A Thousand-Person Ruler's Personal Opinion

"You speak."

"After this battle, please let me marry BT-7219!"

Cocolia's smile vanished.

At the same time, the Iron Pilot squad erupted in passionate wolf howls and laughter, with shouts of "Me too! Me too!" echoing.

"No! Next!"

"Sir, I want to marry BT-7232!!!"

"Denied! All similar requests are denied! BT72 is a Titan Mech, a mech, do you understand? Can you be more normal? Also, I could barely understand the men, but why are you female soldiers howling along? BT72's voice system is a female voice, a female voice!"

"But sir, she's a Loli Mech Girl, a Loli Mech Girl!!!"

Cocolia's expression darkened. Amidst the soldiers' jubilant cheers, she began to regret making Anqi's slightly modified original voice the voice system.

"...Koala, after this is over, take them and run back to the base from here. Cool down that perverted hot blood properly."

"Yes, sir!"

Koala said expressionlessly. Throughout it all, only she, the captain, remained serious, showing no interest in joining the fun. One reason was to maintain her cool officer persona, and the other was, well, she was also Anqi, so what was there to get so excited about regarding her own voice?

However, the excitement was ultimately short-lived. After a few minutes of improper behavior, as professional soldiers, the Iron Pilot squad began to focus on the specific details of the battle, raising questions about terrain, temperature, weather, reinforcements, and various other aspects.

Cocolia answered them one by one, adopted some of their suggestions, and made minor adjustments.

Finally, the Iron Pilot squad left their last words, and the remote meeting concluded.

Chapter 42: Anqi: Executing Protocol Zero

"Protocol One: Connect Iron Pilot."

"Neural connection complete, self-check complete, no unit functional disorders or system errors detected."

"Iron Pilot, the Titan is ready. Our God-tier connection synchronization rate has reached 96%."

"Executing Protocol Two: Hold the mission."

The Titans reported their progress to their pilots in unison.

But the first thing the Iron Pilots who received the information focused on were surprisingly similar.

"Hahaha! The synchronization rate has increased again, BT, our hearts are growing closer!"

"Tch! It's not 100% yet?"

"Ura! Synchronization rate is a high 98%!"

Within the Iron Pilot squad, the synchronization rate seemed to be regarded as some kind of numerical value to be competed for and boasted about. Although this small difference actually didn't affect the Iron Pilots' ability to command the Titans as if they were extensions of their own bodies, they enjoyed it nonetheless.

And the Iron Pilots' enthusiasm was not without reason.

Who among the elites chosen by Cocolia Anqi to be an Iron Pilot wasn't forged through the sacrifices of countless comrades, through blood and fire?

For such battle-hardened veterans, on the perilous Honkai Battlefield, a giant robot equipped with firepower, mobility, and super armor, plus a cute intelligent voice system that could be teased, and would even sulk if teased too much – what kind of divine battlefield companion was this?

Comrade + Italian Cannon + Air Support + Remote Fire Support + Protective Fortress + Healing Cute Thing – which soldier could resist this?

Answering these questions makes the Iron Pilots' unusual enthusiasm quite understandable.

Of course, this was also something the Anqis gradually came to understand during the two-month adjustment period.

Since the Iron Pilots treated Titan BT72 as a companion akin to a person, Anqi was naturally willing to treat them as friends.

"Iron Pilot, considering the difficulty of this operation, I suggest: before setting out, do we need to execute Protocol Zero?"

"Huh? What is Protocol Zero?" ×35

"Protocol Zero, delete browsing history."

"****!" ×35

Although their responses varied and were filled with numerous indescribable exclamations, the answer was affirmative.

After this, Anqi could clearly feel that the morale of the Iron Pilot squad had suddenly surged, as if they had cast aside their last worries and charged forward with unwavering fighting spirit.

"Entering the blizzard's influence zone. Satellite vision can no longer assist us. Next, proceed to the pre-assigned areas and disperse to carry out search missions. Locate the target as quickly as possible – don't die, because I'll be dancing in a revealing black silk outfit at the celebration banquet."

"Yes! Captain!" ×35

Listening to their enthusiastic, unified response, Koala unconsciously curved her lips upwards.

Anqi disliked socializing.

Or rather, it was a common problem for a significant portion of their generation: they preferred to stay in a corner, immersed in their own favorite worlds.

However, this group of teammates, who were unruly and had strong personalities when first met, but then shamelessly clung to her after a beating, Anqi found them quite agreeable.

