Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: 10. Mecha God Chronicle - Cultural Propagation (1)
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Between the Empire and the Kingdom lay the Demonic Realm, commonly known as the Great Beast Forest.
This place resembled a jungle, teeming with monsters in a savage wilderness utterly unfit for human habitation.
No, it was even worse than that. Every so often, monsters would pour out from the Great Beast Forest in waves.
And right now was one such time, so both nations had stationed armies to encircle it.
No matter how strained relations were between the two countries, they couldn't let pride get in the way at a moment like this.
In fact, with their combined forces, they easily repelled even the largest monster hordes.
As a result, the frontline soldiers from both the Empire and the Kingdom had grown a bit lax, yawning idly.
"Hmph, looks like no monsters are coming out of the forest today."
"We've slaughtered so many of them over the past week. If those things have any brains, they've learned not to step out of the woods."
"Haha, good point."
And so, the soldiers from both nations chatted leisurely, savoring a rare moment of relaxation.
The most popular topic among them? None other than anime.
"Hey, did you watch episode 15 of Mecha God Chronicle that we lent you yesterday?"
"Yeah, damn it. I could barely sleep because of it. How could I, when the new Mecha God pilot Luke goes out like that?"
"Us Empire folks went through that ages ago. Don't complain too much."
"Damn it. Should've never started watching Mecha God Chronicle from the beginning."
"Really?"
"No."
Relations between the soldiers hadn't always been this friendly.
They used to hurl insults the moment they crossed paths.
But fighting monsters side by side had earned them mutual respect through shared brushes with death.
The real turning point came when Empire soldiers lent artifacts containing Mecha God Chronicle episodes to their Kingdom counterparts, rapidly warming things up.
"So, when can we borrow episode 16?"
"Sorry, no can do."
"Why not?"
"Because we don't have it. Artifacts with Mecha God Chronicle are insanely expensive. The ones for episodes 1 through 15 were scraped together from our whole unit's monthly pay."
"...Damn."
The Kingdom soldier looked like the sky had fallen, prompting smirks from the Empire side.
"Aw, our buddy's heartbroken he can't watch more Mecha God Chronicle."
"Yeah, yeah. Want us to spoil episode 16 instead? Knowing the plot without watching is the best, right?"
"...Shut your mouth. For real."
"Whoa, he's seriously pissed."
"Better watch out, or we'll get decked. Scary stuff."
Their banter was rough, but a warm camaraderie had blossomed between the soldiers—until then.
- Roooaaarrr-!
"A-Ambush!"
"Monsters incoming!"
After days of quiet, the monsters were crawling out of the Great Beast Forest again.
Attacks like this were everyday occurrences here, nothing surprising.
But...
"...Why are there so many?"
"No way—did every monster in that forest just come pouring out?"
Previous assaults topped out at a few hundred monsters.
These numbered in the thousands, even at a conservative estimate.
"This... is bad, isn't it?"
"We might die today."
As the soldiers stared grimly at the charging horde—
💥 ROAR! 💥 [GUOOOOOH-!]
A ferocious bellow, like a savage beast's, echoed from somewhere.
It was so thunderous that even the madly charging monsters halted for a split second.
And to most soldiers present, that roar was all too familiar.
They'd heard it just last night through an artifact.
"This is..."
"No way?"
But it was just a fictional creature from a story. No way it existed in reality.
Yet...
Boom-!
The next instant, everyone froze in awe at the massive shape plummeting from the sky.
"My God, that's...!"
"A Mecha God! It's a Mecha God!"
"Impossible! Mecha Gods only appear in Mecha God Chronicle, right?"
Indeed.
The entity that crashed from the heavens, crushing dozens of monsters flat, was none other than Mecha God Unit Zero.
- Grrr...?
- Squeeeek!
The monsters warily eyed the steel giant that had instantly slain so many of their kin.
Seizing the moment of their hesitation, a voice called out from within the Mecha God to the soldiers.
🔊 MECHA GOD BROADCAST 🔊 "I'll take care of things here. Everyone, fall back!" "That voice...?"
"C-Could it be Her Imperial Highness?"
