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Last Embryo Volume 5 Chapter 3 Part 5

There is this popular idiom in the Outer World called tit for tat, and that is exactly what has been going on between the two right now. Both You and Izayoi were actually worried about the other’s safety and well-being, but because they worded their worries in a straightforward and direct fashion, they both ended up wounding each other’s pride.

If this was allowed to continue, then that relatively harmless back and forth would definitely tun into bitter bickering, only to ultimately end up going into the property damage levels and Ayato sensed that, therefore she slowly stood up from her seat and was preparing herself to evacuate the problem children’s immediate surroundings, while Uesugi was waiting for the right moment to break in between them and try to somehow defuse the situation before they would try to throw fists at one another, and Homura was all like 「I am impressed at how well you are getting along with one another, Big Bro Iza, Miss Kasukabe.」which actually prompted them to stop arguing and look at him as if he had lost his mind and they would have definitely given him a piece of their minds about such blatant misconception he was apparently having. . . . .

. . . .  but before they could do that, the area of the entire village was pierced by a loud sound as if something ginormous was stepping on te ground, followed by the violent tremors and shaking so strong that it could have probably threatened to collapse the entire village in a matter of seconds.

「「「「. . . . .. . ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?」」」」

Everyone turned their attention to the outskirts of the village, especially Izayoi, who was about ready to jump into action regardless of that the new threat that was apparently approaching might have been.

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *ThumpThump* *ThumpThump* *THUMPTHUMPTHUMP! ! !*

Even though they have yet to see their source, it was clear that the sounds of the steps were gradually getting louder, and that whatever was making them was approaching the village while picking up speed with every step. Whatever that thing was, it was running in the village’s direction like a beast right now. When the village inhabitants also noticed what was going on, they all started panicking and raising distressed screams all at once.

「W-WHAT THE HELL! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ? ? ? ? ?」

「IT IS A TITAN! ! ! ! ! A TITAN IS COMING! ! ! ! ! ! ! !」

「THE RED STEEL GIANT IS ATTACKING! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !」

. . . A Red Steel Giant?

When they heard that very specific description, Izayoi and You’s facial expressions changed in the blink of an eye as they looked at each other excitedly.

「No way. ..  could it be. . . . . . ?」

「Yeah, there is no doubt about it! Let us go meet this thing!」

「. . . ? ? ? ? ? Well, I have no idea what is going on and what is everyone getting so excited about, but we should probably go together with them as well, Lady Ayato.」

「. . . . . Hmm? Oh, n-no, I think I am going to have myself some breakfast first since I have not eaten anything yet! Ahh, and since there is also a lot of preparations to be done before tomorrow, I am going to take care of them as well, so feel free to go on ahead without me!」

Ayato said all of that in rapid succession and then immediately left without giving Homura any chance to respond, which got him thinking why would she act in such a way? Could it be that she does not want to meet whoever was with that Red Steel Giant? In any case, Homura was about to follow Izayoi and You, but then he was promptly stopped by Uesugi who placed her hand on his arm.

「Homura, please, wait a moment. There is still something that I have yet to talk to you about, so I want you to stay here with me for the time being.」

「There is something you want to talk to me about? And what might that be?」

「It is. . . . a very important thing concerning Arjuna.」

Uesugi looked at Homura with a very serious face. He did not know her circumstances, or those of Arjuna himself, but he could definitely sense that it was something genuinely serious, and so he decided to heed Uesugi’s words and stay behind in order to listen to what she had to say to him.

*          *          *

In the meantime, a state of panic continued to spread among the residents of the village.

「U W A A A A A AA A A H H H H H  h h h h h h h ! ! ! ! ! It’s the titans! ! ! ! They finally decided to attack us! ! ! ! ! ! What are we going to dooooooo. . . . .. .? ! ! ! ! !」

「First thing’s first, all of the women and children are to go to the underground shelters immediately! ! ! ! ! And have someone recall all of our flying mythical beasts that went out to hunt before dawn! ! ! ! !」

「B-But. . . . are they really going to be enough to defeat such a gargantuan monster . . . . . . . . . . . ? ! ! ! ! !」

「It is not a matter of whether or not they can defeat it, they simply have to! ! ! ! ! ! ! Because if not them, then who is going to protect us?!!!」

「N U U U U U U O O O O O O O O O H H H H H H ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Come and get some, you bastards!!! We are not going to let you lay even a single finger on our families and loved ones!!!!」

With those kinds of battle cries on their lips, the villager began to attack the Red Steel Giant with their bows, arrows and throwing spears, but no matter how many of them they have thrown, it is never going to be enough to make even the smallest of scratches on the titan’s thick armor plating. And besides, no matter how brave the villagers were and how much fighting spirit they possessed, the threat of being squashed flat under the titan’s heel was enough to make them scatter in every possible direction whenever it was taking another step. This situation was by no means life-threatening, but nevertheless, it presented Kudou Asuka, who was sitting on the Red Steel Giant’s. . . . . . . Deen’s shoulder, with quite a thought-provoking problem to solve as she was pondering on what her next move should be.

「. . . .. Hmm, what should I do now? Moving around in such condition is certainly going to be more than a little problematic.」

「Well, have you considered. . . . . .  well, I do not know, maybe calling this friend of yours off? Because to me, it sure looks like he is the main target of the villager’s attacks!」

「Of course I considered that as one of the available options, but even if I were to call Deen off and send him back to the Gift Card, I seriously doubt if it would improve our current situation in any way. Just look at the villagers. They are clearly scared and confused, so if I make Deen go away, there is always a possibility that they are still going to attack us because they seen us together with him.」