Bang!
In the pitch-black night, in a night that had suddenly gone quiet, the gunshot was thunderously loud, as if the sound had been amplified more than tenfold compared to normal conditions.
The one who pulled the trigger was a member of the Rijou family. The muzzle of the gun in his hands gave off a faint wisp of smoke.
His target was a figure wrapped head to toe in a metal micelle bodysuit.
The bullet hit. It even struck true. But it only kicked up a tiny spark on the target's body, doing no more than causing the target's stride to pause for the slightest instant.
That scene left the Rijou man stunned. His face turned incredulous, disbelieving.
Then his finger seemed to lose all reason as it kept squeezing the trigger. A rapid series of shots echoed through the night.
On the attacker's body, more sparks burst out, as if the person were truly impervious to blades and bullets.
But in the very next moment, this seemingly invulnerable, ill-intentioned intruder abruptly "763" dodged, accompanied by an even heavier gunshot. About ten meters behind where they had just been standing, the ground flashed red and ignited in an instant.
"Wha—!"
The shocked sound didn't even fully leave his throat before the impact wave that followed blew away the remaining weak gunfire noise like it was nothing.
The special steel suit that could withstand ordinary bullet impacts felt as though it had been shattered by a single punch. His abdomen had the sensation of being punched clean through in an instant, and his internal organs felt like they'd been smashed into pulp.
Immediately after, everything in his vision began pulling away at high speed, until his back slammed into something and the forced retreat finally stopped.
In that moment, agony surged along his nerves and forced his brain into clarity about one thing: he had still underestimated how terrifying the opponent was.
Against this kind of enemy, the thought of "testing the waters" should never have existed. It was fatal.
Without hesitation, within the space of a single second, he stomped down on the huge rock beneath his feet.
In the next instant, the battle suit was no longer merely something he wore. It truly became part of his body.
On the inner surface where the suit pressed against skin, a massive number of needle-like barbs surged out, stabbing into flesh. They even had hooked barbs, latching on and adhering completely.
Those needles injected the latest developed enhancement drug. In an instant, it spread through his entire nervous system. He could feel his body burning, splitting apart, as if it were being torn into pieces.
In truth, it was his cells undergoing extreme high-speed metabolism, splitting and multiplying at a furious pace.
In an instant, the suit also felt unbearably tight, swelling until it seemed ready to burst.
He could also feel something growing out of him, especially around his head. His hands, too, had changed. He had the distinct sense that his hands could now tear a person apart with ease.
The process was excruciating, but he reveled in the explosive surge of power erupting inside him, as if it were spilling out of his body.
So, the world slowed in his eyes. It was as though time itself had become sluggish.
And so, when a fist was about to smash into his cheek, he raised his hand and caught it.
In that instant, he saw clearly the astonishing changes in the man who was about to destroy him.
Then next, he would properly enjoy himself. He hoped that this newfound power would at least let him savor battle a little, if only for a moment.
Savor—
"Bang—!"
What?
The slow world in his vision seemed to accelerate in a single instant, and his head was hammered by two deafening impacts.
It was as if someone had pressed his head into the ground and smashed it down hard. His eyes were forced to stare along the surface of the earth at point-blank range.
His pupils dilated. He saw that the hand that had been gripping the opponent just a moment ago was now bent, bent in the opposite direction.
His pupils contracted violently. A gun muzzle, seemingly magnified many times over, was now aimed straight at him.
At this moment, he understood. He had still underestimated the opponent's strength.
He had believed the power he gained after enhancement would be enough, yet he still couldn't withstand the other man's punches. His arm had snapped, and then the opponent's fist kept smashing into his temple, pouring in with terrifying speed until his pupils turned dark.
So the gap in strength was still this great?
Not exactly. The power granted by the drug, he hadn't even had time to familiarize himself with it, much less use it properly.
Otherwise, he should have been able to trade blows for at least a short while.
But his awareness ended here.
After the muzzle flashed, he sank into eternal darkness.
Kain set the bone back into place, correcting the dislocation that had pushed through skin.
He had to admit it. This time, the guy they sent actually had some ability. Taking that punch head-on had still left his arm in this state.
He rolled the headless corpse over, narrowing his eyes at the bulging metal module on the target's back, the indicator lights still flickering.
He took a dagger and cut it off.
Oh?
It really was like the other man's skin. When he peeled it away, it immediately exposed a layer of raw muscle where there should have been skin.
"You're hurt?"
Halfway through, a slightly surprised voice came from beside him.
"Do we extract it now?"
The speaker continued. Kain understood it was Saeko talking. Somehow, she had already arrived in this world in an instant.
"Then take it out."
As he replied, he saw Saeko take several steps back. Then, directly in front of her, a metal cube appeared out of thin air.
Kain stepped in and pressed his palm onto an area that looked like a palm-print authentication pad.
The moment his hand touched it, it began to glow. He also felt a faint current run through his arm.
"Verification passed. Logged-in user: Unmanned."
The electronic voice sounded. The cube glowed brighter, cracks spreading all over it as if it were about to explode.
Then it began transforming, like something straight out of Transformers.
When it finished unfolding, the familiar silhouette made Kain think of the anime Infinite Stratos (also known as IS).
This powered-armor frame looked strikingly similar to the IS weapons in that series, the kind that only react to women.
So in that work, the setting was like this:
Because the male lead was the only man in the world who could activate the weapon, he enrolled in the IS Academy, a school full of girls, where he showed off and built a harem.
Now then—equip it, and start getting familiar with the weapon's operating method. It should be roughly the same as the two operating systems he had taken away earlier.
If there was any major difference, it was probably that this one also had a flight system.
In addition, it could transform into a miniature drone. Its shape closely resembled the fighter of the "Mitsuba Unit," only in a miniaturized form.
He glanced at the piece he had peeled off and tried scanning it, hoping the data would be valuable.
Good. It was transmitting 4.6x data, and it was sending it via satellite, huh?
"Track the receiving location."
"Understood, Master."
The response was not a dry, mechanical electronic tone, but a crisp female voice.
And the voice module had four types.
One was the strict, cold type—a female boss or queen-like deputy leader.
One was the seemingly emotionless type—an almost mute "kuudere" doll-like girl voice that simply followed orders.
One was the kind that sounded rigid and competitive, with a "reliable next-door big sister" vibe.
And the last was a bright, naturally airheaded, innocent-girl type.
Kain thought all four voice sources were quite good.
Adding a feature like this was almost certainly 6O's little perversion.
Oh?
After seeing the information he wanted on the display, Kain revealed a faintly pleased smile.
(End of Chapter)
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