The terrifying defensive capability did not come from the machine's armor itself, but from the AT Field—a field capable of rejecting all attacks, resisting everything, and creating an absolute defensive domain. The defensive performance granted by this AT Field rendered Kira and the others' combined assault completely ineffective.
However, when it raised its AT Field to defend, the space around Unit-01 seemed to distort as well, briefly placing Unit-01 in another phase and leaving it unable to attack for a short time. The interval was extremely brief, so brief that ordinary people would not even notice it. But for top-class pilots like Xiao Ran and Kira, noticing it was no problem at all.
Xiao Ran knew a little about AT Fields, though not much. Explaining them would be troublesome. The simplest standard explanation was that this thing was a kind of wall of the heart, a wall separating oneself from the self and the objective world, as though it completely divided one's very existence from the world.
It was also a corrosive wall. It could be used not only for defense, but also for attack, and seemed capable of contaminating others' minds. Based on that last point, it also explained the warning from his Mental Power ability: do not drag berserk Unit-01 into the Mental Communication Space.
Xiao Ran's gaze shifted reflexively toward the others, who had completely gained the upper hand elsewhere, while keeping everything happening outside within his sight at all times.
When he looked back at berserk Unit-01, Xiao Ran also noticed the problem exposed by everyone's coordinated assault.
"The AT Field isn't merely the one-sided defense portrayed in the anime. It's all-round protection created by an absolute domain. Whether from the front or the back, it's like a sphere protecting the entire machine. But the defensive