Chapter 168
"No, now that the existence of the mastermind has been confirmed, wouldn't it be better to just target the person responsible for the mastermind directly? Why go through all this trouble of searching for evidence?"
As she spoke, Nana tapped the agent Terminal on her shoulder. At the same time, an orange-yellow magical aura representing SHD agents formed, and unlike Anna's female voice, a calm male voice, seemingly from another SHD agent support AI, connected to Nana, issued the following prompt:
[Rogue agent detected. Initiating transmission of coordinates to on-duty agents...]
Before he could finish speaking, the orange aura was smashed to pieces by a sharp blade.
Takina looked closely and saw Nana holding a hand axe, its black magic burning darkly like flames... Then, the orange-yellow halo slowly turned blood red, and after the Halo reformed, a female voice, very similar in sound to the previous mechanical voice, appeared in the room:
[Detected Senior Agent Number Seventy-Seven's login... Verification successful... Traffic allocation in progress for 'Anna'...]
Welcome back, Number Seventy-Seven.
Seeing the system switch to its own attribute appearance, Nana nodded. Almost simultaneously, Takina felt a distinct magical fluctuation. Then, a huge projected map appeared in front of the two of them, with four obvious points of light rapidly approaching along the road.
Seeing this, Nana raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything more. As for Takina, although she had been inexplicably vulnerable just now, she was now in battle mode.
"The show is about to begin."
PS: Waaaaaaah!
PS2: Monday! 179 should be undergoing a second review today...
5th Laytonson's Ghost Assassin: 183 Prey Hunter
Originally designed as an underground bunker to escape Catastrophes, this base is hidden in a corner of a multi-level underground parking garage and connected to a subway station... The advantage of it as a base is that it is very convenient to use by car or public transportation, but as a battlefield, it is a terrible place.
Above the parking lot is a shopping mall, and the underground passage from the parking lot to the subway station usually has a considerable flow of people. Fortunately, as the sun sets and the temperature drops, the air conditioning sinks, and not many people leisurely walk in the underground passage... Otherwise, if people were walking in such a place fully equipped, Jaeger would probably have reason to say that Lycoris was causing trouble for their work.
Since the masterminds behind the scenes didn't seem like the kind of people who would care about the lives of ordinary citizens, Nana observed the surrounding terrain and then chose a battlefield.
"After that, we'll go here."
Because Nana sat in the passenger seat first, Takina took over the driving duties. However, after instinctively sketching out the route in her mind, Takina only belatedly realized her destination when she looked towards it:
"Here? Isn't this the territory of the Continental Hotel?!"
"Well... before it became part of the Continental Hotel' sphere of influence, Laisenton was first and foremost our city... If I don't clarify the subsequent relationships, I'll be in a lot of trouble."
Just as Nana dialed the 'Cleaners's' number, Takina glanced at the 'enemy's' location projected on Nana's watch and then stepped on the gas.
A turbocharged inline six-cylinder Originium Steam engine roared as a bright red, flamboyant sedan drifted out of the underground parking lot, much to the bewilderment of the busy workers heading home from work.
"This is number Seventy-Seven, please transfer me to ICA... Ah, I know this is against the rules, but you can consider complaining about me after that official starts work. I have something urgent to attend to right now..."
Upon hearing that Nana had requested the ICA to rent facilities at Continental Hotel for combat purposes, Takina, while estimating the distance to the vehicles behind her, asked:
"There are actually many suitable battlefields... like the one we went to a few days ago, the street where your apartment building was bombed..."
"That area was cordoned off and occupied by the police yesterday. Besides, it's just lacking in management; the population density isn't actually that low..."
"You mean Mercenaries and vagrants count too?"
"... We can't say homeless people's lives don't matter... Takina, you won't get state votes with that kind of thinking."
Muttering to herself, 'I'm not going to Trimounts for politics,' Takina skillfully overtook another car on the narrow two-lane road, then disciplinedly glanced at the rearview mirror:
"They're catching up now?"
"Maintain this pace; negotiations between the ICA and the Hotel will take some time. In the meantime, keep circling the designated battlefield, making sure you're ready to storm in at any moment."
It sounded like a simple job, but when Takina saw a black-haired woman with the exact same features as Nana sticking out of a black SUV in the rearview Feline, carrying a nine-shot Originium missile launcher, Takina felt a chill run down her spine and slammed on the gas pedal.
