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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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Ellie and Gren, equipped with body enhancements, headed to the lodging where the notorious wanted criminal, Popo Ben, was staying, intending to confront him directly.
Gren, however, judged it reckless for the two trainees to engage the criminal head-on, and so he arranged for them to form a perimeter with the Imperial Army.
Thus, Irina and Karl took their positions at a street corner, establishing a tight cordon to prevent even a mouse from escaping.
Any problems?
“No problems, senior.”
A slight whoosh of air accompanied Gren’s words, to which Irina promptly and respectfully replied.
Understood. We’re going in now.
The communication cut off there. Irina tucked the communication device into her right back pocket and swallowed hard.
While she had experienced the Red Duck pirates’ hostage situation, this was her first direct involvement in an operation, and she seemed quite tense. Moreover, their opponent was a fearsome criminal, equipped with body enhancements. She trusted her two seniors to handle it, but the possibility of sudden, unexpected events remained.
“Hey, are you scared?”
Karl, standing ramrod straight, asked Irina teasingly, noticing her short breaths. Her pride stung, and she glared at him sharply.
“Scared? Of what? And could you please refrain from using such vulgar language? …This is why you have such low-class blood. And focus on the operation, instead of useless chatter—!”
Deeply devoted to knighthood, she seemed eager to have her name attached to the success of this operation. You know, the kind of thing that starts legends.
“Do you really think he’d come this far?”
“We still need to be prepared, just in case.”
“My, what an admirable mindset.”
“Of course. I’m different from you.”
Since she knew she could never match Karl in skill, Irina began to emphasize her other strengths, most notably her knightly attitude. Her theory was that Karl, with his low-born blood, could never achieve her level of refinement.
“How do you learn that? Hmm?”
“Mindset isn’t something you learn. It’s innate. …I’m sorry, but there’s nothing you can do about it. You didn’t follow an elite course like I did.”
“Oh really? Chuckle, too bad.”
Karl’s expression, of course, conveyed no regret whatsoever. Irina found his laughter incredibly annoying but refrained from commenting.
Their conversation abruptly ended. …And not long after, powerful impact sounds began to emanate from up ahead.
—!
The tightly formed Imperial Army cordon began to waver as sounds like exploding bombs and plumes of dust filled the air. Even in Brutus, a chaotic hub of criminals, witnessing a superhuman battle firsthand was undoubtedly a rare occurrence. The problem was that getting caught in the crossfire of that insane fight meant certain death for ordinary individuals.
The smile on Kal’s face gradually disappeared. …Something unexpected seemed to have occurred.
Emergency, emergeeen—cy!
Ellie’s emergency call burst through, followed by two men crashing through the lodging’s window and, of all places, running straight towards the alley where Irina and Karl were positioned.
—!!
Frozen in place, Irina was completely overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events. If things continued this way, she was sure to be bisected by the swords the men carried.
This damn idiot, where is her head…?!
Karl instinctively gritted his teeth and kicked Irina hard in the side.
“Ouch—!”
She flew like a broken kite and crashed into the wall. At the same moment, the leading man swung an enormous greatsword with one hand, cleaving an Imperial soldier blocking the alley entrance clean in two.
Equipped only with an energy gun, Karl could only dodge the sword, unable to retaliate. The men sprinted away as soon as their escape route opened. Kal considered pursuing them but decided against it, instead grabbing the groaning Irina by the collar and dragging her up.
“Get yourself together and clean up this mess. Now.”
He counted at least three or four Imperial soldiers bisected and dead. The ground was already awash with spilled guts and blood. Witnessing the horrific scene, the other Imperial soldiers sat stunned, half-frozen in shock.
Kal released Irina’s collar and headed towards the lodging where his seniors had entered. He jumped through the shattered window and into the building. There, he found Gren lying in a pool of blood, and Eli frantically applying medical supplies to stem the bleeding.
“Senior.”
“…Karl? Is that Karl? Help me. Quickly…!”
Karl hurried to Gren, whose face was pale. Judging by the trail of hemostatic foam across his lower abdomen, he had been severely cut by the greatsword. His severed left wrist lay nearby.
Gren was a veteran knight with over five years of experience in the Combat Division. Frankly, he wasn’t someone who should have been defeated in a backwater place like this.
…This wasn’t the work of that wanted criminal. It was the other guy.
“Ugh…, s, shit….”
“Gren, don’t talk. Don’t talk, just stay still. I’ll give you first aid. Stay still.”
Thanks to his body enhancements, he still had the strength to speak despite the blood loss. The enhancements were likely also providing some minor regeneration.
