It didn’t take too long for Elene to gather her group into a coherent one. Mira was done with her cooking, and Alice was done fiddling with my Puma IFV. What surprised me was how fast they changed from their casual outfit to a tactical one.

Alice changed from her shorts into cargo pants and wore a gray fleece on top of her t-shirt while Mira had a whole makeover, returning with her Federal military uniform, albeit with a different insignia. Elene stayed in her shirt and black pants though, maybe because it was what was comfortable for her.

“What do you want me to call you, boss or commander?” Alice asked.

“I’m the commander, she’s the boss,” Elene answered.

“Fine by me,” Alice shrugged her shoulders.

I opened the portal leading into the guild building. Eleanor turned her head toward our direction, wondering what just happened on the other side now that the kins returned in their tactical uniforms. She just gave a light smile to our way and pointed her finger at the quest terminal.

“You can check out the quests at the terminal, as usual,” Eleanor nodded.

I went through several of the provided quests and was wondering what these three extra would add to my team. They were better than me in every combat metric but healing. I sure as hell would be able to take a more difficult mission than before.

[Attack the Divinity’s Armored Vehicle Column: 2,500,000 UC]

[Bring an Intact Topol-M ICBM From The Union: 5,000,000,000 UC]

[Steal a B-20 “Raider” From The Federation: 2,500,000,000 UC]

[Steal a F-22C From The Federation: 500,000,000 UC]

[Steal a Prototype T-14 Armata From The Union: 4,000,000 UC]

[Destroy a Platoon of Automata: 3,500,000 UC]

“Hmm, I think I have an idea,” I commented as I looked over the quest.

“Ain… don’t, we aren’t going to steal nukes, are we?” Elene squinted her eyes, looking at me with skepticism. “That thing will be located deep inside the Union.”

“Then, should we steal the Armata, then?” I asked again.

“That’s… doable, I guess? But that requires planning, after all, we want the thing INTACT,” Elene reiterated her point.

“Automata it is, then,” I said.

“You know, I was going to suggest we attack the armored column, but in hindsight, it can be too reckless in the grand scheme of things,” Elene added.

Alice leaned casually against the table, adjusting the tactical gloves she’d slipped on after her change of clothes. “Automata, huh?” she said, her tone carrying a mix of intrigue and skepticism. “If you ask me, that sounds like the low-hanging fruit. Not that I’m against smashing some bots—it’s just… meh. No offense, boss,” she added with a glance toward Elene, “but it feels like a wasted opportunity for something really exciting.”

“You have something more exciting in mind?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Stealing the Armata,” Alice replied instantly, a gleam in her eye. “That’s a one-of-a-kind prototype. That thing’s got active protection systems, reactive armor, adaptive camouflage, you name it.”

“You do realize it’s guarded, right?” Elene said, crossing her arms. “We’re not just walking into a museum and towing it out. Even the Hind is guarded well.”

Mira, who had been quietly leaning over my shoulder to look at the quest terminal, suddenly chimed in. “I don’t know... I think automata are way more interesting,” she said.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“And?” Alice said, tilting her head. “They’re still just scrap metal when you hit them hard enough.”

Mira shook her head, her lips curling into a faint smile. “That’s such a limited way of looking at them. You know that a mechanical machine with that ability to calculate would have multiple times of success chance in comparison to us, flesh-and-blood?” She then shrugged her shoulders. “Get the wreckage of those automatas, and we will have functioning ones on our side.”

Elene then looked at her squad mates, giving her a strong gaze to shut them up. Her eyes clearly told them that I was in charge of the team now, so, as long as I didn’t give them an impossible mission, they wouldn’t be protesting.

“Let’s kill those automatas, I really want to see them in action,” I commented.

“I know you will get my point, boss,” Mira approved the action.

“Well, if you said so, boss,” Alice added.

“Do you have a .308 battle rifle?” Mira asked, showing off the SCAR-H on her hands. “Those automatas would just… bounce off your bullets if you use anything smaller than that.”

“Wouldn’t an armor-piercing bullet do the task just fine?” I asked.

