I Became A Mech Soldier After Waking Up in The Future.

Click—

Keiko shut down her intercom.

"At least I sound pretty cool, right?" She chuckled lightly at herself, as if some heavy pressure on her shoulder had suddenly been lifted.

She knew she had done something extremely stupid and illogical, but she didn't regret it at all.

After confirming that the remaining survivors, including Jeanne and Dr. Leah, had successfully been rescued, she suddenly felt an unprecedented power surge within her, as if something within her had been let loose.

Her focus reached an extreme height; her five senses were strengthened to the point she felt like she had a 360-degree view and even a minute movement couldn't escape her grasp.

She noticed that the fatigue and pain that had been dragging her down had suddenly dulled; a new vitality had infused within her body, making her feel as if she could fight for another week and another week after that.

The exhilarating feelings right now somehow remind her of the first time she got on her mecha, Hela.

"This… this is the sensation of having your mental strength aiding your body... It's really addicting…"

Keiko licked her lower lips, looking at the swarm of zergs and predators around her like how they looked at their prey.

Even the air around her was changing—full of a murderous aura and bloodlust.

If someone could peek under her mask, they would see her face grimacing, a big and wide grin blooming on her lips.

The Face of Ashura—the Warmonger, the Battle Freak.

This time, Keiko was no longer retreating; instead, she steadied her stance and straightened her back, just as imposing as the Tower of Bable.

More and more monsters had reached her position and lunged at her, but with a swing of her saber, they were either decapitated or being sliced apart cleanly into two parts.

Every time she swung her saber or pivoted her steps to avoid an enemy attack, her movement became more fluid. She didn't move even a step from her current position.

Her attack range was around 2 meters with the saber, and no monster could enter within that radius. In the parameter, on the other hand, the corpse was gradually piling up.

20, 30, 50… 100…

The dead body count around her kept increasing and increasing.

It wasn't exaggerating to say that any domain outside of the 2-meter radius of Keiko was a death zone.

If Xianxia fans from the old era were watching this scene, they might even call it a "Death Domain," very befitting of the Death Reaper moniker Keiko is famous for.

Alas, despite the boost from her mind, her battered body eventually couldn't keep up anymore.

In her last attack, her feet failed to support her body, making her trip down and fall on her knees.

"Haah… haah… haah…"

Keiko was out of breath, the pain from her neck surged back, and she could only let out a wry smile.

'I think this is the farthest I can go… I suppose there's no way back, huh…'

Jeanne's face once again flashed in her mind, but now it was overlapping with the adorable face of her childhood sweetheart, little girl Yaya.

'What a silly thought…'

Keiko shook her head, feeling a bit sad for a moment, before letting it go.

'At least I can ensure her safety. Consider this a token of gratitude for her kindness to me and an apology for robbing her of her crush.'

Time seemed to be stopping at the moment, and her surroundings seemed serenely quiet.

Even the thunderous roars and rumbling stomps from the flood of monsters around her seemed to be put on mute.

Keiko didn't close her eyes. She didn't want her last time spent in darkness. The only thing she was dissatisfied with was that she didn't have the energy to stand up, just like many heroic figures in her era.

She vaguely remembered one of her favorite manga when a certain pirate with a white beard stood gallantly in the face of his death. Unfortunately, her end was far less glorious than his.

But, the pain she'd expected never came. Instead, the monsters that surrounded her were currently spraying blood from their bodies and falling on the ground lifelessly.

TRATATATA!!

A deafening barrage of bullets and the smell of gunpowder filled the air.

Keiko vaguely heard someone calling her name through the intercom.

"Keiko, we are here!!"

A familiar, bright voice entered her intercom. It was her best friend, Seol-Hyun Ae's, voice.

"Keiko, can you still hold on? Your mecha is behind us. Can you get there by yourself?" This time it was Lu Diyun's

"Ah… I think it was rather difficult…" Keiko replied with a chuckle.

"Seol-Hyun, you picked up Keiko and retreated. I'll cover your back."

"Yes, Sir!"

"Lieutenant Valentine, Second Lieutenant Lilian, Second Lieutenant Leoz, please handle the flank."

"Roger that."

"Yes, sir!"

After Lu Diyun finished organizing the team, Lieutenant Valentine and her adjutant immediately went into their position, and Seol Hyun carefully carried Keiko in the mecha's big hand, retreating at once.

"Thank you, Seol-Hyun," Keiko said weakly.

"You've done it now, huh?! Is it fun to play a hero like this? Fortunately, we arrived on time. If not… if not…"

Seol-Hyun couldn't finish her sentence as she sobbed. Keiko could hear anger, frustration, and blame in her voice, which made her feel slightly guilty.

"I'm sorry, okay. Please don't cry. I promise I won't be this reckless in the future," Keiko coaxed Seol-Hyun in a gentle tone.

"Who the hell wants to waste their tears on you?!" Seol-Hyun growled, her voice a bit hoarse. Keiko wanted to laugh because she sounded like a Tsundere girl character, but didn't dare to do so. "And what do you mean you won't be THIS reckless in the future? It sounds like if it isn't exactly this dangerous, you will still risk your life in the future!"

"Well…"

Keiko's next word would be, "After all, we're a soldier…" But she decided to shut up and swallowed back her words, lest Seol-Hyun became angrier.

Unfortunately, even without saying those words, Seol-Hyun seemed to know what she was about to say and rewarded her with another round of scolding all the way to her mecha.

Keiko could only enjoy the feeling of being nagged by Seol-Hyun, which was the same feeling that she missed very much from the ones she considered family, like Aunt Pei.

Soon, they reached where Hela was, and Seol-Hyun quickly stuffed Keiko inside it.

"Hey Hela, I've returned," muttered Keiko softly while connecting the plug from her exosuit into Hela's bridge. Not long after, she finally logged in to the mecha system.

Having a little rest when she was carried in Seol-Hyun Ae's palm, her strength was restored a little bit.

The feeling when she moved her body became slightly heavy and stiff, but still within her comfort zone.

She felt that she could fight for another round, but decided not to do it because Lu Diyun had already issued a retreat order.

"Finally, it's going to end…" Keiko finally exhaled a sigh of relief. Just a little bit more, she could escape from this hellish situation.

Alas, it seemed that the day was far from over.

"We need backup! We need backup! Lieutenant Lilian Mecha's was hit and now she is surrounded by enemies!"

A distressed voice was coming from the shared channel; everybody's expression turned tense, including Keiko's.