Does the mechanical girl dream of the Messiah?

There is no sense of pain, no sensation of body. Even though he is physically restricted and his movements tremble and twist with the violent shaking, he is still able to move. Thoughts and actions are separated, and he becomes part of "a certain existence", which means that he is deprived of control over his body, and his actions lose the interval between them and his thoughts, becoming extremely fast.

Just reach out your hand and you can touch the shadow of the paladin.

"Well!"

After just a moment's touch, the shadow merged with the paladin's shadow, leaving only a faint outline to separate the two. Then, the paladin's arm stabbed at her own neck -

call out----!

"Ella!"

With the sound of wind breaking through the air, the silver-white rapier pierced through Lunicia's arm. The impact caused the trajectory of her arm to deviate, and it failed to pierce her throat as expected; accompanied by a cry without emotional ups and downs, a pink shadow flashed by, blood splattered, and the blood-stained black sword cut the shadow that was fixed by the giant sword into two pieces.

"Are you okay, Lady Luna?!"

"Um, ahem! - Never mind, next one!"

——This one didn’t say a word before he died.

The voice was still full of vitality. As Ashetherin retracted the silver rapier, the blood hole on her arm began to heal quickly, at least it did not affect her sword swinging. On the other side, Ella's blade turned again as her figure turned. There was no hesitation or slowness, and it pierced the other shadow's head with incredible precision, followed by the chest and abdomen, and then both hands. The incredibly fast combo made it almost impossible for him to react.

——This one, too.

There was no sound.

Even though they heard faint humming sounds while running in the corridor, those sounds disappeared after they actually entered the battle. They probably didn't have much of themselves left in the first place, only hazy and chaotic fragments that were almost imperceptible, and the rest were just instincts that were controlled and controlled by "some existence". They didn't even have the chance to leave a last word, and they dissipated in the violent attack.

“…Ah…Ah…”

No.

it's not true.

At least, in the end, I still heard that subtle sound.

"…What…did we…do wrong…?"

A subtle, slow voice, like a rusty gear that is still turning, came from the "mouth" of the shadow being dismantled by the pure white blade. It was a voice that contained a clear will, and it was delayed for who knows how many years. It could not be seen, heard, or touched, and it did not know who the person in front of it was, but it still stubbornly asked:

What did we do wrong?

"Feel sorry."

Why apologize?

Who are you apologizing to?

Even Lunicia herself didn't know the answer to this question. She didn't know who was in front of her. Perhaps it was a passenger or crew member of a certain airship that had been preyed upon for thousands of years, or perhaps it was the souls from the distant past on the original airship called "Gleipnir". Her life had never intersected with his. Only at this last moment, she ended his false life with her sword. She had no knowledge of him, so naturally she couldn't comment on him. Even if it was right or wrong, good or evil, everything was unknown to Lunicia. In that case, why should she apologize?

"This is to calm your souls."

This is not killing, but a ritual to calm the souls, a battle against "a certain existence" in order to free the thousands of souls bound here, to cut off the evil fog lingering in the sky. It is impossible to judge the good and evil of the souls being liberated, to judge their right and wrong, to distinguish between their past and their merits, to say "you did it wrong" or "you did it right", so the only thing that can be done is to liberate and kill them equally.

That was the only thing the paladin had to apologize for.

This behavior can bring them relief, but it cannot bring them salvation.

"Do you need to take a break, Lady Luna?"

"Not yet, keep moving forward!"

"Don't you care about the status of this machine? You are such a heartless woman."

"You don't need to rest at all!"

The shadows that had just been entrenched in this corridor and blocked the passage had now been swept away by the three people's fierce and tacit attack, leaving only the corridor with flickering lights but always above the safety limit. There were very glaring distortion marks on the wall, and irregular bloodstains had long dried up and seeped deeply into the cracks, retaining the human-like shape. Whether it was the metal handrail or the Eternal Light covered by the transparent cover, they were all covered with cracks, just like the marks left by a fierce collision with something - that was probably the mark left by the first collision with "Gleipnir", and it still showed the tragedy that happened to the ship before it was swallowed.

