Chrome Shelled Regios

by Shūsuke Amagi

  The people of Zuellni would become food. Nina's hand trembled.

  Was it fear? But, if so......

  Without understanding, Layfon continued to speak.

  "So please head for the shelter......"

  "Stop it!"

  Her reaction hit him on the face.

  "You're telling me to evacuate!? You're telling me to run away!? Do you think I could do that!?"

  He looked at her, lost. The light of Kei enveloped her, a symbol of her fighting spirit. He held his breath at the Kei that was more intense and beautiful than the Kei she had exhibited during the platoon match.

  She was too naive.

  "What is our power for? What is the purpose of this power within us!? Isn't it for times like this!? Not for fights between people, but for our survival! Do you think we are allowed to run away at a time like this!? Stop joking!"

  He knew why she was trembling. It wasn't fear, but the drumming of the heart waving away that fear. Her honest and determined heart had overcome her horror. This was the drumming eliminating her fear.

  And that was why it was so bright.

  Layfon squinted at that brightness.

  He never thought a person's Kei could be this bright. He knew of someone whose Kei light was more intense than Nina's, and someone whose Kei was fiercer. But he knew of no one whose Kei was the same as Nina's right here, exuding this level of light.

  "......You really are despicable," she said in a low voice, suppressing her violent emotion. "You have great power. Why don't you use it for something useful?"

  Her eyelids lowered.

  "I don't know the terror of having nothing to eat. I don't get it, so I can't fully understand your standpoint with money. But even so, there must be something else that's worth pursuing, right? You don't need to use dirty means that taint your strength and station. From your viewpoint, it isn't wrong to purely chase after money. But for someone strong like you, shouldn't you be able to do something greater than what I can do? Won't you be able to save many things? If the comrades you want to save are proud of you, then aren't you also saving their hearts?"

  Her words stabbed him like a knife.

  The eyes of his comrades at the orphanage when he became a Heaven's Blade Receiver.

  Their eyes when he lost his right to the title of "Heaven's Blade."

  Their sudden change in attitude convinced Layfon that no one understood him.

  He had been betrayed.

  But could they have been the ones who felt they had been betrayed?

  "I'm going."

  "Wait."

  (Even if you go, you......)

  He swallowed the other half of his words.

  (You can't possibly win.)

  He was dizzied by Nina's Kei, but this Kei was just a symbol of her inner heart. A strong heart was no indication of increasing strength.

  So what would happen if he said that?

  "If we don't fight now, when do we fight?"

  The words she left behind indicated her determination to fight. Besides, what if he stopped her? It was natural for Military Artists to fight against filth monsters – it was their mission, given to them from heaven – the duty of those given Kei and psychokinesis. All of them would think like that.

  If they don't fight, who would?

  If it was me......

  Layfon was no longer a Military Artist. Even though he possessed Kei, he was no longer duty-bound as he had given up the standpoint of a Military Artist.

  He didn't want to fight for the sake of others.

  He made many wrong decisions in Grendan. The attitude of the people around him was a great shock to him.

  "Who's fighting for others......"

  Having chased after Nina, he was now back on the surface. He strolled towards the dormitory, listening to the sirens and the commotion of people evacuating.

  "I don't have a goal anymore to fight for" he repeated again and again, as if chanting a spell.

  The dormitory was empty. Of course, everyone had evacuated. The silence made him uneasy. He knew he had come to a place that he shouldn't have, but he had no idea where else he could go. He headed straight for his room.

  Layfon changed into his Military Arts uniform. The fact that the weapon hanging from his harness calmed his heart mocked him. But since he didn't go to a shelter, he let himself keep it for self-defense. Even if it wasn't for others, he had to fight for his own life.

  The weight of the Dite had wiped clean his uneasy feeling, but this only made him feel restless about what he was doing. The dormitory was empty, and he was in here, doing nothing.

  The strange feeling that he wasn't on the field fighting filth monsters.

  "Fighting them has become a habit," he said, mocking his own wound. Back in Grendan, he could make extra money by killing filth monsters, so he was always at the front, standing alone upon the battlefield. For some reason, there were always lots of filth monsters in Grendan's way. The number of fights that Grendan had had, could not be compared to other cities.

  And that could be why Grendan was called the birthplace of Military Arts.

  But this didn't matter anymore.

  "I don't want to fight for others anymore......"

  Then he noticed something behind the door.

  "!"

  He picked it up, not knowing what it was.

  "A letter......"

  It was an envelope that was bigger than the size of his palm. Its crumpled corners were proof of its long journey. On its back was an address of Grendan and a nostalgic name.

  "Leerin......"

  The dorm security must have stuffed the letter through the crack of the door. It must have arrived while Layfon was at the school.

  He let go of the unimportant speculation and cautiously opened the letter.

  His eyes widened at the first line, which completely shattered his lie.

  Don't lie!

