Cyberpunk Martial Hero Chronicles

A profound darkness covered the junkyard.

The humanoid’s sudden appearance caused everything to freeze for a few moments.

The REST-MAN stared intently at the humanoid standing atop the hill, displaying bewilderment, caution, and an inexplicable sense of unease.

Facing them, Ash did not look away either, and his turquoise optical sensors glowed intensely.

A brief standoff.

Silence.

Ash’s gaze swept over everyone present before stopping on Akina’s small figure.

He also saw the left arm she had been desperately fighting for.

It would probably be the final piece needed to complete his body.

Suddenly, recent memories flashed through his main core.

The image of that girl leaving the workshop every day and returning much later, covered in dust and carrying all kinds of objects.

Until then, he had simply assumed that was part of her everyday life.

But now.

Seeing her surrounded by those ruffians, trembling like a leaf, he began to think differently.

‘Every time she went out, she risked her life.’

Ash knew a few things about that world.

Not because he had personally experienced them, but thanks to the data cards.

That world, Sanctum, was akin to hell.

A place reminiscent of the Asura Realm of Buddhism, where the law of the strongest and death were part of everyday life.

And that fragile girl had traversed such a place alone.

Worse still, that junkyard that even Sanctum’s own citizens tried to avoid.

Every day.

Risking her life.

To repair him, Ash.

Behind that innocent smile she always showed was an equally profound shadow.

Upon realizing this, Ash let out a brief sigh.

‘Yuanshi Tianzun……’

For the first time since arriving in that world, Ash understood what he had to do.

His gaze turned toward the ruffians.

They all wore a strange symbol near their shoulders.

An emblem formed by interlocking yellow gears.

Although it was the first time he had seen it personally, Ash knew perfectly well what it meant.

[DATA RECALL: R.E.S.T.]

[DATA RESEARCH. . . NOW<<<]

The information stored in his database immediately appeared before him.

//*

R.E.S.T.

Recycle Equipment Support Team.

A private organization authorized by the Sanctum Administration.

It is responsible for recovering the corpses of deceased Pathfinders and collecting the equipment and Cyberware they leave behind, as well as biological organs when necessary, for subsequent recycling.

(That’s what it says officially, but in reality they’re much worse trash! These lunatics even deliberately kill people with minor injuries or sick people to steal their equipment, so be careful if you ever run into them! They’re fucking sons of bitches!)

*//

With Akina’s personal opinions included, it was immediately evident that those men were ruffians capable of provoking the indignation of heaven and earth.

Ash’s optical sensors emitted a cold glow.

Whoosh.

The humanoid, who until then had been looking down at the humans beneath him, leaped from the top of the mountain of waste.

Despite his enormous steel body cutting through the air, he landed without making practically any sound.

“W-what the fuck are you?”

The sinister atmosphere caused the tension to rise.

“I’m asking you what you are, you fucking tin can!”

At the REST-MAN’s shout, Ash did not immediately respond.

He surveyed his surroundings for a few moments.

Finally, he seemed to find something that pleased him and pulled an object from among the waste.

It was a completely rusted metal pipe.

Ash swung it a couple of times before answering the REST-MAN who had just shouted at him.

“I am currently called Ash.”

The situation was absurd.

A humanoid appeared out of nowhere, grabbed a simple pipe, and claimed that the letters [ASH] printed on his own head were his name.

Faced with that unexpected response, the REST-MAN, who until then had remained completely tense, burst into laughter.

“What the fuck are you talking about, asshole?!”

“Hahaha! Did you grab a pipe because you think that counts as a weapon?”

Mockery.

Provocation.

That was all.

However, that laughter did not last long.

Because Ash very slowly began assuming a sword stance with the pipe held in his right hand.

At that instant, a strange and indescribable atmosphere took hold of the junkyard.

A suffocating pressure.

A cold capable of making their legs tremble.

A sharp sensation that made them feel as though their lives could be taken at any moment.

It was bloodlust.

A terrifying killing intent that could only emanate from someone who had spent decades crossing blood-soaked battlefields.

“What the fuck is this? You wanna fight?”

The largest man in the group stepped forward.

At first glance, he seemed fairly ordinary, but he possessed one particular characteristic.

His metallic arms reflected the light ominously even in the middle of that dark alley.

