Steel does not forget the past before it was tempered.
At the heart of the Metalum Empire’s citadel, Oruka’s mechanical heart was roaring in a deep, heavy thrum.
Whiiirrr……
Turning gears, core pipes vibrating with heat.
And before them stood Oruma, his gaze cold and hard.
Ignis’s flames were soon extinguished.
Partly because the Ignis side retreated easily, but also because Metalum defended fiercely.
In general, iron melts in fire.
But if iron is stronger than fire, it can instead snuff the fire out.
Even so, Oruma could not tolerate their actions.
All that remained to him was the calculation of revenge.
“They tested us. Whether their fire could melt us. Yes, iron can melt. But once cooled again, it becomes even stronger.”
From the citadel, Oruma gazed at the iron wall scorched by Ignis’s flames.
That blackening was not merely a wound, but a memory.
“Belkar, how many minutes did the border defense wall hold then?”
Belkar, the defensive technology specialist standing beside him, answered.
“Six minutes and fourteen seconds. Even without a full frontal collision, losses were four percent. Their attack was at the level of a test.”
Oruma nodded.
“That test was enough. Now it is time to prepare our answer.”
He also had not forgotten that Ignis had taken a small quantity of Metal Cores during that battle.
He asked the resource manager, Feron.
“Do you have any guesses? Why did they take our Metal Cores?”
Feron answered.
“It is not certain yet. It appears they intend to use our technology, but I question whether they can truly modify our cores into something useful.”
“Good. Then we shall make them pay that price as well.”
A vast diagram was projected onto the floor of the citadel’s conference room.
It was a strategic map visualizing the spread routes of foreign energies collected by Metalum, as well as the dispositions and expansion speeds of each empire.
Agnon, the army commander, spoke.
“Silva is in contact with Aqua. But they do not yet seem to have reached a firm conclusion.”
Oruma interlaced his fingers as though handling gears.
“Silva is a forest. By nature, they are not structured to make quick decisions. But Aqua is a flowing existence. Once a direction is set, a current can gain speed at any time.”
Agnon spoke again.
“We currently need a pretext for forming an alliance. Merely keeping Ignis in check may not be enough. From Aqua’s standpoint, they may see the likes of Ignis as a target they can subdue whenever they choose.”
At that, Belkar answered in his stead.
“But at the same time, Ignis has also met Silva. We cannot know their exact intentions. However, considering that Silva can make Ignis burn even hotter, I suspect they intend to receive support from Silva and strengthen their army far more.”
Belkar’s conjecture differed somewhat from the truth, but from Metalum’s perspective, it seemed reasonable.
Agnon nodded as well.
“I see. No doubt they brought up our name to threaten Silva.”
He looked back at Oruma and said,
“Your Majesty, it seems we have gained somewhat of a pretext. From Aqua’s position, maintaining close relations with Silva, would not the subsequently appearing Ignis be a thorn in their eye? We can be of help to Aqua in keeping Ignis in check.”
After a brief silence, Oruma quietly declared,
“Good. We will seek a joint response system with Aqua. We desire fruition, and Aqua desires condensation. Our attributes share a commonality. However, emotions are unnecessary. Aqua will value flow over emotion, and we too will hide our feelings and show them only logic.”
He looked out the window and added one sentence.
“And this is not a simple alliance, but the drawing of a front line.”
Immediately, Oruma and his retainers led the army toward Aqua.
Since they had already attempted to form an alliance with Aqua in the past, Metalum’s territory was oriented toward Aqua.
However, even they discovered an unexpected environment on the road to Aqua.
“What is that?”
Oruma stopped when he noticed something.
Agnon looked at it as well.
“A volcano……?”
There, a tall volcano was dyeing the sky red.
“Could it be Ignis?”
At that, Belkar answered.
“No. But there is no sign of Ignis’s army.”
Oruma also reacted as though somewhat bewildered.
“No matter how chaotically Ignis rampages, this is near Aqua’s territory. There is no way they would have reached this far without fear. Yet how is fire energy lingering here? In any case, we will avoid that place as we move. There is no reason to involve ourselves in unnecessary trouble.”
They continued advancing toward Aqua.
A deep blue sea mist concealed the distant horizon.
When the footsteps of machines reached the edge of the sea, the waves quietly changed their flow.
Oruma came to a halt before Aqua’s border.
Behind him, Agnon, Belkar, and Feron followed silently.
They unfolded enormous metal platforms and quietly entered the edge of the coast.
The water formed a path along those iron plates.
“This should be the place.”
Belkar murmured as he sensed the surrounding energy.
Soon, Aqua’s citizens approached to observe Oruma’s group.
“We are machines, and they are flow. It would be difficult for there to be no sense of rejection.”
Oruma did not answer.
