"..."
"What, not taking it? Are you really that afraid of someone you subdued so easily?"
This was blatant provocation. Lin would not lose his head in anger over it, but he truly had no way to hold a gun, take the file, and restrain Ritter at the same time. After all, Ritter was a member of Poisoned Cocoon, no weaker in combat than any other soldier.
After considering it for a moment, Lin moved closer to the file bag. After taking one last look at the motionless Ritter, he reached out for it.
His other hand held the gun firmly against Ritter.
Only a few centimeters remained.
Lin's hand pressed down on the file bag.
"Smack."
At that barely audible sound, a cold glint flashed through Ritter's eyes. He bent his raised right arm and drove his elbow straight at Lin's face.
Lin had long expected Ritter to do this. He tilted his head and easily avoided the sneak attack, but the finger on his trigger did not pull it.
Lin's silence surprised Ritter, but it did not stop him from escaping. He immediately took off running, dodging Lin's sweeping kick as he headed toward the area where the Honkai Beasts were being held.
So he still hadn't recovered to his best condition after all...
This time, Lin did not hesitate. He aimed at Ritter's legs and fired three shots in rapid succession.
Bang! Bang bang!
Ritter easily dodged the first two shots, but Lin had deliberately left less than half a second between them, letting Ritter catch the rhythm. The third shot came far faster than the second, and Ritter failed to react in time. The bullet tore through his right thigh, making him stagger and collapse on the spot.
"Cough... this bastard..." Cold sweat poured down Ritter's face from the pain. He turned to look at Lin, who had already taken the file and was walking toward him with the gun in hand.
Lure the enemy in, then launch a sneak attack. His combat style was practically the same as close-quarters fighting. What a treacherous bastard. And his marksmanship was truly accurate.
But...
Ignoring the pain, Ritter sprang up and dragged his ruined right leg forward again.
Just as Lin was about to fire again, he paused while aiming.
Was Ritter deliberately moving into his line of fire?
Ritter knew Lin intended to shoot his left leg, so this time he lowered his body as much as possible, bringing his vital areas close to Lin's firing line. With Lin's marksmanship, that was nothing, but it still made him hesitate for a fraction of a second. And that was enough time for Ritter to do something.
Bang bang!
Two more shots.
Ritter silently counted the bullets in the magazine. He dodged the shots again, while Lin repeated the same trick, disrupting the rhythm before firing the third shot.
Bang!
Fully focused now, Ritter had figured out Lin's little trick. He dodged in the opposite direction. There was no way Lin could hit his leg now...
"Smack!"
A gut-wrenching pain shot through his left leg.
"Huh?"
"Thud." With both legs ruined, Ritter fell to the floor, his face ashen.
He turned back to look at the smoking barrel of Lin's gun.
It had been aimed at the floor?
That was... a ricochet.
"Outplayed again. Your combat ability really is exceptional." Ritter shook his head.
But Lin, who had been walking toward him, stopped midway and even lowered the muzzle.
Because Ritter was now right in front of the door holding the Honkai Beasts. He propped up half his body against the wall and placed his ID card beside... the switch.
"Heh heh. Now, isn't this just like back then? If I release these Honkai Beasts, can you kill them all before they hurt anyone else?"
Ritter mocked the halted Lin.
At This Moment
"Want to try it? See whether you can blow my hand apart before I release the Honkai Beasts."
Ritter's face was full of mockery as he moved the ID card closer to the switch.
After the previous two shots, Ritter had confirmed that Lin truly did not intend to kill him. Lin could have simply shot him in the head from behind, yet he had only crippled his ability to move.
"A facility like this cannot possibly be opened with nothing more than a simple card swipe." Lin raised the muzzle slightly, seemingly casually aiming at Ritter's hand.
"Do you remember the holding facility at Fifth Branch?" Ritter's lips curled at both ends as he widened his eyes, revealing a chilling smile. "Do you want to gamble on how I would open it?"
"..."
The enormous door stood behind Ritter like the gates of hell.
After a long silence, Lin silently lowered his gun.
Ritter clicked his tongue and shook his head. "What a pity. If you had broken my legs from the start, none of this would have happened. You're far softer-hearted than you look."
"What do you want?" Lin had no interest in idle chatter. The situation was already deadlocked, and there was no guarantee someone would not come here soon. He could not let Ritter stall for time.
"What do I want? Activate the emergency call for me, then leave this place!" Ritter shouted.
He did not think Lin valued the lives of the people in The Deepest Place more than his own. If he continued threatening Lin and pushed him too far, it would only backfire. It was better to let Lin leave with the information now. That would be the best outcome for both of them.
So what would Lin choose? Would he let this heinous murderer go for the sake of a few irrelevant people, or would he abandon these people from The Deepest Place, who were hardly much better themselves, for the heroic dead of Fifth Branch?
Ritter quietly swallowed. He appeared arrogant, but inwardly he was extremely nervous. He could not possibly release the Honkai Beasts. If he did, he would be the first to die.
But at least he had to act convincing!
Bluffing fiercely despite his inner weakness, he roared, "Do you think I don't dare release the Honkai Beasts? If you capture me, I'll be executed anyway, so don't waste time wondering whether I dare. I've killed so many people already. What's wrong with dragging a few more down with me at the end?"
Without a word, Lin put the gun into his pocket and looked at Ritter as he said lightly:
"You won't."
Just those three words tore away Ritter's mask. His fingers froze in midair, the card less than half a centimeter from the switch.
