Does the mechanical girl dream of the Messiah?

No, not yet.

"Well--!"

Along with the woman's groan of pain, there was the muffled sound of skin and flesh being torn apart.

In the case of no direct hit, or when the attacker is not strong, the Myuland Knight Armor worn by Lunicia can perfectly defend against it, providing reliable protection for most parts of Lunicia's body, but for the attack in front of her, this level of protection is almost the same as a piece of paper folded in half.

puff--

The black shadow hand pierced through Lunicia's left shoulder and side as if stabbing into tofu.

“Ugh…ah…!”

"I can't feel the cold or the heat. I can't feel what I'm touching. What am I touching? I'm so hungry. How long has it been since I last ate? What is hunger?"

He spoke in a confused and empty voice that only Lunicia could hear, but his hands did not slow down at all. One hand used the exploded broken surface to tightly wrap around the white blade swung by Lunicia, one hand was still in the aftermath of a blow in the air, and the remaining two hands turned into the shape of drills, piercing Lunicia's flesh and blood, trying to nail her body to the ground.

It might be the location of the "head" or the "chest cavity", but it split in both directions like a funny and crude leather case, and turned into a dark mouth that could not be seen, but gave off a deep feeling, trying to swallow Lunicia in one gulp. It wanted to eat Lunicia and then spit out another shadow.

Only at this time would Lunicia feel grateful for "their" shape, which had no details and was only a black silhouette.

Gurgle, gurgle, blood oozes out from the spiral wound like a punctured water bag. You can hear the strange sound of muscles being crushed and mixed with broken bones. You can also hear the terrible sound of internal organs being torn and stirred into a mess in the abdominal cavity. The pain coming from the wound is not a fleeting moment, but a continuous and horrible stimulation as if a red-hot iron was stuck to it.

"If you don't know——just figure it out yourself!!!"

That's not responding.

It was just a roar to vent the tremendous pain running rampant within his body.

"Thunder Slash".

Along with the dazzling light, what burst out from the sword was not sure whether it was golden thunder, orange flames, or a mixture of the two - a thunderous sound exploded from the point where the sword blade and the black palm touched, bringing with it a tremendous impact force, blowing the entire black shadow away and forcing it to distance itself from Lunicia.

Almost without hesitation, Lunicia forced herself to regain consciousness, which was shaken by the severe pain, and stabilized her body. Then she quickly retreated to the back, not to escape, but to adjust her posture and distance herself from the enemy. One hand dragged the huge and heavy white blade, and the other hand covered the wound, shining with a holy white light.

"Holy Healing".

She called upon the divine power without reservation to speed up the healing of the wounds on her shoulder and flank so as not to affect the subsequent battle. The sound of the flesh and blood squirming there was disgusting, and the feeling of the internal organs in the abdominal cavity moving was also uncomfortable, but Lunicia still adjusted her breathing calmly, forcing herself to immediately recover to her peak state as quickly as possible.

"Haha...haha...haha..."

She breathed heavily, as if she was enjoying the last breath of fresh air in her life.

Her opponent seemed much more "calm" - the Thunder Slash only knocked her away without making her fall to the ground. Her silhouette-like feet dragged silently on the tin floor, leaving an ink-like mark that quickly evaporated. Then she stabilized her body and turned her four hands into sharp blades.

It looks like a bipedal creature, but because it uses four arms at the same time, the proportions of its upper body become awkward. Lunicia really doesn't want to call that thing a "human".

"Mom...Mom? I'm so scared...Mom, are you there? Lena forgot...something very important..."

"It's so cold, so cold, so cold, and so hungry... Who am I? Where am I?"

The voices of young children and young men mixed together, expressing the same emptiness and despair. However, the shadow was not shaken at all by the voices coming from it. It just used its alien limbs to pose like a cold swordsman, as if thinking about how to cut Lunicea in half with the most decisive blow.

"Four arms..."

The afterglow of pain had not yet subsided, and Lunicia once again grasped the sword with both hands, preparing for the "Death Sword" that she had not used just now.

