Kitty Killer Is Not Very Cold

With a soft chuckle, the Captain gestured toward the shipwide broadcast microphone, and Nana nodded in agreement.

The shipwide broadcast was then activated.

[...Long story short, Columbia's support is on the way. We will now begin moving and connect with the Intercity Network of the reinforcements... Once the situation is confirmed, Blacksteel Worldwide will begin advancing toward Ticarondo... May God guide us. Amen.]

PS: I think I caught a cold... I have a fever...

PS2: Waaah, kitty...

I was a little careless... Doctor... are you crying?

PS3: On second thought, I shouldn't go around killing people... There will be plenty of troublemakers for Nana to slaughter later.

The Mystery of the 2nd Medic: Franka's Secret

Driving toward the Catastrophe Cloud, Su Sulo blinked hard at the howling winds and flashing lightning visible to the naked eye, forcing her frightened tears to stay in their sockets.

Blaze, seated in the passenger seat, had seen Little Fox's every reaction and offered a suggestion.

"How about you take the newcomers back to the Blacksteel Landship and wait for news, Su Sulo? They never said they would definitely keep waiting for us... They still have a fourth meeting."

"...You know perfectly well I didn't leave just because of that meeting..."

Glancing at Liskarm and Franka following behind in the Blacksteel BPRS armored van through the rearview mirror, Su Sulo also looked at the newcomers, whose attention was fixed on the distant Catastrophe Cloud and who insisted on coming along, then sighed.

"...At first, I only wanted an excuse to stop those two from obsessing over 'Jessica'..."

"And then you came up with that... terrible idea of using yourself as bait?"

"...Not exactly... After all, I said it myself and made my position clear. If they weren't going to Ticarondo, we would go ourselves... And if we're talking about someone to stay in a safe area with the newcomers, Blaze, you're the one who's actually on the operations team..."

Seeing Su Sulo take advantage of their familiarity to wipe at the corners of her eyes, smudging the light makeup she had specifically put on for Leithanien, Blaze snorted and handed her a handkerchief and makeup remover. The gesture made Little Fox puff out her cheeks slightly, but Su Sulo still accepted them and quietly thanked her.

"You said it yourself, I'm an operations team member. How could I leave you behind? Even if I wanted to, the newcomers wouldn't... At least one of them belongs to the Sled Rescue Team and has some ability to handle Catastrophes. If this whole group gets thrown into a Catastrophe together, you're the city doctor, so you're the one in the most danger..."

"I-Is that so..."

Seeing that Little Fox seemed to understand why everyone kept looking at her with concern, Blaze spread her hands and pointed at the rearview mirror.

"Still, I have to give you credit for thinking of a way to draw them away... That bought us some time, at least. Though I still don't know what 'Jessica' is trying to do."

Watching the seniors converse, Meli, the girl in the backseat—who had taken the codename "Cardigan" after the three of them whispered together during the earlier meeting—leaned forward.

"...Um, so... is 'Jessica' actually the Captain?"

Su Sulo and Blaze exchanged a knowing look at the question from the backseat, then denied it in unison.

"...No. She's not."

"How could she be? No matter how you look at it, they're two different people..."

"...But the smell..."

"The smell is different too. Or are you saying you remember that smell, Meli... Cardigan?"

At Blaze's question, Cardigan scratched her head. She truly couldn't describe the scent... But she had only ever felt that sensation around her own captain. Could that count as evidence?

Before Cardigan could sort out the logic, Blaze directly cut off the young girl's thoughts.

"Besides, instead of thinking about your captain, who has other missions, you should think about whether you want to get out now and go back to the Landship with the people behind us... I'm seriously suggesting it, not being sarcastic. You really don't need to come with us. The main reason we left early was to put public pressure on Blacksteel... As a partner organization, Rhodes Island has already set out while they're still standing around. That means public opinion will pressure them the way we want. But all we need is someone who can represent Rhodes Island to do this. You really... don't need to accompany us."

"But we said so too~ I respect what you're doing, moving forward through a Catastrophe, so I want to follow you... I wasn't just making polite talk back at the Blacksteel office. It's just that Stewart and the others..."

"...If you weren't being polite, do you think we were just casually agreeing when we said we'd come with you?"

Angrily poking the forehead of this foolish girl, the two white-haired boys sighed together.

Blaze couldn't tell whether the three of them were putting on a brave face or truly wanted to follow her from the bottom of their hearts... But since they had said so, she naturally had to treat them all equally.

