"V-V-Veldora-san!!"
Kalman's consciousness awakened with that shout of his own.
That abnormal, incomprehensible, disarmingly friendly yet arrogant man.
He had dreamed of Veldora being engulfed in hellfire.
"Heh, that's not like me at all. Seems I was more dependent on him than I ever thought..."
After mumbling that, Kalman remembered the situation they were in.
This was no time to worry about others—they, too, were still in a dangerous situation.
So Kalman pushed thoughts of Veldora out of his mind for the time being.
(No point worrying about him now. Looks like the Six-Fold Destruction Emperor has already been activated—) The demonic roar thundered in the distance.
It was the sound of massive heat sealed within the Singular Linked Barrier raging wildly.
It strained the barrier, affecting even the space beyond.
Even Veldora would be helpless before that terrifying superweapon. That was what Kalman thought, but he kept it to himself.
Still, some part of him wanted to cling to the hope that if anyone could handle it, Veldora could.
Because saying it out loud might crush that hope.
Kalman shifted his focus and assessed the current situation.
It seemed he had only been unconscious for a short time.
Checking his internal clock, less than three minutes had passed since the crash.
At the same time he checked the time, he assessed his own condition.
"You've gotta be kidding..."
Kalman muttered involuntarily.
His internal display showed "ALL CLEAR."
Damaged areas would normally show in red, but every value was blue—no problems detected.
Even Kalman was left speechless at just how durable he was.
He knew he was fine, but what about his subordinates?
He looked around and— Found his subordinates, still unconscious.
"Hey, you guys—everyone alright?"
When Kalman called out, he got groaning responses.
They had minor injuries, but everyone appeared to be safe.
"Oww—actually, no, it doesn't hurt. Being a fully mechanized soldier sure comes in handy at times like these."
"On the flip side, you need maintenance for even the smallest things. Zaza apparently pushed through on sheer willpower, but his body was failing everywhere. If Veldora and the others hadn't modified him, he wouldn't have lasted long either way."
"Indeed. But all that will be—"
"Don't be an idiot! Don't say something so careless! Veldora's with us—he's obviously going to be fine!"
Kalman's sharp rebuke silenced his subordinates.
They exchanged glances and nodded to each other.
"You're right. That's exactly right!"
"Yeah, it's too early to give up. All we can do is our part!"
"That's right. Now that you get it, let's find the Enhanced External
At Kalman's command, everyone sprang into action at once.
No one raised objections like "But isn't it broken?"
Escaping this barren, threat-filled wasteland required securing transportation—no exceptions.
If that was impossible, all they could do was wait for rescue.
Even for that, they needed at minimum some means of communication.
The Enhanced External Equipment was probably broken.
But Kalman's plan was that if they could salvage enough parts—including debris from the wrecked ship—they might find a way to break through this situation.
Everyone had worked with Kalman long enough to understand this without being told.
However— They had barely started moving when they were forced to stop.
"—Good thing I came back to double-check. Not a single one dead... You're as resilient as insects."
"Well, I'm impressed. According to my data, there was a ninety-nine-point-nine percent chance of fatality. Everyone surviving? That's impossible. Hey, Kalman, what kind of cheating did you pull off?"
The threat made its appearance without delay—Jigil and Raits, along with their subordinates.
"Tch, back to square one."
Kalman clicked his tongue.
He had just gotten through one crisis—it seemed he'd celebrated too soon.
"Raits is right. Kalman, I've grown interested in your bodies. Your technology might be more advanced than I thought, so come along quietly to the city."
"Hah! You're just going to kill us and take us apart at the city, aren't you?"
"I could just as easily kill you here and bring the corpses back. If you come quietly, I might let you live."
Jigil said this with a sincere-looking expression.
But Kalman laughed it off.
"Don't take me for a fool. You have no reason to keep us alive. You're trying to trick us because fighting back would be a hassle. Am I wrong? The way you look at us—you don't see us as human. If we're going to die anyway, we'll fight to the very end!"
"Yeah!"
"Let's show them our stubbornness!!"
His subordinates rallied to Kalman's fighting spirit.
Hearing this, Jigil's expression went blank.
"Hard to comprehend. Human thinking is truly difficult."
"Indeed, Jigil. How troublesome—let's just kill them."