These are all evidence of the guilt of this long-dead ark.

Lunetia turned back one last time.

There is no one there - there are only shadows that spread out like ink, cannot be touched, and exist only in illusion.

Then, focus your eyes forward again and take another step forward.

……

"Forward! Forward! Forward like the tide, like the gale, like an endless flame, like a rain of stars!"

Her tone was exaggerated and high-pitched, as if she was singing the fancy soprano voice on the stage, just like her outfit, a straight black tailcoat, the hem of which swayed back and forth in the exploding airflow, and the gold medal and tricolor ribbon on her chest fluttered with it, making a tinkling sound. Her shoulders, her cuffs, and the cuffs of her trousers all looked as if they had been newly ironed, with gold cuff studs and tassels. Her leather shoes were no longer dusty and mottled, as if they had been wiped clean and looked brand new, and the metal heels made a crisp and loud sound when they stepped on the ground.

Everyone was impressed by her confident and bold demeanor, and firmly believed that she was the dazzling conductor on the stage and the military god in the symphony orchestra. Her heavenly voice brought unprecedented morale.

"Mr. Opera—"

"It is the great, noble, talented, proud, and respected 'Lusa Ephayeret'!"

"Is the battle situation on the other side really okay? I'm afraid we can't guarantee victory by relying on them alone."

"You should believe in their abilities - Team Five, advance! Push forward! Suppress with all your strength! - They are all excellent warriors, born with emerald and gold, the most dazzling celebrities on the stage, no less than the pearl in the far east of the continent, the fallen star of Muirand. Even without a script, they will present the most wonderful performance, not to mention that the playwright is me!"

Lusa looked back at the battle line again.

Unlike the Lunician side's aggressive charge, Lusa Efayeret adopted a steady and cautious strategy that was completely opposite to her radical character, setting up roadblocks, forming arrays, and covering each other.

In the previous battle in the stage area, the "Iron Leviathan" side had little effect. All they did at the time was to use a large amount of ammunition to attract the attention of the "shadows", interspersed with a few attacks that could actually cause damage, to interfere with the hostility shown by the "shadows" towards Lunicia and her party. This time it was completely the opposite. No matter how small each bullet was, like a trace of drizzle splashing on a lake, the mechanical puppets eventually swept away the shadows blocking their eyes with a dense firepower network, leaving only bursting ink marks.

"The method of fighting is known, the law of victory has been confirmed, and all that remains to be done is to announce our arrival! All columns, advance!"

"Sir Opera House, don't you have to consider the logistics?"

"There's no need to consider that kind of thing now."

She just laughed and waved the baton in her hand - "Conqueror Marduk", with blue dragon crystals inlaid on it for amplification properties. The muzzle no longer spewed out pure white and flawless destructive waves, but a dazzling azure blue light stream, which was extremely cold and dispersed the "shadows" within the range of the ray.

"Don't you all know this, my dear troupe members, my dear musicians, my dear dancers? We are on our way to the glacier of Hades, where there is no chance of survival. We will be buried here hand in hand today!"

No one answered. None of her subordinates were as eloquent as she was, nor did they have a voice as beautiful and loud as hers. So all they could get from her was silence and the sound of gunfire and cannon fire.

"Sir Opera House, the remaining ammunition is enough to sustain us until the final stage of the operation."

"Then there is no need to be afraid, just let it all out, like raindrops, like catkins! Use your silent screams to decorate the stage we are waiting for!"

Let the dazzling rain of stars tear through the enemy's formation, and let those seemingly indestructible shadows suffer unfamiliar pain.

"Sway! Throw away gold and jewels, throw away military exploits and glory. Tonight we belong to the storm! Fight, win, and then - die! We have learned the way to victory, and may victory be with our corpses!"

No one was afraid, no one retreated, and all the soldiers under his command were brave and would fight to the end as long as they received the order.

