"Helping you? Ha! Why on earth would I help you? I've told you so many tis—only I get to do high-profile stuff like this. I've waited so long, and I finally caught my chance."
Inside the locker room, Asuka neatly folded her clothes and slowly pulled on her plugsuit, her gaze drifting toward the silhouette outside the curtain.
"Don't overthink it. Your sync rate is a huge notch lower than mine; it'd be useless for you to go down. This is simply the most rational choice for the survival of humanity."
Her tone was arrogant, as overbearing as ever. After a brief silence outside the curtain, a soft voice finally drifted in.
"In any case, thank you."
"What are you thanking for? If you want to thank sothing, thank yourself for being too weak. If you really want to show gratitude, just give good cover later."
Asuka waved her hand as if shooing away a fly. Once the footsteps finally faded into the distance, her expression darkened.
'I am such an idiot!'
Thud.
She punched the locker door. Asuka ran her hands through her hair in frustration. Why was she playing the hero? Wouldn't it have been better to let Rei go down and scout?
Was it because if an accident really happened and she died down there, my conscience would never be at peace? Or was it because those two idiots rely on each other, while a mature, independent, and strong woman like should shoulder the responsibility?
It couldn't possibly be because I saw that idiot looking worried and jumped out to share his burden.
Impossible. I just wanted to steal back the spotlight. Yes, that's it.
Asuka didn't have the answer. She took a few deep breaths and pressed the switch on her left hand—and then, she regretted it even more.
The specialized equipnt inflated like a balloon, making her look like a four-hundred-pound giant. Moving beca incredibly difficult, and her face instantly turned beet red.
"Aaargh, this is so stupid!"
.
.
.
"Operation start. Even though Directive A-17 has been issued, the highest priority remains the survival of Unit-02. Once the Angel shows any sign of movent, transition imdiately to extermination combat."
Shinji sat in the cockpit, expertly subverting the hierarchy. This ti he went even further, altering the mission objectives themselves—yet, oddly enough, not a single voice rose in opposition.
"Understood. Primary objective: ensure the safety of Unit-02."
Misato Katsuragi had also grown accustod to her role as a subordinate. She addressed the staff: "Release the last two subrsibles. Set depth 100 ters greater than Unit-02 and load high-explosive warheads."
"Prepare two extra cables. Increase winch power by 30%. If anything goes wrong, overload the system and pull Unit-02 up imdiately."
"Where are the shock cannons from the St. Creich Institute? Have them transported here quickly. Ritsuko, use MAGI to calculate the power; it must be precise."
"Unit-01, equip G-type armant. Move forward to the crater and standby."
Everything unfolded in an orderly fashion. Shinji trusted Misato's competence; she was like an Astra Militarum tactical advisor—once a goal was set, she would execute it with quality and quantity.
After a short wait, the round, bloated Unit-02 was hoisted over the crater.
"Don't look! Everyone close your eyes!"
Asuka's voice echoed through the comm channel. Seeing the "SOUND ONLY" display, it was obvious the girl felt too embarrassed to show her face.
"What's the big deal? Huge is beautiful; bulk is truth. Right now, Unit-02 looks even better than before."
"Shinji! Are you mocking at a ti like this?!"
"I'm telling the truth. How is that mockery?"
Shinji looked innocent. In the 40th Millennium, size equated to combat power. Setting aside the difference between an Astartes and a Primarch, it held true even among mortals.
"Is... is that really true?"
"Of course it's true. It just needs the paint job modified and a few more ornants added."
"So it is still ugly!"
Asuka angrily cut the transmission. She found Unit-02 already suspended on the gantry; the feeling of hanging in mid-air made her heart tighten. Looking at the bubbling magma beneath her feet, her eyes twitched nervously.
'This is insane.'
She was well aware that the evolution of the Angels had multiplied the existing risks several tis over. But turning her head to see Unit-01 following behind, her heart rate cald significantly for so reason.
'Phew. With this guy here, it'll be fine.'
"Laser positioning set. Asuka, are you ready?"
"No problem. I have a cold anyway; maybe taking a hot bath will cure instantly."
Misato was silent for a mont before saying sincerely, "You are braver than I imagined. Winch start. Lower Unit-02."
Whirrr—
The sound of the electric motors ca through. The EVA began its descent. Before even making contact with the viscous magma, sweat beaded on Asuka's forehead, yet she tilted her head high.
"Shinji, look, look!"
"Hm?"
Unit-01 peered over the edge to see Unit-02 spreading its legs as if walking through space.
"The Giant Stride entry! Isn't it cool!"
.
.
.
Shinji watched Unit-02 subrge into the magma until only roiling bubbles remained. He was silent for a long ti before shaking his head.
'Among the trio, you really are the most childish one.'
A bundle of contradictions; her emotions were always exceptionally intense and erratic. One mont she was nervous, the next she was optimistic, yet her stubbornness was as hard as ceramite. If anyone dared call her a child, she'd likely explode on the spot.
"Asuka is a good person. She went down because she was worried about ." Rei also watched quietly.
