Ch.208208. War Hero

Ian arrived at the Celine Plains as part of the reinforcement troops. Thanks to being among the follow-up reinforcements, he was fortunate enough to hear about the first round of conflict between the imperial forces and the rebels.

Though they hadn’t suffered a major defeat that would affect the tide of war, word was that the preliminary skirmish had ended with the rebels having the upper hand.

The story that interested him most was about Gilbert, who was being hailed as the Empire’s next hero. Despite putting up a valiant fight worthy of his reputation, Gilbert ultimately faced defeat against the rebels’ secret weapon—a cutting-edge giant mech that had appeared unexpectedly—and was lost in battle, bringing the first round to a close.

Ian was surprised that such a monster of a pilot had been lost without being able to put up a fight, but his heart raced with a strange sense of anticipation and ambition at the realization that the stage for his own glory was now set.

If he could brilliantly defeat Prince Richard’s secret weapon—something even Gilbert couldn’t overcome—it would be an opportunity to immediately become a war hero and elevate his name throughout the Empire.

Of course, the fact that even Gilbert with his monstrous piloting skills couldn’t handle it was concerning. While Ian was often blinded by jealousy and ambition, he wasn’t a fool who couldn’t assess the battlefield situation.

Though Ian was generous with himself, he acknowledged that Gilbert was an unparalleled genius. And despite not wanting to admit it, he humbly accepted that he currently fell short compared to Gilbert.

This acceptance was only possible because he was confident that someday he would surpass him.

For this reason, Ian was wary of the advanced giant mech that had defeated Gilbert. To use this opportunity as a stepping stone, analyzing that mech was essential. Fortunately, he had Fresia, an extraordinary artificial spirit, so he didn’t think the analysis would be difficult.

Even now, he was conserving his conversations with her to analyze the given information, believing he could certainly achieve military merit in the next round.

Meanwhile, Fresia, the recipient of Ian’s expectations, was indeed analyzing Richard’s giant mech as he had anticipated. More precisely, she had begun the analysis out of shock that Gilbert, whom she respected, had been defeated.

She couldn’t help but be surprised by what she’d heard about the first round while traveling with Ian as part of the reinforcement troops. As far as she knew, the Infractus Empire possessed the most advanced giant mechs on the continent.

It wasn’t surprising that Prince Richard, who had traversed numerous battlefields, would possess the same type of giant mech as the imperial forces. However, it was unexpected that he would have a mech that was not just one but possibly three generations ahead of the regular army’s, considering that it had defeated Gilbert.

Technology doesn’t just appear out of nowhere. It’s the culmination of accumulated knowledge and countless failures. Among these, the magical engineering technology of Infractus, which wielded significant influence on the continent, was among the best.

This meant that the giant mechs deployed for this rebel suppression were the continent’s most advanced. Fresia found it hard to accept that a mech with even more advanced technology had suddenly appeared.

As a once-exceptional magical engineer, she knew all too well how implausible this was. In essence, this incident was like the latest giant mech falling from the sky.

“Even if technological advancement can happen quickly, this doesn’t make sense.”

Fresia was lost in thought.

Though she was in denial, the outcome had already occurred. There was too little information to grasp the details.

For an accurate assessment, she needed to meet Gilbert as soon as possible. While she was relieved that he was safe, she couldn’t determine the extent of his injuries.

The follow-up forces that Ian and Fresia belonged to advanced rapidly and were able to reach the Celine Plains before the second round began. The plains, once famous as a fertile granary region, were now in shambles due to the aftermath of the first round.

The scattered debris of giant mechs and the overturned earth were evidence of how fierce the first round had been.

Upon arriving at the Celine Plains and joining the imperial forces, Ian was immediately assigned to a unit. As he was to attend a meeting for the imminent second round, he left Fresia in the barracks and went alone, following the regulation that prohibited possession of weapons and other equipment.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Fresia quickly changed back to her original form and headed to Gilbert’s barracks to meet him. Gilbert would also be attending the meeting, but she planned to wait for him in his quarters.

Though it was difficult to move undetected in such a heavily guarded place, Fresia managed to enter Gilbert’s barracks without causing any disturbance.

While she had become human-like due to various fortunate circumstances, being fundamentally an artificial spirit allowed her to bypass the ally identification code magic. Her artificial spirit nature enabled her to ignore various security spells.

Gilbert’s return to the barracks was delayed, likely because the meeting was prolonged due to the defeat in the first round. As she pondered various thoughts, she suddenly realized that CT-777 wasn’t in his barracks.

It seemed odd that CT-777 wasn’t there, as it too should be subject to regulations. She speculated that perhaps it had been sent for maintenance due to some issue from the previous battle.

After about two hours, the door to the barracks finally opened, and the person Fresia had been waiting for—Gilbert Lion Hart—entered.

“Fresia?”

“It’s been a while.”

Fresia greeted Gilbert with a slight smile. Though she detected a hint of worry in his usually stoic face, she didn’t show it.

“Did Ian volunteer for the reinforcement troops?”

