The Vehicle (before battle)

Once we disembarked the bus, we made our way into this unfamiliar vehicle of sorts.

Its interior was mostly metallic, filled to the brim with convoluted-looking machines... and on the opposite end of the entrance, a massive door loomed over us.

This is...?

Assistance from P Corp. in the process of developing this device was indispensable.

Wait, that means...

… In cohorts with young Cesara, are you?

…….

Hoyday~! Much did I aspire to regale her with the tale of the contract's glorious completion, of mine heroism and bravery! 'Tis quite unfair of thee to meet her all by thy lonesome, young Faust!

… Your concerns will be taken into account next time.

Faust seemed relieved...

Ah, worry thee not! For thou hast availed us the sights of Lim-bassss Campany headquarters, thy tit hath been tatted for!

There are numerous reasons for which you were yet to be allowed into the headquarters, but… as it would be a fruitless effort to explicate them all, we will not cover that subject here.

Phew, glad to hear we're not sitting through another lecture.

The primary reason is, however, that there were several limitations to bringing the members of our department to the headquarters brought upon by frequent trans-Nest movements and irregular scheduling of our missions.

Why'dya say all that if ya were gonna explain anyway…?

Wait, more importantly… what's that about collaborating with P Corp.?

Boy, here we go again.

P Corp.'s Singularity can be summarized by the following four words: Expansive Space Warping technology.

Oh, right… Didn't you say that Miss Cesara told you something about how the principle of P Corp.'s Singularity is a lot like how La Manchaland works?

<... Right. La Manchaland was much larger on the inside than it looked from the outside.>

Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask…

Don't other Wings already make liberal use of different kinds of space-expanding Singularities?

It's, how should I put this… isn't it a bit too mundane of a City tech for P Corp. to call space manipulation its unique thing?

That was quite the… intelligent question.

Compliments! How nice~

Ishmael is correct in suggesting that technology to expand a given space is a commonly employed technology by other Wings as well.

An example of one such invention making use of this space-expansion technology, but isn't a P Corp. Singularity, would be Mephistopheles.

The ultimate purpose of P Corp.'s space-expansion technology…

… is to create the safest place in the world.

A perfectly protected construct, its interior sheltered from the world outside no matter how severely its exterior is battered; to have a sound structural integrity no matter what, its interiors safe from any and all harm.

Therefore, the more expensive the P Corp. product is, the safer its interior is from damaging outside conditions such as extreme pressure or shock.

Perhaps the way in which the interior is completely insulated from the outside is comparable to a full disconnect from the outside world by sheltering in a separate dimension.

In conclusion, the exterior of this vehicle utilized P Corp.'s Singularity, which means that it can protect its interior from all forms of impact. Not to mention that it has enough room to hold more than thirteen people inside.

Uh, don't dimensional trunks or containers also transport things to other dimensions?

Nnnnngh...

Hm? Sinc, why are ya freezin' up all of a sudden?

There was this… creepy story that used to circulate among kids back when I was in school…

Here's how it goes. So a Devyat' Association employee makes a delivery to a house, then looks away for a second…

… and a curious kid crawls into their Courier Trunk, and…

I-I'm gonna stop the story here… Look, that story kept me up at night for a whole week, okay? I couldn't stop having nightmares about that scenario where…

Hey, come on. Sometimes a story's just a story…

Not necessarily…

Unfortunately, the story that inspired Sinclair's week-long nightmares was most likely an accurate retelling of a true story.

Several regulations were added to Hana and Devyat' Association's rules to prevent cases of people being stored in dimensional containers.

From a certain perspective, it may be said that the WARP technology employed by W Corp. shares a degree of similitude.

The parallel lies in the fact that it also transports humans to a different dimension, the difference being that they are 'packaged' in a safer manner.

Therefore, perhaps enough of a connection exists to say that they operate on the same scale.

Anyhoo, the point is that we'll always have access to the headquarters as long as we have this vehicle thing, right?

This will certainly make the logistics of communication and supply much more convenient. One question, however: how does the company plan to move this instrument, as I expect that would be much trouble on its own? Has that detail been hashed out yet?

No.

In order to establish a more tangible level of communication with Limbus Company headquarters, an effective means of transportation such as this vehicle will be installed in the Nests across the City.

In summary, an efficient means of transportation such as this vehicle here, developed using P Corp. and the aspirant W Corp.'s technology, will gradually be installed at various points across the City.

In-in every Nest?

Of course not. The technology is still experimental. It is astronomically expensive to install and operate.

Vergilius gave us a firm clarification.

Activating now.

Faust tinkers with various machines and contraptions within the vehicle, and the giant door from earlier began to tremble, making a loud noise.

W-wherefore is that gate over yonder shuddering so?!

Energies, now linked, are routing toward that gate.

When the gauge displays around the glowing door filled, the door began to slowly open.

Entering now.

When it fully opened, Faust made her way inside like it was just another door.

<W-well, let's follow her inside.>

There was a bizarre and incomprehensible noise of machines, coupled with a low droning noise...

… Yes, we have arrived.

Welcome to the Limbus Company headquarters. This…

This place is teeming with people dressed in all sorts of odd outfits walking briskly between their busy schedules.

I hear heavy doors opening and closing from here and there, alongside that odd sensation I've been feeling from time to time.

… is the Floor of the LCE Department.

<…LCE?>

Haah... Hopefully we'll get to proudly stride in through the HQ's front gate one day.