Chapter 4: Partners? Section 9

Despite the unparalleled clarity of the magic mecha’s vision crystals, Hanba preferred not to see what was really there…
For the giant black shadow, which had protruded half of its body, was holding a truly enormous elongated object. Based on his experience, the fact that such a large object could still be seen from a distance of over three thousand meters meant only one possibility…
A high-caliber long-range sniper rifle!!
“Bang!!”
There was no time for cushioning, no chance to react. Almost the moment Hanba spotted the shadow, the reconnaissance mecha at the front of the convoy was suddenly struck as if by an invisible fist, lifted high into the air by a tremendous force. Massive shards of metal scattered everywhere, reflecting dazzling light in the sunlight. The entire mech tumbled uncontrollably through the air before crashing heavily to the ground, raising a huge cloud of dust.
“It’s a sniper mech!!”
Hanba shouted the warning in a shrill voice. Without hesitation, he channeled all his mental energy, causing the engine nozzles at the back of the Charge Type II mech to burst open. A torrent of purplish-red energy surged forth, and the mech rushed forward like mad. The massive recoil immediately lifted sand and gravel from the ground, forming a thick plume of smoke. Following his lead, the remaining three Charge Type II mechs also rushed forward without hesitation. The roar of their engines filled half of the sky.
It wasn’t that Hanba lacked compassion. He knew well that although sniper mechs weren’t as precise as missile mechs, a single hit from them was often fatal. With a range of three thousand meters, the ordinary bullets fired by such rifles could instantly penetrate the toughest armor. And once equipped with high-explosive armor-piercing bullets, these long-range weapons could even split an ordinary magic mech in two.
So he didn’t need to check the condition of the reconnaissance mech. Judging from the way it was lifted into the air and then crashed back down, it was already beyond hope.
Three thousand meters!! Near the limit of human vision.
Hanba could almost feel the despair in his heart. What kind of sniper rifle could achieve such a terrifying range? And to land a hit on the first shot—this was nothing short of a nightmare. If he couldn’t reach that black mech within two minutes, the fate of them all was obvious…
Death…

The might carried by the wildly charging mechs was astonishing. This was especially evident in Charge Type 2, renowned for its speed. The full power of its magic engine propelled all four mechs to their peak velocity. Behind them, the dust and smoke formed a massive fog, turning half of the sky a scorched yellow.

Unfortunately, such overwhelming power failed to excite some people. The nightmare-like gunshots reached Hanba’s ears once again.

“Bang!”

Another terrifying sandstorm erupted, with debris flying everywhere. But this time, it wasn’t the mechs that were unlucky. Amidst the crisp sound of metal shattering, the puppet worm transport vehicle they were supposed to protect was suddenly lifted by a massive force and overturned miserably on the ground. One of its tracks on the right side was completely gone. Sparks flew continuously, but no matter how hard they tried to start it, it wouldn’t move an inch.

It was at this moment that the two support mechs, meant to guard the vehicle, emerged from behind it…

“What’s that?” In the cockpit of the little devil, the black-haired pilot adjusted the focus to get a clear view of the two support mechs with unusual designs. With a flick of his fingers, a huge golden cartridge ejected from his sniper rifle, tracing a beautiful arc in the sunlight.

Behind him, the red-eyed mech stood quietly, its triangular head’s vision crystal constantly adjusting its focus to lock onto the four wildly charging mechs. The massive energy machine gun held in both hands emitted an overwhelming sense of killing intent.

“They’re repair mechs. If you don’t take them out quickly, the puppet worms will regain their strength soon.”

“One minute,” said the black-haired pilot.

He raised the gun, loaded it, and tilted his head. Without even a moment’s pause, the little devil completed a perfect precision shot. The immense power of the large-caliber sniper rifle sent waves of sand and debris flying. From a distance, it looked as though an explosion had occurred. Immediately after, he fired three more shots, sending those two busy repair mechs soaring into the sky. The debris and exploding sparks revealed their fate.

By this time, the four wildly charging combat mechs had also arrived beneath the dune where he was.

“Thud…” The heavy sniper rifle fell to the ground with a loud noise, raising a cloud of dust. The little devil moved his wrist and slowly stood up.

“Just in time. Blood Eyes, it’s up to you now.”

“Tap tap tap tap tap…”

In fact, there was no need for Black Hair to speak—Blood Pupil was already prepared. At some point, that massive energy machine gun had been fully raised, its dark muzzle resembling the eyes of death, locking onto the four mechs charging wildly. A flame over three meters long erupted instantly. While Han Ba and the others were still rejoicing at their successful assault, a purplish-red light barrier appeared…

At the same time, Black Hair’s fingers moved like lightning, and the little demon suddenly bent his knees. With a slight “click,” the auxiliary engine nozzles behind his heels opened at the same time. The shrill sound of the high-speed impact module blared as the entire mech shot forward like a rocket.

It was unfortunate for Han Ba. Though they were elites of the Sandstorm Mercenary Group and piloted high-performance new models, in the eyes of Black Hair and Blood Pupil, who possessed abnormal skill levels, they were no different from prey. From the initial long-range sniping to the current fire coverage, almost every move fell within Black Hair’s plans. Looking at those blood-red mechs on the hill, he could hardly believe his own eyes.

Was that… the assassin Blood Pupil!?

“Tap tap tap tap…”

The terrifying sound of machine gun fire answered him. Before he could recover from his shock, a long whip made entirely of energy bullets, carrying immense force, cut through the desert, striking one of the charging mechs head-on. The tremendous impact lifted the mech mid-charge, sending countless metal fragments soaring into the air like a fountain. Then, due to inertia, it flew nearly ten meters through the air before crashing to the ground, rolling violently and carving a long trench.

Instant kill!?