For a long time before this, because Xiao Ran had lacked a suitable machine, he had been forced to develop slowly in the most restrained manner possible, keeping his head down and avoiding unnecessary risks. He had rarely taken the initiative to involve himself in too many events. Nearly every choice he made had been the safest one, following the flow of events while gathering forces he could use. Overall, his main strategy had been to stall until the Special Dispatch finally manufactured the machine he needed.
Now, Pendragon had proven its overwhelming strength on the battlefield. Under Xiao Ran's control and combined with GN Particles and GN Dragoons, it had displayed an absolute crushing advantage against Participants. At last, Xiao Ran possessed the strength to confront and defeat Participants head-on. And by Participants, he did not mean individual Participants, but the entire collective—their every Legion.
Before Pendragon appeared, Xiao Ran had not possessed such capabilities. Even an S-class Pilot could not possibly fight in the flesh while under the deliberate encirclement and extermination of Participant Legions. Using his own body against machines such as Mazinger Kaiser or Soul Reaver would leave him with only one option if they truly faced off: running away. A continuous barrage might not kill Xiao Ran, but Xiao Ran would not be able to kill his enemies either.
If word got out that Xiao Ran was a Participant—and a pilot with Mythical-level strength despite having no machine—he would absolutely become the focus of every Participant Legion. Participants from opposing factions would certainly devote all their strength, regardless of cost, to suppressing every possible chance for Xiao Ran's growth. They would sacrifice however much they needed to in order to eliminate him outright, because once Xiao Ran acquired an appropriate machine, they would no longer