"Ahhh! Damn Penguin Logistics!"
While directing the Guard Department's encirclement operation, Chen felt like she was about to lose her sanity. First, she had been toyed with and wasted time before finally tracking them down again only to run into another major problem.
"A string of refined Lungmen profanity mixed with polite Victorian greetings"
After mentally "greeting" the organizers and the Lungmen higher-ups who proposed this exercise countless times, Chen felt her composure recover slightly.
Although it improved a bit, it was useless because it was immediately drained again.
After all, the air in Lungmen today felt particularly… special.
Especially for the members of the Guard Department.
How special?
Specially foul.
Damn it! Just how many traps had Penguin Logistics planted around here? And every single one of them was filled with that horrible stench!
She had just received a report saying that even the Guard Department's showers were not enough to handle everyone.
"Old Chen, calm down… Even though Penguin Logistics is going a bit overboard, it is still within the rules."
Seeing that Chen looked ready to draw her sword and charge in to fight Penguin Logistics directly, Hoshiguma tried to calm her down.
After all, not only were there numerous traps here, but Shirou was also positioned above as a sniper.
And for some reason, someone had given him suction-cup arrows to attack with.
Moreover, Shirou had apparently modified those arrows somehow so they were extremely hard to remove, and even when removed, they left red marks behind.
No one had realized before that this kid could be this devious. He must have been led astray!
"Hey, useless dragon, can you not just lead the charge and break through? Yelling here will not change anything!"
Hoshiguma: "?"
Swire's condition was not much better either. She was on-site, and the entire area was filled with the smell of Exusiai's special bombs.
All kinds of odors mixed together into something… indescribable.
Yes…"indescribable" was the only way to put it. No normal person could come up with the right words to describe that smell.
Although she could endure it, prolonged exposure still made her uncomfortable.
As for masks… the organizers did not allow them. They claimed that in real situations, being hit like this would mean either death or serious injury so it was just a smell, endure it.
A typical case of higher-ups not understanding the suffering of those below.
Thus, Swire vented part of her frustration onto Chen, the overall commander of this operation.
And she did it without the slightest hesitation if anything, it felt a bit satisfying.
"If you deal with that archer first, I will lead the team in."
Hearing Swire's words, a vein popped on Chen's forehead.
Was this stupid cat's brain fried by the smell? How were they supposed to break through in this situation?
Not to mention the traps just Shirou alone up there was already a huge problem!
"How do you expect to deal with him if you do not push in?!"
Swire shot back at Chen's unreasonable statement.
"And how am I supposed to push in if you do not deal with the archer?! Why do you think we are stuck here hiding?!"
"If we do not take the initiative, we will not solve anything!"
"I already told you it is not possible! Do not you have drones on your side? Try using them to eliminate that brat Shirou!"
"That guy shoots down every single one! I do not have many drones left!"
"Then stop talking and get to work!"
With that, Chen directly cut off the communication channel.
Partly because Swire was annoying but also because she knew Penguin Logistics was definitely listening in.
The argument just now had been deliberate. She had intentionally fed false information.
If Penguin Logistics could do it, there was no reason the Guard Department could not do the same.
Still, facing Penguin Logistics' five members plus one support, Chen felt as though she was dealing with hundreds of people.
The traps themselves were actually easy to handle. For the Guard Department, most of them were obvious at a glance and could be avoided despite their large numbers.
The real problem was Shirou.
His awareness in this area was truly exceptional. Even when they had arranged snipers in advance, he seemed almost precognitive, dodging attacks with minimal movement and immediately counterattacking.
They had already lost an entire sniper squad because of him. And before leaving, those people were still praising how incredible Shirou was.
That sniper squad was probably beyond saving.
"It is all set. You really plan to sneak in from the back?"
Hoshiguma, who had also cut off communications, stepped forward to ask. As a member of Chen's team, she followed Chen's command.
To be safe, Chen had not issued these orders through the communicator. Everyone in the team already knew the plan and they were just waiting for the right moment.
"Of course. With that guy Shirou covering the front, you know how good his shooting is. I have no idea how many people have already been eliminated with suction-cup arrows stuck to their heads."
Now calmer, Chen continued explaining:
"Our primary target is only one, Shirou. As long as we eliminate him, we will not be so passive. Shirou alone is worth more than a dozen people, and that is with all the restrictions placed on him. I cannot even imagine what he would be like if he fought without limitations…"
At this point, Chen paused.
After all, she had seen Shirou fight before. If he really let loose with an attack like that, the Guard Department would probably be wiped out instantly.
He had displayed such overwhelming abilities in other areas that she had almost forgotten that Shirou could "set off fireworks" as well.
