EP.299 A world made of gears – 6
Even in such an unfavorable situation, Maximilien is determined to fight. Seeing that he had no intention of stepping down, I stuck out my tongue.
what is that Are you the main character somewhere? Why are you burning so brightly?
I want to applaud Maximilien’s attitude of trying to go beyond that without stopping even though he has achieved everything he wants to achieve. If life is a flame that will go out someday, no color will remain in the place where everything is burned. Leave only achromatic piles of ashes on the ground, and they will become the wind and fly anywhere in the sky. It’s fleeting, but it’s a life that will become brilliant. All applause.
However, when he recalls that his purpose is ‘me’, the hands that were clapping vaguely go to the back of his head. No matter how good the scene is, if the fire tries to burn me, I have no choice but to run away. Or trample it off.
That’s why I have no choice but to kill Maximilien even though I like him. His wind will set me on fire.
Perhaps as an unheard-of strange being called the King of Sins.
I immediately responded.
“I have to fight! Leah. Do you remember the rule of defeat when touch is allowed?”
I asked because it was so long ago that I was afraid I might not remember it, but Historia answered fluently.
“Hey. The rules you forcibly introduced when you first sparred with me to earn points? don’t remember Some distant person made a ridiculous suggestion, so I asked him to try it, but he was cowardly and only aimed at the inside of his body, right? Kww. At that time, the drugs had risen to the point where I really wanted to kill him.”
“Seeing that you remember even the useless parts, I was worried for nothing!”
While Historia laughed, her feet suddenly shook subtly. Maximilien was about to use alchemy to melt Historia’s feet into a swamp of brass. It was just when I noticed it and tried to run away.
thud. Historia’s foot slammed the steel beetle down. The energies exhaled from the feet of Kong Qigong spread like an earthquake. The steel plate was slightly distorted, and several cogwheels fell off from the impact.
In order to use alchemy, the target object must be grasped close to perfection. Alchemy will fail if transformation occurs in the middle of the attempt. This is why it is difficult to use alchemy in practice.
Thanks to Historia’s stomping, alchemy was nullified. Magical power that has lost its direction evaporates.
Historia, instinctively poking at alchemy’s biggest weakness, asked without much inspiration about what she had done.
“why? do that?”
“Not with you, but with the bottle!”
Historia asked, narrowing her eyes.
“…Where do you want to touch an old man like that?”
“I don’t really want to touch it, and it wasn’t my purpose to touch it in the first place! I have some kind of trick, and I can neutralize him with a touch!”
“Hey, that’s a joke. know. Because I saw you before.”
Maybe it’s because I’m taking the medicine, the words don’t pass through my brain and just come out. Shouldn’t we see the game soon before it gets worse?
“You see, Leah? I’ll assist you and look for gaps. please!”
“ask? Eh, bare-mouthed?”
“Okay, so first!”
Even in the middle of a hurry, I’m smiling with my eyes, is it okay?
Fortunately, my worries were unfounded. Historia approached Maximilien at once and pushed him hard.
bang bang bang. Whenever fists and arms collide, there is a sound of steel colliding. Maximilien’s hand is a prosthetic arm made of steel, but I don’t know why Historia’s limbs make that noise.
Historia stretched out her arms and legs. Winding angles linked to qi gong are natural and flow like water. When she stepped out, the gong qigong supported her whole body, and when she stretched out her fist, the qigong would spurt out. The qigong that became one with her body made her movements many times more agile and faster.
In contrast, Maximilien’s movements were as systematic as the hands of a clock. When Historia extends her fist, the joint teeth move at the correct speed and angle to block it. His arms and legs moved at completely unexpected angles, deflecting Historia’s attack to the outside. While concentrating on defense like that, when he saw an opening, he aimed for it and released the accumulated power all at once.
Without any warning, his arm snapped apart and stretched about 1m. This is possible because the elbow and shoulder are cogwheels, not joints. Historia’s body was targeted by a surprise attack that would be impossible to understand without reading her thoughts.
‘As expected. It seemed to gather strength.’
But even if you’re not a mind reader, you’re at least engaged in psychological warfare. Historia fixed the gun she was holding. Grabbing the barrel made the gun a great hammer. Historia slammed Maximilien’s arm down with the handle.
Kaaang.
The Alchemy Steel created by the military’s strongest alchemist collided with the steel containing the military’s strongest Qigong. The result after a fiery confrontation was a draw. The force that overwhelms the weight bounces off in opposite directions at the ends of the collision.
However, Historia’s gun is not actually a hammer. It’s just a gun barrel for shooting qigong, and holding and wielding it is a secondary purpose.
Qigong flashed from the gun he held in reverse. Blue flames reflected in Maximilien’s monocle.
Taang.
Maximilien’s head tilted nearly 90 degrees. His body, hit by bullets fired through the air, was pushed back.
But it didn’t fall. Historia lowered her stance and looked.
‘You’re right. Did you stop it?’
His monocle is broken and dangling. He had a large bruise on his face. But he is still alive.
