𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏: 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐮 𝐍𝐞𝐢
『Order Actor』 representative Mecha Guidance Commander, also known as Taka Otsuji, chuckles while carrying out suppressive fire against the Intensive Hunting Club she’s facing.
ㅤ
“Enemies relying on each other’s backs, united by a common goal, and fighting together. It’s truly beautiful, isn’t it? It brings tears to my eyes.”
“Because you’re thrilled about the increased number of targets to shoot at, right?”
“You caught on?”
ㅤ
As Taka Otsuji, recognized as Trigger Happy, she’s genuinely reveling in the moment.
However, she can’t be solely happy; she also assesses the battle situation.
ㅤ
The Intensive Hunting Club excels in guerrilla warfare and dispersed tactics. If they engage in a face-to-face gunfight after spotting each other, they can win a hundred out of a hundred times.
But the situation changes when they face the Kaien Squad and subsequently the real target, the Renegade Warrior, after confronting the Intensive Hunting Club.
ㅤ
“We’re on an expedition, so we’re running low on ammunition.”
ㅤ
While firing from the ridge of Spear Mountain, she checks the remaining ammunition.
Her beloved Trigger Happy boasts powerful dual-mounted heavy machine guns, which provide high firepower but deplete ammunition rapidly. Numerous magazines are stored beneath the skirt of the maid-style armor, and they are loaded sequentially from there.
ㅤ
Normally, in such a shooting scenario, the heavy rounder allies would charge ahead, followed by the fire suppression team and Trigger Happy, resulting in a brief skirmish.
However, the charging team is currently lacking in effectiveness.
Taka Otsuji has no choice but to take the lead in the charge and signals to her comrades.
ㅤ
Immediately, Taka Otsuji has Trigger Happy leap over the ridge and race down the slope, zigzagging with innate agility.
Though the zigzagging should be random, the Intensive Hunting Club’s sniping is precise, and the bullets often graze Trigger Happy’s armor. While she admires the enemy’s perversely skilled deviation shooting, considering the delay, he dislikes the gun they’re using.
ㅤ
“Don’t use a pea-shooter like Ninja=Sun that doesn’t even make a gun sound!”
ㅤ
Yelling, she suppresses the base of Spear Mountain with her dual-mounted heavy machine guns 『Todoroki』, toppling trees with overwhelming firepower and sliding at high speed to maneuver around.
The Intensive Hunting Club is nowhere to be seen. They appear to have retreated farther back.
ㅤ
“Commander, are you alright?”
“Just grazed a bit. Come on, everyone.”
“Understood. We’re the charging team, and yet, we made you go in first. Sorry about that.”
ㅤ
He says it humorously, but the charging team, descending the slope together, accurately hurls grenades using a self-made app, diverting the attention of the Intensive Hunting Club, allowing Trigger Happy to descend safely. They’re fulfilling their role effectively.
Still, if that person were here, the bullets wouldn’t have grazed, Taka Otsuji thinks sadly.
Evidently, one of the comrades shares the sentiment, whispering in the voice chat as they descend the ridge.
ㅤ
“It stings that our vice-commander, the head of the charging team, retired.”
ㅤ
As one of the comrades murmurs, the vice-commander leading the charging team, Shimitsu Nei, retired about two months ago.
It was a so-called retirement due to marriage. She’s likely on her honeymoon with her husband now.
Though the Order Actor team bid her a cheerful farewell, the words Shimitsu Nei left before departing the New World Development Zone marked the beginning of this incident.
ㅤ
Members of Order Actor are deeply engrossed in their hobbies, especially Shimitsu, who’s quite unique, making statements like “Out-of-control robots, they’re just so romantic.”
Shimitsu chuckled mysteriously and remarked:
ㅤ
『Please stop that one.』
ㅤ
The significance of these words became apparent when the Intensive Hunting Club announced their intention to subdue the Renegade Warrior, an Order-series Actanoid.
Taka Otsuji responded to her teammates with a wry smile:
ㅤ
“It might be a farewell offering, but it’s positioned on the opposite side of the battlefield, engaged with the Kaien Squad.”
ㅤ
That child left behind by Shimitsu Nei. Shimitsu’s hobby manifested in a parting gift, a rampaging robot – that is the 『Renegade Warrior』.
ㅤ
“But man, the deputy’s software development skills are astounding. An Actanoid that can autonomously combat Kaien Squad – analyzing it could shift the balance of power.”
ㅤ
However, Taka Otsuji considers it not so straightforward, recalling the deputy’s expression.
Shimitsu’s affinity for out-of-control robots leans more towards scenarios where 『the frenzy escalates or spreads』, rather than 『normalizing the program to convert it into an ally』. If the analyzed program is installed, it might run amok under specific conditions or might already be programmed to spread viruses, or it could be designed to never align as an ally.
