Chapter 166

"So, finally, it's my own mission... All I can tell you is my final evacuation route... If all goes well, I'll return to Rhodes Island as Medic, and until then, the 'identity' created by Jessica will continue to help the Infected students with community activities at the school..."

"Although I feel a little sorry, I may have to entrust this event to you Su Sulo... It doesn't need to be too grand, just a self-service distribution event for Oripathy drugs will suffice."

Shaking her ears, Su Sulo readily agreed:

"Hmm, this is a good opportunity to replenish some basic medicines here before transferring Seia..."

Seeing that everything was arranged, Mika happily waved her hand and said: Wu

"Well then, I'll go and get someone to make the arrangements for Miss Jessica."

Franka: "It sounds complicated, but there's not much work involved... It feels like a small activity."

Liskarm: "Small events are better... Honestly, I don't want to, and I'm not qualified to, participate in government-related matters."

Seeing everyone begin their activities under Mika's guidance, Nana turned back to look at the equipment gradually taking shape in the equipment workshop. Typhon, who had been observing these items, recognized them as belonging to the attacker from before.

"Finally, it's your turn, 'Chief'... (II) Lin Yuwu Lingjiu..."

Unlike everyone else who went about their own business, Nagisa didn't leave; instead, like Typhon, she stayed.

"What about Little Raiden and the others? And it seems Takina is still in prison..."

"Once the manager returns, Little Raiden and Takina will both enter Rhodes Island like you... Raiden will go through the ICA's personnel channel, while Takina will be handled by me... As for the Lycoris who were arrested for fighting Atlas, I will ensure their safe and legal release from prison, without affecting their future lives."

As Nana spoke, she equipped herself with the hacked agent gear... Because Nana didn't damage any equipment, the shoulder-mounted casting unit remained intact.

Not only the sonar scans that forcibly revealed Typhon's hiding place, but also its overloaded aggressive uses, and the valuable 'Echo' system that could be used to reconstruct events... Nana kept it all.

What Nana now holds is the transmitter that almost pointed at Typhon:

"Explosive Sticky Bomb Launcher... In addition to launching explosives and thermite, it is also compatible with the delivery of strong oxidizing aerosols and napalm incendiary bombs... Unlike the Mercenaries of Atlas, these are all active-duty SHD agent equipment. Has Lycoris been killed by these things?"

"... Yes, and in almost every instance of organized, head-on confrontation, there are records of our people being killed or wounded by these things... I always thought they were Atlas's men."

Seeing Nana's thoughtful expression, Nagisa, looking sad, didn't say much, allowing Nana to focus all her attention on the equipment in front of her... However, out of a sense of responsibility as the secretary, she still had to remind Nana:

"Finally, regarding the ultimate objective of our mission... Currently, that person is still under the control of the Maylander Foundation, and as for Lycoris, due to your orders, we are unable to participate in the upcoming battles except to provide you with combat support... Is there anything else we can do to help you?"

Hearing Nagisa's tone, which sounded as if she were asking about his will, Nana touched Typhon, who was also leaning closer out of concern, and thought for a moment before answering:

"I actually... really like this city... Once this is all over, could you ask Lycoris and the others to restore the city to the way I know it?"

"... I see... I will give this instruction to my successor."

PS: Waaaaaaah!

5th Laytonson's Ghost Assassin: 181 Fully Armed!

Assessing the situation, revising plans... completing various tasks step by step is Nana's good habit.

Although the first day's investigation and subsequent probing ended with the target's death, and although the mysterious enemy encountered with Typhon was eliminated, the questions not only did not decrease but increased, and most importantly, he was framed.

Nana didn't want to bear the crime of killing a government employee in her home, so the next day at dawn, while Typhon to the coffee shop to be taken care of by Eileen, Nana, who had dyed her hair and eye color again, took the video recordings that Little Raiden had worked overtime to sort out the night before, bought breakfast, and began to look for Sheriff Jaeger's deputy, almost as if blocking the door.

For the officers of the RSPD (Laisenton Police Department), it was a bit of a shock. After all, anyone would have their blood pressure spike if they saw someone wearing 511 urban camouflage Tactical Armor with a matching backpack, an M4 Shotgun on the left and a WA2000 sniper rifle that you rarely see on a normal day... and both of them had the Laterano stamp on them. Anyone would think that criminals were coming to attack.

