Port Raid Ended
Port Raid Ended
Bibol's large hand opened the container without any time to stop him.
Cheolkeok! Pushiiik!
With a metallic sound, a faint gap opened, and a pale cold air flowed out.
It was a chill you'd only feel when sticking your hand into a convenience store ice cream freezer.
Max reflexively spread a Shield.
It was a simple spell, but his head throbbed.
Max grimaced from extreme fatigue and snapped at Bibol.
"Hey, opening it without permission is a problem, you know? You should get consent for moves like this."
"Huhahaha! It's already been discussed with the Association, so don't worry!"
"What?"
"I kept arguing, 'How am I supposed to tell what the goods are if you don't even tell me what they are and just tell me to dispose of them?' If I'm left alone with no long-range means and I hit something that explodes, it's a dog's death for me."
He said that after persistently talking with the Association, this was the result he managed to obtain.
He claimed that the Bohemian Mercenary Association employee, who never spoke vaguely, had assured him that if he looked inside, he'd be able to tell what needed to be disposed of.
Only then did Max relax his furrowed brow.
Usagi also sighed and shook his head.
"You should've said that sooner..."
"Life needs its little and big surprises! Now, full open!"
Bibol flung the container wide open, and the trapped cold air poured out like a waterfall.
The chill was faint enough to barely brush the skin, but the three people facing the interior froze solid.
Not because of the biting cold, but because the scene transmitted through the optic nerves froze their minds and bodies.
"...What is this?"
From the outside, it looked like an ordinary container, but the inside was completely different.
The container's interior was like a single culture room.
On one wall, glass tubes filled with green liquid were lined up without a gap. Floating in that solution were numerous brains.
Turning their gaze to the opposite wall.
A massive number of hearts hung on mechanical devices, forced to beat repeatedly. It was a horrifying sight.
"...."
Leaving Bibol and Usagi frozen behind him, Max went inside and first examined the hearts.
'They're not artificial organs.'
After looking, he turned his eyes to the other side.
'Human brains... all different in size and appearance.'
And the identity of the green liquid holding the brains was Bio Gel.
A necessity for absorbing external shock and maintaining shape. It was commonly used by companies dealing with biological tissue.
'Though it's my first time seeing brains stored in Bio Gel.'
The solution wasn't special, but the contents were.
That's why Max found it puzzling.
'I don't understand.'
It was too discordant to simply dismiss as organ trafficking.
Because in Haze, there was no reason to secretly trade organs. Human organs were openly traded goods.
'Even if hearts can be used everywhere, what would they use brains for...?'
Even by searching his pre-regression knowledge, he had no guess. No hypothesis reached anywhere.
The brain was a sanctuary that artificial organ technology hadn't reached. Stacking up so many irreplaceable parts was utterly grotesque.
'Are they creating a new product?'
Even that didn't fit within the bounds of plausibility.
If they were aiming for commercialization with legitimate experiments, there'd be no reason to use a troublesome route or hide it.
Then perhaps they were attempting something that even Haze's values would find repugnant.
"...."
Max examined every corner of the container.
Wires for preserving the organs were laid out as delicately as blood vessels, and batteries were neatly installed.
'For scumbags to sell it off, the installation method is too tidy. I should assume it's a transaction between companies.'
Finishing his speculation quickly, Max exited the container.
Outside, Bibol, frowning just like Usagi, clicked his tongue.
"Tch, what an appetite-wrecking sight."
"What did you think would be inside?"
"Gold? Or a stunningly beautiful android that makes your eyes roll back?"
"Fat chance."
Max let out a dry laugh and opened another container.
The interiors were all identical. Full of brains and hearts.
"About handling the goods, can we just smash what's inside?"
Bibol was already rolling his shoulders and clenching his fists. With unnecessary movement, his held-back wound opened and blood trickled out. He didn't seem to mind.
"Why bother? Cutting the wires running inside is enough for disposal. Organs depend on freshness, after all."
"That way feels a bit lacking. How about pushing them into the sea?"
"Hmm, cutting the wires and shoving them into the sea would work too."
The three moved.
Each destroyed the container interiors in their own way.
Max simply pulled out the wires to finish, Usagi cut the wires directly with his sword.
Bibol insisted on crushing the batteries with his heel.
