Chapter 1467

<Episode 1467> 1467. Dark Moon

The mechanical battle gauntlets of the Droid, humanity’s greatest foe.

Judging by their durability, which can even withstand mana distortions, it was clear that electric shocks wouldn’t affect them either.

But I didn’t think I had no chance.

Just one hit would do. The moment the current penetrates into the machine, this bulky battle gauntlet will embarrassingly collapse!

The problem is… getting that single shot isn’t easy.

“Hahaha! It’s been ages since I used this thing!”

Clang clang.

Frong’s arms transform into machine guns. Six gun barrels attached to his hands lock onto me and unleash a torrent of fire. 50-caliber bullets hammer against my barrier. The relentless barrage makes the barrier waver. Within ten seconds, the barrier shatters into pieces.

I wasn’t just standing there taking it.

[Lightning Spear]

As low as possible.

A spear of lightning generated below my knees slices through the wasteland and soars toward him.

“Spread from the bottom up.”

When the Lightning Spear hits the mechanical gauntlet, it explodes, scattering electrical currents. The current clings to the nearby gauntlet as intended, racing across its surface. Yeah… only the surface. Not a single bit managed to penetrate inside.

“It’s useless. This is a special Droid Battle Suit. Did you really think it wouldn’t be prepared for EMPs?”

Tut tut tut tut tut tut tut.

The hail of bullets finally stops—they’ve run out of ammo. I have one barrier left. Time to reinforce it. From behind his back, a jet engine activates, and with his massive body, he leaps, landing in front of me in an instant.

“Do you know why Droids instill fear in humans? Because we’re machines. Human flesh is ultimately crushed under chunks of steel!”

His arm transforms from a gun into a mace. A colossal iron mace, ready to crush my upper body, slams into the barrier.

The barrier shatters like glass.

I’m taken aback by the unexpectedly powerful force but quickly regain focus. Losing concentration in battle is fatal.

[I’m using ‘Instant’ (刹那). Remaining stacks: 5]

Facing him head-on is suicide. First, I need to create some distance.

[Levitation]

I rise into the sky.

“Planning to run? Well, I guess that’s all you can do now. But do you really think I’ll let you?”

“I’m not running. Today, this place will be your grave.”

Using the jet engine on his back, he leaps toward me in the sky. His incredible jump carries him past me to an even higher altitude. A mistake on his part.

‘Seems like he’s not fully accustomed to operating that Battle Suit yet.’

Still, I could see him getting more comfortable with it at a rapid pace. The longer this drags on, the worse it gets for me.

He targets my head as he descends. I dodge by throwing my body to the side.

At that moment, five fighters take off from Neo London into the sky. Battle…


The battle mech that dropped the suit was being tracked. The Diroid’s battle mech didn’t flee but instead engaged in combat.

“Is it deliberately drawing the attention of Neo London? Making sure Neo London doesn’t take interest in this side?”

1 vs 5 aerial battle. Surprisingly, the superior side was Diroid’s battle mech.

“Artificial intelligence. The ultimate pilot who can control a fighter without a single human error. Now that I think about it, it’s no wonder Neo London seems to be losing to the Diroids.”

Neo London wasn’t particularly worried.

Neo London’s maximum Full Strength wasn’t fighter jets, missiles, or tanks.

Knights.

Those Monsters who traverse the battlefield barehanded would soon appear, and when they did, Diroid’s battle mech wouldn’t last long before being shot down.

“Who are you looking at, idiot?!”

“I’m just watching the aerial battle between the fighters for the first time.”

“Crazy guy!”

The bastard appeared right in front of my nose.

“Of course, all my other senses were focused on you entirely.”

[Gravity]

Amplifies gravity. A Level 1 spell, but depending on the wizard, its power varies wildly. 50 times the force of gravity crushes down on Fron’s mechanical battle gauntlets. We’re in mid-air; there’s no ground to brace against. He’s dragged downwards toward the surface.

[Not a chance!]

The jet engine output increases. The hulking Giant Body defies the 50x gravity and flies through the air with dazzling aerial maneuvers. Watching his flashy moves, I hastily activated my Blink skill.

[Blink (Moment) activated. Remaining stacks: 4]

I narrowly dodge his attack. His mace passes a mere 2cm from my head. With no barrier, my heart drops.

“The jet engines are glowing red. He must be pushing them too hard. And he’s doing this because… he’s worried I’ll escape, isn’t he?”

Fron lost his subordinates because of me. To him, it must feel like losing most of his assets. Though he pretends to be calm, inside, he must be boiling with rage.

[Blink (Moment) activated. Remaining stacks: 3]

“If it weren’t for Blink, I’d probably already be dead. Still, here I am trusting in Blink while engaging him head-on.”

