We still had a few days until our dragon taxi would be willing to depart for Maxoria. The original plan was to take a tour of the nearby dungeon but it seemed as though all the power had been mysteriously drained from the location and the dungeon dried up. Very mysterious. Lena played her typical role of a high society noblewoman and attended various brunches, luncheons, and tea parties with various local people of society. I made it pretty clear that I wasn’t interested in anything of the sort and decidedly wanted even less to have anything to do with that psychopathic shade.

I initially spent my time trying to work out some sort of defense or armor that might protect me from such an attack in the future but I had no clue as to the mechanics involved in ripping out someone’s soul. The idea of consulting an expert on the subject made my mana enriched fluid run cold so I had no choice but to shelve the idea for the moment.

Since I couldn’t work out some sort of Soul Armor I turned my thoughts to equipment and upgrades that could help out with an aquatic adventure. Naturally, the first order of business was designing a WaveRider armor set that would work with my [PowerExtreme] set of armors. I’d worked out the transformation to let me convert into a little submarine type machine but couldn’t figure out how to handle propulsion. I didn’t have anything in my cache of mana crystals that felt like they would work but maybe I would find something as we got closer to the ocean.

WaveRider was also decidedly unarmed at the moment. My inclination was to go with some sort of torpedoes or harpoons. Without solving the propulsion issue, nothing I could fire off would have much in the way of range or power. Outfitting torpedoes with propulsion and guidance systems would also cost a pretty penny per unit to fire off.

In frustration, I’d set WaveRider aside and built myself something like an alligator tail that connected to the installation ports at my back. The tail was thick and heavy but it should move me around in the water pretty well. Gators were known for being surprisingly good swimmers, after all.

I made the mistake of trying it on one night just as Lena had returned from a social event and was strong-armed into designing aquatic gear for her as well. Milliardo may have forbade me from bringing Lena unda da sea but he knew full well how relentless she could be when she wanted something. Making her mermaid attachments and sonar upgrades didn’t mean I was bringing her anyway... or at least that’s what I told myself. I was clearly under pressure from people of higher standing and was blameless. The fact that I really enjoy building upgrades and specialized equipment has nothing to do with it. Ahem.

I spun the Augmented Reality projection of the mermaid attachments around in my HUD examining the model from different angles, looking for errors or tolerance issues that might impede her articulation. Since my last update, I found that my modeling program would now allow me create virtual models in my HUD before I actually started work in metal. It was super useful and saved me a lot on space and materials.

Prime.Ram:// Huh. I would have expected something more ‘Cat girl Nuku Nuku’ here.

“That was just a mono flipper, hardly worth the effort,” I said dismissively.

Prime.Rom:// I think Daddy means that no one would get the reference and it’s not impressive enough so he has to go full on Mecha Monmusu here to be satisfied.

“Oh shush up you,” I scolded.

“I haven’t even said anything,” Lena pouted as she walked into the suite.

“No, not you. It was... nevermind. So, done socializing?” I fumbled.

“Brunch was as expected with the ladies from the Tertiary Women’s Atonement Temple-- and before you say anything regarding the name of the social club, don’t,” she ordered.

“Never crossed my mind,” I lied, closing up my modeling screens.

“Those twa-- er.. ladies, can be so demanding with their views on piety and social expectations but then they are the first to jump on any bit of gossip they come across. Honestly it’s draining and I’m all wiped out,” she complained, flopping onto a couch and holding her arms out expectantly.

I sighed, mentally, resigning myself to the life of a plush animal. As soon as I was within range, I was yanked off my feet and pulled onto her lap. I didn’t know which was worse, the humiliation I felt at being treated like some small, cute thing for her to cuddle, or the fact that I was getting used to it.

“I think I’m done working on the aquatic upgrade designs and I’d like to get started on fabrication,” I tried, slightly pulling away from her only to be forced back against her chest.

“No rush, there’s plenty of time for that. Right now we have to attend an afternoon tea with the Baron. I lack the strength to go on my own so you’ll be attending with me,” she said in a tone that warned against any sort of retaliation.

“Your highness... I’m really not interested in being anywhere near that shade,” I said quietly.

“What’s this? Is Master Prime afraid? Worry not, for I shall protect you with all my might,” she said confidently, in a slightly teasing tone.

“Relena,” I said, breaking her hold and sliding off of her lap, “I don’t think I can... I haven’t worked out any defenses against that sort of thing yet...”

I went back over to the desk I’d been working at and sat down. I brought some metal out of storage and started absently playing with it. Lena got up from the couch and stood for a while watching me, she had a sad expression on her face though I tried not to look over at her. She walked around the desk and gently rested her arms around my shoulders.

