11

Cheers drift in from afar, but here—like a pocket cut out from the world—it’s utterly still.

The abnomule near us must know our fight won’t end soon.

My gear: one sword, a knee spike. His machine: only a sword on the right arm. Honestly, no real edge either way in terms of weapons.

So the difference must be that enhancement magic. If I’m to believe what he says, it’s been pushed hard. How far can I keep up with full manual control? Nah. Worrying about details like that’s pointless now.

All that matters is knocking this one down.

“Alright, let’s go.”

The Forzhe unit lunges forward, rushing in. Faster than beast mode—feels like it’s got more snap to it.

Gotta pick up the pace on this attack or we’re gonna get overrun.

I match the Forzhe unit’s charge, sprinting forward, closing the distance in one breath and swinging the blade.

Two blades meet head-on. But no pushing—nothing like that.

The Forzhe unit instantly pivots left, circling in.

That’s the obvious play. But if you see it coming, you can handle it.

Step in, adjust to its motion, leap out in front of it. Then—right at close range—deliver a knee strike.

The Forzhe unit flows sideways, rolls through the hit, and barely avoids it. Already back on its feet, it thrusts the sword forward.

I deflect the blade upward—exposed midsection—kick again…!?

I twisted the machine sideways just as I was about to kick.

Right after, the sword tip sliced through where the cockpit had been.

“Tch.”

The Forzeh machine had picked up a sword lying nearby, probably during the collapse.

The aftermath of the fierce fight still littered the area with weapons from the Abnomyle. That’s what it had grabbed.

Now that the Forzeh machine fought with two blades, I readied my own sword.

Even the playing field first. Aim for one arm. Any opening—just a second—and I’ll cut it clean off.

We charged at each other again, blades clashing.

I parried and dodged, blade spinning, eyes darting for any opening.

I’ve fought with Forzé more times than I can count—no real tells, nothing stand out. In a way, he sticks to the basics, almost like he’s playing it straight. But then again, he doesn’t play it straight at all.

Originals that mimic the basics—those are the moves of Forze.

So figuring out his quirks is tricky.

But it’s not impossible.

Right, left, right—then a feint to the left, and the foot.

Cutting through the attacks, moving across the battlefield—

Stop and you’re instantly swallowed by white smoke. Can’t see a thing now—this is deadly.

I slipped through the Abnomyle crowd watching, blades clashing.

Folz seems to have lost all interest in anyone but me. Doesn’t even glance toward Abnomyle when we pass each other.

Then that’s fine. Less damage is always better.

Third time we’ve clashed. This time, I go on the offensive.

I time it right—step in, swing the blade.

“There! That’s it!”

“Huh!”

Folzeh catches the swing with his sword, then tries to stab me with the other.

I backpedal instantly, dodging that thrust. Step forward again, aim for the cockpit.

The blade’s blocked, but not in time—just grazes the corner of my chest armor. Would’ve been fully deflected before. So this is what Folzeh meant by wear and tear.

“Not done yet!”

He shouts it, throws the sword aside, and grabs my head with both hands.

“It’s not over yet!”

A sharp *crack*—fingers digging into my helmet. The display flickers dark. I switch cameras on the instant.

Then, still gripping the sword, I wrap an arm around his torso and twist him sideways.

“Enough already! You end here!”

“Not yet! I’ve still got more light to see!”

The descending sword was just barely blocked—deflected by his blade, missing my head by inches. Then the other one came at me.

I twisted the frame sideways, dodged, but not quite in time—pierced clean through my left shoulder. But this is my chance.

I dumped the machine, wrapped the sword around me, and rolled hard to the side.

The Forze unit couldn’t hold on to the blade—it let go.

I got the machine back on its feet, then purged my left shoulder.

“Now we’re even—just one sword each.”

“Hah… nostalgic, isn’t it? This scene.”

“Maybe.”

One arm. His chest armor’s torn open, cockpit wide open. Both heads destroyed. Only swords left.

This is how it ended the first time I climbed into Armunale—and the first time I ever fought.

“Back then, we called it a draw right here.”

“But today? No stopping until one of us is dead!”

We lunged at the same time, swords aimed straight for the pilot seat.

Mine pierced the upper right of the chest. His blade went straight through the waist.

A siren wailed. A warning flashed on the screen—fuel leak. Must’ve severed the generator feed when I lost my balance.

But it doesn’t matter.

The war’s already over. All that’s left is killing the one in front of me.

I yank the sword free, thrust again. A clean path to the cockpit—except Foretze’s arm blocks it.

I tear through his left arm, but the blade hits the chest armor and stops.