“You recognized me right away? Yes, that’s why I’m here.”

“I see.”

Pleased by his calm voice, Fresia smiled wryly and looked at him with a face that said he hadn’t changed.

“That unimpressive reaction of yours hasn’t changed.”

“There’s no need to be impressive.”

“That would make sense during a civil war… But where’s CT-777? Did you send it for maintenance? That one’s more delicate than it looks, and most magical engineers wouldn’t be able to handle it. You should have come to me. I’ll take a look at it.”

Fresia joked that this was what her title as the best magical engineer was for, but Gilbert only hardened his expression.

From this, Fresia quickly realized something.

“You, don’t tell me…?”

“CT is dead.”

Fresia closed her mouth.

Since it was an artificial spirit, saying it “died” might not be the most accurate expression, but she wasn’t foolish enough to point that out.

During the few days she had spent with Gilbert, she had sensed something: to Gilbert, CT-777 was more than just an artificial spirit.

Whatever the beginning might have been, from Fresia’s perspective, Gilbert viewed CT-777 as an equal entity or a comrade.

Fresia also believed that the highly sophisticated CT-777 transcended the category of a typical artificial spirit. CT-777, which could engage in organic conversations with the mech knight and exchange jokes, was similar to the legendary Ego Sword, a holy sword said to have been used by heroes of old.

It was a miracle created by a series of coincidences—something even she couldn’t replicate if asked.

Fresia judged that CT-777 had acquired a soul.

This was a fresh shock to her, who had once been the greatest magical engineer.

Hadn’t she, after failing to produce an artificial spirit suitable for Colossus, completed her current form by inserting her own soul?

From a magical engineer’s perspective, CT-777 was both a research subject and an innovative artificial spirit that could provide clues for the advancement of magical engineering.

Of course, this was only from her perspective as a magical engineer. For Gilbert, who had traversed battlefields and shared life-and-death situations with it, the destruction of CT-777 was akin to death.

Unaccustomed to offering comfort, Fresia hesitated to speak.

“It was my misjudgment. I ignored the battery level warning and missed the escape timing.”

In response to Gilbert’s self-deprecating words, Fresia stepped forward and lightly tapped his chest.

“It was because the battlefield situation wasn’t good. If you had escaped, the tide of battle would have turned against us.”

“That’s just an excuse. The right decision would have been to escape quickly and then pilot a reserve mech.”

“And in the meantime, casualties would have accumulated. You idiot. Why are you taking all of this on yourself?”

She suddenly realized that beneath his exceptional mech piloting skills, he was still a cadet who had just come of age.

Though his demeanor often made her forget, for someone barely in his twenties, the death of a comrade was hard to accept.

Whether it was human or had life was irrelevant.

“So, Gilbert…”

“I don’t think it’s all my fault. I just think the outcome would have been better if I had been more level-headed.”

Fresia, who was about to offer words of comfort, hesitated when she saw the deep regret in his eyes. She had thought he was just a young man unable to accept the death of a comrade, but that wasn’t it.

Gilbert’s eyes were those of someone who had been worn down by emotions to the point of forgetting how to grieve.

What could he possibly be carrying inside to have such eyes?

Fresia had no way of knowing.

“Anyway, what brings you here?”

“Situation assessment. I thought you’d know best.”

“That’s not wrong. Sit over there first.”

Gilbert pointed to his simple bed. Fresia didn’t decline and sat down quietly.

“Are you curious about the battle situation?”

“Yes, I heard on my way here that the first round at Celine Plains was a technical defeat. From the point where you were lost, I already knew it wasn’t just a rumor.”

“To be precise, it was our defeat. The analysis of the rebel forces was incorrect.”

“So we lost in the intelligence war…”

Tapping her lips with her index finger, Fresia shrugged.

“Well, alright. What I wanted to ask is, is it true that the rebels showcased a next-generation mech?”

“Yes, it was a mech the Empire doesn’t possess. Its performance was superior to existing mechs.”

“And it just appeared suddenly? That sounds too convenient.”

Fresia frowned. Even upon reconsideration, it seemed too contrived that they had completed the development of a next-generation mech just in time for the rebellion.

Moreover, it didn’t make sense that even the imperial leadership was unaware of the development of such a war machine, despite it being under the First Prince.

However, even if it wasn’t logical, it had already happened. Fresia, not being a fool who would deny what she hadn’t seen with her own eyes, tried to analyze the current situation.

The problem was that with limited information, her attempts would remain just that—attempts.

“No matter how I think about it, there are many points I don’t understand. The timing of its appearance is too perfect. It’s almost as if someone who had been waiting for Prince Richard to rebel gave him a next-generation mech.”

But that makes even less sense.

Fresia chuckled.

But Gilbert didn’t laugh at Fresia’s words. Instead, his eyes flashed.

He realized something he hadn’t thought of due to his grief over losing CT-777.

This damn transmigrator.

The transmigrator who had taken on the role of the Demon King, as he had heard from the Administrator recently.

He was supporting Prince Richard.