"…That is true. In a real situation, we would have basically no chance of winning. Even overwhelming him with numbers would not work. But with the rules in place, as long as we land a single hit on Shirou, we can eliminate him directly."
Hoshiguma agreed with Chen's assessment.
Since Chen already had a plan, she did not ask further.
Watching the two of them get somewhat irritated by Penguin Logistics, Hoshiguma actually found it rather amusing.
After all, this was just an exercise. It was a chance to go all out and try things that would normally seem outrageous.
Besides, Chen's plan was not extreme at all, it was quite standard and reasonable.
"Hmm… there are fewer people now."
Meanwhile, Shirou stood by the window, carefully surveying the surroundings. Every so often, he would switch floors and windows.
Though in reality, he was only moving between the top two floors and a few windows.
There were fewer people on their side, so he had to put in more effort.
The four people downstairs were not idle either. Traps and devices had been set up all over the base, and they had also eaten some rations and replenished their water.
More than half of the exercise time had already passed. Both sides had been locked in a stalemate for quite a while.
This was expected, charging in recklessly was dangerous especially since the Guard Department had already suffered losses.
Just looking at the earlier situation was enough to feel how disastrous it had been.
But that was in the past. Now Shirou noticed something—
The enemy had become passive.
Previously, some had attempted to snipe him, but now there were none. The Guard Department seemed to have vanished.
If he could not still see traces of them in the distance, he might have thought they had withdrawn entirely.
He did not attack them, mainly because he did not want to suppress them too aggressively. He wanted to give the Guard Department some breathing room.
Besides, maintaining the current situation also allowed him to track their movements.
"They are probably making some kind of plan. Including Officer Chen and Officer Hoshiguma, some of them have been frequently cutting off their communicators. Be careful."
Hearing Shirou's muttering, Yith replied.
As time went on, he had become more and more relaxed.
No…not relaxed. It would be more accurate to say he was holding back.
After all, with Shirou and the Penguin Logistics team, the base had already become something like a fortress.
If he went all out and attacked the Guard Department's network systems, the Guard Department would probably collapse immediately.
While that would be satisfying, he knew it was not acceptable.
They could not let the Guard Department lose too badly at least not because of him.
He still needed to find opportunities to hack into their database in the future. If he drew too much attention, it would make things inconvenient.
He was very good at "playing the game," after all.
"Hmm… as expected of the Guard Department, one plan after another."
Hearing Exusiai's analysis, Shirou said with a smile.
"Of course. In this field, Officer Chen and the others are professionals. They have dealt with many dangerous criminals. But I think you all will leave quite an impression on them. You have really made them suffer this time."
"Well, that is what Mr. Wei Yenwu intended, right? I am just following orders."
"…You have learned to shift the blame now?"
Yith sounded slightly surprised at how quickly Shirou pushed responsibility onto Wei Yenwu.
"That is just the truth, okay?"
Hearing that, even Shirou felt a bit annoyed.
What "shifting blame"? He was stating facts. The instructions had even been relayed through him, if anything he was an accomplice too.
"Heh, you have grown up."
Ignoring Shirou's protest, Yith spoke in a teasing tone.
"…"
Shirou could only roll his eyes, silently expressing all the complaints in his mind.
Fine, if you say so.
"I will talk to you later. I need to discuss the next steps with Texas and the others. If anything comes up on your side, just report it. I will keep the line open."
Soon, Yith returned to his usual calm tone, as if the earlier remark had not come from him at all.
"Understood."
After that, Shirou heard a click, and the line went quiet.
Raising his hand, he casually eliminated a Guard Department member who had briefly exposed himself, then continued thinking about how Chen and the others would act next.
If it were him…Would he just go with a Caladbolg?
No, no…since when had he become an explosives maniac?
It must be because Exusiai had been talking about the beauty of explosions recently, influencing him subconsciously into thinking of using Broken Phantasm for everything.
Although combining a Caladbolg with a Broken Phantasm was like a chemical reaction multiplying its destructive power several times and making it highly versatile, it should not be the first solution that came to his mind.
He needed to fix that.
He had to think from Chen's perspective. If sniping was not effective, then the only option would be to force their way in. In that case, they would definitely avoid the direction he was covering.
Which meant… they would come from the back?
If that was really the case, then he could only hope that Officer Chen would not end up questioning her life choices after getting blown up. If he remembered correctly, some of the traps placed at the back were made using the broth from canned pickled fish…
Incidentally, Exusiai still had one on hand. She had said that if anyone tried to rush her, she would throw it and go down together with them.