"Oh."

"... Oh, my foot... you..."

Seeing that Jaeger was getting a little exasperated, Nana preemptively wagged her finger meaningfully:

"I do have an employment agreement with the police department, and although my identity as a border patrol officer is fake, my registration process in the police system is legal... As Chief of Lycoris and a nationally recognized senior agent, what's wrong with using a fake identity to investigate cases?"

Jaeger dismissed the girl's words as nonsense... However, as he scrutinized the blonde girl's weaponry, especially noticing the brass-colored grenades on her belt and the handheld launcher, Jaeger wanted to say, 'At this point, is there any point in adhering to that agreement?'

But now, a guy who seems to be displaying force, even carrying heavy firepower with unidentified explosives, is blocking the entrance to his workplace. Not only can a bunch of police officers who are coming to work not get in, but because the number of people is increasing, unsuspecting bystanders who are also on their early shifts are starting to gather around and watch.

Looking again at the enormous breakfast paper bag in the other person's hand, which was clearly bought from the fast food restaurant across the street, Jaeger inexplicably recalled the director's angry roar at all the frontline staff, including himself, last night:

Don't complicate things any further!

So... judging from her fairly friendly and outgoing demeanor, let's see what she's up to?

"Well... so you brought me breakfast? There's quite a lot, are you treating everyone at the police station?"

Seeing that Jaeger, who had just been extremely wary, was now smiling and trying to get the breakfast she had brought for free, Nana suddenly swung her hand back to hug the paper bag, her eyes deadpan:

"Obviously not, this is for the children..."

"Children... ah... you mean those children... so, you really were planning to release them on bail yesterday?"

As Jaeger spoke, he waved for the on-duty police officers to put away their weapons and make way. However, although he said to put away their weapons, it seemed that allowing fully armed non-official personnel into the police station was unprecedented, so the police officers were visibly tense... Almost everyone was holding their weapons, either at the ready or at a distance. If looks could kill, Nana would probably be seriously injured and lying on the ground by now.

"I've always been a law-abiding citizen~ Compared to Atlas, Lycoris has never caused trouble for the police station... so I'm very sad, especially after hearing you say you wanted to help the other side yesterday..."

Letting the blonde girl enter the police station, Jaeger, who was slightly behind, took the opportunity to get a good look at her after she changed out of her police uniform.

The first thing that caught the sheriff's deputy's attention was Lycoris's uniform—a red dress, the style of which was the same as the girls in the prison. Let's assume that her claim that Lycoris was the chief is true.

Unlike the unfortunate policewoman who had her shoes ripped off yesterday, Nana was clearly wearing her own shoes today... not shiny leather boots, but sneakers with thick soles, a matte finish of unknown material, seemingly sporty, and with ankle supports.

The white stockings with red lace trim were eye-catching, and above them were long, fair, bare legs, with gun holsters peeking out from under the skirt... To be honest, Lycoris might have found Jaeger unreliable partly because of this outfit.

Although it was an urban environment, the skirt she was supposedly wearing was a school uniform, and her bare knees had no protection whatsoever. She didn't look like a professional at all... But this same unprofessional girl had previously used a Columbian Replica Gun PKM gun, which is theoretically only issued in small quantities to the military, to mow down more than a dozen Atlas combat teams a few days ago.

What's wrong with this world...?

Shaking his head slightly, Jaeger continued to observe the weaponry on the blonde girl.

Above the skirt is the weapon belt, and on the left side hangs a four-layered stack of loaded shotgun shells, two shells per group... a slingshot? It seems like a convenient design for reloading by hand... but there are clearly quite a few shells already on the belt, and so much more ammunition is carried on the waist... isn't it heavy?

The back was obscured by the backpack, but the outline of a hand grenade could be vaguely discerned, so we'll leave that aside for now.

The problem with her right side was much bigger; it contained a spell grenade launcher... and the grenades themselves. Jaeger desperately hoped that the girl was carrying genuine military equipment, not some small-workshop handmade product filled with Active Originium powder or something else.