I dodge his mace again by the skin of my teeth and reach into my coat pocket. I grab the Blue Distortion petals. There’s some hesitation though—using everything in my pocket would make researching Blue Distortion impossible.

“…But if I have money and time, I can always get more Blue Distortion.”

Hundreds of blue petals are scattered from my hand. They slowly hover around me, drawn by telekinesis.

“What are you trying to do? That kind of distortion won’t affect me.”

“You’re wrong.”

Distortion caused by the mana field isn’t completely ineffective—it slightly dents his gauntlets. In other words, it’s an issue of output.

‘Hundreds of Blue Distortion petals, combined with all the mana I have left… and I might actually have a chance.’

[Blink (Moment) activated. Remaining stacks: 2]

I dodge the mace and begin weaving the spell formula.

[Mana Field]

The hundreds of Blue Distortions resonate. The space itself turns blue, and Fron’s movements within it slow down.

Fron tilts his body toward the ground and cranks his jet engines to max output. He’s decided to escape this space. But his movement is agonizingly slow due to the effects of the mana field.

I grit my teeth. Managing the mana field isn’t easy. If I lose even a bit of focus, I’ll get caught in my own spatial distortion.

‘I’ll end this before then.’

Spatial distortion occurs, targeting the right shoulder of the battle mech. Space warps. The Diroid battle mech tears apart like a cheap robot toy, revealing Fron inside.

‘It’s over.’

The distortion now heads straight for his head…


It was the moment of truth. Suddenly, my combat gauntlet disintegrated and blocked my line of sight. The bastard didn’t waste a second, breaking free from the mana field and plummeting toward the ground.

“So the tables have turned. I’ll kill him before he escapes.”

[Using Instant (刹那). Stacks remaining: 1]

[Lightning Spear]

A spear of lightning materializes. But this alone won’t cut it. He’s a cyborg who survived Thunder Break—there’s no way a simple Lightning Spear will finish him off.

The blue distortion petals scattered in the air began to converge under telekinetic force. Hundreds of petals adhered to the Lightning Spear.

Lightning Spear. Blue Distortion. Extreme Mana Compression Field. With these three layers combined, I hurled the weapon at the falling bastard.

The spear struck true, embedding itself into his chest and exploding on impact.

Zzzzzziiiiiiiiiiiip!

An enormous current surged, distorting space itself.

I swallowed hard as I watched the scene unfold. I hadn’t thought too deeply about this attack—but its power far exceeded my expectations.

“Hmph… It’s like a giant blender. The spatial distortion acts as the blades… anyone caught inside would be shredded down to nothing.”

Only after the spatial distortion dissipated did I descend to the ground.

Human flesh and mechanical debris were scattered everywhere.

“Damn…”

I turned my head at the sound of a low curse. It was the remnants of the bastard—his face partially destroyed, only the mechanical components still barely intact.

“I never thought I’d die in a place like this… Soon… You’ll die soon too…”

“At this point, I’d rather you just vanish into hell already.”

“Hell? Death is the end. There’s no afterlife. And there’s certainly no Spirit.”

“Hmph. That’s your belief.”

As I approached to finish him off, it became unnecessary. By the time I got close, his last remnants of cybernetic flesh had collapsed into scrap metal.

-Is it over? Stop messing around and get back to the car. A Droid Fighter crashed. London Guards and knights are heading this way. I’ve erased all traces; we just need to leave now. Oh, and make sure there’s nothing left behind.

I glanced around.

There wasn’t much evidence that could lead back to me. The Blue Distortion I used had turned to ash and vanished with the wind.

“I’m coming. Start the engine.”

The mission was successful.

Invisible Blade entered and exited Neo-London.

Before she left, she glared at me sharply. There was a hesitation as if she wanted to say something before stepping out of the car. Maybe she had something to tell me.

I sighed in relief when she disappeared without saying a word.

“Dealing with both Frong and Invisible Blade consecutively was nerve-wracking… Thankfully, she didn’t stab me in the back.”

It was fortunate she played nice—it saved unnecessary trouble.

“Now I can restore the Mana Road.”

My hands trembled with excitement as I gripped the steering wheel. Struggling to maintain composure, I returned the car and hailed a carriage to the entrance of E Zone, Eyra Street.

Upon arriving at Gomez Clinic, I handed a bag to Lanna Gomez.

“This belongs to your daughter. I wiped out the Frong gang.”

Lanna Gomez accepted the box and opened it, nodding upon confirming the presence of an elegant dress inside.

“As expected, your skills are top-notch. Neo-London is buzzing right now—they’re saying a Droid Fighter went down. Any connection to this?”

“Frong was working with the Droid.”

“What a piece of trash.”

“About restoring the Mana Road—can it be done immediately?”

“We have all the materials, so we can start right away. The important thing is your decision—are we doing this now?”

“Let’s go. Get up. Let’s head to the operating room. The surgery should take no more than five hours.”