"Fine, let's distribute the equipment for now... Medic really saw this coming. The outdoor gear bought at the Hotel is light Catastrophe-response equipment. Cardigan, you used to work on a rescue team, so teach your friends how to use the masks and air tanks properly. Su Sulo, check your own respirator too. Once we're inside the Catastrophe zone, our car's air conditioning won't be able to filter out the denser Originium Dust."

As she spoke, Blaze looked again at the two Blacksteel women who insisted on following them.

"If they're going to keep following us... why not transfer to Blacksteel's vehicle? That vehicle should have measures for hazardous environments... three-proof pressurization and so on..."

"...But they're here to take us back, aren't they? After causing them trouble, we're going to take their vehicle too? Isn't that a little bad?"

While Su Sulo gave an awkward laugh and kept talking to distract herself, doing her utmost not to look at the darkening sky, the two Blacksteel women behind the Rhodes Island vehicle were also discussing Rhodes Island.

"...There are no signs of them stopping or turning around."

"Maybe they aren't putting on a show. Maybe they really are preparing to pass through the Catastrophe?"

Without immediately answering Franka, Liskarm picked up the vehicle radio and contacted their Landship, which was still within communications range.

"This is the BPRS Squad. Rhodes Island personnel are still advancing into the Catastrophe zone... They may be serious. Operator Liskarm requests permission to return."

"Eh? Return to the Landship? Liskarm, you're really no fun... At a time like this, shouldn't we grit our teeth and follow them to show our concern and loyalty toward our allies?"

"But we aren't carrying deep-protection equipment. The protective suits used at Ironforge City are being disinfected by the Logistics Department and haven't been loaded into the vehicle... And I don't think they have any either. Since we're not too far from the mothership yet, we can bring them more things that might be useful in a Catastrophe..."

"Oh? So you, the honor student who calls herself the rational type, actually want to help them too~"

"...I merely think they're being excessively reckless... There are quite a few people in Blacksteel who support rescuing Ticarondo as they do. But people so hot-blooded that they would throw away their own lives... are rare."

[This is the Blacksteel Landship. BPRS Squad... retu—]

Before the message was finished, the radio became nothing but crackling static. As Liskarm frowned and tried to fix the machine with a chop of her hand to restore communications, Franka suddenly saw the Rhodes Island vehicle ahead make a sharp turn and head in another direction.

A sudden chill ran through her heart. Amid Liskarm's cry of, "What are you doing?!" Franka abruptly grabbed the steering wheel in front of her and turned it. The vehicle seemed to be thrown into the sky... No, it wasn't just a feeling. The ground suddenly split open, and the Blacksteel van drove up a raised section of earth, flew through the air for a short distance, then landed and skidded along the edge of the fissure before stabilizing.

"Liskarm!"

"...I've got it under control!"

Gearshift, steering wheel, and pedals moved at once. The vehicle fishtailed slightly as it accelerated, but Liskarm, an experienced driver, quickly stabilized it. Franka had lost all of her previous carefree air and was checking the situation through the rearview mirror with a serious expression.

"It was an earthquake triggered by underground Originium activation... You can see obvious activated Originium light in the cracks."

"...The Catastrophe has spread here... Where are the Rhodes Island people?!"

"They don't seem to need our concern... They turned faster than we did. Detection-type Originium Arts?"

While Franka instinctively analyzed the situation, she picked up the radio for Liskarm and tried to call the Landship, but the receiver contained nothing but static.

"...No good. Originium is interfering with the standard shortwave channels... Our anti-interference circuit is—"

"In the cargo compartment."

"Fine. You don't look like you can drive steadily enough for me to climb into the back right now."

As they spoke and endured the jolting of the vehicle swaying from side to side to avoid the splitting ground, Liskarm pursed her lips and glanced at the radiation counter.

"The Landship's Originium detector must have seen this field of fractured Active Originium... Compared to that, I'm more worried about our allies' vehicle. Their car is just an ordinary Originium Engine vehicle for wilderness travel... In this driving environment, it could stall at any time."

Seeing the Rhodes Island vehicle ahead suddenly slow down, Franka gripped the handhold and tensed her entire body against Liskarm's sharp braking. Yet the obvious crisis made the fox girl smile again.

"Aha, look at that jinx of yours~ Is the Vouivre Alliance skilled in cursed Witchcraft too?~"

"Shut up and get them aboard! The earthquake isn't over yet!!"

