Fargo didn't care about the changes happening in the outside world, how many people were excited, or how many were exhilarated. He knew his time was limited. When this battle ended, so would his life. All his attention was focused on the giant dragon turtle before him.
He intended to be like a meteor streaking across the sky, short-lived but leaving behind a brilliant and unforgettable trail.
Fargo poured every ounce of his strength into the battle, utilizing every combat technique he had ever learned, all for one goal: to defeat, crush, and even kill the anomalous beast before him.
"I'm stronger now—stronger than this beast," Fargo thought as he glanced briefly at the mech's performance parameters, which were still rising. His confidence in defeating the beast only grew.
Roar! The giant dragon turtle, having fought the mutated Dawn mech for three hours, let out a furious roar. It had discovered that the wind and thunder powers it gained through its evolution had no effect on the mech. The mech seemed immune to its powers. The only thing that still worked was brute force, using its fists.
"Enough, kid. Unleash all your energy weapons!" Muria's voice suddenly resounded in Fargo's mind, this time with a hint of impatience.
"Lord Devil, will my weapons still work against this disaster beast?"
"When I tell you to attack, just attack! Why so many questions? The power you wield now is mine. Do you think you know better than I do?"
"I understand." Fargo activated all seventeen energy weapons on the Dawn mech. Every weapon locked onto the giant dragon turtle and fired simultaneously. An unimaginable surge of energy filled the sky, bathing the world in light. Even Fargo couldn't see what was happening outside.
As the energy blast surged toward the dragon turtle, the beast, now with human-like features, showed a faint smirk of disdain. It moved the giant spinning wheel on its back to its front, shielding its body.
But before the energy attack reached the dragon turtle, countless fine, web-like lines appeared around it, leaving the creature bewildered. These lines expanded rapidly and swallowed the dragon turtle whole before it could react.
...
"Where is this place?" The giant dragon turtle, with its spinning wheel still turning behind it, stood on a desolate plain. Its eyes filled with confusion as it scanned its surroundings. The ruined city and the annoying mechs were nowhere to be seen.
"What's that?" The dragon turtle lifted its head and saw a towering structure in the distance, a high tower completely out of place in this barren landscape.
"I should go check it out," the dragon turtle muttered, taking flight with the wind and heading toward the tower with an elemental vortex swirling atop it.
...
"Lord Devil, you can take my soul now!" Fargo, watching the dragon turtle vanish under his barrage of attacks, felt a sense of relief wash over him. He sat back in the cockpit, ready to accept his "tragic" fate.
"Hm? Oh, I forgot to mention—devils usually take souls after a person dies. So, you still have a few decades left."
"What!" Fargo let out a cry of surprise, and then his face lit up with joy. Having recently tasted life on the edge of death, he now clung to life with a newfound appreciation.
"Do you feel like you've been reborn?" Muria's voice, laced with amusement, echoed in Fargo's mind.
"Yes, Lord Devil."
"Well then, it's time for you to bask in the glory that awaits you. Enjoy the rest of your life!"
"I…" Fargo's lips trembled as he spoke. He knew what was coming. In the three thousand years since the world changed, no Xiron had ever managed to defeat an anomalous beast in direct combat.
But now, he had done it. He had single-handedly piloted a mech to defeat an anomalous beast. This feat would go down in Xiron history, and his name would be remembered forever.
"This isn't my glory. It was your power, Lord Devil, that allowed me to achieve this."
"You really are…" Muria chuckled, surprised at Fargo's honesty. "This is your glory, earned with your soul."
...
As Muria had predicted, Fargo's legendary feat of piloting the mutated Dawn mech to defeat the beast was widely publicized by the government.
Fargo became a hero known throughout the Xiron world, an idol to countless young aspiring mech pilots. He was showered with honors, praise, flowers, applause, and admiration. He received all the recognition he had once dreamed of.
Yet, despite all this, Fargo was not happy. In fact, he was angry. His beloved Dawn mech had been taken away by his superiors under the guise of research for the future of their race. He hadn't even been given the chance to refuse.
Now, he didn't even have the right to look at his own mech. He had become a mech pilot without a mech, spending his days attending endless banquets and standing in front of cameras.
"Those bastards! They took my mech, and now they want to turn me into some celebrity! These damn politicians are humiliating me!" Fargo, now a world-famous star, would return to his room after his public appearances and vent his anger by punching the many sandbags scattered around the room.
As a young man, Fargo had wanted fame, and he enjoyed being admired. But as a mech pilot, he loved his machine even more. He didn't want to be famous like this.
He wanted to be known for his skills as a pilot, to be recognized as a warrior standing atop his mech, not as some media figure paraded in front of cameras. He was a soldier, a warrior meant to slay anomalous beasts and protect his world—not a sellout.
"Isn't this exactly what you should have expected?" A casual voice suddenly spoke in the luxurious room.
Fargo, bare-chested and drenched in sweat from his workout, turned his head to see a black-haired, golden-eyed youth casually flipping through a newspaper at the desk.
"Who are you?" Fargo's brown eyes widened in shock, and he instinctively stepped back, his gaze darting around the room. Every window and door was sealed tight.
"What? Can't recognize my voice even when I'm standing right in front of you? It's only been a short while, kid. You're already that forgetful?" Muria replied without looking up from the newspaper.
"Lord Devil, why have you come here?" Fargo asked in the most respectful tone he could muster. The more he knew, the more he revered this being.
He knew the devil had interfered, as there had been no trace of the dragon turtle's remains after the battle. The beast had simply vanished from existence.
"I heard a pathetic loser howling in despair, so I thought I'd come to check it out," Muria replied nonchalantly.
"Heh." Fargo let out an awkward chuckle, feeling embarrassed by Muria's words.
"What's wrong? Not satisfied with your current situation?"
"I'm very satis—"
"Kid, shut up. I may be a devil, but I hate lies." Muria's golden eyes fixed on him, making Fargo take another step back.
"So, you're unhappy? Why? Your face is plastered all over the news." Muria waved the newspaper in his hand, showing Fargo the front page, which featured a striking image of the young pilot in all his glory.
"They took my mech under the pretense of research, and now I'm a mech pilot without a machine. Worse, those damn politicians want to turn me into a media figure."
"Isn't it obvious that a mech capable of defeating an anomalous beast would be taken away? Do you think you're worthy of possessing a weapon that can upend the world's balance?"
"…" Fargo fell silent, eventually slumping into a chair, his head bowed in defeat. "So, all I can do now is accept the government's orders and become a glorified media star?"
"Not necessarily. You should be receiving a message from the research facility soon."
"Huh?" Fargo looked at Muria, confused.
"The evolved Dawn mech only responds to you. No one else can pilot it. That's the price you paid with your soul." Muria smiled faintly.
"Really?" Fargo's eyes widened with undisguised joy.
"Of course."
"But how do you know that?"
"Because I've been inside it," Muria replied matter-of-factly.
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