Editing City Series:Volume6d Chapter3 (section)

===Part 1===

Hamburg Base’s rooftop terrace was already dyed orange by the setting sun.

The 15yd terrace was located 7 floors up.

Other than the central stairway, it only featured railings on the four sides.

Currently, two people stood in the sunlight there: Lowenzahn and Hazel.

Lowenzahn was leaning against the eastern railing. But instead of taking in the breathtaking view outside, she was looking back toward Hazel who stood at the stairway entrance.

The scarlet sunlight shined directly on Lowenzahn as she beckoned Hazel over.

Hazel left the stairway and stepped out onto the terrace.

It bothered her how a light westerly breeze caught the hem of her surgical gown.

Then her slippers caught on a slight dip in the floor.

“?”

Her long blonde hair swished through the orange sunlight as she looked down at her feet. The small dip casting a short shadow there was not a brick or a stone. It was a pattern.

“…?”

Her gaze ran along the rest of the floor.

…''A yard-long relief?

She stood on a scene of a woman battling a water dragon in a cave’s underground lake. Her slipper had caught on a dip in the curve of the dragon’s back.

She shifted her gaze to the right.

A one-armed young man, a girl, and several knights walked through a wheat field below the cloudy sky.

She shifted her gaze up.

The Messiah girl, the one-armed young man, and two knights fought a dragon atop an open field just outside of a forest.

“The Unreif Germane.”

“This isn’t easy to maintain. It was originally in the main entrance, but we had it moved here when the place was remodeled.”

“I can imagine,” thought Hazel, approaching Lowenzahn.

She watched her step this time and stopped about two yards from Lowenzahn.

She could see all of Hamburg Base past the railing Lowenzahn leaned against. Around eight white buildings formed two rows. Running between those rows were a row of storehouses and a road large enough for transport vehicles to drive along side by side. She also saw the occasional entrance to an underground space.

The most notable feature was the 20yd-wide waterway flowing through the center of the base.

According to Heiliger, the base was primarily used by the development division and most of the buildings lined up on the east and west were research facilities, so all of the usual military facilities and hangars were located underground.

The main gate and a small runway were located past the waterway. The runway bordered the forest, which was the one side of the base without a wall. The base opened up onto a dark green expanse instead.

She also saw something familiar on the large road in front of the waterway.

The two Grösse Panzers there were colored blue and red. They stood in front of something like a giant green mountain located next to a large storehouse and they each held a weapon. The blue one a rifle and the red one a shield.

…''Those are the ones I always see with the Kaiser.

Lowenzahn followed Hazel’s gaze, turning toward them.

The blue and red Grösse Panzers were sinking into the ground. An elevator was carrying them to the underground hangar.

“Skilled Neue Kavaliers from all over Germany are gathering here,” said Lowenzahn without turning back around. “Those impatient knights want an audience with you even before you arrive in Germania a few days from now.”

She finished speaking just as the elevator resurfaced empty.

Then Hazel noticed sudden movement from the mountain-like thing located next to the elevator. The green mountain was nearly as tall as a four-story building, making it taller than the large storeroom next to it.

“Is that a Grösse Panzer!?”

She realized it was in fact a giant armored warrior carrying two towers.

It stood more than 20 yards tall and Lowenzahn explained what it was.

“That is Army Division Chief Karl Schmitt. He lost his body during the previous world war and chose to permanently join with his Grösse Panzer as part of the Eisen Ritter Project.”

The enormous Grösse Panzer sank belowground just like the previous two had.

Lowenzahn stepped in front of Hazel as if to hide that from view.

“Now, I know this is sudden, but where should I even begin with this?” She crossed her arms and peered at Hazel’s face from below. “Don’t worry. I’m not trying to force the job of Messiah onto you. You no longer have the right to refuse. You don’t have the right to choose whether you will save the world or let it be destroyed. Got that?”

Hazel nearly nodded, but stopped herself.

Something about Lowenzahn’s statement bothered her.

…''I don’t have the right?

That meant she didn’t have the ability.

She thought about what ability meant in this case.

…''When I said goodbye to the Sylphide, I hoped to decide how I would use this Messiah eye.

“Um, wh-what do you mean?”

Lowenzahn raised both hands and silenced Hazel with an exaggerated gesture.

“I will explain that along with the true purpose of the Panzerpolis Project. You see…” She took a breath. “You lost the ability to save the world last year – on that night at Cologne.”