Codename Hongsa
Codename Hongsa
Early morning.
The lobby of the Lamprimp Hotel.
"Hmph."
Tempret, sitting on a sofa in one corner of the lobby, chewed his gum noisily and spoke.
"Everyone here?"
At Tempret's words, Ferman, across from him, nodded.
He wore his wool beret today as well.
"All here except one."
"Huh? Who's missing?"
"Bilbosel."
Bilbosel? Tempret paused, then remembered who the bastard was and furrowed one eyebrow.
"He's the one who tailed Daniel Steiner yesterday, isn't he? The son of a bitch who told us Daniel Steiner had entered the Lamprimp Hotel."
"That's right. But I tried contacting him at dawn today and he didn't answer."
"Didn't answer, huh."
Chew-chew─
Tempret chewed his gum for a moment, then raised a hand and scratched his cheek.
"It's one of two things. Either he ran off because he valued his life, or he went charging in full of piss and vinegar to kill Daniel Steiner himself and got his throat cut."
Tempret blew into his gum, ballooning it up.
Pop! When the swollen gum burst and stuck to his lips, Tempret stuck out his tongue and licked it off.
Ferman, who had been watching Tempret resume chewing, spoke with alarm.
"If it's the latter, shouldn't we not be sitting here so casually? If Bilbosel spilled the operation, we could die a dog's death......."
"Well, I see it differently."
Tempret shrugged.
"As you know, this hotel doesn't have a back entrance. That means you have to go through this lobby to get out. Even if Bilbosel did spill our operation, not much would change."
"But......."
"Sure. Daniel Steiner could call in support nearby. So what? Before they get to us, we just go up to the room Daniel Steiner's staying in and start shooting. Simple, isn't it?"
Even if Daniel Steiner hid in a different room, it wouldn't matter much.
Some of the spies gathered here were skilled in tracking, after all.
Of course, a handful of company personnel assigned to guard Daniel Steiner would be staying here too, but this was indoor combat, not a battlefield.
When it came to indoor combat, the spies gathered here were far more experienced than soldiers.
He couldn't imagine losing.
"Your name's Ferman, right? Don't worry too much. The bastards I called here are all at least big shots in their respective......."
Ding─
At the mechanical bell announcing the elevator's arrival, Tempret shut his mouth.
The nerves of the other spies, sitting on the lobby sofas and chairs pretending to read newspapers, sharpened as well.
Everyone moved their hands toward the pistols in their coats, readying for a fight.
In this hair-trigger moment, the elevator doors opened, but none of the spies drew their pistols.
Because the person who stepped out of the elevator was not Daniel Steiner, but his adjutant, Lucy Emilia.
Lucy crossed the lobby with clicking footsteps, but the spies merely watched.
Their target was Daniel Steiner alone, not his adjutant, after all.
"......."
Tempret, after exchanging glances with the spies, raised a hand and conveyed a hand signal.
─ Let her go.
As the spies nodded in agreement, Lucy walked up to the hotel desk.
Then Harom, a spy disguised as an employee, smiled and attended to Lucy.
"Lieutenant Lucy Emilia. Good morning. Did you find your room satisfactory? If you're checking out, please come with Colonel Daniel Steiner, with whom you're lodging. If you're stepping out instead, you're free to go out and come back as you please."
Lucy didn't answer and simply stared at Harom.
Harom, finding that burdensome, wore a business smile and continued.
"Ah. If you'd like to know about Erestiom's tourist attractions or do a bit of shopping, please feel free to tell me—"
"I'd appreciate it if you'd drop the act."
At Lucy's words, a crack formed at the corner of Harom's mouth.
He was still smiling, but the atmosphere shifted entirely.
"An act? What on earth are you talking about?"
"The eagle that soars high in the sky never knows the affairs beneath the earth."
Harom's hand flinched.
He was flustered because the other party knew an internal cipher used by the Allied Nations' Intelligence Department.
Harom remained silent for a moment, then his smile faded.
"A comrade? Then help us with our plan. We've gathered here to eliminate Daniel Steiner."
"I refuse."
"......Why?"
"You are violating the principles you should uphold as spies of the Allied Nations. Allied Nations spies are permitted only to act on orders. But right now, you are thinking and acting independently."
Harom glared at Lucy and clenched his teeth.
"When the Palentia branch was annihilated, our communication network fell into the Empire's hands. Naturally, headquarters is avoiding contact with us, mindful of interception."
