That cheating bastard... She was a woman now, going by Alexia.
Either way, she had brought out a weapon that defied all logic.
And it was a Zork-enhanced version, no less.
Bombardment from the planetary lords rained down from the sky.
They were firing despite the fact that evacuations were still in progress.
They must have decided that the body count would only rise if they didn't act immediately.
We were past the point where anyone would be filing lawsuits over property damage caused by a giant hero's collateral damage.
"Gwahahaha! You insects! Witness the Duke's Bloodline! Behold the Power of Noble Blood!"
As Alexia screamed, a pitch-black vortex was released from her chest.
"Dark Blazer! Death Blaster!"
A black beam was fired toward the sky.
The battleships from the Lords' Allied Army providing support from above were swallowed by the black beam.
The ground buckled under the impact, sending tanks and vehicles soaring into the sky.
My own machine was tossed aside and slammed hard against the earth.
Dammit! This was basically a final boss fight!
"……Leo! Are you alive?!"
My consciousness flickered for a moment from the sheer force of the impact.
"……Nothing's broken. I can still fight."
"Stop using broken bones as your only metric for being okay!"
Claire scolded me.
Ah, right—since her battery could rotate vertically, she’d probably taken less of a beating than I had.
That was a relief.
Her butt was probably covered in bruises, though.
"Claire, I want to kill that bastard……"
"When you have the mental leeway, sure."
You're right. Yeah, you're totally right!
If I didn't force the genre into a comedy right now, people were going to die.
"Fairy! Do you have any ideas?!"
"There's something beneath this facility! I—I'm initiating a forced startup now……"
"A Linear Blazer?"
Ren's family home had a spare Linear Blazer too.
It wouldn't be strange for one to be here.
I'd almost forgotten myself, but a Linear Blazer was actually supposed to be for tunnel construction.
"There's no ID! It's an unregistered unit!"
"Please! Boot it up!"
I stood up in the Linear Blazer.
I had to buy time until it started!
Even if I didn't know if it would even be usable once it did.
I messaged Wifey.
"Wifey! I'm aiming the Death Blaster upward! Clear the area!"
"Understood! All forces, withdraw!!!"
Naturally, an add-on Death Blaster had nowhere near the output of a true Linear Blazer.
But this was all I had!
I pushed my ESP to its limit.
Wringing out all my powers as a Sage, I sent energy into the Death Blaster's circuits.
"Uooooooo!!! Death Blasterrrrrr!!!"
At that moment, I knew I'd failed.
This ridiculous machine only ever changed its voice lines when things were actually going to work.
"Death Blaster!"
A Death Blaster was fired from Alexia's machine toward me.
I wished I could've canceled it out, but life wasn't that simple.
My Death Blaster was erased in an instant.
"Slow!"
While taking the hit, I used Slow to delay the incoming beam.
I rolled to the side to dodge, but the machine was sent flying by the explosion.
I traced a wide parabola as I was blown outside the garden toward a building housing restaurants and shops.
"Slow! Slow! Slow!!!"
Just before crashing into the building, Slow made it in time.
Even so, my machine still slammed deep into the side of the building.
But that wasn't all I did.
I cast Slow on the nearby allies and soldiers caught in the blast to protect them.
"Claire! Are you alive?!"
"Maybe... I think my ribs... are broken. I can't... move..."
The building I was embedded in collapsed, and the machine fell to the ground.
The sensor readouts were entirely red.
The machine was trashed.
An explosion ripped through the rear.
Maybe it was a short circuit, or maybe gas had ignited. Possibly both.
The unit pitched forward and collapsed.
Simultaneously, the display cut to black.
……Even for an "explosion ending," wasn't the firepower a bit excessive?
The main camera was dead too.
"Claire... can you get out?"
"What are you going to do?"
"Self-destructing."
"I'm going to hit you!"
"I have to stall her! I need to buy everyone time to escape!"
"……Idiot!"
Claire got out while angry.
I climbed out as well.
Then Edge and the others arrived.
The right hand of Edge’s machine had melted away.
Alyssa’s machine was acting as a crutch for him.
"Leo!"
"Take Claire and get out of here! I'm staying until the end!"
"I'll fight too!"
"……Please."
Edge ruffled his hair messily.
"I’m going to deck you later! You'd better come back alive!"
"Yeah. Count on it."
I left the machine and headed toward the garden.
Dammit, she was way too much of a cheater for an enemy.
That construction vehicle!
"Leo-kun! Startup successful! I'm sending it out now!"
The savior had arrived.
"Make it as fast as possible."
Before I died, preferably.
"Unit name: Massacre Night... It's a Humanoid Fighter!"
A moment later, a hand thrust up from the earth.
I understood the moment I laid eyes on it.
The Linear Blazer and the Jester-exclusive Machine were prototypes for this.
A giant with a black body, sinister yet elegant in its design.
A jester turned reaper. The Zork's Executioner.
It bowed its head toward me.
I climbed into Massacre Night.
I connected to the Imperial Standard Communication Line and messaged Wifey.
"This is Leo Kamishiro! [Massacre Night] startup successful! Engaging the Dark Blazer!"
"M-Lord Groom! You're alive?!"
"Wifey, I'm counting on you to take care of everyone."
"Understood! Don't you dare die! I'll be furious!!!"
"Yes, ma'am."
I walked forward while steadying my breath.
"Leo-kun, there's a sword stored on its back!"
I drew the blade. A katana, naturally.
It made sense; most of the Ducal Houses were of Japanese descent.
I only knew Imperial Style Swordsmanship, though.
I guess I'd just copy Melissa's movements.
I'd done enough sparring sessions to make me vomit, after all.
Alexia's machine was waiting in the garden.
I set the external speakers to max.
"Kept you waiting."
"So you've come, you vermin."
"I'm not the one you should be calling vermin, you moron."
"Good luck."
I beckoned to her with a gesture.
Come on. Bring it.
"Hahaha! I shall slaughter you, bring victory to the Zorks, and reign as the Queen of New Humanity!"
"No way. This is the end for you."
The curtains rose on round two.