The city is now on the verge of declaring a state of emergency due to the covert war between Atlas and Lycoris, just one public bombing in a densely populated area away from being declared a state of emergency... If this bombing turns a healthy citizen into the Infected, then all of Laisenton's current government personnel will be finished... Everyone will have their property confiscated and be sent to reclaim wasteland as atonement!

Looking further up, the two guns on either side of the backpack are quite conspicuous, one a shotgun and the other a sniper rifle with a large optical sight. Clearly, Lycoris's side came prepared this time... Adding to the pistol replica she showed off yesterday, and the hidden guns she'd never taken out before, just how many weapons is this person carrying?

Furthermore... her backpack had quick-release mesh pockets and Velcro straps with equipment Jaeger didn't recognize... was that what they called spy gear?

Jaeger hoped that he wouldn't have to know what those things were for as an opponent.

"... Speaking of which, there was another strange attack in the city yesterday..."

"You mean Atlas filed the report and pinned the blame on Lycoris and 'Ghost' for the murder of the government employee...?"

Before she could finish speaking, the tense atmosphere around her was reignited, and Nana was once again subjected to a barrage of gunfire. Even the police guards involuntarily drew their weapons, and the sound of swords being drawn echoed continuously.

"Hey, let's get this straight... I've brought crucial evidence, you know, to prove who's really behind Laisenton's current predicament... although I know you guys probably can't do anything about these people."

"Evidence...?"

Waving again to calm everyone down, Jaeger whispered to another female detective wearing the insignia of a sheriff's deputy, then casually pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and moved a chair to sit down.

"So, since you're here seeking cooperation, don't beat around the bush; just state your intentions directly."

"Great, then I'll show you some sincerity too."

As she spoke, Nana took a USB flash drive out of her pocket with her free hand:

"Here is the CCTV footage of the murder of that poor government employee, which my men worked through the night to compile, along with the spellcasting records and spell waveforms from the killer's spell Terminal..."

Seeing the USB drive taken away by the forensic experts, Nana put her hands behind her head, looking relaxed.

"Although I arrived late and didn't stop the murderer from committing the crime, she ran into my people as she was leaving... I don't know who was more unlucky, her or my poor junior, but anyway, I've confirmed that she's the culprit who made this city so wretched..."

As she spoke, Nana felt like she had forgotten something, until she realized she was still holding the breakfast packet in her arms, and then it dawned on her:

"Speaking of which, could you give the breakfast I bought to those children? By the time you remember to bring them food while they're in detention, it'll probably be after 10 a. m... By then, it'll almost be lunch."

"Because everyone is currently focused on maintaining order in the city, over thirty young men were hospitalized yesterday alone due to various injuries... There are so many people fighting with guns or knives that even administrative leave has piled up..."

That's truly tragic.

Nana's merciless comment drew angry glares from many police officers, while Uncle Jaeger remained as calm and collected as ever.

"Also, although you've worked very hard to bring breakfast for so many people, I regret to inform you that for the safety of those children, we will have to arrange the breakfasts ourselves..."

"What? Are you afraid I'll poison those children?"

"This is standard police procedure; please don't try to make things complicated for yourself."

"But I've already bought it..."

Watching Nana start eating on her own without saying a word, Jaeger also grabbed a hamburger as if they were old friends, and the two of them ate their breakfast with gusto. A few minutes later, when the police station brought over the breakfast for Lycoris and the others in a trolley, Nana, with a deadpan expression, asked to check it.

Jaeger was speechless. "What... are you afraid the police will poison your people?"

"Of course, after all, there are people here who say, 'I'm more optimistic about Atlas because Atlas backing is harder to deal with.'"

After a heated exchange of words, with Nana checking and escorting the food along the way, the police station canteen's food, which didn't look as fancy as takeout but was definitely filling, was successfully delivered to the detention room.

Upon seeing someone openly walking towards the gate in uniform and carrying a weapon, Blue Lycoris, the assistant the manager had assigned to Nana, immediately stood up.

Although Takina only slightly opened her mouth without speaking, Nana seemed to hear a "Huh?" in her eyes.

