Chapter 37: The Impossible Made Possible

〘Enhancement Process Initiated.〙

〘Target: Octoria〙

〘Current Constitution: D-Rank〙

〘Target Constitution: SSR-Rank〙

〘Required Enhancement Points: 1,000,000〙

〘Remaining Enhancement Points: 999,999,999,999...〙

Suddenly, Octoria noticed a strange sensation originating from her Core.

A warm feeling began flowing throughout her entire body.

First through her Core.

Then her meridians.

Her bones.

Her nerves.

It felt as though everything inside her was expanding, condensing, and hardening all at once.

Soon, everyone around her began to notice a golden glow emanating from her body.

Murmurs began spreading among the assembled Iron Angels.

"What’s happening to Vice Commander Octoria?"

"Is that... Chi?"

"Her aura is changing."

"Wait..."

"Could the Young Master actually be curing her?"

Seraphina was equally surprised by the sight.

She stared at Octoria with wide eyes.

What exactly am I witnessing...?

The golden glow surrounding Octoria continued to intensify.

Then—

It suddenly began to fade.

The brilliant radiance gradually disappeared until nothing remained.

Arthur stepped back.

〘SYSTEM NOTIFICATION〙

〘Enhancement Complete.〙

〘Congratulations, Player.〙

〘You have successfully upgraded your Iron Angel, Octoria’s Constitution, to SSR Grade!〙

Arthur’s eyes flickered.

Another notification immediately appeared.

〘ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED!〙

〘Congratulations, Player!〙

〘You have obtained the Achievement Title: Speedrunner II〙

〘You are the first player to successfully upgrade an Iron Angel to SSR Grade.〙

〘Achievement Reward Granted.〙

〘Item Acquired: Holy Butterfly Hairpin〙

〘Type: Accessory〙

〘Rank: Tactical〙

〘Effect: Increases the overall attributes of an Iron Angel by 10%.〙

Arthur glanced at the item information.

"...Nice."

He nodded appreciatively.

"Nice, nice..."

A faint grin appeared on his face.

I already unlocked the second level of the achievement title.

His eyes gleamed.

If I enhance the entire fleet...

His grin widened.

...Won’t I be able to max out the title and obtain a skill?

Hehehe...

I’m getting excited just thinking about it.

Despite his excitement, Arthur’s expression remained perfectly composed.

He turned his attention back toward Octoria.

"Vice Commander."

He calmly asked,

"How are you feeling?"

Octoria didn’t immediately respond.

She was panting heavily.

Sweat trickled down the side of her face as she placed a trembling hand against her abdomen.

"...The pressure..."

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"The pressure I was constantly holding back in my Core..."

She slowly clenched her other hand.

"...It’s gone."

Octoria stared at her arms.

She opened her hands.

Then clenched them again.

Her eyes widened slightly.

There was something different.

Something fundamentally different.

Her body felt lighter.

Stronger.

More stable.

She slowly rose to her feet.

The surrounding Iron Angels immediately became restless.

"Vice Commander!"

"Are you alright?"

"Don’t force yourself!"

"Your Chi—"

"Wait!"

"Something’s happening!"

Octoria suddenly stood completely still.

Then—

BOOM!

A massive golden aura exploded from her body.

A powerful gust of wind erupted in every direction, forcing the surrounding Iron Angels to brace themselves.

Several soldiers instinctively raised their arms to shield their faces.

Seraphina immediately stepped in front of Arthur.

"Young Master!"

Her hand moved toward her weapon.

"Get behind me!"

Arthur calmly placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax."

"But—"

"It’s fine."

Arthur continued staring at Octoria.

The golden aura surrounding her continued to surge.

Then, behind her—

Two pairs of enormous golden wings suddenly materialized.

They unfolded majestically from her back, extending beyond the edges of her military uniform.

The entire hall fell silent.

Hundreds of Iron Angels stared at their former commander in stunned disbelief.

Octoria slowly raised her head.

For the first time in decades...

There was no pain in her eyes.

Only astonishment.

The golden aura surrounding Octoria suddenly began to subside.

