Chapter 10 - Raiding the Research Facility (2)
Kwaaaaaang!!!
“Wow…”
“…I didn’t expect it to be this powerful.”
After being struck by the powerful plasma bazooka, a gaping hole was blasted through the side of the research facility.
Judging by the flickering barrier around it, the facility seemed to have some defensive measures in place, yet they were breached.
‘Impressive performance…’
No matter how much I studied, I could never fully comprehend the science fiction knowledge, so I typically used familiar weapons from the original world since they were more mana-efficient and practical in various ways.
But now…
‘The mana consumption was only reduced by 20 minutes?’
Just comparing the cost of materializing a conventional weapon versus creating a single plasma round, the total mana consumption is staggering.
In other words, if I only spent mana on continuously producing rounds with that level of power, dozens would be easily achievable.
“Woooah…!”
‘I wish I could keep this forever.’
While I had expected our abilities to be compatible, I didn’t anticipate such high efficiency.
It would be great if we could continue taking on missions together.
‘Maybe I should ask Astra for her as a reward next time?’
For a moment, I considered it, but I had a feeling Astra wouldn’t grant that request.
“Phew…”
“…?”
“It’s nothing. Shall we head inside?”
Feeling a tinge of regret as the plasma bazooka knowledge faded, the Instructor and I entered the research facility.
“Understood, Maker.”
Ah, and 42 as well, of course.
“We’ll proceed as planned with Astra.”
“Yes, yes…!”
Not that there was much of a plan, really.
First, the Instructor and I would draw aggro while engaging and neutralizing targets,
all while searching for information related to the regeneration experiments.
“The Instructor will primarily draw aggro, while I’ll focus on thinning out their numbers.”
Nod
“And…”
I turned my gaze towards the organization member 42, who was following behind us.
“42, you’ll concentrate on locating the research data. Also, it’s imperative that you find the control room.”
“I’ll contact you immediately once I find it.”
“Good.”
As we ran down the research facility’s corridor and encountered a three-way intersection…
“I’ll take the middle path.”
“I, I’ll go left…”
“I’ll head right.”
The Instructor, Maker, and 42.
The three villains dashed down their respective chosen paths.
“Damn it. I wonder how things are going.”
In a room filled with rough-looking men, a particularly large and intimidating figure puffed on a cigarette with a scowl.
Amused by the man’s trembling legs, one of the other men snickered and addressed him.
“Hey, big bro. You ain’t a coward, so why ya shaking like a leaf?”
“Shut yer trap! Do ya know how long I’ve lived by this gut feeling?”
“Aye, you ain’t even a sensory ability user, so what’s the deal with…”
The large man scoffed at the mocking tone, scowling as he stubbed out his cigarette.
Instinct. Although he lacked sensory abilities, rendering his instincts unreliable,
the man had survived solely by relying on this gut feeling, so it was no exaggeration.
“Big bro, you’re a B-rank villain now, a B-rank villain. And I’m a fresh C+ too.”
“……”
“We’ve come this far, ain’t we, big bro? And what’s so hard for us? The hero bastards are here today, and we even borrowed goons from other organizations.”
“……”
“When the rats from the research facility give the signal to move in, we just go to our positions.”
“……”
“Once we make that drug and mass-produce it, ka-ching! Money in the bank! Ain’t that right? We’ll be heroes, so why’s a big guy like you worryin’ so much…”
Attempting to reassure the large man with his words, the other glanced at their subordinates.
‘Just a bunch of good-for-nothing punks who blindly followed me.’
While they had done plenty of dirty work and constantly indulged in drugs and alcohol, causing trouble, the man couldn’t bring himself to abandon them.
“…Yer right, ya punk! We’ve come too far to turn tail and run now! Ain’t that right, boys?!”
“”You’re right, big bro!!””
The man playfully ruffled the other’s hair.
‘Yeah, must’ve been my imagination.’
There had been many instances where he had felt uneasy, only for nothing to actually happen.
This time would be no different.
The man forced a smile.
“Big bro, wanna have some fun after today’s job? Got a real hottie who just came in…”
As if to conceal his unease, the man exchanged lewd jokes with the other.
“If you’re recommending her, guess I’ll give ‘er a try…”
Banggg!
More accurately, he had intended to exchange lewd jokes.
“…Huh?”
A crimson flower had suddenly blossomed on the other man’s forehead, sending a chilling sensation coursing through the large man’s body.
“Oof.”
“……”
A momentary silence.
Then, upon realizing the situation, the man spewed a curse.
“Who the fuck did that?!!!”
“Hmm, should I call this the villain’s entrance?”
Banggg!
Shing-krang!
Accompanied by a casual remark, a loud gunshot rang out, extinguishing the lights in the room.
“What the, what! Where are you!”
“Hey! Don’t attack your buddies! You punks!”
“Did you just shoot, you bastard?!”
