CHAPTER 23

The Hunting Spider (6)

Success rate: 4.7%.

That was the probability that the Jagd Spinne could defeat the special entity known as Leon.

With its primary mobility system—its legs—and its wire cutters lost, the combat machine's odds of victory were meager at best. In fact, even that percentage included the scenario where it self-destructed due to a battery overload.

However, there was one last trump card that could raise its success rate to 93%.

In its final, most desperate moment—when ammunition production and maintenance were no longer possible—the Jagd Spinne had buried approximately two tons of explosives for one purpose:

To lure in as many hostile entities as possible and detonate them all at once, burying itself along with them.

Although the final target of its self-destruction turned out to be a single threat entity rather than multiple, the Jagd Spinne did not hesitate to stake everything to carry out its last order.

—KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-BOOM!!

A deafening explosion echoed throughout the entire city. The simultaneous detonation of nearly two tons of explosives instantly consumed all oxygen within the buildings.

Reinforced structures shattered, the blast pressure violently displaced the air, and a massive shockwave erupted outward.

All buildings within a 2km radius of the blast center were completely obliterated, and those within 10km either crumbled or suffered severe structural damage.

The shockwave spread beyond 20km, violently throwing back resting hunters who had been recovering from injuries.

As the firestorm created a vacuum by compressing the air, the explosion's smoke was sucked upward, forming a towering cloud of debris. The mushroom-like shape of the dust cloud spread in all directions.

No one could have survived that explosion.

That was the obvious assumption.

* * *

The entity designated as JS-10,253 was manufactured exactly 1,038 years and twenty-one days ago.

Unlike its mass-produced counterparts, which were churned out like assembly-line products, the Jagd Spinne was equipped with advanced artificial intelligence and was created for civilization's final battle.

The unmanned armored battalion of 112 Jagd Spinnes, led by Command Unit 10,253, was given a single directive:

Prevent the entity sealed within the city's core from ever being released. Use any means necessary.

However, most of them never even got the chance to fulfill this mission.

As they were being transported from the factory, their train was ambushed by enemy forces, resulting in more than half of them being destroyed before they could even activate.

Unit 10,253 would have met the same fate if not for the transport officer who initiated an emergency activation in the last moments.

"Protect the city! Go! Carry out your mission!"

The transport officer was devoured the next instant.

Having inherited the command module, Unit 10,253 connected to the integrated network system. With only 37 remaining units, it neutralized the attackers and made its way to the city.

The sky was filled with gray dust, and the earth trembled constantly from explosions, hindering its mobility.

While crossing a cliff, a landslide buried some of its allies beneath the rubble.

Hostile entities attacked relentlessly from all directions.

As they mechanically slaughtered the endless waves of enemies surrounding them, a mushroom cloud suddenly blossomed in the distance.

Unit 10,253 initiated emergency evasive maneuvers, but half of its remaining comrades were caught in the blast.

「JS-10,244: Unable to process. Contamination level 8. Lethal to civilians.」

「JS-10,185: Core damaged. Excessive radiation detected.」

Most of the units were contaminated beyond salvageable levels, and decontamination would take too long. According to logical calculations, allowing them to enter the city would pose a severe threat to any survivors.

「Contaminated units, cease operations immediately. Self-destruction sequence initiated.」

「Executing order from interim commander JS-10,253. Remaining units will evacuate before detonation.」

The contaminated units buried themselves in the ground and self-destructed.

And so, the remaining units arrived at the city—only to find it under attack.

Unit 10,253 issued its command:

「Commence fire support. Defend the city.」

With the intervention of 12 combat machines, the enemy forces were repelled.

They became the heroes of the city.

"Jagd Spinne! Jagd Spinne!"

The people cheered for the killing machines that had saved them.

The story of an unmanned tank that sniped the enemy leader in a desperate battle and threw itself into an explosion to save a single civilian became a legendary tale that rekindled hope in the city.

They became symbols of hope.

They became the steel knights who protected the people.

Under their commander's leadership, the restructured Jagd Spinnes guarded the city.

They protected and protected and protected—until, when they finally emerged victorious from the final battle, there was nothing left to protect.

Only 3% of the city's defense systems were still operational. Fewer than five citizens remained, most of whom were fatally wounded.

Survival rate: 0%. The only thing left standing in the city would be battle machines drenched in blood.

"I'm at my limit, Yappi. This is my final order."

The commander, barely able to stand with a mangled arm, issued his last command.

He explained why the city was under constant attack, what was sealed beneath it, and why it must never be unsealed.

"Protect the seal. Let no one approach."

"May the survivors of the future not repeat our mistakes."

He collapsed, and one by one, the others met their end.

A lone unmanned machine remained in the middle of a desolate city.

Jagd Spinne—Unit 10,253—faithfully carried out its mission.

It ensured the seal was never broken.

It protected the seal. It protected the city.

It eliminated anything that approached the city.

To hide the sealed chamber, it constructed a maintenance facility over it and installed explosives to bury it in an emergency.

Using its database knowledge, it repaired the city's defense systems and modified its own body. With railgun ammunition and supplies cut off, it repurposed auxiliary limbs and facilities to manufacture materials.

It was fortunate that there was a foundation stone mine nearby—at the very least, it could still produce crude black powder.

It prepared and prepared and prepared for an enemy that could appear at any moment.

And so, it guarded the city for a thousand years.

* * *

As the dust settled from the explosion, a figure emerged from the blast zone, not a single hair singed.

Holy Law: Guardian's Blessing.

An absolute defense against ranged attacks had nullified even the Jagd Spinne's final self-destruction. It had even shielded the Jagd Spinne itself.

The man wielded an iron sword, prepared to unearth what lay sealed beneath the maintenance facility.

"Is this what you sought to protect?"

The concrete-covered vault, hidden beneath the maintenance facility and meant to be buried under explosives, was finally revealed.

A storage container, its security protocol long forgotten by modern times, was effortlessly cut open by the iron sword.

Inside, a black sphere, condensed with endless darkness, was unveiled.

A writhing black mist overflowed from it, its mere residue contaminating life itself. This was no mere nuclear reactor or radiation issue.

This was the very object that had endangered the city. The artifact that had poisoned the human world.

The Jewel of Wisdom.

This was the closing condition of the gate. The very thing that had kept the Jagd Spinne's thousand-year mission alive.

And now, it was gone.

The last camera eye of the Jagd Spinne flickered, as if acknowledging the end of its purpose.

At long last, the final order had been fulfilled.