Chapter 290
Vwoooooooom――――.
Dark red current was emitted from the Chrome Monster’s body in the form of Plasma.
The quantum engine of the Exoskeleton frame providing power to the beam cannon shook as if it would explode at any moment from overload, emitting an ominous glow.
Bzzzt!
The full-body prosthetic couldn’t hold out and popped and exploded, pouring surging arc current in all directions.
Iron Dog Invincible Maximus was helplessly pushed back by the hundreds of thousands of unpredictable electromagnetic waves spreading, and Ms. Kali spat out curses as she dodged this way and that.
“Fucking hell! What is this! What the hell is that thing!”
[What am I, you ask?]
There was no idle chatter fitting for a named boss like the common cliché, “You are the first to push me this far. I commend you.”
The Chrome Monster spoke dryly, as if it were a matter of course.
[Your deaths.]
The cyberarms, which were surprisingly massive but ultimately just two arms like those of an ordinary human, disassembled from top to bottom becoming four vicious weapon arms like a Hindu statue.
On the first arm was a saw blade vibrating at ultra-high speed, on the second arm was a wristblade lined with a carpet of ultra-high temperature heat rays, on the Third Arm was an overclocked, humming Photon Cannon, and on the fourth arm was a plasma diffusion device fused with a cutter and a rifle.
This was the final form of the Chrome Monster Rodrick Grant Smith. It was the start of phase 2.
“Isn’t that thing on the level of a weapon of war? Why is something that belongs in a Corporation War rolling around here!”
Ms. Kali shrieked. It wasn’t like I knew the reason either.
“That thing won’t last long anyway! Anyone can see he’s forcing it while shaving away his machine’s lifespan!”
To begin with, having four arms wasn’t a normal structure.
No matter how many extraordinary modifications one received, a human brain was fundamentally not designed to handle four arms (a total of six limbs).
Furthermore, they weren’t ordinary arms, but cyberarms practically plastered with different high-output high-technology weapons. In terms of operation difficulty, it was top-tier.
Fighting while maintaining control over all those body parts of an overclocked prosthetic would put a massive strain on the brain.
Since I myself was using cyberware that recklessly pushed my brain’s capacity, I had a grasp of what that situation must be like. It probably felt like his brain was turning to mush and melting down in real time.
No matter how much of a Chrome Monster he was, he absolutely couldn’t maintain that mutually destructive form for long.
It wasn’t a simple prediction, but knowledge originating from the original work.
The Chrome Monster in its phase 2 state did not have specs that could be beaten in a head-on clash through normal methods.
The standard strategy was to drag out the time as much as possible and hold out until that Chrome Head popped like popcorn.
“Yeah? Then how long do you think that’ll last?”
“…About 5 minutes.”
“Fuc-k, that’s fuc-king long!”
That was the problem. If we could follow the standard strategy, we would.
The player character of the original work could do that because their weight classes matched up to some extent. But what about this clumsy three-person party right now?
Even without the use of extrasensory perception, the future was clear to see.
No matter how much we shot from afar, he wouldn’t budge in his current state. Kali and Maximus would be very easily trampled by the Chrome Monster running wild like a runaway locomotive.
It might seem like a short time at first glance, but 5 minutes were enough.
It was enough time for the Chrome Monster to realize the words he had spoken and to kill us all.
“Don’t worry. You remember the plan, right? It won’t even take 5 minutes. It’ll be over soon.”
I said, staring at the Chrome Monster spewing blood-red electric light as if he had become a beast of the apocalypse.
It looked so intense that just looking at it would damage my eyes, but I could do it. I had to do it.
“You’re sure you can do it, right?”
“Yes. Just buy time and hold him down so he can’t move. We don’t even need 5 minutes, just 10 seconds.”
“That’s easy for you to say!”
Ms. Kali grumbled and flew off on her wire.
The only answer was a swift victory.
My combat endurance was far more lacking than even the Chrome Monster’s.
I might have gotten too excited trying out the new rifle.
Even though I had conserved it as much as possible, the familiar side effects came over me from the excessive use of the microchip.
Blood flowed from my nose, and a burning headache felt like being stabbed with an awl. The System Assistant also sent a voice of warning.
At most, one last time was the extent to which I could use the microchip.
So I would end it with that one time. My intention was to finish it as soon as phase 2 began.
Gripping the leather case in my hand, I walked into the pit.
