On that day, there was an announcement at Schreiber Castle
big enough to disrupt the king's conference.
This is a a top-secret class 1 message from the Alchusaile Gap Fortress.
A huge horde of shellcased is heading for Alfheim.
What?
What about the Guardian Knights, the Aruvans?
They've established a defensive position,
and will defend Alfheim to the death!
Shellcased...
A type of demon beast whose body is covered in a huge shell.
Similar to bees or ants,
they have a single queen shellcase in the horde which does the breeding.
Rarely, multiple queens can exist within one horde.
In that case, the horde splits.
And in the path of one of these hordes was Fremmevilla's
most secret and inviolate place, Alfheim.
What am I about to tell you is highly classified.
Alfheim, the target of the shellcased,
is where our nation's Ether Reactors are made.
The Ether Reactor is a device that takes in ether from the air,
and converts it into mana.
You could say it's the heart of a Silhouette Knight.
Where the Ether Reactors are made?
If that place is wiped out...
It will be impossible to build Silhouette Knights in Fremmevilla.
That can't be allowed to happen!
We will leave immediately to defend Alfheim and wipe out the demon beasts!
Order of the Silver Phoenix, roll out!
Ernie's on fire!
Chapter 8:
Allen! Tod!
How dare you!
Philia, calm down!
Don't waste mana!
There're too many of the damn things!
Junf, Philia, get back!
I'll handle this!
Don't be stupid!
You can't handle them on your own.
Earnes and the others are at the fort.
If we can buy time,
they'll strengthen their defenses and stop the demon beasts!
That's right!
This is worth risking our lives for!
Reinforcements?
That's...
The Order of the Silver Phoenix has arrived!
Charge!
Break right through the horde of shellcased!
Roger!
Here we go, Kid!
Company 3, prepare to open fire!
Clear out the demon beasts in front of the commander!
The Order of the Silver Phoenix?
They came to help?
It's the Golden Lion's first fight!
I'll show you how sharp my new sword is!
Blast Howling!
Did you see that?
Wait, my mana pool's almost out!
Well, that's what's required to maintain that power...
Ernesti, leave this to us.
You find the queen.
Go have fun!
Thank you very much for your kindness!
Dietrich, we're shutting that thing down!
Roger!
Company 2, charge!
This mobility, and the power to use two swords at once...
The new unit's name, Guairlinde, isn't just for show!
Don't think you can break through the shield of Earldilandecumber!
The new white and crimson mechs are Dietrich and Edgar, huh?
They look totally different than they did during the mock battle.
Company 3, split apart the shellcased horde!
This has turned the tide of the battle.
Now, if we can only defeat the queen,
the remaining shellcased will be easy prey.
Ernesti, I'm counting on you!
So we get to meet a queen, huh?
I hope she's pretty!
Don't be stupid, Kid!
From now on, we use Type-3 Equipment!
Roger!
The Type-3 Equipment is incredible in a real fight, huh?
It's because of the power of the Toybox.
Just like the Tzendolg,
it's carrying two Ether Reactors.
Of course, I just loaded it with a bunch of different types of equipment I came up with,
so it's hard to say that I'm using it to its full potential.
It's Ernie's personal toybox, isn't it?
Hey!
What was that for?
Look!
Is that Her Majesty?
It's huge!
It's the size of a behemoth!
We'll concentrate our attacks on the legs!
Roger!
Let's give up on the legs!
R-Right!
What do we do, Ernie?
Let's just aim for its weak spots!
Now it's mad!
This speed was unanticipated.
You two keep running around!
What will you do?
I'm going to go take a better look at the queen's face.
My, oh my.
It's an honor to meet you, Your Majesty.
But...
I won't let anyone interfere with my ambitions,
even a queen!
Checkmate!
Did you get her?
He did, he did! Ernie wins!
No, the Order of the Silver Phoenix wins!
Hey, help me over here!
Right!
They're already having us run around, and we just got here.
What's wrong with that?
Nothing wrong with making these people owe us favors.
Thank you.
I guess you grew up fast, huh?
No, it's just like it was during the mock battle.
If you'd been in these new units,
you could've fought the same way.
Really?!
You defeated first a behemoth, and then a queen shellcased.
And then there are all of the new mechs you've made.
That's more than enough.
Just as I said in that promise I made,
I will give you the Ether Reactor's construction method.
Okay, tell me right now!
No, only those in Alfheim Village know it.
And only those granted admittance by the ambassador may enter.
The ambassador?
Thank you for saving Alfheim.
In accordance with the laws of the land and His Majesty's order,
I will take you to our village.
All weapons are forbidden past this point.
By the way, Ernesti,
how old do I appear?
Mid-20s?
Nope.
I'll be 87 this year.
We are the descendants of the Secret Ones,
the Alvs, who pass on the ways of magic and skill.
We live quietly in places like Alfheim.
There are those of us who become ambassadors
and act as bridges to the Changing Ones outside.
But we're considered strange.
By the way, I don't know how to make an Ether Reactor.
I can take you there,
but I can't guarantee that you will learn the secrets.
Because...
I don't care!
I'll hear it all,
research it all,
take it all apart,
try it all,
and if it doesn't work, find a way around it.
And if it still doesn't work,
I'll just give up!
But first, I need to hear everything!
He won't give up that easily on his hobbies.
So it seems.
I didn't even have time to tell him what we always say,
which is, "Because only the Alvs can do that."
Why do the Alvs live in a secret village like this?
We live for around 500 years.
So we can get very lazy.
For the first hundred years of our lives,
we're no different than the Changing Ones,
but after 200 or 300 years of life,
we lose our energy and interest in what's around us,
and eventually spend our time in sleep and thought.
It's been so long, Great Elder Kitley.
Not that long.
