Chapter 161: You Have a Gatling Gun?
"What method?" A flicker of hope ignited in Ye Tian's eyes. The other members of the Ascending God squad leaned forward, their gazes fixed on Haruto with evident expectation.
Only the two players who had joined them midway through the instance froze, a sudden dread washing over them. They feared this "method" was simply to abandon them, leaving them behind as bait.
They were, however, clearly overthinking it.
Even if they had been willing to offer themselves up, neither Haruto nor Ye Tian would ever entrust a task concerning the entire group's survival to two people they had just met and couldn't possibly trust.
Haruto unhurriedly found a nearby chair and sat down, his movements casual as he slowly delivered his plan.
"You guys go. Kaguya and I will stay behind to hold the line."
The two temporary teammates visibly sagged with relief upon hearing his words.
"No, absolutely not," Youmu immediately protested, her youthful face a mask of stern disagreement.
"I don't agree either," Ye Tian added, his refusal just as flat. He had imagined some foolproof strategy, not a simple substitution of who would be sacrificed. He could not accept such a trade.
"Do you have a better way, then?" Haruto asked, his tone level.
"Even if someone has to stay, it should be me!" Ye Tian declared, his voice tight with conviction. "If I hadn't let that one insect escape, we wouldn't be in this desperate situation!"
"There's no direct evidence that was the Mother Insect," Haruto countered calmly, his voice leaving no room for argument. "Besides, whoever stays must have enough strength to hold this position. I don't trust anyone else to do it; it has to be me. Your team members still need you."
Ye Tian opened his mouth to argue further but found himself at a loss for words.
The rest of the Ascending God squad fell into a heavy silence. They naturally wanted their leader to survive, but they also knew that even if they all risked their lives, they couldn't guarantee they could hold this chokepoint. In that moment, all they could do was silently commit this favor to memory, a debt etched into their hearts.
"Actually," Kaguya began, silently raising a hand as if in a classroom, "this lady feels... she could also go with them."
Haruto crossed his arms, his refusal categorical. "You have to stay and keep me company."
Kaguya rolled her eyes at him but offered no further argument, which was her tacit way of accepting the arrangement.
"Don't overthink it," Haruto said, seeing the grim, funereal expression still plastered on Ye Tian's face. He sighed, deciding to reveal a sliver of the truth. "I chose to stay purely because I'm not comfortable entrusting my safety to others. Besides, I have my own means of survival."
To Ye Tian, however, these words sounded like nothing more than a white lie—a noble falsehood meant to allow him to leave with a clear conscience.
Haruto turned his head to his retainer. "You don't believe me either, Youmu?"
"How could I not?" Youmu hurriedly shook her head, her expression earnest. "It's just... as your retainer, how can I allow you to face such danger alone?"
Finally, after Haruto's repeated persuasion, Youmu reluctantly agreed. With a heavy heart, Ye Tian gritted his teeth and led the group away.
As they fought their way through the corridors, Ye Tian unleashed all his pent-up rage and guilt upon the swarms of insects. Wherever the light of his sword flashed, a carpet of chitinous corpses was left in its wake, as if killing one more bug would somehow lighten the burden on Haruto and Kaguya.
Of course, he never once forgot his duty to protect the team, paying special attention to Yotsuya Miko and Lin Xuelao. Regardless of whether Haruto's "means of survival" was real or a lie, he absolutely could not allow his friend's teammates to be injured again.
---
Meanwhile, back in the fortified room, Haruto raised a hand. A brilliant beam of energy erupted from his palm—a Magic Cannon blast that vaporized the few scattered insects scuttling near the entrance. He then reached into the air, tearing open a Gap. With a grunt of effort, he pulled out two massive, brutal-looking killing machines, setting them on the floor with a heavy, metallic thud.
The gun bodies were thick and heavy, each sporting six long, menacing barrels. The sight made Kaguya's eyelids twitch.
'That thing... isn't that a Gatling gun!?'
"What are you standing there gawking for? Come over and give me a hand," Haruto called out.
