Scattered across the battlefield were pools of molten metal from the destroyed golems and the magi-crystals that had once powered them.
Observing the scene from above, Jin noticed something peculiar.
"Hm? There seem to be very few Elradrites."
While magi-crystals from control cores, mana drivers, and mana tanks were visible everywhere, he could only spot a few dozen pieces of Elradrite.
"I see. Since they're such rare magi-crystals, I suppose even Unifilar couldn't manage to equip every golem with them."
Jin muttered to himself and ordered Land 91 through 100 to begin recovering the magi-crystals.
The Induction Radiator had literally wiped out the old combat golems.
Their last hope, the Universal Golems, had also seen their numbers decimated by Reiko's relentless assault. With the Land squad re-entering the fray, the enemy's fate was now like a flickering candle in the wind.
"Why?! Why, why, why?! What could have possibly gone wrong?!"
Elena's screams had moved past despair and into pure, hysterical panic.
"Elena, calm down. We still have 'that' left, don't we?"
Donald spoke with a kindness usually reserved for subordinates, trying to soothe his true master.
"Right... You're right. Now is the time to deploy it. Donald, I give you permission. Bring it out!"
"Yes, ma'am."
Donald ordered the few remaining golems to wheel out the ancient weapon.
"Master, something else is coming out."
Anne, who was scanning the area, alerted Jin as he focused on the main battle.
A large opening yawned in the rock wall, and something began to emerge from the darkness.
"Hm? What’s that?"
It resembled a massive bow.
Curved beams extended to the left and right, with a component that looked like a guide rail running down the center.
"That is... a Ballista," Anne identified.
"I see. So they use that massive bow to launch projectiles."
As they watched, several golems hauled back the heavy mechanism, preparing to fire a stone projectile.
Judging by the size of the golems, the bow section was approximately ten meters wide, and the stone they were loading was fifty centimeters in diameter. Assuming the specific gravity of the stone was around three, the projectile weighed roughly 200 kilograms.
"Can it even reach from there? Regardless, I should warn them... Land squad, Titan, stay alert! Stone projectiles inbound!"
Almost the moment Jin’s warning went out, the first stone was launched.
Tracing a high parabola, it flew about 200 meters and crashed into the chaotic battlefield.
Thanks to Jin's prompt warning, the Land squad suffered no casualties. However, the stone projectile had been aimed toward a cluster of surviving Universal Golems. One unlucky unit, apparently already damaged, was unable to evade in time and took a direct hit.
Its torso was crushed flat by its own ally’s projectile, leaving it a total wreck.
Two more stone projectiles whistled through the air, but the Land squad evaded them with ease. Even the enemy Universal Golems managed to dodge, provided their movements weren't already impaired by damage.
Frustrated, Elena changed her tactics, ordering the Ballistae to be moved closer to the front lines. This time, she targeted the massive, easy-to-hit Titan.
However, a stone projectile traveling at roughly ten meters per second was no threat to such an agile unit. Titan 1 sidestepped it effortlessly.
"Still, it looks like those would do some real damage if they actually hit... Reiko, do you have any ammunition left?"
Jin contacted Reiko, intending to have her neutralize the threat with her magi-cannon.
"Yes, Father. I am out of adamantite projectiles, but I have five steel projectiles remaining."
"Good, that'll do. Fire at the enemy Ballistae at five percent output."
"Understood."
Reiko quickly disengaged from the melee, putting about 500 meters of distance between herself and the targets.
She leveled the magi-cannon, aiming directly at the enemy Ballistae. The barrel was almost perfectly horizontal.
"Output: five percent. Fire!"
The steel projectiles, being softer than adamantite, were slightly shaved as they passed through the magi-adamantite barrel, losing a fraction of their velocity.
Even so, the muzzle velocity exceeded Mach 2. Over a distance of 500 meters, the trajectory was practically a straight line.
"Aim better! Direct hits!"
Elena screamed, her irritation mounting as the stone projectiles continued to miss.
Ballistae were originally developed to siege the fortresses of the demon race or to take down slow-moving giant magical beasts. They were never meant to track targets as agile as Titan 1, and the Land squad was out of the question entirely.
"You're all so useless!"
The moment the words left her mouth, one of the Ballistae was suddenly blasted into splinters.
"Wh-What? What was that?!"
Elena recoiled as her heavy weaponry was destroyed by an unseen force. On her magi-screen, she watched as another Ballista was demolished in an instant.
"Oh, enough! Just what is happening out there?!"
"Elena, look!"
Donald, who was monitoring a different magi-screen, shouted and pointed.
On the screen, a small shadow was visible in the distance, holding a long, cylindrical object.
"What is that? It’s too small, I can't tell!"
Their magi-screens had reached the limit of their magnification; they couldn't zoom in any further.
"I don't know for sure, but it looks like that same girl from before."
"That black-haired monster? Ugh, how much does she intend to interfere with us?!"
With the threat of the Ballistae eliminated, the Land squad moved in to finish off the remaining Unifilar golems. Before long, there wasn't a single enemy unit left capable of movement.
"Master, enemy golems have been silenced. All attacks have ceased following the destruction of the Ballistae," Anne reported as she surveyed the quiet battlefield.
Jin shared her assessment. "Is that finally the end of them?"
To be certain, he spent several minutes confirming the state of the area from both the air and the ground.
"Yeah, it looks like the resistance is over."
Now certain that Unifilar's forces were spent, Jin decided it was time to move into the heart of the enemy base.
"Land 1 through 40, stay in position and provide rear support. 41 through 60, breach the headquarters through the door used by the Ballistae. 61 through 80, enter through the front entrance. 81 through 100, breach the entrance on the western rock wall."
"Father, what are my orders?" Reiko inquired from the ground.
"Wait a little longer, Reiko. I want you to head toward whichever of the three teams encounters the toughest resistance and provide support."
"Understood."
However, ten minutes passed without any of the breach teams reporting significant resistance. Deciding to join them, Jin brought Pegasus 1 down and deployed the Body Double.
Reiko hurried over to meet him.
"Reiko, I want you to head through the front entrance along with the Body Double."
"Yes, understood. Also... I am sorry to report this, but..." Reiko held out Touka. "Father, Touka is beginning to wear down."
Jin took the sword and inspected the blade. Indeed, the adamantite edge had developed slight distortions, and its structural integrity was compromised.
"I see. Once we return to the laboratory, I'll upgrade the blade to magi-adamantite. In the meantime... since it'll be cramped inside, you won't have much use for the magi-cannon. Leave it here and take this instead."
He presented her with a vibration sword. It wasn't the larger model used by the Land units, but a specialized size intended for the girl-type models of the Secret Mobile Unit—the SP—which he had brought as a spare.
"Understood. I will use this for now."
Jin then turned his attention to Anne.
"Anne, you go with them. If this fortress dates back to the Great Magic War, you'll be the most familiar with its layout."
"Yes, Master."
"Anne, take these as well."
Jin handed her a Paralyzer and a Protect Ring.
"Yes, thank you very much."
"Alright. I'll wait in the sky and monitor the situation. Don't push yourselves too hard."
"We won't!"
Jin returned to the safety of the sky in Pegasus 1. Reiko, Anne, and the Body Double turned and vanished into the Unifilar headquarters.
The final phase of the war against Unifilar had begun.