"To think he's just an enemy with larger energy reserves…"

I couldn't do anything to an enemy who was purely pushing a power struggle because if I were to ride on a Gigas, I couldn't increase its energy reserves.

Partner, it's impossible to defend or dodge! We need to fall back!

"I know that too, but where do we even fall back to... fuck!"

I invoked to try and block the golden light Goldrian emanated, but it was a failure. It was still a better attempt than before; that being said, the attack this time round blasted apart part of the barrier as the impact coursed through Napoleon's body.

Partner! We need to invoke !

"But we're almost running out of energy."

Even so, we have no choice. At this pace, the next attack might cost us our ability to move.

"...Stay still for a minute."

I calmed Napoleon down and focused on my consciousness.

'More. More. More...'

I invoked the Ability. The Penetration Ability wasn't an attack that could blow away the enemy's defense like how Goldrian did. Instead, it was an Ability that could pierce through and make a hole in the enemy's defence.

The remaining barrier wouldn't be affected and would still work fine. In any case, if my attack could pierce through the barrier, then it wouldn't matter how much energy the enemy had left.

'And, to that...'

I activated the Ability. This Ability could increase the shooting range and increase the destructive power of the attack. The attacks imbued with the Sniper Ability had some penetration effect, so it was something like a Sniping Penetration -- a sort of Specialized Ability.

'Lastly…'

I added on the Ability. It was an Ability that would spread like poison the moment it made contact with the enemy's soul energy. If the attack affected ten percent of the enemy's Mana, it would at least increase to thirty to fifty percent. The enemy wouldn't be able to use the eroded Mana. It was an offensive attack that would be injected into the enemy's soul energy. It was useless by itself as it wouldn't be able to do any damage to the enemy's armor. However, Erosion could be used fairly well in combination with other Abilities that could momentarily weaken the barrier.

Whoooosh--!

I combined the three Abilities -- , and before imbuing the photon cannon with the fused result. Needless to say, it required extraordinary effort and soul energy to perform this one attack. So, if the attack missed its mark, there would be way more severe consequences than just being a failed attack.

'Of course.'

I grinned and manipulated Napoleon to pull the trigger.

'There's no way I would miss!'

'Poowoong!' The photon beam cut across the pitch black universe. Goldrian wasn't able to put up any form of resistance, and the attack hit him right in the mark.

Bang!

"What the hell?" I groaned.

Even though the attack accurately hit the mark, Goldrian's head didn't flinch the slightest. No matter how sturdy his exterior armor was, there was no way he would be fine after being hit by an attack of this level… I came to a conclusion that the golden bastard wasn't hit by my attack, else, it didn't make sense.

He blocked it! We have to give it up and back off!

"No, wait, its barrier is not even battleship-grade! Does it even make sense that my attack didn't work? Yes, Goldrian is a great Gigas, but definitely not to this degree."

I scoffed because I was dumbfounded. Even if Goldrian had strengthened its barrier, it would only be normal that an attack imbued with three different Abilities could pierce through the barrier. So, how did he even block that? I would understand if the attack penetrated the barrier but was blocked by the armor but it baffled me that the attack couldn't even pierce through the barrier.

Partner! There's a crack in the gravitational control mechanism! We need to repair it!

"Ugh, got it. Now...huh?"

Just as I was going to invoke , I felt a sparkling sensation. I followed my intuition and invoked towards the other Gigas that surrounded us.

Whooooosh---!!

But it was slightly late. Just as I was about to charge in, a wormhole formed just next to us and sucked in Napoleon's left arm. I activated Napoleon's barrier reflexively, but the machine couldn't react in time.

What is this?

"Damn it! It's an Inherent Ability!"

Goldrian didn't even charge towards us. It sneaked up close to where we were and opened up a wormhole. There weren't any traces; I didn't even see or hear anything prior to the appearance of the wormhole. Goldrian had no such Ability so its pilot was probably someone with a great bloodline.

Shiaaaang---!

Just then, Goldrian began to shine again. The unavoidable wave-shaped attack flew towards us once again.

"Napoleon, how's our energy faring?"