The soldiers' eyes widened at the Imperial Princess's voice booming from the Mecha God.
But only for a moment.
"Her Imperial Highness! She's piloting the Mecha God!"
"Her Imperial Highness declares she'll slay the monsters!"
"Long live His Imperial Majesty! Long live Her Imperial Highness!"
Realizing who was there, the soldiers erupted in cheers.
To common soldiers, the imperial family was like gods in the clouds.
How could they not cheer when such a noble figure came to the frontier to fight monsters in their stead?
Meanwhile, Kaya whispered via secret comms to someone, watching the soldiers.
"…So, Director. Please." "Leave it to me, Lady Kaya."
High above, hidden by magic and soaring through the sky, were Raguna and his mentor Aris.
That's right.
The Mecha God wasn't being piloted by Kaya inside—it was a puppet remotely controlled by Raguna's magic from outside.
'I was a liberal arts major—how the hell do I build a giant robot?'
Well, someone was piloting it, so it passed muster.
"Ready, Master?"
"Just say the word, my disciple. I'll sync perfectly with your moves."
Thus, from the skies, Raguna—the true controller—and Aris began the monster extermination.
- Kyaaaaah!
The initial shock of the Mecha God faded; forgetting their fear, the monsters charged again.
Watching them, Raguna snapped his fingers.
"Deploy field."
Whirr-!
In an instant, a powerful octagonal barrier formed in front of the Mecha God.
Thud!
Naturally, the monsters' attacks couldn't even scratch it.
No—their bodies shattered against the unknowing barrier.
"As expected... its power is undeniable."
Raguna nodded at the sight.
The field was none other than the mental barrier everyone possessed.
Raw physical force couldn't breach it.
The only way was to neutralize the space with an identical field.
"Disciple, what are you talking about? You just cast a barrier spell."
"...That's the lore, Master."
Sometimes, it was polite to let it slide.
Master doesn't get a man's dreams—
Raguna sighed inwardly.
Anyway, defense complete—it was time to attack.
"Master, if you please."
"Got it."
Whoosh!
Flames erupted beneath Aris, swiftly enveloping her body.
One of her unique spells amplified pyromantic power by cloaking herself in fire.
At the same time, Raguna channeled mana, casting a spell to harden the Mecha God's fist dozens of times beyond steel.
The next moment, as the Mecha God raised its fist and slammed it down—
"Super-Melt Explosion." ⟨ Meteor Fall Variant ⟩
Vrrr-
Aris unleashed her most destructive pyromantic spell from the sky—
Thud-!
A colossal blaze erupted, melting the earth.
As the fist met the ground, ultrahigh heat ravaged everything, devouring and incinerating all that walked on two legs.
- Kyaaaaah!
- Squeak, grrr...!
Naturally, nearby monsters vanished without a trace.
A massive crater formed at the fist's impact, magma bubbling in the hellscape. The soldiers were speechless.
"Incredible..."
"As expected of a weapon made to fight Outer Gods... monsters are nothing to it."
"Look—even after that attack, the Mecha God's unscathed. Proof it took no strain."
Regrettably, that wasn't entirely true.
More precisely, it was a huge burden on the pilot inside.
"D-Director! It's too hot! And I'm gonna hurl! Please pilot gently!" Raguna ignored Kaya's comms, sighing at the Mecha God's handiwork.
'Fewer monsters dead than expected. This'll take time to wipe them all.'
The joint attack's raw power was terrifying.
'God Blaze Cannon could incinerate even fellow Triune Gods originally.'
But the problem was the sheer numbers.
That strike took out maybe 10%.
Simple math: ten more blasts to clear them.
Even for a grand magus like Aris, spamming that spell ten times was impossible.
Continuing like this might foil their goal of total cleanup...
"...No choice. Time to use that."
Hearing Raguna mutter, Kaya panicked over comms.
"…You're not seriously gonna do that, right? N-No! It makes me so nauseous. Stomach churning, head spinning—" "It's a noble sacrifice for humanity. Endure it."
Raguna brushed off her pleas and murmured softly.
🔥 BERSERK MODE ACTIVATED 🔥