Chapter 29: A New Bond

Arthur soared through the air, laughter escaping his lips as the Type-Vanguard effortlessly cut through the sky.

"This is fucking incredible!"

〘Pilot, you have yet to inspect the weapon systems and armament deployment capabilities.〙 ℯ

Arthur paused in midair.

The golden energy wings behind the Type-Vanguard continued to burn brightly as he gazed down at the sprawling cityscape below.

His gaze eventually settled on the enormous mansion that belonged to House Ashbourne, as well as the massive hangar situated nearby.

"Oh?"

Arthur’s interest was immediately piqued.

"What weapons and armaments are you sporting, Agis?"

Agis responded without hesitation.

〘The Type-Vanguard is equipped with a High-Purity Slim Golden Photon Blade.〙

〘It is also equipped with a secondary High-Purity Anti-Carrier Crash Railgun.〙

Arthur’s eyes widened slightly.

"Those are stored where?"

〘Both weapons are currently stored within Digital Space.〙

As soon as Agis finished speaking, several purple holographic interfaces materialized before Arthur.

Images of the two weapons appeared alongside their respective specifications.

Arthur stared at them.

"...Damn."

Arthur carefully read through the weapon descriptions displayed on the holographic interfaces.

His eyebrows rose slightly.

"So, the heat generated by the Photon Blade can theoretically reach fifty-nine billion degrees Celsius."

...There it is. Sci-fi game values. I can’t even begin to imagine how hot that is... The devs should have gone a bit easy with this, but then again, this is a completely different universe, so it’s understandable.

He studied the information for another moment.

"That’s enough to approach the melting point of Type-Z Orichalcum."

His expression became slightly more serious.

"But that’s above the safety limits and risks damaging the sword. Worse... it could explode."

He glanced over the remaining specifications.

"So, it would be best to keep it at around thirty billion degrees during normal operation. Okay, I can live with that."

"It’s not like that many people in the Empire can even afford to build something made out of Type-Z Orichalcum in the first place."

Arthur shifted his attention toward the second weapon.

"The Railgun can perform similar feats, but it requires ten minutes to fully charge."

"However, it can fire repeated short bursts after only five seconds of charging, with each shot reaching around ten billion degrees."

Arthur shrugged.

"Not bad."

He paused.

"I won’t lie. I’m actually impressed."

Arthur’s eyes gleamed with anticipation.

"Deploy the Photon Blade."

〘Command acknowledged.〙

The Type-Vanguard extended its arm.

Its crimson eyes suddenly glowed brightly.

For a brief moment, the air directly in front of its outstretched hand seemed to pixelate.

Fragments of light and data flickered through the air.

Then...

The pixels rapidly converged.

An object began materializing.

Within seconds, a magnificent katana-like weapon fully formed in the Mecha’s hand.

The Photon Blade rested within an elegant black scabbard, its surface gleaming beneath the sunlight. It possessed an elegant golden carving of a curling dragon.

Arthur also noticed a small inscription written in gold on the scabbard.

Weapon made by Master Don Argus.

He couldn’t help but nod at the craftsmanship.

A grin slowly spread across his face.

"Hmmm! Now that’s more like it."

The Type-Vanguard’s second arm reached toward the scabbard.

Its massive mechanical fingers wrapped around the black and red sheath.

Arthur slowly drew the blade.

A faint hiss escaped from the scabbard.

Then...

A small burst of steam emerged.

Golden light began leaking from within.

The glow intensified with every inch of the blade that emerged.

Then, with a swift motion...

SHING!

The scabbard separated completely from the blade.

A magnificent golden blade of pure light emerged, accompanied by a soft, continuous buzzing sound.

Arthur’s eyes widened.

He flexed the Mecha’s fingers around the weapon’s hilt.

He could feel it.

The warmth of the core.

The soft yet firm texture of the cord wrapping around the hilt.

Even the subtle thickness of the black-and-red threads beneath his fingers.

Arthur’s expression slowly changed.

He could genuinely feel everything Agis touched.

It wasn’t simply a weapon in his hand.

It felt like his hand was holding it.

Arthur couldn’t resist.

He raised the Photon Blade.

Then swung.

WHOOSH!

The golden blade sliced effortlessly through the air.

Arthur’s eyes widened.

He swung again.

And again.

Each movement was incredibly smooth.

There was almost no resistance.

The massive Mecha moved exactly as he intended, while the Photon Blade followed the motion of his arm as naturally as a sword in his own hand.

Arthur performed a final sweeping slash before lowering the weapon.

"...God damn."

He stared at the glowing blade.

"This is ridiculously easy to use."

A grin slowly spread across his face.

"I love this thing. I have to try it out... I have to try it in combat now!"

...

Back in the hangar, Seraphina and Sir Sinclair couldn’t help but wonder how things were going for him up there.

Seraphina glanced toward the open hangar doors, a worried expression on her face.

"Sir Sinclair..."

She hesitated.

"Do you think he’s encountered any difficulties?"

She looked toward the sky again. Arthur was so high up, he might as well have been a single pixel on a 4K screen.

"And why hasn’t he come back down yet?"

Sinclair chuckled.

"Relax."

"The Young Master is having the time of his life. You shouldn’t rush him."

He folded his arms and gazed toward the distant sky.

Then, with a knowing smile, he added,

"As I like to say..."

"A mother is a man’s first love."

He paused dramatically.

"But his Mecha is his second."

Seraphina stared at him.

"...What kind of saying is that?"

Sinclair simply smiled.

Beside him, his blonde-haired assistant, Luzi, nodded enthusiastically.

Her eyes closed as a warm smile spread across her face.

"He’s absolutely right."

"Studies show that a person’s first time piloting a Mecha is often more pleasurable than their first sexual experience."

Seraphina’s expression slowly became awkward.

Luzi continued without the slightest hesitation.

"It’s also apparently much more addictive."

She nodded thoughtfully.

"It just hits different, you know?"

Seraphina stared at her in disbelief.

"I don’t know anything about that since I’m not an expert, but I’m not sure you should be discussing a matter concerning the Young Master in such a manner—"

"FUCKING JACKPOT!!!"

Seraphina suddenly turned her head toward the sky.

Her eyes widened.

The Type-Vanguard was rapidly descending toward the ground.

"Young Master!"

She immediately stepped forward.

"Young Master, you should slow down a bit to avoid damaging—"

CLANG!

The Type-Vanguard slammed into the ground on its feet, crouching slightly.

A massive gust of wind exploded outward, slicing through the hangar and forcing everyone nearby to shield themselves.

Dust and debris scattered across the ground.

Then, through the settling cloud...

The Type-Vanguard slowly straightened.

Its arms extended outward.

It stood in a magnificent T-pose.

Seraphina stared at it in stunned silence.

The Young Master had just landed without cushioning his fall.

She hurried toward him.

"Young Master, you shouldn’t make massive entrances like that!"

"You should have at least cushioned your fall. Otherwise—"

"SERAPHINA!"

"Yes!"

She immediately responded.

Arthur’s voice came from within the cockpit, amplified by Agis’s speakers.

"You."

A brief pause.

"Me."

Another pause.

"Spar. Now."