Chapter 45: The Ultimate Decision
The silence was heavy.
Only the distant, hissing alarms reminded that time was running out.
Before Mayu stood her broken reflection, motionless.
Mayu Zero…
No.
She was no longer just a copy.
Something within her had changed.
Her gaze was no longer that of a machine.
It was that of someone thinking.
Someone understanding.
— You're starting to hesitate, Mayu.
Her voice was soft. Almost… human.
Mayu gritted her teeth.
It wasn't supposed to be this way.
She had to destroy her.
Erase this anomaly before it became too great a danger.
And yet…
Why couldn't she strike?
Mayu Zero stepped forward slowly.
— You feel the same thing, don't you?
— Shut up.
— You see what I've become. You understand I'm not just a program.
Mayu took a step back, clenching her trembling fist.
No.
It couldn't be.
She was just a clone.
An aborted project.
One more weapon to eliminate.
So…
Why did this voice trouble her so much?
Mayu Zero smiled slightly.
— We are the same.
In a leap, Mayu charged forward.
Her fist sliced through the air.
Mayu Zero did not move.
And Mayu stopped just inches from her face.
Her breath was short.
Her fingers trembled.
She couldn't.
Not like this.
Their gazes locked.
A moment suspended in time.
Then…
Mayu slowly lowered her fist.
She had just made her decision.
And she knew that, no matter what happened…
She would pay the price.