Perhaps Liskarm did not need to urge them at all. Seeing the Blacksteel vehicle stop, the Rhodes Island group looked as if they had spotted a savior. Su Sulo, whose car absolutely refused to start, was immediately hauled into the vehicle by the two white-haired boys, practically scrambling aboard. Blaze and Cardigan then lifted the luggage of all five people from the truck bed. Equipment cases, travel bags, and the calculation materials Medic had left behind were all hurled into the Blacksteel van with loud bangs, as if loaded into two catapults.

"Senior, I'm done loading!"

"Then... run!"

Finally, Blaze carried Cardigan as the two of them jumped in through the rear door. The instant the Blacksteel van started, the spreading fissure reached the Rhodes Island vehicle. That Originium Engine car, which was not in perfect condition but certainly not in terrible shape either, fell into a sinkhole of unknowable depth.

Other than the high-pitched roar of the van's Originium Engine, only the sound of twisting, folding metal gradually faded from everyone's ears.

Once the vehicle began moving, everyone had to grip the handholds by the windows to steady themselves. In the silent stillness, Franka was the first to break the silence.

"So, you should understand now just how unlikely it was that you could cross a Catastrophe in that kind of vehicle... But unfortunately, with the earthquake chasing us, we have no way back. I think you owe us a drink at the very least, everyone from Rhodes Island."

"...Sorry. We dragged you into this after all... But we were at least mentally prepared for difficulties on this level. As for drinks, I'll treat you after Ticarondo is dealt with. You can drink whatever you want then. Rhodes Island's Landship is planning to operate a bar too."

Blaze said this to deal with Franka's teasing on behalf of the uncertain Su Sulo, then looked through the rear door window at the spreading cracks in the ground.

"I hope you don't mind, but our retreat has been cut off. I'm afraid we'll have to keep moving forward together."

"...This is the result of your own frivolous actions. Franka, she—!"

Before Liskarm could finish complaining, the fox girl chuckled and pinched Liskarm's thigh. The smaller Vouivre let out a cute sound, then immediately glared furiously at her companion.

"I was speaking for you! You inhaled Originium Dust not long ago, and now you've been forced into a Catastrophe zone. How can you still be grinning like an idiot?!"

"...Mm, I don't think it's a big deal... Rhodes Island specializes in treating the Infected. Do you think they don't know the risks of entering a Catastrophe zone? Look at the respirators around all their necks. Do they look like people ready to give up?"

"I'm talking about you!!"

Seeing her teammate nearly lose her mind, Franka's smile seemed to grow even brighter.

"...I don't have a problem... You know it, Liskarm. I'm part of the Support Faction..."

"...What the hell are you talking about?"

Turning toward the Rhodes Island members, whose faces were full of confusion, Franka raised a finger to her lips.

"Although it's a little against protocol to say this, for the sake of my poor partner who's been kept in the dark, I may have to reveal some of the details of our cooperation... Liskarm, from your perspective, this whole series of sudden, illogical, self-punishing actions by Rhodes Island happened because of you..."

"Huh? What are you—"

"Jessica..."

Liskarm was driving, but her expression had become one of complete bewilderment. Behind them, Blaze and Su Sulo looked tense, while Cardigan and the two boys who had been acting as laborers looked excited. They seemed to sense the kind of plot they had only encountered in movies before.

"Rhodes Island behaved so abnormally because Liskarm said she wanted to visit 'Jessica,' right? Earlier, you said in the office that you would only do something so... 'suicidally demonstrative' after finally confirming Blacksteel would not act. Yet now, while the Landship still has another meeting to hold, you acted in advance... And you even made such a clumsy, sudden attack. No matter how you look at it, it was meant to draw Liskarm's attention. In other words, my poor partner knew nothing and was simply led around by the nose by all of you."

Shrugging, Franka spoke with the smile of someone delighted by a successful prank, as though she were deliberately provoking Liskarm.

"The 'Jessica' we saw in the meeting room... probably wasn't Jessica herself at all. She was most likely some Columbia government agent? Rhodes Island must have received a government commission too and been asked to assist... No, everyone aboard who isn't part of the Ship Affairs Department must have received the same request. Otherwise, why would they hold so many rounds of those time-wasting meetings..."

Listening to Franka's seemingly serious analysis, Liskarm's eye twitched.

"You definitely just made that up on the spot... I... Why have I never heard Doctor Franlo mention something like this?"