"I know."
"Then it'll be easier to talk. In this situation, should we just sit around twiddling our thumbs? I think moving independently for the sake of the Allied Nations is the right call."
"Individual opinions are irrelevant. What matters is that you are moving independently, and I am carrying out the duty of judging such individuals."
A low sigh escaped Lucy's lips.
"However, I am currently questioning the Allied Nations myself, so if you cooperate appropriately, I have no intention of harming you."
"Cooperate?"
"Scrap the operation to eliminate Daniel Steiner and disband immediately. Otherwise, I have no choice but to resort to force."
Harom, who had been quietly watching Lucy, let out a hollow laugh.
He found Lucy preposterous for saying things he couldn't accept.
"The number of spies gathered here right now is thirty. And most of them are veterans who've killed people before. Are you saying you'll take them all on by yourself?"
"If necessary, I will."
"......They say there's no cure for stupidity."
Harom sneered and pulled a pistol from under the desk.
"No need for anyone else to intervene. I'll kill you with my own hands."
At the same time, a commotion arose among the spies.
Among them, Tempret shouted urgently.
"Harom! Stop it right now! You're not in your right mind!"
"Shut up! This is unavoidable for the Great Cause!"
Harom roared at the spies, then looked at Lucy and sneered.
"Hey, you damned bitch. Got any last words?"
"I think you'll be the one needing those, not me."
"Bluffing to the end. If your silence is your final will, I'll accept it. Farewell."
Harom pulled the trigger.
Bang─
At the same time, Harom's head burst apart.
Obvious, if anything was obvious.
Because Harom had been aiming his pistol at his own temple from the beginning.
When Harom's head blew off and he collapsed to the floor with a thud, a heavy silence fell over the hotel lobby.
The spies, who had been watching only Lucy's back amid the tension, began rising from their seats one by one.
Tempret likewise rose, gulped, and shouted to those around him.
"It's an illusion! That bitch is using an illusion! Don't ever meet her eyes or speak to her!"
Tempret shouted once more at the hesitating spies.
"What are you doing, you dumbasses! Shoot! I said shoot!"
Only then did the spies come to their senses, draw their pistols, and pull their triggers one by one.
Gunshots rang out in succession and dozens of bullets flew, but—
Pabababak─
The bullets struck a blue barrier, some stopping and others tumbling to the ground.
A high-density mana shield was blocking every bullet from every direction.
'That's insane! How......!'
One or two shots might be believable, but blocking dozens of bullets flying in wildly from every direction was an incomprehensible phenomenon.
If that were possible, guns would have no reason to exist.
And yet, Lucy was pulling it off as if it were the most natural thing.
"Fuck! What the hell kind of woman is she!"
The moment the panicked Tempret swapped his magazine, Lucy turned.
In her hand, drawn at some point, was the dagger that Bilbosel had cherished.
It was the moment Tempret, sensing danger, raised his pistol to fire.
Lucy's body seemed to blur, and then she vanished from sight.
'She's using neural acceleration too?'
Lucy was using one technique after another—techniques that would earn anyone else a reputation as a genius for mastering just one.
Amid a sense of horror, Tempret turned his head to relay a warning, and his eyes went wide.
"What......?"
In the space where Lucy's afterimage had passed, the blood of spies burst out in succession.
A spy whose arm had been severed screamed, and a spy whose throat had been cut collapsed to the floor, foaming at the mouth.
As the terror-stricken spies pulled their triggers spasmodically, bullets ricocheted off the ceiling and walls in every direction.
"Aaaaargh!"
"My arm! My aaaarm!"
"Save me! Save me! I'm begging you!"
With every blink, the number of dying spies multiplied exponentially.
Everywhere he looked, blood was spurting and severed limbs were floating in the air.
He wanted to resist, but Lucy's movement speed was something his eyes simply couldn't track.
Standing there so helplessly, Tempret slowly raised his hand and aimed at his own head.
He hadn't fallen under Lucy's illusion.
He had merely judged objectively that he couldn't defeat that woman.
Because he had realized that she was Hongsa, the one who remained a legend among spies.
Tempret went a step further—he knew that Lucy was originally a test subject.
"God damn. What kind of monster did they create......."
With a self-deprecating look, Tempret placed his finger on the trigger.
"......The balance is all fucked up. Allied Nations, you fucking bastards."
With those final words, Tempret pulled the trigger without hesitation.