A Serious Error in Chihaya-chan’s Reputation – Volume 2 – Chapter 16

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟔: 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫-𝐓𝐲𝐩𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐞

“. . . . . .Something, something’s coming!”

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Chihaya freezes in shock at the request that arrived on her smartphone.

A direct request from Unison Human-Machine Technology, and not one, but two non-combat requests have been issued at the same time.

Trembling and grinning, Chihaya writhes in joy on the bed.

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Thinking about it, Unison Human-Machine Technology always gives non-combat requests. Somehow, every time, she just ends up in combat.

Moreover, this time the danger is different from previous requests, as Hachigi Technology, which had been targeting Unison Human-Machine Technology, has withdrawn from the New World project.

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“Fu-he he, it’s a special customer, right? Let’s take care of it.”

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Chihaya distracts herself with happiness, fluttering her legs on the bed, and looks at the contents of the direct request.

One is to lend an Actanoid from the Sprinter series called Warabe, and to check the usability of time-bomb explosives containing underwater explosives 『Water Bomb』 and an underwater scooter 『Dolphin』.

The other is a request from Citro Science Group to participate in a marine and seabed survey of the 『Light Mirror Sea』.

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Creating new connections with companies while testing new equipment. What a delightful request.

Moreover, it’s the New World sea. Since it’s not contaminated, she expects to see a beautiful view.

Chihaya accepts the offer with a quick reply and gets out of bed.

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“I should practice. . . . . .”

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It’s scary to operate an unfamiliar mech in a live scenario, especially if it’s in the sea, where the difficulty level jumps. If she has to use bombs in a situation where she can’t move freely, she should get used to the controls without involving her mech.

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Descending the stairs to the underground Actor room, Chihaya looks up information on Warabe on her smartphone.

Previously, one of the participants in a request to retrieve destroyed or isolated mech had used Warabe.

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Classified as a Sprinter series by Unison Human-Machine Technology, it’s a small mech just one meter tall. Its small size allows it to hide in bushes, and, being a Sprinter series, it’s equipped with AI that automatically avoids obstacles.

The Sprinter series is lightweight to achieve speed, but often can’t withstand the recoil of firearms like machine guns.

The Warabe seems to have solved this problem by making the mech itself small, making it overall thicker to handle large recoil weapons. Think of it as distributing its height into muscle weight.

To balance lightweight with firepower, it’s specially structured to kill recoil, with a payload of only thirty kilograms. Guns and bullets nearly fill the weight.

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“It’s a mech that’s not useful for gathering requests.”

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On the other hand, it has advantages such as hiding in rock crevices or taking stealthy snipes. It can’t collect the game it shot by itself, so it needs a partner even for hunting.

It’s a mech that the solitary Chihaya can’t handle.

However, it can be fully utilized for requests such as scenic photography or surveys. It’s small enough to explore caves too.

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Since there was an unused Warabe rental unit available, Chihaya pays the rental fee and connects to the mech.

The moment Warabe’s view was shared on the monitor, Chihaya was confident that starting practice was the right decision.

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“Low. . . . . .”

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The low line of sight due to the short stature of the machine. It’s hard to see because it’s nearly half the height of her usual All-Rounder.

Looking up at the All-Rounder next to her, Chihaya is intimidated by its overwhelming presence. It seems to oppress everything, bearing down on her.

She leaves the rental mech warehouse, intending to give it a light run, and steps on the pressure-sensitive mattress.

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“――What?!”

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As one would expect from a Sprinter-type that has low air resistance, its acceleration is unparalleled compared to an All-Rounder. It easily marks eighty kilometers per hour, and you can tell it still has more to give.

The official specs claim a top speed of two hundred kilometers per hour, but places where you can achieve such speed are limited. No matter how well it can automatically avoid obstacles, it’s dubious whether it can handle sudden situations when considering lag.

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Being of short stature, its leg movements are frantic. With a small stride, it has to put its feet on the ground many times, which makes it seem scary as if it’s going to step into a trap like caltrop grass.

Naturally, the arms are short, too. Often there were times it came up empty when trying to grab something with the same sensation as an All-Rounder.

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“The habit is strong. . . . . .”

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You must think of it as entirely separate from an All-Rounder, or it’ll be an accident waiting to happen.

Although it has quirks in its control feel, compared to an All-Rounder, it can perform all movements more agilely.

The Sprinter-type’s main purpose is reconnaissance scouting, so it has to move nimbly to handle wild animals. Also, it’s designed to function even when the radio environment is somewhat poor.

When she checked the standard armament, there were large-caliber handguns 『Rock Driller』, shotguns 『One Line』, and oddly enough, dust grenades.

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“I’ve never seen this. What is this?”

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Picking up a dust grenade, she searched for it on the net.

It seems to be a grenade that scatters particles that can also serve as a smoke screen. It appears to be used when escaping from animals.

However, other uses were mentioned on the net.

When used on Actanoids, it seems to stick to the air-cooled filter, contaminating it, clogging the eyes, and preventing cooling.

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“Like cinayakafun?”

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It was a rather vicious tool.

Although effective against All-Rounders, Bands, and other mechs that are vulnerable to overheating, it has little effect on those like the Lannoid series with dust measures or those converted to water-cooled systems.

Since it is an environmentally friendly degradable particle, it seems you can use it as you like.

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Additionally, the Warabe is equipped with dust-proof water-cooled specifications, so you can scatter these dust grenades at will and unilaterally attack air-cooled Actanoids.

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“It’s interesting, but shouldn’t we not fight in the first place?”

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Imagining the Warabe’s top speed, Chihaya tilted her head.