“Hah… hah… My body… I can’t put any strength into it.”
Nova lay sprawled on her back atop the train roof, struggling to breathe.
The aftermath of the violent clash was weighing down on her entire body.
Part of it was that she had been tense, this being her first battle of its kind, but even so, she couldn’t help wondering if it was possible to be so exhausted that she could barely move a finger.
Noticing Nova’s condition, Stella delivered a painfully accurate assessment.
『Even if I did lend you my strength, you got stronger so suddenly that your body couldn’t adapt. Well, that’s something you’ll get used to quickly if you transform often enough.』
“Ugh… But like this, I can’t fight.”
『You don’t have to worry about that. Deviant can’t fight anymore.』
Immediately after, something engulfed in pitch-black smoke fell off the track beside the train, then exploded in a dazzling burst of light.
The train shook briefly from the impact, but there were no other problems.
It had happened so quickly that she hadn’t seen it clearly, but she could vividly remember that it had been a lump of white metal.
“Deviant… Did I defeat him?”
『Yes, Nova. You defeated him.』
“Ah……”
She had wondered what she would do if, by some chance, the bastard was still fine, but only after hearing Stella’s firm assurance was Nova finally able to relax.
She had won. She had defeated that terrifying villain.
Nova, who had always been called a mediocre B-rank hero, had defeated him.
“Hehe… I really… won……”
Though she had borrowed Stella’s power, Nova quietly closed her eyes, savoring the joy of victory she was feeling for the first time.
Now that the villain had been defeated, there was nothing left to worry abou—
“Wait a second.”
Nova’s eyes flew open just as they were about to close, and she sensed something strange in the train’s speed, which still hadn’t decreased.
“What’s going on, Stella? Why isn’t the train stopping!”
Contrary to Sigma’s words that he would stop the train if she defeated his subordinate, the speed showed no sign of dropping at all.
Wondering in panic if the bastard still hadn’t been defeated, she hurriedly asked, but Stella was firm.
『Deviant was defeated. You saw that explosion just now.』
“Then why……”
[Crackle— Hero Nova. Can you hear me?]
At that moment, a familiar voice came through her in-ear.
“Chairman? Yes, I can hear you!”
[Whew. I’ve been trying to contact you continuously, but thankfully, we’ve connected.]
The voice over the comms was none other than the chairman she had met the day before yesterday.
Since the call was from the chairman himself, of all people, Nova hurriedly began explaining the current situation.
“Please listen, Chairman! Just now, the train seems to have had its control taken over by Sigma……”
[There’s no need to explain. I already know the situation to some extent.]
“Yes? You know?”
Nova, who had no way of knowing she was being broadcast, was briefly flustered, but the situation was too urgent for her to ask.
“Then this will be quick! Yes, just now I defeated Deviant—I mean, the villain—but the train isn’t slowing down at all! Is there anything you can do remotely from your end?”
Nova thought that, at the very least, someone like the chairman, unlike herself, would surely know a way to stop the train.
Surely he, surely the Association, would find some method—she hoped.
But that hope was soon shattered.
[…I’m sorry, but there is no way.]
“What…? Wait, what do you mean……”
[We’ve mobilized the Association, the police, and hackers, but we have not been able to gain control.]
Then, after a brief pause, the chairman spoke in a heavy voice.
[Even if we do regain control, it will be too late.]
“Too late……?”
Nova felt her heart drop.
She wanted to deny it, but even Nova had no choice but to realize what he meant by “too late.”
[The train’s current speed has exceeded 120 kilometers per hour and is approaching 130. At its current speed, it will crash into the end of the track in five minutes.]
“W-wait a minute! If it can’t be controlled, isn’t there a hero who can forcibly stop the train? There are so many heroes stronger than me. A train should be……”
[There may be a few heroes like that in the world, but at least in our country, there is no hero capable of stopping a train weighing hundreds of tons as it runs at 130 kilometers per hour.]
“……”
At the chairman’s cold answer, Nova was momentarily at a loss for words.
“…Then what happens to the train? To the citizens inside the train?”
[Regrettably, you must give up. Hero Nova, you should also escape quickly before the train crashes.]
At those words, Nova shouted in an agitated voice.
“Give up? How can you tell me to give up on the citizens! If we can’t protect people, then what makes us heroes, and what makes you an Association!”
[Calm down, Nova! It’s not as if we don’t want to save them! But what can we do when there is no way!]
“I don’t want to hear it! If you can’t save them, then I’ll save them myself!”
Nova shouted and forcibly cut off the communication.
Since she had done it to none other than the chairman himself, she might face disciplinary action, but right now, none of that was in Nova’s mind.
Breathing roughly from excitement, she turned to Stella on her wrist and asked for help.
“Stella, help me. No matter what, I want to stop this train!”
『Hah, are you out of your mind? Even if I lent you my strength and made you stronger, this is something that goes beyond physical limits!』
She knew that. No matter how much stronger Nova had become, defeating a villain and stopping a moving train were two entirely different things.
Even so, Nova’s gaze was more desperate than ever.
