Chapter Six: The Hungry Ghost

As the smoke and dust dissipated, Qin Yun’s unit was nowhere to be seen in front of the monster.

Listening closely, a roar could be heard from the sky.

"There!" a soldier providing cover pointed upward, and his comrade followed his gaze.

A dark shadow hung in the air—it was the Traum. Qin Yun had soared into the sky at the very last second.

Qin Yun only remembered her reflexive urge to dodge when she was about to take the erupting energy beam head-on. She had leaped up with such force that she vaulted hundreds of meters, leaving a massive crater where she had stood.

Although this was the result of the thrusters on her back, the raw output of the Traum still left her quite astonished.

"Seems I overdid it..."

Because controlling the unit felt as natural as controlling her own body, the explosive power of a person in a crisis had translated directly into the machine. It seemed she would need to learn to regulate her strength better next time.

The monster had apparently noticed its target in the sky. It raised its head, seemingly brewing its next attack. But now that Qin Yun held the initiative, she would not let it have its way!

Qin Yun was still in the midst of her descent, while the eyes of the "Hungry Ghost" were already visibly gathering energy.

"Is she going to be too late!?" Ziyuan scratched her nose in anxiety.

In the Svarg command room, everyone held their breath, save for the Director, who remained composed.

"Covering fire! Slow it down!" the military commander barked, realizing they needed to buy Qin Yun time!

A hail of artillery fire erupted, aimed at the monster's head. Even though kinetic projectile weapons could not inflict fatal damage, the immense impact was enough to throw it off balance. Its massive body began to tilt under the barrage, and the energy beam fired from its head went wide.

The military’s support had succeeded! The beam grazed past Qin Yun and shot harmlessly into the sky.

As the military poured fierce fire upon the monster known as the "Hungry Ghost," Qin Yun, still descending from mid-air, launched her counter-offensive!

Two hilts popped out from the Traum’s waist—its standard-issue high-energy particle daggers. Crossing her hands, she drew the blades and held them high. Transformed into a vessel of steel, Qin Yun plunged downward, using her immense kinetic energy to strike the monster’s crown!

"Haaaaaaaaaa!!!"

The flashing blades of high-energy particles sliced into the creature. The monster’s wound hissed, spewing green fluid—a result the previous artillery strikes had failed to achieve.

It wasn't over yet. The tremendous impact drove the particle blades deeper, tearing further into the body of the "Hungry Ghost."

Even the strongest regenerative abilities had their limits. By inflicting damage beyond that threshold in a single stroke, it could be defeated!

The monster was cleaved in two from head to torso, collapsing between the skyscrapers while violently spraying dark green blood. Amidst the monster's remains stood the Traum, its frame splattered with gore.

To call them "remains" might have been premature; the two halves of the monster were still twitching! Qin Yun raised her right hand again, and the energy cannon in her palm fired a series of tracking lasers, thoroughly blasting the "Hungry Ghost" into ash.

Even Qin Yun was surprised by her own decisive follow-up.

***

The underground command center erupted into cheers. After all, this victory was the first time since Svarg’s founding that they had formally faced the enemy they had been preparing to fight all along. Until today, no one knew how well those preparations had actually gone.

"It’s over," the Director said in the command room, appearing relieved. "Just as planned."

"She’s amazing... Qin Yun is like a completely different person when she fights." Ziyuan rubbed her hair, witnessing the battle and feeling as though her own attempts to train in the Traum had been in vain. Back when she was a candidate pilot, she could never have achieved the synchronization between human and machine that Qin Yun had displayed.

"Ziyuan, don't overthink it." The Director turned to leave the command room, patting Ziyuan on the shoulder with a smile as he went.

In the city, Qin Yun stood motionless between the buildings; she needed a moment to catch her breath.

"Ha... huff... ha..."

Qin Yun felt the green blood splattered across her face and body, her entire person gasping for air from the lingering tension.

Nervousness aside, Qin Yun realized she didn't feel the fear or nausea she had expected from her first real combat. Logically, the scene before her was far more repulsive than squashing a cockroach in the bathroom. Yet, her mind had subconsciously used the weapons with fluidity, making the most appropriate choices at the perfect moments. What was happening to her? Was this the reason her father chose her for this fight?

Encased in her steel armor, Qin Yun felt a sense of bewilderment. The smoke of battle began to clear, and the sunlight reflected off the Traum’s armor in a soft glow.

Next, it was time to talk to her father.

A few days later.

Inside the New Spring and Autumn City Hospital, Qin Yun walked down the corridor carrying a small bag, as if to visit someone.

"Qin Yun! You... you're here!"

As soon as Qin Yun entered the room, a familiar voice rang out. The owner of the voice was, of course, Li Jiayi.

"Oh! You must be Qin Yun. I've heard my daughter mention you." A middle-aged man sat in the room; judging by his tone, he was Li Jiayi’s father.

"Thank you for looking after my daughter. You are the only friend she has in her class right now."

"Ah... hello, sir. You're too kind... as for looking after her, it was your daughter who saved me. I came to thank her." Qin Yun politely shook Li Jiayi’s father's hand.

Qin Yun placed the bag on the small table by Li Jiayi’s bed. "This is the animation disc you told me about. The limited edition."

"Ah!" Li Jiayi turned her head from the window in delight. She tried to stand up to reach for the bag, but sat back down immediately.

"Oops, got too excited," she said, knocking on her own head in self-mockery. She then moved her hands to push her wheelchair toward Qin Yun.

"I... don't have legs anymore..."

Li Jiayi scratched her forehead, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Yeah..."

Before coming to visit, the Svarg agents had already informed Qin Yun of her condition. To save Qin Yun, she had lost everything from the thighs down.

Qin Yun didn't know what to say. Sometimes, words were simply powerless.

"You're such a fool..."

Qin Yun closed her eyes, leaned down gently, and hugged Li Jiayi.

"I don't understand you at all... being so enthusiastic toward someone you just met, rambling on about things I don't grasp... and then, in the end, you go and foolishly save me... maybe I would have been fine even if you hadn't?"

Listening to Qin Yun’s rambling, Li Jiayi showed a bashful smile.

"Maybe I am a bit of a fool... but you, Qin Yun, you’re sticking to your own style, aren't you? That open, straightforward, and capable aura. It’s something I could never learn..."

Li Jiayi expressed her admiration for Qin Yun. But Qin Yun now knew she wasn't the person Li Jiayi imagined her to be. However, there was no need for Li Jiayi to know the truth just yet.

Qin Yun realized that the friendship Li Jiayi had offered, which had once felt a bit intrusive, was actually precious. After that day, not only for them but for all of humanity, everyone had to learn to say goodbye to the daily life that might have been happy or sorrowful. Especially for Qin Yun, such a life had never existed to begin with.

No one knew what the future held. Reconstruction and cleanup were underway in the streets, and the school had been closed for some time.

Perhaps subconsciously, Qin Yun had come to see Li Jiayi as the fragile thread connecting her to that mundane life.

"Fine, if you want to learn, I'll teach you."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Then right now..." Li Jiayi’s eccentric personality made things difficult for Qin Yun.

"Stop, stop, stop. Wait until you're discharged."

"It's a promise."

"Yeah!"

The sun began to set.

After leaving the hospital, Qin Yun stepped into a red sports car.

It was clearly Ziyuan behind the wheel.

"Let’s go home, Qin Yun... or... perhaps I should call you Shakeria."