"Ride the wind and waves, and then be buried in the sea!"

There is no need to retreat. After all, even if you retreat, your own grave is behind you.

The original base was already on the brink of destruction. Even if they could repel and destroy this wave of invading shadows, they would only be submerged by the endless tide of black.

There is no need to be afraid. After all, even if you give up your courage, you will still die.

Ahead is a destiny with only one path, ahead is a chasm destined to lead to the abyss, and ahead is the god of death handing over a ticket to the River Styx.

Their fate ended when the ship they were on was gnawed - even if all their lives were marked with a value, it would not be as much as that of "Black Summoning Blade" Systine Perancine. When the value of both sides was placed equally on both sides of the scale, it would only tilt towards Systine's side. Compared to them, the front line of "Iron Leviathan" needed the dark paladin more, so they were left behind to buy time for her and cover her, while she would go to the next battlefield.

Of course, even if we could evacuate with them, we would just end up falling on the next front and being reduced to ashes.

No matter how coherent and complete their existence is on the server, the bodies that can accommodate their minds are just second-level mass-produced models, and what we get in the end is still just a fragmented self, a reproduction of a small piece of memory and experience.

They are like moths that have lost their homeland, are not accepted by anyone, and are rushing towards death just for revenge.

But it doesn't matter, this kind of thing.

Didn’t she, the “Opera” who called herself Lusa Ephayeret, stand up again?

Singing as usual, fearless and strategic as usual.

Then we will die just like usual.

This is not the first time, and perhaps not the last.

In any case, now that we have a method of fighting, we should achieve ideal results.

This is the way of survival for the "Iron Leviathan" - the former mercenary.

"Fight, fight! Give everything from the enemy as a sacrifice to the soul of our father!"

She stood up again and even gave a method of fighting that didn't exist - so, believe her again!

The enemy is a shadow? An inexplicable phenomenon? An existence that is independent of the world and cannot be touched. Unless they take the initiative to attack, there is no interaction between the two? Ah, maybe, at least that's what the "Iron Leviathan" originally thought. After all, they have been reducing contact with the enemy in order to conserve energy. Even if there is a firefight, they just retreat under the premise that the attack is ineffective most of the time. Therefore, Lusha has never had much data in her hands. Even if the equipment used to analyze the enemy is finally built, it can only be used rarely.

However, it was by no means without gain.

Even so, the data still lacks a crucial core that can tie it all together.

It was not until Lunicia and her group arrived that Rosa finally discovered what was missing from her data.

——That's right. Since most of the weapons were live ammunition and explosives, Rosa was extremely short of energy weapons and magic to deal with the "shadows", so there was no way to talk about how to obtain data.

If it weren't for the fact that the sniper rifle of "White Eagle" used energy bullets and "Opera House" itself had one or two personal combat experiences, it would be difficult to obtain data in this regard. It was not until she joined forces with Lunicia and the other two, and combined with the results of their close combat with Shadow, that Rosa roughly came to this conclusion.

The shadows nowadays are not completely separated from the real world. A considerable part of them still remains in their respective locations, so they can be interfered with - attacked, and destroyed.

Purely physical means are indeed ineffective. Kinetic energy is just an addition to the storm and the flames, and only the latter two can produce a certain degree of effect. However, what if the element of magic is added to it... ?

In this way, it is possible to severely interfere with the connection point between the phase where the shadow is located and the real phase, touching its essence. If enough energy can be given, it can even be forced to "obtain" an entity.

This is the fatal flaw caused by its lack of purity.

This makes no sense for the "Iron Leviathan" because they are still using real ammunition, not a group of mages?

No, no, this is not a problem for Lusa at all.

She had both looted and self-provided production lines, data from both the "Iron Leviathan" and the "Gleipnir", and enough materials - dragon crystals scattered throughout the entire ship. With these things, even if she did not have enough time to prepare, she would be able to produce enough enchanted ammunition for the mechanical puppets to prepare for the decisive battle.

