If you look closely, you'll notice that Hammer's silver right arm and the spot behind Joan of Arc both bear a metallic skull logo—this is the exclusive symbol of the mercenary group once infamous under the dark clouds: Mechanical Wasteland.

This mercenary group was notorious for its brutality; every member was a cyborg, having undergone mechanical body modifications. They participated in every major war on the continent that anyone could name, and always emerged victorious.

Yet, such a powerful mercenary group was wiped out overnight twenty years ago. Of the 1,374 members, only Joan of Arc and Hammer survived.

“Sniper 1 in position, target clear, awaiting orders.”

“Sniper 2 in position, target clear, awaiting orders.”

“Sniper 3 in position, target clear, awaiting orders.”

While the two were locked in a tense standoff, the sniper team had already found suitable positions and set up their equipment. In theory, with a single command, they could turn Joan of Arc into a sieve.

“No need. Hammer would never allow anyone to take out Joan of Arc before he does. This is their fated grudge—they need to settle it themselves.” William Parker steadied the soldiers below through the earpiece, even holding back the reinforcements who were ready to move in.

As for the story of Mechanical Wasteland, some had asked Hammer about it before, but anyone without a high enough rank had their necks snapped by Hammer on the spot. William Parker, however, knew the inside story—simply because Hammer couldn’t beat him.

Twenty years ago, that night, Joan of Arc suffered a severe case of mechanical body syndrome. In her hallucinations, she saw everyone as enemies and personally killed every former comrade. Only Hammer managed to survive, barely.

Although Joan of Arc's body modifications exceeded 90% of her human body, the group leader at the time had fused her with a machine known as the “Iron Saint,” specially implanted with a self-repair program. In theory, such an accident should have been impossible.

The only explanation is that Joan of Arc deleted that program herself, which led to the tragedy.

“Do you still remember? The teammates who died by your hand.” Hammer asked, head bowed.

“Of course I remember. My brain has up to 500 terabytes of storage space. Their faces and information are all compressed and stored in there.” Joan of Arc tapped her own head.

“Don’t you feel any pain? They saved your life, you bastard!” Hammer clenched his fists, the sound of grinding knuckles echoing.

“Pain? My heart was replaced by the boss long ago, you know? Yes, you all saved me, but did you ever ask me if I wanted to be saved? Maybe, if I’d known I’d end up like this—losing all sensation, all taste, with the only thing I can taste being sweetness—I’d rather have died.” As Joan of Arc spoke, she pulled out a Galaxy Lollipop and popped it into her mouth.

“If you want to die so badly, let me help you!” Hammer shouted, stomping off the ground and charging straight at Joan of Arc.

“Why can’t you understand? Maybe I want to die, but my programming forces me to survive at all costs. Besides, you don’t even have the ability to kill me. You’re just not qualified.” Joan of Arc sighed calmly.

Chapter 12: Out of the City!!

Never put two monsters in the same gladiator cage. You never know what they might destroy.

Hammer charged at Joan of Arc like a madman. Joan of Arc fired black arrows in rapid succession, their curved trajectories aimed at Hammer, but each was swatted down by his massive swinging arm. The flames from explosive arrows, the frost from liquid nitrogen arrows, the shockwaves from concussion arrows—all were dispersed by that silver iron wall.

“Die!”

Hammer reached Joan of Arc and threw a punch, slamming into the ground where she stood like a cannonball, blasting out a crater a meter wide.

As debris flew, Joan of Arc arched back and leapt, drawing her bow to full tension. The arrowhead glowed electric blue as she fired an electromagnetic burst arrow.

Hammer dodged to the side, but the arrow exploded behind him, forming a five-meter-wide electromagnetic field. The surging electronic interference instantly destroyed the control system of Hammer's steel arm.

This kind of damage only lasts about five seconds for a cyborg, but in a battle between masters, that’s enough to be fatal.

Rolling to the ground, Joan of Arc discarded her war bow, activated her jet pods, and shattered the solid floor with her feet as she charged at Hammer. The silver iron arm hanging at his side could no longer protect him.

Joan of Arc swung her black fist with full force—one punch could shatter Hammer's seemingly strong body.

But unexpectedly, the towering Hammer flashed past Joan of Arc's fist, brushing right by it, and grabbed Joan of Arc's face with his human hand, slamming her straight into the ground.

“How is this possible?” Through her fingers, Joan of Arc looked at Hammer's ferocious face. In her memory, Hammer had never been this agile, nor could he ever have caught her movements.

“What do you think I’ve been doing these past twenty years? I’ve been training hard… just to kill you!” Hammer roared, following up with another punch, smashing Joan of Arc's head deep into the earth.

Joan of Arc's body arched from the blow, and as she spun in the air, her legs suddenly hooked around Hammer's neck, pulling him in front of her.

Boom!