10 – Ruins, Albion (10)
I exhale. I look up at the giant Titan revealing itself in the dust pit.
Previs.
The commander-level entity of Harvest, Farmer, looks down at me.
“How did you survive? Did you eliminate the shock by throwing it behind you? How much is the absorption rate…?”
I try to resolve my doubts. That appearance is similar to that of a human. Yes. Commander-level entity. You were originally created to be similar to humans.
To understand them and exterminate them. A destructive entity created only to mimic what humans can do.
And that destructive power…
“Indeed, you’re different.”
Powerful enough to be designated as a raid boss.
The full form of Previs Titan opened up. Countless cannons pop out. I immediately crash into the ground due to overwhelming firepower.
Not a retreat but an advance. If you step back, you will only face more danger. We need to narrow the distance.
Kwaaah!!!!!!!
Overwhelming firepower engulfs the ground. Buildings that would take humans a long time to look up to are torn apart simultaneously.
The ground cracks. Rising clouds of dust.
Everything visible before our eyes is destroyed as if catastrophe is engulfing the world.
There is only one thing I can do.
[Activating high-speed mobility.]
I dash!
Within the status window of the auxiliary artificial intelligence, the world accelerates. Unique skills that Flame Tail can use.
In an instant, the fuel decreases drastically. In return, all the engines attached to my back start running.
Quietly facing the enemy’s attacks with a tactical shield, this system is nothing less than the self-destructive function of a dragon-like race.
Garggggggggggg!!!!
Tremendous air resistance hits my skin. The compressed space on my extended legs.
Part of Flame Tail’s gauntlet comes off. Even though I didn’t receive any direct attack, the external armor is blown away by mere air resistance.
But it doesn’t matter.
As long as I can narrow the distance…!
“…What is this?!”
Previs has entered my striking range!
Kwaaah!!!!
Firing with the last remaining arm, the tactical shotgun spews flames. Previs flinches and immediately retreats.
But I am faster. The bullet pierces through Previs’s entire body.
However, his defense system activates. A massive blue wall that cannot be penetrated by the tactical shotgun deflects the bullets one after another.
Nonetheless…
If it’s poured in the same place…!
The fuel gauge that was rapidly decreasing caught his eye. But there was no time to worry about such things.
Move. Endlessly maintain high-speed movement to get out of the enemy’s attack range.
Running on the ground, he simultaneously destroyed the building blocking the way. It created an endless dust pit and made it difficult for the enemy to detect him.
The tactical shotgun continued to fire endlessly. A full shell lodged into Previs’s chest, piercing through the soil and dust.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
The defense system that was about to be overwhelmed began to glow red-hot.
“I can’t believe it. With such inadequate equipment, to this extent…?”
Previs roared.
“But that’s it!”
Previs changed his gear and placed a huge minigun on his back.
The gun began to spin. Six barrels aimed at him.
Then, simultaneously…
An overwhelming barrage began to pour out.
“Resist! The last descendant of the tribe!”
Kwagagagagagagagagak!!!!
It wasn’t just the sound of bullets.
It was the sound of destruction.
The surrounding terrain began to shatter. Objects turned into debris.
It wasn’t just an ordinary minigun. The bullets that sprang out of the huge barrel turned everything into dust.
An overwhelming firepower that even shattered the fragments of the buildings that had been sprouted up.
The terrain he used for high-speed movement collapsed as one.
Some bullets hit his armor. His already barely-attached left arm was torn off.
“Ugh?!”
The firepower.
The firepower was too far behind!
“Goddamn it. The big fight with Titan is the problem. Even if we pour in ten attacks, if the enemy hits us once properly, we’re done!”
Pain strikes the brain. The body with a load stops for a moment.
Previs’s laughter was heard.
“It’s over.”
“Drakan!”
I hear a voice.
“Get out of the way!”
Quaaang!!!
I raised my shaky vision. I saw Scarlet Peridot’s titan crumbling Previs.
In the melee. As if pierced by arrows, Previs writhed on the ground. Scarlett Peridot climbed on top and aimed the gun with her remaining left arm.
“Get away!!!”
Tudatatata !!!!!
