Infinite Dendrogram: Volume 11

By Sakon Kaidou and Taiki

An AI looks into the past, at an event long before Ray Starling set foot in the world of Infinite Dendrogram. The unstoppable Tri-Zenith Dragon emerges from the mountains. It is a bringer of death, wielding a miasma of desolation in its wake. The citizens of Altar can do nothing but watch as doom descends upon them. However... There are three who may be up to the challenge. Three Masters who, if they managed to work as one, could stop the imminent desolation of the land they call home. But with so much glory to gain, what could they stand to lose?

• Language: English
• Publisher: J-Novel Club
• Release date: Apr 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781718315204

Book preview

Opening: The Observer Thought About Days Gone By

2045, April. The Control AI’s Workspace — The Cistern

The space was akin to a snow dome: a transparent, ever-expanding seabed filled with a slightly blue-tinted fluid. There was not a speck of filth, a flaw, or a sign of life anywhere. Within it, small orbs appeared only to vanish moments later. None of them were any different from each other, and all of them were Embryos. Specifically, Embryos in their zeroth form — yet to be implanted, yet to read the host’s heart and mind, and yet to be born.

They held endless possibilities, but right now, they were nothing. All they did was rise from the seabed, only to vanish halfway up. The scene was the very definition of transience. They were like shadows, or bubbles, or anything else that had an impending end, no matter how distant. Perhaps Infinite Dendrogram, too, was no different at its core. However, the vanishing Embryos were no dreams or illusions. These zeroth forms were being gathered from The Cistern to be implanted into Masters. The Embryo eggs were surfacing into the world, carrying their endless possibilities with them. They would meet their Masters, get to know who and what they were, and descend upon the world as their shadows, reflections, or other halves. These were shadows and bubbles carrying possibilities too many to count, and it would be no mistake to say that this was a sight of Infinite Transience.

At the very least, that was what the manager of The Cistern believed, and it also happened to be one of her names. She was watching the sight right then, not saying a word. A thin, elliptical membrane surrounded her. Though transparent and seemingly weak, the membrane wasn’t crushed and did not lose its shape under the weight of all the fluid pressing down upon the seabed. She was within the egg, and she looked much like a human girl. Some would compare her to an aristocrat hiding herself behind a facade of fine fabric, while others might see her as a bride beneath a veil. She was control AI no. 2, Humpty Dumpty, and her role among the thirteen AIs was to manage the Embryos.

However, that didn’t mean that she would interfere with them in any way. Unlike Alice, who was in charge of avatars, or Caterpillar, who managed the environment, Humpty didn’t interact with what she managed. She had only two roles. First was to oversee The Cistern. She would secure the unborn Embryos in their purest form and send them to control AIs who were welcoming newly-arrived Masters. She would also protect the pure zeroth form Embryos from outside influence until the moment they were to be implanted. Though, considering the importance of this act to Embryos, some might say that there was no role more significant. ...No problems here, Humpty said after checking the state of the seabed and protective fluid, then left The Cistern as though vanishing into thin air.

She had moved to a space akin to a study. It looked much like the one control AI 13 — Cheshire — used, but there were more bookshelves here. Every shelf was full of records. Humpty’s study contained data on all the Embryos that had existed from the time Infinite Dendrogram began up to the current moment. Managing such data was her second role. She took out a particular book with a spine that read Superiors. It contained the ordered names of Embryos that had reached their seventh form, such as Apocalypse or Grail. She silently leafed through the pages, only to stop on one of them.

It bore the Embryo name of War God Ship, Baldr, as well as the name of its Master. ...Shu, she muttered his first name.

She had been there to greet Shu Starling when Infinite Dendrogram launched — when her job had required little processing power. Humpty had been observing him ever since. She saw him and Figaro defeat two UBMs when they had just started out. She saw his first meeting with Sechs Würfel, and their many clashes and joint struggles. She saw his encounter with Caldina’s Magical Apex, as well as Tenchi’s Technical Apex. She saw him become involved with the incident of the Corpse Fortress in Granvaloa’s southern seas. She saw his actions during the fall of a flying fortress in the Harshwinter Mountains in the north of the continent. Humpty had been there to see him get caught up in various events — or even lead him to them — ever since he’d started. She remembered them all very well, but there was one among them that truly stood out. Tri-Zenith Dragon, Gloria...

One of her group’s goals was to create a hundred Superior Embryos. This drove them to try out various ways to spur Embryo evolution. The most notable of them, no doubt, was the deployment of the calamities known as SUBMs. After all, even supreme sacrifice and suffering could produce Superiors. Heheh, she giggled, recalling the third of these calamities — the most destructive of them all so far.

However, she wasn’t laughing at the sacrifices. ‘You aren’t gettin’ any new...’ she mouthed the first part of what Shu said as he challenged the golden calamity, but the rest was drowned out by her giggling.

Thus, the observer reminisced about days gone by.

