CH 198

The giant beasts had a bad premonition and intensified their attack on Arleo. I waited for the time to pass, dodging and blocking them.

“After self-destructing, the core of the Arleo will be destroyed and the magicraft will no longer be able to move. It will be completely defenseless, and you will be asked to retrieve it.”

As Feri had told me, I told Jean to prepare for the recovery. I also told him to be on the lookout for a large blast that would spread when the bomb exploded.

“Yuta, remove the core from the Shining Smasher and place it in Arleo’s abdomen. I’ll take care of the rest.”

As Feri had instructed, I pulled out the core in the center of the Shining Smasher and placed it in the hole in my abdomen that Feri had opened up.

“Initiating core fusion…infinite spell chanting…runaway countdown…thirty seconds to initiate self-destruct.”

I hear a rumbling sound that is clearly dangerous, and it starts to get kind of hot. The inside of the cockpit was flickering, perhaps a signal of danger.

This is the last time I’ll be seeing Arleo…….He’s been a great help to me…….I first found Arleo at Farma’s house, got in to escape, had my first battle, then became a gladiator to earn money…….If it weren’t for this guy, I might not even be alive today…….

I said my final goodbyes to Arleo and prepared to self-destruct with my eyes closed.

“Yuta! Please evade! It’s an attack by an SS-level individual!”

Feri tells me in a panicked manner. When I looked, I saw a shining golden giant beast, clearly different from the other giant beasts, coming towards Arleo. I quickly evaded, but the golden behemoth’s blow ripped off Arleo’s right arm. If I had not dodged, the blow might have shattered the body.

“Ten seconds to self-destruct!”

Four human-like arms sprouted from the back of the golden behemoth. The golden behemoth grabbed Arleo tightly, making him unable to move. It then spread its large jaws to cover Arleo.

Damn! It’s not good…….If we don’t do something, we’ll be eaten……

“Five seconds to self-destruct! Hold on!”

If Arleo was destroyed before it could self-destruct, it would be useless. I managed to move, and with my left hand, I pulled out Maingauche and thrust it under the golden beast’s chin. It must have done a little damage, because the behemoth let out a strange sound and was scared for a moment.

Then the count of self-destruction dropped to zero…A powerful gravitational force was applied to my entire body. I was shocked and felt as if I were suddenly floating. The screen disappeared with a buzzing sound, and I couldn’t see what was going on outside.

“Feri! What happened?”

“The self-destruct was a success. 99% of the behemoths are gone.”

“Good, the operation was a success, wasn’t it?”

“No, the……suicide bombing was a success, but the operation as a whole may not have been a success.”

“What do you mean?”

“The loss of my right arm in the last SS-level individual’s attack caused a misalignment in the release of the core runaway energy. The cockpit barely escaped destruction, but the impact of the explosion blew it apart, and it is currently falling headlong into a crack in the earth.”

“No way!”

With a thump, the cockpit began to shake.

“We seem to have been caught in one of the smaller branches of the subterranean current. We’re going to be swept away.”

“What’s going to happen to us?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t have enough information to say where we will end up. In the worst case, we may get caught in a current loop and wander around forever.”

I was horrified to hear that and immediately tried to request help from Jean over the comms.

“Jean! Can you hear me! Jean! Come in, please!”

There was no answer from Jean, I tried every channel I could find to communicate, but I got no response.

“The pulse from the self-destruct appears to have destroyed the equipment. All equipment has been disabled.”

“Well……if this had broken Feri too, I would have been heartbroken”

“It’s terrible to have to report this after what you said, but I’m currently running on the remaining energy in the cockpit. Unfortunately, that will run out in about ten hours.”

Oh no, I’m going to cry…….But I decided to change my mind and think positively. Even if something unexpected happens, I’m still alive, and I’m sure I’ll arrive somewhere safe and sound. Jean and the others will be looking for me, and I’m sure they’ll find me soon.

I tried to think that way, but I still couldn’t lie to myself. I felt my anxiety overwhelming me.