Enders.
That's…
Wait, I--
Stay by her side.
[Ada] Taking out BOWIERABBIT.
[gunshots]
[Drifter 1] What the hell are these guys?
How's that!
[groans]
That thing…
It's not working!
SHARK
-[Drifter 2] Vuca! -[groans]
[Drifter 1] Vuca?
[whimpers]
[gasps]
[Drifter 2] What is that?
BOWIERABBIT?
No way!
Pull back.
You're not gonna beat these guys for a little extra cash.
[Drifter 2] What did you say?
I'll make it clear. You're in my way.
Watch your mouth.
-[Drifter 1] Back up, Carrie. -[Carrie gasps]
Can I take down the shield?
I don't care. But make an estimate of the resources.
I'll take them out in one go.
He's taking on that many by himself…
[gasps]
Where are the other Drifters?
They took refuge. They're keeping a safe distance.
Their numbers are dwindling.
-Think we can smash the rest? -Let's do it.
Here we go.
[Ada] Variation coefficient: No abnormalities.
Securing range.
Lock on all enemies.
Ignition.
[panting]
[grunts]
It's the legendary Drifter.
[Ada] Mission complete.
Awesome job.
Scan for residuals.
There's good news.
One of the Coffins taken by a parasite
is one that was abandoned during the Amasia period.
We should investigate.
I'll go!
Wait!
Stay right there.
[Kanata] The rain has no impact on him.
Raintight.
That guy…
[birds chirping]
[gasps]
Good morning, Kanata.
Morning, Noir.
[Ada] The results show
Noir has no abnormalities.
What about her memory?
It's unfortunate.
No further information was found.
[Alba] It might not be related,
but she has excessive memory consumption,
and the way her chip and storage are arranged is generally illogical.
She's probably got a grid structure architecture.
At this point around here,
there is a high chance of a bottleneck in her processing ability.
Bottleneck?
For example, perhaps she has frequently been going into sleep mode?
That makes sense.
Noir has been in overdrive on a daily basis.
It's like she's been running as fast as she can,
while also eating with a knife and fork.
That sounds exhausting.
So is that why she can't use her Magus Skill well?
If only Uniter had the ability to lighten the load.
Uniter?
At that time, we called the Master, "Uniter."
It may be that Noir was a prototype
prepared for operational experimentation before the Magus were rolled out.
In Amasia, various trials were conducted
to verify the abilities of the Magus.
[Kanata] If that's the case…
Then as a Magus, there's nothing wrong with Noir.
I see.
Sorry, Kanata.
Why are you apologizing?
I'm still a dud.
Noir.
Sorry for being such a punk ass hack.
We'll have to take way more photos.
[Noir gasps]
[Ada] Kanata is saying that from now on, the time you are going to spend together
is very important.
What a wonderful master!
Second to Alba, of course.
Yes.
[Alba] What do you think?
We don't have any definite information about the non-analyzable black box,
so I decided against thoughtlessly communicating it.
What do you think she is?
There is not enough data.
Amasia.
Project Pascale.
What the hell is it?
[horn honks]
Translated by Daisy Savage