The vehicle moved steadily across the snow. Because of the terrain, Texas did not drive very fast. Even after traveling for a while, they had not gone far from the village, they still needed to return to a clearer route before they could properly accelerate.
Inside the car, Exusiai and Shirou were once again responsible for observing the road ahead. After the past two days, Shirou had already improved quite a bit.
"Hey Shirou, you are learning pretty fast!"
With Shirou's eyesight that was better than binoculars, Exusiai's workload was much lighter. Once he fully got used to it she could dump the job on him and relax.
Though she might still need to help him on observations on a few other long trips, each region had different terrain after all.
Still, anything that made things easier was welcome. Using binoculars in a moving car made her dizzy.
"Ugh… everything is just white. It's kind of uncomfortable."
Looking out at the endless snow, Shirou felt his eyes strain. It was not that he could not see, it was just that everything blended together.
"Eye strain is normal. Snowfields are a pain, they have slippery roads, poor visibility, and freezing cold."
Exusiai shared her experience.
"The last one is just you complaining."
Shirou shot back, then turned his gaze to the left.
Still endless snow, but something there felt off.
"What is it?"
Sora asked.
Everyone else turned their attention to Shirou.
"There is a large group of creatures moving in the distance on the left."
Shirou said, recalling Alina's warning from yesterday:
"The creatures in the mountains have been restless lately."
This was far beyond "restless."
A massive swarm of blue-white, spider-like creatures was moving away from them.
"…That is bad. It is a swarm of Infused Glacial Originium Slug."
Exusiai quickly raised her binoculars and confirmed it.
"Lungmen profanity—seriously?!"
Croissant immediately tensed up.
These bugs were extremely troublesome and when killed they exploded, splattering everything. No one wanted to deal with them unless they had strong long-range attacks.
For someone like her, who relied on a shield, they were a nightmare.
"Are they heading toward us?"
Texas asked.
Driving on snow was slow and if they were being chased it would be dangerous.
"No. They are heading the opposite direction. But…"
Before Exusiai finished, Shirou continued:
"That direction… leads to the village."
"…That is really bad."
Sora understood immediately.
Not bad for them, but for the village.
Even if they turned back now, they would not catch up in time to warn them.
So there were only two choices.
"Do we engage here or leave?"
Texas asked calmly.
They could simply avoid it and leave safely.
If they fought, only Shirou and Exusiai could safely deal damage from range.
Shirou, personally, wanted to help. Not just because the villagers had helped them but because he could not ignore people in danger.
But that was just his own thought.
As for Penguin Logistics—
"What are you saying? Of course we fight!"
Exusiai loaded her gun with etched rounds.
"I might not hold them off completely but I can knock them away."
Croissant grabbed her hammer and shield.
"I will support everyone."
Sora held her staff firmly.
"Shirou, what about you?"
Texas asked.
"Of course."
Any hesitation Shirou had vanished.
"Then we move. Shirou, focus on long-range targets. We will handle anything that gets close."
Texas quickly assigned roles.
She knew everyone's strengths and Shirou with his long-range firepower would act like a turret while the rest handled close threats.
"Shirou, do not use anything like a mushroom cloud!"
Exusiai suddenly warned him.
"One blast and yeah, everything dies but we would also get buried in an avalanche!"
"I am not that stupid."
Shirou rolled his eyes, then opened the car door and smoothly climbed onto the roof.
Sniping required high ground.
"Trace—on."
A black bow and arrows materialized.
In this snowy terrain, any large disturbance could trigger disaster.
So he would not use explosive Noble Phantasms, but precisely shoot arrows.
Standing atop the car, his view expanded.
In the distance, he could even see the village, some people were already fighting off creatures from the mountains.
If the bug swarm reached them It would be catastrophic.
"Shirou! Target the ones closest to the village first!"
Texas gave the order.
Without hesitation, Shirou fired.
The arrows split mid-air, becoming a shower of red streaks like a meteor swarm raining down on the bugs.
"…He can rapid-fire too?!"
Exusiai stared in disbelief.
Damage? He beat her.
Versatility? He beat her.
Range? He beat her.
"Ahhh…this is so unfair!"
She complained internally but still raised her gun and started firing at the bugs approaching them.
The key was distance, kill them before they exploded nearby.
Texas and Croissant could only block the ones she could not handle in time.
"Take my apple pie justice!"
With Sora's Originium Arts boosting her, Exusiai vented all her frustration at the bugs, unleashing a barrage of fire.