...Three percent. Under ordinary circumstances, I would've switched to standby mode. But, a huge part of my armor got blasted off along with my left arm, so the Avalon System will be directly impacted if I switched off the barrier.

"Goddamn it."

I laughed in vain. The wormhole a moment ago swept Napoleon's arm away and he lost a huge amount of energy as a result. The wave-shaped attack was too strong to be absorbed, and Napoleon had been reduced to a state where we could no longer defend against that attack.

I would like to get us out of here, but even if we run away, the situation will remain the same, right?

"Of course. This isn't a team battle, and their sights are concentrated on us. They definitely wouldn't leave the escape pod alone."

I laughed dejectedly and stared at the cluster of light that was surging towards us like a wave.

Just then, a new method came to my mind.

"...Relinquish control, Napoleon."

What?

I ignored the flustered Napoleon and focused on my consciousness. I initiated deep synchronization with Napoleon's Iron Heart, and Napoleon's huge body as well as his metal armor started to feel like my own body and skin.

Krieeekk!!

I threw my body at the surging waves -- the destructive wave of light that ravaged and destroyed everything. However, I didn't resist the waves at all and rode with the flow. I could feel Napoleon's body spinning and turning as if riding on roaring currents. The distance between the enemy and us widened and the machine suffered zero damage.

"Phew…"

I took a deep breath and gasped for air. I focused too much in an instant and my head was dizzy.

What, what's going on? Partner, what did you just do?

"Since we couldn't block it, we rode on it. But I couldn't control where the wave took us… huh!"

Kwakkkkk!

Bang!

The Gigas that surrounded us in a formation swung their lightsabers in startlement but we easily shook them off as I drove my remaining arm into one of their chests.

"Sorry. If possible, I didn't want to kill anyone, but I can't afford to do so in this situation." I gently apologized to the struggling Beast-rank Gigas that was caught by me and invoked . Thus far, I had only used to defend against enemy attack, but originally, was supposed to be used in this manner. However, unlike that was able to suck away the enemy's power in a single stroke, would permanently deplete the soul energy of the enemy to strengthen the user's own Iron Heart (Of course, there was a limit. If there wasn't, this skill would be a Legend-grade skill). As such, wouldn't be able to improve a Gigas' energy reserves dramatically like . In practice, the skill only recovered ten percent of our energy..

Wahhh---!! This is really amazing! What the? How the hell did you do this? What did you do just now?

Just then, I heard an innocent voice. I wasn't familiar with that voice but I grimaced at that unforgettable voice of the Sixth Imperial Prince.

"Ahh, What the hell… Didn't I block his communication…Uwahhh!"

Before I knew it, Goldrian closed the gap and wildly swung -- a manifestation of an Ability. Just being grazed by that hammer would completely obliterate me. In response, I used Triple Dash Step, a type of blink technique, to avoid that attack.

Look at that! He just shortly teleported three times to avoid the attack, right? How did he manage to calculate the coordinates in the middle of battle?

I grimaced again at the noisy voice that was transmitted.

"Hey, Napoleon. Please block his communications. That spam-mail-like bastard keeps yapping on."

I'm sorry, but he's not doing this from the communicator, so I can't block it. And also, I can't hear him.

"...He's using telepathy."

I clicked my tongue because it was so outrageous that I was speechless. In this vast space of a universe, he was transmitting his voice this easily without seeking consent from the other party. We weren't in the state where we could put up a fight against him and on top of that, we were flying at high speed so the distance between us was probably dozens of kilometers. Yet, his voice sounded so vivid as if he was talking right next to us.

Partner, a request for communication came in.

"I was gonna talk to him anyways… Set it up," I instructed.

A couple, one with gold hair and one with silver hair, popped up on one side of the screen. The Sixth Imperial Prince was seated in the cockpit without any particular attachment; perhaps he was using the Brainwave Control method as well. The angel was seated in his lap while his hands were wrapped around her slender waist. They were both staring at me.

'He's riding on a Gigas. As expected, he's the bastard piloting Goldrian.'

