Chlorine Sodium's Arknights

"What's going on inside?"

Standing at the entrance to the village, several members of the Infected Patrol, their respirators hanging loose, stood with their arms crossed in the biting wind.

It was too cold. Even the Infected Patrol members, clad in thick overcoats and fur hats, were struggling to cope.

If it weren't for the orders from above and the important person in their team, who would be foolish enough to freeze in the wilderness in weather like this? They could tolerate it for a while during the day, but if they didn't find a warm place before sunset, they'd surely freeze to death on the plains.

They hoped this would be over quickly so they could head back before sunset and maybe even catch a hot meal.

"No idea. But hey, fire-bender, why don't you whip up some magic to warm us up, huh?"

One of the patrol members, rubbing his hands together, grinned and slapped the back of the only person in the group dressed differently.

"Bullshit! This is magic! Sorcery, you uneducated oaf! Noble sorcery isn't for warming up a bunch of guys like you; it's the noble art of Originium Arts!"

The speaker was a patrol member wearing glasses, looking quite refined, at least compared to the rough-looking men around him.

"What's this magic or sorcery? You're just conjuring a fireball, right? A fireball is fire, a bonfire is fire, what's the difference? Come on, show us what you've got."

"Show you my ass! I'm here to prevent anyone from coming in! These spells are limited, and we need to use them wisely. If we mess this up, none of us will get out of it alive."

After shoving the meddler back a step, the man adjusted his glasses.

"Didn't you see that killer go into the village? Keep your eyes peeled today. I don't want that killer to notice us. As long as I'm here, we'll definitely be back soon. Anyway, anyone left alive in that village is as good as dead once that killer shows up, so they'll be out any minute now."

"Then it's all up to you. Don't screw it up."

"Get lost! The outside is rigged with Originium Trigger Devices. Step on one without knowing its location, and you're dead. Do you think mages only know how to conjure fireballs?!"

As the group chatted animatedly, stamping their feet and preparing to wait a little longer, a figure appeared in the snowstorm.

"Who are you people? What are you doing here?"

The group hadn't even noticed the person's arrival, but her voice suddenly startled the patrol members.

"Who's there?!"

They spun around abruptly, and the refined man with glasses' eyes widened in disbelief.

"You... where did you come from?!"

"Huh?"

So, you Ursus people start with interrogations too?

That's going to be a problem. I'm undocumented.

However, when the man saw that Chlorine Sodium was completely unharmed, he was aghast.

"You... impossible! How could you possibly have passed through the blockade unharmed?! Be careful, she definitely has accomplices!"

In his eyes, this woman could only have gotten through the blockade unharmed with the help of teammates, or even sacrifices. This meant there must be many of them!

Perhaps they were part of that guerrilla group roaming the snowfields!

Then who was she?

She looked like just a frail woman.

At least to the other burly men, Chlorine Sodium's height of 1.63 meters was unimpressive. What threat could a small woman pose? This four-eyes must have made a mistake.

Yes, he must have made a mistake.

Seeing that the "four-eyes" was faltering, the surrounding burly patrol members were unconcerned.

Mistake or not, they'd deal with her later.

Kidnap... kidnap... kidnap her for ransom~ first.

It was easy to understand. In this land dominated by scarcity, ignorance, and superstition, explaining what the Originium infection truly was to the vast majority of people was difficult.

Most people judged whether someone was Infected based solely on their appearance.

That is, the very visible crystals on their skin. Most Infected would have some of these appear on their skin.

As for those whose brains were injected with Originium crystals but showed no external signs, it was rare, so as long as Originium crystals appeared on the skin, they were definitely Infected.

This was how most people identified Infected individuals, and naturally, organizations like the Infected Patrol, which were half-official and half-civilian, operating under borrowed authority, did the same.

After all, they couldn't afford a machine to detect infections for each person.

In the eyes of these men, filled with primal desire and greed, the woman before them showed no signs of external crystals. Otherwise, she wouldn't have dared to dress so revealingly. Most Infected would try to cover themselves up as much as possible.

Her silver hair cascaded down like a waterfall, her blue-gray eyes were like the most precious blue crystals, and her fair, translucent skin perfectly complemented the white land.

She could be considered a beauty that met the aesthetic standards of 99.9% of the population.

"You! This is a military blockade zone. Unauthorized entry requires you to come with us for investigation."

"Yes, you must be interrogated."

Interrogated?

The young woman took a few steps forward, tilting her head.

This world is beyond saving. At least, that's what I see in the eyes of these people: pure, primal malice, and a chaotic, numb indifference.

It's disgusting.

I don't even need to use my Herrscher armament.

After all, there are six of them in total. Five brutish guys with no significant energy readings, and one elite "oddity" with a faint energy fluctuation.

Each of them is wearing worn but functional leather armor and thick, cold-weather clothing. They're built tough, these "bear" types, all appearing to be over 1.8 meters tall with burly physiques.

They all have weapons too. If they were to fight at full strength, one person would be worth two points, and five ordinary grunts would be ten points.

The elite oddity looks like a magic-using unit, so let's give him an extra three points.

A threat level of thirteen points.