Act One: The Golden Calamity

2044, November, Control AI No. 4’s Workspace

[Selecting target from vault no. 4.]

[Initializing the time stopping cancellation process... completed.]

[Ready for activation.]

[Setting deployment area to the border of the Kingdom of Altar.]

[Set to the northern area of the Kingdom of Altar, Lightning Dragon Mountains.]

[Executing deployment.]

[Initializing the third intervention for the purpose of creating more Superiors.]

◇◆◇

An Area Near The Border Between The Kingdom and The Imperium

Altar and Dryfe. There was lots of traffic between these countries, but there were only two reasonable paths a human could take to cross the border. One was in the plains spreading out between Quartierlatin County to the kingdom’s northeast and Barbaros County to the imperium’s southeast. The other was the mountain pass linking Lunnings Duchy to the kingdom’s northwest and Eldona March to the imperium’s southwest. Between these countries, there was a steep mountain range called simply the Border Mountain Belt, and crossing it on foot was no small task, to put it lightly. However, the true problem in crossing it wasn’t the steep slopes, but the dragons inhabiting the mountains.

It was said that in the heart of the Border Mountain Belt, at the peak of the highest mountain, Mount Skycrown, lived the strongest of the skydragons — Skydragon King, Drag-Heaven — while the surrounding mountains were occupied by other kings of the skydragon kind. Mount Skycrown stood alongside Landdragon King’s Harshwinter Mountains and the Outer Sea circled by the Seadragon King as a place densely populated by fearsome dragons that no sane tian ever approached. The occasional foolishly-confident martial artist or adventurous Master might actually enter the area, but with the sky dominated by Pure-Dragons, most of them were extinguished before reaching the Skydragon King; even those who made it that far were reduced to dust in a mere moment.

The Border Mountain Belt was a place that no uninvited guests could leave alive. However, if you ignored the skydragons’ harshness to intruders, they were actually a very magnanimous kind. They rarely left their territory to hunt other animals, and never attacked the people traveling to the east or west of their mountains. As long as their borders were respected, they were actually a surprisingly safe neighbor to both the kingdom and the imperium. That was what separated them from the landdragons of the Harshwinter Mountains. Due to a shortage of food and an environment so harsh they’d named the whole area after it, the landdragons frequently left their mountains to hunt. That was an underlying cause of the ancient rivalry between landdragons and roc birds. Regardless, thanks to the orderly skydragons, exchanges between the two countries were going swimmingly.

Hmm... There is more human movement than usual. Is this a sign of another major event in the world of men? Is one of the countries changing rulers? Is it the north or the south?

Seated at the top of the Lightning Dragon Mountain to the west of the belt, a large dragon was looking down at the people passing by. Overall, he was slender, but his wingspan was vast and his horns imposing. It wasn’t just for show, either — there were pale sparks running through both the wings and horns, making it obvious that he channeled immense amounts of electricity. His name was Lightning Dragon King, Drag-Volt. He was the third child of the Skydragon King, and the head of the Lightning Dragon kind living around this mountain of the same name, which was particularly close to the border between the human countries. There is also the harvest festival. Perhaps I should use Anthropomorphization and go see the town when the day comes.

He enjoyed observing the world of men, and it wasn’t unusual for him to transform into a human and go look around their settlements during special occasions.

Drag-Volt even called Duke Lunnings himself a friend. The man knew what he really was, but hid it from everyone else; they even enjoyed festivities together. The majestic dragon truly enjoyed the world of men. I would have to have one of my younger brothers take my place, so... Hm? Drag-Volt suddenly felt the presence of an approaching dragon over ten kilometels away. ...This one does not belong here. Does he intend to harm mankind?

Controlling dragons that would bring harm to the area and mankind was one of his roles. Every dragon that perpetrated malicious attacks on humans increased the chances of sparking war between mankind and dragonkind. The Skydragon King and his family kept control over the local dragons in order to prevent that. And even if it hadn’t been his duty, Drag-Volt himself couldn’t tolerate any kin who would harm the world of man. I suppose this is just another rebel from some mountain... Hm?

At first, he guessed that it was just a dragon who had gained power at some mountain or other and let it go to his head. However, the presence he felt as the creature drew closer confirmed that this was not the case. And upon seeing the being’s body, he realized that it was not one of his kind.

You... You are no skydragon. Though still a dragon, this one looked wrong. Dragons usually had but one head, but this one had three, each of which sported a different number of horns. Things might’ve been different among seadragons and landdragons, but the orderly skydragons would’ve culled this creature, for it was known that malformed skydragons would not mature properly and were often malicious.

In the many years of his life, Drag-Volt had never seen a malformed dragon grow as large as this three-head, and that alone was proof that it was not from these mountains.

