Outsider on the Battlefield
"Hey, are you okay?"
[Po, popo. Popopopo....]
At my question, Podic only shook her head like a terrified child.
"……."
This was completely different from the Podic I had known until now.
Her large eyes were still devoid of emotion, but her entire body was expressing the feeling of fear regarding the current situation.
And the reason for that was….
It must be because of the Astrals.
According to the story of Echoes of Humanity — ECHO as I know it, these four factions—Humanity, Zombies, Anomalies, and Astrals—were hostile and antagonistic toward one another.
Well, it's only natural for humanity to be hostile toward the other three monsters….
OP: No, but why are these machine bastards attacking the Anomalies?
💬 Comments
— Idk lol?
— Maybe they want to experience the Anomalies for themselves?
— Maybe they're trying to test how much they can scramble their own logic circuits?
— Hmm, makes sense.
OP: Ah, I really want to be stepped on by Crimson Witch…. I'd have no other wish than for Witch Noona to just stomp on me.
💬 Comments
— Is this guy crazy?
— But for real, though. Looking at Witch’s illustration, she's built like a goddess. When is her pickup banner gonna drop, eh?
— Sir, she is literally an Anomaly?
— ??? Wait, why do Crimson Witch fans even exist? Isn't White Night obviously #1?
— Ah... By White Night, do you mean that whore in white lingerie?
— What? Excuse me?
Regardless, the reason why Astrals attack Anomalies was a setting the game didn't cover deeply enough for even those who had scoured the story to give a clear answer.
Anyway, it was clear that if I left her like this, she would be in danger.
"Don't worry, Podic. I'll turn all of them into scrap metal. They won’t be able to touch you."
Considering the danger and horror of Anomalies, they were clearly enemies that should be eliminated immediately upon discovery.
But had I grown attached to her in the meantime?
For some reason, I felt like the Hongwei-7 would feel very empty without Podic.
Above all, the Cash points I'd earned because of her weren't insignificant.
However, the situation didn't look very promising.
Zzzzzing—! Zing!
Along with an unpleasant mechanical sound, every Astral entity on the battlefield turned its head toward me simultaneously, as if it had received a command.
Their red lenses were pointed accurately toward us—no, toward Podic, who was hiding behind me—like being locked on by detection missiles.
"…Did she put honey on herself or something?"
Why on earth were these Astral bastards targeting Podic so relentlessly?
Regardless, as they swarmed this way, the firepower that had been pressuring the Bastion until now was instantly concentrated on the rooftop of the abandoned building where I stood.
"Podic—!"
[Po-oo—!!]
Kwakwakwakwang!!
At my shout, Podic almost reflexively wrapped her arms around me and leaped away.
It looked like slow motion as the spot where I had been standing seconds ago was swept away by a barrage of blue energy, vanishing like dust along with concrete fragments.
Kuuuuung!
Following that, the entire building collapsed with a thunderous roar, and my vision was completely covered by a cloud of dust.
Because of the massive shockwave, I barely managed to keep my balance; it almost turned into a complete disaster.
Tsk! This is why it's good to have Choi Sojeong around….
An ECHO possessing a shield that repels all attacks that could be called Astral lasers or beam weapons.
If she were here, an attack like that would have been neutralized without any crisis, but since she wasn't, I'd just have to make do with my body.
At least I'm glad Podic was by my side.
No matter how much my physical abilities exceeded the range of an ordinary person, if I had been caught in that explosion and jumped off the rooftop, something would have definitely broken or cracked.
And that dizzying scene was witnessed clearly by an ECHO who had been dealing with the Astrals from a distance.
"C-Commander? No way…!"
Moi's pupils shook as if an earthquake were occurring, then began to dilate greatly.
In contrast, Arva, who was beside her, calmly picked up the radio at her waist. She let out a short breath and spoke with cool composure.
"Commander. Are you alright?"
[Ah, don't worry. I'm alive.]
"…That is a relief."
[You know that Hachishakusama from before? That Anomaly saved me. It seems the Astrals that invaded Hongwei-7 are targeting her.]
"Is that so…? For now, we will continue the battle."
[Right.]
Having confirmed the Commander's survival through the radio, Arva let out a long sigh of relief as soon as the transmission ended.
However….
"Arva, I think she's lost her mind."
Turning her head at Lena's urgent voice, Arva felt a chill run down her spine.
The light had vanished from Moi's pupils.
Her empty eyes were fixed on the place where the Commander had been just a moment ago, where dust clouds were now rising due to the Astral attack.
"Ah……."
The Commander, who had awakened new senses within her and who was now everything to the sisters, had been killed by the attacks of those lumps of machinery.
The moment she perceived that fact.
Something sleeping inside Moi began to squirm.
"…The Commander is fine, Moi. I just confirmed the Commander's safety through the radio."
Arva tried to stop Moi belatedly, but the words didn't reach the ears of a Moi whose berserk switch had already been pressed and who had lost her mind.
"You… you bastards—!!"
A voice as cold as ice and sharp as a blade, unlike anything heard until now.
Moi's innocent brown eyes were instantly stained with blood-red hatred. Then, a beastly roar, hard to believe it came from an ECHO, shook the battlefield.
Moi—Broken Fang.
A Tier 0 dealer-type ECHO specialized for anti-Astral combat.
Taat!
Moi's body kicked off the ground and soared.
