Chapter 162: An Angel Descended from the Sky (1)
From her burning wings emitting heat, the angel with violet eyes hovered in front of me.
"No... she's not an angel."
At first, I mistook her for an angel due to her burning wings and beautiful appearance. However, upon regaining my composure and examining her more closely, I realized that her burning wings were not inflamed with holy power, but were actually thrusters spewing flames from burning fuel.
With the smell of burning oil in the air and the heat scorching the ground beneath her, I backpedaled to create some distance. She clearly recognized me and began to approach.
[Initiating synchronization]
Her appearance was nearly human-like, but the fact that she didn't blink or move her lips and the naturally flowing voice, along with a subtle gloss on her skin, were giveaways.
Dressed in a garment resembling a swimsuit that covered only her torso, and armed with a sword and shield, along with the burning wings, she looked human at a glance. But the more I observed, the more I sensed an inexplicable alienness about her.
Moreover, the absence of the natural body odor that comes with living beings led me to intuit that this being was not a mere angel but an artificially created entity.
"What is she?"
[Identification code AIW001, MNA001 to MNA004. Total of 5 artificial intelligences located.]
Her voice, devoid of human emotion, echoed beautifully and uniformly.
[Following the current commands to seize the artificial intelligence gem and measure combat effectiveness against the kingdom's knight-level forces... Success rate above 88%. Requesting authorization for use of force.]
"So this is the attacker?"
I had thought that tentacle creatures were targeting me, which had Silvia on high alert, but it turned out the danger was coming from the sky, not the ground.
"Are you affiliated with the Sytorax Republic?"
[Authorization for use of force granted. Initiating forceful suppression and evidence destruction.]
Boom!
As the flames of her wings disappeared, she folded them halfway and fully deployed her sword and shield.
The flames that had engulfed her wings now engulfed her sword in the same way, starting to blaze fiercely.
Unlike the mana sabers used by knights, her sword and similarly blazing shield were fueled by a special concoction from the Sytorax Republic, unbearable in heat for any human, but seemingly no issue for her golem body.
"Quite a fancy golem!"
Why would those who despise the human form and transplant their consciousness into golems create a new model that closely resembles humans?
The combat golems I had encountered from the Sytorax Republic were more like armored knights, but this one in front of me looked like a beautiful female angel in skin-tight clothing.
Tzzzzzt!
I activated my mana saber to check if it was working properly and began to gauge the movements of my attacker.
Kwaaah!
While I was assessing her movements, the angel golem jetted towards me at high speed using her back wings, and I swung my sword with the intent to cleave her body in half.
Chiiiiik!
However, my mana saber was blocked by her shield, not just any shield but one spewing flames.
"A weapon made specifically to counter knights!"
The moment my saber's blade distorted against her shield, I immediately turned off the power and kicked at the non-flaming part of her shield, pushing myself backwards. Yet, she propelled herself towards me using her wings and swung her flaming sword.
Crack!
As I leapt into the air to dodge her sword, it grazed the ground, splitting rocks with such force that it pulverized them on contact.
"Strong and fast!"
But not unbeatable.
Thump!
I managed to kick at the only unarmored part, her ankle, disturbing her stance. If she had been a full-body armored combat golem, my kick might have been futile and only hurt my foot, but the angel golem, optimized for aerial mobility and thus lighter, was visibly destabilized by my kick.
Crack!
I quickly attacked her head with my mana saber, but she calmly raised her shield to protect herself. Although she managed to block my strike, she couldn't prevent the recoil from pushing her back, allowing me to create distance.
"It's manageable."
Normally, movement and attack should naturally integrate, but this angel golem was fast and powerful in both aspects. The problem was that she didn't attack while moving, and she didn't evade during her attacks.
In other words, she couldn't multitask.
While it's difficult for humans to simultaneously draw a square with one hand and a triangle with the other, a well-trained body can coordinate movement and attack. However, this angel golem seemed incapable of such complex battle tactics.
[Initiating cooling process]
Chiieeek!
Moreover, her shield and sword were rapidly overheating, emitting hot steam into the surrounding air. This suggested that her combat duration was extremely limited.
"Is this a new weapon from the Sytorax Republic? Seems like there are still several issues to be ironed out before it's ready for real combat."
