Chapter 17 Choros

The laboratory open to the public was located on the northern side of the academy. To reach the studio further north, one had to cross a thirty-meter-long aerial corridor.

At its southern end, the corridor connected to the second floor of the laboratory building, while its northern end led to an open garden. Constructed entirely of reinforced glass, the corridor bore a striking resemblance to the sky bridges linking skyscrapers in metropolitan cities.

Suspended approximately eight meters above the ground, the bridge overlooked a gently flowing stream, offering a picturesque view of the landscape below.

At this moment, just as Matthew and his team sprinted out of the laboratory onto the corridor, they were abruptly blocked by eight masked individuals clad in blue uniforms.

The eight adversaries formed a horizontal line, gripping silver retractable batons in their hands, their heavy footsteps resonating ominously as they advanced.

Seeing that the opponents carried no lethal weapons, Matthew instantly switched to combat mode. With a thunderous roar, he bellowed, "Get ready! Orion, call for backup!"

His voice echoed through the corridor as the security team swiftly brandished their weapons—electric pulse rifles, compact thermal blasters, and sidearm stun cannons.

As a mere academy security unit, they were, of course, prohibited by judicial authorities from carrying lethal firearms. Although the academy collaborated with the judicial department as a third-party training institution, it would be utterly absurd for security personnel to wield something as extreme as a Gatling gun on duty.

Instead, the weapons in their arsenal were primarily designed for non-lethal suppression of violent incidents, more than sufficient to counteract retractable batons.

"Hands on your heads! Get down!" Matthew strode forward, his voice commanding, "Don't get cocky—law enforcement will be here any minute."

Orion raised his electric rifle and shouted, "Freeze! Down on the ground!"

Yet the eight masked figures quickened their pace, closing in with unwavering determination.

Recognizing that intimidation alone would not deter them, Matthew exhaled sharply before barking out the order, "Take them down!"

At his command, both sides surged forward, colliding in a full-fledged melee.

Matthew locked onto a tall man, roughly six feet in height. With a running start, he launched a powerful flying kick straight at his opponent's chest.

"CLANG!"

The impact resounded like steel striking steel. The towering figure remained unmoved, while Matthew, despite his momentum, was abruptly repelled, stumbling a step backward.

His eyes widened in astonishment. "Wow… not human!"

The towering figure, standing around six feet tall, wielded a retractable baton and swung it down with formidable force.

Despite his slightly bulky frame and advancing age, Matthew's background in criminal investigations meant that his reflexes and combat instincts were still sharp. The moment he saw his opponent's arm lift, he instinctively sidestepped to the left.

"CLANG!"

The baton struck the glass wall with a piercing impact, sending a sharp, reverberating echo through the corridor.

Just from the sheer force of that blow, it was clear how terrifyingly strong the assailant was. Matthew staggered backward, his heart pounding. Eyes wide with alarm, he shouted, "We can't win this—retreat! Move! Now!"

Nearby, Orion pressed the muzzle of his electric pulse rifle against one of the attackers' sides and decisively pulled the trigger.

"ZZZZZT!"

A violent surge of blue electricity crackled, illuminating the corridor in flashes of flickering light. The sharp scent of singed fabric spread through the air.

"Drop the baton! Hands where I can see them!" Orion, convinced he had successfully neutralized the target, barked a command in his deep, commanding voice.

Yet, to his horror, the man turned around completely unfazed. Without a moment's hesitation, he raised his left fist and brought it down with tremendous force.

"THUD!"

Orion barely managed to dodge, but the punch landed squarely on his shoulder. The impact sent him sprawling across the floor, his momentum dragging him nearly two feet before he finally came to a halt.

A sharp, radiating pain shot through his body, and he gasped in realization. "They're… they're androids!"

By this point, Matthew had already abandoned his teammates, sprinting all the way to the corridor entrance of the laboratory building. Desperately, he shouted into his communicator, "We need reinforcements! There are rogue androids attacking—this is a full-scale assault!"

Inside the research institute, Daniel was glued to the security monitor, his expression darkening. He immediately barked at Matthew, "Do not engage recklessly! Avoid casualties at all costs—find cover!"

