175: Hero
The unexpected appearance of an “equal” caused a bit of panic in the control room located in Kanda Jimbo-shin’s chest. Even though the vibration control system was working, the inside of the cockpit shook violently each time Tagarabatrion struck a blow.
「Major damage! Cracks are spreading in the waist armor!」
「Short circuit in G block, power down in Engine Room 6 to 8!」
「Anomalies in leg joint stabilizers! Switch posture control from automatic to manual mode!」
The reports that came in one after another were not good. However, or perhaps because of this, Kazami tried his best to remain calm and encourage his staff.
「Gentlemen, please remain calm and respond to the situation. At this pace, by my calculations, the enemy will collapse first. Continue the attack.」
「「「Understood!」」」
This is the critical point, the point where justice and evil will be played out. Of course, it was not only Kazami and the operator staff who were struggling.
At the operations desk, where a plaque reading “Victor Ranger Temporary Command Center” hung, Asaka stared at the war situation with furrowed eyebrows.
At that time, the call light on the radio flashed.
『Hello! Asa…… Asaka-san!!』
「Kurenai-san, please come up to the cockpit quickly. I’ll give you the next operation instructions there…」
『I…… I- I am still, outside……!!!』
「What did you say!?」
The words were so unexpected that Asaka could hardly believe her own ears. Then, as soon as she stared at the monitor, she doubted her own eyes.
You can see what looked like a red pea on the back of Tagarabatrion, a super giant combined robot that continued to engage in a fistfight with Kanda Jimbo-shin.
「Kurenai-san, how did you get there……!」
『Sorry Asaka-san, I missed the ride……！』
That’s right, Retto was forced to act as a decoy to attract the mysterious being robot army until the very last moment, but he was unable to catch up to Kanda Jinbo-shin’s activation in time and was locked out.
Although reconstruction was progressing, Jimbocho was once left vacant and there are now very few buildings in which to hide.
The Victory Star, which he relied on, was also destroyed, and it was only a matter of time before he was trampled underfoot. So, as a desperate measure, Retto clung to the back of the enemy robot, but it backfired.
「It’s dangerous, please evacuate immediately. Do you think you can get down from there?」
『Ugugugugu…… It- It seems unlikely!』
Victor Red’s unique weapon, the Burning Heat Glove, allows him to fly for short periods of time. However, if he unintentionally let go of this rampaging robot, he will be flung away and hit the hard ground before he have time to put on the glove.
Asaka held her head for a few seconds and then called out to Kazami, who was sitting in the pilot’s seat behind her.
「Director Kazami, Kurenai-sa…… Victor Red hasn’t been evacuated. What should we do.」
It would be impossible for him to get into Kanda Jimbo-shin, which was now in a state of activation. However, Kazami, who had enshrined Kurenai Retto as a “hero” through the media, would not leave him behind.
Based on this judgment, Asaka asked Kazami for instructions.
However, Asaka could not believe her ears again when she heard Kazami’s words.
「Ah, We won’t be getting back Kurenai Retto.」
It was as if he was greeting an acquaintance on his morning walk. Kazami said this without the slightest sign of impatience, but simply and matter-of-factly.
It is hard to believe that these are the words of a man who had lifted up and relied on Retto so much.
Although Confused, Asaka questioned Kazami.
「You don’t mean to say that Director Kazami had this situation in mind?」
「Of course, otherwise I wouldn’t make a fool like him into a hero.」
「So then …… you are just going to abandon him like this?」
「Please be careful with your words, Samejima-kun. With my promotion, Kurenai Retto will become a true hero.」
Immediately afterward, with a loud tremor, Kanda Jimbo-shin’s huge fist crushed Tagarabatrion’s left arm. Tagarabatrion, which was lying prone in the monitor, received two or three follow-up fist blows, and the operators cheered.
The gigantic robot mysterious being’s misshapen left arm finally lost its connection and fell to the ground.
Now that the battle is coming to a head, the smile is returning to Kazami’s face. However, it is not the masked, eerie smile of the past, but rather an evil smile that evokes a more terrifying sense of disgust.
「Samejima-kun, what do you think is the moment when a person holds justice in their heart and becomes a hero?」
「……I don’t understand the meaning of what you’re saying.」
Ignoring Asaka who glared at him with disdain, Kazami continued speaking without anyone asking him.
「When you have overcome trials? When you know true love? ……That’s ridiculous. Since ancient times, there have only been two reasons for a man to pick up a sword and fight. To take or to take back. Did you not notice anything when you saw Kurenai Retto?」
At the same time that Kazami pushes down on the control stick, Kanda Jimbo-shin’s fist destroyed the armor of the Tagarabatrion bit by bit. Kazami gripped the control stick forcefully, as if to vent his long-standing resentment.
「”Death.” The death of his friend (Kuriyama Rintaro) awakened him, and that is what makes him a hero… and the truth of justice that we embrace. Mourning, carrying out the will of the dead, and a soul burning with revenge is what constitutes justice.」
There is no doubt that Kurenai Retto has reached a higher rank as a hero because of his heart to avenge the death of his comrades.
And now, Kazami had elevated the man named Kurenai Retto to the status of a hero.
By using him as a human sacrifice, they could mass-produce insane heroes of justice who would avenge the deaths of their fellow heroes.
