Chapter 183
"Keep your distance!"
"Attack!!"
Although their squad wasn't strictly speaking "official" Apostle members, even Hatsukawa Fuka, the strongest among them, couldn't surpass the "official" member they had previously encountered— Sakurai Sachi.
Even as "crippled," they can still acquire some of the Apostle's power under the influence of the Enhancement Agent.
The heavy machine guns roared through the rain, raining down a dense hail of bullets on the Apostle, but they were easily stopped—even the heavy machine guns could not penetrate the defensive barrier they had erected together.
Several orbs of light flew toward Efnir; the scorching storm ignited the air, compressing the light and causing it to explode in an instant.
--Before Yukina could come to her rescue, the Apostle's attack struck Efnir first.
"Naoko!!!"
Yukina, her voice hoarse from the blood filling her mouth, screamed with heart-wrenching pain as she broke free of her cover and was exposed to the Apostle's view.
Waves surged up, shattering the water mirror on the ground with a single step. The Apostle immediately turned their attacks on Yukina, while the soldiers also turned their guns around, providing cover for Yukina with a dense hail of bullets.
A violent explosion rose behind her. Yukina narrowly escaped the dense bombardment, struck in the shoulder by a stray bullet, the stinging pain from the bullet hole gnawing at Yukina nerves.
Blood trickled down her arm, staining her sleeve.
She still rushed towards Efnir regardless of the consequences. She saw the aftershocks of the explosion tear Efnir up like a hurricane tearing through dry leaves, and fall from the sky. From afar, Yukina could see Efnir covered in blood.
A flash of silver light appeared beneath her feet, and Yukina leaped up without hesitation, shattering the Stairway in an instant and allowing her to escape the Apostle's attack.
At the same time, the water-colored arrow condensed inch by inch on the bowstring, and dazzling silver light gathered from Yukina's whole body onto the arrow. Yukina drew back the bowstring towards the Apostle below in mid-air.
"Go to hell!"
A chilling aura erupted around Yukina, and in the next instant, a water-colored arrow ripped through the rain curtain and shot towards the Apostle girl who was constructing a light and flame defensive barrier at the forefront. The arrow flew close to the ground like a hawk swooping down on its prey, and in the blink of an eye, it pierced through the battlefield and disappeared into the light and flame defensive barrier constructed by the Apostle.
Puff--
The silent torrent shattered the defensive wall, and the defense constructed by the five people was penetrated in an instant. The Apostle girl standing behind the wall let out a muffled groan, and blood splattered in the wind like blooming raindrops—the arrow had actually pierced through five layers of the defensive wall and pierced her shoulder.
The next moment, the spurting blood was shredded into dust by the violent wind pressure that followed. The Apostle girl's body was thrown like a sandbag. The immense force of the arrow piercing her shoulder crushed it in an instant. The shattered bones, flesh, and blood condensed into a bright red mist.
The Apostle girls behind them had no time to dodge this sudden attack. The three behind them were caught in the storm of arrows, as if they had fallen into a meat grinder. The Apostle's proud and powerful bodies were no match for this arrow, and were all pierced and torn apart in an instant.
Blood and flesh flew everywhere. Three people were injured, and another had a hole pierced through his chest. His Battle Armament was disarmed, and he fell to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut, dying instantly.
At the same time, the defensive walls shattered one after another, turning into stardust, leaving the front of the Apostle Squad completely open. The next moment, countless bullets rained down, and the heavy machine gun fire broke through their defenses, which they had not yet rebuilt, piercing their chests like cones.
Even with bodies enhanced by the Apostle Power, they could not withstand the fierce firepower of the heavy machine gun with their bare hands. In an instant, splattered blood stained the rain, and the people in the front row fell like wheat being cut down. Some had their throats pierced and their necks and spines crushed, and they fell to the ground dead.
The soldiers seized this hard-won opportunity, all turning their guns on the ground, and a fierce pursuit followed closely behind, with grenades exploding among the Apostle Squad.
The Apostle's Defense Line collapsed instantly; half of their thirty-odd members were wounded, and several others had already died.
