Collapse Iron: My Past Life Revealed, I Was Everyone's White Moonlight

In the sky.

Liu Ying slowly stood up.

The Firefly mech on her body had completely disappeared, and her long dress was tattered and torn, covered in blood and dust.

The white mask that belonged to Sam on her face had long since shattered and fallen not far ahead.

The firefly looked around in confusion, muttering to itself as it gazed at the scorched earth and the corpses scattered everywhere.

"I……"

"...Dead?"

"Damn..."

"Who is it...?"

She seemed to be asking herself, or perhaps asking this desolate world.

However, no one could answer her.

As the camera zooms out...

The land, now a ruin, is littered with the corpses of Zerg and Iron Riders.

Only Liu Ying stood alone on the scorched earth of the ruins.

Upon seeing this, the audience fell silent once again.

It's true, everyone except for Liuying is dead.

However, at that moment...

In the sky.

Accompanied by painful gasps, footsteps could be heard from the screen.

The audience immediately perked up and looked in the direction of the sound.

Then, a figure, also staggering and covered in blood, appeared in the scene, clutching its shoulder, and walked slowly and laboriously toward the standing firefly.

When the audience outside the canopy saw the person's face clearly, their eyes widened instantly.

Because this person...they recognize him.

It was the same Iron Rider with short silver hair and a cheerful personality who had appeared many times before in the Firefly Squad—AR-36541!

She was here too.

Most importantly, it survived just like the fireflies!

This unexpected surprise sent the audience into a frenzy once again.

[There are still people alive besides the fireflies! That's wonderful!]

[They are her companions! They are not alone anymore!]

[This isn't the time to talk about this. The swarm is getting closer. Get her away quickly... Wait, no, look at AR-36541!]

Wait, what's wrong with her body...?

Indeed, this joy did not last long.

Because the audience quickly discovered it.

AR-36541's situation... is even worse than that of the Firefly.

Her mecha was also gone, and half of her body was charred and mangled from the explosion.

Her eyes were unfocused, and her steps were unsteady, as if she might collapse at any moment.

But she still forced herself to walk step by step toward her last companion, her lips moving in a weak, trembling voice as she persistently murmured:

"Born to fight..."

"It is the glory of Grammer... the Iron Cavalry..."

She staggered until she finally reached the firefly.

"for……"

Then... she couldn't hold on any longer.

She knelt down helplessly in front of Liu Ying, letting out a final, barely audible murmur.

"The Empress..."

"His Majesty……"

AR-36541 slowly lowered its head.

Those once vibrant eyes slowly lost their luster and fell silent.

The scene freezes at this moment.

The camera slowly pulls back at this moment.

On the vast, desolate scorched earth.

Opposite him lay his kneeling, dead comrade.

In the middle is Sam's shattered mask.

And in this purgatory where only death and despair remain.

Only her.

Only Liu Ying stood there blankly.

Besides loneliness.

All that remains is... despair.

Firefly stared blankly at her companion kneeling before her, now lifeless.

Looking at the completely shattered white mask among them.

She didn't cry.

There was no shouting.

She just watched quietly, her empty eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.

It was as if the person kneeling before her was not her companion with whom she spent every day, but a completely unrelated... corpse.

however.

"Clatter".

A drop of scalding liquid slid down her cheek and dripped onto the scorched earth.

They are tears.

Then, the second drop, the third drop...

Tears streamed uncontrollably down both cheeks.

Something deep within her body, along with her companion's fall and the white mask before her... shattered completely.

A trembling voice slowly escaped from his mouth.

"Why...did you die...?"

Scenes of long-forgotten memories and the past flashed before my eyes.

As an Iron Cavalryman, when they were first born in the incubation chamber.

The cold robotic arm lifted her from the nutrient solution and dressed her in a standard uniform.

When Sam saved him and he received his own name for the first time.

When he regained his wings and the ability to fly from Sam...

"Why...am I alive...?"

Like their other "sisters," they were given numbers and told that their sole purpose was to fight for Grammer and for Her Majesty the Queen.

When, together with thousands of "sisters," they raised their right fists and shouted "For Grammer! For Her Majesty the Queen!", solemnly swearing an oath for the mission of their birth.

but……

With tears streaming down her face, Liu Ying slowly raised her head, her gaze seemingly piercing through the gray, smoke-shrouded sky.

"But……"

"Grammer..."

Her voice trembled slightly, without her even realizing it, and carried a hint of sadness.

"...It no longer exists."

Yes.

It no longer exists.

Empire, Empress, Glory

And her... Sam, her brother.

This was accompanied by a desperate whisper.

Liu Ying... finally woke up completely.

And finally... I accepted reality.

Empire, is a lie.

The Empress is asleep.

Comrades, all sacrificed.

And... the only light in her life.

Sam...

They're long gone...

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

The camera slowly zooms out.

Opposite him kneels his former comrade who died, and in the middle is Sam's shattered mask.

Only her.

Only myself.

Only the firefly stood there alone...

This apocalyptic scene struck the audience hard.

The audience, who had just been cheering because someone had survived, were now speechless.

Their faces still held the smiles of relief they hadn't had time to wipe away.

Looking at that girl on the screen, I felt like my heart was breaking.

This... is war.

It won't show mercy just because you're lucky.

It will only drag you into deeper despair in a more cruel way when you think you've seen hope.

……