Tech Hero in Another World
Chapter 60: [59] Play Again

Chapter 60: [59] Play Again

On the western side of the fortress, the sun had reached its peak as the dust and smoke of battle began to settle. Ren stood on cracked, scorched earth, his body surrounded by static sparks from armor that was nearing its performance limit. In front of him, Veskar lay collapsed—his body tattered, barely recognizable as the creature that had dominated the skies just moments ago.

"Uurgh..." Veskar groaned softly, his voice no longer a fearsome roar, but more like the wheeze of a beast trampled by time.

Ren controlled his breathing. His chest rose and fell beneath his armor, the sensors in his helmet pinging faintly, warning of critically low power reserves. "Haah... Haaah... He’s still moving," he muttered, eyes locked on Veskar’s writhing form that refused to die.

『Master... foreign energy signature still active. Target’s energy fluctuations have not decreased,』 Ultro’s flat voice echoed in Ren’s helmet like a cold slap of logic.

Ren clenched his fist. "Damn it... We’ve come this far. If he doesn’t come to his senses soon, everything could be for nothing."

『I don’t understand, Master. Why are you letting this organism live?』 Ultro sounded hesitant—for the first time since it had been reactivated.

Ren didn’t answer immediately. He stood still, watching Veskar’s bloodied, yet not-yet-destroyed body. "I don’t know why... I just have a feeling I shouldn’t kill him," he finally said.

『A feeling? Master... that is not procedural. That’s not... your usual behavior.』

Ren lowered his head slightly. Dust from the battlefield swirled in the wind, wrapping them both in the shadow of a war not yet finished. "I know... But this time, I want to trust something I can’t calculate."

For a moment, only the sound of the wind could be heard. Soldiers from both sides held their breath from a distance, watching the two figures—like gods and demons who had just brought each other to their knees. No one dared approach, for to challenge the man in armor who could shatter the sky was to challenge death itself.

Time moved on, the sun shifted shadows across the ruined land. The once-green fields had become a field of wounds. And in the midst of that tension—Veskar’s body began to tremble.

Suddenly, from his chest, a bright red light flared. The magic symbol that marked him as a slave detonated with wild energy—like a ticking bomb finally reaching zero.

『Master! Energy surge detected—almost double the previous level!』

Ren only managed to take a single step back.

"...Ah, shit," he muttered just before a shockwave burst outward like a magical tsunami, shaking the entire western battlefield once more. The explosion didn’t just rattle the ground—it darkened the sky, as if the battle that had just ended had been reignited by fury not yet extinguished.

Though the enslavement magic embedded in Veskar’s body accelerated his recovery, Ren had no intention of giving him the time to fully rise. A decision had to be made quickly—and Ren chose to strike before the window vanished. With all his projectile ammunition depleted, his only remaining option was close combat.

With sharp eyes behind his helmet, Ren activated his final weapon: a high-pressure plasma blade that ignited with a bluish-orange glow. The energy within it trembled like a sun condensed into a single blade of steel.

Without hesitation, he launched forward, slicing through the air, his momentum kicking up swarms of insects beneath him. But just as the blade was about to land, Veskar—unexpectedly—raised his hand and caught the sword directly. The creature’s palm glowed red, absorbing the blade’s heat and edge like it was nothing.

"—What...?" Ren muttered in disbelief, his strength halting instantly.

With a brutal shove, Veskar swung his arm, landing a solid punch to Ren’s helmet. The sound of metal crashing echoed through the sky, and Ren’s body was thrown back—struck by raw force too overwhelming for speed alone to counter.

"Ow..." he grunted, the sound slipping through his helmet’s comms—more a reflex than anything, even surprising himself.

He spiraled out of control for several meters, his stabilizers kicking in automatically to hold his position in the air. Warning signals flashed across his HUD, while the system displayed damage to his orientation sensors and a drastic drop in right arm strength.

"Ultro... Report," Ren asked through gritted teeth.

『Orientation sensors sustaining moderate damage. Right arm has lost 42% responsive strength due to internal actuator failure. Main coolant system still operational, but system overload expected within 3 minutes if combat continues without pause.』

Ultro’s voice remained calm, almost detached, but beneath that surface, the system was screaming on the brink of collapse. Data flooded Ren’s helmet like a storm of red numbers—warning after warning.

Ren gritted his teeth. Even with labored breaths and his body held aloft by artificial gravity, his mind remained sharp. He couldn’t lose here—not now. Down below, the war still raged, the Elven forces still holding on, and Elaria was likely still fighting to protect the other side of the fortress.

"Do we still have enough energy left for accel mode?" he asked, shifting some weight to his left arm.

『Accel maneuver is still feasible for one cycle, Master. However...』

There was a pause, as if Ultro hesitated. 『...system shutdown risk increases to 78% post-execution.』

Ren let out a short breath. "Haah... You know numbers like that never stopped me before."

He rolled his shoulder, forcing the damaged internal mechanics in his right arm to re-sync, even as the screech of grinding metal rang in his ears. Ahead, Veskar still stood. His body was badly damaged, his chitin armor cracked in multiple places, but in his eyes—though dulled—there was still a driving force, one that didn’t feel entirely like his own will.

"I know you’re still in there, Veskar..." Ren spoke quietly, more to himself than to his opponent.

But the creature responded only with ragged breathing and a low growl that trembled through the air. He raised his spear once more, ready to strike again. Magic surged from the slave seal on his chest, glowing red like embers within embers.

