Malcolm Eden...?
What is it?
Ever since Malcolm was demoted to G3...
Everyone he's fought, he's killed them all...
Right!
EPISODE 3
HOW IN THE WORLD DOES THAT THING PASS AS AN ELBOW GUARD?
Blimey, what did you want me to see so early in the morning?
Malcolm Eden's last fight.
Malcolm?
Wait, you don't mean...?
If you understand, shut up and watch.
Here.
Look, the elbow.
That's slick.
He's stepped to hide the elbow from the referee.
The hook before was bait.
Yes, but it's illegal.
But the referee didn't see it and an amateur wouldn't know.
True, this is a highly refined technique.
And it's not just this.
The whole fight is full of tricks that are almost fouls.
Hey, this doesn't look good for the opponent.
He died.
Thirty minutes later in the aid station.
A skull fracture and cerebral bleeding.
The heavy blow to the temple did it.
Wait, then you mean...
The rumors of him killing his opponents since he fell to G3 are true?
Yeah, there have been five boxers so far. Not a single exception.
This elbow part...
Looks like knee armor from Edmond's.
It's for the knee, but it's cleverly been recast.
How does this get through inspection?
It's not like he has a sharp blade on him.
He can call them slightly longer elbow pads and it'd be allowed.
But a number of athletes have been killed.
Once again, this is the next opponent.
Malcolm Eden,
a 40-year-old boxer from Aaron's gym.
He won all five matches after being demoted to G3 three years ago.
Recently, his opponents keep pulling out,
so he's not been able to make matches.
Because all his past opponents...
Each and every one of them were killed.
So, Levius.
No matter how you look at it, he's dangerous.
This is no boxing match.
This is a deathmatch. Do you see that?
Yeah, his technique is amazing.
Good, just wanted to make sure you understood.
And so, we should pull out--
I'll train, harder.
No, no way. That is not happening!
-Uncle... -No!
Fight anybody else!
But this guy is out of the question!
We're pulling out! Am I understood?!
Then again he never did listen to anyone's advice.
Uncle.
Seems you've made up your mind.
I'll be fine if you're with me.
Blimey... You are one impossible kid.
Although extreme augmentation is now mainstream, his is a bit too extreme.
They may look defensive,
but they're cleverly augmented for attacking.
One that stands out from all of these is this.
It's a protector for a skull injury he got and an eye he lost in a G2 match.
But it can be used in other ways.
Headbutting?
Yeah, probably.
The opponent gets stunned,
and he delivers the finishing blow, bam!
To end them for good.
That said, his offense is not the only problem here.
He lost his right eye in G2.
His current right eye is probably artificial, using a small phototube.
A wide-angle lens with good side vision.
He can easily avoid attacks from his blind angle.
He's probably watching the referee too.
So his fouls don't get caught.
I see.
Okay, let's not do this.
Right then...
Anyway, what's making him go this far to keep fighting?
He's pretty old, he should just retire already.
I agree with that.
For him to get these augmentations to fight...
He can't be sane.
Listen, Levius. You can only avoid Malcolm's fouls by honing your out-boxing.
We need to slowly damage him over time.
Aim to wear him down.
No matter how much machinery you add, you can't compete with getting old.
More augmentations require more hyper steam generation and ventilation.
After a few rounds, his steam tube pressure will go down
and he'll be more sluggish.
By the last round, he might even use up his Agartha water.
Listen, your chance is when Malcolm loses steam and stops charging.
At that moment, close the distance you've kept...
And spin hook.
That's...
Not perfected yet, right?
It needs to be, in time for the match. We can't win without it.
Right!
Sorry, but it'll be over way before that.
You saw the film.
No matter the distance,
he aggressively steps in, you back off, he steps on you, then a hook!
And then... Boom!
See? All that distance, but you still got taken out in a flash.
Sh-Shut it! Don't butt in!
Huh? I'm showing him rough fighting styles from the streets.
I have my own methods.
Techniques like this exist...
What...
Hear that?
Enough blabbering, spar!
Let's see this so-called street fighting!
Better get your head gear.
No, it's fine. I won't have it during the match either.
Don't blame me if you get injured and have to forfeit.
Hey, Levius...
Uncle, ring the bell.
Damn it!
How naive!
How unexpectedly useful of her.
Hey, what's wrong?
That was amazing, could you teach me more?
Now you're talking. That's the spirit!
That's enough!
What's the matter? It was about to get interesting.
Natalia, I want you in Levius' corner for the next match.
Huh? Why me?
Anything could happen in this match.
I want to cover all bases.
Screw that!
I'm a boxer! I can't be someone's cornerman!
Natalia.
I need your help, please.
Could you be in my corner?
W-What the hell! If you insist.
The prodigious Ms. Natalia will give you some merciless advice!
Yes, thank you.
Great, now get to learning!
To be a cornerman, you've got to pass an exam.
On metal boxing.
Damn, why do I have to...
First, about the history of Metal Boxing.
In 1724 of the New Era,
Douglas Drake, discovered "Agartha," an aquifer.
Agartha water, which is created from fossil water in that land,
possesses a distinctive quality.
Whoa!
Agartha water binds with the derivative molecules in blood
and instantly converts into steam.
It is far more effective than heating water.
Moreover, this is regarded as revolutionary because...
the owner of the blood can freely move the generated steam at will.
Thus, it's called hyper steam, surpassing ordinary steam.
Well, that's about all I can do.
By controlling the steam, it can be moved like a human hand.
What is that? A banana?
This is the basics of a mechanical arm.
