Shinji Ikari, returned from Warhammer

She turned the air conditioner to its lowest temperature and covered herself with a thick air-conditioning quilt. The weight of the quilt slightly soothed her inner fatigue.

Then, without realizing it, she reached her hand between her legs...

"…Fool."

She tilted her beautiful, fair neck upwards, her lips trembling slightly.

She exhaled a fragrant breath as she panted, and with the movement of her delicate body, she involuntarily unbuttoned her slightly tight shirt.

"—Baka Shinji, Baka Shinji, Baka Shinji, Baka Shinji, Baka Shinji!!!"

Asuka stroked him through the thin fabric, imagining a certain possibility that would make her tremble all over, but she squeezed her legs tightly against the blankets until she was like a taut shrimp.

But what she didn't notice was that the unprotected sliding door had just been opened a crack.

At that moment, Misato Katsuragi placed her hand on the sliding door handle and gently closed it again. She looked at Shinji Ikari, and the two exchanged awkward yet polite smiles.

"Oh dear, my bad, I forgot that I lent the room to Asuka not long ago. What a careless mistake!" Misato Katsuragi slapped her forehead.

"It's alright, it's alright. I just remembered I haven't checked out of the room at the Tamamo-no-Mae Grand Hotel!" Shinji Ikari quickly said.

They both tacitly avoided mentioning what had just happened, but compared to Misato Katsuragi, Shinji Ikari was thinking a little more. Even though it was just a fleeting glimpse, Asuka's shirt seemed to be his own, didn't it?

“It doesn’t have to be that bad. You can come to my room and make a makeshift bed on the floor first,” Misato Katsuragi said, then stared warily at Shinji Ikari. “But let me make this clear first, don’t even think about doing anything bad. I’m your guardian.”

"What are you thinking? We're going to have our third operation tomorrow. I never mess around with things like this," Shinji Ikari scoffed.

Seeing the expression on the boy's face, Misato Katsuragi felt relieved.

But the result was that they had a great time.

---------

At 3 PM on the third day, traces of the apostles were detected again.

Location: Near the coast of Himi City. The moment the Angel appeared, MAGI sounded the alarm.

At this moment, in the operations conference room, MAGI simultaneously projected the surveillance footage onto a large screen.

Footsteps approached from afar, seemingly penetrating the walls of the conference room. Then, a tall figure appeared at the far end of the screen—a humanoid mechanical lifeform with a silver-white body, a familiar machine from NERV, but now drastically changed.

Its original top-heavy design resembled a human form, with an internal nuclear reactor emitting an orange glow on its back, similar to a nuclear core. Rather than a JA mecha, its redesigned appearance was closer to EVA Unit-03, just with a different color.

At this moment, the edges of His outline were accompanied by faint ripples of interference, and as He approached, the image gradually became blurred.

[Target confirmed: The Twelfth Apostle, Baldir, the Archangel of the Fallen. Monitoring is experiencing electromagnetic interference, preventing normal synchronization.]

This electromagnetic pulse was still the same technology used in Unit 3. Even without system prompts, they could tell that the familiar yet unfamiliar behemoth on the screen was indeed the Seraphim.

Everyone in the war room held their breath, the scene of their past crushing defeat replaying before their eyes. These past few days, images of the Seraphim had haunted their dreams like a nightmare; only victory could wash away this fear and humiliation.

117: Your Majesty, we will sit and wait.

"Pilots, is EVA ready to go?" Ritsuko Akagi asked.

Because the electronic pulses released by the Angels made normal communication with the pilot impossible, Ritsuko Akagi could only turn to look at Misato Katsuragi, who was still in charge of the operation.

“Of course, everything is ready. Unit-01 is already on the pre-designated battle platform,” Misato Katsuragi replied.

MAGI switched monitoring satellites and finally re-locked onto the Seraphim. It's like your most reliable assistant, constantly reporting on the current battlefield situation.

[03:12, Target observed arriving near the coast of Himi City. Based on its current shape, the damaged parts of the machine have been repaired. Two new abilities have been added: nuclear reactor and electromagnetic pulse interference. The target is accelerating, destination: Neo-Tokyo City.] MAGI's voice is providing commentary.

In an instant, the Angel had traversed hundreds of meters, reaching the shore from the nearshore waters, and its speed was still increasing. The expected mecha had not yet appeared, and Misato Katsuragi's expression was solemn, as if she were deep in thought.

Unit-03 was a top-tier machine, and at full speed, it could naturally break the sound barrier, taking less time than EVA had estimated. Suddenly, it stopped. Although it could accelerate towards Hakone after reaching land, it stopped moving and even emitted an orange light from its core reactor on its back.

The people in the war room looked at each other. Could it be that the Shalcans had already sensed that the enemy was nearby?

In which direction? The staff officers in the operations department looked up, down, left, and right in unison. Among them were many experts in strategy and tactics, and dozens of countermeasures flashed through their minds in an instant.

Ejected from the underground area? Descending from the sky like the Sword of Damocles? Far exceeding the scope of an attack? The Seraphim did not act immediately; Unit-01 was probably not carrying out the Sword of Damocles' operational plan.