  I'm very angry. Layfon, why are you lying? Oh, and this is my reply to your second letter. Your first letter was somehow sent to me together with the second letter. Don't blame me. I wasn't lazy in replying. But please, at least remember my address.

  Anyway, I'm angry. It's impossible for you to become good friends with people so quickly, and live a normal academy life like ordinary people. Please don't underestimate me.

  "So mean......" He sat back on the floor. Her evaluation of his terrible social skill...So that was how he appeared in her eyes......

  He continued reading in spite of that setback. Leerin had been the closest to him in the orphanage and she was one of the few who still talked to him after what had happened. He couldn't ignore her words.

  As he read, a feeling stirred inside him. The stirring intensified, striking him hard from the inside. He couldn't sit still anymore. He read as he stood up, unable to suppress the urge inside him.

  As he finished reading, he shoved the door aside and rushed through the corridor.

  He ran. He ran heedlessly and recklessly.

  As he ran, he stuffed the letter into his pocket, reflecting on its contents.

  I understand your desire to forget your past in Grendan. If it was me, even I'd want to run away and forget everyone's cold gazes.

  But you don't really want to forget everything, do you? You're still sending letters to Grendan, to stay in contact with me. If you truly wanted to seal off your past in the depths of your mind, then I should also be forgotten.

  I always watched you train, watched you grow strong. Back then, I never thought 'that person doesn't want to train in the Military Arts.' That stance of yours when you were waving your longsword with the whole of your heart, training in the dojo, was dazzling to me.

  I also want it; the thing that can propel me forward with all my strength.

  Layfon, you're the hero of the orphans in Grendan. Everyone finds you dazzling, and that isn't a lie. You, who knelt before the Queen, felt so distant, even for me. It was a lonely feeling, but it gave us hope, that we could also make something ourse
lves. We grew up under the same circumstances. If you could give off such heat, then we could also be successful.

  It was all because of you that I chose to study instead of work.

  I want to study management. The Head of the orphanage has also changed his thinking because of you. He regrets that you became like that because of him. He said he'll pay more attention and be wiser when spending money.

  Our father is so useless. But whether it's the past or the present, he's caring for us in his own way. If it wasn't for him, you and I wouldn't have met.

  And you've changed him.

  I've decided to help father. I want to study management and build an orphanage not plagued by money issues.

  I want to protect our orphanage, just like father.

  It'd be good if Layfon could protect the orphanage, when we live together in Grendan once again. Do I sound stupid? Like returning to the past but with some advancement. Can't we change ourselves like this and go back to what it was like before?

  I pray for the day when you once again step on the soil of Grendan.

  To my dear Layfon Wolfstein Alseif.

  Leerin Marfes.

  The sound of heavy movement pierced the atmosphere, as if the entire world was twisting into another form.

  A number of Zuellni's legs were stuck in the ground. The metallic sound of the joints of Zuellni's legs struggling to move filled the air.

  And the other noise was......

  Gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha, gacha......

  The sound, like water oozing forth, came from under the earth, twisting the world more intensely than the metallic lamentation. The lamentation of Zuellni.

  Something climbed up from the ground along with the noise. On the ground that Zuellni stood, they came one after another......

  Dots of red light lit up the deep night.

  One, two, three, four......One after another, red lights climbed out of the hole in the ground. Soon, Zuellni was drowning in a sea of red light.

  The warning light underneath Zuellni lit up, proof that the Military Arts Students had equipped themselves. Strong light tore through the darkness to illuminate a fraction of the red lights gathering on the ground.

  It had a shell that was as scarlet as the earth. Encircled by the polished shell, a single compound eye on it's head flashed with red light. The *Gacha* sound came from the friction between its moving body and its shell.

  This was the larva of a filth monster.

  Driven by their instinct to eat, all the larvae turned their eyes to the light shooting down from above.

  Where the food was.

  The earth cried out. It was their mother's voice.

  Hurry and eat. What can keep you alive is over there.

  Eat.

  Slaughter.

  Drink.

  And become strong, strong, strong......

  The larvae stirred. They didn't even yet know how to move their bodies, but they obeyed their mother and tried. Irritation grew from their unfamiliarity with their bodies, but, driven by their appetite, they bore it and learned, moving as their mother's voice directed them to.

  The shell above the body split in two.

  And beneath it was something half-transparent; it was filled with something that looked like crumpled paper. As the larvae shook, the crumpled paper that was wet with moisture pushed and spread out to become wings.

  And, a new noise dominated the scene.

  Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..................

  The sound of fast-beating wings floated into the air, and the larvae lifted off from the ground.

  Hundreds of larvae floated in the air and headed straight for their food – Zuellni.

  Nina watched this scene from the edge of the city, facing the northwest.

  The disturbing sound echoed through every fiber of her being. Then groups of larvae appeared, as if a floodgate had been opened.