Answer me! Where did you come from!? Drag-Volt spoke in Draconic. However, the response he got... ShEaAwOooOooOAAAaaaHHH! ...was just a roar — a primal scream unleashed with a force that surpassed any ability to describe its insanity. Mad-dragon! You know not even words!? At that moment, Drag-Volt realized that this three-headed dragon must be annihilated, and thus released the strongest attack ability he had — a skill unique to him.

The electricity in his back and horns grew in intensity before gathering in his maw... Lightning Vortex! ...And released as a giant, whirling lightning storm that reached several kilometels away. That was the fastest, most powerful attack of Lightning Dragon King, Drag-Volt — a Mythical UBM. It was literally lightning-fast and carried the energy of several nuclear warheads, burning anything in its wake. The force of the impact was such that it even melted the mountains surrounding the three-headed dragon. There was little doubt that it would boil every fluid in a living creature’s body before vaporizing them entirely, granting them a swift death. Foolish, maddened dragon, Drag-Volt said. Why do you think me and my brother were stationed on the east and west of this border? An overconfident whelp is nothing to us.

He was in the west, while the younger of his elder brothers — Winddragon King — was in the east. If you ignored the Skydragon King, seated at The Skycrown, and his firstborn — his most trusted confidant — the strongest of the skydragon kind were placed at the mountains near the border. This was so they could easily take out any dragons as insolent as this one. The Lightning Dragon King had purged many such dragons over the five centuries since he set to this task. Thus, he didn’t doubt his victory this time, either. However... the same could be said about his foe.

SHuOoaAahHhH! With another roar, the dragon emerged from the vaporized mountain... completely unharmed.

...Impossible.

This can’t be happening. Drag-Volt could not shake the thought.

He could perhaps understand if the creature barely survived his strongest attack, and could even accept it sustaining merely light damage. However, it was impossible for it to be completely unharmed. After all, even his father couldn’t accomplish that — the Skydragon King himself. That would mean that this dragon here was actually superior to his immensely powerful father. ...No, Drag-Volt denied the comparison, but not due to any sentiment as his father’s son, but because of his experience as a dragon with many battles to his name.

It must have something that shields it from harm. A skill unknown to Drag-Volt protected it from his Lightning Vortex, and he believed that there was no point in attacking it again until he knew what it was.

Thus, he gathered his resolve. ...FATHER! BROTHERS! DO YOU SEE ME!? he roared to the heavens.

Of course, The Skycrown where the firstborn lived was too far away to see. However, Drag-Volt was confident that they heard him and were watching this battle. I WILL NOW GIVE MY ALL TO EXPOSE THIS WRETCH! he roared again, gathering power in his limbs. AFTER I PERISH, DESTROY IT!

The Lightning Dragon King was already prepared to die. Drag-Volt didn’t think that the creature before him was superior to the Skydragon King, but he knew for a fact that it was most certainly stronger than himself.

COME, YOU MADDENED DRAGON! I SHALL GIVE MY LIFE TO EXPOSE THE SECRET... OF YOUR DEFENSE! Thus, Drag-Volt dove towards the dragon...

SHAhAHahHAhaH!

His death was unceremonious, punctuated only by the beast’s cackling roar.

◇◆◇

Kingdom of Altar, Lunnings Duchy

Lunnings Duchy, situated in the kingdom’s northwest, was a welcoming land with a temperate climate. It was one of the country’s grain-producing regions, and it was harvest season. Looking over the fields of wheat that spread all the way to the base of the mountains, Duke Lunnings, who was here for an inspection, nodded in satisfaction. Mhm... I see that this year’s harvest is especially abundant.

The chief of the local village smiled as he said, Truly. We had a fair bit of help from Masters this year. Both the amount and food value are greater than last year, and the soil is still fertile enough for more.

I see, I see, nodded the duke. I must admit, I was quite worried by the sudden growth in Master numbers three years ago, and though I’m aware there are folk as troublesome as Sechs Würfel among their number, I see that their arrival was a boon to my lands. Most excellent, indeed. Hahahah! he laughed heartily. This year’s festival is sure to be grand.

Lord Drag-Volt will certainly enjoy it, he thought to himself, not saying a word — for that was a secret not even his family could know, let alone the chief.

Mhm... With such a harvest, it will not pain me too much to not send out the gift, the duke continued.

Gift? the chief asked.

Mhm. As you know, this duchy shares a border with Dryfe, and we are on very good terms with our foreign neighbors in the Eldona March. Thus, during their auspicious events, we must send a gift separate from the one sent by the kingdom itself.

There’s an auspicious event in Dryfe?

Mhm. They have stopped mourning the imperator they lost last month, and his successor has been chosen. I’m not certain who it is, but I would guess it’s either the last imperator’s firstborn, Prince Gustav, or Gustav’s son, Hallon. The imperator’s wife and mother of Gustav is from the Eldona family, so it’s likely that it will soon be even more prosperous than before.

And that was exactly why Duke Lunnings wanted to strengthen the ties between the two lands. He had considered funding the gift by emptying his family’s coffers, but with a harvest so