Raits dropped his cheerful expression too, looking over Kalman's group coldly as if appraising them.
Otherworldly.
That was the true nature of Jigil and Raits.
They resembled humans, yet were something other than human—Bio-Modified Humans.
◇◇◇ The battle began abruptly.
But the ones attacked weren't Kalman's group.
It was Jigil's group.
A massive life-form had suddenly appeared on the scene and charged at Jigil's group.
"A Super Beast! Now's our chance—hide, quick!"
Or rather, it was probably just coincidence.
A Super Beast drawn by the ship's explosion had simply found prey.
But thanks to that, Kalman's group got a slim chance at survival.
Exploiting the brief moment Jigil's group's attention was diverted, they managed to hide among the wreckage.
(You all cut your heat signatures?)
(Of course. The mechanized soldier's stealth function really comes in handy for situations like this.)
(Good! Then let's find the Enhanced External Equipment, quick.)
They communicated through the Thought Communication link.
When it came to searching, Kalman's group had a plan to find it.
Being designed for remote operation, there remained a connection through special "thought waves" to each person's dedicated unit.
That didn't guarantee it was intact, but there was still hope.
Kalman's group quietly continued their work while concealing their presence.
Meanwhile, Jigil's group— Were struggling against the swarm of Super Beasts.
"Struggling" wasn't the right word—more like "dealing with a hassle."
If their supply transport ship had still been operational, the Super Beasts wouldn't have attacked.
Even if attacked, the ship was equipped with high-output beam cannons as standard armament. So there would have been no issue—no way the Super Beasts would have gained the upper hand.
But right now, Jigil's group had no weapons.
They were Bio-Modified Humans with exceptional strength against mechanized soldiers, but their weakness was the lack of wide-range annihilation weaponry.
Their plasma cannons, specialized for anti-personnel combat, couldn't deal lethal blows to Super Beasts.
The Super Beasts' regeneration was too powerful—they were ineffective against the larger specimens.
They wouldn't lose, but it would take time to defeat all the Super Beasts gathering there.
Jigil found this vexing.
"Don't you insects—mere purification devices—get in our way!!"
Jigil screamed as he kicked one Super Beast's head off, then hammered it with a barrage of plasma bolts exceeding one meter in diameter.
With Jigil and Raits's firepower, finishing off the Super Beasts was possible.
So a natural dynamic had formed—subordinates served as decoys while Jigil and Raits delivered the killing blows.
Even in the middle of this, Jigil kept his eyes on Kalman's group.
They had managed to hide well among the wreckage, but Jigil hadn't given up the chase.
The wasteland had rocky areas too—given enough time, they could actually escape.
It seemed unlikely they could reach a place with communication from this location where body maintenance and brain energy recharge were impossible, but Jigil still wouldn't underestimate Kalman's group's tenacity.
There was no option to leave a battle-hardened warrior like Kalman's crew to their own devices—that was Jigil's judgment.
He did feel irritation.
Because they were based on humans, they possessed emotions.
But that never affected their operational judgment.
That was the defining trait of Bio-Modified Humans.
Which was why Jigil calmly and methodically dispatched the Super Beasts while closing in on Kalman's group.
Kalman was aware of this.
He had left the search to his subordinates and was stealthily observing the battlefield.
By linking vision with his subordinates, he had secured a fairly wide field of view.
By normal standards, this was an outrageous capability, but Kalman used it without a second thought.
That was the difference between Zaza and Kalman.
Kalman didn't overthink or agonize over things.
And then, a familiar Super Beast appeared in Kalman's field of vision.
"That's..."
Kalman murmured in a voice too quiet for anyone to hear.
It was a giant serpent with a crimson head.
The humanoid Super Beast that Veldora had driven off.
(Keep searching. I've got some personal business to take care of.)
"Captain?"
(Don't tell me, that Super Beast—?)
(That one's dangerous!)
(The right move is to stay hidden!)
Since the subordinates shared his vision, they seemed to have guessed Kalman's intentions.
They hurriedly tried to dissuade him, but Kalman shook his head.
(You're right. But I can't abandon that one. Because it might be my—) That Super Beast might be his lover, Charle.
He couldn't bring himself to say it, but Kalman's resolve was firm.
(The rest is up to you!)