"Because in Blacksteel right now, refusing to fulfill the Contingency Contract is considered 'justice.' The Captain provoked them a little, and the people who normally hid themselves well all came jumping out... That line of reasoning is logically airtight, but Blacksteel Worldwide is a military organization. We're carrying out disaster relief, not causing a humanitarian catastrophe like genocide... The heads of several departments thought the Captain was merely fishing for the opposition. But the government panicked instead and sent an agent to speak with the Captain directly..."

Franka nodded, apparently satisfied that her story now made sense, and spread her hands at Liskarm.

"Who knows whether 'Jessica' reached an agreement with the Captain... But no matter what, Blacksteel setting out has become inevitable under the government's coercive power..."

"So... what does that have to do with anything?!"

As Liskarm failed to understand and gritted her teeth while flooring the accelerator, the Rhodes Island group in the compartment shivered and clung tightly to the handholds. Franka herself swayed crookedly in Liskarm's increasingly aggressive driving.

"What do you mean, what does it have to do with anything?"

"I mean! What does it matter that they got dragged into the wilderness because of me?! Franka, are you saying it's my fault that we're being chased by ground fissures right now?! That because I belong to the Captain's Faction, and the Captain's decision was destined to be suppressed by the state, this ridiculous situation is something I brought upon myself?!" "Ah, that's not what I meant... Liskarm?"

Ignoring the hand Franka extended toward her, Liskarm even slapped it away.

"Society, politics, and all that other nonsense—I don't understand any of that! All I know is that you shouldn't be carrying out missions in a Catastrophe, Franka. You should be resting! After inhaling Originium Dust, if you come into contact with Originium again, you could become Infected immediately, do you understand?! What do the Captain's decisions or the government's schemes have to do with me?!"

"Liskarm... are you crying?"

"No!! I just feel sick, nauseous. The car is shaking too much, and I'm going to throw up... Do you remember your travel plans? If you become Infected, how many places on your wish list will you still be able to visit?! Think a little about me, who's always been thinking about you—!!"

Watching the white-haired Vouivre girl grind her teeth and floor the pedal, Franka looked as though she were gazing at something far away, wanting to speak but hesitating. A brief silence filled the compartment, until the fox girl finally returned to her unreadable manner.

"...Thank you, Liskarm... But it's already too late..."

"?"

"I'm already Infected... Originally, after the Ticarondo mission, I was supposed to quietly leave on my own... Ah, don't make that face. I'm not going off to die. It's just that, in exchange for treatment, I would serve Rhodes Island as a Blacksteel-dispatched operator... Jennifer has taken care of me for a long time. Helping me hide it until now is already close to her limit. Going to Rhodes Island now as a dispatched operator to build a strategic corporate relationship through our cooperation means I can work in the field while still receiving Blacksteel subsidies. For an Infected person, that's a pretty good job..."

Though Franka was trying to comfort Liskarm, after finishing, she pursed her lips and looked at her. The girl, furious enough to seem as if smoke might pour from all seven of her orifices, responded with complete crudeness.

"What the fuck does that have to do with the situation right now?! You stinking fox, were you planning to vanish on me in the middle of a Catastrophe?! What bullshit Support Faction and Captain's Faction—when have you ever cared about that stuff?! You just wanted to imitate those shitty tragic stories, watch me get upset, then record it and laugh at me for the rest of my life! You think I don't know you, you piece of shit?!"

"...Pfft... Hahaha... Hahahahaha~"

Perhaps Liskarm had hit the mark. Inside the swaying van, Franka let out a light, relaxed laugh that bordered on abandon.

"My, my. I didn't realize I was such a mean-spirited person. Maybe you really do understand me this time~"

Rolling her eyes, Liskarm stopped paying attention to her insane partner. She took a deep breath, waited until the earthquake seemed to be gradually subsiding, then glanced at the rearview mirror.

"...I don't know much about what Franka said, but you... really have made up your minds to go to Ticarondo, haven't you?"

Seeing Blaze raise an eyebrow and shrug while Su Sulo nodded solemnly, Liskarm bit her lip.

"Franka is an unreliable person, but since she's analyzing this so seriously for once, I... will tentatively believe her nonsensical argument...

"And if Blacksteel going to Ticarondo is already inevitable, that's good news for us... After all, the ground fissures that are obstacles to us are merely things a Landship can flatten without effort... At the speed of the Blacksteel Landship, we'll soon be able to return to the ship and regroup..."