A Rider Doesn't Need a Youth Romantic Comedy [18]

“Damn it, what the hell is that thing?”

Inside a factory on the outskirts of Chiba, the manager nervously peeked through the window, watching a sparrow-shaped sculpture rampaging wildly.

Yes, in his eyes, it was simply a moving statue.

“That isn’t something you need to concern yourself with.”

A young man holding a tablet lightly patted the manager's shoulder, gesturing for him to return to his office.

Shrugging helplessly, the manager did as instructed and went back to sit quietly. Before leaving, he casually glanced at the back of the young man’s tablet.

It bore a symbol resembling a sniper rifle’s scope.

Once the manager had entered the office, the Chaldea researcher immediately contacted the Nine-Tailed Fox squad.

Though short-handed, there was still one squad available.

“Nine-Tailed Fox will arrive in three minutes. Rōma arrives in one minute.”

Hanging up, the researcher muttered to himself.

Though the higher-ups always treated Rōma as someone needing protection, in the eyes of regular personnel like himself, Rōma’s combat ability was practically legendary.

Even soldiers equipped with standard Chaldea-developed exoskeleton armor couldn't match him in direct combat.

With someone like him here, there shouldn’t be any problems.

Thinking that, the researcher let out a slight sigh of relief.

Normally, as an E-Class member, he wouldn't be privy to such detailed intel.

But he was an exception. Having passed all necessary internal tests, his promotion to C-Class was merely awaiting official paperwork.

Thus, a few minor details were no longer kept confidential.

For example, the new generation of standardized exoskeleton armor was nearly ready. It would likely become standard issue around the time he assumed his new role.

...

Exactly one minute later, Rōma arrived at the factory as scheduled.

“Thank goodness, you’re finally here.”

Seeing Rōma appear, the researcher finally relaxed the tension he’d been holding.

In the past minute, the sparrow statue’s aggression had escalated sharply.

Its offensive capabilities weren’t particularly strong—one properly equipped Task Force team would be sufficient for containment.

The problem was, they were just a few external personnel with no real fighting power.

Among them, their strongest fighter was a clerical staff member who’d done a year of amateur boxing.

Boxing at that level wouldn’t even count as training within Chaldea.

“That’s the statue?”

Putting down his schoolbag casually, Rōma pulled out his belt from behind him.

He vaguely remembered this containment item.

AO-6264.

It referred to a group of crudely made sparrow sculptures, each no wider than five meters in wingspan.

Each statue consisted mainly of scrap metal and polyester fabric, though individual compositions varied slightly.

If memory served, each statue had the letters "CTM" engraved somewhere underneath.

“According to the factory manager, this statue was dug up from a nearby field about a week ago.”

“They were just planning to clear some wasteland and plant trees.”

“But they ended up finding this thing.”

“At the time, nobody cared much, and they simply threw it aside.”

“It behaved quietly the past few days, but today it suddenly started moving as if it were alive.”

“So far, aggression toward humans has been moderate.”

The researcher holding the tablet spoke quickly yet clearly, explaining the situation to Rōma.

He said “moderate aggression,” but only as long as no one bothered it.

If anyone got close, it wouldn’t hesitate to wreck buildings and injure humans at random.

Several workers previously sent to the emergency room had proven that point.

Listening closely to the researcher’s explanation, Rōma took large strides toward the rampaging sparrow statue.

His initially vague memory grew clearer bit by bit.

As one of the earliest anomalous items Rōma had encountered, AO-6264 didn’t have particularly special abilities.

He remembered it clearly mainly because it was among his first encounters.

Once Rōma got within a certain distance of the statue, music suddenly started playing.

The researcher beside him subconsciously lowered his voice:

“This music is Night on Bald Mountain, played through speakers inside the statue. Currently, it seems to have no anomalous effects.”

Despite his words, even the researcher felt uncertain.

What if it did have unknown anomalous properties?

Chaldea had encountered similar situations during missions before.

Although in Rōma’s memory this sparrow statue was relatively harmless, he still cautiously placed a hand on his [Driver].

What he faced wasn’t some ordinary monster.

It was an unpredictable anomalous entity.

Crash!

After casually knocking over an electric scooter, the sparrow sculpture finally noticed Rōma’s presence.

Turning slowly, it stared at Rōma for a few seconds, seemingly evaluating how much of a threat he was.

“You head back first. Make sure everyone stays inside.”

After instructing the Task Force members nearby, Rōma turned his full attention toward the statue.

Seconds later, the statue finally lost patience.

The music abruptly intensified, strangely energizing despite not having reached the climax.

With the swelling music behind it, the sparrow statue charged directly at Rōma.

Seeing this, Rōma immediately twisted the handle on his [Driver] without hesitation.

'[ALPHA!]'

The indicator at the center lit up, as if awakening a dormant beast.

Vein-like patterns extended rapidly outward from the center.

'[BLOOD AND WILD! W-W-W-WILD!]'

The familiar scorching heat wave burst forth from Rōma, surging wildly in every direction.

The statue, rushing toward him, was flung backward by the explosive force.

When it crashed onto the ground, Rōma in his school uniform had vanished.

In his place stood a warrior radiating untamed ferocity.

“Haaa—”

Exhaling a cloud of mist from his mouth, Rōma lightly flexed his wrists.

“I’d better wrap this up before they arrive.”

Seeming to have made his decision, his compound eyes glowed fiercely scarlet, like a predator eyeing prey.

Amidst the lingering steam and dust, his crimson glare burned unmistakably bright.

---

T/N: err idk this might be an original entity anyway AO is im guessing basically SCP-XXXX stuff

This is a fan translation of 骑士不需要青春恋爱物语 by 青琮 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!