The overwhelming pressure gradually disappeared.

The four golden wings behind her slowly dissolved into countless shimmering particles before vanishing completely.

Silence returned to the hall.

Octoria stood motionless.

She stared at her own hands.

Then—

A laugh escaped her lips.

"Haha..."

Her shoulders trembled.

"Hahahaha!"

The laughter grew louder.

It wasn’t madness.

It wasn’t hysteria.

It was pure relief.

After decades of pain, uncertainty, and knowing that her life would eventually end with someone putting her down...

She was finally free.

Octoria suddenly dropped to one knee.

She removed her military cap and pressed it against her chest.

Even the strange bulging flesh was gone.

Her purple eyes were filled with an emotion that Arthur had never seen from her before.

"Commander Arthur..."

Her voice trembled slightly.

"I must say..."

She took a deep breath.

"I thank you from the very bottom of my heart."

"Words cannot even begin to express the depth of my gratitude."

She lowered her head.

"Please know that from this day forward..."

"My body..."

"And my sword..."

"Are yours to command as you see fit."

"I shall no longer doubt you."

"I swear it."

Arthur smiled.

At the same moment...

〘SYSTEM NOTIFICATION〙

〘Loyalty of Vice Commander Octoria has increased to 100%.〙

〘Vice Commander Octoria has become absolutely loyal to you.〙

Arthur’s eyebrows rose slightly.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Rise, Vice Commander."

Octoria immediately stood.

"Yes, Commander."

The Iron Angels surrounding them remained completely frozen.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody moved.

They simply stared at Octoria.

Then—

"Did... did we just witness that?"

"Her Chi pressure..."

"It disappeared."

"Completely."

"That’s impossible."

"I’ve served alongside Vice Commander Octoria for thirty years. She’s never looked this stable."

"Look at her!"

"She’s not suppressing her aura."

"She’s actually controlling it!"

Another Iron Angel stared at Octoria’s back.

"The wings..."

"Did you see them?"

"Four perfect golden wings... They used to have holes in them."

"That’s never happened before."

"Was that caused by the Young Master’s treatment?"

"There’s no way..."

"But what else could it be?"

A younger Iron Angel swallowed nervously.

"Does this mean..."

She glanced toward Arthur.

"...he actually told the truth?"

"We were all supposed to die somehow one day."

Her eyes slowly became wet.

"But if the Young Master can really cure us..."

She looked toward Arthur.

"...then maybe..."

A faint smile appeared on her face.

"Maybe we will live full lives like he promised."

The murmurs rapidly spread through the formation.

"So he’s really capable of doing it."

"Then our defects..."

"Our cultivation..."

"Our transformations..."

"Could he really fix all of them?"

The atmosphere within the hall had completely changed.

The doubt that had filled the Iron Angels only moments ago...

Was slowly disappearing.

〘SYSTEM NOTIFICATION〙

〘Fleet Loyalty has increased to 100%.〙

〘All fleet personnel have become absolutely loyal to Fleet Commander Arthur Von Ashbourne.〙

Arthur glanced across the hundreds of Iron Angels standing before him.

Every single one of them was staring at him.

There was no longer any distrust in their eyes.

No hesitation.

No doubt.

Only absolute loyalty.

Arthur stepped forward once more.

His gaze swept across the assembled Iron Angels.

"Now..."

He raised his right hand.

"My Iron Angels."

His voice echoed throughout the massive hall.

"Are you all ready..."

"...to be cured?"

For a brief moment, the entire hall was silent.

Then—

Every single Iron Angel simultaneously straightened.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized.

They slammed their fists against their chests.

"YES, COMMANDER!"

The thunderous response shook the entire hall.

Arthur’s smile widened.

"Good."

...System, upgrade the Constitution of every remaining Iron Angel in this fleet to SSR Grade.

The System immediately responded.

〘Notice: Player, that is a substantial request. It will require a very massive amount of—〙

...Proceed.

〘...〙

For a brief moment, there was silence.

Then—

〘Processing.〙

Arthur’s eyes gleamed.

...Let’s see just how far I can push this fleet.