Free Web NovelThe smell of blood permeated the cockpit.
Blood was oozing from the corners of Pavel's mouth, her nostrils, and even her eye sockets.
But she was still smiling.
Smiling like a true madwoman.
The once arrogant and domineering souls in her mind were now wailing.
One by one, they were being torn apart, devoured, and merged by her.
A veteran with thirty-seven years of piloting experience—his close-combat expertise was being drained dry by her.
A former ace sniper—her reaction speed became a part of Pavel.
The lunatic who held his position alone for seven days during the border war—his indifference to pain was now supporting her riddled body.
Everyone was screaming.
Everyone was running away.
But no one could escape.
Because this was her mind.
This was her domain.
This was her battlefield.
--【Warning: host's physiological indicators are severely abnormal】--
--【Heart Rate: 187 bpm】--
--【Blood Pressure: Critical Value】--
--【Multiple Capillary Ruptures】--
--【Nervous System Load: 312%】--
--【Suggestion: Cease combat immediately!!!】--
This time, Pavel finally heard the eerie voice clearly, yet she continued to ignore all warnings.
She could feel her blood vessels bursting one by one, and her brain felt as if it were being pierced by countless needles simultaneously.
But this pain... this pain made her feel more lucid than ever before.
More... alive than ever before.
"Come on."
She licked the blood from the corner of her mouth, revealing a grim smile.
...
This village had turned into an Asura's field.
The six reinforcement mechs from the Third Knight Order had just arrived on the battlefield when they collided with a beast that had completely lost control.
Its movements were as fluid as spilled mercury and as ferocious as a visitor from hell.
Every sword strike carried a will to destroy everything.
Every sword strike landed precisely in the weakest gaps of the armor.
"This is impossible—!" The vanguard captain of the Third Knight Order had just raised his shield when that pitch-black longsword pierced in from an unbelievable angle, skewering his cockpit.
The red patterns on the sword's blade suddenly lit up, and the knight turned into a fireball before he could even scream.
The second unit.
The third unit.
The fourth unit.
The wreckage of the mechs fell one after another like harvested wheat.
That Punishment Camp mech was already covered in scars—the left leg joint had finally broken down completely, forcing it to drag a paralyzed iron leg forward; the chest armor was torn open with a huge gap, exposing the internal cables like entrails; the transmission system of the right arm also began to emit a piercing noise, with parts flying off with every swing of the sword.
But it didn't stop.
It wouldn't stop.
It couldn't stop.
"Damn it—protect the Commander—!!"
The two remaining mechs of the Third Knight ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ Order tried to intercept, but their defenses were easily cleaved open by that longsword.
One had its arms severed, while the other was sliced in half down the middle.
Eleanor was forced to face this monster alone once again.
Only half of her lance remained, and her mech's armor was in tatters.
But she still did not choose to run.
"What... exactly are you..."
Her voice was trembling, filled with indignation.
The Punishment Camp mech slowly turned toward her.
The red light in the monitor was like the fires of hell, locking onto her figure firmly.
And then—
It charged again.
Faster than any time before.
Eleanor parried with her lance.
But the power of that sword strike far exceeded her imagination.
"Crack—!"
The lance snapped.
Not just the lance. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
Her mech's right arm—from below the elbow—was severed by that pitch-black longsword along with the lance.
Metal fragments flew and sparks showered. "—!!"
Eleanor retreated in terror, but the longsword was already raised again.
This strike was aimed straight for her cockpit.
It's over...
She even closed her eyes.
...
Then, a miracle happened. The longsword stopped less than half a meter from her cockpit.
Eleanor snapped her eyes open to see the Punishment Camp mech frozen in a sword-swinging posture, motionless, as if it had been fixed in place by something.
--【Warning: host is on the verge of death】--
--【Estimated Remaining Survival Time: 57 seconds】--
--【Detected decrease in host's consciousness intensity, rejection reaction weakened!】--
--【Emergency Protocol Activated!】--
--【Forced takeover of mech control permissions in progress...】--
--【Takeover Complete】--
--【Executing Priority Directive: Retreat!!】--
...
Inside the cockpit, Pavel felt her consciousness being pulled by something.
She wanted to struggle, she wanted to resist, but her body would no longer obey her commands.
Her vision began to blur, and the sounds in her ears began to distort.
"No... it's not over yet..."
She used the last of her strength to grip the control stick.
"I can still... kill..."
--【Executing Mech Command: Forced Sedation】--
A cold surge of electricity spread from her spine throughout her body.
Pavel's hand slid down powerlessly.
Her vision went black, and her consciousness finally sank into a boundless darkness.
The last thing she saw was her battered mech, under some kind of control, suddenly turning and breaking through the encirclement of the remaining Victoriana forces in a near-rampage.
The sound of metal clashing against metal, the fire of explosions, the screams of terror...
Everything was receding.
Everything was blurring.
And then.
Silence.
...
--【"History of Continental Warfare: Frontline Records" Volume 7, Chapter 3, "Night of Kaldburg"】--
Year 403 of the Victorian Empire Era, the second day of the frost moon.
The Victorian Seventh Knight Order, together with the vanguard of the Third Knight Order, launched a lightning strike operation codenamed "Spear of Dawn" against Kaldburg, a major border town of the Usar Union.
The battle was originally intended to break through city defenses and control the fortress within twenty minutes, clearing the way for the subsequent advance of the main forces.
However, things did not go as planned.
According to post-war survivor accounts, a Punishment Camp mech of unknown origin intervened in the battle about fifteen minutes after the operation began. The identity of the pilot remains a mystery; it is only known that they piloted a severely damaged "Thug" class light mech, wielded a black longsword, and single-handedly engaged the joint forces of two Victorian Knight Orders at the Usar Union's Third Logistics Supply Station.
This battle lasted one hour and seven minutes.
The vanguard of the Seventh Knight Order was nearly annihilated, and the acting commander, Eleanor von Schwartz, was seriously wounded, retreating from the battlefield with only two heavily injured knights. None of the six mechs from the Third Knight Order's vanguard survived.
A total of eleven Victorian Royal Knight mechs were destroyed or heavily damaged.
The rhythm of the Empire's meticulously planned blitzkrieg was thus completely disrupted. The breakthrough operation, which should have been completed within twenty minutes, was delayed by half an hour. These ten minutes became the turning point of the entire campaign.
The Usar Union's reserve forces gained precious reaction time. Alarms rang out across the entire border line. Reinforcements poured into Kaldburg from all directions. Victoriana's tactical advantage vanished.
The situation evolved from a "lightning strike" into a "war of attrition."
For the next three days, the Kaldburg war zone fell into a stalemate. Both sides deployed over twenty thousand troops in this tiny area, with mech losses exceeding three hundred. Ultimately, Victoriana had to pay three times the original planned cost to barely manage a conquest.
After the war, the Victorian Military Department conducted a severe internal investigation. The Seventh Knight Order's designation was revoked, and its remnants were merged into the Third Knight Order.
Although acting commander Eleanor von Schwartz was spared punishment due to her outstanding military achievements, she was stripped of her post and transferred to the rear for recuperation.
As for that mysterious Punishment Camp mech, after completing that unbelievable massacre, it vanished into the night.
No one knew where it came from. No one knew where it went.
The only certainty was that from that night on, the legend of the "Ghost of Kaldburg" began to circulate quietly among both camps.
Imperial soldiers spoke of it with great secrecy, regarding it as an ill omen on the battlefield.
While the soldiers of the Usar Union privately called it—
"Dawnbreaker."
Because it was that mech of unknown origin that had personally smashed Victoriana's meticulously woven "Spear of Dawn" to pieces.
