MEMELAND

The GFR moved.

Just a single step.

That was all.

Yet the entire warehouse shook.

Metal supports groaned.

Dust rained from the ceiling.

Workers ran in every direction.

Some screamed.

Some froze.

Some simply stared.

The giant machine slowly lifted one leg.

Then brought it down.

BOOM.

The impact traveled through the district.

Outside—

People stopped what they were doing.

Merchants looked up.

Factory workers left buildings.

Pedestrians turned toward the source.

Then came the second step.

BOOM.

And the third.

BOOM.

The warehouse walls cracked.

Massive chunks of concrete broke apart.

The structure simply wasn't designed to contain something this large.

Inside the cockpit, Udit watched the status screens.

A dozen magic displays floated before him.

Power levels.

System temperatures.

Mana consumption.

Structural integrity.

Everything looked stable.

The repaired demon core pulsed behind him.

Blue light filled the startup chamber.

The machine lived.

And it obeyed.

Udit smiled.

"Not bad."

Below him—

Kai looked up.

Then farther up.

Then even farther up.

The thing just kept going.

"What exactly was Noah smoking when he built this?"

Noah immediately pointed.

"To be fair."

"I didn't think anyone would actually power it."

Andre grabbed Noah by the shoulders.

"That doesn't make it better."

"It makes it worse."

Noah considered that.

"...Fair."

The GFR's red eye suddenly shifted.

Focusing downward.

Directly at them.

Kai felt something cold run down his spine.

The machine had noticed them.

A moment later—

One of the giant arms moved.

Mechanical locks disengaged.

Metal shifted.

Panels unfolded.

The claw transformed.

Parts rotated.

Sections extended.

The enormous drill emerged.

Andre stared.

"Nope."

Kai nodded.

"Nope."

Noah nodded.

"Definitely nope."

The drill began spinning.

Slowly at first.

Then faster.

Then faster.

The sound alone hurt.

The ground vibrated.

The warehouse floor cracked.

Udit tested the controls.

The drill swung sideways.

It clipped a support column.

The entire column disappeared.

Not broke.

Disappeared.

Reduced to debris.

The upper section of the warehouse immediately began collapsing.

Kai's eyes widened.

"RUN!"

Nobody argued.

The three sprinted.

Behind them—

The warehouse gave up on existing.

Steel beams bent.

Concrete shattered.

Workers poured out every exit they could find.

The GFR stepped forward.

And burst through the wall.

Sunlight struck its armor.

For the first time—

The entire Manufacturing District saw it.

Silence followed.

Then panic.

Absolute panic.

People screamed.

People ran.

People abandoned carts.

Shops closed instantly.

Factory alarms began ringing.

The giant machine towered over entire buildings.

Its red eye swept across the district.

Watching everything.

The citizens had no idea what it was.

Only that it was huge.

And terrifying.

Inside the palace—

A guard burst into a meeting room.

The door slammed open.

Alice looked annoyed.

Nish looked annoyed.

Raj looked annoyed.

The guard looked terrified.

"Your Majesty!"

Alice sighed.

"What exploded this time?"

"The Manufacturing District!"

Alice blinked.

"...That's a large answer."

The guard nearly tripped over himself.

"There's a giant machine!"

Nish stood immediately.

"A what?"

"A giant machine!"

Alice frowned.

"How giant?"

The guard swallowed.

Then answered.

"Very."

Nobody found that helpful.

A second later—

The palace itself trembled.

Everyone froze.

Then came another distant impact.

BOOM.

Even from here they could feel it.

Alice slowly stood.

The joking disappeared.

The smugness vanished.

The Queen remained.

Nish immediately moved toward the window.

Smoke rose from the district.

Citizens were already evacuating.

Military personnel were mobilizing.

Signal towers activated.

Emergency alarms echoed throughout the city.

Nish looked toward Alice.

"It's real."

Alice nodded.

"I know."

For several seconds she watched the city.

Then spoke.

"Prepare every available unit."

"Evacuate civilians."

"Deploy artillery."

"Deploy mages."

"Deploy everyone."

Nish immediately left.

The room erupted into activity.

Only Raj remained.

Watching Alice.

Watching the city.

Watching the disaster begin.

Meanwhile—

Back in the Manufacturing District—

Kai, Andre, and Noah finally stopped running.

Mostly because they were out of breath.

The GFR continued moving in the distance.

Every step sounded like thunder.

Kai looked toward Noah.

"Can we stop it?"

Noah answered immediately.

"No."

Andre looked at him.

"No?"

"No."

"At all?"

"No."

Andre rubbed his face.

"Fantastic."

Noah pointed toward the machine.

"The armor is too thick."

"The shield system is active."

"The mana amplification systems are active."

"The demon core is stable."

Andre stared.

Kai stared.

Neither liked any of those words.

Then Noah suddenly froze.

His eyes widened.

"Oh."

Nobody liked that.

"What?"

Noah pointed toward the machine's right arm.

The cannon.

The railgun.

Energy began gathering.

Blue light formed around the barrel.

Magic condensed.

Compressed.

Focused.

The air itself distorted.

Kai immediately realized what was happening.

"That's bad."

Noah nodded.

"Very."

The railgun fired.

The world flashed blue.

A beam shot across the district.

Buildings vanished.

Not exploded.

Vanished.

The attack carved a line through multiple city blocks before finally disappearing into the distance.

Silence followed.

Complete silence.

Even Udit looked impressed.

Inside the cockpit he examined the readings.

"Huh."

He leaned back.

Then smiled.

"It actually works."

Far away—

Alice watched the blue beam tear across her city.

And for the first time in a very long time—

She looked genuinely angry.