It is said that in the volcanic belt of the "Lost World" and on the scorched earth of the "Paradise", there lives a race called the six-armed snake demons. They are the descendants of the ancient demon army. Their six arms can wield scimitars at the same time, performing dazzling sword dances. Countless swordsmen who think they are not to be underestimated have been chopped into pieces after challenging them. Even without any spellcasting ability, they are powerful dark creatures. It is said that once a paladin of the "Black Silence" encountered a six-armed snake demon while performing a mission. When he could only fight with swordsmanship -

Cut off the six arms, cut off the sword dance, and sever all chances of survival.

Using that ominous, taboo sword technique.

"Sword of Death".

"Sorry, I'll let you go soon."

"Big sister... huh? I seemed to hear the voice of a sister I didn't know... It was different from everyone else's voice... A warm and gentle voice... Mom, did you hear it...?"

"We've been walking for a long time... We need to keep walking... How long should we keep walking..."

"People who desecrate the dead like this cannot be forgiven."

——Yes, it is unforgivable.

A two-meter-tall human-shaped shadow walked towards here with steady and silent steps.

In the paladin's eyes, orange-red flames burned quietly, igniting her sword as well, as if something was accumulating, something was stirring, something was expanding -

It is endless brilliance.

The "shadows" infused with energy, because of the shaking of the foundation, broke away from their own phase, which means that the degree of interference by "reality" on them has also increased, even ordinary magic weapons can have an impact on them, but conversely, it also means that their influence on "reality" has increased, whether it is the aftermath of the attack that would not have existed originally, or the more powerful force, are all caused by this phenomenon. If it were normal, at least three people would have to go together to safely and cheaply solve the enemy of this level in front of them, but now Lunicia can only rely on herself.

I killed it with one blow.

On the western platform, Ashlee was flying in the air.

Buzz——————!!!

A dazzling white light swept across the sky, but there was nothing in the path of the ray, which made people wonder if there was something wrong with the monitor of the mechanical girl.

"Then, turn back the clock."

Along with those cold words, something incredible happened. Silver light flashed, and it seemed that the sound of gears rolling back could be heard faintly, and the shape of the dial could be seen vaguely. The whale, which was originally swimming in the darkness at the bottom, with a huge and terrifying shadow, suddenly appeared in the position where the beam swept, and was hit by the hot energy beam, making a noisy and incomprehensible sound.

"Help me, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts. Where am I? What is this? It's so crowded, I'm suffocating, it's so cold, it's so hot, it hurts, I can't breathe. Help me, I'm going to be crushed. Where is this place? Who am I? Who is he? Who is she? Who is she? What am I doing? Dad, it's hot, mom, it's so cold, it's so cold, it hurts, it hurts, I can't breathe, it's so crowded, it's so narrow, my hands are gone, I can't see anything. Where is this place? Anyone is welcome. Help me, help me. It hurts, I'm so tired, so tired, so hot, so hot, so hot, I want to die."

The sound that could only be distinguished by Lunicia's ears sounded like the roar of a whale to Ashtherin.

But she could also understand one thing.

That wasn't a "whale's shadow" - it was a monster made by combining the shadows of countless people. It had no practical use at all, and although it looked unscathed after taking the hit, it was also useless against the agile Ashetherin.

However, Ashlee was also unable to deliver a decisive blow.

On the east platform, Ella Hepper was dancing with nimble steps.

She is a dazzling dancer, turning the pages of a leather book with one hand, making them rustle with the whistling wind.

"Fire!"

As soon as she said these words, arrows condensed from pure flames burst out according to her will, hitting her enemies one after another.

"Ice!"

As soon as she spoke these words, azure rays would burst out from the emblem, continuously covering her enemies.

As a means of attack, it was not very good, but the main purpose was to contain and restrict the enemy's actions, to draw its attention completely to itself, so that it would not want to mess with Lunicia, the centipede-like "shadow" that seemed to have stitched several humans together. Even though it was silent and said nothing, Ella still felt that Lunicia should not see such a blasphemous thing.

Of course, she was also satisfied with the enemy's reaction. Just as she expected, he stretched his body and pounced towards her.

The result was just a light pink phantom.

"A cruel curse".

Use a curse to establish a "connection" with the enemy, and then move freely in the space around it.

"They are very powerful. If they concentrate on me, I will definitely die if I don't activate my vestments. But——"

The pages of the magic book in the girl's hand once again shone with a sharp silver-gray light.

