Chapter 2: The Appearance of a Gentleman, Section 6

Jokes, farces. Farces, jokes.
It’s common sense to use instructors to help beginners learn combat skills and adapt to battle. Although it requires some cost, anyone who wants to embark on the path of a warrior won’t skimp on such expenses.
But from the very beginning, the instructor was completely defeated—a situation that had never occurred in the history of the Xek planet. Even more astonishingly, the one who defeated the instructor used nothing but an old and outdated mechanical mech.
Staring blankly at the two large holes in the knee area of his own mech, the instructor was utterly stunned.
While he was stunned, Kurokami wasn’t idle. With a little common sense, one could tell this situation was no small matter. It was inevitable that others would notice. And such trouble was exactly what Kurokami hated the most. So in the next moment, the shrill engine sound of KT05 rang out again. Its worn mechanical body, like a tiger descending the mountain, was propelled by the powerful engines on its legs and in an instant rushed forward to the Silver Knight.
“Click.” The barrel of the shotgun, colored like orchids, was pressed straight against the Silver Knight’s head.
“What? You! What are you doing?” Unable to accept what he saw, the instructor shouted loudly, his voice filled with panic. In this completely virtual world, he had been overwhelmed by Kurokami’s actions.
“Bang!!”
What answered him was a gunshot.
At such close range, no one could dodge the shotgun’s wide firing range. Countless bullets were fired, smashing the Silver Knight’s once-majestic head like a rotten watermelon. Numerous metal parts and crystal fragments scattered everywhere as its massive body collapsed completely.
“Clang.” The bolt moved, and a golden-colored shell landed right in front of the Silver Knight’s shattered head, raising gray smoke. In its now-fragmented vision, that terrifying mechanical mech gradually disappeared…
※※※
The vast desert, with smoke dragons soaring through the air. The Puppet Worm had been traveling in despair for over half a month. The appearance of the small town of Kukare could already be seen in the distance on the horizon.
It was a failed exploration mission. UncleBuick’s scavenger team paid a heavy price. Apart from a nearly abandoned Moni, they got nothing. Naturally, their morale wasn’t high. The only gain from this mission was acquiring a warrior—one who didn’t require payment to hire.
But this warrior’s personality seemed a bit strange.

Since the method of connecting to the mental network was discovered, Black Hair hadn’t stepped out of his room in over half a month. Even his daily meals were delivered to his room by someone else. The mental network is something very widespread… Why was he so obsessed with it? Everyone was puzzled. But none of this affected Black Hair’s current mood. He was now completely immersed in intense battles. As he had imagined, humans are creatures who care about face. As long as it didn’t happen in public, even if he did something outrageous, it would likely be covered up by those in power. The instructor incident seemed like just a battle loss on the surface, but it represented the honor of the “Starlight” Point Arena. Naturally, it wouldn’t be publicized extensively. In fact, when Black Hair switched to another mental separator and logged back into the network, no one could recognize him as the one who had piloted KT05. On that outdated beginner model, its usage rate had dropped to 0.0002%, with a 100% win rate. Over half a month—more precisely, seventeen days—Black Hair, who had been preparing in advance, first obtained an F rank through normal means, then fought hundreds of battles. His body and mind, once dormant due to deep sleep, now showed signs of recovery. To be honest, Black Hair wasn’t unfamiliar with battles in the virtual network. In the former Earth Federation, this method was used to greatly improve pilots’ skills. Hundreds of battles were nothing but simple and boring operations in his eyes. Aside from reinforcing his already masterful mech operation skills, the most direct effect was simply raising his pilot rank. D+++—that was his current rank. Behind this rank, hundreds of people had fallen. His continuous high-intensity battles and undefeated record had sparked a resurgence of interest in mechanical mechs in recent times at the “Starlight” Point Arena. The name Black Hair now had a large number of admirers. He used only mechanical mechs and excelled in close combat. His attack methods were all basic moves—simple yet effective. His style was fierce, never showing mercy. He was quiet and of mysterious origin, but his strength was unfathomable. That was the description given by everyone who had watched Black Hair’s battle videos. And somehow, more and more people began to pay attention to this man who used outdated mechanical mechs yet achieved an undefeated record.

But these things had little to do with Black Hair anymore. Since the instructor incident, he knew clearly that he would always be noticed by certain people. The subsequent series of battles and his preference for using mechanical mechs only accelerated this situation. So now, he had withdrawn from the mental network and returned to his own carriage.
“Mr. Black Hair, OldBuick asks you to get ready; we’ll be arriving at Cucare Town soon,” a voice came from outside at just the right time, drawing Black Hair’s attention.
With a gentle smile, Black Hair responded and stepped out of the carriage.
A fierce wind blew, and sand particles danced in the air. Everything appeared yellowish in sight, with the air filled with a dry, earthy scent. On the distant horizon, a circular city resembled a sleeping giant, gradually revealing its shape. The floor beneath his feet vibrated violently, and before he knew it, the Puppet Worm increased its speed once again.
So, that’s Cucare Town…
Black Hair shook his head and headed straight toward OldBuick’s carriage.