It was still silver, but now it gleamed with a polished, almost mirror-like finish. No longer dirty but now clean.

The plating looked thicker, more refined, with seamless joints that moved fluidly with his body. New features had appeared. Small vents along the forearms and shoulders, likely for heat dissipation or energy release.

And then a system notification appeared in his vision:

[Congratulations, Host. You've just upgraded your armor, and spectacularly so.]

[Armor Enhancements:]

[Durability: Increased by 60%]

[Energy Efficiency: Improved]

[Integrated Shielding: Active]

[Weight Reduction: 25%]

[Kinetic absorption: upgraded to be more impactful]

[Enhanced Mobility: Unlocked]

Tatehan stared at the notification, then at his armor.

He realized something in that moment.

Cores weren't just useful. They were the power source for things on this planet.

Maybe everything ran on them?

More words flashed across his retina, interrupting his thoughts.

[You have received knowledge points]

[You have received repair points]

[HOST STATUS]

Name: Tatehan

Level: 8

Species: Human (Enhanced)

Knowledge: 125/200 [+6]

Repair Points: 57/100 [2]

[ABILITIES]

• Gravity Manipulation - Level 8

• Regeneration (Partial) - Level 6

• Enhanced Durability - Level 2

• Heightened perception - Level 4

[INVENTORY:]

[Shadow Goblin Cores: 56 total]

[Tri-Edge Shadow chakrams]

[Backpack]

[Armor]

[Shadow-Forged Blade]

[Kinetic Absorption Armor]

[Devastator Hand Cannon]

Tatehan studied his stats for a few seconds, impressed with how far he had come. His Gravity Manipulation was now pretty high in level and he had quite a lot of knowledge points too.

———

They returned to the commander's office in silence.

Tatehan's upgraded armor had retracted back into his system inventory, leaving him in his regular clothes. The silver core had done more than he'd expected. Much more.

But now wasn't the time to think about that.

The commander was waiting for them when they entered, seated behind her desk with a holographic display projected in front of her. The image showed the sky fortress again, rotating slowly, its half-completed structure glowing with construction lights.

Lyra closed the door behind them, and they both took seats across from the commander.

"Good," the commander said without preamble. "You've seen the arsenal. You know what we're working with."

Tatehan nodded.

When the commander had been briefing him about the mission prior to Riven showing him the weapons room, he had thought it would he impossible.

He had wondering how they would get to the skies and engage in a battle to stop destroy an half completed fortress with a powerful army guarding it?

But going into the Red crest clan arsenal and seeing the weapons…

They had hovering boots, mini spaceships (at least something looking like it) lots of sophisticated guns and tech swords. Even cores that upgraded armor.

…Tatehan realized it was very much possible (with a good plan that is).

"Now," the commander continued, her tone becoming more serious, "we need to discuss how this mission is actually going to work. The fortress is halfway built. We have maybe a week, two at most, before it becomes fully operational. Once that happens, we're done. So we need to hit it now, while it's still vulnerable."

She gestured to the holographic display, zooming in on the structure.

"The question is: how do we get up there and stop it?"

Lyra leaned forward slightly, studying the image.

"We have the hovering boots," she said. "And the Skyblades—the mini spacecraft. Between those and our weapons, we can get a strike team airborne. The equipment isn't the problem."

"No," the commander agreed. "The problem is what happens when we get there."

Tatehan sat quietly, listening. His mind was racing, but he didn't know what to say. He didn't know how things worked here. Military tactics, aerial assaults, coordinated strikes, he had no idea. He'd fought monsters in the wastelands, sure, but this? This was different. This was warfare on a scale he'd never dealt with.

And even the monsters he had fought he had done so with no plan, he only entered the fighting, hoping to win.

So he stayed quiet, letting them talk.

Lyra continued, her voice thoughtful.

"It would be safer if we could sneak up on them," she said. "Infiltrate the fortress without them knowing. Hit them fast, disable key systems, and get out before they even realize what's happening. That way, we minimize casualties and avoid a full-scale battle."

The commander leaned back in her chair, her expression skeptical.

"Sneak up on them," she repeated slowly, as if tasting the words. "How?"