"Save your breath and get here already!" Matthew yelled back, his voice frantic. "They're just buying time! If we delay any longer, we'll lose our chance to intercept the targets in the studio!"

Daniel turned sharply to his assistant. "Has the security team from the lab building arrived?"

"Yes, they're en route." The assistant nodded.

Daniel shifted his focus back to the surveillance feed and demanded, "Have we identified the model of these androids?"

The assistant quickly scanned the records before responding, "They belong to the Institute of Scientific Research. These are AI street patrol units originally slated for delivery to the transportation department next month—thirty units in total. Someone must have tampered with their systems."

…

Sublevel One – Robotics Maintenance Room

"Activate its combat system and equip it with tactical gear," a man commanded, pointing at the mechanic. "Hurry! It's the closest unit!"

At his words, the mechanic swiftly engaged the maintenance system. Eight robotic arms extended from the towering metal workstation, expertly selecting components from the equipment cases, assembling with practiced precision.

Meanwhile…

Liam was still mercilessly pummeling the imposter "Daniel" inside Infinity Haven, though his mind was clouded with urgency. Just moments ago, Grace had sent him a message—informing him that they had successfully traced the perpetrator's IP address and were in the process of capturing them. But what Liam couldn't fathom was why Matthew hadn't subdued the target yet.

Seriously? And he calls himself a criminal investigator? How many innocent people had lost their lives relying on so-called "experts" like this?

Liam tightened his grip around Daniel's throat, his voice filled with rage. "You're not getting away! Now tell me—who the hell are you?!"

…

Hallway

Matthew, Orion, and the rest of the security team had been completely routed, scattered like fallen leaves in the wind.

The eight androids were AI street enforcers—prototype units designed for the transportation department. Their programming was rudimentary, devoid of independent thought. Simply put, they operated solely on predefined directives—execute the command given, nothing more.

But at the end of the day, humans were made of flesh and blood. Engaging in brute-force combat against these mechanical enforcers was sheer lunacy—getting beaten to death by a soulless machine was not only pointless but utterly futile.

At the corridor entrance, Matthew—who valued his own survival above all else—had firmly assumed the role of commander-in-hiding. Whether or not he could fight remained debatable, but one thing was certain—he could run exceptionally fast.

"Orion! Orion!" Matthew shouted urgently from behind the safety of the hallway corner. "Get the electromagnetic cannon! One blast should take them all down!"

Orion, clutching his injured shoulder, darted toward the opposite side. "They're not running on electromagnetic cores! These are low-grade thermal-core models—the cannon won't affect them!"

"In an academy of this scale, one that even supplies personnel to the judiciary, is this really the best the security department can do? Not a single effective emergency response tactic?!" Matthew cursed in sheer disbelief. "With management this incompetent, if I were in charge—!"

Thud. Thud. Thud-thud!

Just as Matthew was fervently condemning the academy's security measures, an ominous series of heavy, rhythmic footsteps echoed from outside the corridor. It was as if war drums were being struck with immense force.

"What the hell is that?"

Matthew instinctively lifted his head, his gaze sweeping through the glass window toward the outside. From the rear exit of the experimental building's first floor, a colossal, steel-clad warrior burst into view.

It stood approximately 2.6 meters tall, its body a seamless fusion of silver and white. The entire skeletal structure was crafted from pure titanium alloy, housing a Deep Blue Parallel 9 core. On its back, two propulsion thrusters flanked either side, emblazoned with massive corporate logos—Hector on the left, Choros on the right.

As soon as it emerged from the rear entrance, the mechanized titan launched into a full sprint, its legs moving with precise mechanical fluidity as it dashed through the shallow stream, surging toward the skybridge.

"Scatter! Get out of the way!" Orion's urgent shout rang out the moment he spotted the machine.

Matthew didn't hesitate—he turned and bolted.

After covering roughly thirty meters, the robotic soldier suddenly bent its knees, its dual turbine boosters emitting a sharp, piercing hiss. Simultaneously, the thrusters on its back flared to life, spewing forth a half-meter plume of blazing orange flame.

"Whoosh!"