Six people against one weak woman.

Rounding that down, it's basically...

—Zero~

No threat at all.

"I'm asking you a question, you idiots! Why are you answering me with questions?! Didn't your mothers teach you not to answer a question with another question?!"

Chlorine Sodium isn't exactly a pushover. Her plan from the start was to use brute force to get through, and leaving survivors wasn't her style.

ps: Ah, updating twice a day is so stressful ahhhhhh

Considering how hard I'm working to update, why don't you hurry up and give me your votes! [Hands on hips]

Section 13: Chapter Thirteen [Unexpected Visitor]

"Bitch, you're asking for death!"

The leader of the disciplinary team raised his hand to strike. If an ordinary person took this punch, they'd likely be seriously injured. After all, his fist was the size of a cooking pot.

However, the descending fist made no contact with any human body.

Because in the next moment, the girl had already vanished from sight and appeared in the center of the group. The high-raised fist was now covered in a dense, eerie purple pattern.

Inch-Punch: Rock Break!

This was the sign that her enhancement had activated. In an instant, a wall of snow erupted from the wind of her punch! Centered on the girl, an invisible shockwave sent the accumulated snow flying three to four meters high. The blizzard of snowflakes completely obscured everyone's vision.

"What's going on!"

"I told you she was suspicious!!"

The bespectacled mage had already sensed something was wrong, but his teammates were useless, completely ignoring him.

When have you ever seen an ordinary woman dare to wander in the snow wearing so little?

And in such harsh conditions, the silver-haired girl was completely unharmed, not even a speck of snow on her legs. Isn't that incredibly strange?!

"Damn it, fire to clear the way!"

Fire can melt ice and snow. The mage clicked his broken lighter.

Mages need a casting medium, and it must be something containing Originium.

Powerful mages might have fine staves, but these poorer individuals have to find ways to make their own.

A flame flickered to life. The sparks from the Originium lighter, amidst some ancient incantation, suddenly transformed into a serpent of fire that slithered from the palm of his hand!

Fortunately, they weren't some unruly Infected, who would prefer to use their own blood as a medium for their Arts.

Alas, the piercing shriek through the air already signaled the opponent's attack, but everyone's vision was blocked by the sudden surge of snow. This carnival of snowflakes would only last a few seconds.

But for Chlorine Sodium, a few seconds was more than enough.

Because the mage was already flying backward, a steaming fist print imprinted on his chest. Chlorine Sodium had already retracted her fist and thrown a second punch towards another source of life activity.

No fancy moves, just blinding the opponent, then one person, one punch.

What followed were the crisp sounds of shattering bones, whistling air, and pained screams.

Not even a few seconds passed before the snow wall, which hadn't even fallen yet, was blown away by a howling gust of wind!

It was like an explosion at the center. Amidst the flying snow, figures were sent flying backward.

Only Chlorine Sodium remained standing in the center, like a blooming flower. The fallen disciplinary team members lay in a circle around the girl.

Yes, when it was all over, the overlapping explosions finally rang out: the whistling of air, the screams of pain and curses, the muffled thuds of internal organs damaged by shattered bones, and the sounds of people hitting the ground.

It happened so fast, all in the blink of an eye.

And Chlorine Sodium, at the center, had already lowered her hands, which were steaming from the high-speed friction with the air. Her slightly glowing golden eyes were fixed on the only survivor among the six.

She had deliberately spared him to get some information.

The fallen mage hadn't even finished spitting out the blood from his mouth when he struggled to get up, only to feel a violent kick to his stomach.

The man cried out in pain, curling into a ball, but was then grabbed by the collar and pulled up.

"Please, don't, don't kill me! I, I'm just a errand boy..."

The man holding him went limp like a struggling duck. However, his contorted face was reflected in a pair of utterly emotionless, extremely cold eyes.

"Now, tell me everything you know, and...

I hate it when people answer my questions with questions, understand, you idiot."

Dropping the Infected in his hands, the Emperor's Royal Guard leaped aside, warily scanning his surroundings.

"Who's there!?"

Why hadn't he detected this attack?!

The Emperor's Royal Guard didn't dare be careless, as ordinary attacks were incredibly slow to elites like him. Except for this one.

Although the bullet hadn't managed to injure an existence on the Emperor's Royal Guard's level, the fact that such an assault had gone unnoticed by him was extremely rare.

Who was it?!

However, as the Royal Guard turned his head, searching for the origin of the bullet, he saw a silver-haired girl slowly walking towards him, reloading the slugs in her pocket back into the magazine.

"I can't believe an Emperor's Royal Guard would come to a place like this, where even birds don't shit. What an honor to have you grace us with your presence."

"Who are you."

Multiple aiming sights glowed crimson, all reflecting the approaching silver-haired girl in the distance.

"Me? Just an ordinary investor, a Doctor from afar, and a regular office worker who enjoys a peaceful life."

"You're not answering my question. No matter, it seems you're involved. I'll take you down first."

The crimson aiming sights suddenly flared with an ominous color, and the surrounding air rapidly shifted from color to black and white.

It was as if an invisible cage had descended upon him, and beyond the distorted light spots, the air began to solidify!