Ren took one deep breath. Then he turned slightly, his stance angled at 45 degrees toward Veskar. "Ultro."

『Ready, Master.』

"Burst mode. Manual execution."

『Acknowledged. Accel mode... engaged.』

The low hum of the Ark Reactor in his chest began to rise. Blue light burst from his chest, racing through his back and legs, unleashing shockwaves that cracked the air around him. Sparks leapt from the joints of his armor as it compressed energy for one final, reckless move.

Time seemed to slow. Ren tightened his grip on the sword hilt, then leaned his body, his trajectory automatically plotted in his HUD.

"—HAAH!!"

Veskar also launched into the air instantly, twisting mid-flight to intercept Ren at blinding speed.

Two figures—one clad in blazing armor, the other a dark-winged mutant—shot skyward faster than human eyes could follow. The air around them split with consecutive sonic booms each time their bodies crossed paths in deadly arcs.

Bursts of light and shadow clashed above the battlefield, dancing in a spiral of shattered gravity and torn atmosphere. Ren shifted his center of mass, reading Veskar’s erratic yet lethal movements—one misstep, and that spear could punch clean through his rebuilt armor.

---

Inside the grand hall of the Alfheimr royal palace, the towering ceiling and white pillars seemed to bear the weight of a war raging just beyond the walls. Queen Beatice stood before a large stained-glass window, her gaze sharp, piercing the black smoke rising from the southern horizon.

"This isn’t right... I should be on the front lines right now," she said in a restrained voice, her fingers gripping the window frame. Her formal gown, embroidered with golden leaves, swayed softly, though it failed to mask the restlessness smoldering within her.

"Your Majesty, I’m sorry, but we cannot allow that," one of her military advisors said, bowing low. Beside him, the Minister of Defense nodded solemnly, his face tense.

"Why not!?" Beatice snapped, her voice rising—emotion bubbling beneath the composed façade of a queen.

"Because you’ve already sent Princess Elaria to the front," replied the Minister of Defense. His tone was calm but firm. "If something happens to you as well, we risk losing the two most critical figures holding the kingdom’s morale and stability together."

The queen went silent. Her eyes trembled as she watched the smoke continue to rise, carrying the silhouettes of soldiers fighting to their last breath.

"But... they’re dying out there, bleeding for this land, and I’m just standing here, doing nothing!" Her voice cracked, more of a cry from the heart than a royal command.

The advisor bowed even lower. "Your Majesty... a ruler doesn’t always fight with a sword. Sometimes, staying behind the front lines is the heaviest—but wisest—decision."

"We’re holding the line, not launching an all-out assault. Your presence in the palace is not a sign of weakness," the Defense Minister added, trying to ease the growing tension.

Queen Beatice clenched her fists, her eyes now reflecting the fire burning in the distance. Beneath her regal elegance, fury and helplessness quietly eroded her patience.

But for now—she had to hold back. For Elaria. For her people.

The tension in the room hadn’t yet lifted when hurried footsteps echoed down the palace’s main corridor. The sound of boots pounding against marble shattered the heavy silence in the elven command chamber.

The door burst open, followed by two figures who rushed inside. A pale-faced maid bowed deeply, breath short and uneven, while a soldier in full battle gear wiped sweat from his brow.

"Beatice-sama!" the maid cried, her voice shaking but raised loud and clear, as if knowing every word she carried was a matter of life or death.

"Report, Commander!" said the soldier, striking his chest in salute. His eyes stared straight ahead, though the look in them made it clear: whatever news he brought, it wasn’t good.

Though their entrance broke all protocol, in a moment like this, no one in the room dared object. Queen Beatice turned quickly, her gaze sharp as it fell upon the two who stood stiffly in the doorway.

"You two... what is it?" Her voice was calm, but the weight behind it made them both swallow hard.

They glanced at each other, silently deciding who would speak first. The soldier gave a small nod, signaling the maid to go ahead.

"Beatice-sama," the young woman said hesitantly, eyes downcast. "The Hornet Princess’ cocoon... has opened."

Beatice’s eyes widened, her body freezing. "What!?" she gasped. "Then... where is she now!?"

"I... don’t know," the maid stammered, clearly battling guilt. "I went to clean her chamber, but she was already gone."

The shock of that news seemed to shake the room more than any battlefield explosion. Beatice exhaled sharply, pressing her fingers to her temple as if to stifle the headache now pounding behind her eyes.

The Minister of Defense turned to the soldier, who still stood at attention. His glare was as sharp as a blade. "And you? What do you have to report?"

"Ah, yes!" The soldier straightened immediately. "I bring news... we’ve received reinforcements!"

"Reinforcements?" the minister frowned, his expression shifting to cautious interest. "From whom?"

But before the soldier could respond, a strange, layered hum echoed from the distance—a sound like a soft thunderstorm rolling in.

Beatice heard it first and rushed to the tall window in the command chamber. Her cloak flared as she moved, flinging the curtain aside, eyes scanning the skies outside the palace.

In the bright morning sky, hundreds of hornet-like forms split the clouds. Their bodies shimmered in the sunlight, armed with organic spears and protected by hardened, dark chitin. They flew forward, a formidable unit heading straight for the battlefront.

"...Hornets..." Beatice whispered, eyes wide in disbelief.

But it wasn’t just their numbers that stunned the room—it was something far greater: they had come... as allies.

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