The attack came faster than expected.
Even faster than Carl and the others had imagined.
They had all thought that perhaps the attackers had held back along the way, waiting until they reached their destination—when they were most relaxed—to strike. So they had prepared themselves to face the enemy ten minutes later. But they had not expected that just after checking the time, turning a corner, and driving toward Azure Tower, the convoy behind them would come under attack.
Boom!
Carl was the first to react. She rolled out of the car beneath the deafening blast, took up a defensive stance, and only when no attack came her way did she realize that the explosion had not occurred near them.
For a moment, she had thought that even with all her vigilance, she had still failed to prevent the attack.
"The convoy behind us was hit. Looks like the attackers have locked onto their target this time."
Oliver stepped out of the car with the Shingen in hand. He was now certain that the attackers' earlier retreat had not been forced by insufficient manpower, but had instead been some kind of test.
There had always been a saying about escort missions: the most conspicuous person might not be the target. Everyone understood that compared to traveling in a flashy, ostentatious manner, hiding among the crowd was the better way to stay concealed.
"They attacked us first because they suspected the target was hidden among us. Once they confirmed that none of us was the target, there was no need for them to keep tangling with us."
As Oliver said that, he saw the other mercenaries getting out of their vehicles and readying their weapons as well.
"What do you think, Carl?"
Jack looked at Carl.
"Let's go back and save