A monocle that moves by itself. It was an artifact to see the invisible, but also a protective gear he made with great care to protect himself. The moment I sensed that the muzzle was shining, I put my monocle on the bullet’s trajectory.
‘Isn’t there enough time to gather energy? Too bad. I thought I was caught off guard.’
It’s a pity for Historia Anyway, Historia has the upper hand in close combat itself. Maximillian, who had no chance of winning in combat, slid back and scratched the steel with his fingers. The pure white light was deeply engraved and the iron plate was cut and turned over as if it had been cut with scissors.
Countless cogwheels attached to each other, visible through cracks. Maximilien stretched out his hand towards them.
Maximilien’s arm became a magnet. Just by putting his hand close to it, numerous cogwheels cling to each other like bees. The cogwheel clinging to his arm escaped from my control and rode around Maximilien’s arm to find its place. Each cogwheel remembers its position and moves to be reassembled.
In no time at all, Maximilien had a very large and functional mechanical arm in his hands. His fists are the size of Historia’s torso.
‘It’s strange… the arm seems to be bigger than before. Can you see nothing?’
you idiot. That’s right, it’s grown.
The two-kwang mechanical arm extended and struck Historia in front. It is several times bigger and several times longer than before. It’s not a scale that can be knocked out with a gun handle. Historia crossed her arms and jumped backwards.
“…Aww.”
It was when Historia stumbled and was pushed back by the far-off shock.
It is now. I shouted, catching up quickly for half a beat.
“Lea! Move 8!”
Then Historia reacted reflexively.
Back when I was in school. I had excellent writing skills and terrible practical skills. It’s my true ability. Anyway, the military government deprives me of opportunities if I don’t get a good evaluation in the set standards.
So, I teamed up with Historia to show off a couple of levels that were several levels higher than my ability.
Set up an action in advance, and when you say the number, move accordingly. If you match the sum in advance, you can make a third-rate performance look like a master’s sparring. This is because they put all their energy into moving instead of spending their spare energy on doubting or being wary of each other.
like now.
Stepping back, Historia turned her left foot to the right. At the same time, I jumped toward Historia’s back. A movement that is sure to collide sooner or later. But for a moment, both twist and brush each other’s backs. The moment we cross, Historia pushes me with her shoulder and arm.
Thanks to that, my body bounced forward as if it were being shot.
It’s a lot faster than before, but it doesn’t matter. Like it or not, Maximilien has no choice but to have cogs attached to his arms because of his abilities. Alchemy is the art of changing matter. Power is required to move, and Maximilien, who has already undergone optimization, has no choice other than gears.
If that’s the case, the moment you touch it, it’s a reproduction of what it was before. Use his unique magic against him, climb up the cogs and break his insides.
‘Things to be more vigilant than the director of the Historia. the human king. His ability is unreasonable with just that piece.’
I reached out. His fingertips are about to touch Maximilien’s mechanical arm. If you touch it, it will irreversibly and surely break. Because my ability is his ability.
‘You’re going to climb up against the gears and attack me. It destroys me with my own strength, so I can’t even resist.’
Maximilien knew that all too well.
I used to deal with Historia, but through the monocle, I was looking at me. He kept his attention on me even as I sprang out from behind Historia’s back.
‘Then I’ll cut it off before it touches you. So that the power does not reach me.’
Chit. I’m leaving.
I’ll have to redo the plate.
wajangchang. Maximilien separated the mechanical arm from his prosthetic arm. It was pulled out so hastily that the cogs that had not yet been able to get out scratched the inner wall with a metallic sound. He leaves with all his might, throwing away the thing he made by consuming a considerable amount of mana and cogwheels without even regretting it. Without face or anything, even rolling on the ground got away from me.
Cogwheels rained down in front of my eyes. I immediately called out.
“No.2!”
Historia quickly grabbed my cloak. My body stops in the air and my raised feet scrape the air. The mechanical arm collapsed right in front of my eyes, but Historia pulled me to avoid colliding.
“Kek!”
Is it better to bump into it? The cloak pulls on your neck and shoulders, suffocating you.
After coughing a few times, I straightened up and said,
“If we continue like this, it will be a war of attrition. How much energy does Leah have left?”
“I don’t know… if I work hard, maybe I can keep shooting?”
“What if I don’t do my best?”
“Two feet.”
It means two feet are the end.
If it was perfect, the correct answer would be to continue the war of attrition. Maximilien is tearing off the sirloin of a steel beetle and using it as material to make a mechanical arm. There is also a ‘trap’ I made while running away, so soon all the gears he will use will disappear.
But now we are also close to the limit. Our urgent side has to pay the odds.
“What is your special move?”
“If I exert my strength, somehow, barely.”
“Not even once… I have to bet on that. Okay, I’ll try to make a gap this time.”
A promise of brute force that has nothing to do with an operation. There is only the will to do something without the power to choose.
This is normal. All animals originally live like this. Run and die, fight and die. Or they eat the wrong thing and get sick and even die.
I don’t want to, but I still want to protect myself. I pulled a card out of my pocket.