Chapter 65: A Squire’s Dilemmas
The culmination of my century-old research amounted to many things. Mana Furnace, void magic, creation of a new magic system…
One of its products is none other than a combat suit. It is an armor similar to sci-fi exoskeletons—akin to the ones found in movies and games.
Unlike most people expect, it is a hard thing to realize. Even after removing the problems of manufacturing, just its energy source is a huge problem.
In the early days, a 100V battery could power the prototype suit for fifteen to twenty minutes. That was the 'smallest' battery possible. Bigger batteries are possible, but the suit would lose many advantages. Hence, I shifted my sights to more efficient energy—nuclear energy.
Long story short, I was able to create a miniature nuclear fusion reactor. I started with nuclear fission reactors before inventing miniature nuclear fusion reactors. The potential radiation was contained through magic. Since its creation, all combat suits beyond version 3.0 uses them.
"This model… [Squire]..."
A version 3.1 of [Squire], the backup combat suit whenever [Arbiter] is unavailable. It was the suit that got thrashed before I arrived in Gekai.
"Wardrobe."
The next moment, my magician's outfit replaced my armor. My fingers felt the cold touch of the rectangular container. A sense of familiarity went down my spine.
I pressed the slightly lodged button before using magic to emit a certain frequency. The container swiftly lit up as a result.
Its front opened up, revealing a sleek black suit. It is similar to the black armor I am currently using. However, it does not have any gaps. It retained the design of medieval armor, hence its codename.
My hand drew a circle and a line in its center. My unique life signature was emitted from my fingers.
Pssshk-!
The suit's front started opening up. The components arranged themselves and gave way to me. When I went inside, I felt its comfortable interior. There's a layer of memory alloy and features such as air conditioning and [Cleanse] magic. You never know when you'll fight for days without a bath.
The suit started closing itself. Darkness briefly prevailed before the lights were turned on.
{Goshujin-sama. It has been exactly fifteen seconds after the anomaly. The connection to {Judgement} and the network has been cut off. Are we undergoing signal jamming?}
A familia response rang in my ears.
"It's a long story. I'll try shortening it. We are currently in another world. I summoned you through a certain magic involving time. The duration is limited, so I hope to receive your help for now."
{Understood.}
Miku processed everything in a second. The perception of time is different for her.
Click.
I felt a connection to the suit. It is the thing that made spellcasting possible. I share some of Miku's computation speed to finish strong spells when my limits are still low.
{Unknown state detected. Goshujin-sama's perimeters are beyond the recorded charts.}
"It's an interesting world that allowed me to break my limits." I replied. "I think we could cast grand-scale magicka now, no?"
{Correct. It is surprising to see goshujin-sama to be this strong.}
I felt delighted at her compliment. Miku being 'humane' is something I found to be complicated.
{Precautionary measures activated.}
{Scanning the surrounding perimeter.}
{Scan complete.}
{All weapon systems. Check.}
{Vitals… Check.}
{What are your orders?}
A miniature model of the eleventh floor appeared on my sight. Some areas were left undetected due to the environment's nature.
"We will be going to the floor upstairs. Lock on to this place."
I 'pointed' out the location of the staircase.
"Also, open the comms and scan this orb."
{Device scanning complete. It is a two-way communication device made with magicka.}
"Copy its frequencies and connect to the channels."
{Transfer complete.}
I willed the interface to the 'communications system'. There, I found the exact channel we were using before. It removed the hassle of holding the orb directly.
"Turn on the stealth system."
{System activated.}
The function of [Composite] and the suit's stealth system, [Shinoshi], overlapped.
(A/N: Shinoshi is the Japanese abbreviation of stealth (Shino) and system (shisutemu).)
"We will be going maximum speed."
{Understood. Initiating flight systems…}
My body was lifted from the ground. It is very stable this time. I didn't have to manually control my flight. That lifted a burden from my mind.
After stuffing the container to my bracelet storage, we set off.
The surroundings turned into a blur. My speed shot up to one hundred kilometers per hour. The interface marked the 'gateways' and narrow places which helped avoid them.
The gravity balancing system worked as well.
On the way, I readied my arsenal of spells.
{Library Selection…}
'The spell 'Seiden' along with 'Carpet bombing'. Ready [Alice's Wonderland] and [Orion] to their limits.'
My mind synched with Miku's process. It is a mystical feeling to elevate my computation speed. It is the product of magic rituals along with technology. It is the main reliance behind my iterations. Without them, I wouldn't be able to cast spells with enough firepower.
Two minutes later, we arrived to the tenth floor.
Miku did a scan, in which she received a feedback of the people present in this area.
"There are less people here."
Inside the 'control room', there are roughly twelve people.
{Goshujin-sama, an anomaly has been found.}
"Yeah. Those are the 'gods' of this world."
