Chapter 614: Holding Hands and Playing Nice Together (With Exceptions)

One variant of the Type-Men series: the Tactical Mech Cone "Pyramid-Men".

Unlike the vanguard-type "Cube-Men" or the mobile skirmisher-type "Ball-Men", a Pyramid-Men is a tactical unit designed strictly for rear-guard fire support. Yet, this particular unit completely disregarded its intended role, swinging its primary long-range Solid Mana Railgun like a baseball bat to sweep the legs of a Cube-Men running right beside it.

Because the Cube-Men's role is to maintain the frontline and push forward, they are equipped with powerful boosters, but they still rely purely on their two legs to stay upright. In other words, when its legs were violently swept out from under it during high-speed maneuvering, the blocky-framed Cube-Men tumbled spectacularly, rolling across the ground like a carelessly tossed die.

『Number 4 secured. Next.』

Stomping heavily onto the back booster of the downed Cube-Men bearing the Number 4 jersey, the Pyramid-Men sporting the red Number 1 jersey readied its Solid Mana Railgun.

With less than a single second of hesitation—utilizing a manual lock-on so fast it looked like godspeed to anyone watching—the fired projectile slammed straight into the side of the Ball-Men hugging the innermost lane of the lead pack as it tried to round the curve. The spherical unit was blown completely off course by the impact, crashing violently into two other units attempting to overtake it from the outside.

『They haven't ceased functioning. Numbers 5, 6, and 9 secured. Next.』

Ripping a wire-type Taser Rifle right out of the hands of the twitching, convulsing Cube-Men beneath it, the Pyramid-Men casually aimed it with one hand and fired.

With a sharp *hyunn*, the wire shot across the circuit, immediately reversing trajectory to latch onto the Number 4 Ball-Men that had just gotten back up and was charging straight at the Pyramid-Men.

『Ah, crap!?』

『Feints are too monotonous. Number 4 secured. Next.』

『Stuuuun, gwaaaah!』

With a rapid series of *click-click-click* sounds, the Ball-Men absorbed three consecutive charges of electricity loaded into the Taser Rifle, smoking profusely as it collapsed to its knees.

『H-Huh? It hasn't completely ceased functioning.』

『...Because today is the day we secure a Perfect Trifecta.』

『Hah...? Ah, seriously, there was a loophole like that!!?』

『You can copy me if you want... If you can, that is. Number 2 secured. Next.』

The red Number 1 jersey, commonly known as Red One... An active manned jockey player who had racked up so many victories and kills they were granted priority to choose their own number and color. The chaotic rampage of this player, who was constantly subjected to a whirlwind of mixed emotions from the audience, seemed like just another typical scene... but something was fundamentally different today.

The spectators finally realized what was happening when the Pyramid-Men—having beaten every single one of the other eight units into a state of total immobilization just shy of complete functional cessation—proceeded to physically kick the Number 3 Pyramid-Men straight across the finish line.

"Hold on... is that even allowed!?"

"Wait, wait, wait! I took out a loan to bet on Red One destroying all eight units!?"

"Are you telling me such blatant rank manipulation is actually allowed!?"

『Did I ever expressly state that it wasn't?』

""""Isanaaaaaaaa!!!!""""

『It seems we have quite a few individuals who have just gone bankrupt, so I will begin processing the paperwork right now!』

First place, Number 3.

Second place, Number 1.

And then, answering the audience's collective unspoken question of "Why did she grab that thing in the first place?", the Pyramid-Men used the long-range wire gun to string together Numbers 5, 7, 8, 6, 2, 9, and 4 in that exact order, trudging forward with heavy, thudding steps...

『...So if you crank the output of the Type-Men units, they can drag seven units at once... I wonder if Suzaku and the others can do the same? Or maybe they actually sacrificed maximum output in favor of multifunctionality?』

*ZUGON!!!!*

The Number 1 Ball-Men rebooted and attempted to overtake the Pyramid-Men—who was supposed to finish in second place—only to take a brutal backhand straight to the face, sending it tumbling back to the ground once more... And without any further hitches, the final unit, Number 4, was dragged across the finish line, successfully concluding the race.