He was a cyborg who had replaced both arms with Cyberware.

“Who are you trying to impress? You fucking piece-of-shit tin can!”

Bang!

When he slammed both hands together, he produced a powerful sound that tore through the air.

However, Ash merely continued observing him exactly as before.

Apparently, that finally enraged the enormous REST-MAN, who began running toward him while hurling all manner of insults.

The distance between them rapidly decreased.

At that instant.

Swish.

A brief, faint sound cut through the air.

The enormous man, who seemed about to bring down his fist, completely stopped all movement.

His eyes were filled with disbelief and bewilderment.

An instant later,

the upper half of his body slid to the ground along the diagonal line of the cut.

He had been cleanly severed in two.

By that rusted pipe they had just mocked.

Had he cut a person……

with a rusted pipe?

“A-Aaagh!”

“This fucking lunatic……!”

After witnessing their companion’s silent death, the REST-MAN hurriedly drew their weapons.

In this case, those weapons were pistols.

“Fire!”

Bang-bang-bang-bang!

A hail of bullets began amid flashes of fire.

However, Ash was no longer there.

His figure seemed to vanish like smoke before he began dodging the bullets with strange and unpredictable movements.

When he seemed to move to one side, he would suddenly appear in front of them.

When he seemed to retreat, in an instant he would slip into one of their flanks.

The strangest thing was that, regardless of the direction in which he moved, his body always remained facing his enemies.

Like a dragon freely roaming through the clouds, his steps were fluid and gliding, yet at the same time unfathomable and unpredictable.

It was the Dragon Form Step.

“What the hell is this?! What the fuck is this?!”

“Hit something, you fucking bastards!”

“Shit, shit!”

The REST-MAN frantically pulled their triggers, but not a single bullet managed to strike Ash’s body.

At a certain point, the gunshots tearing through the air were replaced by hollow clicking sounds.

Click. Click.

They had run out of bullets.

It was time to reload.

And that meant the time had come for the attacker and defender to switch roles.

Ash’s optical sensors glowed.

Unlike the fluid and unpredictable movements he had displayed until then, this time he shot forward in a straight line.

Flying Dragon Chases Lightning.

A charge so fast that it was impossible to follow with the eye, as though he had leaped through space itself.

“Kugh!”

Before he could even understand what had happened, another REST-MAN let out an agonized cry and fell.

The blood that gushed from his body like a fountain stained Ash red.

And that was only the beginning.

The REST-MAN who had been gathered together began falling one after another.

It was a scene difficult to believe even while witnessing it with one’s own eyes.

Before anyone realized it, only one remained.

The yellow-toothed man who had been the first to kick and threaten Akina.

That entire disaster had occurred during a single reload.

“Ugh…… Uaaah……”

The man had been completely stunned by the overwhelming scene unfolding before his eyes.

“M-monster…… He’s a monster……!”

Yellow Teeth instinctively searched for a way to survive.

He desperately looked around until his eyes landed on Akina, who was staring at Ash in complete astonishment.

Now that he thought about it, they seemed to know each other.

Then perhaps he could use her as a hostage.

He reached out toward Akina.

“Hey! Get over here! You damn……”

However, before his hand could touch her, a flash streaked through the air.

Slash!

His right hand went flying through the air along with a fountain of blood.

“Aaaaaagh!”

Ash had appeared beside him without him noticing and swung the bloodstained pipe, cleanly severing his wrist.

“Aaaah, aaaaaagh!”

The man clutched the stump that was spurting blood while screaming desperately.

However, those screams did not last long either.

Ash knocked his head off with a single blow.

A terrible sound of impact echoed out.

Then, the junkyard fell silent.

Traces of the massacre could be seen everywhere.

The scene was so brutal that merely looking at it was enough to send chills down one’s spine.

It was far too cruel and overflowing with killing intent to be considered the swordsmanship of a Taoist from the Kunlun Sect, who were supposedly meant to coexist with the pure energy of Mount Kunlun.

And that assessment was correct.

Ash was not a Taoist.

He was nothing more than a blood-soaked swordsman who had abandoned everything for his revenge.

“……”

Ash stared for a few moments at the pipe from which blood continued to drip, then turned his head.

His cold turquoise optical sensors turned toward Akina.

“Miss Akina, are you all right?”

