27, 2B

Let us first introduce this lady: 2B, the protagonist of Nier: Automata, a "Jerusalem" of the subculture world, one of the legends of adult fan art, and one of the fastest people to run in high heels.

Li Nuo had once imagined that if he were to meet 2B in this realistic Nier world, it would be in a very dangerous situation where this android lady would stand before them, katana in hand, cutting down enemies. Once the enemies were defeated, she would turn back and calmly ask, "Are you all right?"

However, the gap between reality and imagination is often wider than the distance from home to the office in the morning.

2B’s entrance—emerging from the belly of a monster—was slightly bizarre. Furthermore, the 2B before their eyes was missing an arm.

To confirm if the woman who crawled out of the Malboro’s stomach was indeed 2B, Li Nuo used the [Emil’s Mask] to inspect her:

[YoRHa No. 2 Type]
[Level: lv38]
[Danger Level: B+]
[Strength: 47]
[Reflex: 65]
[Spirit Power: ???]
[Constitution: ???]
[Insight: ???]
[Medical: 20]

The data showed that this woman was indeed 2B. However, Li Nuo was a bit hesitant; 2B’s panel differed from those of mechanical lifeforms and the Malboro, resembling a player’s panel instead. This suggested that humanoid characters and growth-capable characters shared the same panel as players. Regardless, that was not the point.

The pressing matter was that 2B was still holding Li Nuo’s Poké Ball. This woman wore a black blindfold—commonly known as a tactical visor—making it impossible to discern her expression. The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

The resistance member stood up and walked over with sluggish steps: "Thank goodness... you aren't dead?"

Maljie stopped him and said, "Hmph... having crawled out of a monster’s body, she might already be broken."

2B looked around, then gazed at the Poké Ball in her hand, and suddenly fainted on the ground.

[Side Quest Completed]

[Boots, White Short Hair, and Blindfold]
[Quest Level: lv19]
[Quest Reward: 1800 EXP, Random Card, 100 Gold Coins]

Following the sound of the Emil side quest completion, Li Nuo opened his personal panel. He was currently level 11, needing 1200 more experience points to reach level 12. Compared to the 5000 points required to go from level 10 to 11, a total of 6000 points was needed this time—an extra 1000 points. From this, one could see that leveling up in future missions might be difficult without special means.

But future problems could wait. Li Nuo walked over to pick up the Poké Ball that had rolled out of 2B’s hand. Everyone’s gaze was fixed on the woman; they even forgot about the random reward card they had just received.

Chen Shou finally understood why Li Nuo and Maljie had made such expressions when mentioning the female androids of the YoRHa unit. In terms of visual impact, she was simply "illegal." Even Li Nuo felt the same. Since entering this scenario, whether it was the realism of the ruined city or the terror and oppressive presence of the Malboro, none could compare to the shock brought by this woman lying on the ground.

She lay on her side, dressed in a black dress, with black high boots and a glimpse of black stockings that were simply unbearable to look at directly. Short white hair, a soft and pretty face, a slender waist, and straight, long legs—Li Nuo recalled a piece of trivia a certain middleman had mentioned to him: never negotiate with a fan of the night.

Just then, 2B’s fingers twitched. She propped herself up, nearly slipping again due to the viscous fluid. She lifted her head and saw a dull-eyed fat man, a man wearing a strange blue raccoon mask, a guy in an orange hoodie wearing a weird mask, and a resistance member whose internal machinery was exposed from his severed lower half.

At this moment, 2B was at a loss. This is why players cause so much trouble for NPCs when they dress like something other than a human during cutscenes.

2B grabbed the liquid in her hand and stared at it. Her series of movements were watched by everyone. Li Nuo realized a problem: the visual gap between static fan art and dynamic imagery was even greater than he had imagined.

"This is..." 2B tilted her head slightly, touching the residual gastric juices from the Malboro on her body.

Li Nuo immediately said, "Sorry... I didn't do this."

The resistance member said, "We are the resistance! You saved me just now!"

2B stood up, scanned her surroundings and the Malboro she had burst out of, and looked at Li Nuo and the others, asking, "Do you know what this is?"

Her voice was extremely cold, devoid of any emotional color. Her question was direct, without any fluff, which Li Nuo found entirely unsurprising. The current timeline was the year 11942, the time of 2B’s recent deployment. Today was January 30th, her first combat drop. Her understanding of the world was no different from that of a newborn; even a blade of grass or a tree was something she was seeing for the first time.

If she understood human behavioral patterns, she would surely have noticed the drool at the corner of Chen Shou’s mouth. Chen Shou felt a tingle in his scalp from her appearance. A person's looks and figure are the primary factors for attraction, but what made 2B special was that her image reached the "Jerusalem" level of masculine-oriented creations, hitting every standard of "beauty" with perfect precision. Across the entire 3D world, fewer than five could rival her.

Li Nuo nudged Chen Shou, telling him to wipe his drool, and said, "A Malboro. It doesn't belong to our world."

"Malboro..." 2B pondered, "I have never heard of it."

"What happened to you?" Li Nuo asked.

"...I killed the creatures here, but I was ambushed by what you call a Malboro and swallowed into its belly." As 2B spoke, her severed arm was very conspicuous. Having killed the creatures here meant that all the monsters in this area had been wiped out by her.

Thinking back to the side quest in the sewers, Li Nuo could foresee that if they had chosen the sewers, they would have experienced a series of life-or-death situations, only to meet a 2B who hadn't been swallowed yet. The difference caused by choosing different paths in the quest line was deeper than Li Nuo had imagined.

"So... your severed arm?"

2B turned her head to the other side. From the moment they entered, they could hear the sound of meat being chopped in the hall. 2B pointed toward the sound and said, "A strange thing with a kitchen knife cut off my arm in one stroke, which gave the Malboro you mentioned the chance to swallow me."

Li Nuo’s heart tightened. A thing that could sever the arm of a level 38 legend in one blow...

"Tonberry?"

"What is that?" Chen Shou asked.

"Something you don't want to mess with, from the Final Fantasy series," Li Nuo whispered. "The worldviews of Nier and Final Fantasy have merged. Now I can't tell what things from Final Fantasy have descended here."

He took out a flashlight he had gotten from Emil’s supplies and shone it around. Whether due to system interference or otherwise, the culprit who had severed 2B’s arm was not there.

"I can't contact headquarters right now. Do you have a way?" 2B asked.

"We really don't," Maljie said, pushing his blue iron tricycle forward, his tone extremely cold. "Hmph, though it is abrupt, allow me to introduce myself. I am a warrior guarding the Earth, the only one in this apocalypse—"

"Then I'm leaving." 2B didn't give him a chance to show off, turned, and left.

Li Nuo suddenly called out to her, saying, "Since you don't know what to do anyway, why not come with us? I might know where to resolve this."

2B turned back, looking at the "resistance" members in their weird outfits. Then she nodded.

Bodyguard acquired.

Before Li Nuo’s eyes, a mission panel appeared with a new prompt: [Special Hidden Worldview Quest: Please take the fragments of the Apocalypse Flower to the Ruined Factory.]