But none of these are true.

Just like the scene when they faced the Sky Angels, a control tower over a hundred meters high was erected in the open mountains. The giant purple machine stood in the open field, as serene as a deity.

Simply standing there, it caused the Seraphim to instinctively let out an unintelligible screech. Without hesitation, a terrifyingly powerful orange-red beam of light shot out from the Seraphim's mouth.

This is the Seraphim using the energy of its internal nuclear reactor to emit radioactive, high-temperature smoke and dust, launching an attack with maximum intensity and range.

Perhaps observing that Unit-01 was unable to move, and lacking any sense of Bushido, the Teraher unleashed a barrage of ultra-high-temperature radioactive particles that transformed from a mist into a flame, turning the world before it into a sea of ​​fire. Then, these particles converged into long, thin beams of radiation, unleashing an even more ferocious barrage.

This is the attack method of the JA mecha, which has been mastered by the Seraphim. It uses the principle of Bunsen burners to turn the target into ashes, and is said to be able to melt and evaporate any substance.

The operations staff were utterly shocked and rose to their feet. Because of the electrical pulses released by the Seraphim, all the NERV technicians were working in an extremely dangerous environment, checking whether the internal arrays of the unit were locked, the main power connection, the psychological stress level of the chosen one, and the connection status of various interface systems. A total of 1405 operations were being tested on-site... But when the light faded, Unit-01 was completely unharmed.

The warm white concentric diamond-shaped position with slightly colored edges resembles the Wailing Wall from mythology, blocking all harm.

At this moment, through deliberate release of control, Unit-01 finally took its first step. The world was watching this battle intently. Some of them had never even encountered Unit-01 before, but even facing it face-to-face across tens of thousands of kilometers via satellite, they still felt a terrifying pressure... as if confronting an angel!

The strongest pilot back then, and still an outstanding battlefield ruler to this day, with the appearance of Unit-01, his majestic aura intimidated every living being present, and the initiative fell into his hands.

"Now let's get this straight, the Apostles are the challengers," Misato Katsuragi said softly, looking at the screen.

The moment it was born, it destroyed Unit 2, annihilated the naval fleet, withstood the N2 bomb, and survived the attack of the Sword of Damocles. Through countless battles, it underwent further self-evolution.

In a game, the Seraphim would be a brave warrior relentlessly challenging difficult levels. Along the way, she acquires legendary equipment and epic skills, and thankfully, after overcoming all these hardships, she finally arrives at the final challenge—

——Confront the devil.

As Unit-01 stood up, the Angel of the Snape instinctively took a half-step back, the intense malice piercing her skin as it poured down upon her.

However, facing the all-out attack of Unit-00 and Unit-02, the Seraphim dared not make a move the moment it saw Unit-01 rise from the control rack. It stared at the purple machine before it like the most cautious hunter, and then it took another step back, its hunched body seemingly gathering astonishing power.

Finally, He made His move.

But the moment he raised his arm, only a blurry image appeared on the screen. Then came the sound of a heavy object crashing to the ground.

The arm was no longer attached to the shoulder; it was stuck in the soil not far ahead. Unit-01's attack had sliced ​​through the high-strength alloy steel, one-piece cast skin like a sharp blade, and a viscous, crimson liquid was flowing down the cracked edges of the alloy!

Blood flowed through the steel body, and this monstrous combination was somewhat terrifying to look at.

He knelt helplessly, and all those watching via satellite rose silently. The angels of the hare looked up at the sky and then collapsed forward, their blood staining the earth like a lake. The image froze at that moment.

While the strength of the Seraphim is undeniable, most people believe that Unit-01 has a greater chance of winning, after all, its invincible aura is built upon the corpses of one Angel after another.

Everyone thought it would be an unprecedentedly intense battle, but no one expected the outcome to be decided so quickly.

"What happened? I didn't even see it clearly?!" Hyuga Shiro was stunned; he had only vaguely seen a halo of light fly by.

"That was too fast! Both machines were moving incredibly fast. We can replay it frame by frame," said Shigeru Aoba.

“We’ll go back and see; the battle isn’t over yet,” Misato Katsuragi said.

The seraphim was still active, slowly lowering its head to look at its wound, just like a human. Its right arm had been neatly cut open, as if an invisible halo had gracefully sliced ​​through it from the void, not even giving the seraphim a chance to deploy its pre-set defensive stance.

118: The Emperor's Death Angel

At this moment, the small amount of intelligence fragments gained by the parasitic pilot made the Shalcan suddenly realize that death was imminent.

The purple machine before me is also an angel, the Emperor's angel of death!

With a deafening roar, a huge golden halo appeared above the Seraphim.

The enormous life form, possessing both angelic holiness and mechanical ferocity, radiated light, and soon formed a pure white circle above its head.

Orange electricity flowed through the spines of those like the seraphim, then holy light crackled across the surface of his left arm, causing it to regrow. His joints, like streetlights in the dead of night, lit up one after another. Until all the energy surged into the halo above his head, the already enormous life form defied gravity and rose into the air, immediately unleashing countless beams of holy white light.

