Chapter 96
Chapter 96
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Anti-Superhuman Weapons
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Anti-superhuman weapons aren't all that varied, in truth.
Most of them exploit structural weaknesses, a problem born from how overwhelmingly effective Core Weapons are.
That's why they're easy to figure out if you have knowledge from the original story.
'That one's no different.'
The weapons the attackers were wielding exploited the properties of energy barriers.
The principle was to slam in plasma-formed, high-concentration electron energy—tuned as closely as possible to match the Core Weapon's power source—all at once, disrupting the barrier's function and striking the body directly.
Even then, most of it radiates into the air through the contact surface, so it can't inflict truly lethal damage. But the fact that it bypasses a Core Weapon's protection makes it revolutionary enough.
Still, making it work comes with a bunch of issues.
For one, you have to hit them directly.
Like the weapons these attackers had, you need a wide striking surface to dump a certain threshold of energy in one go.
Otherwise, it just delivers a mild zap and that's it.
The production process is no joke either.
It's easy to say, but creating plasma-formed, high-concentration electron energy and somehow binding it to a club? That's an insane waste of resources.
Without constantly refilling the energy from that heavy-looking charger on their backs—which bleeds out into the air nonstop—it'd turn into a useless stick in under a minute.
Unless you're a group on the level of Mutant Medical, you wouldn't even dream of deploying something this expensive.
Against anyone but a superhuman, it's the pinnacle of inefficiency.
But problems aside, they were targeting me—a superhuman—so it wasn't a bad pick.
'If only it actually worked.'
With my thoughts sorted, I felt calm again.
I'd analyzed the principle, and I had a counter ready. No need to be scared.
I stepped out from behind the pillar, exposing myself.
The attackers' numbers had swelled to nearly ten by now.
"What're you waiting for? Come on."
They flinched when the guy who'd been running suddenly stepped up confidently.
But only for a moment.
As I closed the distance, they lunged on reflex.
I snatched the weapon swinging at my head with one hand, yanked it, and slammed the attacker face-first into the ground.
A brilliant flash erupted from my palm where it made contact.
But I just finished him off casually and brushed off my hand.
'As expected, it works.'
My hand only tingled faintly—no meaningful damage.
The trick was simple.
Since the weapon was optimized for the Core's unique energy signature, I blocked it with an energy barrier powered by my horn instead.
That drastically altered the energy properties, turning assimilation into violent repulsion.
The intense light from before was proof of that.
Other superhumans might struggle with the same defense, but adding specialized gear would make it easy to replicate.
"If you won't come to me, I'll come to you."
I kicked the downed attacker aside to use his body as cover and charged the next one, slamming a hard kick into him.
"Guh...!!"
He doubled over and went flying from the direct hit.
The feedback in my foot said he was on the brink.
I took every swinging weapon on my body and countered with punches.
In three breaths, I'd put five more out of commission.
Two more had joined in the meantime, leaving seven, but numbers weren't an issue anymore.
By now, though, they realized I wasn't bluffing—the weapons just plain didn't work on me—and started acting cautious.
"Dragging this out won't help you. Isn't Roze smashing your buddies elsewhere right now?"
The constant vibrations traveling up through my feet told me she was going full throttle.
Anti-superhuman weapons?
At this level, even a horde wouldn't faze her.
In the end, they were just as pressed for time.
"You're really causing us trouble."
Then, from the direction the smoke was billowing, another attacker emerged.
A man not wearing an armor suit, unlike the others.
The same guy I'd spotted first.
"Finally, someone I can talk to. You the head of this punitive squad?"
"You know about us, then."
"I didn't, but turns out plenty of people hate your guts. Maybe act with a bit more class?"
His expressionless face didn't change, even at my sarcasm.
"We're just beasts following orders. Monsters with a faint longing to shed our chains."
"Not into cryptic bullshit."
"No need to understand. You'll get it with your body soon enough."
"...Huh?"
"Punitive Squad. D3 usage authorized."
With that, the man pulled something out and jammed it into his heart.
A syringe, up close.
The liquid inside was injected in seconds.
He suddenly hunched over, body shuddering violently.
He wasn't the only one.
The other attackers pulled out syringes too, injecting the liquid into their hearts.
Even the ones already critically wounded or dead got the treatment.
The changes came fast.
I grimaced and muttered.
"...Figures it'd be some mutant corp bullshit."
Grotesque monsters now blocked my path, their bodies warped in seconds.
These weren't ordinary foes—the vibe said it all.
I tested one mid-transformation with a kick, but it healed almost instantly.
'Like the ones from that Utah City lab.'
The difference? They still had their wits.