The ultra-lightweight Aston Martin DBS's acceleration was pushed to its limits at this moment. Even with the addition of bulletproof armor plates, the feeling of being pushed back into the seat and the menacing aura made Takina's adrenaline surge.
"Someone is aiming a missile launcher at us!"
"I saw it."
The screams of the unsuspecting crowd on the roadside and the magical fluctuations from the nine-tube missile launcher simultaneously assaulted Nana's face. As her silver twin pistols and blonde hair danced in the cold wind, nine gunshots rang out in succession, followed by a sudden explosion and the simultaneous activation of the streetlights.
When Nana finally pointed her gun at the "herself" whose ears were bristling, the bristling guy quickly shrank back. Seeing that the other party had no intention of exchanging gunfire, Nana also retreated to the car, changed the magazine of her pistol to a new full magazine, and then took out the spare bullets from the bag in her backpack and began to slowly and methodically load the bullets.
"The other side also has an armored vehicle... Judging from the interior space and the vehicle's overall appearance, its armor is much thicker than our modified version, which prioritizes speed... A pistol probably can't do much against that vehicle, since if it were 'me,' I'd have countless spells to enhance defense."
"Isn't the problem the missile launcher?!"
"That thing, because of the weight and size of the ammunition, is probably not so easy to carry. After that round, there probably won't be any more... but..."
Looking in the rearview mirror at the person holding a long gun and a pair of cannons, not only from the sunroof but also from the side window, and with the driver, 'Nana,' who looked like a quadruplet, staring at her expressionlessly, Takina felt as if she had been electrocuted and swerved the steering wheel. The bright red sports car streaked across the road like lightning, and at that moment the vehicle's speed even reached more than 160 kilometers per hour.
Even if the distance between the two vehicles suddenly increases to ten meters or so, that distance is still too short for a bullet.
An HK416 with a 45-round magazine, a 9mm MP5 with a 50-round drum magazine, and an M249 light machine gun mounted on a bipod on the roof of the vehicle... The sound of three fully automatic firearms firing at a distance of less than 100 meters was quite terrifying.
At that moment, Nana even had the illusion of returning to the bottom of the Catastrophe Cloud to receive the baptism of the Catastrophes.
Not to mention the spiderweb-like bullet holes that instantly covered the brand-new rear window, the screams of the surrounding crowd, and the civilian vehicles that were caught off guard and swerving to avoid the danger... Because of the dangerous actions of those idiots behind, the street not only experienced a chain-reaction car accident, but also instantly turned into a battlefield.
The police station's phones will probably be ringing off the hook within a minute... No, because of that missile barrage a minute ago, the 911 operators are probably already in a panic.
Even worse off than the operators was Takina, who was being relentlessly targeted by belt-fired light machine guns no matter how she tried to dodge. Takina voice, trembling with Catastrophes, betrayed her struggle to lie prone and avoid stray bullets.
"No matter what, Nana- senpai, please think of something!"
"... Even if you say that..."
Before she could finish speaking, Nana suddenly heard a crisp sound, completely different from the previous gunshot, coming from the ravaged rear window of the car.
Accompanied by the distinctive scent of the fuse magic used to detonate high-energy explosives, Nana pressed Takina's head down a short distance with one hand while keeping her hands steady on the steering wheel with the other.
The ensuing, violent explosion blew off the rear window, and a scorching storm swept shards of glass wildly through the vehicle. Fortunately, neither seat back panel had been skimped on. Aside from the leather seats being torn to shreds by the explosion, thanks to the cover and noise-canceling headphones, the explosion only managed to blast off the bulletproof glass of the rear window.
As Takina regained her senses, seeing the dark stains on Nana's uniform sleeves from the explosion's flames, all she could do was nod and take over driving the vehicle again.
As Nana withdrew her arm, another gunshot, completely different from the previous one, rang out through the center of the car and struck the multimedia control panel... The flying debris slightly interfered with Takina's driving, and the two even heard the car's engine sound as if something ominous had happened.
Looking through the rearview mirror, Takina realized that she had survived a whole belt of bullets fired from the other side, after noticing that the light machine gun on their roof had somehow transformed into a huge rifle.
"... A replica of the TAC-50... They actually fired that thing randomly in the city. It seems they really didn't consider the possibility of accidental injury due to overpenetration."
