"Hmph…"
Roland let out a breath and shook his head, forcing away the thoughts that had suddenly surfaced in his mind.
Just now, the rage within Oblivion had risen slightly, and with it came a string of reckless impulses.
Arasaka? What kind of small fry is that? Crush them.
The European Space Agency? What even is that—can you eat it? Crush them.
Highriders? Doesn't matter. Crush them.
That was roughly the tone of it—pure brute-force thinking. Fortunately, Roland suppressed it quickly. It was clearly the influence of Oblivion's rage.
But honestly… it felt less like anger and more like some kind of berserker instinct.
"Where's Apocalypse? I need him to come over."
Roland retracted the energy blade of his Moon Blade, set it down, and turned to Mudor.
Mudor, who had been admiring Oblivion's perfect frame, immediately broke out in a cold sweat. His expression shifted to alarm.
"Boss, no! Absolutely not!"
Roland frowned.
"Why?"
Oblivion's massive body stepped forward, looming over Mudor. The heat radiating from the frame washed over him. Being stared down by that monster only made it worse.
"Give me a reason."
"This base can't withstand you and Apocalypse going at it! It'll explode!"
Mudor unconsciously edged backward as he spoke.
Roland paused. He had to admit—Mudor had a point. If he fought Apocalypse here, there was a very real chance the entire facility would be blown apart.
"Then have Maine wait in the wasteland outside Night City. And don't tell him it's me. Just say it's a test against another war machine."
"I understand."
Mudor nodded, though his expression remained complicated. Silently, he wished Maine good luck.
"But… how are you planning to get to the wasteland?"
Roland thought for a moment. There were plenty of options—transport aircraft, for example.
He couldn't be bothered.
"I'll run."
Mudor's mouth twitched.
"But—"
"No buts. Open the base gate. I'm heading out. And prepare a transport aircraft—we'll use it to bring us back after the fight."
"…Understood."
Mudor forced his expression back under control and issued the order.
The base gate opened, clearing a passage.
Without hesitation, Roland sprinted forward.
Once he left, Mudor ordered the base concealed again.
…
Before long, a terrifying figure was tearing through the streets of Night City.
Everywhere it passed, massive claw marks were carved into the ground.
Pedestrians and vehicles scattered in panic. What made it worse was that this clearly wasn't the beast from PROJECT Corporation they were familiar with.
Under PROJECT Corporation's oversight, some districts of Night City had never been safer. Incidents on this scale were rare—especially when the creature had just passed straight through the affluent district with the tightest security.
Rustle—!
Maine, who oversaw security in Night City, immediately noticed the disturbance. Frowning, he leapt down from a high-rise, using nearby structures to descend rapidly to street level.
Whoosh—
A shadow flashed past him.
The oppressive aura made every hair on his body stand on end. By the time he reacted, the figure had already vanished.
Only then did he realize his back was soaked in cold sweat.
He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt such a clear brush with death. And never this close.
As for why Roland had done it?
No particular reason.
He just felt like it.
Maine quickly reported the anomaly and took off in pursuit.
Soon after, he received instructions from Mudor and learned that the figure was the subject of the upcoming test.
His eyes widened.
He hadn't expected this at all.
After a brief hesitation, he accelerated.
From that aura alone, he could tell there was a high chance he wasn't the stronger one. Still, he wanted to try. It had been a long time since he'd fought someone on equal footing.
Equal footing?
The thought flickered through his mind—then disappeared.
No matter what, he would find out in battle.
…
Inside Arasaka's temporary building, Adam Smasher had also noticed the disturbance.
After barely making out the figure, disbelief filled his eyes—followed by a trace of fear.
That emotion was quickly drowned out by anger.
Ever since becoming a Legend, he hadn't felt anything resembling weakness.
Yet that sensation—like when he had once encountered cyberpsychos in his early days—was unmistakable.
And he hated it.
"Another creation of PROJECT…"
Adam Smasher muttered the name, his desire to obtain PROJECT's technology intensifying.
…
Boom!
With a thunderous impact, Roland descended from the sky and crashed into the ground, the force driving a crater into the earth. Behind him, his massive hammer-like tail smashed down, carving a deep groove into the sand.
Maine arrived moments later.
After the dust settled, the two beasts stood facing each other in the wasteland, wind whipping sand between them.
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on p-@-treon.
p-@-treon/GhostParser (40 Chapters Ahead)
You can also follow as a free member to read a few advanced chapters.