The Chrome Monster leisurely waited until we gathered in one place. He might have thought that doing so would be much more convenient to sweep us away all at once.
A suffocating standoff of three against one seemed to continue, but at some point, everyone moved at the same time as if it had been planned.
The Chrome Monster’s speed was on a different level from before. The entire pit seemed to be covered in rainbow-colored afterimages, and at some point, he was bringing the saw blade down from above my head.
Of all times, it was a situation where I wasn’t even utilizing my extrasensory perception to reduce the burden on the microchip.
Screeeeeech―――!
At the critical moment, the reason Iron Dog Invincible Maximus was able to block that attack in my stead was not that he could catch up to Rodrick Smith’s speed.
It was because I had relayed the prior information through Ms. Kali that the Monster would target me first, so he jumped in front of me as soon as the fight began.
It was obvious. The Monster’s behavioral psychology was far too easy to read.
Since I, the ranged attacker who had been acting annoyingly by shooting from afar, had voluntarily become prey and approached this closely, he must have thought it was a stroke of luck and tried to kill me first.
But this was a reaction I had induced.
Using myself as bait, I would control the movements of the Monster I couldn’t catch up to, and prepare a strategy suited for it.
The real fight starts now.
Craaaack.
It was merely one of his four arms.
However, even though Iron Dog Invincible Maximus was crushed beneath the bottom of the left arm equipped with the saw blade and sank deep into the floor, he did not let go of the cyberarm he had grabbed. The difference in strength was far too clear, but he absolutely did not give in.
The Chrome Monster flashed his scarlet lenses full of murderous intent.
[Come to think of it, I said I would tear off a pair of your arms. Are you charging in like that to fulfill the promise that I would rip off the remaining one as well?]
Clank.
The saw blade stopped spinning and retracted, and instead, a grip covered in an exoskeleton popped out and tightly grabbed Maximus’s Metal Arm.
Just from that tremendous grip strength, the surface crumpled as if it would break, and sparks flew precariously.
[If that is your wish, I shall grant it!]
The burning blade of the upper arm fell like a bombardment, piercing between Iron Dog Invincible’s shoulder and arm.
Soon after, when the Chrome Monster twisted the wristblade and forcefully stirred it in one go, the last remaining steel arm, which was like the symbol of Iron Dog Invincible, was helplessly torn off with its wires stripped bare.
“…!”
This was a situation even I hadn’t anticipated.
To think Iron Dog Invincible would be defeated so powerlessly. If this happens, we can’t buy enough time.
Did I miss something? Did I overestimate Maximus, or underestimate Rodrick Smith? Or - .
I was flustered, but the party involved, Iron Dog Invincible, showed no signs of surprise at all. His eyes were calm, as if he knew this would happen.
Even if it was a steel prosthetic arm, it wasn’t without sensation. Even more so if it was a combat prosthetic.
It was because the nerves had to be connected in order to handle it as skillfully as one’s own arm.
However, Iron Dog Invincible Maximus didn’t let out a single groan, as if he felt no pain.
He had intentionally blocked his pain receptors, which meant that even losing his arm was part of his plan.
Swoosh-thud.
The steel arm that flew up while broken grabbed one of the Chrome Monster’s multiple shoulder joints in midair. A blue light flickered in the eyes of Iron Dog Invincible as he stepped back.
He was remotely controlling the torn-off arm with his neural interface!
The Chrome Monster belatedly noticed the signs and tried to detach the steel arm, but it was too late.
The master-less grip was holding on so strongly that it didn’t easily fall off even with the Chrome Monster’s strength.
The steel arm let out a threatening beep-beep-beep signal, and then went up in an explosion just like that.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!!
My body was pushed back by the Shockwave, and flames bloomed like clouds before dying down. Tinnitus rang in my ears.
Although not as severely affected as the Monster, Iron Dog Invincible Maximus, who had been close to the origin of the explosion, had already fainted long ago.
An ordinary lifeform could never survive that explosion.
If the enemy hadn’t been the Chrome Monster Rodrick Smith, I would have unconditionally assumed he was dead.
Yes, that meant he wasn’t dead yet.
Drip, drip.
The titanium alloy turned into liquid and flowed before sticking. One arm was completely blown away, and the other arm was in a jagged, hideous shape, half-melted.
The Chrome Monster Rodrick Smith crawled up from the crater in a truly monster-like appearance, making it obvious why he had been given such a nickname.
At this point, I was truly sick and tired of it.