Chapter 30: Mobile Force
Chapter 30: Mobile Force
My shop leveled up again.
Stall-like shops, just like the floor booths in department stores, can now be laid out if I so desire, and a slightly more splendid shop had been laid out in a corner of the onsen room.
With the expansion of the sales floor also comes the increase of new products.
That morning, my voice involuntarily shook upon the discovery of a certain new item.
[What the heck......]
Once upon a time, a certain plastic model was sold in dagashi shops and toy stores in Japan.
It was said to be a product that imita...... paid homage to the merchandise from a mecha anime that boasted nationwide popularity, but the product that came into my shop this time was a homage to that homage product.
Product name: Mobile Force Gungalf
Description: Robot plastic model. It can be built by simply fitting in the parts without using any adhesives. Can be operated with mana manipulation.
Price: 300 rims
There seemed to be six types in total in my stock. Including the protagonist’s robot Gungalf, the bad guy’s mass-production robot Zako, and the high-mobility type GGRKS.
The finished robot is about the size of a palm, smaller than a Gnome.
However, that isn’t the case with its weight, as it is heavier than it looks.
Is there metal used inside it?
[What’s that? It looks like a Homunculus...... No, more like a Golem.]
Minerva, who was also visiting today, showed interest.
[This is a plastic model that you assemble and play with. However, it seems that the plastic models in this world can be moved and played with by mana.]
[It looks interesting. Give me one.]
Minerva had chosen the Gyan model, which was clad in knightly armor.
Meanwhile, choosing the protagonist’s robot, Gungalf, I opened up another box.
[It’s easy to assemble. All you have to do is to insert the arms and legs into its torso like this.
All the joints were movable, and it was even more well-made than the Gungal back on Earth.
For this thing to cost 300 rims, I guess that’s to be expected from a different world.
The plastic model was completed in less than 5 minutes.
According to the instructions on the box, sticking the completed robot to your forehead creates a mana link with it.
The only magic I can use is “Open” and “Close”, but I should still possess mana.
If that’s the case, I should be able to move Gungalf.
[Ohh!]
As soon as I put the machine on my forehead, I felt some incomprehensible connection with it, like electricity being connected or some string being attached.
I put Gungalf on the floor and sent my thoughts.
Step forward!
Thereupon, my Gungalf, with its legs shaking, slowly took a step forward with its right foot.
[It’s moving!]
While I was shaking with excitement, Minerva’s blue Gyan briskly moved alongside my Gungalf.
His operations are much smoother than my Gungalf.
[Are you some sort of Mobile Force monster, Minerva!?]
[It seems to respond exactly as it should when you give it a more detailed image. For stable operations, it’s necessary to keep hold of a certain amount of mana. Conversely, if you want more power, you can increase the power you’re imbuing into it, but if the mana you imbue is too strong, it seems like the machine could get stuck.]
His Gyan leaped, bounced, and moved as smoothly as a rhythmic gymnast.
D*mn it, I can also do that......
[Go, Gungalf!]
I visualized a cartwheel in my head and sent it to the Gungalf.
Even though it had hit its head on the ground, it performed a cartwheel and gracefully landed on its feet.
[Ohh, I did it!]
[It seems like you’re also getting used to it, Yuusuke.]
I’m kinda getting the hang of it.
The key is to send my mana and images smoothly and without interruption.
[Alright, let’s go, Minerva!]
I maneuver Gungalf to tackle Gyan.
Suddenly taken by surprise, the Gyan falls to the ground.
[W- What are you doing?]
[Pro wrestling. When you get a count of three with the opponent’s shoulders on the floor, you win.]
Aiming for a restraining position, I swerved Gungalf behind Gyan and held it by the thighs.
Minerva had his Gyan wriggle around, somehow trying to escape.
[Oi, what indecency are you trying to commit with those dolls!?]
Merle and Mira came to visit.
I noticed that the store’s regulars were also watching the match between me and Minerva.
[What indecency are you talking about? This is pro wrestling.]
[Pro wrestling?]
[No, I guess it’s more like Pla wrestling?]
I explained the rules of pro wrestling to everyone.
[That’s kind of fun. 300 rims, right?]
[Yeah. I think that’s a bargain.]
[Then, I’ll have the Zako one. I kinda like it.
To see the romance of mass-produced machines, what a remarkable child Merle is...... 𝙗𝒆𝙙𝒏𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡.𝙣𝙚𝒕
[I want this Dom.]
Mira’s also going to buy one huh.
[I’ll have the GGRKS!]
You’re gonna buy one too, Garm?
[How nice...... I want one too. I have to somehow save up some money.]
Even Rigal wants one huh.
In the morning, all forty pieces of Mobile Forces I had in stock had been sold.
There’s even that one adventurer who bought all six different kinds by themselves.
As the owner of the shop, I checked out the varieties of Mobile Force I have and found that each one had different characteristics.
The mass-produced Zako, even with its lacking power, was the easiest to maneuver, while the extremely agile GGRKS was fast, but difficult to control with mana.
All Mobile Force have their advantages and disadvantages, but I feel that the protagonist’s robot Gungalf is the most stable.
[Yahagi-san, I heard there’s a new product called Mobile Force......]
A young adventurer rushed in, gasping for breath.
[I’m sorry, but they’re all sold out. I think they’ll be restocked tomorrow, so come back again.]
As I watched the adventurer’s shoulder slumped as he left, I could feel a new trend emerging.
<Afterword>
Mobile Force Gungal was a daring model kit line released during the height of the “Gundam” boom in 1980 by Tokyo Marui. This is Gungal, the one Gungalf is based on and the only mecha that is based on Tokyo Marui’s Mobile Force Gungal. Zako GGRKS – Originally named gugurekasu, based on the gundam Gelgoog (guregugu) Gyan Dom Pla Wrestling – Short for Plastic Model Wrestling