CHAPTER 156: THE NAKROS BUSTER (I)

A cane!

A walking cane to be exact, though in an eye-catching blue colour, and Everlearn’s hands reached out, grabbing at it.

It was slightly heavy, but that made sense.

After all, it was the entire robot within.

One meter tall, it was easily passable as a cane, with the blue color most likely seen as decoration or for fancy.

But...

Slamming the tip of the cane down.

It quickly turned back into nano shards rippling, and in 5 seconds, the Light Guard mech was once more standing before Everlearn.

"Basic form," he called out, and it broke apart, turning into a walking cane.

Everlearn grabbed the grip and walked around the lab.

"It works perfectly."

With the Light Guard Mech capable of shifting into a cane, it wasn’t just that it became easy to transport around.

The core point was that he could sneak it anywhere, disguised as a walking cane, and he also planned to get used to this.

"The Only Use Feature has been activated, right?"

He asked the cane, and a blue light flickered from the grip, followed by the voice.

"Yes. The Light Guard Mech will only transform to True Form if the tip is slammed into the ground by you, Everlearn Snowfall."

"Any accidental slamming from getting dropped from a high position or by another person will not render Mech Activation."

"Nice."

He returned to his seat.

The Light Guard mech remained in his arms, still in the shape of a cane, and he exhaled lengthily.

"I’ve created the first Mech," he mused, continuing, "Now just one more Mech to go."

The second mech he wanted to create now was the Nakros Buster Mech.

And he knew for sure that it would be more difficult than the Light Guard Mech.

And speaking of time frame, the Light Guard mech had taken him two full weeks to create!

If he wanted to create the Nakros Buster, he would need at least a month.

Everlearn had already spent nearly two months here in his second year.

And of course, he had kept himself updated on events in the outside world, but eventually, he had stopped.

The Nakros were attacking with full power.

It wasn’t a simple sneak attack followed by retreat.

They were actively overtaking human cities; over twenty had fallen the last time he checked.

There was nothing he could do, and watching the news just made him make mistakes in his Mech foundation.

That was why he had stopped listening to it, but it also gave him the motivation required.

Once he created the Nakros Buster Mech, he was moving out of the academy... allowed or not!

And while he was out, he would take care of the business that he felt had been dragged on long enough.

His business with Mecha Ever and the Mechara Organization.

That had never been forgotten, not even once, only forced down to give himself more focus.

Everlearn placed the walking staff on the ground, and it stood upright on its own.

He stepped closer to the table and quickly packed away all of the remaining tech materials he had brought out to create the Light Guard Mech.

Once everything was clean and tidy,

He began his second project.

The Nakros Buster.

It began with the materials.

It started with the materials, then the design hologram appeared, alongside a board where Everlearn noted the creation’s purposes.

And so it continued, Everlearn moving around here and there, making a mark on the board sometimes, and other times his hands were flaming blue, creating a piece of the Mech.

A tiny little robot that pranced around occasionally, bringing him sodas and handkerchiefs.

And a cane standing at the side, a blue flicker of light trailing from it, and actively learning what he was doing.

____________

4 weeks later...

"Phewww," Everlearn exhaled lightly, collapsing into his seat.

The moment he did, a handkerchief appeared at his side. He took it and wiped the sweat from his face.

Immediately after came a can of soda.

He grabbed it and drained it in one gulp, then exhaled with relief.

"Thank you, Help!" He said to the tiny robot.

"Help had helped, hurray!"

It said, and Everlearn rolled his eyes.

"You have completed the Nakros Buster exterior and interior structural design, Everlearn," Ever said from the side, and Everlearn hummed.

"It should be ready for testing out now," Ever said to him, but Everlearn shook his head.

"No, I’m not finished.

"After the exterior and interior path comes the hardest part," he replied.

"The hardest part?" Ever said confusedly.

"Yes. And that’s designing the AI Module for the Nakros Buster. Just like how I designed you." He replied, rising to his feet once more.

He quickly brought out the materials for the AI construction, but then the voice came.

"Why not use me as the AI for the Nakros Buster?"

Ever suddenly asked, and Everlearn immediately froze.

"Can you come again?"

"I asked why not use me as the AI for the Nakros Buster. According to my knowledge, I am an extractable chip, and the chip slot for the Nakros Buster is exactly my frame."

"So, why not just plug me into the Nakros Buster? I can be the AI simulation for it, and you won’t have to spend another couple of weeks with the AI core creation."

It said, and Everlearn was lost for words.

’How did I never think of that?’

’He had created Ever as the AI simulation for the Light Guard Mech. But it had never occurred to him that he could actually just place Ever into the Nakros Buster and have her activate it!’

"But what of the Light Guard Mech," he mused.

"According to my knowledge. It is impossible to activate both the Light Guard Mech and the Nakros Buster at the same time."

"So if you wish to use the Light Guard Mech, you can simply extract me and place it in."

"And if you wish to use the Nakros Buster, you will extract from the Light Guard Mech and place it in the Nakros Buster."

"I am not the Light Guard Mech, nor am I the Nakros Buster."

"I am simply the AI core responsible for bridging the lines between this mech and you, Everlearn."

║Don’t listen.║