Regardless of what lies ahead, leaving it as is would be too hazardous. It’s a perilous parting gift. The Masked Gardeners, rumored to be foreign agents, could seize it, replicate it, and scatter it across the New World.
ㅤ
As Taka Otsuji waits for her allies to assume their positions, she tilts her head, studying the arrangement of the Intensive Hunting Club as revealed by reconnaissance.
ㅤ
“But what’s perplexing is why the Intensive Hunting Club isn’t dispersing. It appears as though they’re safeguarding the rear of Kaien Squad.”
“They’re supposed to be adversaries, correct? They wouldn’t have formed an alliance, and if they intend to confront us directly, there must be a catalyst.”
ㅤ
A catalyst? The only plausible explanation he can think of is their intrusion.
Taka Otsuji summons the Lannoid team:
ㅤ
“Has anyone spotted what lies behind them?”
“The forest is dense, so it’s unclear. Drones are being taken down, making a cautious approach impossible. Our supplies are running low.”
ㅤ
Taka Otsuji recognizes the limitations of the expedition, noting something in the shared drone footage.
The Intensive Hunting Club adamantly refuses to withdraw past a certain boundary.
ㅤ
“Ah, it makes sense now. A fourth party has opted to observe and is either blocking or scrutinizing the Intensive Hunting Club’s retreat. Hopefully, it’s neither the Kakuhara Group nor the Masked Gardeners.”
ㅤ
Both the Kakuhara Group and the Masked Gardeners are nothing but detrimental to the Japanese.
A fellow teammate’s Order-series Actanoid 『Hameln』, who had dispatched a homemade mouse-like drone into the woods, reports:
ㅤ
“There’s no response to reconnaissance behind the Intensive Hunting Club. There’s something resembling a partially destroyed All-Rounder with its head blown off in the forest.”
ㅤ
An All-Rounder here?
Contemplating this unnatural occurrence, Taka Otsuji entertains a possibility and questions Hameln:
ㅤ
“. . . . . . A rental unit?”
“Oh, this is Bomber. It’s rigged with several wire traps for hand grenades.”
ㅤ
Someone quips, “There it is,” and the teammates burst into laughter.
ㅤ
“Is Bomber responsible for this predicament? That’s cunning. He’s strategically challenging the king with the fisherman’s advantage.”
“Perhaps, we might forfeit the Renegade Warrior.”
“If the commander hadn’t misplaced the memo left by the deputy, we wouldn’t be entangled in this situation.”
“I already apologized, didn’t I? Let it go.”
ㅤ
While engaging in light banter, Taka Otsuji scrutinizes the battle scenario, a scenario that he can no longer regard with optimism.
The most pressing issue is the arrangement of wires. Although it’s only one machine – the Bomber – who set up this formation, its placement is irksome, and they desire its swift removal.
There likely wasn’t much time to set these traps. The wire traps Bomber arranged in the woods are likely more of a bluff.
ㅤ
However, if even one real trap is mixed in, the nuisance is the possibility of losing one mech. For the Order Actor, whose Actanoids are all from the Order-series, losing even one would be undesirable.
Moreover, if it’s a trap set by Bomber, who created this battle situation, it wouldn’t be strange if numerous annoying traps exploiting psychology were set up.
ㅤ
Furthermore, if the Intensive Hunting Club, who excels in dispersal tactics, enters Bomber’s position where the wire trap is with damage taken into consideration and fights back, it will be hard to lay hands on them. They must apply pressure before they escape and carefully crush them.
Above all, Bomber’s objective is unclear.
ㅤ
“I hope he’s not planning to face the Renegade Warrior with an unmodified All-Rounder.”
ㅤ
He’s the type to attack by shooting through the neck with readiness for a great breakdown. There’s a dangerous possibility of having a one-on-one fight with the Renegade Warrior. If they’re careless, he might even capture the Renegade Warrior.
Especially if it’s a worn-out Renegade Warrior that has been fighting with groups like the Kaien Squad.
In that case, why not lure the Renegade Warrior before it’s worn out by Bomber and have a one-on-one fight, undermining Bomber’s expectations from the root?
Taka Otsuji grins and decides the direction of the strategy.
ㅤ
“Keep sending Bomber’s location information.”
“What will you do, commander?”
“First, drive away the Intensive Hunting Club with full firepower. The firepower mech will follow.”
Translator’s Blog
Blog
- 30-Year-Old Me Watching Skibidi Toilet TikTok: A Descent into Madness
- Did Uncle Steve RAID Your Snack Again?
- That Cringey Anime Obsessed Kid In Your Class: A Guide to Not Being That Guy (Or Gal)
- Loid Forger: The Ultimate Husbando?
- If I Got Isekai’ed 101: Your Guide to Surviving Another World (And Maybe Even Becoming a Harem Protagonist)
Leave a Reply