I loaded two rounds in strong-armor mode into the hinges—there being no inner lock—and with a swift kick, sent the door of the containment room, which must have been fifteen centimeters thick, crashing down with surprising ease.
“Wha…!?”
“Great work on your shift! But sorry about this!!”
Without a moment’s hesitation, I dashed out of the room and fired a round into the head of the sentry stationed to the right of the door. The bullet, fired in energy-saving mode to suppress its power so as only to have the force of a handgun round, struck the helmet with a resounding thud and apparently knocked out the occupant.
I know enough about these reinforced exoskeletons now, having already seen Galatea’s. Their method of functioning without power remains a mystery, but I know they don’t have a double-layered structure with shock-absorbing material between the layers.
Which means it’s not necessary for my bullets to penetrate entirely through—if they make contact, that’s enough to knock out the occupant.
“Heretic! What…!”
Before the sentry stationed to the left could even draw his sword, I struck the hilt of his weapon hard to stop his motion and force the blade back into its sheath. His strength of resistance was weak since he was wearing a heavy exoskeleton that seems to use up most of its performance just for muscle-assist abilities. Even with my relatively frail physique, I managed to buy myself a few precious seconds.
“Nighty-night!”
That time was all I needed to press the coilgun against his forehead and send him to sleep.
His head bounced off the wall with a sickening sound, the impact denting his armor slightly before he collapsed, smashing through the wall to the ground below.
Crap, did I go too far? I sure hope he’s not dead.
“There are disturbances in the brainwaves, but the vitals are normal. He’s alive.”
“Good, then.”
Thankful for Selene’s confirmation, I reached for the sword thinking I could confiscate his melee equipment… but no, this was too heavy.
That’s right, this is an over-compressed forty-kilogram metal sword designed for one hand. There’s no way I could lift it without the exoskeleton. Nor was there time now to strip him of his armor, so begrudgingly, I abandoned the sword and instead mounted the dagger from my waist onto the coilgun.
Heheh, the tribe all having bayonet-equipped rifles seemed unfair, so I had them modify the coilgun for a longer barrel and greater power, simultaneously creating this.
Though a shorter range compared to a sword, this bayonet is invaluable for close quarters battle, and I absolutely had to have it. My partner, who now seems to exude a somewhat exasperated vibe while nestled inside my chest pocket, still hasn’t quite understood my reasons yet.
But there’s something romantic about close combat for mechanized humans.
“Shortest route to Galatea’s room?”
“Go straight and then turn left.”
Following the instruction led me to an elevator, where two more sentries were positioned to guard it.
They had apparently already caught the sound of the earlier combat and were rushing to the scene, swords drawn. I caught them by surprise at the corner, tripping one with a leg sweep and incapacitating the other with a trio of shots to the head, effectively granting him a temporary vacation.
“Shu—Escapee! Increase the security—gah!?”
Before the tripped one could call for reinforcement, I silenced him with a shot to the back of his head but, alas, the wireless was already active. Dammit, I should have been more thorough—it’s embedded in the armor, after all.
Impressive, though. Unlike weaker soldiers who might pretend to be dead until I’ve passed by, these men have clearly opted to utilize the wireless to warn their comrades as soon as possible. True professionals.
“So they know about my escape, huh.”
“It seems the route to the surface will likely have a heavier security presence.”
“But, given the situation, I can’t exactly gather everyone together.”
Another tremendous sound echoed from outside. That dragon’s still rampaging. There’s no way I could lead everyone into a typhoon-like storm, so I may as well make them wait on the outskirts.
“But there are several legs here. Let’s procure a Gear Caliber after rescuing Galatea.”
“Good idea.”
We reached the elevator and Selene used a wire stretched from the puppet’s body to manipulate the controls, easily bypassing the security lock.
“Your efforts are amateurish. To us, an un-upgraded system from the 20th century might as well be an open pass.”
“Too bad the Zodiac Federal League didn’t accept you back.”
The security systems rely only on the AI for ship maintenance, and compared to our sequence AI, their thought and calculation speeds are akin to toys. Feeding it a pseudo-labyrinth as a response to the identification signal forces it into a feedback loop that inevitably will lead to a system reboot.
“Suppression finished. They’ll be busy questioning themselves for fifteen minutes, so we have the freedom to act accordingly.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
Galatea was being held further above our current position.
Somehow, whether by miracle or through good control during descent, the “Inanna-12” had fallen vertically. That’s fortunate because, though it is a near-planetary space vessel, it was designed with old humans in mind, so it maintains a distinct sense of up and down through an artificial gravity system.
Otherwise, all the rooms would have been oriented in unpredictable directions, making the ship unusable like the “Tiamat-25.”
The elevator ascended around three levels, giving me a faint sensation of upwards movement before halting.
“Captain, please destroy the console. We’ll use a different route for escape.”
“Understood.”
After physically disabling the control panel with wild fire, I lept out only to find that, apparently, there was no one at the guard post.
Well, there was someone, only dead.
“A stab wound, I see. So he must’ve also been a guard-cum-watchman.”
It seems Virgil has resorted to rather rash measures. The urgency to kill the guard-post personnel indicates a frantic state.
Seeing that the guard here is dead implies that people tied to Galatea—be it family or superiors—don’t wish to lose her. This certainty leaves us with considerable leverage for negotiation even after this extraction. It could even work as a credit.
“Galatea’s room is…”
“Room 4009, proceed left from here and turn the corner.”
“What’s the situation?”
“…They’ve broken in. Hurry.”
It seems Galatea tried buying time by placing obstacles despite the availability of an inner lock for such a VIP chamber. But ultimately, the intruders breached her defenses.
