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

The axe swung down, exuding the aura of death, about to split Laurie's head in half.

But just as it reached mid-air, it stopped.

Terrified out of his mind, Laurie trembled violently like a leaf in the wind, staring at the axe in front of him. A sudden warmth spread in his pants—he had pissed himself in fear.

Mo Chen walked up to him, hands in his pockets, looking down with a cheerful smile.

"If you don't want your head to end up like a sliced watermelon, there's still one way for you to redeem yourself."

Laurie, nearly fainting from fright, sat limp on the floor, pale as a ghost. The dripping blood made him realize the burning pain on his neck.

He knew Mo Chen was serious.

Snapping out of his daze, Laurie flipped over, knelt on the floor, and frantically begged for his life.

"Please! Don't kill me! I'll do whatever you want!"

His earlier bravado came from believing he hadn't committed any crimes and from the powerful backers shielding him. He never expected Mo Chen to actually intend to kill him.

Without that backing, he was no different from any ordinary coward!

Mo Chen patted his face and chuckled.

"I don't need much from you. Just recall all the mass-produced Nikkes you've sold. Oh, and give me the names of the officials you've been colluding with."

"Huh?"

Laurie froze, stunned.

He had sold thousands upon thousands of mass-produced Nikkes. Recalling them all was as absurd as a fairy tale.

As for the Ark officials he worked with, if they found out he snitched, they would definitely have him killed.

Mo Chen sighed in disappointment, turning away.

"Looks like you'd rather die."

With a wave of his hand, he signaled D to proceed.

Without hesitation, D stepped forward with her axe, grabbed Laurie's head, twisted it to the side to expose his neck, and raised her axe for the final blow—executing the move with the practiced ease of butchering livestock.

Laurie screamed like a pig being slaughtered.

"No! Don't kill me! I'll talk! I'll talk!"

He was utterly broken now.

Mo Chen paused, turned around, and flashed a harmless smile.

"Now that's more like it. Admitting your mistakes is the first step to redemption."

He signaled D to let him go.

Laurie, completely shaken to his core, dared not play any tricks. He spilled everything in a single breath, listing every Ark official involved.

The sheer number of names surprised even Mo Chen.

The list included not only senior officials from the Nikke Management Department but also personnel from the transport and logistics departments. One name in particular stood out to Mo Chen.

Doban.

He was involved too.

Not only was he involved, but selling mass-produced Nikkes to the Outer Rim was his idea.

Thinking back to the original story, Doban always wanted to eradicate the people in the Outer Rim, likely to eliminate witnesses and destroy evidence.

Mo Chen instructed D to record every detail for future reckoning.

Additionally, he ordered Laurie to intercept all transport convoys carrying mass-produced Nikkes and have them returned. Any Nikkes already sold had to be recalled under the pretense of "malfunction repairs."

The buyback would cost nearly double the original price. Laurie felt like bleeding internally as he made the calls. But compared to his life, that was a small price to pay.

Soon, some of the transport convoys were successfully intercepted.

However, as Laurie was still on the phone, his expression suddenly changed.

Mo Chen noticed the shift and asked, "What's wrong?"

Laurie put down his phone with a grim face. "The rest of the convoys have already reached the Outer Rim. They've unloaded the cargo. There's no way to get them back now."

Turns out, the Outer Rim was in the middle of a gang war, and mass-produced Nikkes were in high demand. The moment they arrived, they were seized immediately, sometimes even fought over.

That area had already turned into a war zone.

No one dared to go there now.

D, standing beside Mo Chen with her axe ready to behead Laurie at any moment, couldn't help but ask, "What do they need mass-produced Nikkes for?"

Mass-produced Nikkes were effective against Raptures, but their programming prevented them from harming humans, making them almost useless in human conflicts.

Why would gangs buy them just to have them stand around?

Laurie avoided eye contact with D and mumbled, "They use them as meat shields… to take bullets."

"Meat shields?"

D froze for a moment before realization hit her, her expression turning icy cold.

It was obvious. Without combat capabilities against humans, the only role left for mass-produced Nikkes was to be sent to die on the front lines.

As a Nikke herself, D found it hard to accept.

Nikkes had already sacrificed so much for the Ark and humanity, yet even in their final days, they were treated as expendable cannon fodder.

Laurie, trying to gauge Mo Chen's reaction, carefully said, "Maybe we should just let those Nikkes go. The Outer Rim… even the government's troops rarely venture there. Trying to retrieve them would be too risky. Besides, those mass-produced Nikkes only have a few days left to live anyway. Even if we bring them back, they'll just be scrapped…"

His words were cut off abruptly, like a duck with its throat squeezed shut.

Because he saw Mo Chen's cold, emotionless eyes staring him down.

It was the look of someone ready to kill.

"I don't want to hear that kind of talk again," Mo Chen said icily.

"Y-yes, of course," Laurie stammered, bowing repeatedly, cold sweat dripping down his back.

Since they couldn't be retrieved, Mo Chen would have to go get them himself.

Seeing that Mo Chen and D were about to leave, Laurie finally let out a long sigh of relief.

But unexpectedly, D turned back, her face now adorned with a shy smile, like a newlywed bride.

"Tell me, do I look like the Commander's wife?"

"Uh…?"

Laurie was caught off guard by her sudden question and stood there dumbfounded.

D's beautiful face flushed an even deeper red, but the cold axe was already drawn, resting against Laurie's neck.

That shy demeanor contrasted sharply with the menacing glint of the axe.

With the sharp blade pressing against his throat, Laurie's hairs stood on end, and he quickly stammered, "Y-Yes, you do… Ah no, aren't you already husband and wife?"

Fortunately, Laurie was quick-witted enough to correct himself just before the axe could slice into him.

"Thank you," D said with a soft smile, retracting her axe and turning to leave.

Only after watching her walk away did Laurie finally let out another long breath, realizing his entire body was drenched in cold sweat.

As they left the company building, D followed behind Mo Chen and asked, "Aren't you worried he'll run?"

Mo Chen chuckled.

"Not if he doesn't want to die."

After all, Laurie had just sold out numerous high-ranking officials of the Ark. If anyone found out, he was as good as dead.

Besides, Mo Chen had already implanted a virus in him. If Laurie made any wrong move, his body would explode like a firework.

"Commander…"

D's voice suddenly came from behind him.

Mo Chen paused and turned to see D standing a short distance away, her gaze complicated as she stared at him.

"Why do you waste your time on these mass-produced Nikkes? Even if you save them, they…"

"Oh, that?" Mo Chen pondered for a moment. "Maybe we can't decide when they die, but before that happens, they deserve to live like everyone else… like real people, with a life of their own."