Most of the merciless bullets were stopped by the defense system. But one bullet went through where the tactical shotgun had hit many times, damaging the inside.
What broke apart was the core attached to the chest. The energy that began to ooze out scattered in all directions like blood.
“And a naive Natpharic-like this … ?!”
Previs grabbed Scarlett Peridot with both hands.
Crackle.
Her remaining right arm was pulled out.
“aaah!”
“Scarlet!”
Thumped the ground without hesitation. He pulled Scarlett with his remaining left arm.
He covered her as it was. If they just leave the battlefield like this …!
“I …”
Previs’s titan lit up his outer eyes.
“You think you can catch me?”
The thrown minigun rolled on the floor. In his place, he picked up a small firearm shaped like a pistol.
The sound of the trigger being pulled was heard. Time flowed slowly as if frozen.
Scarlett’s titan met his eyes. And at that moment …
His consciousness flew away.
…
…To me.
I didn’t have a father.
There was only my mother.
From Noble mtl dot com
My mother, my younger sibling, and I. We were just the three of us. Even so, my mother had to work late into the night to take care of us.
I was the only one who could look after my younger sibling. It’s not like we had a bad relationship. My little sister was very obedient and kind.
…But
With a child’s body, there was only so much I could do.
I couldn’t properly fulfill the motherly duties. It was difficult for me alone to take on my mother’s role.
Even if my younger sibling helped, it was still the same. We lacked food, and because we lived in a small room without sunlight, the laundry never dried properly, always remaining damp.
Damp clothes and the smell of two children.
That was both different and wrong. Enough to prompt enmity from classmates.
But I was okay. I had somewhat decent friends, after all.
However, it was different for my younger sibling. They had no friends.
They were delicate and a good listener.
…They were an easy target for bullying.
In my third year of middle school, by chance, I ran into my sibling while walking down the street. Their condition, trapped between female and male students, was a mess.
Torn hair. Clothes partially ripped.
I heard mocking laughter. I met eyes with my little sister.
She called out to me.
“…Oppa?”
I…
I was there…
. . .
“Ku…Ugh…?”
I opened my eyes. For a moment, consciousness faded away.
After recovering from dizziness, I could feel the trace of a bullet that had struck my whole body.
“Argh!!!”
The link was severed. The destroyed Titan was completely motionless as well.
Gazes fixed on me. The Titan was stuck amidst the debris of buildings.
Something welled up from within my entire being.
Blood? Pain? Where…where am I hurt? “Dracan!!” I hear a voice. My ears are buzzing. I tried to answer, but blood rose in my throat. [Unknown # werjkdf1 $ # 90.] Something came to mind beyond the shattered screen. Something pierced my body just before the screen of the Titan went out. For a moment, the pain flew away. After spitting out the blood, it was easier to breathe. The bleeding from the holes in my body stopped. Painkillers and hemostatic agents…? “…bil…ly… malfunction…ing…” Pravis’s voice sounded faintly from a distance. I forcibly opened the half-broken lid of the Titan. My head hurt. My whole body shook as if it were about to break apart. But I couldn’t stop. Thankfully, beyond the shaking view, the city’s entrance was visible. It was demolished, but large enough to pass through. “Sc…arlet…” “D, Dracan!” “Core…replacement…” From the broken Titan, I replaced the core with the Titan without arms. Her Titan was also in a state of disrepair, but at least she could walk. The replaced core. Scarlet fell from the open mechanism. She was not in a good condition either. Despite forcibly enduring the pain, she looked broken with veins bulging all over her body. “We…need to rest a little…” “Can’t rest…we have to go…” They’re coming. Not the damaged Pravis, but countless Harvest soldiers. We have to move. That’s the only way we can survive. “Let’s go…Scarlet…” “…….” She lifted me up. We joined together as if clinging to one control seat. Breathing was audible in front of us. But it was not a moment to enjoy the sensation. [Synchronization in progress…]
[Activating the mechanism.]
This time, I won’t lose. I won’t run away.
… to the end.
I will protect to the end.
I moved a Titan without both arms.
I struggled to survive.
I know.
The moment I give up, how much of a hellish life is waiting.
I can’t be like Scarlet Peridot.
I can’t be like her… never…
Wtf did she die? Lol