Coming out of the last container, Bibol cleared away the driver's corpse and climbed onto a forklift.
"Now all that's left is to dump them into the sea. Instead of using our strength, let's send them off with the forklift."
"You know how to use it?"
"Before I became a mercenary, I drove one for about three years at a company warehouse."
Thanks to Bibol driving the forklift with gusto, Max and Usagi dazedly took a rest.
Right after the mission procedure of "goods disposal" was finished, Max handed the Blue Scale Family's sword to Usagi.
"What do you think of this sword? I don't know much about swords."
Usagi swung the sword in the air a few times, then slowly ran his eyes along the blade.
"...Even though it's not my preferred form, there's no discomfort when using it. It's a fine blade."
"I'll hand it over to the Association. There doesn't seem to be any tracking device on it, right?"
Usagi checked again and nodded.
"Let's hand it to the Association and get a bonus. Add this gun too."
"Ooh! Nice!"
Bibol expressed delight at Max's suggestion.
After that, they took a short rest, melting away time.
Max, Usagi, and Bibol—none of them were in decent shape.
All of them repeated momentary staggers, holding onto their minds with stubborn endurance as they raced toward the mission's end.
And the final procedure.
"It's time for the ship to arrive."
"Let's call the Association and have a driver put on standby so we can get out right as it ends."
The ship that the Association asked them to destroy wasn't a massive cargo ship loaded with containers.
It was the smallest among small cargo ships.
"Mage. In the mission brief, it said the ship was unmanned, right?"
"That's what the info from the Association said. Even if there were people, they said it would be at most a few 2nd-ranks at best."
They had already decided on the method of destruction.
If Max or Usagi were in decent condition, they could have lightly crushed it with magic or ninjutsu, but since that was impossible now, they planned to all throw the grenades that the security employees and mercenaries had carried.
Best of all, there were high-performance incendiary grenades mixed in.
They judged that destruction wouldn't be a problem.
Sseu-sseu-sseu──.
A single ship quietly cut through the night sea and entered the harbor.
Max and the others silently watched the situation from the darkness, then approached the ship.
They briefly checked the interior.
Just as the Association's information stated, a single container was loaded under a thick waterproof tarpaulin.
The container's interior was the same as the ones at the harbor. There was no other salvageable information. It was excessively clean, as if mindful of backtracking.
The three got off the ship and spread out.
"Let's finish it."
Usagi pulled the safety pin from his grenade.
"An unmanned ship... it's a creepy method, but convenient for us. I don't want to fight even a 1st-rank right now."
Bibol laughed heartily and prepared his grenade.
"Mission end."
Max, with a lemon-flavored lollipop in his mouth, threw his grenade.
The explosion was spectacular.
··
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A vehicle arrived in front of the Blue Line Motel, the rendezvous point.
Max first opened the trunk and loaded the Blue Scale Family's sword and the gun Steiger had used.
The bulky Bibol took the passenger seat, while Max and Usagi sat in the back.
"You've all worked hard. I'll head to the hospital connected to the Association."
"Yeah. If I die from delay, it'll be your fault, so hurry up."
At the driver's question, Bibol closed his eyes and affirmed. He looked ready to fall asleep at any moment.
Max also needed treatment and sat quietly, but Usagi offered a different opinion.
"I don't need treatment. Drop me off on the way."
Max, sitting next to him, raised an eyebrow in question.
Since they had fought together against the Blue Scale Family's inspector, Max knew what attacks Usagi had taken. He definitely needed to get treated.
"Your prosthetic arm is wrecked, isn't it? Before you fix it, you should get your nerves checked? Your body can't be fine either."
"I'm fine. To a ninja, this kind of wound is nothing."
"What are you talking about? You can't even walk properly."
While Max and Usagi were talking, Bibol was already snoring and asleep.
The driver's words cut between them.
"Usagi-nim. The Association has decided to cover all treatment costs from this mission in full. Please focus on recovering."
Silence settled inside the vehicle.
Usagi, who had been rolling his eyes with his arms crossed, carefully revoked his statement.
"...It's absolutely not that money was the issue. Still, it would be discourteous to ignore the Association's goodwill."
The mission was over.
The vehicle left District 41 and sped toward the hospital.