As she spoke, she rubbed her arms, which had just been hit by the shockwave of the explosion. Nana took out a pain-relieving ointment from her backpack, rolled up her sleeves, and applied it to her arms.
"If I had stopped any later, my arm would have been hit... It seems these guys were definitely after me."
As the rearview mirror was detonated by a loaded HK416, Nana drew her pistol and used the seat as cover to fire backwards.
"But being too hasty won't make you popular with girls!"
After firing five shots in quick succession, forcing the other person back into the car, Nana then looked at Takina, who had a bewildered expression as if asking, "What weird thing are you talking about?" and replied:
"That's something my agent used to say to me all the time... I think it's perfect for this situation."
"... You really handle things with ease."
"After all, it's just the other side wasting ammunition. They used that stuff and we didn't even manage to inflict a single bleeding wound... How can I be nervous..." (a sarcastic remark)
"But I was so nervous I was about to die!"
While speaking, he honked his horn and drifted and turned again, with the heavy SUV behind him following closely behind. The entire street ahead seemed to have fallen into the chaotic scene he had seen before.
"If we keep passively taking hits like this, I feel like we're going to be wiped out soon! You have to do something!" Scar
"Then, how about trying to counterattack? Align your car with the side of the other car?" (Bar)
"Is that so--?!" Mio
A screeching sound of brakes rang out as the steering wheel swerved to the side of the SUV. Because her car was on the other side's right, Takina wisely lay down and opened her side window after memorizing the road conditions... V
Because of its relatively short overall length, the gun can be easily retrieved and used even in the confined space of a vehicle. As the muzzle of the.300 caliber WA2000 caliber gun aligned with the passenger and driver of the SUV, Nana pulled the trigger.
From Takina's perspective, all she could see was the WA gun with its silencer knob spitting out flames. The gunshots, filtered through noise-canceling headphones, along with the shockwaves from the bullets, swept across her face, even blowing away the stray strands of hair that had fallen across it.
Turning to look at the blonde girl sitting and firing, even after the suppressive fire and explosions, Nana remained poised and graceful, like a princess going to a ball, not some Columbia soldier covered in gunpowder...
As the Halo above his head, faintly intertwined with black mist and Light Wings formed from the same black mist, appeared, WA2000 fired five shots in an instant, but Takina didn't hear anything that suggested the other party was injured... Doctor
"Accelerate!"
Even though Takina thought she had stepped on the gas pedal quickly, a crossbow bolt still shot into the car from the side. Fortunately, Nana reacted quickly and grabbed it... But when Takina got up, regained her composure, and turned around to look, she was suddenly covered in a cold sweat:
"Isn't that an explosive arrow?!"
"Yeah, it should be the one that just blew open our rear window... Don't worry, I removed the 'fuse'..."
Before Nana could finish speaking, ominous white smoke began to billow from under the hood of her brand-new car, which Nana hadn't driven many times. Although Takina appeared calm on the surface, her trembling voice revealed that she was genuinely reflecting on her actions and knew she shouldn't have participated in such a battle.
"The situation seems to be going badly."
"It looks like the radiator tank is leaking coolant... but the ICA says the site is ready and everyone has been evacuated."
"This is the best news I've heard today."
Then, squeezing the car's potential, trailing white smoke, Takina drifted around the corner and, following the map's directions from her memory, executed a fishtail maneuver to park the car in a parking space in front of the shopping mall belonging to the Continental Hotel.
Because of the speed difference between the vehicles, Takina felt she had at least two minutes to set up the battlefield.
"Actually, next time there's a battlefield arranged by our side, you can just drive straight into the building."
As Nana slung her backpack over her shoulder and got off the bus, she continued to share her experience with Takina.
"Won't this be considered damaging someone else's property?"
"The insurance company will cover it... Besides, if it were me, I would just crash right in."
Hearing the approaching engine sounds in the distance, Nana and Takina quickly went up to the second floor, where they could overlook the entire mall entrance through a glass wall... This place was originally an indoor children's playground. However, due to the emergency evacuation, toys were scattered everywhere, and there were even children's shoes lying on the ground.
Nana stood inside the one-way glass wall, watching the heavy SUV rush in. As she waved for Takina to prepare, she raised the magic grenade launcher:
"Then, the counterattack begins."