「Justice is the very heart that does not tolerate the existence of evil. We must not tolerate all the evil that infests this world, and we must destroy every last trace of it. It is the determination to be a martyr for justice that makes a small person a “hero”.」
Kazami relentlessly pursued Tagarabatrion, who was now a dying insect. He was driven by his mission to defeat evil, but even more than that, he was driven by his desire to do what he could.
Asaka looked around the cockpit, but all of the operators were silent and facing the monitors. Perhaps they had been informed in advance of the plan to make Retto a martyr.
The only ones who knew nothing about it were Asaka and Kurenai Retto himself. Asaka, who had been doing justice in her own way, bit her lower lip hard.
「As the commander of the Victor Rangers, I do not agree with this operation. It is unethical to intentionally force our allies to make sacrifices, even if the circumstances are unavoidable.」
「I think saying such kind things has only made the mysterious beings more arrogant.」
Kanda Jimbo-shin’s powerful hook landed, and Tagarabatrion’s legs popped off.
「I, for one, will never allow those mysterious beings to get away with it. When former Director Akajustice…… Morikuni retired and the Director’s seat was given to me, I swore an oath. I vowed that I would avenge my seniors without fail, and that I would make the Hero Headquarters reborn stronger for that purpose. A sacrifice is always part of the reincarnation ritual, right?」
Kazami, with the corners of his mouth hanging up, turned his face, stained with madness in the name of justice, toward Asaka.
On the monitor, the mysterious beings’ gigantic robots lost their balance, and the clouds of dust billowed up, making it unclear whether Retto was safe or not.
Asaka carried her own luggage up from the operations desk. She then spoke unilaterally into her communicator.
「Kurenai-san, please hold on for a moment. This is an order from the Commander.」
After the one-way call, Asaka violently hanged up the communication, a complete change from her usual calm and collected nature. Kazami stopped Even though the operation was currently in progress, Asaka was about to leave the operations desk when Kazami called out to her.
「Samejima-kun, go back to your post. I don’t think you want to throw away your career in a place like this.」
「Even if it is under the direct jurisdiction of Headquarters, the Hero Team is entitled to its own discretion within its jurisdiction of responsibility. We appreciate your understanding. And……」
Asaka said as she put her glasses back on and took off her commander’s hat and jacket.
「Every evil ritual requires a hero to rescue the sacrifice.」
…………
Meanwhile, back in time a bit, on Tagarabatrion’s back.
Kurenai Retto was clinging desperately to the edge of the armor
「Guooooooooh!! What should I do!!! Help me Asaka-saaaaaan!!!」
Each time Tagarabatrion punched or was punched, Retto’s body was swung to the right, left, up and down.
Even though the Tagarabatrion has an irregular shape, each of the parts that made up the super giant robot was a giant robot of the 60-meter class. There were few protrusions to hold on to, and Retto was hanging on using only the strength of his fingertips.
However, no matter how many hero suits he wears, there is a limit to a human being’s grip strength. Victor Red, Kurenai Retto’s life was about to end.
「Gunununununu…… Go- Go beyond the limit!! Do your best, meeeeeeee!!!」
Just as his fingertips began to complain that he could no longer do so, the hatch of the cockpit opened in front of Retto’s eyes. When he saw the man’s face, or more precisely, the green mask covering his face, he couldn’t help but scream.
「「Ah」」
The two men’s voices synchronize.
Ever since their face-to-face encounter at Ariake Pier, Retto had never forgotten that face.
「You are!! Heinous mysterious Death G-」
「Fall down you bastard!!!」
Zun!!
Before Retto could finish his sentence, a green boot stomped on Retto’s fingertips with force and without any hesitation.
「Ugyaaaaaa!!! Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch!!!!!」
「Climbing is already a life-risking experience, and you’re trying to get in my way again! Just drop already!!」
「I’m not going to fall off! How many meters do you think it is to the ground?」
「You probably won’t die since it’s you! You! You!」
Kanda Jimbo-shin and Tagarabatrion were engaged in the largest-ever, truly mythic-scale battle. On the back of this battle, a bone-flesh struggle between righteousness and evil was unfolding.
Through the hatch, which was left open, Samecchi emerged after hearing the commotion outside.
「Aniki, is it okay, ssukaaa? Uhyoaah, I- I- It’s so high, ssu.」
「Samecchi, don’t come out! It’s dangerous, go back inside!」
–However, the next moment–
Zuzun!!
With a particularly large impact, the Tagarabatrion’s left arm was shattered into pieces. the arm armor had started to give way as a result of the continued exchange of blows with Kanda Jinbo-shin.
「Hawa, ssu!」
A girl’s short scream rose above Rintaro and Retto’s heads as they lost their balance due to the big quake.
Unlike Retto, who was clinging on with sheer tenacity, and Rintaro, who had a lifeline, Samecchi had nothing to hold her body in place.
「Hah, Samecchi!?」
When Rintaro looked up in a panic, Samechi’s tiny body had already been thrown 200 meters into the air.
「Awa-, Anikiiiiiiii!」
「Samecchii, grab!!」
Rintaro stretched his arms out as if they were going to break.
However, a small hand slips from his fingertip.
「Ssuuuuuuuuu!!!」
After a moment’s delay, Samecchi’s body was pulled by gravity right in front of Rintaro’s eyes. Rintaro kicked up the armor and threw his body out, but his hands were just a fraction of an inch away.
The worst case scenario crossed his evil mind.
「Samecchiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!!!」
「Uoooooooooooooooooooooohhhhh!!!!!」
At that moment—a red flash glittered.
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