Upon hearing his voice, Akina involuntarily flinched.

A humanoid completely covered in blood was terrifying.

Ash’s optical sensors flickered slightly as he observed her reaction.

Suddenly, over Akina’s terrified face, a memory from his past appeared like interference.

It had happened when he exterminated some bandits in a mountain stronghold.

Back then, there had also been a terrified girl, exactly like now.

The Kunlun Blood Immortal extended his hand toward the kidnapped young woman.

He told her they should descend the mountain together.

The girl backed away screaming.

— Don’t come near me! Monster!

He had been her savior.

But, at the same time, he had also been the object of her fear.

‘Why am I remembering those days precisely now?’

An inexplicable bitterness invaded Ash’s processes.

Even after arriving in the Underworld, he had not changed at all.

Then,

“Sir.”

Akina spoke.

“You are…… Mr. Ash, right?”

Ash slowly nodded.

“That’s right.”

Suddenly, amid the interference overlaying reality with his memories, Akina’s face rapidly drew closer.

The girl had embraced Ash’s steel body, covered in blood and oil.

“……!”

At that completely unexpected action, Ash felt as though all his systems had stopped.

“Did you come to rescue me?”

“……Something like that.”

“Really?”

“That’s right.”

“……Thank you. I was really scared.”

The girl’s words were sincere.

Even at that moment, her body continued to tremble slightly.

Ash hesitated for a few moments before dropping the bloodstained pipe and gently patting her on the back.

He felt warmth.

Now that he thought about it, it had been an incredibly long time since he had felt anything like it.

Not only in this life, but in his previous one as well.

Faced with that faint warmth, the interference displaying images of his past shattered and disappeared.

Shortly afterward, Akina spoke.

“Sir, what the hell are you?”

“I do not understand the meaning of your question.”

“I haven’t installed any combat software in you yet. How can you fight like that?”

How could he explain that to her?

After thinking for a few moments, Ash replied.

“My body simply remembers.”

“Huh? But I’m the one who installed your body.”

“……That isn’t what I meant. More importantly.”

Ash turned his head toward the mechanical arm lying on the ground.

“Is that my arm?”

“Ah! Right!”

Akina, who was still embracing Ash, quickly pulled away and picked up the mechanical arm.

“This is really expensive. It even has a built-in blade! Would you like to see it?”

The girl clumsily manipulated some part of the mechanical arm.

Then, the back of the arm snapped open and a long blade shot out.

“Isn’t it incredible?”

“……It certainly seems extraordinary. However, where did you obtain such Cyberware?”

“I stole it.”

Ash was left speechless for a few moments.

“Hehe. Let’s get your left arm installed as soon as possible too!”

“……Miss Akina. Wouldn’t it be better for us to leave first? From what I know, those ruffians belong to a rather large organization.”

“Ah, right!”

Akina quickly approached Ash.

“I think we’ll have to abandon the workshop too. It’s a little earlier than I’d planned, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Ash nodded.

“I agree.”

“I know someone. He used to be a fairly important Pathfinder, but now he’s retired and spends his time running a bar. He’s an old man who lives in the Gateway District, so shall we go there first?”

Ash nodded as Akina continued speaking without pause.

“As you wish. However, this Gateway District……”

“Huh? Ah. Right. It’s in Sanctum.”

“Sanctum……”

The junkyard where they were belonged to the outskirts of Sanctum.

Ash involuntarily raised his head.

“That place?”

“Yes.”

Not too far from there.

Enormous structures resembling walls or cliffs formed from light rose endlessly into the sky.

They possessed an overwhelming scale and a strange beauty that could not be compared to any majestic fortress or mountain range.

As Ash gazed at that citadel of light as though spellbound, he felt a faint warmth at his fingertips.

Akina had taken his hand.

When Ash turned toward her, the girl spoke with a certain shyness.

“It’s just that…… I still can’t stop trembling……”

Without saying anything, Ash held the girl’s small hand.

Apparently, that pleased her, because Akina showed a radiant smile.

“Hehe. Then, shall we go?”

“Let’s go.”

A girl and a humanoid.

The two left behind the darkness of the junkyard and began walking toward the city that blazed with dazzling lights of countless colors.

It was still impossible to know where those steps would take them.

But there was one thing that was clear.

They were no longer alone.