Blinded by the sudden loss of vision, the men flailed about in confusion.
“Snap out of it, you idiots!! Everyone, get your guns and blades ready! Don’t scatter and get picked off one by one! Stick together!!”
Hearing their commotion, the large man quickly took command, rallying his subordinates to regain control of the situation.
“He’s alone! He can’t do shit! Stick together! We gotta stick together to survive…”
“And how will sticking together help you survive?”
Ting- roll roll…
Thunk
“When a grenade goes off, it’s game over, you see.”
“This crazy bastard! We gotta take cover…!!”
Bang!
Kwaaang!
Kwaaang!!
The subsequent explosions drowned out all other sounds for a moment.
Eeeeeeee-
‘Son of a… bitch…’
The man, having barely survived the blasts, lifted his head to survey the aftermath.
From those fortunate enough to have been far away, merely knocked unconscious, to those clutching their wounds, screaming at the top of their lungs.
And then there were those reduced to unrecognizable chunks of meat.
While the man had taken a direct grenade hit at close range, as an ability user enhancing his physical abilities, he had sustained only moderate injuries and survived.
“You, you fuckin’ bastard! Where are ya?! Where the fuck are ya?!!!”
Enraged to his limit, the man picked up a nearby assault rifle and aimed it everywhere he saw movement.
Trr trr…
Trying to conceal his trembling hands, the man vented more anger.
Tuk roll…
Fwooooosh-
“Wha, what the, smoke grenades?”
“……”
“Cowardly bastard! Were you that scared to face us alone?”
“……”
“Were you scared or not?!!”
The man gripped his assault rifle tightly as he waited for a response.
Had a minute passed? No, maybe three minutes?
The figure didn’t answer.
The thick smoke obscuring his vision gradually fueled his rising fear.
Swish-
“Ugh, uwaah!! Uwaaaaahhh!!”
Tududududu!
Finally catching sight of a figure through the smoke, the startled man opened fire, but…
“…Huh?”
“Bi, big bro… wh, why, why did you…”
It wasn’t the enemy he had been aiming for.
“Oh dear, shooting one of your precious subordinates like that.”
“Uwaaaaahhh!!”
Kuhwung!
Suddenly hearing a voice from behind, the man yelped in surprise and comically fell over.
“Don’t, don’t come any closer!”
“It seems you’ll hurt someone’s feelings by treating them that way.”
“I said don’t come any closer!!”
The man aimed his rifle at the enemy before him.
The barrel swayed erratically, unable to maintain a steady aim.
“Uwaaaaahhh!!!”
Dumk dumk
Pulling the trigger towards the smiling figure.
But no bullets were fired.
“Are you done flailing about?”
“Hieek.”
“Hmm… so you must be a villain, then?”
“……”
“It would be a bit troublesome if you were a hero.”
“……”
“Hmm.”
Click
Sensing a sense of deja vu from somewhere, Maker created a gun and pressed the barrel against the man’s head.
“You are a villain, aren’t you?”
…* Nod nod*
“Good. You did give off that villainous vibe.”
Satisfied, Maker withdrew the barrel from the man’s forehead and smiled.
“Very well. There are a few things I’d like to ask you…”
After dealing with the villains, I wiped the blood from my face and hands as I exited into the corridor.
‘How fortunate for the villains to have gathered in one place.’
Whether they had been lying in wait since the start of the terrorism or simply indulging in shenanigans as a group, for some reason they had all been merrily chatting, making it easy to ambush them.
Taking advantage of their confusion, I tossed in a few grenades, and that was that.
As a villain group collaborating with the research facility, I had expected a bit more from them.
But they were merely C-rank level ability users at best, which was rather disappointing.
Or perhaps I had only encountered their underlings…
‘In any case, I’ve now obtained the locations of both the research data and the control room, so mission accomplished?’
While unintentional, I had essentially completed 42’s assigned role as well.
After a brief chuckle, I pressed my communicator to share the information with the Instructor and 42.
Chizik
“Instructor, 42. Can you hear me?”
Th, this is the Instructor! I’m, I’m in the middle of combat right now!
Message received.
Soon after, the Instructor’s voice mixed with static came through, along with 42’s ever-calm tone.
“I’ve located the research data’s position. I’ll share the coordinates, so please both head there.”
Yes, yes…eek!!
Understood.
Click The communication was then cut off.
‘Alright, time for me to head to the target location as well…’
“Wait a moment! You there!”
Just as I was about to proceed to the next location, a voice from behind made me pause.
‘…What now?’
“You, who are you? It’s dark, so I can’t see. Could you come over here for a bit?”
When I turned around, I saw a familiar face.
Her sky-blue hair shone even more mysteriously under the bright moonlight.
Contrasted by cold eyes. A breathtaking beauty that could stop one’s heart.
‘Ice Queen.’
Why is she here?