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I yielded the initiative and watched to see what it would do.

I hadn’t meant to, but not switching to a counterattack so I could learn what this great ape was—despite it launching an attack without hesitation even after seeing me—could only be called a mistake.

“Kiiyeeeeyaaaaa!”

I wouldn’t call it a piercing shriek, but watching this ape swing its saber around while screaming the whole time left me with only one thought.

It felt like I’d stumbled onto the scene of a drug addict waving a blade around.

For now, I dodged its slashes and tried calling out things like “Hey,” and “Listen to me,” but it didn’t react.

In that case, it was either just a monster, or a subject who’d already lost all human reason.

If it were the latter, that would’ve been the best outcome in a sense, but with this ape’s combat ability, I had to admit that possibility was unlikely.

“AAAAAAAAGH!”

Maybe it got irritated that no matter how many times it swung, it couldn’t even graze me, because the great ape roared up at the sky.

The terrain was bad, so it was true this was a hard place to fight—but this level of disadvantage didn’t even count as a handicap.

Still, I wasn’t kind enough to go easy on it, so I reached back to the pack on my shoulders and pulled out the case holding my weapon.

Then, carefully, I took the saber out of the box and extended one hand forward as if to point the tip at it.

My other hand still held the case, but against this thing, my right hand alone was more than enough.

When I drew a weapon identical to its own, the ape started to panic.

It panicked so obviously it was almost funny—letting out small growls as it backed up one step, then two.

But instead of choosing the correct option—whether that caution was prudence or cowardice—it let out a screech and lunged at me.

As I slipped sideways past its savage, weighty strike, I cut upward at the same time.

Right on cue, the ape’s arm flew into the air, and the great ape sprayed blood from the severed stump as it shrieked, “Gehii!” and tried to flee.

Of course I wasn’t about to let it, so I brought my saber down from the upswing, aiming for the legs as it turned its back and ran.

Its left ankle was cut, and the moment it fell, it tumbled down the slope.

I caught up with a single leap, stopped the rolling ape with a kick—and drove my saber, held in a reverse grip, into its heart.

It struggled while coughing blood, but with an arm missing from the elbow down, it could do nothing—only staining my body slightly red before it went still.

“I knew it, but… it was too weak.”

I pulled the saber out and headed first to collect the spoils.

I didn’t need it, but getting a spare weapon was extremely welcome.

The problem was that it hadn’t been maintained at all, and I could see chips and warping even with the naked eye.

It looked like it had been used for quite a long time—the saber the great ape carried was in terrible condition.

‘As-is, it’ll be hard to use even as a spare.’

With a sigh, I put my own saber—after wiping off the blood—back into its case, then approached the ape’s corpse with the battered one in hand.

I’d already reached a conclusion, but I still had to confirm it.

I considered cutting off a part, but a severed arm lay nearby on the slope.

So I thought, This’ll do, and sank my teeth into the arm I’d picked up.

The stench of blood and the feel of flesh—there was no change even after I bit through.

“Yeah… figures.”

I spat out the meat mixed with blood and exhaled.

I hadn’t expected anything, so I shouldn’t have felt disappointed, but my mood still grew a little heavy.

So I decided to think about it from another angle.

‘This ape definitely wasn’t a subject. And this saber was definitely made with Imperial technology. So where did it get it?’

Normally, the obvious answer would be: it found it in the ruins of an Imperial facility.

Then what was that “facility”?

If it was related to genetically enhanced soldiers, it had to be either a laboratory or a place where subjects were stored.

“So that means there’s a facility within this ape’s range?”

And I could even imagine who it had been storing.

The one called the “Emperor” had probably come out of a facility somewhere around here.

Which meant that when the entrance opened, something else could get in.

“…This feels a lot more like the right answer than I expected.”

If that was the line I blurted out after reasoning it through, maybe I should trust myself a bit more.

I tended to underestimate myself because the rest of my family was too high-spec, but I should’ve had at least enough ability to be called ordinary.

Then it wouldn’t be strange for me to hit the right answer once in a while.

If anything, judging from the information I already had, it was starting to feel like the difficulty was pretty low.

Either way, with an Imperial genetically enhanced-soldier saber sitting here, it was practically certain there was a facility not too far away.

That information was extremely valuable.

To think I’d come looking for hot springs and ended up with something like this—I could say with confidence that this bold relocation had been the right call.

Now all that remained was how to find the facility… and for that, there was no way around steady, methodical searching.

Luckily, there was still time before the sun set.

While this momentum held, I’d search the surrounding area.

With that in mind, I spent about an hour using my long-range vision to scan the forest and the mountainside.

“I can’t believe it was that easy to find…”

I didn’t know whether it was a research facility, but I’d spotted something that looked like a structure still holding its shape in the forest—more like near the foot of the mountain—and I was heading there now.

Because of the difference in terrain and ecology, it wasn’t ideal for running, so I moved carefully, mindful of my gear.

And when I reached my destination, I couldn’t help muttering,

“…What the hell? How does that make sense?”

The entrance had clearly been camouflaged by human hands.

Staring at an artificial object hidden by an unnatural gathering of “nature,” I tilted my head.

The most plausible answer was that whoever had come out of here had hidden it… but then it didn’t make sense that a great ape carrying that saber existed.

I thought hard for a moment, then realized: I’d learn more by going inside, and started pushing aside the plants covering the entrance.

Then I opened the double doors and slipped inside.

“…Is someone here?”

The interior was so clean it would’ve been strange if no one had been maintaining it.

It looked like the invasive plants had been removed, and the materials of the floor and walls were clearly visible.

Keeping my body low, I moved deeper, searching for a way down underground.

In the process, I realized one thing.

Only a small portion had been cleaned, and areas where the outer walls had already collapsed were left abandoned.

On the other hand, intact sections and certain corridors had been cleared of plants.

‘It’s like only the necessary parts were being cleaned.’

Was someone using this place as a base?

If so, who?

To get my answer, I pressed on.

I found it quickly.

An elevator that likely led underground—one large enough that even subjects of the genetic enhancement project could ride it.

The area in front of the doors had been cleaned spotless, and I reflexively started to press the button to call the car.

As I gave a wry smile at myself—What am I even doing?—my ears caught it clearly.

“…It moves?”

The sound gradually drew closer, then stopped at nearly the same level, and the elevator doors opened.

At that sight, I just stood there blankly, forgetting to step in.

I wedged my hand into the doors as they started to close, and when they opened again, I slipped into the dark, unlit elevator.

Without a word, I pressed the button for what seemed like the lowest level, and when the doors closed, the car began to descend.

Less than a minute later, the doors opened in front of me, and I stepped out, scanning the surroundings.

There were no lights on the ceiling when I looked up.

But I could still make out where things were.

A gate—there was a massive wall in my line of sight that was beginning to move with a grinding sound.

Light started to leak through it, slowly illuminating the dark space.

And as the gate split and opened, a shadow fell into the gap.

“Welcome back. I never thought you’d return he—…Who are you?”

A man in a white coat popped out from the opening gate and asked me suspiciously.