Raid on Sector 41 Port -5-
Raid on Sector 41 Port -5-
'Having to reveal that distinctive appearance... Is the blood diluted? Or is it a characteristic of the Blue Scale Family that I don't know about?'
The chill felt upon realizing the identity of the Blue Scale Family.
"I'm already about to die from exhaustion, so let's end this quickly."
The swordsman with blue scales growing on him languidly raised his water-wreathed sword.
Max reflexively deployed a Shield. Usagi also leaped into the air on instinct, twisting her body.
Kagang!
The slashes, ignoring distance, poured down, shattering the Shield and sending blood gushing over Max's body.
Even the agile Usagi couldn't evade completely, and scratches appeared all over her body.
'...Water-based slashes? Not good.'
That swordsman's attacks are hard to track with the eyes, and they split special clothing like tofu.
Even if the wounds aren't deep, getting cut like this means they can't last long. If by chance a slash hits a gap in the torn clothing, the possibility of being dismembered is high.
Just as Max was pondering his response, Usagi stepped forward.
A ninja volunteering to be the mage's shield.
She deflects an incoming slash with her katana and speaks.
"I can hold on somehow. Get some distance and use your magic."
"It's surprising that you're taking the front line. With your mobility, you could escape on your own."
"I need the money."
The reason Usagi set aside the ninja's specialty of ambushes and volunteered to guard the front was not some strong mercenary camaraderie.
Her voice carried the realistic desire to absolutely protect the credits that would be deposited.
"Right. Gotta protect the money. That's a reason befitting a mercenary; I can trust that."
Max nodded in agreement with Usagi and moved.
He got far enough to track the slashes with his eyes and dodge, then filled his circuits with mana.
'Judging by what that swordsman said, he's not worried about Steiger dying from blood loss. He probably just has tricky conditions for maintaining the Blue Scale Family's distinctive appearance.'
The swordsman paired with Steiger has an appearance so distinctive that even a brazen-faced person couldn't deny his family affiliation.
To the extent that even a brief description would let those in the know infer it immediately.
Therefore, Max's deduction becomes simple.
Starting from the fact that Steiger is hiding his face, it's interpreted as not wanting to reveal that the Blue Scale Family is involved in Neptune's harbor.
'He's a 4th-rank who's eyeing the 5th-rank. He hasn't crossed over to 5th-rank yet.'
Power that transcends ranks always comes with risks.
Beneath the conversation about not wanting to get scolded for disobeying orders, there must be a reason why he didn't remove the shurikens even as they split his back and dug into his flesh.
'Apart from eliminating witnesses, maybe after using it, it leaves signs that knowledgeable people can spot.'
Max completed the magic composition.
In cooperation, you don't need to think only about destructive power. First, volume.
[Ripper]
A blade of mana tears through the air and charges forward.
The swordsman rolled his eyes and lightly removed the blade with his own sword. Usagi didn't miss the opening.
[Fuma Shuriken]
White smoke burst from her empty hand with a Peong! and a wheel-shaped shuriken appeared.
It was large enough to cover Usagi's face and body.
"Hup!"
Usagi's full-power throw.
Bwooong! The shuriken flies in a mysterious trajectory.
"How scary."
The swordsman mutters lazily and thrusts his sword.
The blade pierces the shuriken's hole, swings it, and changes its trajectory toward Max.
"Tch!"
Usagi quickly formed hand seals and dismissed the shuriken.
Max completed his next spell.
Mana spreads, securing the area.
Usagi, who had been swinging her katana, feels a chill and retreats.
The area that Max had seized included the swordsman holding his ground and Steiger's lower body, which was writhing from blood loss and trying to retreat.
[Atlas Fall]
Kugugugu!!!
A virtual mass crashes down.
The swordsman's feet sink into the harbor, and the ground caves in.
"Ooh! This is quite something...!"
The swordsman's back bends.
His center of gravity drops, like a titan holding up the celestial sphere.
'Crazy bastard.'
Max was appalled.
Even if he's enduring with mana, the fact that posture is the limit is just bewildering.
Meanwhile, Steiger behind him had his lower body completely crushed.
"Aaaagh!!!"
Ignoring Steiger's scream as he loses both legs, the tug-of-war between the swordsman and Max continued.
Usagi slightly lowered the mask covering her mouth and nose and formed hand seals.
The sequence of seals was standard.
'Boar, Horse, Ox, Snake, Dragon, Tiger.'
Usagi's lungs expand.
[Fire Style: Hellfire Dragon Hole]
As Usagi opens her lips, heat bursts forth.
Like a dragon's breath, a wave of flame shoots straight and engulfs the swordsman caught in Max's magic.
Puahwaak!
From below, a pillar of fire soars up.
From above, Max's Atlas Fall presses down.
But it's not the end.
Usagi saw the swordsman forming a water defense just before the flames touched him.