{Shall we deploy the anti-divinity spell system?}
That spell system employed the antithesis of myths. It embodied the beings that brought destruction such as 'Tarasque', 'Leviathan', and 'Surtr'.
"It's not needed. The gods in this had sealed their power. We need to focus on the control section."
{I understand.}
I flew over several Evilus members without them noticing. There aren't any viola in this floor. Their lack of high-level adventurers proved to be useful to this solo infiltration.
Soon, I arrived inside a crowded room. Its height is more than thirty feet. The 'grand' room served the purpose of housing the 'control room'. It is the place where Barca Perdix could manipulate the doors and traps of Knossos.
Disabling this room equates to half of our victory.
Turning on the comms, I connected to the captain channel.
"I have arrived inside the control room. A total of twelve enemies are present."
"So fast? Are ye confident?"
Tsubaki-nee's voice resounded in all directions.
"Yes." I boldly declared. "I will resume contact after this."
Bam-!
Suddenly, the sound of explosions rang out on the other side of the comms.
"They are in the sixth floor!"
Finn-san began relaying orders to others.
"Aye! Attack!"
The cacophony of magic swords, explosions, and weapons clashing came from the communication channel.
I turned my side to silent. I gave them the adamantine pillars to keep the gates open. It should last for half an hour.
To prevent any accidents, I will settle things right now.
"Deploy."
{Anti-personnel systems deployed.}
{Activating Seven Swords...}
Click.
Click.
Click.
…
Seven sharp fragments came out of the suit's back.
One of the white-robed member caught a glimpse of it.
"At long last."
*****
Sou-!
Sou-!
Clang-!
Pssshk-!
The control room became a huge mess. Seven sword fragments appeared out of thin air before aiming at the necks of Evilus members.
It didn't even take five seconds before seven people fell. The remaining ones has enough level to react, but there are still some who couldn't.
In the end, only two people remained standing upon the first fifteen seconds of Nobu's infiltration.
Barca's dull eyes showed a shocked look. Even Thanatos' smirk got frozen. He no longer possessed his previous arrogance.
The attack revealed the one responsible for the sudden massacre.
A 'knight' wearing full-body black armor.
When Barca's eyes laid upon it, he was sent to another round of shock.
"How..?"
"Indeed. You are the unknown sixth possessor of [Mysteries], Barca Perdix."
Click-!
The seven sword fragments returned to the 'armor'. A low clicking sound appeared from it—akin to a clock's gears.
"That kind of thing… How..?!"
Upon Barca's conception, he was made to look at Daedalus' Notebook—the greatest masterpiece he had ever laid his eyes on. The thousand years of dedication and hard work to their dream proved it.
However…
The 'intricate' piece of 'magic tools' came close to it, if not equal. A single piece of 'armor' could match the Knossos labyrinth conceptualized by Daedalus himself.
Barca couldn't see its composition. Even if he could, all he would receive is confusion. Nevertheless, he 'sensed' its intensity—its complexity. It is one of the abilities granted by the [Mysteries] skill.
Barca 'saw' the amount of hard work that fueled such 'miracle'.
His 'doubts' were responded with a small electric capsule shot out from the armor's bracer. It sped to Thanatos before he could react.
Bzzzt-!
Thud-!
Barca, a level four, couldn't react to it. That was natural as he doesn't focus on agility and combat. He is nothing but a craftsman.
Thanatos' unconscious body fell to the ground.
Tap.
Tap.
Barca felt his surroundings becoming cold. It became harder to breathe under such pressure.
Bits of frost began appearing on the floor.
The boy inside the armor spoke:
"I'm afraid you won't complete your dream."
"You—!"
Bzzt-!
Just before Barca could react angrily to his derision, his chest was pierced by a sword made of light. It is reminiscent to the sci-fi blades. The light contains extremely high levels of temperature which could pierce through most things easily, more so if it were humans.
The attack was achieved through the fusion of magic and technology, thus forming an incredible effect.
Thud-!
Barca's heartless body fell to the ground.
Click.
The light was recalled back to the sword's handle. It is similar to a katana without a guard.
"As expected…" Nobu muttered. "Having the suit is a huge convenience."
He didn't give him the chance to pull off anything. Back in the eighth iteration, Barca stabbed himself with cursed weapons before swallowing a Jewel Fetus. He turned into a cursed Demi-spirit as a result. Learning from mistakes is his forte.
Nobu turned on the communication channel. He watched the remaining surveillance systems.
"I seized control of the entire Knossos. I will open a path on their flank, Tsubaki-nee."
"T'was fast!" She replied. "A'ight! Tell us the directions."
"You are three blocks away from them. Finn-san, are you holding up?"
"For now. The attacks are coming from all sides."
Finn mentioned the swarms of violas coming at all directions. Along with Evilus' ambushes, the numbers of injured had risen.
