Chapter 58
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Fleta's Might
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Dozens of Gigants lined up across the vast plain was a sight no one could dismiss lightly, even if the riders inside were mere cadet students.
No matter who piloted them, the destructive power of a massive fist swinging down remained unchanged.
‘Almost done.’
Abel had finished his startup ages ago, but with so many people, it was taking quite a while.
Rather than wasting time in a daze, he checked his recent gains from the past few days.
[Abel]
[Race: Human]
[Title: Gigadeus Slayer]
[Physical Grade: B (C+)]
[Sync Rate: S]
[Mana: C+ (C)]
[Owned Gigant: Lupus]
[Skills: Pierce, Assimilation, Heavy Strike, Thunderbolt Spear, Overflow, Shadow Step, Double Attack (↑), Beginner Gigant Crafting, Intermediate Gigant Repair, Mana Sensitivity, Beginner Body Technique, Beginner Weapon Technique]
The status window showed several differences from the last time he’d checked.
First, his Physical Grade and Mana had each risen by half a step.
However, these weren’t permanent gains—they came from his title and bracelet effects.
‘I didn’t know the bracelet boosted stats too.’
His body had been so exhausted, and he hadn’t even thought to check his status window.
He’d assumed it was just the title’s stat boost.
Either way, higher stats were a good thing.
Physical Grade and Mana were still sorely lacking compared to his Sync Rate.
The changes didn’t end there.
‘The skills have piled up too.’
Just a few months ago, most of his skills were non-combat types, but now combat skills dominated.
He’d picked up several just during this training exercise.
‘Once I’m back, I need to experiment with skill combos properly.’
Skills could multiply in effect depending on how they were chained.
With plenty of knowledge in his head, he planned to ingrain them into his body through practice.
-Startup complete for all units!
At that moment, an instructor’s voice rang out from not far away.
Finally, the last one had finished starting up.
Boom-!
Then, a heavy thud echoed from up ahead.
Its source was immediately clear.
Several times larger than a Miles-grade Gigant. Silver armor gleaming in the sunlight.
It looked less like a Gigant and more like a silver blade.
‘White Silver’s Fleta…’
It was the machine piloted by Fleta, the deputy commander and chief instructor.
One of her personal Gigants, Lunaris.
‘Reassuring.’
Just seeing Fleta’s Gigant from afar instilled a sense of security.
As the other instructors boarded their machines one by one, she soon gave the signal to depart.
-Move out!
At her command, everyone stepped forward in unison.
Over fifty Gigants marching forward at regular intervals was nothing short of spectacular.
The ground shook with each step, dust clouds rising in their wake.
Even the most belligerent foe would turn tail at the sight.
Boom, thump, thump-!
Perhaps that was why they encountered neither Gigadeus Fragments nor even a small beast during the march.
They took periodic breaks to rest, so fatigue didn’t build up either.
Time flew by, and a full day passed.
Everyone ate a simple meal while still in their Gigants and resumed marching.
Just six more hours, and they’d reach the safe zone.
Then they could return to the academy without a worry.
The cadets, initially on high alert, began to relax.
It was inevitable.
With the reliable deputy commander and instructors around, and no attacks so far.
But that lax atmosphere didn’t last.
-Ambush!
Fleta, leading at the front, shouted in a booming voice.
The instructors flinched and relayed her words to the rear.
-They’re coming from both sides—form up in the center!
At her next order, everyone scrambled into position. Soon after, a sound reached them.
Rumble rumble rumble-!
No enemies in sight yet, but the noise alone hinted at their massive numbers.
Abel gripped his sword and scanned the surroundings.
Then.
“Grraaaaaahhh-!”
The enemies revealed themselves with roars.
Abel frowned as he looked toward the source.
‘A lot of them.’
The attackers were Gigadeus Fragments, numbering well over a hundred.
Their types were a jumbled mess, no uniformity—anyone could tell this was no ordinary situation.
‘They finally made their move.’
Abel easily deduced the Pilgrims’ involvement.
In the game, this was a random event that triggered with high probability if you failed to secure the relic.
Fortunately, it wasn’t a particularly dangerous one.
If it were just cadets, they’d be in deep trouble.
Boom-!
But seasoned instructors were here, including Fleta herself.
The moment the Gigadeus Fragments appeared, Fleta raised her long sword high.
It gleamed silver like her Gigant. With a light flick of her wrist, the blade split into multiple segments.
Less a sword and more like a whip—the weapon called a chainblade.
Shwick-!
Fleta casually swung at the charging, berserk Gigadeus Fragments. The extended blade shot forward like lightning.
Krrunch!
“Keeeaarrgh!”
The struck Fragment let out an agonized scream.
The blade had pierced clean through its torso.
And that was just the start.
Fleta held her ground to protect the cadets, swinging her sword furiously.
The Fragments charging relentlessly were literally pulverized before they could get close.
“Grroooh.”