“I’m sorry, I was too cavalier. I’ve never seen you afraid of anything and couldn’t resist the urge to tease you a bit. I was wrong. Will you forgive me?” she asked, putting her head next to mine.

I nodded slightly.

“We’re leaving this afternoon and this tea will be our last event with the Baron. I’d really like to have you by my side. I promise you that I will do everything in my power to keep you safe. I... understand... that you don’t want anything to get too close, and that you have a lot of shields in place. To you, I’m probably just a silly girl with her first crush that’s roped you into a lot of things. But this time, please let me be one of your shields so that I might stand nearer to you,” she said softly.

This girl had the makings of a fine politician or negotiator. I felt like she was baring her own soul to me for the chance to safeguard mine. She also forced me to acknowledge that she didn’t have any sort of magical soul shield either. Despite not actually having a heart, I wasn’t so “heartless” as to ignore her plea. I reached up a hand and gently touched the side of her face, turning my own to push against her cheek and top off her mana levels.

“Okay, let’s get this over with,” I grumbled.

I dutifully followed after Lena as we were led out to the rear garden. To say I was on edge would put it mildly. I could almost imagine spines growing from my plating and frost creeping outward from each step. We crossed patches of manicured flower beds to a gazebo where the Baron sat relaxed, swirling a glass of blue liquid. His general, the ape-like Ruguru, glared at me. Metal gauntlets covered his hands and his guard was up, ready to fight.

He was shorter than I remembered. The gazebo also seemed to be smaller than I would have thought. Another soldier I didn’t recognize had thrown himself between the Baron and myself, casting multiple layers of aura shield. Captain Wendy stood nearby, looking back and forth between Ruguru and I, her tail twitching nervously. I felt a light touch on my thigh and looked down to see Lena looking up at me.

“It’s okay,” she coaxed.

“Stand down,” the Baron gestured to his general. “His weapons won’t hurt me. It’s fine. Master Prime, I mean you no harm.”

I hadn’t even realized that I’d summoned my Convoy armor and looked down on the shade. One of my arms had already converted to gun mode and was aimed at the Baron, the shot charged for maximum effect. I noticed Remi, standing near Wendy, had already knocked multiple arrows and had them aimed at the Baron’s men. Primus bless him, I was sure that he had no idea what was going on but was still ready to throw down on my behalf. I mentally took a deep breath and turned the cannon away from the shade and pointed it out towards one of the halves of his hedge maze.

I released the shot, mumbling “[Enchant(Blink, 10cm, ‘on impact’)]”. I heard Lena quietly gasp as the round fired off with a heavy THWUMP sound and a flash of light. The steel round sailed true for the maze, detonating in the approximate center of the mass of bushes.

The shockwave radiated out in a sphere from the impact point, hitting the gazebo a fraction of a second before the sound of the blast caught up followed by the gust of air and dirt shoved out of the way by the explosion. The tea set rattled, the bottle of blue liquid spilled over, and people cowered from the sudden loud noise but the distance was far enough away that things were only shaken but no one was hurt. The maze, however, was not so lucky. The half that I had targeted was missing. Only bare dirt remained, surrounded by a thick ring of decimated shrubbery. Branches, dirt, and leaves rained down for several seconds following the blast. Chances were good that the organics around us were experiencing a ringing sensation in their ears.

The Baron cursed as he picked up the spilled bottle.

“How childish. I told you I wouldn’t harm you,” he said, clicking his tongue.

“Harm can be inflicted whether intentional or not,” I growled.

I converted my left arm to gun mode and lazily pointed it at his mansion without looking. Lena looked horror stricken and wrapped her arms around my waist, trying to turn my gunarm away. I looked down at her and converted my arms back, resting my hands on her head. The Baron looked at what used to be his hedges then at his mansion and then ran a black, void hand through what I assumed was hair.

“You are right,” he sighed. “I truly did not intend to hurt you, but I did cause harm.”

“Would you survive having your soul ripped out of your body?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“I must admit, I would not,” he said, sounding embarrassed.

He stood up and walked around the shield soldier to stand a few feet in front of me.

“Master Prime, I am truly sorry. I hope that you can forgive me and we put this behind us,” he said, extending a hand.

I looked down at his hand, then back up at where I assumed his face was.

“The matter is resolved and I won’t destroy your home, but you’ll have to forgive me for not taking that hand,” I said, projecting more calm than I actually felt.

He looked at his hand and closed it.

“No, I imagine not,” he said coolly. “I understand that you are eager to continue on your trip. I’ll not delay you further.”

He gave me a small bow and nodded to Lena before heading back to his mansion with servants in tow.

“Lena? I really don’t like that guy,” I grumbled as Convoy dissolved back into my [Inventory].

“I know,” she said, holding me close. “Good job holding back, I know it wasn’t easy.”