Fortunately, everyone could react and move swiftly. Finn is firmly commanding everyone, too. Coupled with Knossos' map, they are faring better than their counterparts on the eighth iteration.
(A/N: Loki Familia got curbstomped by Knossos twice in Sword Oratoria.)
"Then, please follow my directions. I am currently watching everyone from this room."
"What do I need to do?"
Finn's considerations of Nobu's words startled the familia captains except for Hephaestus and Artemis Familia. They are fully aware of his capabilities.
"You are currently near the center. The ambushes could be prevented by being nearer to the edge."
"Sticking your back to a wall."
"That's right."
Nobu's method removed the possible directions of their attacks. They would only need to guard two to three directions instead of all four.
Though, a danger remained. If they got too cornered, it could be difficult.
"Once they gather, Hephaestus and Artemis Familia will strike from their back. It will turn into a pincer attack and gnaw at them." He declared. "Currently, the Evilus members are gathered two blocks on your right. Beware of their Inferno Stones."
"...Noted."
At this moment, Finn realized Nobu's commanding ability—which seemed to rival his own. What he didn't know was that Nobu had already fought these battles before. He served as the 'command' during the crucial events. His eyes—be it phones, security cameras, and satellite—greatly assisted them.
Four minutes later, Riveria arrived into the room along with others. The unconscious god was tied with a black rope beside him. Nobu gave out notices now and then.
Both Nobu and Riveria met gazes and nodded to each other.
"Lady Riveria, this is the god who led Evilus. As for the other Evilus members… they are taken care of."
The 'armor' that he wore is his previous armor. He didn't want to wear the advanced combat suit in front of Riveria's discerning eyes. She might find something strange with it. As for the corpses, he had long burnt them to ashes.
Riveria went close to the surveillance panels. She saw the dozens of monitors. She realized this was where Nobu's punctual reminders came from.
After a while, Nobu made a request to her.
"I might need to check the ninth floor. I couldn't find the Demi-spirits on these surveillance panels."
"That is dangerous." She dissuaded him. "You have already risked your life once. Leave the rest to us."
"I could handle it. I can escape to your side if things turn for the worse."
"No."
Seeing her resoluteness, Nobu fell silent. He could understand why Riveria was like this. Artemis and Hephaestus are like this as well. What he couldn't understand, however, is their 'closeness'.
He believes that they exchanged knowledge at most. What could push Riveria to be this resolute?
Unbeknownst to him, she already sees him as a troublemaker—similar to Aiz. His advances to his enemies were seen like Aiz's recklessness.
That piece of paper changed everything.
"...Alright."
Nobu had to discard his plan of sending [Squire] to self-destruct. He is confident it could take down one Demi-spirit. However, it is dangerous as Riveria had said. There are many unknown variables that could've happene dif he was alone.
It would be for the best to wait for everyone to settle things and attack them together.
Even without Freya Familia, their current force are enough to sweep through Knossos. The lack of a high level seven was made up of the abundance of upper-class adventurers.
In total, there are fifteen level fives and three level six. Not to mention them, the lower-leveled adventurers and the Dea Saint's presence in the rear lines resolved the dangers of cursed weapons.
Nobu stayed put along with Riveria, Aiz, and the other elves.
When the ten-minute mark passed, Nobu 'felt' his magic, [Memoir Manifest], disappearing.
Rumble-!
Suddenly, the ground shook.
"What was that?"
Nobu didn't respond to Riveria and looked through the panels. A dozen seconds later, he saw a huge silhouette breaking loose inside this labyrinth. It is one of the Demi-spirits dubbed "Gugalanna". It looks similar to a bull which represented its power-type enchant magic.
It headed straight to the tenth floor—their current location.
"Mn…"
Aiz faltered for a moment.
"Are you fine?"
"Mn… It's just… Somebody called my… mother's name."
Hearing this, Nobu knew trouble was coming. Aiz reacting like this could only mean that they knew she is here. After all, those Demi-spirits are all hell-bent on catching Aiz. He expected it, though it is one of the worst that could happen.
'But, mother's name? Aria isn't Aiz-san's name?' He pushed this thought aside and focused on the more important one. 'Adamantine chains… How could it break free..?'
Nobu paid attention on the surveillance panels at all times. He is familiar with the ninth floor's layout. Even if he couldn't see the Demi-spirits directly, he saw the pathways leading to them.
Meaning, it was not an external factor that let it go but itself.
'We came here three years earlier. Could it have some kind of berserk skill? Is it different with the Gugalanna that I know? A different version, perhaps?'
He halted his thoughts.
'Thinking about it is meaningless for now. We need to deal with this.'
With the gap between the sixth and tenth floor, it would take more than twelve minutes before reinforcements arrive. That was considering the speed of upper-class adventurers.
Gugalanna's speed could reach them within five minutes. If they ran, that would extend to seven to eight minutes.
"What should we do..?"