They veered away from her, targeting elsewhere.
The relatively weaker-looking center midsection.
But that was a poor choice.
-Who do you think you’re underestimating!
Kaul and the other instructors were there.
Starting with Kaul roaring in fury and tearing into the charging Fragments, similar scenes unfolded everywhere.
The Fragments, which had arrived with such momentum, couldn’t even breach the outermost instructors.
Even those that slipped through by sheer luck could do nothing.
-Stab!
The inner ring wasn’t helpless cadets—it was giants of steel.
The cadets, stunned by the initial assault, had long since snapped out of it watching the instructors fight.
Any Fragment that squeezed through faced a barrage of attacks.
Abel’s strikes were among them, of course.
‘Free experience—gotta rack it up.’
Standing behind the instructors, Abel swung his sword vigorously.
Opportunities to fight in such safety were rare.
He just waited for openings and thrust his sword forward.
That said, he didn’t let his guard down completely.
‘No telling when another event might chain into this.’
This ambush event was heavily random in its details.
He couldn’t relax until it was over.
The instructors would handle most things, but contingencies existed.
The battle progressed one-sidedly.
The Fragments, over a hundred strong, dwindled rapidly. When only about twenty remained.
Boom, thump, thump-!
A new sound emerged.
Abel’s eyes widened at it.
The weight in that sound was on another level entirely.
Turning toward it, he spotted a massive silhouette approaching from afar.
‘Gigadeus!’
A humanoid Gigadeus resembling a Gigant.
It dwarfed even Fleta’s Centurio-grade machine by a head.
The Pilgrims’ true target was the Gigadeus.
The instructors, already aware of it, moved with haste.
‘How in the…’
Abel narrowed his eyes.
No matter their special techniques, Pilgrims couldn’t control a Gigadeus freely.
So what was this approaching one?
Observing closely, Abel realized the truth.
‘It’s not under their control.’
The Gigadeus showed no signs of tampering.
It had simply been drawn by the noise nearby.
Of course, it wasn’t pure coincidence.
The Pilgrims had likely aimed to create a commotion and attract the Gigadeus’s attention from the start.
The cadets, just starting to calm down, grew visibly anxious.
It was unavoidable.
A Gigadeus inspired terror by its mere existence.
Even students who’d fought one just days ago felt the same.
Not everyone succumbed to fear, however.
-I’ll handle it.
Fleta, who’d been slaughtering Fragments with flashy moves, stepped forward.
The instructors retreated to the cadets without hesitation at her words.
No one moved to assist her.
They didn’t even feel the need.
Boom, thump-!
The Gigadeus drew closer amid the chaos.
Fleta stood motionless as the distance shrank.
When it was mere steps away.
Whiiiish-!
A silver line slashed through the air.
Crunch!
“Grooo!”
The Gigadeus staggered from the sudden impact, but it wasn’t fatal—it quickly regained balance.
The attack was far from over.
Fleta began swinging in earnest, as if the first strike was mere greeting.
Her chainblade, limp like a whip, wove silver lines through the air at blinding speed.
Krrackle!
The approaching Gigadeus, blocking with its body, started getting pushed back.
It could endure at first.
A humanoid Gigadeus’s hide looked tougher than average.
But Fleta struck twice if once failed, four times if twice wasn’t enough.
“Guuuh?”
The Gigadeus flailed its arms to block, but only accumulated more wounds.
“Ah…”
Someone gasped at the sight of the terror incarnate being overwhelmed.
True to her White Silver moniker, Fleta dominated the Gigadeus effortlessly.
Desperate to turn the tide, the Gigadeus roared and swung its arm.
“Grawr… Gurk!”
A foolish mistake.
The instant it exposed an opening, Fleta dashed forward like lightning and swung wide.
Crunch!
With a brutal rupture, one arm flew high into the air.
The Gigadeus blinked its eyes—whether in shock or numb to pain from the impact.
Shwick!
The chainblade whipped around, shredding the remaining good arm to pieces.
“Gwaaaargh!”
Only then did it scream in agony, lunging with its massive torso to crush Lunaris.
Ta-dah!
Fleta casually leaped back, then pointed her sword downward.
Krrunch!
The sharp blade sank into the Gigadeus’s knee like it was sucked in.
Boom!
Its body collapsed.
With both arms and one leg gone, it had nothing left.
Fleta looked down at it.
Whoosh!
She flicked her wrist lightly.
Boom-!
The Gigadeus’s head soared into the sky before crashing to the ground.
Even a resilient Gigadeus couldn’t survive decapitation.
Seeing the head roll across the dirt, Fleta turned nonchalantly.
-Finish up. We’ve still got a ways to the destination—move out immediately.
Hearing her, Abel felt a thrill.
‘That’s the pinnacle of a rider.’
The battle of Fleta, who had once stood at the top, was mesmerizing.
Abel’s eyes sparkled.
Someday, he resolved, he would reach that realm too.