He stared at the quiet waves in the distance.
The moment they reached Aqua’s capital, Nereis, spray rose from the surface of the sea.
Soon, Levian, the Guardian of Aqua’s Currents, revealed himself.
His body swayed faintly like waves, but his eyes were as calm as the deep seabed.
“Emperor Oruma of Metalum, I meet you here. I am Levian, Guardian of the Currents. What brings you?”
Oruma took one step forward.
“Levian. We have not come to ask for an alliance. We have come to propose cooperation.”
Levian’s expression did not change.
But the surrounding waves rippled slightly.
“Is it because of Ignis, as expected?”
“Yes.”
Oruma answered without hesitation.
“That fire attacked without regard for its opponent. We drove them out of our territory, but we need to make matters more certain. So that they never even dare appear before us again.”
Levian looked at the sea.
“A current can change direction at any time. But there must be a reason within it. Retaliation against Ignis is not a sufficient reason.”
“I will prove that reason.”
Oruma answered.
“Our information, your sea currents. The two do not overlap. But if we mesh together, Ignis will not reach you.”
After thinking for a moment, Levian said,
“Please speak directly with our Empress. Wait a moment.”
Levian disappeared beneath the surface of the sea and soon reappeared with Nereia.
Oruma took one step toward her.
They looked at each other without any emotion.
She confirmed once more.
“Oruma? This is unexpected. You have come to us in order to stop Ignis?”
Oruma nodded.
“Yes. Before that fire reaches your currents, we will block the way before you. You and we share a common enemy.”
She quietly asked again.
“Is that what you call cooperation, or is it a shield in your own fashion?”
Oruma answered.
“It does not matter whether it is in our fashion or yours. What matters is the fact that we have the same objective.”
Nereia’s voice was low and clear.
“Do you intend to counterattack Ignis immediately?”
“Yes. We will carry out our revenge ourselves.”
She looked at Oruma with her arms folded.
“Hmm. But attacking Ignis is not urgent for us. We also have no reason to hasten your revenge. What do you wish us to do right now?”
Oruma answered directly.
“We want the cores you use. Of course, we can give you our Metal Cores as well. How about exchanging cores with one another?”
Not only Levian, but also Oruma’s retainers Agnon and Belkar stared at him, seemingly surprised by his unprecedented proposal.
For a moment, a quiet wave rose.
Nereia turned her gaze beneath the surface.
Around her, waves spread outward in spirals.
She slowly opened her mouth.
“Our waves always flow, but that flow is not given to just anyone. Our Wave Cores are not merely consumed as resources; they are also part of ourselves.”
Oruma listened in silence.
He did not understand the emotion in her words, but he knew how to respect their value.
Nereia looked at Oruma again.
“However, if you truly can protect us, I will allow a portion of that flow to stream to you. There will be no negotiation for now. It is only that our flows have touched. If that flow is not severed,
then unity may also be possible.”
Oruma slowly nodded.
“That much is enough. Our steel always fulfills the responsibility entrusted to it. We will prove it soon.”
After the conversation with Oruma ended, Nereia disappeared beneath the surface.
Then the waves covering that place recovered their original flow without the slightest hesitation.
Having returned to the citadel, Oruma sat upon his throne.
Beside him stood Agnon and Crasso, and before his eyes, a vast blueprint was being projected.
“Begin the modification of the citadel.”
“Yes, understood.”
Agnon bowed from directly in front of him.
“By modification of the citadel…… do you mean you have decided to produce a new army?”
Oruma answered.
“Yes. To modify the current barracks, the structure of the citadel must be modified first. Iron grows strong not from the surface, but from its structure. We are remaking that structure.”
Crasso descended to the lower part of the citadel.
A moment later, the dull noise of machinery began spreading from within the citadel throughout all of Metalum.
Woooom…… Rumble……
Iron rotated.
Cogs interlocked.
A massive structure began to move slowly.
The heart of steel had begun a new beat.
“Energy transmission routes, being released. Defensive battery connection lines, readjustment complete. Core assembly chamber has reached ten percent operation rate.”
As each report followed another, Oruma silently gazed into the citadel’s interior.
Then he spoke coldly.
“Fire melts iron? We have already proven that is not true. And we move to prove it once again.”
Woooom…… Rumble……
As the citadel pulsed, Oruma spoke in passing to his retainers.
“The negotiation with Aqua was half a success. I expected that they would not hand over their cores easily, but we obtained a promise. The one Aqua threatens most greatly is likely Terra, yet Terra is not a target we can attack. In the end, what remains is Ignis. As expected, if we attack Ignis ourselves and make its land our own, both Ignis and Aqua will fall into our hands.”
Iron was moving slowly, yet without rest.
And that vibration gradually reached the very center of the earth.