This scene caught Fujisaki Ryoka's eye, and she was almost stunned for a moment.
--How did she do that? She shattered the defenses built by five people with a single blow, and seriously injured several of them. Even Sakurai Sachi doesn't have that kind of strength.
But she didn't have time to think it through and reacted immediately.
"Everyone scatter!!!"
She shouted.
The artillery fire drowned out her screams. The next moment, a grenade flew towards her body, but a figure blocked her way, raising his hand and unleashing a burst of white light that crushed the grenade in mid-air.
The heatwave ruffled her hair as she looked at Hatsukawa Fuka, who was shielding her tightly, her ears ringing.
She could clearly hear her own heartbeat.
But with the cover of Hatsukawa Fuka, she dodged the direct hits of the grenade.
The barrage of comments came again. She bit her lip, immediately grabbed Hatsukawa Fuka around the waist, and threw herself behind cover, shouting loudly once more.
"Keep moving! Dodge that guy's arrows!"
56. Dream
"This is..."
Efnir gazed at the butterflies fluttering before her, stardust rising and falling with their wings, drawing Efnir gaze.
This scene looked familiar to Efnir; they would occasionally see this scene—a starry sky, butterflies, and a huge, deep black hole—when the agents finished their Synchronization.
It's like some kind of image, a "message" preserved within the Beacon System of the Ruins.
Why am I here?
Efnir still vividly remembers her battle with the Apostle.
The instant she sensed the impending danger, Efnir quickly mobilized all her Apostle Power to create a spherical shield that enveloped Yukina's entire body, but this deprived Efnir her only chance to counterattack and evade the attack.
"Yukina..."
Efnir lowered her eyelashes, reached out her hand, and a deep blue butterfly landed on her fingertips.
In that instant, the scenery before Efnir's eyes suddenly distorted and changed, and when she blinked again, she found herself in yet another familiar place— Western Capital University.
But the scene before them was not the rebuilt Western Capital University, but the epicenter of the specific disaster that occurred two years ago, the place where Efnir obtained the Beacon and became an agent to fight against the Erosion Entity.
Efnir stared blankly at the scene unfolding before her eyes.
"Is this a dream...?"
Unlike her previous dreams, this time, Efnir clearly felt the pulse in her heart, the touch on her skin, and the light she received visually. It was as if everything was really happening, or as if a memory from a certain time had reappeared.
Just then, the butterfly flapped its wings again, drawing Efnir's attention.
Finally, the butterfly disappeared, and in the starlight, standing before Efnir was an exact replica of herself, the one who had not entered into Synchronization.
The only difference is that the "Efnir" Beacon, with its star-shaped earring, is worn on the right ear, while the Efnir earring is worn on the left ear.
Efnir was stunned.
"..."
What are you talking about?
"Efnir" moved its lips slightly, as if saying something to Efnir, but Efnir could not hear anything.
The next moment, the world changed color, the walls collapsed, and a huge Erosion Entity appeared. Wounds and bloodstains quickly appeared all over "Efnir's " body. Under Efnir's blank stare, blood seeped from the corner of her eye and flowed down her white jade-like cheek. The chilling spikes pierced her heart, and what followed was the collapse and disappearance of everything in sight.
Efnir's consciousness was also fading away.
"Naoko!"
In the last moment before she disappeared from sight, Efnir heard a call from the depths of her heart.
The Apostle's formation was pierced by Yukina's attack, and most of the pursuing Apostle disappeared in one fell swoop.
At the same time, Yukina leaped high up on the Stairway amidst the gunfire and shouts, rushing towards Efnir and being rammed into her arms.
"Naoko!"
Efnir was already covered in blood, half of her face was a glaring crimson, and blood-stained dirt clung to her hair, making her beautiful silver hair seem to have lost its luster.
Yukina couldn't feel her breathing at all.
In an instant, Yukina's heart skipped a beat, and a corner of her heart collapsed at that moment.
"Naoko?"
Yukina stood there, embracing the slender body in her arms, her eyes unfocused.
No...
We cannot give up yet.
Naoko has not yet been freed from her Apostle Form, there must still be hope.