At that moment, I thought about the more challenging artificial intelligences and combat golems I had encountered from the Sytorax Republic before.
[Adjusting success rate. 78%.]
"Really? I'd say my odds are over 90%."
I put down my cumbersome bag and felt freer to handle my mana saber with both hands.
[Variable, none. Request to remove limiter denied.]
Chaaarrk!
She charged at me with flames engulfing her wings. This time, she swung her sword without the flames, but normally, a blow from such a heavy golem-powered sword would be lethal.
However, I am of knight-level power, and more importantly, I had prior experience fighting combat golems.
Trap!
I deliberately kicked up the bag I had set down on my foot to create a distraction. She swung her sword to clear the unexpected obstacle and ended up slicing through my bag.
"There's your opening. Saw it!"
Chaaarrk!
Since she couldn't perform two actions simultaneously, she couldn't evade while attacking. Thanks to that, I managed to leap into the air and slash my mana saber across her exposed back.
Chaaarrk!
The high heat from the mana saber caused the swimsuit-like garment she wore to split, slicing through her skin.
Despite the injury, the angel golem lowered her stance and reached out to grab my bag in an attempt to dodge, which allowed me to inflict a wound on her back, but I didn't manage to split her in half as I had hoped.
"Damn, has she learned to perform two actions at once?"
Crack.
The long cut on the angel golem's back caused her swimsuit to split, exposing her naked body.
"…Are the developers in the Sytorax Republic perverts?"
Why would a war machine precisely replicate nipples and a vulva?
The sight of her nipples, distinctively pink against the sunlight reflecting off her artificial skin, and her tightly closed vulva indicated a disturbing obsession with the female form among her creators.
"Cough!"
While I pretended to cough to cover my shock, the angel golem indifferently held up my bag, unconcerned with her nudity.
"But why would she…?"
The bag was a decoy containing some leftover jerky from my last expedition, a pile of clothes, and inside it…
"Ah…!"
The object inside was crucial.
[Partial objective achieved, reporting.]
In her hand was the intelligence device, specifically a masturbatory aid embedded with an artificial intelligence I had acquired earlier.
[Recovery of Artificial Intelligence MNA-001 reported.]
"Uh… um…"
The sight of a naked angel girl holding a masturbatory tool seemed almost like a low blow from the Sytorax Republic, a psychological attack.
[Current computational power insufficient against knight-level opponent. Requesting augmentation at the scene.]
"Huh?"
[Authorization complete. Additional artificial intelligence gem to be installed.]
Crack!
"Ah! My masturbatory aid!"
My frequently used intelligence device was shattered in the grip of the angel golem, revealing a green, broken gem inside.
Shiik!
A small slot opened in the back of the angel golem's neck, and without hesitation, she inserted the half-broken artificial intelligence gem.
[Initiating dual processing. Transmitting combat data. Synchronization with knight-level combat patterns will be ready in 30 seconds.]
Her eyes changed.
Her movements, previously mechanical, now became much more fluid. She lowered her stance, tilted her sword and shield to find the optimal angle.
"Was her computational power inadequate until now?"
Without armor, taking on a combat golem—or worse, this enhanced angel golem—might be too much.
"Damn it, what's Seyra doing while Sytorax Republic's weaponry is running wild near the capital?"
I should have at least worn armor.
Intending to lure Nel and give her a beating, I had never imagined that instead of a ground-emerging tentacle creature, I would face an angel golem descending from the sky.
"Wait, if she's performing power analysis… Does that mean she's analyzing and countering the knight forces based on battles with artificial intelligences?"
That meant the longer the fight dragged on, the more difficult she would become to handle.
"Damn!"
[Synchronization initiated.]
Realizing the danger too late, I tried to disrupt the synchronization process, but it was already done.
[Synchronization complete.]
Her pupils glowed green and flickered rapidly as I charged towards her. Her eyes then returned to their original calm violet, intercepting my sword with hers.
Clang!
The moment she parried my mana saber with her sword, I realized the angel golem had completely assimilated the knight's combat style.
"This damned thing…!"
Ready to sacrifice an arm if necessary, I extended my left arm and prepared to counter with my right, but the angel golem did not charge.
[Synchronization... complete... Haah?!]
Pfft!
Unexpectedly, from the angel golem's vulva, a white fluid erupted as if ejaculating.