“Please, Stella. Isn’t there any way? I want to save everyone.”
Nova herself knew very well that it was an unreasonable request. She knew she was being stubborn.
Because no matter how powerful an OOPArt was, there were things it could do and things it could not.
But right now, the only being Nova could rely on was Stella.
If she let go here, the citizens inside the train would lose their lives in vain.
『…….』
Seeing Nova’s desperation, almost excessive in its intensity, Stella remained silent for a moment.
『…It’s not as if there’s no way at all.』
“! Stella!”
Nova’s complexion brightened in an instant as she found hope, but in contrast, Stella’s tone was more serious than ever.
『Listen carefully, Nova. Just as Deviant used the Core Relic-Accel earlier to activate the power of acceleration, I also have my own unique ability.』
“Your own unique ability?”
『Yes. I don’t know whether it will work or not, but if we use my ability, Record… we might be able to stop it.』
“Tell me in detail.”
With a serious expression, Nova focused on Stella’s words.
『My unique ability, Record, can store the abilities of opponents we have defeated and manifest part of that power as armaments.』
“The abilities of opponents we’ve defeated? Then that means Deviant’s just now……”
『Yes, that’s right. With his ability, there should be a chance.』
@
“Whew……”
Letting out a deep breath, Nova forced her screaming body to move.
The muscles throughout her body felt as if they were burning, but she could not stop.
『Hurry, Nova! There are less than two minutes until impact!』
Just as Stella said, time was by no means on their side.
She was in a state where it would not have been strange for her to collapse onto the floor at any moment, but Nova gritted her teeth, took out the Nova Magnum, and aimed at the train’s coupling.
Hiss. Blue particles condensed at the muzzle, and the charged energy soon burst forth all at once, shattering the metal ring.
With this, the first car of the train, where the engine was attached, and the second car were completely separated.
However, simply dividing the cars did not mean the speed of the rear cars would decrease.
That much was obvious even without scientific knowledge.
Even so, there was no disappointment or negativity on Nova’s face.
“You’re sure there’s really no one in the engine room, right?”
『I’ve scanned it over and over, but there isn’t so much as an ant. This era is all about automation and AI, cutting down on manpower, so I guess train operators were included too. Honestly, relying too much on machines never leads to anything good.』
Nova had the sudden urge to say that Stella was a machine too, wasn’t she, but she immediately pushed the thought away.
From this point on, not even the slightest error would be allowed. It was a moment that required nothing but focus.
“I’m ready, Stella!”
『All right, Record Manifestation!』
Along with Stella’s shout, the blue core on Nova’s chest emitted light.
Dazzling particles of light poured from the core and gathered around Nova’s legs, beginning to take shape.
[Record Manifestation. Boost Leg equipped.]
The moment the system voice ended, heavy white armor overlaid Nova’s sleek legs.
Turbo engines in the same shape as those of the Accel Unicorn she had fought to the death against just moments ago began warming up with a mechanical hum.
Whoooooosh!
Energy that seemed ready to explode at any moment looked as if it would burst toward the exhaust ports attached to her legs.
Originally, they were engines meant for acceleration, but what Nova was trying to do now was the exact opposite.
『Get ready, Nova. The aftereffects are going to be brutal in more ways than one, but you brought this on yourself, so deal with it!』
“That’s exactly what I want!”
Leaving behind the separated first car as it drew farther away, Nova firmly grabbed hold of the body of the train’s second car.
“Here I goooooo!!”
At the same time as Nova’s cry, like a final scream, a massive amount of flame erupted from the white exhaust ports attached to her legs.
Thanks to Stella’s power, her original physical enhancement had become comparable to the higher-level ability Super Strength, allowing her to forcefully withstand the recoil of the reverse thrust pouring out.
As a result, she was able to clash head-on with the train’s enormous inertia and mass.
Vroooooom—!
With a roar that tore through the air, the train’s speed began to change visibly.
The distance from the first car, which had been moving away without losing its acceleration, widened in an instant.
But there was no time to feel relieved. Before long, flames shot up ahead along with a tremendous crash that struck her eardrums.
It was the signal that the first car had hit the wall of the terminal station and exploded. In other words, the end of the track was right before their eyes.
“Uaaaaaaaagh—!!”
At last, Nova grabbed the front of the train and planted her own feet directly onto the tracks, forcibly applying the brakes.
Before she knew it, the flames erupting from the exhaust ports had gone beyond pure white and were bursting out like blue fire.
Even with transcendent strength, the propulsive force of the boosters, and braking with her entire body added together, the train, sliding forward at dozens of kilometers per hour, showed little sign of stopping.
『Damn it, it’s no use! We’re about to crash! Run, Nova!!』
“I’ll never give up!!”
『You idiot—!!』
Even amid Stella’s scream-like shout, Nova’s eyes were wide open as she put even more strength into her legs.
The barrier at the end of the track loomed so huge it filled her vision.
Until impact, there were—
5 seconds.
4 seconds.
3 seconds.
2 seconds.
1 second.
And then—