Yukina steadied herself, her gaze hardening once more. She clung tightly to Efnir's soft, boneless waist, gritted her teeth, and leaped down toward the Relay Station's Defense Line.
Just then, an attack from the Apostle suddenly exploded in front of Yukina. Caught off guard, Yukina turned around at the last second to shield Efnir in her arms. The next instant, a violent shockwave slammed into Yukina's back. She groaned and lost her balance, being slammed down by the Apostle's pursuit, falling behind a group of buildings.
Throughout the entire ordeal, Yukina clung tightly to Efnir, bearing the brunt of the impact with her own body as she slammed straight to the ground.
"Cough--"
The ground tiles shattered, and excruciating pain pierced through her body from behind, squeezing out the last bit of air from her chest. Yukina groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood mist.
She let go, and Efnir landed beside her.
Her bones felt like they were falling apart, and the accumulated injuries all over her body left Yukina unable to move. Her vision went dark, and a wave of dizziness almost took her consciousness away.
I can't fall here...
We must rescue Naoko...
The rain blurred Yukina's vision, and she struggled, barely managing to sit up.
Her lungs felt like they were filled with hot oil, and Yukina gasped for breath, her hands, covered in blood and mud, gripping Efnir's fingers tightly once more.
At that moment, Efnir's fingers trembled slightly, and she grasped Yukina's hand in return.
"Yukina..."
Efnir's voice, hoarse as if it contained fine sand, awakened a light in Yukina's eyes.
Meeting Yukina's gaze was a complex look in Efnir's eyes. Yukina had never seen Efnir with such an expression before, as if she had seen something unbelievable.
At this moment, Efnir's entire body, now Apostle Form Battle Armament, slowly turned into stardust and vanished.
But Yukina didn't care about anything else and rushed over to gently hug Efnir.
"Naoko! Are you alright...?"
An explosion completely drowned out Yukina's cries. Yukina gritted her teeth and propped herself up to look behind her.
A group of a dozen or so members of the Apostle Squad launched an attack, while the rest produced a purplish-black Crystal.
Yukina's pupils contracted slightly.
The Apostle were already regrouping, Yukina could vaguely see another attack coming.
The Defense Line between Yukina and the Relay Station had been cut off. Yukina was seriously injured, and the soldiers at the Relay Station could not cover her as she fell behind the building. The Apostle would naturally not let go of such a good opportunity to annihilate Yukina.
Moreover, after the defensive wall of Efnir collapsed, the Erosion Entity moved in as if they were in an empty field. Within minutes, they had detonated almost all of the Lure Shell. Their advance could not be stopped at all, and the soldiers' weapons could not harm them in the slightest. The black tide of Erosion Entity surged toward the Relay Station, and the outermost Defense Line was quickly torn open, which greatly weakened the soldiers' firepower.
The Apostle Squad cut off Yukina's retreat, and Yukina had no time to withdraw to the front line of the Relay Station.
Once the Erosion Entity breaches the rear Defense Line, the Relay Station will quickly fall completely, and the hard-won equipment will be destroyed.
However, Yukina no longer had the capacity to provide support to the rear.
"Yukina, put me down..."
"Don't want!"
Yukina held Efnir tightly in her arms, biting her lip and shaking her head resolutely.
A barrage of attacks came in pursuit. Yukina had no time to catch her breath. She tightly hugged Efnir's slender body, leaped up, and dodged the direct hits of the flames.
The Apostle relentlessly pursued Yukina's figure, with bursts of light exploding behind Yukina. Yukina frantically ran and leaped, crashing into a window of a building and hiding behind a makeshift shelter made of Dregs and partially collapsed structures. Immediately afterward, a violent explosion came from behind. Yukina clung tightly to Efnir, using her own body to withstand the aftershocks of the blast.
No matter what, Naoko must live.
57. Pursuit and escape
Yukina successfully rescued Efnir, and their figures fell between the buildings, disappearing from Fujisaki Ryoka's sight.
At this time, a team had already gone to pursue Yukina and Efnir Nier.
"Tsk..."
Liang Xiang frowned and looked up, taking a deep breath.