The expected sound of an explosion did not come.
In just an instant.
The thick, cylindrical turret was cut into countless pieces, falling silently to the ground.
"?!!"
The world eerily stood still for a moment.
Completely silent.
Tsubaki was currently squatting behind the counter, having pulled out a shield from who-knows-where to protect her front—weapons exploding was basic common sense, right?
The Master Blacksmith had very skillfully prepared her defensive measures.
On the other side.
The sisters, Tiona and Tione, didn't even realize what had happened. They only felt a gust of strong wind rush past their faces, and then, a pure white flash...
Aiz seemed to have seen it a bit more clearly.
She saw the white steel humanoid figure that appeared from behind El.
That thing had sliced apart the about-to-explode... Viper?
So fast.
It even gave people a trance-like feeling, as if it were a hallucination.
In an absolute fraction of a second, that thing appeared and disappeared. Subsequently, the Viper that had just been emitting a red glow turned into a pile of debris on the ground.
"Ah, it seems the self-defense mechanism was triggered."
El rubbed his head.
He stood up from atop Miss Eina, looking a bit embarrassed.
"Sorry, that was purely an accident just now. It can't be helped, it's something I haven't used in a long time..."
The Viper was indeed not very easy to use.
As one of the basic entry-level skills of a Mechanic, it wasn't as versatile as the R-Series and G-Series robots, nor was it as convenient as the Air Combat Mechs.
In the earliest days, it had design flaws.
Why would a long-range support fixed turret be equipped with a self-destruct function at the factory?
Who was it meant to blow up?
To blow up its own people?!
That was why the self-destruct module was later removed, shifting the focus to enhancing its long-range combat capabilities.
El hadn't expected that he had just pulled out an older model.
He had the mechanical assistant beside him collect the scattered debris of the Viper, and then he pulled out a brand new, latest version of the Viper, handing it over to the Amazon sisters.
"Well then, it's a pleasure doing business with you, see you next time!"
El grabbed Miss Eina and immediately bolted. After all, the business had been concluded, what else was there to do?
Thus.
When Aiz, who was completely immersed in that "instant" just now, finally snapped out of it, she only had time to catch a glimpse of the boy and the half-elf woman's backs as they walked far away.
"!"
That pure white flash, it was so amazing, she really wanted to see it again... No... If it were her, could she block that sword strike?
Her thoughts inexplicably went off track.
Aiz subconsciously placed her hand on the hilt of her sword at her waist, only to find that her body couldn't stop trembling just from recalling that moment.
That was an instinctive fear, a fear towards a powerful opponent.
"He left? What a weird guy..."
"Who cares about all that, Sister, can we go back now?!"
"Let's go... Sorry about that, Miss Tsubaki. Um... Aiz, it's time to go."
"Aiz?"
"Aiz?!"
...
"Aiz?"
Twilight Manor.
The Loki Familia's base, located at the end of Orario's North Main Street.
Riveria, who had been waiting in the living room for everyone to return, watched somewhat worriedly as the blonde girl, looking completely "lost in thought," silently walked up the stairs and returned to her room on her own.
As the Vice-Captain of the Familia and one of its most senior members.
Riveria was like a mother to Aiz, having watched over her since she was a child, but she had never seen such an expression on the girl's face before.
"Didn't you guys go to the Hephaestus Familia to discuss cooperation matters? This is..."
Then.
Riveria then cast a massive "?" towards the two... metallic humanoid constructs being hugged by Tiona.
What in the world are these things?
Even as the High Elf Princess, possessing the knowledge and experience of nearly 99+ years, Riveria had never seen anything like this.
"Air Combat Mechs Gale and Tempester! And the E... E... E-something Viper!!"
Tiona replied with righteous conviction, making Riveria even more confused.
Fortunately.
The older sister, Tione, quickly explained the whole sequence of events to Riveria.
"New weapons? A contract?"
Riveria, who was in charge of the Familia's finances, instantly became alert!
"It's free, Lady Riveria! That guy said, at most... at most it will only cost a few hundred thousand Valis!!"
"Is that true?"
Taking the contract from Tione's hands, it would have been fine if she hadn't looked, but upon reading it, Riveria's blood pressure instantly spiked.
Hmm?!
[Party A provides Party B with one unit each of the Air Combat Mechs [Gale] and [Tempester] for a trial period of one month. Any ammunition consumed during this period shall be borne by Party B...]
Everything up to here was normal.
What wasn't normal was after the trial period ended.
[All war machines provided by Party A are only available for lease. The monthly rental fee for each Air Combat Mech is 300,000 Valis (Deposit: 2,000,000), and the Viper is 200,000 (Deposit: 1,000,000).]
[Purchasing is not accepted. Ownership belongs solely to Party A; Party B only possesses the right of use.]
[All wear and tear, as well as maintenance fees, will be calculated separately.]
[In the event of damage to the unit, compensation shall be paid at ten times the deposit amount, and a one-time breach of contract penalty of 10,000,000 Valis must be paid simultaneously.]
"???"
How was this a weapon purchase agreement?
This was completely a one-sided "bloodsucking"!! It meant that as long as they used that guy's weapons, the Loki Familia would be bound to him from now on, and they would have to obediently hand over money every month!!
They couldn't even break them. Once broken, they would have to pay a massive compensation of tens of millions of Valis!!
She almost choked on her own breath.
Riveria clutched her ample chest, taking deep breaths for a long time before finally calming her mood down slightly.
After all, they were weapons.
If they were useful, it would be fine. The Familia's deep-floor expedition was imminent. From the looks of it, renting dozens of these metallic humanoid constructs would only cost a few million Valis a month.
Compared to the profits of an expedition, that was practically pocket change.
As for the tens of millions in deposits, gritting her teeth, it wasn't unacceptable. They just had to use them carefully and not break them.
"So, how are these weapons? Are they useful?"
Facing Riveria's question.
The Amazon sisters looked at each other in dismay, because ever since they brought them back, the two Air Combat Mechs had been like two lumps of iron; they couldn't even fly.
Soon.
Riveria noticed a line of extremely tiny text in the corner of the contract.
[To ensure that Party B does not abuse the weapons and cause damage to the city and peace, the activation keys for all war machines provided by Party A belong to Party A. Party B may only activate them after obtaining authorization from Party A.]
?!
They needed the other party's permission to use them!!
Didn't this mean they spent money to bring back a few lumps of scrap iron to just sit there?! And they still had to pay the other party every month!!!
Anger.
Riveria was finally enraged!
Wasn't this just a blatant scammer?!
Riveria even mentally pictured the despicable image of the kind of human kingdom merchant that elves hated the most, acting tyrannically over them!!
Fat, greasy, rubbing a pair of invisible hands together, and saying in a very nasty tone.
[Your Highness Riveria, you wouldn't want...]
[I... I know...]
!!!
She gnashed her teeth!!
Having already exhausted her heart worrying over a certain unreliable, money-wasting patron deity, Riveria now really wanted to know.
Just what kind of guy had the sheer audacity to...
...