5.56mm assault rifle bullet - replace the bullet with a dragon crystal cone and write a trigger magic pattern on the bullet shell.

12.7mm sniper rifle bullets - used alternately with energy magazines, the original solid bullets are all replaced with full dragon crystal structures, using the huge energy generated by the collision to directly detonate, releasing magic power in a simple and crude way.

Wrap the explosive in a dragon crystal shell, and the damage to the "shadow" will at least double.

It goes without saying that the Conqueror Marduk was originally a tactical weapon that could be modified on the battlefield to add magical effects.

In this way, this defeated army also gained the strength to fight by incurring losses at all costs.

In order to burn out this purgatory of shadows, they are fighting without regrets.

Even though they are taking it step by step, they are still advancing without stopping, moving towards their strategic goals!

Chapter 28: Girls' Dance

call out--!

Compared to "cutting" the air, the sound is closer to the feeling of "smashing" the air. The huge white blade gives people the feeling of not a sword, but a piece of iron. Why make the weapon look so unsuitable for use? I am afraid that only the forger himself can give the answer: to make people feel fear and to show greater violence.

Seeing a monster wielding such a piece of white iron, no matter how brave a soldier is, he will have the thought of retreating. Run away, run away, the farther the better. Those who can pick up this weapon will become a deterrent on the battlefield. But, what should we do if we encounter monsters that will not retreat no matter how much we intimidate or scare them, and do not even have the feeling of fear, and have no concept of reducing losses?

Then crush them.

With sheer violence - to crush them.

This sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? After all, this idea doesn't seem to match the nobleness of the White Knights. It sounds more like an idea that only the War Knights of the Red Court would have.

But things aren’t always so absolute, are they?

“Drink aa ...

Otherwise, why would the saint, who should have been well-fed and well-clothed and living happily in the birdcage, be roaring like this, waving the pure white giant sword in her hand, and slashing down with all her strength?

"Is there anyone there? I don't remember where this is...where is it now..."

Otherwise, how could the being in front of her just casually take on this seemingly heavy, almost unstoppable blow? Half of her forearm exploded as the giant sword pressed down, turning into splattered black ink. This injury, which would be extremely serious for an ordinary human, was not a big deal for the "shadow". She murmured words that were clearer and more emotional than any shadow she had encountered before, but what she did with her hands had nothing to do with her words. It was disconnected and contradictory, and full of a weird feeling.

It's hard to tell whether to call it abominable or pathetic.

"whispering sound!"

Although she had anticipated that relying solely on this level of frontal slashing, even if the "Avenger" was endowed with the sacred power of "Guided Divine Power", it would not be possible to completely break the opponent's defense or even severely injure it - but Lunicia still underestimated the opponent's strength after all, mistakenly believing that the existence in front of her was just like every shadow she had cut off before, just a residue, a particle at the end of a tentacle, and not an enemy that required a real all-out fight.

Therefore, the reaction was also slow.

Being weak in mid-air, even if a well-trained professional like Lunicia has the ability to exert force in mid-air, she is still at a disadvantage in flexibility and output compared to her enemies who have a foothold. Therefore, when the initial surprise attack failed, Lunicia had to immediately adjust her body posture and accelerate her fall. While the giant sword was still swinging at the enemy, she almost instinctively leaned back.

At least, he dodged the most fatal blow.

The strong wind that brushed past the tip of her nose was so sharp that it made her hair stand on end. Even the aftermath of the attack made Lunesia's jaw ache, as if her head was about to be blown away by the storm. If it had been a direct hit, her head would definitely not even have been broken into pieces. It was a full-strength attack from the "shadow" that was completely equal to Lunesia's full-strength attack. With Lunesia's regenerative ability, there was no chance of survival.

A loud noise came from far behind, probably the sound of the shock wave hitting the distant wall.

So, is this the end? Next, I should leap back, turn the blade once more, and then swing with all my might—