Kaguya finally snapped out of her stupor and ran over, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Under Haruto's simple guidance, she eagerly helped set up the second Gatling gun, aiming its formidable muzzle toward the doorway.
Soon, the insect swarm surged forward, a chittering, black tide of claws and carapaces.
At Haruto's command, the Gatling guns roared to life.
A torrential downpour of bullets erupted from the barrels, shredding the front ranks of the swarm into a green-and-black slurry. The insects charging behind them were blasted off their feet, their bodies torn apart by the sheer kinetic force.
"Wooooo!" Kaguya shouted with unrestrained glee, thrilled to finally get her hands on a real-life Gatling gun.
Haruto, in contrast, calmly controlled his fire, his eyes tracking and precisely eliminating any insects that tried to slip through their defensive line.
Wave after wave, the insect swarm charged, but they could never breach the impenetrable net of bullets woven by the duo. A mountain of insect corpses quickly piled up at the door, a grotesque mixture of green, black, and red slime that oozed across the floor.
After what felt like an eternity, Haruto glanced at the mission timer. Seeing only three minutes left, he shouted, "Time's up! Close the door!"
Kaguya reluctantly ceased firing and gave the heavy metal door a fierce kick. It slammed shut with a deafening clang, sealing the frenzied insect swarm outside.
She didn't forget to pester him. "Hurry up and put these two away. When we get back to Gensokyo, install one in my room. I want to play with it more."
Looking at her incredibly excited expression, Haruto could already guess she wanted to use it on that girl, Mokou. Still, he dutifully stored the two Gatling guns back into the Gap.
'As long as I don't say anything and Kaguya doesn't say anything,'he thought,'Mokou will never know the Gatling guns came from me. It'll save her the trouble of going to Youkai Mountain to commission a kappa to build one.'Kaguya leaned against a nearby table, listening to the cacophony of rustling, crawling, and banging from beyond the door. She casually applied her ability of'Eternity and Moment' to the metal barrier, ensuring it would remain eternally intact.
She glanced sideways at Haruto. "This lady thought you were going to leave her here all alone."
"How could that be?" Haruto sat down beside her. "Am I that cruel of a person?"
Kaguya rolled her eyes, her gaze clearly saying, 'You don't have a shred of self-awareness, do you?'
Her eyes darted around mischievously, and she suddenly adopted a high-pitched, cloyingly delicate voice. "Big brother~ could it be that you were worried about this lady?"
A violent shudder ran through Haruto's entire body. He raised his hand and gave her a solid thump on the head, making her yelp as her eyes went wide with pain.
"Don't ever talk in that tone again. Now, if Mokou spoke like that, it might be..."
Halfway through his sentence, Haruto suddenly choked on his own words.
He and Kaguya simultaneously pictured the scene of Fujiwara no Mokou speaking in such a saccharine, cutesy manner. Both of them shuddered in unison.
No, no, no.
Setting aside the sheer impossibility of it ever happening, the mental image alone was far too terrifying to contemplate.
"Are you sure you're not running?" Kaguya's expression suddenly turned serious. "I can indeed resurrect, and you have an Immortal Body, but can you really withstand it? Besides, aren't you afraid of pain?"
Haruto glanced at the countdown timer. Only sixty seconds remained. His expression was one of utter speechlessness.
"What's the use of saying this now? Never mind the swarms of insects right outside; even if they weren't there, I wouldn't be able to escape in time."
Kaguya completely gave up and lay flat on the table with a sigh. "I thought you were going to use a Magic Cannon or some other trump card... like a talisman from some veteran powerhouse. I didn't expect you were just planning for us to experience living and dying together."
"Who wants to live and die with you?" Haruto rolled his eyes. "Don't we still have the Gap?"
"Hmm? You're going to call the one from your home to save the day?"
"No need."
Haruto reached into a Gap and retrieved a small bottle filled with a light gray potion. This was an enhancement draught he had specifically commissioned Eirin to create. It could not only comprehensively increase his strength by two hundred percent—including his youkai power and physical state—but also dramatically heighten his mastery over his own abilities.
He downed it in one gulp. With a wave of his hand, a Gap the height of two men tore open in the space before him.
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