The Bugbear's First Clash
The refurbished Bugbear settled into place with a heavy thud on the old training ground of the Kronos Mercenary Group.
Across from me, Yuna's Silvera stood motionless, bathed in the first light of dawn and gleaming with an ethereal silver-white sheen.
Its stance was unrealistically beautiful, yet it radiated an overwhelming pressure that pinned anyone who dared look straight at it.
Already before sunrise, crowds of spectators had gathered on the edges of the training ground.
From last night's drunken mercenaries to the sleep-deprived mechanics, and Chief Han with his arms crossed and a complicated expression, plus Corporal Bulldog with an unreadable face, watching us intently.
If the entire Kronos Mercenary Group hadn't come to witness this match, it would have been an understatement.
Their murmuring voices drifted faintly into the cockpit.
"Hey, is that really the Silvera? This thing is no joke. The shine alone is different."
"Going up against a monster like that? Has Cog 7 really decided to die this time?"
"Hey, doesn't the Bugbear look a bit different? Last night it was clanking all night, so maybe it got something added on?"
"Even if you add something, it's still a Bugbear. Just repainting it doesn't turn junk metal into steel."
Voices laced with mockery, pity, and a touch of curiosity.
At that moment, someone shouted loudly.
"Let's go! Commemorating the greatest showdown ever! Everyone who wants to bet, get in here! I'll bet a hundred credits on Lady Yuna to win!"
"Of course she'll win, but let's bet on how long she can hold out! I bet it ends in one minute—fifty credits!"
"One minute? That's way too generous! Thirty seconds flat! Thirty seconds at seventy credits!"
"I'll bet twenty credits that Cog 7 here holds out for three minutes! I've taken down six pirates—can't be too careful, right?"
"Puha ha! He's throwing away twenty credits!"
In an instant, an impromptu betting pool erupted in one corner of the training ground.
Most of the mercenaries were wagering on how quickly I would fall.
The stakes weren't huge, but their mocking tones still rang clearly in my cockpit.
*Idiots. They're betting on how long I can last.*
I gripped the control stick tightly.
Yeah, go ahead and laugh.
But the result would tell the tale.
"Hmph. The kid who partied all night... if you look closely, you might see something. I'll bet fifty credits that he lands one solid hit on you."
Chief Han? Unexpected.
He probably didn't think I'd win, but he seemed to expect at least some show of effort.
A tiny bit of annoyance flickered through me, but it wasn't unpleasant.
Amid the chaos of the betting pool and the mercenaries' chatter, Yuna stared at me without a single movement.
As if she didn't register a single thing from the surrounding noise.
[Are you ready, Drill R?]
Her voice remained clear and cold, yet somehow carried a trace of excitement.
I took a deep breath, clenched the stick, and replied briefly.
"Whenever you are."
[Good. The rules are simple. If you disable the machine or declare surrender, it's over. This is for training, but be careful not to damage the mecha.]
In her voice was a strange mix of warning and consideration for me, as if she truly cared.
But it couldn't have been sincere.
She was testing me. She wanted to see my limits.
[Then let's begin.]
Before Yuna's words even faded, Silvera moved—words like "moved" fell far short of describing it.
Leaving only afterimages behind, it closed the distance in an instant.
The skill I'd seen in the game: Silver Comet Dash.
The speed was so overwhelming it was barely possible to follow with the eyes.
*Damn it, full power from the start!*
My heart pounded wildly.
Reflexively I yanked the throttle and ignited the boosters, but the Bugbear's response was snail-paced compared to Silvera.
The beam rifle in Yuna's hands spat fire.
A blue flash lashed across and grazed my right shoulder armor.
[Warning! Right shoulder armor damaged!]
"Guuh!"
I barely dodged the direct hit, but the start was already dizzying.
In the game she'd been famous for unpredictable movements and precise shooting.
Three minutes was a stretch; thirty seconds was laughable. There was only one way.
*Kinetic Flow.*
I focused my mind and activated the newly acquired skill.
The newly installed reaction booster surged with a sharp whine!
The energy flow inside the mecha shifted.
Excess energy that had inefficiently circulated was forcibly redirected into the propulsion and inertia control systems.
My entire body felt a thrilling tension, and the world seemed to slow in a subtle way.