Now, auxiliary equipment has been created for more efficiency.
It's the machinery that supports a mechanical arm's movement.
Humans with mechanized bodies directly bypass blood from the heart,
mixing it with Agartha water in the steam generator in the body.
This creates hyper steam,
the movement of which is controlled by will.
This hyper steam and machinery made the competitive sport, metal boxing.
It's said to have started from illegal bets made on boxing laborers.
This gained popularity underground
and developed into a show sport separate from boxing in the flesh.
The International Metal Boxing Association was established in 1821,
approving it for public gambling.
The total number of athletes today is at around 25,000.
There are strict rules set for each grade, from G5 to G1.
The parts, armor material, steam volume, and so on,
are checked thoroughly.
As I'm sure you know, the rules are expanded for G2 and above,
enabling boxers to release hyper steam outside the body to defend or attack.
But without the pre-match distribution of hyper steam's source, Agartha water,
a boxer can't even lift a single finger.
In short, Agartha water is the backbone of metal boxing.
Yeah, yeah, it's super important.
I mean, people have fought a war over it.
Huh, I didn't expect you to know the cause of the war.
That's common knowledge.
Then chronologically name the events leading up to it.
Who cares about the details.
You such a quibbling four-eyes...
It all started in 1820 of the New Era.
Whiteland and Rosvia both border the Fosanian Peninsula.
Here, a huge group of Agartha water springs was discovered.
Both nations spent years negotiating over the rights to the springs,
but in the end, it became a war.
The war was called the Fosanian Conflict,
and continued for approximately seven years from 1831.
Operation Greenbridge Recovery, near the end of war,
claimed the lives of civilians as well, with a total of 20,000...
That concludes today's lesson.
Gee, he could've just woken me up.
Wait, where's the quibbling four-eyes and the hairy pig?
They said they'd be back soon.
Grown men hanging out, huh?
Anyway, what's the deal with those two?
They're not just friends, are they?
I mean, they're so different.
I heard Bill was an aspiring doctor,
who worked as a cutman in underground boxing to make money.
That's when he met Uncle, who was still a boxer at the time.
I've already gotten my pay for this month.
That's not it. It's for his elbow valve that's always bursting.
It needs replacing.
Not sure this is enough, but I'll try to negotiate.
It's been a while.
Already 12 years since I retired because of this something-sensitivity.
Infrared-Hypersensitivity.
How's the maintenance? For the goggle.
It's been taken care of.
Don't remember when though.
It's still not cured. Don't take it so lightly.
I know.
If I hadn't noticed, your brain would have been damaged and you'd be--
I said I know.
Well, thanks to this, I was exempted from the draft.
Unlike you.
It was a good experience for a training medical technician.
The war?
You say that because you haven't lost anyone the way I lost my brother.
Levius' father volunteered to become a soldier, didn't he?
Yeah. What an idiot.
It's like he threw his life away.
Oh, come on. The fact is you feel responsible, don't you?
Responsible? Why would I...
Because you couldn't stop him from going.
Don't spout nonsense.
You needn't be so hard on yourself.
Even if you had stopped him, he would have been drafted.
Damn it, didn't I say that's enough?
Faster! Use your legs more! That's it!
Your step is shallow! Again!
Shit, can't see anything.
Guess the interview is off...
Next.
Why you...!
Good, Levius!
Watch your opponent! Mix it up!
Alright.
Listen, we did everything that could've been done.
Just fight like we've trained and you'll be fine.
Right...
Well, you do have the prodigious Ms. Natalia in your corner.
Thank you, Natalia.
In any case...
What's taking him so long?
I was able to raise the engine pressure.
You should be able to throw more spin hooks,
thanks to someone who bought the valve.
Someone? Who's this someone?
E-Enough of this chit-chat.
It's not chit-chat. It shows we've done all we could.
Apologies for the delay. Regulation checks will begin.
-Who's the someone? -Malcolm Eden, are you here?
Malcolm Eden?
What is that...
It looks a lot sharper up close.
Checking the skeleton of each engine and steam tube composition.
How in the world does that thing pass as an elbow guard?
He's probably claiming it's strictly for defense.
If the shape and material follow regulations, it's not illegal.
He even manages to keep it just below the limit with that body.
I've seen your fights.
Is this is a game to you?
Only those who are prepared to die are permitted to stand in the ring.
Using the match as practice is an insult to your opponent.
Finally.
I can't wait anymore.
It's been a while since Malcolm's last match.
I'm so excited.
Looks like it's packed again today.
Well, Levius is a popular boxer. They must be making a killing with this.
We will now begin today's main event.
On the east side, Grade 3, ranked 5th.
Malcolm Eden!
Malcolm!
Kill Levius!
Don't let him leave alive!
Let's not do this.
It's not a good idea to fight this guy. Let's pull out.
Levius, are you listening?
Yeah, I'm listening.
-Then... -I'm not pulling out.
What's wrong with you? You saw what I saw, right?!
He's come to kill you!
Listen, Levius. What exactly do you want from metal boxing?
I don't know.
I don't know, but...
Next up, on the west side...
Grade 3, ranked 12th.
I can almost reach it.
Levius Cromwell!
Levius!
He's so cool!
Do your best!
Are you prepared?
Giving each other death, that is the essence of metal boxing.
I shall also give you the honor of death.
That bugger! What a cheap shot!
Oh-ho.
Right! He's keeping up with the attacks somehow.
The fruits of my training!
Good, you trained well.
Now, how about this?
Good response.
B-But he dodged that!
What's wrong? Didn't you train for this?
Levius...