And Foretze’s sword comes in—close now.

There’s no way to dodge it all. The sword’s stuck in my arm—can’t pull it out right away.

Then—foot!

Time it just right, kick up with my knee.

The spike on my knee hits the blade, shifts its path just a little. But Foretze saw it coming.

The sword’s weak—easy to correct mid-swing.

The blade slams into my shoulder.

Sparks fly. Most of the monitor’s shattered. Only four still flicker, all cracked.

“Didn’t reach, did you?”

“Can’t hit me that easy.”

As soon as I yank the sword free, I kick my leg forward.

“Gh—!”

He staggers back hard, the impact driving into his chest. The force snaps my blade free, too.

“Hah—aaah!”

“Y-you—!”

No tactics. No strategy. Just moving the machine, swinging the sword—eyes locked on the enemy right in front of me.

Cutting, kicking, sometimes slamming into, pushing down, getting punched, getting kicked—

From the outside, it didn’t look like a battle at all—nothing like Armunale’s usual style. Dirty, messy, real.

But every fight like that—eventually, it ends.

“Guh…”

The strength drained from the Foltze machine in an instant.

For a single instant, the cracked monitor showed Forze’s face—twisted in pain.

But he quickly recovered, cutting through me with a sharp twist.

Hah… hah… hah…

Mmm, ah... still... still!

We’re both on the verge of collapsing before the machines even do.

Tiredness is already past its peak. I’ve taken the shock like a rain shower—my whole body must be covered in bruises.

I don’t know when I bit my lip—blood was dripping from the corner of my mouth.

Swallowing the faint iron taste inside my mouth, I press down hard on the pedals.

“This ends it—!”

Two blades cross, piercing each other’s cockpits.

◇

“Reporting. All Imperial soldiers on the battlefield have surrendered. With headquarters secured, we’ve fully taken control of the unit. Imperial forces have already disarmed and are being held in several towns under surveillance.”

“Understood. What about the Empire’s movements?”

“They’re in a frenzy. Seems they’re still verifying the battlefield situation in response to our surrender offer. But since we’ve already begun advancing into the towns, acceptance of surrender is likely just around the corner.”

“Got it. Keep gathering intelligence.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The clash in the buffer zone ended with Fatal Kingdom’s victory.

But right away, the next fight began. Ines had disarmed the imperial soldiers, kept a watchful eye on a few key spots, and then pushed forward with the remaining troops toward the imperial towns.

Not that she burned them down like the empire had done. Instead, she sent word to each town—victory for Fatal Kingdom in the buffer zone—and ordered them to open their gates and be freed.

Of course, the border towns knew the empire had pulled whatever forces it could into the buffer zone. And the fact that the Abnomyle unit had reached their gates? No need to confirm it. That was enough to make the Overd side realize they’d lost.

So, without much resistance, most towns just opened their doors and let Fatal in.

Right now, Ines is holding command at the forward fortress in the buffer zone, waiting for word from the detachments scattered across the region, watching how the Empire moves.

“Lady Ines, what do you think the Empire will do?”

It was Maurice who came asking.

“Either we go into a truce, or they keep fighting until the capital falls. Honestly, fifty-fifty. But… I’d say peace feels a little more likely.”

“Breaking the Eight Generals was a big win.”

“Mm-hmm. Our knights did well.”

The loss of the first seat among the Eight Generals—enough to shake the Empire’s morale, that was.

Only a fool or someone with absolute arrogance would want to face someone who’d taken down the man who’d once held the title of Empire’s strongest.

“What about Eld’s squad? How’s he holding up?”

Still asleep, he is. Nothing too serious with the injuries, and he’s got his life intact, so I’m relieved, at least.

That’s good. Either way, his machine’s pretty much totaled. It’ll take ages to fix. Can’t expect him on the front lines anytime soon. Best thing is to let him rest easy here.

Which is just code for telling Ines—Eld’s charge—to get back to the capital already.

Ines gets the hint, so she just nods and lets it slide.

For now, we’ve just got to wait. Other forces are scrambling to get back on their feet, but yeah… we’re all worn thin.

The clash in the buffer zone ended with both sides left battered and spent.

The Empire took a thirty percent hit. The Kingdom lost close to twenty percent of its units.

The damage from Abnomyle’s destruction was so great that, in terms of actual deaths, the war’s scale left surprisingly few lives lost. Still, as someone who had to think about the nation’s economy, Ines couldn’t exactly cheer the victory.

She thought about squeezing every last coin of reparations from the Empire, then stood up.

“Going to see Eld.”

“Guard?”

