4 - Disrupted Fate, Truth (1)

Three battlefields, each set a great distance apart.

Reaching all of them within thirty minutes of combat was, for all practical purposes, impossible.

But when the Military State's technology and the Holy Kingdom's knowledge were combined, even the impossible could be made possible.

"Alright, has everyone changed? If you thought it looked weird and snuck out without putting it on, go right back in and put it on. Without the protective suit, your flesh and bones could separate."

"…Yes."

At Professor Enut's warning, two female students flushed red and retreated back into the changing room.

The protective suit everyone was reluctant to wear.

That was the culmination of the Military State's technology.

A kind of skin-tight vinyl garment that, from the outside, looked obscenely revealing — as if the developer had simply poured their own desires into the design. But that wasn't the case at all.

That sleek vinyl protective suit was the product of extreme mana compression, a kind of semi-magical armor. When the launcher was used, it deflected the mana that would otherwise flood the entire body, keeping flesh and organs from being torn apart. It was a critical piece of equipment.

Naturally, I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was wearing the skintight protective suit under my gym clothes as well.

Unfortunately, those outer gym clothes would be stripped away after the first transfer.

Still, there was no need to feel embarrassed. We weren't in a situation leisurely enough to care about something that trivial.

"Then let's move to Point Alpha. Tighten your helmets and enter the launch pad in the order you're ready."

Alright.

This was the truly critical moment.

Something no one else knew: the launch pad's accuracy was, in truth, a little off. Because of that, you would land considerably far from the planned coordinates — and Team Omega would be thrown into a fierce battle with the cartel the moment they arrived.

Naturally, with no preparation whatsoever, several students would start the scenario already dead.

I intended to prevent that catastrophe.

Even if only a little, I needed to tip the situation in our favor. As annoying and killable as those bastards might be, they would still be useful in a pinch.

"I'll go first."

"Oh my, will you? Braver than I expected."

I pushed past the students fidgeting and fussing with their clothes in front of the launch pad and stepped forward.

A massive cylindrical tunnel set atop a round support platform.

"Don't worry too much — the technology's safety has been fully verified. Student, please step forward and stand on the marked position."

I only knew this from the game. Actually using it was a first. The sheer overwhelming scale of the thing, and the fear of the unknown that came with it, were unavoidable.

Even as I moved according to the operator's instructions, my arms and legs trembled faintly, betraying my tension.

Fortunately, all I had to do was stand in the correct position and wait.

"Checking helmet."

The safety inspection proceeded under the operator's control as well.

"You may experience dizziness or nausea immediately after transfer — those are normal side effects. Do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠not suddenly twist or try to move your body during transit."

"Understood."

"Then, initiating transfer."

After a series of complex-looking operations, vivid mana began gathering throughout the entire machine.

—Wooooooooom!!

A violent vibration and roar like an earthquake. However solidly the foundation had been installed, the ground beneath my feet didn't so much as twitch.

Then, at some point—

—Beeeeeeeep!

I found myself, in a moment I hadn't even registered, wrapped in a brilliant blue light and hurtling through empty space.

A sharp noise rang in my ears like tinnitus.

—Tszzt! Tszzzzzzt!

The gym clothes over the protective suit burned away, tore free, and crumbled into powder that vanished into nothing.

Ugh.

I was going to lose my mind.

In other works, teleportation was always a flash of light and you were just there, no problem. But of course, the most advanced transfer magic in the world of Four Crowns involved stuffing a person into a mana conduit and firing them at ultra-high speed.

You could arrive at your destination in a matter of seconds, sure — but the process was complicated, the preparation costs were enormous, and above all…

"Ugh, uurrgh…"

The sensation of my body slipping beyond my control, flapping and being dragged along like a flag in the wind, was a horror beyond description.

I—I have to hold it in.

If I throw up inside the helmet, the result will be a mess I genuinely cannot deal with.

Uuurgh!

I gritted my teeth and forced myself to picture Novena waiting beyond this agony — and mercifully, for all the suffering I felt, the actual transfer was over in the blink of an eye.

—Piyuuuuu

The noise faded. I was flung forward like something shot from a rubber band, tumbling over before I could finally take stock of my surroundings.

At least it wasn't the worst-case scenario of landing in the middle of a city—

—Bang!

—Thud.

…Huh?

It was not fine.

A bullet had punched straight through the center of my chest before I could even register it.

Blankly, purely by habit, without panicking — the way I always did — I loaded the save file.

The familiar sight of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the massive machine appeared. An auto-save from the moment just before using the launch pad.

But—

"Ah?"

Something was wrong.

"Adel? Are you unwell?"

I clutched the center of my chest on pure reflex.