The dull thuds of grenades and shattering glass blended together. Takina, who had just been harboring a lot of dissatisfaction, also picked up her new gun and put her finger on the trigger... The explosion of mixed magic lit up the front of the other party's car. The flames and smoke seemed to have given the other party a huge over-the-shoulder throw. The vehicle, weighing several tons, was completely overturned and then crashed into the first floor of the mall with great inertia along the road and stairs.
Seeing this, Takina quickly turned back and ran to the open atrium between the second and first floors. Looking at the car, also smoking and with shattered glass, spinning helplessly with its tires gone, Takina, who was preparing to shoot but hadn't found her target, stared with her mouth slightly agape.
"This... seems completely unnecessary..."
He was speaking when the sound of shattering glass behind him and a sudden, immense force pulled him away from the edge.
The surge of adrenaline made time seem to slow down, and only then did Takina see the 'black-haired senior' holding a large shield, but without any equipment... especially a gun, was expressionlessly slamming the shield down like a blunt weapon.
The weapon that left deep cracks on the shield's surface was Nana- senpai's hand axe.
The clash between the two was fleeting, lasting only a moment. The black-clad enemy, wielding his shield to block Nana's slash, was then sent flying to the first floor by Nana's spinning kick. The heavy thud of the armored, insulated protective boots striking the shield was even louder than the sound of the enemy landing.
Although her posture was completely distorted at this moment, Takina still managed to aim at the landing opponent and pull the trigger. The AR15 hip-fire shot hit the shield that the opponent was blocking in front of him. Because of the tilted armor, the bullet ricocheted and hit the fence of the first-floor shop, creating a spark.
As Takina re-established her firing line and pulled the trigger with full-auto fire, the enemy below used slightly deformed shields to protect their entire bodies and quickly moved towards the overturned vehicle.
Intense gunfire, accompanied by occasional streaks of light, pierced the darkness of the mall. With a click of the empty magazine, Nana reloaded the launcher. With another soft thud, a thermite incendiary bomb engulfed the shield-wielding girl who had ripped open the transforming car door, as well as half of the SUV.
"This is a return gift."
In the dazzling firelight, the large shield, stained with thermite, was quickly thrown down, its ceramic-lined composite lining making a heavy thud as it hit the ground. But by the time Takina changed her magazine, Nana took out her WA2000 and looked at the target vehicle again... The four figures, also carrying backpacks and armed with rifles and cannons, had already darted into the nearby shop.
Seeing this, Nana and Takina immediately got up and left. In this shopping mall where there were no other people, the footsteps of the six of them disappeared one after another... but at a distance where they should have been able to hear each other, they all fell silent at the same time.
Both sides knew what was going on.
This is a hunting ground called the city.
And the hunters began their hunt.
PS: Waaaaaaah!
5th Laytonson's Ghost Assassin: 184 So-called Firearms Operator
In the past, in order to lead the battalion on her own without being a Red-Clad soldier, Takina underwent intensive training in all subjects. During this time, she had the opportunity to be exposed to Columbia's latest combat theories.
Unlike the ancient countries on this land that have histories spanning hundreds or even thousands of years, Columbia is a very young country that is heavily influenced by other nations.
Knowing that he lacked the world-destroying magical accumulation of figures like Leithanien and the Great Yan, Columbia's main combat strategy was to adopt a different, seemingly unrelated form of magic— 'Firearms Arts'.
Compared to the standard at Leithanien High School where a basic spell can be cast within six seconds to pass, the Columbia Gunner... even if he's not exceptionally good, can empty the cylinder of a standard revolver in three seconds.
Columbia has few skilled warlocks who can destroy Landship with a single incantation, but the gunners from Columbia have defined a new rule for fighting warlocks... that is, if shot while undefended, even if the spell that was active at the time of the hit does not cause a fatal wound, the subsequent projectiles will make the target wish they were dead.
Bleeding, fractures, and the resulting complications are not something any race can laugh off. Compared to the traditional sorcerers who contribute to all walks of life, the so-called 'Firearms Operator' are more like killing machines created specifically for humanity.
When both sides are at the pinnacle of Firearms Arts users, the battle is likely to be raging even before they meet.
"... This is... night vision magic..."
Blinking, Takina tried her best to make a sound through her throat. Her actively noise-canceling headphones, tuned to a specific frequency, were connected to a walkie-talkie, so even her quiet murmurs were clearly audible through the headphones.