She isn’t foolish; in this scenario, she would’ve anticipated unwelcome visitors and put up quite the resistance, buying me enough time to arrive.
“Enemies: three inside, two outside!”
“Understood!”
I sprinted forward, armed, and upon turning the corner unexpectedly encountered an adversary with a massive shield—an aptly named tower shield.
“Who the hell are you!?”
I took down one unprepared foe, but the other had already assumed position, rendering my energy-saving mode bullets futile as they harmlessly deflected off the armor surface.
Shit, if the exoskeleton can carry this thing, it means not only is the armor thick, but it must also incorporate a shock dispersion mechanism. Upon further inspection in slow motion, it became clear that the shield was designed to absorb the impact by subtly moving upon impact. So, it employs two layers of armor sandwiched with shock-absorbing dampeners to prevent penetration.
Combined with the thickness of the shield itself, the design ensures it won’t be pierced easily unless you’re wielding a mono-molecular blade—a weapon which isn’t popular in this nation. Likely from the Zodiac Federal League, this gear is typically used by those who fear close combat because replacement parts for their bodies aren’t easily available.
Even in strong-armor mode, penetrating this won’t be easy. So, as I unleashed a burst fire to pin him in place while advancing closer, I contemplated my next move.
Despite it being resilient against penetration, the impact must’ve caused a significant jolt. Utilizing the force of firing to slow him down, I approached and, upon getting within striking distance, swerved around the shield, targeting the gap at his right elbow. Knowing Galatea’s armor only utilizes basic cut-resistant fibers in the joints, I thrust my forged bayonet into this weak point. If it couldn’t withstand a slash, it would surely yield to a full-force stab.
“Gyahhhhh!?”
The meat reflexively tensed to capture the blade, but I fired another round. The impact caused flesh to splatter, and the bayonet previously caught by reflex was now smoothly released. By completely destroying his joint, I ensured he’d never use that left hand again without intensive therapy. To this superior, who chose to employ such vile tactics, I offer my inner condolences. Still, I mercilessly fired two shots into his helmet, incapacitating the shield-bearer.
“Galatea!!”
“Nozomu…!?”
Upon forcefully prying open the door and squeezing through, a scene unfolded that I wished I could’ve overlooked. Three men had pinned down Galatea, tearing her clothing, while another attempted to remove her armor’s critical parts. Their sinister acts, undeterred by the battle sounds outside possibly masked by the roaring dragon, went unchecked.
I will not tolerate this.
Overriding the emotional control protocol’s warning, I instinctively activated the coilgun into strong-armor mode. Six seconds, huh? Meaning the maximum duration of anger lasts six seconds, essentially telling me to kill everyone within that timeframe.
Thus, driven by fury, I immediately targeted a man attempting to manipulate the armor’s excretion mechanism, blasting a hole through his exposed, vulgar object.
“Kohh…!?”
The bullet pierced through the erect object vertically, continuing through his armor and pinning it into the wall, creating a red stain.
“Kisaa…!”
Next, I fired at the man standing by Galatea’s head who was holding her arm down. Unintentionally forgetting to deactivate the strong-armor mode, I fired a trio of bullets that grotesquely twisted his neck joint, flinging him backward.
And the last one… until I realized I had to freeze as my gun was aimed at him.
“Stop moving, heretic! I’ll kill her!!”
“…Even if you don’t move, you’ll still kill her, won’t you.”
The man stationed by Galatea’s side had a blade aimed at her neck. This concealed weapon, likely designed for grappling scenarios, extended from his wrist. Her armor didn’t feature such, but it seemed this accessory was a known option.
“N-Nozomu…?”
“Hey, Galatea, I’ve come to save you. Sorry for the delay!”
Though bloodied and almost naked, Galatea remained in a state of shock.
Unfortunately, despite my reaction speed allowing me to eliminate the threat before a hostage situation, I’d miscalculated. His weapon, hidden and not requiring preparation, caught me off guard. I shouldn’t have grown complacent just because I knew the specs beforehand.
“Whatever way you’ve come, don’t move, heretic! Move and this girl dies!”
“Originally, you came here to kill. Just enjoying yourself beforehand, maybe? How disgraceful of you, knight, bearing that armor!”
What to do? I’ve already aimed. Blasting his head off isn’t hard, but if he falls awkwardly, the blade could sever her neck. Even with the finest micro-machines, a cleanly severed neck would be impossible to reattach.
“Shoot me! Nozomu!!”
“…!”
If the bullet causes him to fall backward, it might work, but what if he shifts his posture at the last second and the blade ends up pointing the wrong way? Still, delaying and risking reinforcements isn’t wise either.
“But I’m… fine!!”
“What?!”
Without warning, she lifted her head while grabbing his arm and hurled herself into the blade, causing the wrist blade aiming horizontally at her throat to rip open her neck and blood vessels. With the force of desperation, she immobilized him.
Her gaze was pointed towards my waist. Of course! What a resolve she has!
Impressed by her courage, I fired a bullet into the man’s head without hesitation, watching his collapsing body as the blade dislodged, blood erupting like a fountain.
Without a second thought, I ran over, applying pressure on the wound to stem the flow. Next, I retrieved from my multipurpose pouch at my waist the needleless injector containing the “micro-machine medical cluster” she’d signified with her glance …
【Planetary Exploration Memo】Medical micro-machines are designed for emergency treatment. Though they can seal wounds, they cannot completely reconnect fully severed body parts. However, even a neck wound that would normally be fatal—if blood loss is prevented—has a chance of revival.
The next update will be around 4:00 PM.