The moment he relayed that to everyone, Kalman burst from his hiding spot.
He took a circuitous route, careful not to be detected, and slipped through the shadows of the rocky terrain.
His remaining subordinates quickly composed themselves and resumed their work.
They believed that doing what they could right now was the only way to survive this crisis.
And just as Jigil conjured an oversized plasma sphere and was about to hurl it at the serpent's crimson head— "Like hell I'll let you!"
—Kalman leaped out and blocked it with the Singular Linked Barrier.
◇◇◇ Kalman's sudden intrusion came out of nowhere, but Jigil wasn't flustered.
Raits showed the same reaction—it was as if he had predicted this would happen.
"Tch, I expected you to be at least a little surprised..."
Jigil snorted dismissively at Kalman's quip.
"Fufu, there's no way I wouldn't notice someone getting this close. I was watching to see what you were planning."
"Well, I was surprised. I didn't think you'd shield a Super Beast—a mere purification device, at that. I was sure you were going for a sneak attack. Thanks to that, my shot went to waste."
Jigil had noticed Kalman's approach.
That was why Raits had planned to use Jigil as bait while sniping Kalman.
Shooting a target moving at supersonic speed after visually acquiring it was difficult. So he had to predict the trajectory and fire accordingly—but this time, his prediction was spectacularly off.
Even Raits hadn't predicted that Kalman would ignore Jigil and put himself in front of the Super Beast instead.
"Heh, my bad about that. But I've got my reasons. I swore I'd protect my lover, Charle. So there's no way I'm breaking that promise again."
At Kalman's words, the serpent's crimson head twitched slightly.
It was faint—so subtle no one else noticed—but it was unmistakably a response, as if the serpent had heard Kalman's words.
But Jigil couldn't understand what Kalman was talking about.
"Are you stupid? What does any of that have to do with shielding that Super Beast?"
So, while keeping Kalman in sight and preparing to attack, he asked mockingly.
This was Jigil's way of toying with him—he had no real interest in the answer.
It was simply a stalling tactic; he didn't care whether Kalman answered or not.
But Kalman answered earnestly.
"Maybe I am stupid. But among the Super Beasts, there might be someone from my homeland. You called it a purification device, right? You know the secret behind Super Beasts, don't you?"
Hearing Kalman's reply, Jigil nodded in understanding. "Ah, yes."
"Come to think of it, using Zex was classified information."
"Yeah, that's right. Even I didn't know about it. If the captain of a special operations unit handling classified work didn't know, then I have to wonder how you found out, Kalman."
"Well, it doesn't matter. I'm going to kill you here anyway, so it won't reach the city's citizens."
Questions remained, but to Jigil, it didn't matter.
Jigil took his stance.
His preparations were complete.
He had modified his body for close combat.
Kalman stayed alert, never taking his eyes off Jigil and Raits.
Raits's subordinates were dealing with the Super Beasts, but Kalman didn't neglect watching them either.
Kalman didn't have any real chance of winning—his plan was simply to buy time until his subordinates excavated the Enhanced External Equipment.
But it wasn't entirely hopeless.
If he believed Veldora's words—"Kalman, I have analyzed Michel's body and used it as reference for your and Zaza's mobile frames. If you master them, you should be able to rival the Demon Lord class"—then it meant he could fight against a Four-Shell Machine General.
"Demon Lord class" and other incomprehensible terms had been thrown around, but Kalman decided that worrying about them would only make things worse.
So Kalman fought without giving up until the very end.
"Raits, I'll handle Kalman. You take care of the annoying Super Beasts!"
"Yes, yes, understood!"
Jigil gave the order as the superior officer, and Raits complied, gathering his subordinates and heading toward the Super Beasts.
"Not on my watch!"
Kalman decided to disrupt them with a feint and moved to interfere.
But Jigil blocked him.
Inevitably, Kalman and Jigil faced off, and the two clashed.
Jigil attacked fiercely and one-sidedly.
Kalman responded following his internal display's warnings, but it was all improvised. He excelled at handling heavy weapons, but close combat was not his forte.
In a short time, the tide of battle was about to be decided.
"Fufufu, better than expected. I was wondering why you didn't die from my kick, but sure enough—you've been re-modified."
"Yeah. That's why I've been gradually getting used to your movements."