The Honkai disaster was an accident. Even Herrschers couldn't predict its occurrence unless they actively caused it. But sending these veterans directly into a battlefield in the Siberia Region that would require the deployment of all Titan forces to control was, to some extent, a necessity for the Anqis' interests.

Therefore, she would protect them as much as possible.

"As you can see, the entire journey from near PD05 Base to the target operational route took 30 minutes, with an average speed of 5 Mach. This was while maintaining stable flight during the operational meeting discussion phase. At maximum speed, they could easily match intercontinental missiles."

"There has been a generational leap in Honkai Energy reserves. Thanks to this, our designers can unleash their imaginations in terms of firepower, weight, defense, and mobility, as they can carry it all."

"The anthropomorphization of intelligent systems is also a groundbreaking advancement. Even if Dr. Einstein and Dr. Tesla were here, they might not be much stronger than us."

"Don't ask about the technical details. It's highly classified and inconvenient to reveal easily."

"As for other theoretical data and actual effects, the files provided to you earlier covered most of it. Today's battle is the ultimate proof. Everyone, please look forward to this victory, and also consider how much support you can provide to the Siberia Region afterward."

"The disaster struck suddenly, and I still need to arrange other contingency plans. Although I have confidence in Titan BT-72 and the Iron Pilot units, we cannot be careless. After all, the safety of millions of civilians is at stake, so I must take my leave."

Cocolia waved her hand casually, and her image disappeared from the screen, leaving the many Executors with a massive real-time satellite image and first-person combat footage from each Titan BT-72.

Among the connected Executors, several from the Radical Faction appeared calm and composed, as if they were fully confident in this impromptu battlefield demonstration. In reality, they were all itching to talk to Cocolia, thinking, "As we're on the same side, Boss, could you be a bit generous and share it with us?"

As for the Conservative Faction, most of them wore grim expressions. The Titan Autonomy, which served as their protective moat, had been breached, and the extent of the breach was almost unbelievable. Such unfavorable facts were hard to accept. Especially for Dr. Tesla, who still harbored resentment over Raiden Ryoma's downfall, her intended aggressive stance was suppressed due to a lack of hard evidence and the outrageous performance of Titan BT-72. Her expression was incredibly twisted and irritable.

"If all these data are true, I will report Cocolia's contributions truthfully to the Leader and ensure she receives due commendation."

Finally, it was Dr. Einstein, the current representative of the Conservative Faction, who set the tone. They completely abandoned the Changkong City issue they had initially intended to bring up, replacing it with affirmation and praise.

Putting aside the ideological conflicts between the factions for now, Cocolia was, after all, an Executor of Anti-Entropy. Her advancements in Titan technology were a massive contribution that benefited the entire organization.

With this alone, even if Raiden Ryoma were to be vindicated later, even if the Changkong City incident were pinned on Cocolia, the Conservative Faction would have no grounds to criticize her further. After all, it wouldn't be considered slander. Raiden Ryoma did indeed engage in illegal misappropriation of funds, and the Gem of Conquest was initially placed inside Raiden Mei by Raiden Ryoma.

Both factions had their sins; neither could point fingers at the other.

Even the irate Tesla understood that with the appearance of Titan BT-72, nothing else mattered. The Executors would no longer hold Cocolia accountable.

Amidst the chaotic blizzard that obscured the path ahead, Koala smiled with satisfaction.

The pressure within Anti-Entropy has been lifted. Congratulations to myself.

Don't rush. There's one last item. We need to fight this battle beautifully to truly leave the Conservative Faction speechless.

It's up to you, Koala.

Mm, my designation is purely military. Leave the fighting to me and Titan Anqi.

After about twenty minutes of comprehensive search, the Iron Pilot units had discerned the root of the disaster.

It wasn't a single Honkai Emperor on the verge of evolving into an Emperor-class, but a total of seven Emperor-class Honkai Beasts with complementary abilities.

This was actually a fortunate development. Those who had long dealt with the Honkai, whether from Anti-Entropy or Schicksal, understood the qualitative difference between Emperor-class and Honkai Emperor. The former were Upper Honkai Beasts, while the latter were merely Lower Honkai Beasts. It was better to fight a group of Honkai Emperors than to face an Emperor-class Honkai Beast.

"Triangular Formation in position! All other units, clear out threats other than the Emperors and provide support at any time! Everyone in position, let's test their toughness and abilities first!"

"Yes!"

Massive mechs, like white giants traversing the blizzard, converged from different directions. They then formed a three-on-one formation, facing the Honkai Emperors, and revealed the standard High-Energy Bombs on their shoulders.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Continuous bright lights covered the snowy ground, engulfing the advancing Honkai Beast horde.