"Oh? I thought you two didn't get along."
"There are so conflicts, but Asuka is very kind. She just refuses to lose with her words." Rei gazed at the magma, silent for a mont.
"The Class Rep says this kind of personality is called Tsundere."
'Tsundere?'
Shinji's eyes lit up. Recalling all their interactions, the evaluation was incredibly fitting. That Hikari Horaki was sothing else—she seed to understand everything.
"You are both indispensable partners. No matter who goes, I won't let anything happen to you."
Shinji turned serious, linking his comm channel to the command center to hear the reports from Maya Ibuki and the others.
[Current depth 200. Descent speed 23. No anomalies.]
[Switching to CT monitor. Transparency 120.]
[Depth 600.]
[Depth 900.]
[Depth 1020. Exceeded safe depth.]
Through the comms, he could hear the groaning of "water pressure." A kiloter underground, the pressure of the magma was terrifyingly high; every second spent there was an ordeal.
[Depth 1200. Reached designated coordinates. Scanner searching... no target.]
"What's happening?" Shinji frowned.
"It's likely magma convection; the target isn't at the original coordinates. Should we continue?" Misato asked. With Shinji around, she felt she didn't have to violate her conscience to do certain things anymore.
"Continue, continue! I went through all this trouble to get down here; let's get this over with. I need a bath." Asuka's voice betrayed no hint of tension, as if she really were just soaking in a hot tub.
"Don't push yourself. Unit-02, temporarily halt descent."
"Huh? Are you kidding ? We're already so close."
Shinji ignored her little temper. After thinking for a mont, he ordered: "Send the unmanned subrsibles down first. Scan the target, then send the coordinates to Unit-01."
"The unmanned subrsibles have a maximum limit of 1600 ters. They could be crushed at any mont and might see nothing."
"It doesn't matter. I only need rough coordinates."
What good would that do? Unit-01 couldn't perform deep-sea detection.
Misato hesitated, suddenly noticing that Shinji had changed. She rembered when they first t; the boy had been much more ruthless than her. To achieve a mission objective, he wouldn't have cared about his own life—now, he was actually worrying about Asuka.
"Do as he says."
As a Librarian, one should plan the most efficient battle strategy for the warriors, rembering that "Knowledge is Power." While destroying the enemy, one must minimize casualties among Chapter brothers.
The words of his Captain from his neophyte days echoed in Shinji's mind. The Blood Ravens always prioritized intelligence and never acted recklessly—unlike so Chapters who didn't care about casualties and believed in "blood-trading" tactics.
If a plan could complete the mission with higher efficiency and lower overall cost, anyone could be sacrificed. If not, preserving combat strength was the highest priority.
Thus, while Shinji might have been sowhat worried about Asuka, it was more about his bone-deep combat habits.
[Unmanned subrsibles reached maximum depth. Scanner power at maximum. Target acquired. Calculating convection...]
Amidst the screeching of twisting steel, Shinji received the data. He looked at the transmitted numbers, deep in thought.
1850 ters. A very awkward depth.
"The limit for the thermal suit is 1600 ters. If we increase the injection of coolant, we could theoretically last until 1850 ters. We could release the capture equipnt then."
Ritsuko Akagi analyzed the data, sweat breaking out on her forehead. This was like walking a tightrope. A treasure chest sat at the other end; a trained acrobat had a chance to reach it, but also a chance to fall into the abyss.
"Should we continue?"
Naturally, she wanted to continue. Compared to the gains of capturing a live Angel, the loss of Unit-02 was an acceptable price. Wasn't that what the EVAs existed for?
Misato's face was full of struggle, her conscience warring with her duty. She truly couldn't bring herself to use Asuka as cannonball fodder. Fortunately, she didn't have to make the decision anymore.
"Shinji, what are your thoughts?"
Without using any psychic seeds, this Operations Director had truly beco a puppet on a string. Even the silence over the comms made her heart race.
"Shinji?"
"Do not disturb ."
The cockpit's monitoring system had long been routinely deactivated. Pale psychic fire burned in the boy's eyes, acting like an invisible blade, plunging into the roiling magma and extending toward the coordinates.
Psychic sensing didn't care about pressure; it just consud too much energy. One had to know that in this world, the barrier between the positive and negative universes was incredibly solid. A psyker couldn't replenish energy as easily as before.
But this still surpassed all human technology. Without Shinji, the subrsibles had reached their limit, leaving no choice but to let Unit-02 continue—and human greed required no choice at all.
What were EVAs? Except for Unit-01, they were all expendable fodder, just slightly more precious than the UN forces.
'Found it.'
Using the coordinates as a bridge, Shinji seed to see a massive black egg. Its shell was enough to block all scans; only by holding it in Unit-02's hands could they observe the interior.
Fortunately, Shinji didn't need a scan. He only needed to concentrate his psychic power and make contact—
"Abort the plan. Change objective from capture to destruction. Pull Unit-02 up imdiately.
This Angel... was never asleep!"
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