"Alright, don't overreact. You know what that person asked of me... so just confront them openly and honestly, there's nothing to worry about."

Seeing Nana's inexplicably confident demeanor in her fully armed form, Takina, regaining her composure, took the paper cup of seaweed and egg drop soup handed to her by her junior, slurped it up, and then, while wolfing down a fried egg, pointed behind Nana with her other hand:

"When you say 'don't worry,' are you referring to the police department's powered armored Rapid Response Force?"

Of course, given Nana's vigilance and situational awareness, she couldn't possibly miss the heavily armed police officers approaching. However, Nana didn't believe she had done anything that required her to hide from the police, so the assassin turned around and responded openly:

"What? Power armored Shieldguards... they've even brought out automatic Firearms Arts... are they determined to participate in the upcoming battle?"

"Alice... no, that must be a pseudonym... but let's call you Alice for now... we've just finished examining the 'evidence' you sent."

"Hmm?~"

Seeing that the other party was still smiling and seemed to completely disregard the police station, the female deputy police chief who was with the forensic department snorted coldly:

"This is the first time I've ever seen a murderer deliver evidence to my door..."

Raising his hand to stop his colleague from continuing, Jaeger lit another cigarette, but then remembered there were still many minors inside the detention facility, so he stubbed it out without even taking a puff.

"I think you should explain this... After the video was overexposed, this face looks exactly like yours..."

At this point, Jaeger glanced at the top of Nana's head:

"There's pretty much no need to hide anymore. Our on-duty warlock has already identified you... You're actually Feline, aren't you... You look exactly like the surveillance footage."

"Oh? But I could be Feline, or Sarkaz, or even Sankta?"

While maintaining her smile, Nana switched her disguise spells several times in quick succession, her expression changing rapidly. As Nana returned to her disguise without 'Alice' —that is, the Sankta state where the Halo and wings were concealed— Nana could even hear the sound of the Originium Steam engine of the opposing power armor being stretched to its limit.

"Chimera..."

"Yes, but there's no reward. Alright, I won't provoke you anymore... Since your warlocks are on duty, my spell fluctuations should have been recorded, right? How about comparing them with the casting unit records I uploaded?"

Seeing Nana's casual attitude, as if she were just fooling around, the female deputy sheriff who had just been in charge of examining the evidence seemed a little angry:

"Who knows if that piece of evidence, the one from which you see the scattered flags and banners, is fake...?"

"Hey, why would the murderer deliver the goods to your door? That's so stupid!" Yi

"Maybe you're trying to play dumb? Anyway, a guy with the same face holding a magical Terminal, pointing at surveillance footage with completely unreliable evidence and saying 'the person in there isn't me'... how can I believe that!"

"... But I was the one who provided you with the surveillance footage, wasn't I?"

Seeing Nana's furrowed brow, the woman, presumably a technical officer, brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and said in a matter-of-fact tone: 8.

"But surveillance can verify authenticity, while spell Terminal can't... This thing is too easy to forge; any warlock can use your casting unit." (Another part is missing.)

Seeing the other party's self-righteous statement, Nana tilted her head and remained silent for a while, then sighed speechlessly, "Get up..."

"You have a point, you're right... I really don't have any evidence to clear my name."

"So you're being honest..."

"But I can blow the entire police station to the sky."

PS: Waaaaaaah!

5th Laytonson's Ghost Assassin: 182 Well Prepared

With a blank expression, she uttered a threat that sent chills down everyone's spines. With a wave of Nana hand, the Lycoris, who had just finished eating and were on guard in the cell, all vanished instantly... Visibly, they disappeared with a splash, as if they had fallen into some kind of water, leaving only a pool of blood on the floor.

The blonde girl's eyes were a bright, burning red, and in her hand was a blood orb that sent chills down everyone's spines, forcibly causing everyone's heartbeats to beat in unison at a single frequency... With her canine fangs faintly showing, the blonde girl's transformation into Bloodfiend, controlling everyone's hearts and preparing to turn the entire area into a sea of blood, did not seem fake at all.

"I have been speaking to you with restraint until now only because I do not want the order of this city to collapse... I will say it again: compared to Atlas and the people behind him who act recklessly, we Lycoris are the protectors of this city."