In an instant, the machine catapulted itself into the air, soaring nearly three stories high—surpassing even the height of the skybridge. Mid-air, it fully extended its limbs, clasping its metallic fists together while the light from its propulsion system burned even more intensely.

Inside the skybridge, the eight low-intelligence AI enforcers all snapped their heads toward the ceiling, their sensors locking onto the descending juggernaut. Their optical processors computed the incoming force, registering it as a catastrophic collision.

"Beep! Beep! Beep!"

A blaring alarm cut through the air—an automatic override had been triggered. The eight AI enforcers immediately began burning through their thermal energy cores, compressing every last ounce of stored power.

They were preparing to self-destruct.

"Glory to the New World! Glory to the Future!"

Their synchronized chant, eerily robotic yet mindlessly fervent, echoed through the confined space as they turned in unison—initiating a full-scale suicide detonation to obliterate the bridge.

BOOM! KRRRRRSH!

A deafening explosion shattered the tranquility of the academy's northern sector. The once-impenetrable skybridge splintered in an instant, reduced to chaos and debris.

Like an unstoppable meteor, the robotic titan plummeted from above, its entire form crashing into the midsection of the bridge. Shards of reinforced glass erupted in all directions as the monstrous machine landed amidst the devastation.

The robotic titan raised its left arm, its energy chamber erupting with a deafening roar—reminiscent of a twelve-cylinder supercar engine at full throttle. In the next instant, its electromagnetic field system came online.

"Screeeeech!"

The eight AI enforcers immediately began shuddering and fracturing, their iron-infused metal components warping under the immense magnetic force.

Drawn together by the overwhelming electromagnetic pull, their bodies were yanked off the ground, one by one, as if caught in an invisible gravitational surge—their helpless forms spiraling toward the colossal machine adorned with the Hector and Choros logos.

The moment they were airborne, a missile compartment on the left side of the robotic titan's chest snapped open.

Six 14.2-caliber cannon barrels emerged, surging with lethal energy.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Two consecutive volley blasts detonated across the corridor, turning the narrow passageway into a scene of pure destruction. The eight AI enforcers were annihilated on impact, their metallic remains scattering across the ground in a symphony of obliterated parts.

The robotic titan disengaged its electromagnetic field, stepping forward without hesitation. With a single, deliberate motion, it crushed the skull of a still-twitching AI enforcer beneath its foot, muttering in a gruff, mechanical tone—

"Useless scrap."

Matthew, finally snapping out of his shock, turned to the security team beside him.

"This… this thing… it's part of the security detail too?"

"No," one of the security officers replied, watching the machine with a mix of awe and trepidation. "He's one of the academy's AI mentors, just like Eric. The only difference is… they're usually not equipped with combat protocols. The academy restricts them from carrying weapon systems—to prevent a malfunction from putting students at risk."

"That one's called Eric… and this guy?"

"His name is Choros."

"Holy shit."

Matthew exhaled in disbelief before immediately waving his team forward.

"Move! Get to the studio!"

"I'm coming with you."

The AI mentor, Choros, stomped forward, his mechanized footsteps reverberating through the corridor as he followed Matthew and the security team toward Studio 1.

Thirty seconds later.

They arrived at the studio entrance. Without breaking his stride, Matthew rammed his shoulder against the door—only to find it wouldn't budge.

"Step aside."

Choros brushed Matthew aside, then thrust out his leg—demolishing the double wooden doors with a single, devastating kick.

Matthew was the first to charge inside. As he turned his head, his eyes locked onto a chilling sight—

On the left side of the room, a connection pod stood in place.

Inside, someone was lying motionless.

…

Inside Infinity Haven.

The imposter Daniel lay sprawled on the ground, his face drenched in blood, murmuring in a hoarse whisper, "The future… will be a world without class divisions, without conflict, without discrimination! A new era of absolute equality and boundless freedom!"

Liam stood frozen, his breath caught in his throat, absorbing the weight of those words.

"That is why your sacrifice is necessary."

The imposter Daniel locked eyes with Liam, his voice carrying an eerie, almost reverent finality—

"Long live the new world."

The moment the last syllable left his lips, his entire form disintegrated, vanishing from Infinity Haven in an instant.