Clear high-energy reactions appeared on the satellite map, illuminating almost the entire thousand-mile white zone covered by the snowstorm.

Tesla: "Holy shit! What kind of output capability is this? Are there really only 36 units?"

Only those who created weapons truly understood their power. Dr. Tesla was perhaps the one who best understood the unreasonableness of this might.

Neither she nor any of the other researchers paying attention here had expected that Titan BT-72 didn't rely on any groundbreaking energy technology, but on Anqi's Imaginary Gateway.

The Imaginary Gateway was akin to a faucet, connecting to the infinitely abundant Imaginary World. While the Thousand-Person Ruler's faucet had limited output power, it still depended on who it was compared to. In any case, the consumption of most humans and mechs was far lower than Anqi's energy supply efficiency.

Titan Anqi's height of 16 meters was sufficient to house a battery with a substantial capacity and output.

Thus, without overly profound technology, after a few adjustments, a terrifyingly powerful and long-lasting "Energy System" was completed.

Five people in the office have fallen, and I'm getting a bit uneasy. Plus, I have to do at least two people's work alone all week, damn it. Also, I recently discovered that fonts are quite interesting, and I've unconsciously become obsessed with changing them. Ah, beautiful fonts are really super cute, why didn't I notice before?

Chapter 43: Koala's Decisive Action

"Rumble!"

Like thunder, like the wrath of God, the terrifying heat and impact even disturbed the massive snowstorm covering a thousand miles.

On the scorched earth riddled with holes, the medium and small Honkai Beasts that had originally surrounded the seven giant beasts were completely annihilated.

Only the seven Honkai Emperors, some like serpents, some like bears, some like birds, and others of indescribable, bizarre shapes, rose again from beneath the scorched earth. They shook their colossal bodies, as vast as mountains, and looked up at the sky.

In the sky, the 36 snow-white giants retracted their shoulder-mounted bomb launchers. While 9 units spread out to the edges in all directions, the remaining 27 units increased the power of their back thrusters, as if equipped with blue, six-winged wings.

"Hoo—"

Koala gazed at the status data of each unit and let out a soft breath. She said:

"High-Energy Mode requires cooling. All units, engage in melee suppression. Do not let them advance any further!"

"Yes!"

The turbulent airflow seemed to freeze for a moment.

The next second, the 27 Titans plunged into the enemy like light and electricity, attacking the colossal Honkai Beasts in a three-on-one pattern.

"Boom!"

Koala was the first to approach the enemy. Her Steel Armor Iron Fist struck the lower part of the Giant Serpent with unparalleled impact, causing the beast, which had been looking up at the sky, to fiercely arch its body upwards.

Meanwhile, a Titan arrived above, holding a sword in both hands and jamming it into the gaping maw that could undoubtedly swallow a 16-meter Titan's body, forcibly prying open its serpentine jaws.

"Hard scales, huh? Let's see if your insides can take the heat!"

The last Titan hovered high in the sky, aiming silver-gray long shells from the mechanical arm on its head towards the giant serpent's mouth.

"Boom!"

One by one, the shells bypassed the Titan holding open the serpent's mouth and plunged directly into its belly.

The next second, the three Titans tacitly disengaged and moved away from the giant serpent.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

Muffled explosions sounded continuously from within the giant serpent, causing it to writhe and roll everywhere, smashing countless rocky hills. Its mouth spewed flames, smoke, and pained roars.

After the brief explosions ended, the giant serpent, twitching its body, was about to raise its head to deal with these detestable giant insects when it spotted the enemy above.

A pair of huge blue energy wings stretched across the sky, brewing terrifying power, making the giant serpent roar uneasily.

It was Koala, sword in hand, aiming at the giant serpent's head below. Behind her, the other two Titans used all four limbs to brace against the rear of Koala's mech, fully opening their thruster valves. The two wings spanning the sky were formed by them.

"Unit Level 1 Reinforcement! Level 2 Reinforcement! Super Reinforcement!"

Three stages of unit reinforcement modes were activated at once. Koala's Titan's snow-white armor was covered in a faint blue light, and the entire unit's strength reached the current technological and Dominion Authority limit.

"Kill!"

Koala roared, her battle cry filled with a strong killing intent that yearned for death.

The two mechs behind immediately outputted their maximum thrust.

They delivered their attack to the giant serpent's head almost instantaneously. The metal greatsword pierced the serpent's head, and then a terrifying shockwave exploded.

"Boom!"