The Land squad’s standard equipment consisted of vibration swords. These weapons possessed incredible power, capable of slicing through almost any material.
However, since it was difficult to exercise restraint with such lethal force, the squad had not brought them for this mission.
Instead, they were equipped with jitte.
Forged from adamantite, these weapons measured 20 millimeters in diameter and 50 centimeters in length. Because a solid rod of that size would be excessively heavy, they had been hollowed out to reduce their weight—though even then, each one weighed a substantial 20 kilograms.
That weight had rendered them impractical for high-speed battles against multiple foes where agility was paramount, but today was an exception.
The Land units used them now to intercept the enemy golems.
Land 11 caught a downward sword strike with his jitte and immediately twisted his wrist. The enemy's blade, caught in the jitte's hook, snapped easily under the principle of leverage.
Deprived of its weapon, the enemy golem retreated, only for another to take its place, charging forward with its shield raised. It was the tactic known as a shield bash—a heavy strike using the shield as a blunt instrument.
Land 11 narrowly dodged the first, but another golem launched a simultaneous shield bash from his flank, and he took the full brunt of the impact.
Struck by an opponent nearly twice his weight, Land 11 was sent skidding across the floor. However, thanks to his superior agility and poise, he managed to regain his footing and recover his stance without falling.
Immediately, yet another enemy golem thrust its sword toward him. Land 11 barely managed to parry the blade with his jitte.
He was holding his ground for the moment, but he was clearly at a disadvantage.
Land 15 was also struggling. Fighting empty-handed was ineffective against opponents armed with swords and shields, so he too relied on his jitte. However, the sheer mass of the weapon inevitably slowed his movements. They lacked the decisive edge needed to overcome their numerical inferiority.
If Land 12 and Land 13 could have joined the fray, they could have turned the tide in an instant. However, they were occupied with shielding the immobile Jin D and protecting Helente, which made active participation in the melee impossible.
Fortunately, the Land squad had been programmed with a vast array of combat data.
"15, over here!" Land 11 called out to Land 15, who was fighting a short distance away. "I’ll watch your back."
"Understood."
With that brief exchange, the two units shifted their tactics. They moved until they were back-to-back.
By doing so, they eliminated the risk of being attacked from the rear. They only had to focus on the enemies in front and to their sides. This also made it harder for the opponents to coordinate their strikes; while the frontal assault remained the same, any enemy trying to flank them would end up getting in each other’s way.
Inevitably, the golems were forced to engage them one at a time. This effectively reduced the number of active combatants facing Land 11 and 15 to four, while the remaining enemies were left with no choice but to stand by.
However, this tactic had a flaw: the idle enemy golems immediately turned their attention toward Jin D and Helente.
"12, 13, hold them off for a little longer!" Land 11 barked.
Land 12 and Land 13 nodded silently.
"Now then, time to get serious."
Land 11 and Land 15 suddenly accelerated. Since there was no way to replenish ether in the current environment, they had been fighting at 30 percent output, but they now increased it to 50 percent. They were aiming for a decisive, short-term engagement.
The results were immediate and dramatic. The surge in output translated directly into increased speed and power. The sword strikes they had previously struggled to catch were now easily deflected, and they could withstand the impact of shield bashes without budging.
The two units, who had been purely on the defensive, shifted to a crushing offensive.
"Fu!"
Though there was no physiological need for the sound, the combat data they were based on included breathing patterns to match the movements. Consequently, vocalizations accompanying their breaths would slip out during intense action. Since it was harmless, neither Jin nor Laojun had bothered to edit it out of their programming.
Land 15’s jitte shattered an enemy sword.
Land 11’s jitte punched a hole straight through an enemy golem's shield.
A jitte slammed into the head of a golem that had lost its weapon. Another unit thrust its hand into the hole it had just made in a shield, using it as a handle to swing the entire golem around.
The heavy impact of the adamantite jitte dented metal heads, and the enemy golems—flung with the full strength of a Land unit at 50 percent output—crashed into their comrades, knocking them to the ground.
The Land units followed up instantly against the downed foes. A heavy blow to the neck here, a jitte thrust through a chest plate there. Within moments, two enemy golems were rendered inert.
Once their numbers dwindled, the balance of power collapsed entirely. Two more stopped moving, followed shortly by the final two. The golems that Land 12 and 13 had been fending off were neutralized in the same fashion.
From that point on, the battle became entirely one-sided. Before long, all eight enemy golems lay silent and motionless.
"That was splendid, Land," Helente praised.
"No, not yet. Unless we escape this place, we're just slowly being worn down."
"True enough."
"We could try returning the way we came, but there's no guarantee that will lead us to our objective."
"You are right. However... I still cannot move."
"This is becoming problematic."
Then, for the third time, more enemy golems appeared.
There were only three this time. However, these units stood approximately 2.5 meters tall and possessed four arms. Each arm wielded a different weapon—a sword, a hammer, a spear, and a shield. They looked formidable.
Land 12, still guarding Jin D and Helente, spoke with a hint of frustration. "...The enemy seems to have no shortage of pawns. At our current output, we’ll run out of mana before much longer."
Helente responded to his concern. "If only we could locate the Magi Machine that is obstructing the flow of ether..."
"I see. But there's no guarantee it’s even in this room."
"Quite right....They're coming!"
Land 11 and Land 15 each took on one of the newcomers, while Land 12 and 13 teamed up to face the third.
"...These golems are on a different level."
Facing a four-armed opponent was, in simple terms, like fighting two enemies at once. These golems seemed to possess the specialized processing power required to coordinate all four limbs independently, and the Land squad found themselves hard-pressed.
If they blocked a sword, a hammer came swinging from another angle. If they dodged the hammer and tried to create distance, a spear was thrust at them. If they evaded the spear and tried to strike with the jitte during a perceived opening, the blow was caught by a shield.
They were being stifled at every turn.
"Increase output to 70 percent!" Land 11 commanded. He judged that if they continued to conserve energy now, they would be destroyed before they could ever reach their goal.
The surge in power brought the battle back to an even footing—or rather, it gave the Land units the edge.
The adamantite jitte began deflecting and snapping the enemy swords. They caught the thrusting spears with their bare hands and wrenched them away. They dodged the hammers, and when they slammed their bodies into the golems' shields, the impact sent the four-armed giants stumbling.
The Land units followed up immediately with second tackles, and once the enemies were on the floor, they delivered a relentless barrage of two or three heavy jitte strikes.
Finally, even the four-armed golems fell silent.
"That was splendid, Land," Helente said, repeating her earlier praise.
"...Even so, our stored mana is running low. I hope that’s the last of them."
Contrary to his hopes, five more enemy golems emerged. These were heavy-armor types that appeared to specialize in defense, wielding massive maces.
"This is bad. But we have to do what we can."
Dropping their output to 40 percent to conserve what little remained, Land 11 and 15 moved to intercept.
However, the lack of power was telling. Though they managed to catch the mace strikes with their jitte, they couldn't absorb the momentum and were blown back by the sheer force of the blows.
The enemy golems pressed their advantage, advancing toward Jin D and Helente. One of them raised its mace high, aiming directly for Helente.
"Is this the end...?" Helente murmured, her voice laced with resignation.
But Land 12, standing right beside her, parried the descending mace with his jitte.
Then, he let out a shout.
"The ether is back!"
In that same instant, the entrance they had first entered through was blown wide open.
A small shadow stood in the doorway.
"I apologize for the delay, but I have destroyed all the barrier generators that were obstructing the ether. Land squad, you have done well. Please, leave the rest to me."