That was a bluff.
Kalman could indeed react to some degree.
But that was only thanks to raw frame performance—a brute-force approach.
He couldn't use proper Mech-Drive Formulas—only military hand-to-hand combat techniques he had been trained in during his former life. That wasn't very useful in combat between mechanized soldiers.
The same was true now.
Kalman fired his high-output heat beam at Jigil, but every shot was evaded before it could land.
Jigil laughed in disbelief at Kalman's frustrated click of the tongue.
"Futile. It's like watching an adult vs. a child. I was entertaining you to gauge your frame's performance, but I've collected enough data. The fact that your fighting skills are that rudimentary yet you could hold your own against me tells me your frame's performance rivals a Four-Shell Machine General. But that's all it is. That itself is impressive, but you personally are no threat. After all—watch this—"
With those parting words, Jigil vanished.
He reappeared behind Kalman and drove a kick into his back.
"Gwaah!"
Kalman was slammed into the ground.
Kalman, who had been tracking Jigil's movements through his internal display, understood what had just happened.
It was a simple technique—ultra-high-speed movement.
From the overhead perspective of his internal display, it looked as though Jigil had teleported behind him.
The speed was twice the speed of sound.
And it didn't even look like Jigil was going all out.
This was combat on a level beyond everything he had known—Kalman understood that firsthand.
Heavy weapons only reached the speed of sound, at best.
Kalman was capable of aerial combat, but it relied on predicting the enemy's movements and unleashing firepower accordingly.
Optical weapons couldn't be dodged per se, but he had been evading them by predicting the enemy's trajectory and timing of fire from their movements.
But now, facing an enemy whose speed completely outstripped his own, his entire fighting style was rendered useless.
"Against combat-type mechanized humans, kinetic weapons are meaningless. I trust you understand this well?"
Kalman didn't need Jigil to tell him that.
It was common knowledge.
To defeat a combat-type mechanized human, you had to use optical weapons. That was because combat-type mechanized humans could move faster than projectiles.
Once you reached the level of a seasoned warrior, even beam weapons could be countered before firing.
That was precisely what Jigil was saying.
And heat beams were slower than particle cannons.
Slow enough that a combat-type mechanized human could dodge them.
Ultra-high-heat plasma also took time to converge energy. Moreover, as a close-range weapon, you had to get close and unleash it directly.
The finished spherical plasma had the power to incinerate anything it touched. But it was useless in high-speed combat.
That was precisely why Mech-Drive Formulas—built around ultra-high-speed combat—had been created.
Even if the frames of someone who knew this and someone who didn't were equal, the gap between them was enormous.
Kalman's armored squad could also handle optical weapons for wide-range annihilation.
They had been considered evenly matched precisely because they could strike before a combat-type mechanized human closed in.
But once a combat-type got within visual range, the armored squad would simply be trampled by the combat-type mechanized human.
Just as Kalman was now against Jigil—helpless...
But Kalman didn't give up.
He desperately scanned his weapons list and found something that might work against Jigil.
"Damn it! But how about this?!"
With that shout, Kalman unleashed his trump card.
He crossed both arms and thrust them forward, firing—a neutral particle beam cannon.
Normally this weapon required the Mobile External Equipment to use, but even Kalman in his current state could fire it.
Its output was insufficient to reach its full potential, but the speed exceeded eighty percent of the speed of light—far beyond a heat beam that barely reached twice the speed of sound. It was an optical weapon fully capable of posing a threat to a combat-type mechanized human.
The different particles accelerated through his right and left arms merged, sublimating into a killing blow that—never materialized.
"Too slow!"
With that single shout, Kalman was blasted away by a powerful impact.
The particles dispersed, and Kalman's trump card was crushed.
Jigil glared down at Kalman lying on the ground.
"Let me give you a lesson before you die. Whether it's a beam weapon or anything else, a finishing blow should only be fired after confirming the target can't move. And needless to say, the best time to strike is after your opponent has used their big move. Because you don't have enough energy left for a barrier, do you?"
With that mocking smile, Jigil raised his hand toward Kalman.
In that desperate moment, Kalman knew the end had come.
Jigil's words made him realize it—Jigil had never once used plasma during their fight.
Kalman, as always, had been wastefully using it for feints.