But Ambrosius, you've grown very old.
I've heard the report.
The murmurs of evil have vanished.
I am grateful.
It was nothing.
It was part of our laws.
You would know the secret ways?
He would.
I'm Ernesti Echevalier!
It is hopeless.
No Changing One has ever learned the ways.
No matter your talent, you are still a Changing One.
You lack the time.
No matter how you try,
you will not reach our heights.
Don't decide that so quickly.
He made a Silhouette Knight move without a Magius Engine,
and defeated a queen shellcased on his own during this last battle.
Child!
Yes?
Very well.
Ambrosius...
In accordance with the laws, I shall grant your request.
I shall grant all the knowledge of the Alvs you desire.
I am grateful.
Though it feels like I'm forcing it on you.
Thinking is the most valuable thing for us.
We simply saw the value in one another.
Then what should I tell you first?
All of it!
Every last thing!
The whole kit and caboodle!
An Ether Reactor is, at its core, the heart of a living thing.
It absorbs the ether in the air around it,
and turns it into mana
that gives it power.
And the core of that exchange is the catalyst crystal.
I thought catalyst crystals changed mana into magical power.
Indeed.
But under certain special conditions,
they can turn ether into mana.
And there are two things needed for that.
The first is a special script.
And the other is blood.
Blood?
It's said the original Ether Reactors were
giant silver vessels carved with vast emblem graphs,
and filled with the blood of living things.
But they were of no practical value.
So an ancient sage used what is now known as alchemy
to create this elixir, which you could call artificial blood.
Next is the script.
What's needed is an incantation to carve the pulse of life into the reactor.
We call this the "Life Song."
But the Life Song is such a huge script that
the silver vessel required would be larger than the Silhouette Knight itself.
And so we use this mythril,
which allows for incantations to be carved into it at an extremely high density.
It's extremely strong,
so that even dwarves can't do anything with it,
but in the hands of we Alvs... well, look.
It's hard, isn't it?
Yes.
But mythril responds to a certain type of magic,
and transforms into something soft like clay.
Is that because...
We Alvs have catalyst crystals inside us, just like demon beasts,
which let us use magic.
And thus we can use magic to refine mythril.
That is why only the Alvs can create an Ether Reactor.
The Changing Ones lack the power to weave the Life Song
while using multiple types of magic to refine the mythril.
How is the power of the reactor determined?
The size of the catalyst crystal
and the efficiency of the etheric transformation.
Catalysts taken from larger and more powerful demon beasts
are bigger and more efficient,
and thus more powerful.
It's that simple?
But tuning them is extremely difficult.
Thus, for mass-produced units,
we use catalyst crystals that were mined,
which may be less powerful, but are more stable.
Yes, if your goal is mass production!
But if you wanted to have your own unique special Silhouette Knight,
you'd use something else, right?
A catalyst crystal taken from a more powerful and larger demon beast!
Your Former Highness, I know just the Demon Beast that qualifies...
Strange. So do I.
But only the Alvs can create the reactor.
How will you overcome this?
I've already got an idea.
Very well.
The victories were yours to begin with.
The hearts of the behemoth and queen shellcased are yours to use as you wish.
Thank you so much!
To master the Ether Reactor creation method,
Ernesti remained in Alfheim.
Ambrosius told the Order of the Silver Phoenix, but...
If Ernie's not coming back,
I'll wait here, too!
He is our commander!
Please give us permission to wait here.
As you like.
Take care of that boy and his hobbies.
Right!
Ernie learned.
What was once only a dream was now within his hands.
His passion and the speed at which he learned were amazing,
astonishing even the Alvs.
And so amazingly, in only three months,
Ernesti learned all of their secrets.
Thank you for everything.
Child,
you are one of the Changing Ones, and yet you know different laws than they do.
If you live long,
you and I shall meet again.
Hey!
Addy!
Ernie!
Hey!
Welcome back!
Silver-haired boy!
Hey, Ernesti!
Welcome back!
And so Ernesti returned to Fort Orobesius,
and at last began to work on his dream of his own Silhouette Knight.
Hey, Bat.
Wouldn't this be more efficient if we connected pipe I-12 to H-6, do you think?
Boss, that's the tenth time you've fiddled with that spot!
Do you know where Ernie is?
The usual spot, right?
I see.
Roger.
A disturbing rumor is being spread among the Occidents.
One of those nations may be making big moves soon.
Does that have something to do with those raiders?
It's possible.
Understood.
If it gets more disturbing, let me know.
The commander's inside.
Farewell.
Wait!
The two of you, um...
Earlier, too...
What were you talking about?
When you want to talk to Ernie, you should go through his aides, me or Kid.
Don't worry.
I won't be going after Sir Ernesti.
I am Nora Frykberg, a spy from the Order of the Azure Hawk.
I'm here as part of a mission.
I was alone with Sir Ernesti as part of that mission.
The only person other than him who knows who I am is you.
Keep it a secret, okay?
Ernie!
Addy, I'm sorry,
but when you put your hands over my eyes, I can't see anything.
Hey, once this is done, let's go have fun somewhere!
That sounds good!
Let's invite Kid and Bat!
Not like that...
And...
Lower it in slowly!
Scratch it, and I'll make sure you regret it!
The intake and outtake pipes are attached!
The Silver Nerves are connected!
Thank you!
Primary converter reactor "Queen's Coronet"
and large reactor "Behemoth's Heart," both activated.
Activation sequence clear.
Mana intakes to all parts normal.
Adjusting error margins for range of motion and output calculations.
Reactor speed ratio: 2% and rising.
All values normal!
Happy birthday, my robot!
Awaken, my partner!
Ikaruga
Ikaruga!
Next time: "Force & Justice!"
Chapter 9:
The Ikaruga is calling me!