They twitched restlessly like they had anxiety disorders, snarling through ragged breaths, but they formed a encirclement instead of charging blindly. That told me enough.
But even so.
"Think turning into monsters changes anything? And with just eight of you?"
"...Grrr!"
No answer—just beastly growls.
They closed in methodically, then attacked all at once.
"Hup...!"
A chaotic flurry of blows.
Their strength and speed weren't far off a superhuman's.
Their reckless, all-out attacks—ignoring their own bodies—were a bitch to defend against.
Rumble!
The floor gave way under the strain.
I endured the pain, ripped out a claw mid-thrust, smashed the face lunging with bared teeth, and leaped back.
In that gap, the others grabbed my limbs.
I'd shake them off, only for more to pile on.
The weakening floor crumbled repeatedly from our clashes, and before long, we plunged underground.
"Whew! These guys are sticky as hell."
I'd taken out two on the fall.
One with its throat fully severed by my claw, and two more that ate too many hits while playing sandbag up close, exceeding their limits.
They knew how to fight, but their regen didn't match those lab freaks.
I tried prying off the one still clutching my neck even in death.
Then its mutated body flashed—and exploded.
"-----------!!!"
The blinding light blacked out my vision for a second, hurling me into something hard.
'Crazy bastards. What the hell are they doing exploding in the middle of the city...!'
Damage wasn't bad.
I'd sensed something off and ditched the corpse quick, but more than anything, it wasn't enough to breach my barrier.
Still, this blast had definitely drained my Core Weapon's power.
After that railgun sniper shot earlier, two or three more would punch right through.
With the Core Weapon's combat assist active—my vision switched to infrared sight—I rocketed upward before they could swarm again.
But damn this building wouldn't cut me a break.
The successive impacts had spread through the whole structure, and it started collapsing outright.
"Argh..."
I was buried under the rubble, arm outstretched upward.
Immense weight crushed down.
At least the other attackers were pinned too—no swarming—but vibrations from them burrowing toward me like moles never stopped.
'Still got a ways to go...?'
Felt like I'd stalled them plenty.
I clawed through the debris and surfaced fast.
The moment I poked my head fully out, past all the wreckage—a sniper shot greeted me again.
I took it dead-on, hauled my body free from the debris, and moved erratically nonstop.
To screw with their aim.
While scanning my surroundings.
Dust mixed with smoke from the collapse had dispersed.
Enough that I could vaguely make out the sky.
But the sky now had that same barrier from my visit to the Clotho family estate.
Thicker than before, even.
No way I could punch through while getting sniped like this.
'Gotta find Roze first.'
Where the hell had she gone? Out of sight.
Did she break outside?
As I pondered, the barrier suddenly started crumbling.
It flickered unsteadily, then vanished.
The trapped smoke and dust billowed out everywhere, and comms slowly recovered.
An unstable connection tried linking up.
-Ah! Can you hear me?
"Receiving fine."
-You good, bro?
"Can't tell from me answering?"
-Haha, bit of a calc error on my end.
"Thanks to you, I nearly bought it."
Some thanks that was.
The promised five minutes had come and gone ages ago.
"Got it. Send support first. Got suicide bombers here—factor that in."
-Roger.
A ton of stuff rained from the sky.
Combat drones leading a pack of armed Monarch family troops, prepped ahead of time.
I jumped aboard one of the drones.
Just then, a mutant breached the last rubble to the surface, roared at the fleeing drones—and ate a barrage.
Snipers were already getting counterfired too.
'What a mess.'
The parking structure's perimeter was jammed with private militia responding to the terror attack.
But they didn't know about the smoke—no countermeasures.
The smoke spread rapidly along the ground.
'Leave that alone and it'll be bad.'
Militia had anti-biochem gear, so they'd be fine. Civilians wouldn't.
Plus, even if the smoke's main goal was incapacitation—not killing—and tuned for superhumans, ordinary folks with low resistance could die from too much exposure. Not just paralysis.
I hurriedly relayed intel to Naphrael.
-Hmm, I'll spread the word. But my pull might not go far here.
"Got it. Do what you can."
Naphrael alone wouldn't cut it.
Rifling my brain, I recalled Assemblyman Udland from the gala chat.
'Contact...?'
Jackpot.
I'd gotten it as a courtesy for big donors—his secretary's number—but with the charity auction invite right after, he'd pick up for sure.
As expected, it went straight to Udland, skipping the secretary.
-No way, Superhuman Leonard. You safe?
"Yes. I'm fine. But listen..."
I warned him about the smoke's dangers.
Raised the alarm on purpose with "biochemical terror."
Udland was shocked speechless.