A melta bomb, at the androids' current tech level and industrial capability, could be produced in at most an hour if cost was no object.
However, this was a melta bomb, a larger warhead made using the melta-round technology.
In essence, it was simply a bomb manufactured using an "explosives" formula.
And its shelf life was not long either, since it was a temporary make.
If they wanted it to qualify as a true finished product, even with cost ignored, it would still take half a day.
So, sensing something, Kain lifted his head to the sky and saw a faint, barely noticeable "shooting star."
In reality, it was a fighter craft entering the atmosphere.
A fighter piloted by 2B, carrying the freshly manufactured melta rounds back down to the surface world for him to test.
Yes, the melta warheads were not being manufactured on the surface.
They were worried the machine lifeforms might steal the technology by accident, even once.
So the production was placed in the YoRHa Bunker, with 9S returning to oversee it.
As an aside, the Bunker's control authority had now completely fallen into YoRHa's hands.
As for the other satellite bases, they did suspect something was wrong with the Bunker, but they did not investigate further. According to White, she told the other high command that all of this was part of her plan.
To make them believe, she also sent some information to stabilize the high command.
And White herself, that tall, blonde, mature-sister type of android, was still beside Kain.
It looked a bit like she was still being held as a hostage.
But it felt more like she simply wanted to stay near him.
"Mr. Kain, what is your situation like in your world, on your battlefield? If it's convenient, can you tell me what humanity is fighting against?"
White ultimately could not hold back her concern and asked.
In truth, she cared more about his circumstances, worried that once he returned, he would never be able to come back again.
To be honest, for the sake of his safety, White felt an impulsive urge to imprison him in this world.
But he had already said it: once the time was up, he would be forcibly repatriated to his original world.
And the reason White asked what he was "fighting against," instead of directly asking whether he was fighting androids, was because she had analyzed that in his world, the war between humans and androids was already a matter of the past.
After humanity survived the android crisis, the severely weakened humans would then have faced other threats.
A2, also standing nearby, had a subtle change in her expression as well.
She cared too.
"A lot of things. All kinds of horrors. And in the region I'm in, we're fighting the cannon fodder of the Chaos Gods."
He shrugged, speaking in a light, almost joking tone.
But the content of those words made White's expression tighten slightly.
She did not think he was joking.
"Cannon fodder of the Chaos Gods?"
Especially that word—Chaos Gods—White's voice grew heavier.
A world where such absurd "gods" existed?
But then again, maybe it was not that strange.
After all, this was another parallel world.
And her own world had already seen dragons and giants appear.
Those abnormal creatures were also from other worlds, and the worlds they belonged to likely had "gods" as well.
Wait.
He was fighting the cannon fodder of the Chaos Gods.
That meant his status in that world was also miserable.
If he really went back, he might truly never be able to come here again.
That made the impulse inside White begin to grow again.
"White, you're thinking about how to imprison me so I can't go back, aren't you?"
As if he had seen straight through her thoughts, White honestly nodded.
"If I could actually stay in this world, I'd be more than happy to."
He added with a bitter smile, and the emotional reaction in his face made it seem like he genuinely hoped he could remain here.
That meant that once the time ran out, he would be sent back—something that could not be changed.
And it was also something White could not stop, no matter what methods she used.
If he could prevent it, he would have said so.
Clearly, for someone who understood this world as well as he did, he knew the androids' power was not enough to make him stay, and not enough to resist the force that would drag him back.
Then the two of them fell into silence, until the roar of a fighter's engines filled their ears.
The transformed craft settled and stabilized, and 2B jumped down carrying a case, handing it over.
"Thanks, 2B."
Taking the case, Kain could not help lifting a hand and ruffling the young woman's hair.
Her silky strands slid across his fingers and palm.
That head-pat made her tilt her head with faint confusion.
He opened the case.
Inside were rows of melta warheads, their caliber matching his bolt pistol's ammunition.
In fact, they had been manufactured specifically to fit the caliber of his weapon.
Then he began loading.
Alright.
For a test target, Kain aimed at an abandoned armored vehicle thirty meters away.
He squeezed the trigger.
The muzzle flashed orange, and almost at the same time the wrecked vehicle flared once, without much sound.
"This power…"
Kain was surprised.
This was roughly half the power of the melta munitions he used against large machine lifeforms.
The metal vehicle in front of him was like plastic foam struck by a lump of red-hot molten iron.
The impacted area rapidly liquefied.
He walked over to check, and Kain realized the effect of a single round might be even better than a melta grenade.
The fired round carried strong inertia, and the destructive shock generated on impact further shook and spread outward, making the melt-through effect better than a melta grenade.
Then try this.
This time, he took out a component from the case—an obvious add-on meant for his bolt pistol.
An underslung grenade launcher, right?
After all, they had scanned some of the bolt pistol's data, so it was not strange that they could manufacture a suitable attachment and send it down.
He fitted the attachment, took a larger warhead, assembled it in place, and chose his next test target: a derelict building four hundred meters away.
Thump—!
The grenade slammed into the building, and the moment of impact made Kain pause.
"This looks like a combination of a cluster munition and a white phosphorus bomb."
That was his assessment.
And the abandoned structure, under that single strike, turned "cheese-like" in an instant—softening rapidly, then collapsing.
Also, based on what 9S had read one step deeper into the drive's materials, this melta-warhead technology appeared to be civilian-grade.
Which meant there was military-grade melta-warhead technology as well.
He had no idea how terrifying that level of power would be.
And from what he was seeing now, the technology of his world and the technology of this world were almost mutually compatible.
Of course, that was probably compatibility in pure technology.
If it involved anything like psyker powers, then it likely would not carry over.
So then—
If he brought every STC he had obtained so far over here, built and mass-produced everything, armed himself, and returned to his world, wouldn't his survivability jump exponentially?
Sigh.
If this "cross-world invitation" could have happened before this excavation, back when he was still holed up in his own base, that would have been perfect.
Maybe he could have brought over the STCs he had already found by accident.
Maybe there would have been truly outrageous technology among them.
(End of Chapter)
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