Nathan darted from one rooftop to another in an instant. He wielded his plasma blade and focused all in on the target, not minding the civilians below, who were staring at the both of them with intrigue and excitement.
The hidden individual he chased after was ginormous and wore a helmet so that their identity wouldn't be uncovered. They were over 10 feet tall and had even more body mass than him.
They seemed to be wearing a specialized Mechanical Full-Body Armour, which would normally be dangerous for Nathan, Mecha Knight or not, but since the target was running away, it seemed the armour was either faulty or…
"…Even if there was a trap, he won't be able to do much in a packed Cyber City like Zanekin!" Nathan breathed out, "And, I've got Zoom to help as well."
Nathan didn't yet notice that most of his internal systems were temporarily disabled.
The main reason Nathan chased after him was because of the small symbol painted on the side of the mysterious individual's chest, which he glimpsed as he chased after them.
They should be confident in their ability to not get caught as a member of the Salvation Church! I'm only barely managing to catch up to them, and I hardly noticed them at first…!
They hopped onto the metal rooftops of nearby buildings, almost creating large dents as they went, before the hidden member of the Salvation Church stopped, and interacted with a mechanism they were suddenly holding.
All of a sudden, a wave of energy rushed forth from all around the mysterious individual, and Nathan's senses became blurred as the individual rushed back at him, sending him flying directly into a nearby building with a jet-boosted attack.
However, the hidden individual didn't take this as an opportunity to fully run away but instead, as if they were just waiting for an opportunity, they dashed forward towards Nathan rapidly, who had fallen and landed in an alleyway.
"Finally. It's a shame I had to use this mechanism, but I finally caught you." The mysterious individual murmured in a soft, yet also deep voice, clasping an odd metal ball with a small controller protruding from the side.
"…Just so you know, you're a potential target that the Salvation Church asked for me, an executive, to eliminate soon." They said, and it seemed like they were using a voice changer to hide their identity.
"However, I've decided to spare you, for now. It'd be more fun hunting you in an optimal environment for the two of us, right?"
Nathan couldn't do anything at the moment. The jet-boosted attack, sending him flying, had twisted his left leg around so severely that he would most certainly need to get a replacement one. Fortunately, he turned off most of his pain receptors so that he could talk through the pain.
"An… an executive?!" Nathan exclaimed, trying to stand back up, "Why… why the hell would an executive appear in front of me so suddenly?!"
The executive snickered.
"You have no idea… the Salvation Church isn't just a cult… it's a smaller universe to us, made of intertwined beliefs and ideologies. That's why we have become such a massive organisation in the first place."
"And, killing you right here and right now would be too boring. After I set off the first energy ball from this [[Silver Core]] just before you noticed me, you decided to charge after me instead of determining whether that was the right choice in the first place."
So, that's what I felt before I turned around?!
"Ah…" Nathan gasped, feeling his mind tear apart as the Silver Core drew nearer. But, when he turned around before spotting the executive, he noticed that it didn't affect any of the civilians at all. The Silver Core in his hand, just what kind of device was it?
"I intend to fight opponents equally. If it was any other executive, you would have died by now. But, you'll die soon enough anyway. That's the reason why no other information about us has ever been revealed."
The executive grabbed him by the hair and came closer.
"And, just so you know, I enjoy tearing apart fortunate bastards like you. Hah, a Mecha Knight, ey? Since I'm just a Greater Warrior model, without this armour, you'd have defeated me so easily that I wouldn't have had a chance to fight back. And, if we fought equally right now, I still wouldn't be able to guarantee the outcome."
"Or with all the modifications I've received this far from the Salvation Church, maybe I'd have stood a chance. But, since we have long since shed ourselves of the flesh and blood that belonged to us in the old age, there are fewer variables to rely on in a fight."
"Urgh…!!" Nathan said as the executive tugged on his hair harder.
"Which Mechanical Legion are you from? You should be a part of one since you need to have a Royal Knight model, which can only be given to high-ranking members before you can upgrade to a Mecha Knight! Tell me, which one? So that I can send them your corpse!"
Nathan gritted his teeth, and his head began to ache even harder than before. More memories of the past began to appear weirdly, and he could hear a few words spoken by the woman who often appeared in his memories.
…
"Fight…"
…
A ferocity burned bright his Nathan's eyes, one that this executive admired.
"I can almost feel your thoughts." The executive spoke, and Nathan could practically see the grin on their face as they did.
"…But, truth be told, everything that happened just now has a reason. I have an order, to assassinate any threats that pose a threat to us, you see. And you, pose a threat to us." The executive said, pulling out a red electrical-serrated blade from their armour.
"So, quite honestly, I have a good reason to kill you right now. But, I'll save your death for later. We'll have a real battle later on. We'll be meeting in one of the Slave Mines that you're gonna clear up, alright?"
The executive finally let go of his head and walked away.
"Don't bother telling anyone about this encounter. Nobody else noticed me except for you. You can just think of this as a premonition before our eventual battle."
The executive left, and Nathan took this as an opportunity to finally stand up fully and try to fix his leg to the best of his ability.
"Just my luck, running into an executive immediately… I'm an idiot." Nathan muttered, "Why did I think that it was a good idea to hunt down an organization that has more influence than I can probably even imagine?"
Nathan fell back down, backing up into the alley's wall.
"…Hah…."
"…I remember it well too. I always somehow found myself in the worst of situations as a recruit back in the Kalpas Empire. That how I always got to fight against impossibly strong enemies, and how…"
"Huh…?"
Nathan's eyes widened.
"That's how I met [her]," Nathan whispered, suddenly remembering a bit more about this mysterious lady in his memories.
"Huh? Nathan?!"
A voice unexpectedly jolted him out of his thoughts. This voice belonged to none other than Sea-Bird, who was carrying a can of Superbeer, and, strangely enough, with a woman by his side.