"I know someone. To him, his lover was everything. Compared to her, everything else was like starlight beside the bright moon. So I know you won't open it." Lin slowly walked forward, staring at Ritter as he tried to retreat with nowhere to go. "Because if you die, your daughter won't survive either."
"You... stop!"
"I can help you." Lin continued forward. His slow approach placed tremendous pressure on Ritter, and sweat began running down Ritter's head.
"Stop joking! You'll just let me go? Didn't you come all this way to capture me?"
"I never said I would let you go."
"What?" Ritter froze, then rage surged through him. "Are you playing with me?"
Of course, Lin could not simply let Ritter and the people behind him go. But Lin would not be the one to pass judgment on them.
"What is wrong with your daughter?" Lin stopped at a delicate distance—not too close, but close enough to put psychological pressure on Ritter.
"Why are you asking that?"
"Is it an ordinary illness, or Honkai Sickness?"
"..."
Ritter hesitated as he looked at the calmly standing Lin. Gritting his teeth, he said, "A rare cellular necrosis disease. There are only six cases in the world. The mortality rate is one hundred percent, and only one case remains now: my daughter."
A disease affecting one in several billion people truly could only be treated or delayed by MOTH, so Lin was not especially surprised when Ritter mentioned such an unbelievable illness.
As soon as Ritter finished speaking, Lin said, "I can save your daughter."
"You? Hmph..." Ritter said through trembling teeth, "You may be a genius in combat, but you aren't a doctor. What makes you think you can save her?"
"Do you know Mobius?"
"That Mobius?! Are you insane? You want my daughter to lie on that person's operating table?"
"But no one surpasses Mobius in cellular research. If anyone can save your daughter, it should be Mobius."
"..." This time, Ritter fell silent.
Lin occasionally checked the situation around A-3, making sure no one entered.
Another minute passed on Prometheus's time scale before Ritter raised his head and said hoarsely, "What do you want me to do?"
"The person who gave the orders, and you." Lin's visual display showed that Ritter's heartbeat had slowed. He said flatly, "You will receive the punishment you deserve."
Lin had no right to forgive Ritter on behalf of the people of Fifth Branch, even if Ritter had acted for his daughter. Nor did Lin have the right to punish Ritter, even if Ritter deserved death. Only the survivors of Fifth Branch, led by Doctor Spacy, had that right.
Lin would not place himself above the law of the people, but neither would he allow the judgment that should come to be pardoned because of privilege.
"...All right."
Ritter sighed, lowering his hand and moving the ID card away from the switch.
Leaning against the wall, he smiled in relief at that moment. "The punishment I deserve... perhaps that is right. You really are the strange person the rumors say you are."
Lin shook his head. It seemed this matter had finally come to a satisfactory end. Next, he only needed to find a way to bring Ritter back, then identify Poisoned Cocoon's commander and report everything to Mei.
"Sigh, come give me a hand. Those two shots of yours broke my legs. I can't walk."
Ritter pointed to his two mangled, bloody legs. After glancing at them, Lin stepped forward, intending to carry him on his back.
Yet just as disasters descended without warning while still following their own patterns, every seemingly sudden accident left traces to be followed, yet still caught people completely unprepared.
"Beep----"
Both Ritter and Lin felt their hairs stand on end as a chill surged up from the soles of their feet.
Without anyone expecting it, the tightly sealed door holding the Honkai Beasts suddenly let out a tremendous boom, then opened with a thunderous crash.
Ritter stared wide-eyed as the Honkai Beasts, once contained in individual prison-like chambers, emerged from their opened cells and let out distorted shrieks.
Roar----
What was happening? He clearly had not activated the switch.
Releasing every Honkai Beast at once could not possibly be the result of merely opening one door!
At that moment, a thought flashed through Ritter's mind, and then his mind went completely blank.
"Have we been discovered?"
Taking Something for Nothing
"Have we been discovered?"
Ritter muttered blankly as he watched a floating squid-like Honkai Beast drift before him, extending sharp tentacles toward his brain.
Bang!
Lin pulled Ritter aside, avoiding the Honkai Beast's attack, then drew his pistol and fired. But this gun was not a specialized anti-Honkai weapon. The bullets sank into the Honkai Beast's body, yet the wounds were shallow. They could not reach the core and caused no substantial damage.
"Lin, there are thirteen Honkai Beasts. All are specialized lower-class Honkai Beasts."
To avoid interfering with Lin's information gathering, Prometheus switched to voice reports. A mechanical girl's voice entered Lin's ears.
Lin raised his foot and stomped the small Honkai Beast to the ground. He pressed the pistol against the center of its several tentacles, then fired again.
Bang!
The shot struck the core.
Lin discarded the empty pistol and held Ritter in both arms as he retreated swiftly.
The remaining twelve Honkai Beasts had only just escaped their cages. After a brief pause, they began swarming toward Lin.
As he retreated, Lin said, "You have a surveillance device on you."
The words struck Ritter like lightning.
At that moment, two Honkai Beasts rushed toward the exit. Lin's pupils contracted, and he immediately said to Prometheus, "Prometheus, seal the doors!"
"Unable to control the containment doors."
"The doors to A-3. Seal them all!"
Ritter jolted and grabbed Lin by the collar. "Are you crazy?! If you seal A-3, we'll both die!"
But if he did not seal A-3, there would be even greater casualties. Lin repeated without hesitation, "Seal A-3!"
Before you continue