[Kinetic Flow activated. Reaction booster at 130%.]
The system alert rang out, but I ignored it.
There was no choice now.
Yuna attacked again.
This time her other signature move—unpredictable steps combined with short, relentless beam rifle bursts in a Star Dust Rain pattern.
In the game, Asura would have countered at the exact third firing moment.
*Damn it, the mecha isn't keeping up!*
I could see perfect evasion and counter routes in my head, but the Bugbear's sluggish reaction speed and massive weight refused to follow my ideal movements.
I moved the Bugbear like it was dancing.
Dodge left with reverse thrust, sharp turn right with attitude control.
The mecha screamed and creaked, but the actuators and frame I'd reinforced all night barely held.
Beam lines grazed the afterimages of my mecha or scorched the ground beside it.
Without Kinetic Flow, it would already be a honeycomb.
"Ooh!"
"I dodged it! I dodged again!"
"No way! That's Bugbear movement? I see the steps!"
The mercenaries watching outside the training ground let out stunned shouts that reached faintly.
Their betting pool was probably in chaos by now.
Yeah, they had every right to be surprised—the movements weren't of a Bugbear at all.
They were just copying what Asura would have done.
Of course, there was a price.
The G-forces applied to my body while maintaining Kinetic Flow far exceeded imagination, and the reaction booster temperature soared.
I couldn't sustain this state for long.
[Hmm... What an interesting energy pattern. Is that your secret?]
Yuna's voice came through the comms.
She was analyzing me thoroughly right now.
At the same time, I felt her attack style shift subtly.
No longer rigid patterns, but spontaneous, unpredictable attacks tailored to my movements.
A silver flash erupted as Silvera closed in to point-blank range in an instant.
She drew the small energy blade at her waist—the Nova Strike, one of her ultimate moves in the game.
*Danger!*
Reflexively I pushed Kinetic Flow to maximum, twisting the mecha backward to evade.
—Kiiik!
A sharp metallic screech rang out as the energy blade carved deep into the armor of my left arm.
If I had been even a moment later, the whole arm would have been sliced off.
The moment I dodged, instinct drove me to counter.
In the game, there would have been a short after-delay after Nova Strike.
I had to exploit that opening.
No drill bit yet, but I could at least punch with the mecha's fist.
I extended my right arm as fast as possible and drove a punch toward her side.
But Silvera exceeded my expectations.
It was nothing like the game data.
She dodged my fist without hesitation as if after-delays didn't exist, then rotated her body smoothly.
Using that rotation, she launched a powerful kick straight into the Bugbear's abdomen.
Boom!
A massive shockwave hurled the mecha backward, breaking my balance.
Warning beeps exploded across the instrument panel in the cockpit.
[Warning! Abdomen armor damaged! Internal system shock!]
"Guuh...!"
It seemed I'd come up short again.
Even with game knowledge, the gap in machine performance and the pilot's adaptability were unavoidable.
Yuna was toying with me, but I was barely keeping up with full power every single moment.
Still, I couldn't give up.
I gritted my teeth and corrected the mecha's posture.
I checked the HUD timer.
2 minutes 53 seconds... 54... 55... Please!
Yuna closed in again, raising her energy blade for what looked like a final blow.
I squeezed every last drop of energy to maintain Kinetic Flow and desperately assumed a defensive stance.
58... 59...
Right then, amid a clamor of alarms, a new system notification appeared.
[+5000 CR (Bonus goal achievement: Survive 3 minutes)]
I did it. The first goal was cleared.
A wave of relief and a spark of confidence rose within me.
Yuna had attacked for three full minutes and I had held out.
Yuna's assault paused for a split second.
She seemed surprised too, that I'd managed to survive three minutes.
At that exact moment, I saw it.
The tiny opening created in the instant she relaxed.
The right shoulder of her Silvera, exposed and unguarded as she swung the energy blade with full force.
In the game, even with big moves like this, there were always microscopic openings. Asura wouldn't have missed the chance.
*Now!*
It was pure instinct, not a planned attack.
The certainty born from game experience.
I held my broken left arm cannon as a shield over her sight and thrust my right arm forward, punching straight at her shoulder just like she'd done.
Kwaang!
The metallic impact echoed across the training ground.