Tonight was the celebration of Old Independence Day. Whoever had planned this conspiracy behind the scenes clearly intended to cause civilian casualties.
Victoria entered two extremely complex passwords into her phone, and a bright red touch zone soon appeared on the screen.
After several Chelated Tide missions, she had been granted emergency warning authorization for critical situations. If she pressed confirm now, the Quicksilver Needles in Mother City would rush over immediately—after all, when danger approached, the farther the battlefield was from Mother City, the safer Mother City would be.
But... perhaps that was the goal?
In the silence, the corridor's motion-sensor lights went out, and Victoria's face was illuminated by the red glow of her screen.
Suddenly, Susie's call cut in.
"Victoria—"
"Did Kexi Workstation get a response?"
"No. I just came out of Kexi Workstation. Their staff told me that every speed-measuring device in all of Emangria has been dismantled. We can only identify them with the naked eye. We have no way to use methods for monitoring ultra-high-speed objects to confirm the Chelated Beings' locations and numbers, but the speed-measuring devices outside the city are still completely intact. Also, I—"
"Victoria!" Zoe's voice cut in as well. "Ligo replied to me. They'll be here soon."
"Okay—Susie, keep going."
"—I also found an entire unopened box of pheromones! Should we use them?"
Victoria looked back one last time at the corpse behind her.
"...Try it!" She opened the stairwell door and left as quickly as she could. "Take the pheromones upwind and smash them together at least five kilometers from the city."
"Okay."
In the night, Victoria swiftly climbed the nearby clock tower to its highest point. She leaped between buildings, sprinting from King's Central Avenue all the way to Seventh Street before jumping back to Third Street—every