End?

After a few days of preparation, Kalyptos had finished cleaning his station, thinking he would return here if he ever needed anything.

"Mobility units are all functioning normally."

"System damage at 5%. Non-fatal."

Over the past few days, he had tried to repair his existing systems, but he still couldn't manage it and didn't know the cause. He decided to simply ignore it since it wasn't fatal to his operations.

"Station residents, I will be leaving my post temporarily. Ensure you remain safe."

Kalyptos pointed down at the animals that had taken shelter inside from last night's blizzard, which had piled the snow high and forced them to migrate during the night.

"Very well. Objective initiated. Heading north."

Standing tall, he stepped forward, making the ground tremble and completely flattening everything in his path with every step.

Kalyptos tried playing another memory log, remembering when the Commander had talked about having fun and taking occasional vacations.

'You know, Kalyptos, vacations are fun because I'm finally free from my work.'

'I notice that whenever you're on a break, you're always in maintenance or doing something else. Maybe try taking a walk aimlessly for once and just stop to look at interesting things.'

Remembering that, he was doing exactly the same thing right now, until...

"Sensors indicate multiple lifeforms. Humans and horses. Quantity: 5,000 units."

From the east, out on the open plains, Kalyptos saw a massive crowd of people wearing yellow armor, with a yellow flag bearing a hydra crest fluttering in the wind.

Scanning their equipment, Kalyptos deemed them non-threatening and decided to just ignore them.

But...

.

..

…

"Hey, you! Giant! Come here, I have come to claim you as my property!"

Turning toward the voice, Kalyptos crouched down and brought his massive face a little closer to the crowd, who immediately looked even paler in the freezing winter air.

"Did you say something?"

"Th-that's right! I am Count Fiero, the lord of this territory, and I came here to make you mine!"

"Apologies, but this unit has decided to remain an independent unit as long as the commanding individual is not an official officer."

"Wh-what does that mean?! Are you rejecting me?!"

"Affirmative."

As he said that, Kalyptos watched the blonde, mustached man trembling atop his horse, his face turning bright red with anger.

"Very well. This unit shall now resume its new objective."

Deciding on that, Kalyptos slowly began to stand up, but before he could...

"Mages, fire your fireballs!!!"

Fwosh!

Fwosh!

Fwosh!

Kalyptos watched several spheres of fire hurtle toward him, striking his knee and leaving behind only minor scorch marks.

Scanning for damage, it seemed the attack hadn't damaged any internal mechanisms, but the event was slightly strange to Kalyptos.

"Anomalous event detected. Humans producing fire... Evaluating threat..."

"Eh?"

"Threat Level 2. Commencing attack."

As if the humans completely failed to understand what Kalyptos meant, the machine's eyes shifted to a glowing, radiant red. A circular hatch on his chest opened, and a light began to build and hum intensely from within.

Voooom-

Boooom!!!!

A massive pillar of light erupted from Kalyptos's chest, instantly incinerating everything in its path. The people who were standing there a moment ago completely vanished, leaving not even ash behind, while those nearby suffered severe burns from the sheer ambient heat.

"Argh! It's so hot!"

"Water! Water!"

The ground was left scorched and charred. Seeing what had just happened to his vanguard, Count Fiero didn't just stand still; he arrogantly saw this as an opportunity.

"Mages, attack him again! Use every spell you have! Cavalry, charge!"

At the sound of the horns, the captain of Count Fiero's forces nodded and readied the cavalry.

"Alright boys, into the fray! Attack his flanks!"

"Uwoghh!!!"

Unbeknownst to them, Kalyptos's sensors could see them from every possible angle, making a flanking maneuver entirely useless. After all, his core function as a vanguard unit was to withstand and anticipate attacks.

"Continuing dispersion of main unit. Ignoring cavalry."

Kalyptos continued to step forward, crushing and burning the main army, while the cavalry captain smiled confidently.

"Haha! Guys, it looks like he doesn't even see us! Alright, attack!!!"

"Raghh!!!"

Only when they got directly underneath Kalyptos did they realize just how impossibly massive he was. But since they were already in position, they began furiously hacking at Kalyptos's metallic legs.

"Ragh! Eat this!"

The captain swung his sword with all his might.

Clang!

"What?!"

That was definitely not the sound he expected from his proud sword, which was supposed to cleave through any metal as easily as butter.

Looking around at his men, they were all experiencing the exact same thing. Trying again, he gripped his sword with both hands and swung with everything he had.

"Hmph!"

Clang!

"Impossible."

He wasn't dreaming he genuinely couldn't even scratch it. As that terrifying reality set in, pure dread washed over him, and he screamed.

"Fall back! Retreat and regroup!"

"Yes, Captain!"

Neigh!

But alas, their horses were already panicking as a massive shadow rapidly descended upon them.

"Come on, you stupid horse! Don't let that foot step on us!"

"Argh, Captain!!!"

Ignoring the rear, the captain just watched the sole of the giant foot getting closer and closer until everything went completely dark.

.

..

…

"My Lord, we've lost the captain's banner!"

"Tch, useless! And he claimed he was strong."

Count Fiero hadn't fully processed the defeat unfolding right in front of his eyes. Because the majority of his army was still intact, he remained wildly confident, until...

Booommm!

"Argh!!! Damn it, damn it, argh!"

Even though the blast only grazed him, Kalyptos's plasma beam was hot enough to severely burn the right side of the Count's body. In that instant, he finally realized that half of his entire army was already gone. He broke into a tense, cold sweat.

"Ugh~ damn it, it's coming again."

Wetting himself once more atop his horse, he clicked his tongue and violently yanked his reins to turn his mount around.

"I'm getting out of here to find backup! You all hold that monster off! Whoever can bring that thing down gets a fortune!"

"Hah! Hah! I have to get out of here!"

Meanwhile, his army, seeing their lord flee and witnessing the absolute massacre of the vanguard and their captain, descended into total panic.

"Argh, get away from here!"

"To hell with the money! I value my life way more!"

"Kyaa!!"

They all dropped their weapons and fled the battlefield, scattering in every direction like panicked ants, desperately praying the white pillar of light wouldn't hit them.

.

..

…

"Pretty noisy out there."

"Hmm, seems like that's our cue to step in."

"Hah~ it pisses me off that I had to come to a dump like this."

"Hey, look at that giant! It looks pretty strong, you know."

A young man with blonde hair, wearing a cloak and a sword at his waist, walked out with a confident smile.

"Haha, you're absolutely right."

"Alright, time to do this."

The four of them casually marched forward into the battlefield, completely unbothered while everyone else was busy running away.