Episode 207: Shadows Covering the Sky
The Multi-legged Tank (Hopper) A (Alpha), its front completely torn apart, was beached.
Multiple anti-ground missiles and anti-tank Grenades had detonated at point-blank range.
Scattered metal fragments had destroyed the armor, causing serious damage to the internal mechanisms.
“Are you injured?”
“Ah, yes…”
Five Dissector=Cosmos asked, helping the surrounding hunters to their feet.
It had been anticipated that explosive damage would occur due to the attack, so everyone had taken cover behind the installed barriers, and there were no casualties.
The other three Communicator Dolls had already shifted to perimeter警戒.
The threat of the Shadow Mantis (Shadow Player) had not yet passed.
“Prepare to evacuate immediately. We will continue to be on guard. The Monsters are not limited to that Mantis (Player). That (one’s) threat has not passed either.”
The ground trembled.
It was a slight vibration, but it was proof that the Mountain Boar was approaching.
There was no time to spare.
“…A (Alpha) is a lost cause. C (Gamma) will hold the rear. Now, hurry.”
“Understood…! Ah, isn’t there still one of your companions in that Golem?! Is it alright?!”
The hunters’ gazes were directed at the beached A (Alpha).
Certainly, they had been told that there was a Communicator Doll inside.
It couldn’t be helped.
They had intended to discard it along with the severely damaged Hopper, but it would be difficult with people watching.
＜Cosmos＞ judged so, and decided to recover the damaged Communicator Doll.
“There is one person inside. I’ll take them with me, so there’s no problem. You people take the villagers.”
“…Ah. Sorry, thank you for protecting this village!”
The defense officer and the hunters patted each other on the shoulders and started running. The explosion must have impaired their hearing.
Seeing them off, Five Dissector ran towards A (Alpha) to retrieve Eighteen Dissector, who was still inside.
She tried to eject Eighteen Dissector, who was stored inside, via remote control.
However, the hatch’s opening and closing mechanism was also malfunctioning, and it wouldn’t open.
Explosion.
Using the emergency explosive bolts, she blew the hatch off.
Naturally, Eighteen Dissector, who had been stored inside, fell according to Gravity.
She confirmed that no one was watching.
Five Dissector grabbed the falling Communicator Doll and dropped it to the ground as it was.
She quickly assessed the situation.
A metal fragment that had flown into the Multi-legged Tank had, very unfortunately, pierced just below the neck.
The pod that housed the Communicator Doll was located almost in the center of the Multi-legged Tank. It was almost unthinkable that the damage would extend this far from a normal attack.
With the front armor almost completely destroyed, the scattered metal fragments seemed to have flown through the small gaps in the Multi-legged Tank and penetrated the pod.
This meant that design changes would be necessary in the future, considering the possibility of housing living organisms inside. Or perhaps, armor should be added to the pod.
In any case, the impaled metal fragment had penetrated the nerve ganglion, rendering the Communicator Doll inoperable.
The microwave power receiving function itself was barely alive, so at the very least, it could feign breathing and other vital signs. It could pretend to have somehow survived.
After that, if they could join up with the caravan, it could be repaired.
The AI used in the equipment dispatched to the frontier village this time all used photonic Neural networks.
In the event of damage that made recovery impossible, the plan was to transmit a backup to another unit, and then completely destroy itself, that is, abandon it by explosion or incineration.
All configuration information for Multi-legged Tank A (Alpha) and Eighteen Dissector had already been transferred, and informationally, it had been completely initialized.
Confirming that there were no problems with that state, Five Dissector carried the former Eighteen Dissector on her back and began running towards the center of the village.
C (Gamma) followed behind as the rearguard.
After confirming that a sufficient distance had been secured, A (Alpha) caused its internal power source to run wild, burning out various electrical components. After that, it ignited the thermite fuel installed inside, completely destroying the central control unit.
◇◇◇◇
The villagers stared blankly at the Golem, which was beached and ablaze.
The village’s guardian deity, which had seemed invincible, was no match for the powerful Monsters.
That somber atmosphere was blown away when they spotted another Golem appearing, and the girl walking at its feet.
“Ah…!”
One girl was being carried on the back of another girl. The limp swaying of her legs made everyone on the scene assume the worst.
But.
“Don’t worry! She’s just unconscious!”
The Dissector=Cosmos accompanying the evacuees shouted.
“Now, into the carts in order! Parents and children, get on the back of the Multi-legged Heavy Machine (Golem)!”
That’s right. She was right.
The threat of the Monsters had not yet passed.
The legendary Monster, the Mountain Boar, which they had only heard about in bedtime stories, was approaching the village.
“…Hunters, sorry, but there’s no room! You’ll have to run!”
“Eh, no time to rest, huh!”
Villagers and hunters alike. The evacuees were crammed into the backs of the work Golems and carts, and those with stamina started running as they were.
“To the main road! In two hours, you can join up with the supply unit (caravan) heading this way! They have plenty of room for everyone, just a little patience!”
“Little girl, get on here! Hey, you run! You’re the heroes who protected us, don’t make them run!”
“…Thank you.”
Several villagers cleared a cart, spread out cloaks and clothes, and made a makeshift bed for the unconscious girl. It was too much to ask them to keep carrying her on their backs.
“I-is she alright?”
“She’s injured and unconscious, but she’s had first aid. If we can join up with the caravan safely, there will be no problem.”
A brand new cloth was wrapped around the neck of the girl who was being laid down. There was no blood seeping through, and she didn’t seem to have any major injuries, but even so, the women riding with her voiced their concerns.
“It’s okay. Let’s go!”
The girl accompanying her raised her voice, and the Golem pulling the cart slowly began to walk. However, its stride was its stride. It was about the same speed as a person’s light jog.
Although it wasn’t paved, the road had been leveled to some extent by the caravan’s round trips.
If they could move smoothly, they would somehow be able to escape from the Monsters.
The ride wasn’t very comfortable, but they had no choice.
It would be inconvenient for the girls for a while.
“The Shadow Players are almost gone too…”
Combat Golems were accompanying them in the front and rear, ensuring their safety.
However, there was no guarantee that a Monster wouldn’t suddenly jump out from the side.
The hunters running alongside them, and the ＜Paraiso＞ girls, would have to keep running with their weapons at the ready.
Even though it was just a light jog, they had been fighting to defend the village until just now.
They certainly didn’t have the stamina to keep running for two hours like this.
“Take over for half of them! They’ll collapse if they keep running!”
“Yeah, I can run!”
“I’m confident in my stamina too!”
While saying such things, the villagers evacuated along the main road.
They were wearing only the clothes on their backs, but the atmosphere was relatively bright.
The ＜Paraiso＞ protecting them were just too reliable.
If they could escape, if they could join up with the caravan they were talking about, they would be able to move safely to another village in the rear. There would be no problem with supplies for the time being, although there would be issues with payment.
＜Paraiso＞ had prepared more than enough.
In this way, all the villagers of the frontier village of Lalan completed their evacuation without a single dropout.
They continued to run along the main road, joined up with the caravan heading towards them, and everyone was accommodated in the huge vehicle prepared by ＜Paraiso＞.
For the time being, they would be able to escape.
But that powerful Monster, the Mountain Boar, was still there.
Having taken a breather, they realized anew the ground was still trembling.
“As expected, there’s just no dealing with monsters like that…”
Someone muttered.
It wasn’t exactly triggered by that, but…
A shadow fell over their heads.
Everyone who looked up was speechless.
In the sky, something, gigantic.
Something incredibly large was flying.