Angels are a frequently mentioned life form in religion, originally referring to God's messengers who bring heavenly blessings to humanity. They have existed since Genesis. Angels are usually considered guides for souls. Although angels are sacred, they are sometimes commanded to sound the trumpet of the end times.

"Angelic halo, ah, it's been so long." Shinji Ikari finally uttered his first words.

This is not particularly unusual, as it is something every apostle can do. Even the Fourth Apostle, the Water Angel, formed an angelic halo upon her appearance, unleashing countless tiny beams of light to destroy the Self-Defense Forces' air force. The nameless Third Apostle also formed an angelic halo during her escape.

But becoming an angel also means that the apostle is in its full state and fighting with all its might.

Just then, the Radiant Angel, now radiating a halo, launched its attack again. Its voice, still sharp and resonant, roared like a melodious horn, deep and powerful. With that sound, it swooped down, twisting its body as it lunged at Unit-01.

Despite being an apostle, the Seraphim displayed an incredible attack style at this moment, followed by an even more frenzied fighting style. His body and limbs twisted at incredible angles, leaving dense orange arcs in the air and creating countless sparks on Unit-01's Absolute Force.

Although its attacks were like scraping water in front of Unit-01, or even less, MAGI's immense computing power still retrieved the relevant data. This was human-made fighting techniques, mixed with street brawling skills.

There's no need to guess the source, because the pilot of Unit 3, Toji Suzuhara, was a school bully who frequently got into fights. And those fighting techniques were probably learned from movies; at least the moves look pretty good.

"Since you want some hand-to-hand combat, then I'll grant your wish."

Shinji Ikari did not deactivate the Absolute Territory, but instead concentrated it in his hands. This was originally a technique of the Sky Angels, a move that transfers the soul matter from other areas to a fixed area to increase defensive power. Even though Rei Ayanami had only barely learned it after countless attempts, Shinji Ikari mastered it the moment he first tried.

The two machines collided, and the smoke and clouds surrounding the Shot Angel swirled and gradually gathered, filling the battlefield and turning the place into a sea of ​​fire.

The machine's sensations would naturally be transmitted to the pilot. At this moment, the Seraphim pressed its advantage, but the instant it plunged into the smoke and clouds, it was suddenly struck by a fierce cannonball capable of shattering mountains.

Initially, the Seraphim could block or dodge, but its defenses quickly crumbled. The power unleashed by Unit-01's original purple body was too astonishing; every punch or tear had the power to destroy mountains.

From a normal perspective, Unit-03's performance far surpasses that of Unit-01, and this is a gap that cannot be erased by combat skills.

However, there are always things that can allow the body to surpass its original bottlenecks, such as synchronization rate, or things like spirit, will, and soul.

The Garuda's body was riddled with cracks, from which crimson liquid seeped. A faint, gasping sound emanated from within, the damaged core struggling in its death throes. This also allowed the Garuda to maintain an extremely strong regenerative ability, no matter how much damage it suffered at the hands of Unit-01. No matter how many times it was defeated by Unit-01, its regenerative capacity, enough to stand at the pinnacle of the Angels, allowed it to regroup and rise again.

"It's a pity it's a global live stream, otherwise your recovery speed would have really given me more time to enjoy myself." Shinji Ikari's voice was clearly transmitted to the Angel of the Scattered Angel's mind through the channel.

Since it was a global live stream, although live streams are usually delayed by a few minutes or ten minutes for revisions, Shinji Ikari still didn't want to show overly bloody and brutal scenes to minors.

Suddenly, the angel grabbed Shinji Ikari's arm. Shinji frowned slightly, and then he saw the surrounding clouds of flame suddenly shrink.

This is the Angel of Seraphim using the energy of its internal nuclear reactor to emit ultra-high-temperature radioactive particles with smoke. The smoke has now transformed from a mist into a flame-like form, increasing its power significantly. The berserk Angel of Seraphim extends its arms, attempting to lock onto Unit-01's neck. The high-energy reaction in its mechanical arms erupts instantly, as it tries to seize this opportunity to shatter Unit-01's neck.

But in the next instant—the earth beneath his feet collapsed with a deafening roar, and the seraphim, who was about to deliver a fatal blow, was thrown back by a shockwave like a volcanic eruption and crashed heavily into the nearby mountainside, where countless boulders buried him.

"Is this your little trick? Lure me into a hand-to-hand fight, then launch a sneak attack. The plan isn't too bad, the main problem is that you're just too slow."

The towering figure of Unit-01 appeared amidst the smoke and dust. Shinji Ikari, who was in the cockpit, knew that his words could be heard by the Angels, because he was still able to establish a channel connection with Unit-03.

He didn't press his advantage, nor did he kick the dog while it was down. He just walked with heavy steps, as if each step was treading on the heart of the angel of the hail.

The Seraphim, lying amidst the rubble, opened its mouth, its suddenly elongated face emerging from beneath its visor. Its once-human-like, perfectly aligned white teeth now appeared so ferocious and menacing. The entire world was filled with the Seraphim's roar, and its white form suddenly unleashed a massive burst of light energy—

With a crisp slap, the whole world fell silent for a few seconds.