“No, you need a steel-core 7.62 to reliably damage the automata, even then, it’s not like a biological enemy that would have its limbs disabled by shooting at it,” Elene explained. “Still, Mira might be able to do her witchery to disable them temporarily.”

“We have autocannons,” I said.

“Fair enough,” Elene shrugged her shoulders.

I accepted the quest and a marker appeared on my peripheral vision, displaying the location of the said automata.

“You know,” Alice said as she tapped on the screen, “if we’re going after automata, it might not hurt to try and snag one that’s mostly intact. I mean, I’m all for blowing them to bits but imagine what we could do if we actually brought one back in one piece. We could reprogram it, use it for recon, maybe even weaponize it for future missions.”

“That’s a big maybe,” Elene said, her tone skeptical. “If we’re being realistic, they’re not going to just let us waltz in and take their toys. The second we engage, they’ll likely call reinforcements, and trust me, automata in numbers aren’t something you want to mess with.”

Mira smirked. “And that’s where my ‘witchery’ comes in, as you put it.” She gave a playful glance toward Elene, then turned to me. “Boss, if I can get close enough to one of their command units, I might be able to temporarily hijack its signal. Not for long, maybe a minute top, but long enough to turn it against its allies. After that, well… Alice can have her fun tearing it apart.”

Alice grinned. “Now that’s what I’m talking about. You do your magic, Mira, and I’ll handle the tech.”

[Destroy a Platoon of Automata: 3,500,000 UC]

* Destroy Light Facsimile [0/10]

* Destroy Regular Facsimile [0/20]

* Destroy Heavy Facsimile [0/10]

* Destroy 120mm Auto-Mortar Weapon [0/2]

“Why it doesn’t sound as easy as it sounds?” Elene scratched her head.

“Why?” I asked.

“Auto-Mortar… that’s something you wouldn’t want to mess with,” Elene commented. “It’s still more than fourteen kilograms of explosives lobbed at your feet, and it’s an auto-mortar.”

I realized the implication, but well, my IFV was rather… well-protected, for the lack of a better word for it, and I don’t think that auto-mortar would have a godly precision in the grand scheme of things, especially if we move very quickly.

“If I may suggest, a drone might be useful,” Alice added.

“A Switchblade 600-I3? Well, two Switchblade drones?” Mira asked.

“Yeah, that’s a great idea, we can take out the auto mortar first before we go through the assault. I think it will be wiser as well,” Elene said.

“That’d be great,” I added.

“Alright, ma’am, give us the money,” Mira smiled. “Let this logistic officer sort the price out for you. I already ask for the full-price catalog from Wilhelm.”

“How much do you need?” I asked.

“Give me 50,000 UC, and I’ll get you the drones,” Mira said.

“Isn’t a highly advanced military hardware like that going to cost a fortune?” I asked.

“Well, with the correct haggling, any arms dealer would melt,” Mira smiled.

“Fine.”

[2,122,947 UC → 2,072,947 UC]

“You won’t regret this, Ain.”

The group stepped outside, the late afternoon sun casting long shadows across the barren landscape outside the guild building. The air was cool and carried a faint smell of grass. Alice and Mira walked ahead toward the depot while Elene and I walked toward the IFV I used to go to the guild building.

Elene and I laid our backs against the body of the IFV, waiting for Mira and Alice to buy the FPV drones for them. I wondered how she could get the price to drop that much.

“Do you think she’s actually haggling with Wilhelm, or do you think she’s threatening him into submission?” I asked Elene, curious about what they would do.

Elene laughed. “With Mira? Probably both. If anyone can get two military-grade drones for less than a month’s rent, it’s her.”

Before anyone could say more, Mira reappeared from around the corner of the depot. She walked briskly toward us, her expression calm and professional, but there was something almost smug about the slight tilt of her head.

“Done already?” I asked.

Mira nodded, patting her hands together like she’d just finished dusting them off. “Of course. It’s not like Wilhelm can sell this outdated hardware at MSRP to me.”

“Alright, let’s go, then,” I said, opening the ramp on the back of the IFV.