(So at this level of combat, wasteful shots were the wrong move...)
By the time he realized it, it was too late. Kalman wouldn't be able to move for another two seconds—more than enough time for Jigil to finish him off.
"Son of a—!"
"Goodbye, Kalman."
A flash of light.
And Kalman was engulfed in light— "What!?!"
Jigil hastily leaped back.
What scorched the ground was a rain of powerful acid.
No, it wasn't acid—it was the purple blood of a Super Beast, laced with deadly toxins.
"You... you..."
The Super Beast Kalman had shielded was now shielding him in return.
And then— In those serpentine pupils, a light of noble human will flickered as it opened its mouth to say something to Kalman.
"K-Kalman..."
From the mouth of the girl who had been transformed into a monster, Kalman's name escaped in a familiar voice.
"No way... Charle? Is it really you, Charle? Are you really—"
It was a miracle.
After a hundred years, Kalman had reunited with his lover, Charle.
But— "Kalman... I... I'm... sor—"
Everything below her torso was torn away, purple liquid pooling on the ground.
The severed lower half had exploded, leaving no trace.
As if fulfilling her final role, she had scattered her Corrosive Toxic Blood toward Jigil...
The billowing blood mist had the property of dissolving everything it touched, and even Jigil didn't dare step into it carelessly.
But none of that mattered to Kalman.
He forgot about Jigil—forgot about the entire battlefield—and embraced the twisted, mutated girl before him.
The corrosive acid burned his arms, but even that didn't matter.
"You... kept... our promise... I'm so happy. Truly. I love you. I love you so much. So please, live on—Kalman—"
With her last effort, forcing her mouth to move, the girl who had been transformed into a giant serpent—a Super Beast—Charle called out Kalman's name.
"Hey, Charle! We just found each other again—don't give up!!"
"Yes... we met again. I'm glad... I didn't give up—"
Their reunion was brief.
"My wish came true..." Charle whispered, and the strength drained from her hand.
Her eyelids gently closed, hiding those serpentine pupils.
Her crimson long hair flowed down from her forehead like thick blood.
"Ugh... uuuuhh... WAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!"
Kalman's wail echoed across the wasteland.
And then— [—Confirmed. Initiating synchronization in accordance with the Wearer's request.]
A mechanical voice echoed inside Kalman's mind.
It rang out with an icy tone, rapidly cooling Kalman's head.
At the same time, the ground cracked open, and what should have been the destroyed Mobile External Equipment emerged.
[Responding to the Wearer's request, all restrictions have been lifted. The "Self-Repair" function has been rewritten to the "Ultra-Speed Metamorphic Repair" function—initiating repair now. Surrounding materials will be absorbed. Do you consent? YES/NO] Surrounding materials—that meant the Charle Kalman was holding.
Kalman closed his eyes for just a moment, hesitated, then bit his lip and made his decision.
"—YES. We'll be together forever, Charle. Let's settle this grudge together."
Kalman's quiet whisper dispersed into the air, unheard by anyone.
However.
Kalman's will was certainly conveyed to the superweapon created by a being that transcended the laws of this world.
[Consent confirmed. Preserving "brain" in the hollow vessel—now commencing "soul" injection... Successful. Henceforth, I shall assist you, Kalman, as the Wearer, under the name "Charle." Nice to meet you, Kalman!]
Kalman's eyes went wide.
But it was only for an instant—Kalman quickly returned to his usual demeanor, a fearless grin spreading across his face.
Crying wasn't his style.
What mattered more right now was...
"Yeah, Charle. We'll be together forever—"
The metamorphic repair was complete.
—And the two became one.
The blood mist swirling in the air cleared.
What appeared was not a sleek frame, but a purple one with a dragon-like silhouette.
Jigil, who had been about to finish Kalman off, saw the figure and involuntarily stopped in his tracks.
"What is that? What is that form...?"
Wings on its back, and a tail extending from its rear.
Dragon-Machine External Armor—the form of a destroyer, having absorbed and mutated with the traits of a giant serpent-type Super Beast.
And its performance was— "Let's go, Jigil. I'm going to take you down, crush the Empire while I'm at it, and build a new nation with our own hands!"
"Ridiculous! Dream your dreams as much as you want—after you're dead!"
—And once again, the two clashed.