"Aaa—"

"Adel?!"

When I'd lost my body and died — ah, of course I couldn't feel pain then.

But.

"Aaaa— aaaaaaaaaagh!!"

"Adel!! Breathe! Right now!"

Groping, groping, groping—

When I touched my chest, through the smooth surface of the protective suit I could feel it: that horrifically sticky, searing sensation of blood and shredded flesh that had spilled out.

The bullet that had crunched through my ribcage.

"Hhk, ghk…!!"

Fragments of the round spreading through soft organs — lung or heart, I couldn't tell — pulping everything in their path.

"Urgh— uweeeegh—!!"

It wasn't the puncture wound that had killed me instantly.

It was that the bullet, having punched through my fragile skin, had detonated inside my chest like a claymore mine, churning everything into thick, sticky chunks of meat.

I felt the shredded pieces of lung and heart pooling in my gut along with a flood of blood.

Yes. That was how I had died.

Ah.

Haha. You vicious bastards.

Of course a pack of criminal scum would bring something that cruel to the table.

I hadn't known when I was just playing the game. A bullet was just a bullet. When a weapon's damage went up, I'd just think, oh, they upgraded it, and move on.

This was the result.

It hurt so, so so so so so so much.

I raked my nails across my chest hard enough to tear the protective suit, but that terrible sensation wouldn't go away. The pain remained exactly as it was.

"Hic, eeeeeiiigh!!"

"Over here, this way! Sedative — get me a sedative first!"

Through my hazy vision, Professor Enut came rushing over in a fluster. In that short span of time she'd already produced a syringe from somewhere — thoroughly prepared, as always.

But…

I could feel them. Dozens of pairs of eyes staring at me as I convulsed for no apparent reason.

I was already hated and bullied. Throwing a fit like this on top of it all — even if I pushed through this save and succeeded, nothing good would come of it for me. That much was certain.

"…Hic. Goodbye…?"

So I loaded the save file again.

It had been a mistake. I hadn't died in quite a while, and the unfamiliar pain had thrown me off. That was all.

So let's do this properly.

Right.

This time, the moment I arrive on site, I'll tear a defense scroll and use it. Then draw my pistol and return fire.

"Then, initiating transfer."

I nodded silently.

Having already been through it once, the backlash from the spatial transfer felt a little milder this time. Manageable enough ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to fight immediately, at least.

I cut off the idle thoughts. I had no desire to experience that kind of agony twice.

The instant I arrived, I poured every scrap of concentration I had into opening my inventory.

And then — flash!

A light I hadn't seen on the first attempt burst forth as I opened the inventory, pulled out a scroll, and tore it.

—Riiip!

The sound of the scroll tearing.

—Bang!

And a gunshot.

The two sounds came almost simultaneously.

Fortunately, my reaction had been just a fraction faster.

—Ting! Fwoooom!

The bullet flying toward me struck the thin barrier that had materialized around me, ricocheted into empty air — and then exploded, scattering the fragments hidden inside it in every direction like fireworks.

Bullet shards pattered down onto the barrier.

Now.

I'd confirmed the direction of the shot. Front, five o'clock, off to the side.

I kept up a dazed act, pretending I hadn't noticed the attack, while carefully closing both hands.

Originally, a protective supply box was supposed to arrive right after me, and I was meant to use whatever was inside it. Having an inventory was an absolute godsend.

A dangerous situation where I couldn't even tell whether the enemy was watching me or what they were doing. And yet the final victor would be me. I believed that.

So the moment the pistol summoned from my inventory settled into my grip, I spun — and unleashed indiscriminate fire in the direction the attack had come from.

The shield vanished—

—Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Six rounds. Enough to empty the cylinder of a revolver.

The effect was clear. Wooden barrels stacked in what looked like a warehouse space — holes punched through their bodies, some unidentifiable liquid beginning to trickle out.

Maybe the attacker's blood.

"…Did I get them?"

Relief and hollowness washed over me at once, and I reflexively blurted out a terrible flag.

Ah.

I realized the truth far too late.

"Not bad instincts for a student."

"Shit…"

A heavy, bone-chilling voice from behind me.

"But your skill is nothing special. If you're on a battlefield, you don't let your guard down. You keep watching your surroundings."

—Bang!

And something boring through my brain.

Ghk.

The impact shattered my skull. My eyeballs burst. Blood sprayed from my nose, ears, and mouth. My vision flooded red, then vanished.

In that fleeting instant — something I hadn't seen the first time, when a bullet through the chest had killed me — I managed to make out faint text and read it.

I finally understood the true nature of that horrific pain I had suffered.

Ghk—

That made two failures.