◆

"Debt! Com-plete-ly! Paid off!!!"

"Hah-hah! And we're filthy rich to boot!!"

"...Sunraku, who are they?"

"A deadbeat and a lolicon."

Welcoming Rust, who had earned her complete freedom in a single match, we presented our Perfect Trifecta tickets... No, our passes to the Fourth Shell Layer directly to "Isana".

"How about that?"

『Yes, I have no choice but to acknowledge it... I will now upgrade everyone's Amberjack Pass to Level 3 and initiate the transfer to the Fourth Shell Layer.』

Our Amberjack Passes have finally reached Level 3, so... oh nice, we finally unlocked fast travel! I highly doubt I'll ever visit the First Layer again, but being able to warp back to the Third Shell Layer from anywhere is actually a massive plus... It's the most well-equipped area in terms of resting and saving, after all.

"Man, you guys really saved my skin! 'Isana's' attitude was getting colder by the day, it was so obvious my bankruptcy was just a matter of time!!"

"Don't waste the second chance you just picked up. Try living as an honest person from now on."

"...I should be the one doing the bragging here."

Eh, is the bankrupt person really the one saying that?

Well, whatever, there shouldn't be any gambling elements in the next layer anyway... Let's go, onto the Fourth Shell Layer, "Machine Hut"!!

......

............

..................

""""Byawaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!""""

The absolute second the scenery of the Fourth Layer entered their vision, Rust and Yashirobird completely broke. Yeah, I guess asking these two to act like normal humans was setting the difficulty way too high...

『Welcome to the Fourth Shell Layer, "Machine Hut." This is the birthplace of Divine Age military power... That's right, this right here is the true might of the Divine Age!!』

"Guns! Guns! Firearms! Gewehr!! Oh, this is good, this is the best!! Are you anti-personnel? Ahh! And that alluring figure of yours must be anti-materiel!! Oi, oi, oi, are you seducing me right now!? To think... to think I'd see...!! Is this heaven!!!"

"The perfectly uniform rows born purely from mass production possess an order and 'beauty' that can never be replicated by one-off models. And every single one of them is waiting with bated breath for the day they step into the limelight as the main character. I must use them, I must put them to use!!"

.........

"Survival, could you go beat those two into submission for me? You're pretty good at punching people, right?"

"Intervening with those types of people is always a pain in the ass. You completely knew that when you asked, didn't you?"

I don't want to deal with it either. Even a completely starved wild beast would show a little more restraint than this.

"'Isana', what's the condition to clear this Shell Layer?"

『Fufufu... I won't tell you.』

"What?"

『In this layer, everyone must find the answer themselves! Yes, because the hints to find it are entirely contained within this very Shell Layer!!』

"I see... So we finally reached the puzzle-solving phase."

If that's the case, it can't be helped. The two broken idiots have already sprinted off into the distance anyway... Turning toward the remaining three—Rei-shi, Survival, and Mold—I issued my instructions as the nominal leader.

"Do your best using your own judgment. Dismissed."

"Even someone throwing a German Suplex takes a little more responsibility than that."

"I'm not that well-versed in pro wrestling."

Alright, the Fourth Shell Layer... Which way should we go, and how do we clear it? Our rapid-assault conquest has finally reached its climax.

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Author's Afterword

By the way, Rust's Pyramid-Men was a purely barbaric assembly where 80% of its capacity was dedicated solely to output enhancement, with all necessary armaments being procured strictly on-site. Seeing a rear-support type aggressively pushing the front lines and obliterating everyone with a sniper rifle, I wonder what Isana must be thinking...

『Well, I suppose I shall raise her evaluation by one tier.』