“No need. We’re inside the fortress. Ange’s already with him.”

“Understood. I’ll get the damage report wrapped up quickly.”

“Thanks.”

Handing things off to Maurice, Ines moved through the fortress.

The fortress had taken damage in the earlier battle—stairs partially destroyed—but repairs were already underway, and a makeshift set of steps now stood in place.

She descended using those, and arrived at the infirmary room set aside for Eld.

“Ange, you in there?”

“Yes.”

A knock, and Ange’s face appears right away. She ushers Ines inside without delay, offering a chair.

“Thanks.”

“I’ll get tea.”

“No, just stay here with Eld a bit longer.”

“Thank you.”

Their eyes settle on Eld—still lying in bed, motionless.

No obvious wounds. No fancy medical gear strapped to him. Just an IV line running from his arm.

“How’s he doing?”

“Still no sign of waking up. But the nutrients from the drip seem to be working fine—the color’s come back to his face. The doctor said he might open his eyes in just a few days if he keeps going like this.”

"Yeah, that’s good. I’d love to get you to a proper doctor in the capital as soon as possible, but sorry—I can’t leave this place right now."

"No, it’s understandable. Right after the battle, things are still… delicate."

It had only been five days since the fighting in the buffer zone.

Ines, as overall commander, couldn’t afford to step away from the fortress.

And so Eld’s guard unit stays behind too—though Eld himself still hasn’t woken, and his machine’s beyond repair. Orell and the others are working flat out to fix it, but right now, just getting the generator to hum is a miracle.

Honestly? I’m useless.

The frustration of being unable to do anything—it twists in my chest. I clench my fist.

"Never realized how bitter it feels to be completely helpless… not since ages ago."

I’ve felt helpless plenty of times before. Before Eld became my guard, I was turned down every time I wanted to do something—just because I was young, just because I was a girl. After Eld joined me, after I got my sword, I could do so much more. But now I’m feeling it again—the truth of it. It wasn’t because I was any stronger. It was because Eld was good. That’s all.

Then Ange’s warm hand closed around my fist.

“You, Lady Ines. What you can do… I can’t. Not Eld, not anyone else on the squad. That’s why we depend on you. That’s why we want to protect you. So don’t rush. You’ll be needed—when the time comes, it’ll come.”

“…Yeah. I guess I was getting so nervous, I couldn’t see straight. Thank you, Ange. It’s because of you all that I made it this far. Right? Then it’s my turn now. My turn to move—for you.”

Then, right away. There’s something I want you to look into.”

‘Eld!?’

The sudden voice made both of them start, turning their gazes toward the source.

Eld had just barely cracked open his eyes, staring at the ceiling.

“Eld! You’re really okay!”

Ange threw herself at him, tears streaming down her face, overcome with relief. Eld wrapped one arm around her, gently stroking her back.

“Sorry… I worried you.”

“Seriously, you’re really here!”

“What is it you want me to look into, Eld?”

“N37,11,58 E19,36,20.”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t know. I think N and E mean latitude and longitude, but I can’t tell what place it’s pointing to.”

“So we just look it up. What’s there?”

“Rayla says it’s the final key to ending the war.”

“The final key?”

“Mm-hm.”

Neither Eld nor Ines had any idea what that meant, of course.

Maybe it’s just another lie left behind by Rayla. But Rayla didn’t strike me as the kind to leave something like that behind.

“I’ve got it. I’ll contact headquarters and have them dig into it as fast as they can.”

“Please… I’m sorry…”

“Eld, you’re still recovering. Take it easy.”

“That’s right. You’ve been in bed for five whole days.”

“Huh. Then I’ll rest a little longer, if you don’t mind.”

Eld slowly closed his eyes, his breathing softening into sleep.

Ange watched him with a quiet smile. Ines slipped out of the room without a sound.

Next time.

After a long rest, Eld finally stirred awake—only to be met with the true enemy of humankind: a mountain of paperwork.

While Eld faced that foe, the world itself began to shift, as the defeat of Overd sent ripples through the realm.

And so, the long war’s nearly over. I was just letting out a little sigh of relief, wrapping up the rival battle in this year’s final update.

Now we’re diving into the final arc, handling post-war cleanup along the way. Plan is to wrap it all up in six or seven more chapters.

Thanks for sticking with me to the very end.

And a quick plug.

As shown on the banner, the third volume of the Armunale book series comes out January twenty-fifth.

This last volume will be a happy ending—no more war, please—so I’d really appreciate your support.

I’m thinking about wrapping up the web novel version at the same time as the book launch… if I can pull it off, that is.