They had passed the critical point. It was thanks to Big-Boobs’ quick first aid. If she had chased after the criminals, they would have missed the golden time.
The summoned medical team rushed into the building. They quickly placed Gren in a medical pod and transported him to the hospital by ambulance.
After seeing her colleague off, Big-Boobs attended to the dead Imperial soldiers. It wasn’t easy to see bodies so brutally bisected. Even she, with over five years in the Intelligence Division, had rarely witnessed such a sight. …Of course, she had recently seen pirates slaughtered in a similar fashion.
Once the situation was somewhat under control, Ellie boarded the transport vehicle and, upon sitting down, let out a long sigh, her expression vacant.
The presence of such a powerful accomplice alongside the wanted criminal was completely unexpected. Gren’s skills were considered top-tier in the Combat Division, and no one could have predicted his swift and devastating defeat.
…A request for support would have to be sent to the Knights.
It seemed unlikely they could apprehend this cunning wanted criminal with their current strength. Moreover, having been alerted, he would likely be hiding somewhere secure. Finding him now, without thoroughly combing the area, would be a long shot.
Irina, seemingly in shock, wore a blank expression. The only one unaffected was, of course, Karl.
However, even he was preoccupied, his mind racing.
…Who was that guy?
To wield such a large greatsword so freely with one hand suggested either a cyborg or an android. The reason for his presence alongside the wanted criminal, however, remained a mystery.
A strange urge to investigate the man welled up within Kal. He wondered what secrets the bastard held.
The transport returned to the base. The Defense Force Commander, upon hearing the news, expressed his deep regret. Inwardly, however, he was likely relieved that they hadn’t attempted to handle the situation alone.
“I will submit the support request personally. I will do my best to resolve this matter.”
“I appreciate your concern.”
The exhausted trio dispersed to their respective quarters. Fortunately, Gren reappeared a few hours later, looking completely recovered after his surgery. His wounds had healed completely, and he moved without any difficulty. He was simply a bit drained.
Such was the power of modern medicine – as long as one didn’t die, recovery was almost guaranteed.
The matter was thus largely concluded by early afternoon.
Karl visited Ellie’s quarters. Having just finished some paperwork, she blinked in surprise at his sudden appearance.
“Karl…? Why are you here…?”
“I have something to discuss with you.”
“Oh, come in.”
He strode into her room and closed the door behind him. Having only stayed there for a day, the room was already faintly filled with the fresh scent of a young woman.
“What did you want to talk about?”
“When will the support from the Knights arrive?”
It seemed a rather bold question for a trainee to ask a senior officer, but Ellie stammered her answer as if she were the junior.
“…Uh? Oh, um, they said it’ll take about two days. They need time to select the personnel.”
“So that means we have two days.”
Big-Boobs didn’t immediately grasp the meaning of this audacious trainee’s words.
Karl smiled lightly and took a step closer to Ellie.
“But after two days, it will be difficult to track them down. Unless they’re fools, they’ll definitely escape if given that much time.”
That was probably true. But in the current situation, Eli was powerless. Even Gren, a renowned Knight, was easily defeated. How could Big-Boobs possibly stand against them?
“Still, there’s nothing we can do. We have no choice but to wait.”
“Then, would you consider tracking them down with me?”
“…What?”
“It seems inappropriate for a trainee to act alone on a deployment, so it would be helpful if you could accompany me, Senior…”
Such a bold request, hardly befitting a trainee. However, Ellie, having some inkling of Karl’s true identity, didn’t dismiss his request as absurd. …The question, however, was whether he possessed the strength to confront them.
While she knew Karl was powerful, what worked against pirates wouldn’t necessarily work against superhumans like these.
“…Well. Wouldn’t it be too dangerous? I think it’s best to play it safe…”
“But then we’ll definitely lose them. …Not only is the wanted criminal suspicious, but the guy with him is suspicious as well.”
Could this secret agent have caught a whiff of something?
Ellie was caught in a dilemma. As a senior Investigation Division officer, she should refuse, but she couldn’t simply ignore the request of Karl, whom she suspected to be a secret operative of the Empire. She had already decided to cooperate with him fully.
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything. You just need to stay by my side, Senior.”
In the end, Big-Boobs accepted his proposal. With him pushing this hard, it was difficult for her to refuse.
“…Okay, fine. But if it gets dangerous, we stop, okay? …No, we stop. Understand? Promise me.”
“Yes, I understand.”
And so, the two of them began their secret pursuit, unbeknownst to the others.
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