This was the first time Shirou realized that Exusiai could be this ruthless toward herself. It definitely changed his impression of her.
Of course, it would have been better if she were not holding something like that.
Before Shirou could report his guess, voices from Penguin Logistics came through the communicator.
"Praise Laterano! Officer Chen, you are cheating! How can you use Chi Xiao to break the wall?! Use the front door! At least use proper Originium explosives for demolition!"
With Exusiai's scream, Shirou knew his guess had come true.
What he did not expect was that they would resort to directly smashing through the wall.
"Exusiai, Sora, Croissant cover Texas's retreat. Shirou, head down and rendezvous with Texas. See if you can get to the car and escape."
After understanding the situation, Yith immediately issued orders for the three to cover Texas.
Texas was the fastest and an excellent driver. With Croissant tanking at the front, Exusiai attacking, and Sora providing support, they could stall for quite a while.
That was the ideal scenario…
Against Chen and Hoshiguma's assault, however, the three were eliminated almost instantly. Exusiai even tried to throw one last bomb.
But Hoshiguma noticed it. She used her shield to knock the explosive back, then spun it to prevent the smell from spreading toward them.
Sora, being farther away, managed to retreat in time.
Croissant, however, was not so lucky. She and Exusiai were both thoroughly "marinated" by the stench of pickled sea creature broth.
The more they had laughed at the Guard Department earlier, the more nauseated they felt now.
Seeing their miserable state, Chen and the others felt a great sense of satisfaction.
But a new problem arose, the only staircase was being guarded. If they wanted to go upstairs to capture Texas and Shirou, they would have to pass through that area.
"Open the windows for ventilation, then rest and regroup! Also, have Swire keep watch outside, make her do her job properly! I have already led the assault team in!"
After a few seconds of thought, Chen decided to wait.
After all, their next opponent was Shirou, a bug-like existence. It was best for her team to face him in optimal condition.
They had already crossed a trap-filled area, and forcing their way up immediately would exhaust anyone.
Exusiai's traps were crude, but understandable. Given the short preparation time, it was impossible to make them more refined.
Still, she had successfully disgusted many Guard Department members. It was safe to say that from now on, any Guard Department officer who saw Exusiai would "warmly" check on what she was doing.
"…"
Upstairs, Texas quickly regrouped with Shirou.
She had heard everything that happened below. Under normal circumstances, she would have refused Yith's orders and stayed behind, or tried to retreat together.
But this was an exercise. She was playing a ruthless criminal and abandoning teammates was perfectly reasonable and she felt no burden doing so.
"How did they break through so suddenly?"
Blocking the staircase, Shirou asked.
Everything had been going fine just moments ago so how had it been reversed so quickly?
"Yith probably held back and did not warn us."
Turning off her communicator, Texas replied.
This was definitely Yith's doing but they had also been careless. If they had paid even a little more attention, they would not have been caught off guard.
At this point, Texas only had a few sword hilts, two packs of Pocky, and the car keys left on her.
In this situation, going downstairs to retrieve the car was impossible.
She and Shirou would have to hold the position here.
Being overrun was only a matter of time, she just had not expected it to happen like this.
"…I had a similar thought. I was just about to inform you when they acted."
"I did not expect it either… maybe they were just fed up with Exusiai's bombs?"
Texas originally wanted to add that they might also have been annoyed by Shirou's harassment, but after thinking about it, she held back.
After all, Shirou's actions were nowhere near as infuriating as Exusiai's.
"Enough talk, let us block the path first. We can buy some time and figure things out later."
Although he agreed, this was not the time for conversation.
The Guard Department could come up at any moment, and the three below were still buying them time.
They needed to make good use of it.
The two quickly barricaded various passageways. While it would not stop the Guard Department entirely, it could delay them for a short while.
Unfortunately, things did not go as smoothly as Shirou had hoped.
Without him providing sniper cover from the windows, many snipers had already taken positions outside, and dozens of drones had entered the building, searching for him and Texas.
At this point, Penguin Logistics was at a complete disadvantage. One small mistake would mean immediate elimination.
If they were eliminated now…
Their boss would definitely be dissatisfied.
Which meant no bonus and no vacation.
Texas had already planned how to use both. There was no way she would fall here.
"Let us head to the rooftop. I will deal with the drones and the snipers outside first. Otherwise, when Officer Chen and the others push up, we are finished."
While shooting down drones with his short bow, Shirou spoke.
In their current situation, if they had to face Chen and the others directly, they might as well surrender.
He could not confidently avoid all damage under these conditions.
After all, this was not real combat. Even if he claimed his reinforcement magecraft could withstand attacks, it would not matter here.