Avoiding the shower of blue energy shells with beast-like instincts, she dove straight into the midst of the Astrals.
"Die."
With a single cold word, Moi's claws tore through a Specter's Energy Shield like a piece of paper.
Kwadududuk—!
With a sharp rupturing sound, the body of the Specter, having lost its shield, was ruthlessly crushed within Moi's grip.
Tututu—!
At that overwhelming sight, a Skiff-class assault boat, having reset its threat level priority, began to spit fire from its heavy machine gun autocannon toward Moi.
But to the current Moi, that level of attack was nothing more than a nuisance. Like bugs sticking to her body.
Moi began slaughtering the surrounding Astrals, dodging the ceaselessly pouring barrage like a shadow.
"Supporting Moi."
And Arva did not miss this situation where all the aggro was concentrated on Moi.
The target was the Skiff-class assault boat, 30 meters in length, which served as their mothership. Now was the perfect opportunity to pierce the enemy's heart.
"I just need to destroy that assault boat, right?"
Lapis, grasping Arva's intention, readjusted her grip on the massive Saint Hammer.
"Yes."
"Sigh…. Physical labor doesn't really suit me…."
Lena also grumbled as she drew her weapon.
Then, Lapis, Arva, and Lena charged toward the Skiff-class assault boat all at once.
Taken aback by the sudden pincer attack of the three ECHOs, the AI of the assault boat that had been attacking Moi hurriedly tried to recall the Astrals it had deployed externally.
However….
Kuung! Kung!
The twenty-plus Astrals sent out to capture the Hachishakusama had already been shot down by a single berserk ECHO in the blink of an eye, their signals severed.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
You have acquired 15600C.
Acquisition History: Destruction of Astral - Skiff-class Assault Boat in Hongwei-7 (Combat Participation Reward)
"Tsk…"
Looking at the message that popped up before my eyes, I smacked my lips in dissatisfaction.
Seeing Moi go wild and sweep away the Astrals, I had tried my best to get a piece of the action….
But because Moi smashed everything, the most I got was about 5,000 Cash.
Fortunately, while attacking the main course—the Skiff-class assault boat—I luckily blew up its drone launch port, allowing me to earn over 15,000 Cash.
Otherwise, the reward for this battle would have been disastrous.
"Damn. If only I had a rocket launcher…."
And if I had a proper anti-ship Exclusive Weapon instead of the White Tiger, wouldn't I have been able to squeeze out more Cash?
No, no matter how I thought about it, the fact that I was dropped into this damn world and couldn't properly earn Cash even when the ECHOs under my command performed brilliantly was once again fucking bullshit.
It was a truly balance-broken game—no, world.
[Po-oo—?]
And after the battle, I brought a new family member before the ECHOs who were recovering the wreckage.
"……."
"Hachi…shakusama?"
"Sigh. Well, some of you might know her, but this is the Hachishakusama, the local resident of Hongwei-7. Well, I'm calling her Podic."
At my introduction, the ECHOs looked at Podic from a distance with eyes full of vigilance.
It was a natural reaction.
To an ECHO, an Anomaly was an enemy that threatened humanity and must be defeated.
In particular, Arva, who had failed to protect me while dealing with the Hachishakusama before, looked at her as if she were an arch-enemy met on a narrow bridge.
"Um… Commander. Wouldn't an Anomaly be dangerous?"
Helena, sensing the mood of the other ECHOs, asked cautiously on their behalf.
"It's okay. Well, she is an Anomaly, but she's a good girl."
"A good… girl?"
"Yeah. She even saved me a moment ago."
At my words, the expressions of the ECHOs changed subtly.
"…She certainly doesn't seem like she's trying to attack the Commander."
"True. She's just sticking close to the Commander's back, isn't she?"
"Were Anomalies always like that…?"
"Ah—! I remember! That girl who helped us during the Carapace Lord Search Operation last time! The one who… drew that weird picture!"
"…Wasn't that a map?"
Then, they each began to chime in.
It wasn't so much dropping their guard against Podik as following their Commander's word. But not all doubts were resolved.
"So… it seems the Astrals are targeting her. Does anyone know why?"
At my question, everyone's gaze turned toward Lena.
It was the expectation that she, the greatest brain and technician of our Ark—the Genesis Architect herself—might know something.
"Hmm…."
Lena crossed her arms and scanned Podic up and down with interested eyes before speaking.
"Usually, it's because of Essence, Commander."
"Essence?"
"Yes, Commander. The named Astrals require high-purity energy to develop their own unique civilizations. And Anomalies—especially powerful ones—are themselves massive lumps of energy, a collection of Essence. To them, it's the ultimate energy source."
"Ah…."
So that's why those Astral bastards lunged like dogs in heat whenever they encountered an Anomaly?
I never imagined the question I'd had while playing the game would be solved here. Then, Lena's gaze toward Podic became even sharper.
"But this is a bit strange. Even so, deploying a Skiff-class Assault Boat to target a single Hachishakusama doesn't add up, financially speaking."
"True…."
"Almost three Astral squadrons were deployed."
As she said, it was a bit—no, far too excessive—a force to capture one Hachishakusama.
Then, Lena approached Podic like an appraiser evaluating a rare mineral, carefully lifted her hand, and began checking something.
Then, she frowned while looking at Podic's face.
"With this level of Essence…. You're not an ordinary Hachishakusama, are you?"