  The shocking numbers of larvae made her hold her breath. Their numbers overwhelmingly exceeded the number of Military Arts students she led. Each of the seventeen platoons assigned to different sectors must be witnessing the same scene......

  (Are there more filth monster's than people in Zuellni?)

  She swallowed the despair flashing through her. This wasn't the time to despair. If she, the commander, revealed that feeling, how could the platoons under her continue fighting?

  The sea of red and black swept towards Nina's position, the noise of beating wings loud enough to shatter her eardrums.

  "Artillery, commence firing!" she shouted into her transmitter.

  The artillerymen, led by Sharnid, fed their Kei into the cannons on the outskirts of the city.

  They fired.

  The condensed Kei hit the larvae's front-lines and detonated. Red sparks exploded everywhere. Shells shattered and small legs fell, scattered onto the ground.

  The surviving larvae landed, folded their wings and stored them underneath their shells.

  "They can't fly for extended periods. Sharnid, target those that fly. Don't let any reach the city."

  "Roger. I can't die here. I still have a date tomorrow."

  Usually, she would have been irritated by his joke, but this time his laughter made her smile. She relaxed, and Restored the two Dites she took out from her harness. The Kei flowing through the iron whips with their safety locks released looked more vivid and clearer than usual.

  Out of the 17th platoon, only Nina and Sharnid were here. Layfon was useless, and Felli had not heeded the call of the Student President. Nina heard that the psychokinesist had not been spotted at the shelter.

  Then where was she......?

  There wasn't time to ponder this question.

  Before Nina were numerous larvae.

  The larva's head, which looked tiny compared to its body. Below the flashing red compound eye, a small orifice opened to extend a jaw, in which four sharp teeth were stirring.

  "How could we be eaten by these things! Attack!"

  Nina bellowed and rushed towards the larvae.

  Harley's eyes widened.

  "Why are you here?"

  Not far from the front-line at the city's edge was a temporary tent. Students from Medicine and Alchemy waited inside it.

  The sound of the larvae could be heard here.

  The medical students checked their medicine with stiff faces. The alchemy students also had the same expression as they prepared the Dites.

  The machine Harley had been using to release the safety locks on the Dites was now cooling down, and standing before him was Layfon, who appeared to be breathless from running.

  "Great, you're here......" Layfon relaxed his breathing and removed the Dite from his harness.

  "Huh? Is the safety lock still on?"

  "Yes, but I have to ask another favor......"

  Harley quickly set to unlocking it. "A favor?"

  "Can you make two settings?"

  "Two?"

  He widened his eyes.

  "Yes, two."

  Harley looked back and forth between the Dite and the machine. The Dites with the safety locks were the same type as the machine that made the setting, so he could adjust the settings here too. Because if that couldn't be done, students whose Dites were damaged wouldn't be able to fight. Many spare Dites had been prepared here, and many more were coming in.

  "Can you do it?"

  "Yes. It's not difficult to adjust the settings, but......Can you use it?"

  It was natural to have doubts. He had never heard of a Dite having two settings. It wasn't impossible on a technical level, but it was h
arder for the wielder.

  One had to use a keyword and his Kei to Restore a Dite. The Dite would Restore into its adjusted form according to the wielder's voice and his Kei. The quality of a Dite could be adjusted to suit anyone's Kei. As long as a setting remained the same, only the Dite's original owner could use it.

  The problem was the Dite's adaptation to Kei. To make two settings meant there had to be two keywords.

  But a person couldn't make two types of Kei. The attributes of Kei differed from person to person. It wasn't impossible, but it was rare for a person to have two types of Kei flow.

  "Can you use two different Kei?"

  "No, but that won't be a problem. All you need to do is enter the exact value of the Kei output."

  "And that's the hard part."

  "I can do it. Please make the setting."

  "But there's no time to make adjustments. And if you really want to, you can use two Dites......"

  That was reasonable enough a suggestion, but Layfon shook his head. "I want to experience it the way I did in the past. Please."

  Harley sighed. He inserted the terminal into the Dite. A number came up on the display.

  "What's the setting I have to enter?"

  Layfon told him the number and Harley entered it on the keyboard.

  His fingers stopped.

  "Uh?"

  The detailed number caused him to widen his eyes for the third time.

  "Can you really do this?"

  "Yes," Layfon answered without hesitation.

  Harley cautiously entered the detailed number once again, so accurate that it made him dizzy.

  "And do you know where Loss-senpai is?"

  "What? The Student President?"

  "No, our senpai."

  "Aah......Isn't she with Nina?"

  "No. Well, I'm not sure, but I don't think she's there."

  Felli wouldn't be there. She hates being used.

  (Where is she? This won't work well without her help.)

  Perhaps she was somewhere nearby. He looked around but couldn't see her.

  While he was doing that, Harley finished the adjustments.

  "......Will we survive?" Harley said as he handed over the Dite. He looked at the floor, patting his gear.