Outside, Blindy scratched his head
like he was trying to comb the panic out of his brain,
watching Airi.
She didn’t take her eyes off the golden blur
where the Architect was fading—
already thinking how to pull her “big brother” out.
But in Blindy’s head, he’d already done the math:
If Zeros couldn’t be saved—he was losing his “bodyguard.”
With him, survival chances were… slightly above zero.
Without him—basically zero.
And if that happened…
he needed a backup plan.
He glanced at Airi:
“A-Airi…” Blindy started, his voice jittering like a busted antenna.
“I—when—if Zeros… uh… doesn’t wake up—
y-you—YOU think you could maybe—just sayin’—
ask your grandmammy… or—whoever runs this nightmare—
to, uh… assign me a new partner…?”
He leaned in, lowering his voice to a whisper:
“J-just—please—let it be a girl—
someone… uh… y’know—like you—yeah…?”
Airi slowly turned her head.
A thin, sunny smile—
but a chill ran down Blindy’s spine.
“Ah, Buraindi-kun… how sweet… [˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶]
So you like me more, hai?”
The smile vanished instantly—like it got deleted by an algorithm:
“BUT REMEMBER THIS!
ZEROSU-ONĪ-CHAN IS NOT GOING ANYWHERE! [¬`‸´¬]”
Blindy swallowed, forced a nervous laugh, stepped back:
“Heh—yeah—yeah, I mean—
that psycho-drone could probably survive a damn black hole—right…?”
And right at that moment—
Zeros’s head, which had been hanging low,
snapped up exactly 47 degrees.
A cold, lethal gaze locked onto Blindy—
like he was already dead,
just hadn’t realized it yet.
“YOU FUCKING ROTTEN PIECE OF MEAT.
ALREADY WRITING ME OFF?!”
Blindy’s knees started shaking.
“N-n-no—man—I—I was just—just jokin’—I swear—”
He froze.
“WAIT—?!
Y-YOU’RE AWAKE—YOU SON OF A—!”
Zeros scoffed, turned away from him—
and finally noticed the Architect.
He was no longer floating—
just sitting there, head lowered,
like a broken symbol.
The next decisecond—
the air exploded.
Zeros launched forward at supersonic speed.
The strike wasn’t aimed to disable.
It wasn’t aimed to warn.
It was the kind of hit that could’ve erased half the island.
Airi’s eyes widened.
“Minna—!”
She didn’t finish.
The SHIRŌ–KAGE circle moved.
Hundreds of white bodies shifted at once—
the ring collapsing inward,
folding into line after line
between Airi and Zeros.
Plasma blades locked.
Feet anchored.
A wall assembled in less than a heartbeat.
Zeros hit it like a freight train.
BAAAAM!
The first line vanished sideways.
Bodies spun through the air like bowling pins—
slamming into scrap hills,
skidding across wet metal,
some punching straight through rusted walls.
The second line lasted approximately one attosecond longer.
Then broke.
The third dug their blades into the ground—
jets screaming,
feet carving trenches through the metal—
and Zeros drove through them anyway.
One after another.
Thrown aside.
Dragged backward.
Ripped out of formation.
The island shook beneath him.
Trash hills collapsed.
Metal screamed.
Dust erupted in every direction.
By the time Zeros reached Airi—
the formation was gone.
And after all of that—
his fist still came in like a meteor.
Airi planted her feet.
Raised one hand.
Caught it.
BOOOOM!
The ground cratered beneath her heels.
Her arm snapped back several inches.
She slid—one step. Two. Three. Stopped.
Dust rolled past them.
For a moment,
neither moved.
Airi’s fingers tightened around Zeros’s fist.
Her hair whipped around her face now—
silver strands snapping in the fading shockwave.
But her voice stayed soft.
“Zerosu-onī-sama… matte. [｡>﹏<]
Yamete kudasai.
Kare wa mō taoreta no.
Dōka… korosanaide.”
Around them—
the scattered SHIRŌ–KAGE were already rising.
Bent frames straightened.
Blades reignited.
Heads turned toward Zeros.
Taichō pushed himself upright—
plasma sword lifting with him.
One more second—
and this would’ve turned into orbital-level slaughter.
Airi caught the shift instantly—
and switched to SISPOWER™.
Her smile returned—
soft, warm, saving:
“Minna… okoranaide.
Mō katta yo!” ⸜[｡˃ ᵕ ˂]⸝♡
SHIRŌ–KAGE lowered their weapons in perfect sync.
And right then—the Drone drifted past, lightly smoking,
wobbling in uneven vertical loops, like a drunk firefly,
still filming—pf–pf–pf–pf…
For a second, it distracted everyone—
like some weird little anomaly
that somehow survived all this chaos.
Dust from the impact still hung in the air,
swirling through the ruins—
when the Architect’s body twitched. Barely.