The Nightmare from the Deep
The nightmare from the deep—its thick, rock-hard carapace looked like it could shrug off missiles, let alone bullets. The moment the deep-sea monster clad in dark crimson armor revealed itself in the waters before the harbor, screams erupted from every direction.
As soon as Senior Lan shouted the order, the CT Club’s Aindiums, which had been crouched on the trailers, burst out in all directions at once. The members scattered in a textbook-perfect descent, then moved with flawless coordination under the instructions of the main operator, Senior Lan.
In the few seconds it took Senior Lan to issue her orders, the monster lifted one of its massive claws and swept it across the dock. Fortunately, no citizens remained on the pier itself, but many people still hadn’t made it out of the harbor. If it struck any deeper inland, the situation would turn catastrophic.
I immediately raised my sniper rifle. Glossy dark-crimson carapace. Eyes that looked utterly inorganic. Even through the magnified scope, the enemy looked overwhelmingly huge and horrifying. Would attacking it even do anything? Hitting an eye that shifted position by several meters with the slightest movement seemed nearly impossible.
While I hesitated, lost in thought, Rendel’s White Fang appeared on screen, striking the claw resting on the dock. No matter how powerful the foe, he charged in anyway—the classic hot-blooded protagonist move from any robot story. Yeah. If it was Rendel, he could definitely win. Because he was the protagonist.
I opened a comm channel to support him.
Without needing further instructions, the fairies selected the most suitable location from the coastal data Senior Lan had sent and marked it on my map. It was roughly one kilometer south around the bay from the harbor—an easily accessible stretch of coastline. Not a sandy beach or mudflat, but a spot solid enough for Aindiums to gather without issue.
I soared above the sea and unleashed a barrage of sniper rounds into the back of the lobster’s head as it attacked Rendel. The heavy bullets slammed into it one after another, but all it did was flinch slightly. Still, it was enough to draw its attention.
The instant the giant lobster turned its dull, lusterless eyes toward me with a clicking, mechanical motion, I pulled back and fired again. Whether it was because it was a lobster or a monster, it didn’t let out a single roar. It simply clacked its claws together and began chasing after me.
Rendel gave a small chuckle at Mikhail’s words, then ran White Fang along the coastline, staying ready for any surprise attacks.
I’d been trying to lure it seaward from the start out of concern for civilian casualties, but the creature refused to follow, almost as if something terrifying lurked beneath the waves. Losing its aggro now would only cause more damage, so I continued drawing the lobster along the coastline.
Whoosh—
The lobster suddenly swung its claw at me. We were past the docks now, nearing a densely packed residential area. If I wasn’t careful, there could be casualties.
With a heavy thud, White Fang leaped in, deflecting the claw’s path and driving a sword into its joint. Thanks to that, the attack’s trajectory shifted, and it only smashed up the road instead of the houses.
The lobster then swept its claw in a wide arc, as if swatting away an annoyance.
White Fang had embedded its sword deep and hung on for a moment, but the monstrous centrifugal force sent it flying. I’d been ready for this, so I managed to catch it before it accidentally demolished a building.
Unlike the Limpid Fairy, which could fly effortlessly even while carrying two Aind-class units, this sudden drop made my heart lurch. The rooftop of a building barely grazed the tips of White Fang’s feet. As I spun around looking for a safe landing spot, a clothesline even got tangled around its leg.
[Black Fairy’s output is already at its limit just keeping us up.]
[There’s an empty lot past that building.]
Following the fairies’ guidance, I set White Fang down in the clearing. Rendel immediately sent a message.
It had only been a few seconds since White Fang took flight, but if the lobster had gone on a rampage in that time, it would have been disastrous. I focused my magic to reactivate the flight module and climbed higher. The lobster was moving along the coastline. Its massive size made it look slow, but its actual speed was quite fast.
Right now, perhaps because I had disappeared, it was chasing a different target—Muri and Yui on the hill. The bombardment they were raining down seemed to have made the lobster furious. It slammed its claws against the cliff taller than itself again and again, venting its rage.
The problem was that every swing sent huge chunks of earth and rock tumbling down the steep cliff like melting ice cream. There were quite a few houses and facilities near the hill, so the falling debris was causing considerable damage.
While I danced in front of the lobster’s eyes, the two Bivald-class units from the CT Club safely descended the hill and began moving toward the designated location.
I poured bullets relentlessly to keep the lobster’s attention away from the ground. I was down to just a few special rounds now. Fortunately, the destination wasn’t far. Once we rounded the hill, a wide stretch of coastline came into view. The rest of the CT Club was already waiting, and in the distance, trailers presumably carrying the Legion’s Aindiums were heading this way.
I loaded the last incendiary round into my sniper rifle and took aim at the lobster’s forehead.
Bang—
Damn it. The lobster suddenly twisted its body, and the incendiary round went to waste in the sea. That thing was expensive.
Whether because I’d missed or because it had some other reason for targeting the harbor, the lobster turned and began moving back toward the port.
The Bivald-class machines opened their missile ports and unleashed a storm of firepower. Dozens of rockets and missiles slammed into the lobster, but they failed to turn its body. It had completely turned its back on us now. Everyone was stomping their feet in frustration, unable to find a solution—
With a cheerful voice, a whirlpool formed beneath the lobster’s feet. Yvette’s personal machine, Scyllion, burst from the surface and fired a harpoon that pierced straight through one of the creature’s legs.
Yvette’s arrival let us all breathe a sigh of relief. She skillfully yanked on the lobster’s leg, guiding it exactly where we wanted. Finally, we reached the battlefield where the decisive battle would take place.
Several Aindiums gathered on the shore, facing off against one giant lobster.
The lobster raised both of its enormous claws. I had landed briefly to replenish fuel and ammunition, so I quickly hit the flight button. Rendel’s White Fang and Mikhail’s Grunbel dashed to either side, splitting the creature’s focus. The lobster brought both claws down at once but missed them both.
In that opening, I boldly closed in on its face and took aim from point-blank range.
Kwaaang!
The sniper round fired at close range managed to chip the giant lobster’s carapace. Just a little. A very little.
Something was visible inside its dark crimson shell….
I tried to get closer to see, but the lobster swung its recovered claw in warning, forcing me to retreat.
[It appears to be the flesh characteristic of crustaceans.]
The color looked strangely off for lobster meat, but maybe that was because it was a monster. Once we took it down, we could check. I raised my rifle once more.