Lyra hesitated.

"I don't know yet," she admitted. "But we'd figure out a way before the mission. Maybe approach from below, use the construction activity as cover. Or come in during a shift change when security is lighter."

The commander shook her head.

"That plan isn't smart," she said bluntly. "There's no way to sneak up on them. That fortress is covered in sensors, surveillance systems, patrol routes. They're building it specifically to defend against attacks. You think they don't have countermeasures in place?"

She gestured to the hologram again, highlighting sections of the structure.

"They have automated turrets here, here, and here. Motion detectors along the perimeter. Drone patrols circling the construction site. And that's just what we can see from a distance. Who knows what else they have installed."

Lyra's jaw tightened, but she didn't argue.

The commander turned her gaze to Tatehan.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Tatehan blinked, surprised to be put on the spot.

He glanced at the hologram, then back at the commander. He took a breath, then shrugged.

"There's no soft or easy way to do this," he said honestly. "Not from my point of view."

The commander raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.

Tatehan leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees.

"Look," he said. "I get the idea of sneaking up on them. It sounds good in theory, hit them before they know what's happening, minimize risk, all that. But realistically? It's not going to work."

He pointed to the hologram.

"You said it yourself. They have sensors, turrets, patrols. Even if we somehow manage to get close without being detected, the moment we engage, the moment we fire a single shot or plant a single explosive, they're going to know we're there. And then what? We're stuck on a floating fortress surrounded by enemies with nowhere to run."

Lyra frowned, but she didn't interrupt.

Tatehan continued.

"Sneaking only works if you can get in and out without anyone noticing. But we're not trying to steal something or gather intelligence. We're trying to destroy the entire structure. That's loud. That's…obvious. There's no way to do that quietly."

The commander nodded slowly, her expression thoughtful.

"So what do you suggest?" she asked.

Tatehan exhaled.

"The only way I see this working," he said, "is to just go up there and hit them hard. No sneaking. No trying to be clever. Just a straight assault."

He paused, then added:

"And we'll need a lot of bombs."

The room went quiet.

The commander stared at him, her eyes sharp and calculating.

"You want to bomb the fortress," she said.

"Not just bomb it," Tatehan clarified. "Overwhelm it. Bring enough explosives to take out the key structural points, the support beams, the power cores, whatever's holding that thing together. Plant the bombs, detonate them, and bring the whole thing crashing down."

He gestured to the hologram.

"It's half-built, right? That means it's not at full strength yet. The structure is still vulnerable. If we hit it in the right places, we can collapse it before they even have a chance to respond."

Lyra looked at him, surprise flickering across her face.

"That's... aggressive," she said.

"It's the only thing that makes sense," Tatehan replied. "If we try to sneak, we fail. If we try to fight them head-on in a prolonged battle, we lose, they have better positioning and better defenses. But if we hit them fast and hard with overwhelming force? We might actually pull it off."

The commander was silent for a long moment, her fingers steepled in front of her face.

Then she spoke.

"You're saying we go all-in," she said. "Full assault. No subtlety or a fancy battle. Just… raw destruction?"

"Yeah," Tatehan said. "That's what I'm saying."

The commander's lips twitched, almost a smile.

"It's risky," she said.

"Everything about this is risky," Tatehan countered.

The commander nodded slowly, then turned to Lyra.

"What do you think?"

Lyra hesitated, then sighed.

"He's not wrong," she admitted. "Sneaking was a long shot anyway."

The commander looked back at the hologram, studying it for a long moment.

Then she nodded.

"Alright," she said. "We do it Tatehan's way. We gather every explosive we have, load up the strike team, and bomb that fortress into the ground."

She looked at Tatehan, her expression serious.

"You're going to lead this," she said. "So you'd better be right."

Tatehan met her gaze and nodded.

"I'll be right," he said.

He hoped he was.

The commander stood, deactivating the hologram.

"We move in three days," she said. "That gives us time to prepare, gather supplies, and brief the strike team. Lyra, work with Tatehan on the details. I want a full mission plan by tomorrow."

Lyra nodded. "Understood."

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