The sound of breaking air suddenly rang out around the shadow, and its black outline suddenly began to break, without rhythm, without signs, without rules, as if it was being scraped by countless blades. If it was not a shadow but a human body, it would definitely appear as a bloody mess. The invisible force field condensed into blades, gathering together, like a mist composed of daggers.

"Cloud of Daggers".

This injury, which is serious and unbearable for ordinary people, seemed to have no effect on the shadow. The silent and terrifying centipede-like shadow turned its body again - and then, with its wrist, it tore its body apart, splitting itself vertically into three shadows, and then pounced towards Ella Hepper's position together.

"——But it's boring."

The only butterfly it caught was a light pink Morpho butterfly.

On the central platform, the sword in Lunicia's hand shone with an orange-red glow.

She couldn't ask anyone for help, but her companions needed her support more.

——It is unforgivable, so be angry.

"You don't need to tell me."

Be angry.

Burn all enemies in sight with the flames of anger.

Then, move on to the next battlefield.

Towards the "Central Power Department" not far away - to the place where everything began.

"The Holy Slash".

The light slashed down, and then shattered, making a deafening sound.

Chapter 29: The End of Steel

boom----! ! !

"Report! How effective is the bombardment?"

"Report! The bombardment is ineffective and we are being intercepted!"

"Then go ahead and fire all the ammunition you have!"

Putting her hands down from her ears - or rather, there was no need to do so in the first place, Lusa Ephayet roared in the hum of the explosion, issuing orders to her subordinates. Could that really be considered an order? Or was it just an act of self-destruction? No, it couldn't be the latter, it could only be the former - no matter how crazy and reckless it looked, it didn't matter, if she couldn't get through this last obstacle in front of her, everything would be meaningless.

There was no point in strategy, planning, cooperating with the paladin with a flower field growing in his head, or pulling himself together like this. Nothing would make sense if he couldn't do it.

The large control platform is the last checkpoint leading to the Dragon Crystal main gate and the magic control room.

It's not even a level. After all, you can see the huge control room at the back from here.

——What psychopath came up with this structure? What psychopath built a huge platform like a stadium in a place like this? What psychopath thought of placing all these important parts separately so that they must be conquered separately? What psychopath built this maze-like airship? ?

She really wanted to yell at him, but after glancing at the assistant command puppet No. 00182 beside her, the adjutant she called Juliet, she immediately turned her gaze back and pushed all those distracting thoughts to the bottom of her mind, to the corner of the second level, in order to maintain the greatest degree of reserve in front of her subordinates.

"……hehe."

"Has anything good happened, ma'am? This is not a battlefield full of roses. Third column, those who can still move, press forward! Draw the enemy's firepower to the direction of Unit 028! Continue the shelling! When the enemy's firepower coverage is interrupted, first column, advance the battle line! It's not good to laugh suddenly."

"Nothing, sir, I just thought you could curse."

“…were you heard?”

"terribly sorry."

boom----! ! !

"Report the effectiveness of the bombardment!"

"Report, the 'Performer' type shadow has been destroyed, the five 'Actor' type shadows have disappeared, and a gap has appeared in the enemy's defense line—"

"Third column, everyone get out of the way!"

Buzz——————!!!

"Tsk - the third echelon, if there are any survivors please reply, the third echelon!"

"Sir, the third echelon has been completely wiped out."

"Ah, I know it at a glance! The fifth column—"

"Fifth column, all men advance, cross the trenches and begin charging the enemy."

"How reckless! What are they doing?!"

"'Good luck to you, sir,' the message is as above."

Boom, boom, boom————!!!

"Report the effectiveness of the bombardment!"

"Report, the 'Performer' type shadows have been confirmed destroyed, the 'Actor' type shadows have all been destroyed, and the last 'Performer' is left."

Buzz——————!!!

Even if you don't cast your sights towards the front line, just listening to the familiar voice, you can seem to see the dazzling particle flow in front of your eyes, hot, fierce, and impressive, imprinted in the retina, and will never be forgotten - accompanied by another defeat, the blooming of the iron flower, more gorgeous than fireworks, but also more tragic.

"Fifth Column, reply!"

"Fifth Column, all members, silence. Assault Team, eliminate."

"'Juliet', what should I say in this situation?"

"Let's question the choice between life and death."

"That's Hamlet!—Bombard the column, abandon the position, and retreat!"

"Bombardment column, advance and begin."