Max also felt the sensation of resistance until the moment the spell ended.
Usagi backflipped and landed next to Max.
She had something to say before the flames vanished.
"Just once. I can create an opening."
She subtly shows the last remaining EMP Kunai.
It was clear without lengthy explanation. The swordsman has plenty of cyberware in his body.
"Mage. Hit him with everything you've got. Harder than now."
"Okay. I'll pour it in with enough force to blow his brains out."
Max slightly lowered his mask, wiped the blood streaming from his nose, and curled his lips.
'This level of overload is no problem.'
Max straightens his back.
Usagi nodded, then turned forward and gripped her katana properly.
Max took a moment to catch his breath and suddenly recalled.
If this request existed in the world before his regression and led to failure, the cause must be the Blue Scale Family's swordsman.
'So this is another future twisting.'
What kind of future will the accumulation of changes bring?
Even in this moment of crisis, he's filled with exhilaration and anticipation.
The blazing flames dissipate.
The Blue Scale Family's swordsman reveals himself.
No wounds. Even so, Max and Usagi's combined attack wasn't useless.
'The hand gripping the sword is trembling.'
Fatigue is strongly visible in the swordsman's eyes.
Then, an intruder's intervention.
Bursting through the container forest, an employee bearing Neptune's mark ran out.
His right prosthetic arm was torn, wires dangling out, and his skin was covered in large and small wounds.
"Executive Director-nim! Due to the mercenary invasion, many 3rd-rank mercenaries and employees are dead... Huh? Executive Director-nim?"
It was clear who the bastard meant by Executive Director.
Because his gaze was fixed on the swordsman.
"Ah~ You shouldn't see this appearance."
The swordsman shook his head as if annoyed and swung his sword.
The neck of the man presumed to be a Neptune employee flew off cleanly. Usagi didn't even need to throw a shuriken.
Thanks to that, Max got some good information.
'He has the appearance of a man in his 30s and is an Executive Director. That bastard must have some good equipment too.'
If he has lineage, it's not impossible.
Assuming that guy is a direct descendant of the Blue Scale Family, not a branch member, becoming an Executive Director of a company in District 40 might actually be seen as lowering his profile.
Usagi glances this way.
Max gave a small nod as a signal.
"Let's stop now. If we delay any longer, the old man behind me might actually die."
The swordsman gripped his sword with both hands and spread his mana.
Seawater silently flowed into the harbor.
The sound of lapping waves reached Max and Usagi's ears.
A blade flies toward them.
"!"
Usagi read it in an instant and tried to dodge, but her left prosthetic arm was cleanly severed.
The water-based slash also reached Max, who thought he had made enough distance.
His whole body was torn, and blood burst out.
"Fuck...!"
A hole appeared in Max's shoulder. If he hadn't twisted his body, it would have pierced his heart.
Since it was an unexpected attack, it must be hard for Usagi to create the situation she wants.
Max immediately changed the direction of his magic.
[Poltergeist]
The forklift with a dead driver and the stopped vehicles move again, charging at the swordsman.
Though they get sliced and sent flying the moment they approach, they're creating chaos.
If it even blinds him for a moment, that's enough.
On the ground, an EMP Kunai was already embedded.
A blue light burst out.
"Hm?"
The swordsman feels an oddity in the cyberware in his body and falters.
The Poltergeist vehicles crash into the swordsman without being cut.
'Chance!'
Usagi forcibly moves her unresponsive left hand to form hand seals.
'Rabbit, Sheep, Rat, Dog, Tiger, Monkey, Rabbit.'
As her palm touches the stone floor of the harbor, electrical currents burst out around Usagi.
[Lightning Style: Ten Thousand Thunder Rabbit Speed]
A swarm of rabbits formed from electricity pours forth.
They sprint at full speed toward the swordsman, who has finished adapting to the anomaly and started pushing the cars away.
The rabbits swarm in, wareureureu.
Kureureureung!!!
Lightning flashes and sparks burst out, and the movement pushing the vehicles stops.
Meaning it's effective.
'I have to finish it this time.'
Max poured mana into his circuits without reserve.
He casts two spells simultaneously.
'Hold on. Hold on. Hold on.'
A headache that feels like his head will burst sweeps over him.
Noseblood soaks his mask thoroughly.
He put in full power.
[Atlas Fall]
A heavier mass than before crashes down.
Wajajak!
The vehicles are flattened, revealing the swordsman.
"Kkeu-eok!"
Black smoke streams from his mouth due to the electric current.
He's on his knees, trying to endure Atlas Fall, his sword planted.
And above the swordsman's head, a red triangle appears.
[Lacerate Delta]
In the form of a triangle compressed again and again, a high-power cutting blast is fired.
Pasak!
"Ah, this is why... I said I wanted to run away..."
The swordsman, his head pierced, finishes muttering and collapses.
The conclusion was reached.