Well, in some ways, it was a matter of course. Goldrian was a Gigas dedicated to the Imperial family. However, I didn't expect that even the angel would be sitting in the cockpit with him.

"What's the matter?"

I spoke first. Unlike the fuel engines used on Earth, the Iron Heart consumed another type of energy; the consumed energy would recover by itself if the Iron Heart was left untouched for a while. So actually, it wasn't a bad thing for me to buy some time.

'They're not called a Soul Energy Generator for no reason.'

I despised the Sixth Imperial Prince's piloting strategy -- overpowering me with his larger power reserves. However, Napoleon had almost emptied out energy and required some time to recover, so I stayed still and stared at him. Not knowing the thoughts in my head, he spoke with a bright smile.

I really like you. None of the Generals who serve under me could move like you.

"Thanks for the compliment. But so?"

I answered as passive aggressively as I could. I mean, I couldn't give him the impression that I was trying to stall for time. I sounded pretty arrogant towards a member of the Imperial family but he didn't seem to be upset by it.

You should be my subordinate. I'll let you live.

To a certain extent, I had expected such an offer. However, it was then...

"That will be hard."

"This crazy motherfu-…"

I groaned. That voice didn't come from the other side of the screen, but from right beside me. I was literally so surprised that my heart was going to drop. I tried to pull myself together as much as possible as I slightly glanced to the side.

"I understand that you find it a pity, but this man would be a setback to our plans. It would be better for you to take this opportunity to kill him."

"…"

The damned gangster of a Saint calmly spoke of my death and sent me spiraling into anxiety. However, I clenched my teeth right away.

'Fine. If this bastard wanted to kill me, he would've done so long ago. He can't lay a single finger on me.'

If this gangster was determined to do so, a Gigas or whatever it was would be useless in the face of his overwhelming power. I calmed myself down and made myself as comfortable as possible as I watched the conversation that unfolded between the two of them. The Sixth Imperial Prince said...

But I want to have him though?

"You have to restrain yourself."

Huh… Are you trying to refute your father's words? I need to teach you a lesson for this.

Cheong Won's expression went cold in response to the Sixth Imperial Prince's mischievous remarks.

"Sixth Imperial Prince…"

Cheong Won's eyes began to glow with a blue hue as the surrounding temperature dropped sharply.

"That's enough."

I felt an immense aura of intimidation. Though it wasn't directed at me, I was gasping for breath. Instead of being afraid, the Sixth Imperial Prince's eyes shot wide open and his always bright and cheerful expression stiffened.

What if I don't want to?

His virtuous disposition disappeared without a trace; His mad bloodlust was the sole vibe transmitted through the screen.

What are you going to do?

His spirit was fearsome. Of course, he could do that because of Cheong Won's current situation and position, as well as his status as an Imperial family member. Even so, the fact that he wasn't intimidated by Cheong Won's Aura, when Cheong Won possessed intermediate-rank Status of God, was proof that the Sixth Imperial Prince wasn't any average joe. A perverse smile crept up onto the face of the angel seated in the Sixth Imperial Prince's lap as she watched his domineering aura overflow.

My wonderful El… I think I'm falling in love with you all over again.

Hehe. My honeypie is beautiful too.

It felt like the crazy nutcase just minutes before had disappeared into thin air as the Sixth Imperial Prince switched his attitude in an instant and kissed the angel with an exhilarated expression. It wasn't just a peck on the lips, rather, it was a deep, tongue-interlocking french kiss.

However, that wasn't all. The Sixth Imperial Prince stealthily slid his hands under the angel's top and started to fidget around.

Huphmmm…Kyaaahhhh…!

I was taken aback by the sweet moans from the angel's lips.

"No, what do these two crazy fuckers think they're doing?"

"Sixth Imperial Prince."

I wasn't the only one who felt that this was preposterous. Cheong Won frowned and called him out. But regardless of that...

Hyaaahhhhhh~~♡!

I was dumbfounded by the nasal moans she was making; it seemed as if they were going to go all the way. The two of them were out of their minds -- Human and angel alike, gold-haired and silver-haired alike.

They were complete nutcases.