Masquerade (6)
Suddenly, a crack appeared and spread throughout the entire space in an instant.
“…Huh, what’s this?”
Right after, Malfi, an executive of the Burning Flame who was the original builder of this isolated zone, let out a gasp as if she noticed something.
“Malfi? What’s going on all of a sudden?”
“The spatial blockade has been lifted… No, this is more than just that…!”
Holding the unconscious Führer tightly, An asked with curiosity, while Malfi hurriedly checked around without even turning back.
But without even having the chance to react, the anomaly had already begun.
Zzzzzzzzz—
The crack slowly widened, revealing the outside scenery bit by bit.
A dark night sky filled with twinkling stars and the view of a slightly dilapidated small town.
The place where Malfi had been before joining the meeting, a hideout located in an area bordering Malaysia in Thailand.
“Oh no, the space is collapsing!”
The direction of the firmly maintained blockade suddenly reversed, causing what had been scrambled inside to erupt all at once.
Of course, the fact that such a reaction was happening only now was hardly coincidental.
‘The connections with the magical equipment used as mediums are being severed one by one. This can only be explained as…’
An external interference.
Just like the ornate silk installed on the doors as part of the procedures to enter this place, signals of disturbance were being transmitted successively from the devices arranged to unify the whole Southeast Asian region.
Shatter— Crash—!
The spiderweb-like cracks spread out, causing the surrounding scenery to collapse without any chance to remedy the situation.
Anyone would be confused by this unexpected change, but not everyone froze.
[Now!]
As if they had been waiting, the mental echo of Buncheon Society’s Southeast Asia branch leader Nagaraja resonated in the minds of his followers.
Since they had been previously briefed just before the incident, their movements were devoid of any unnecessary hesitation.
Among them, of course, was the Executioner, who had been fiercely fighting Harley.
“Ugh— No, bro! Where are you going in the middle of a fight? Let’s finish this right here like real men!”
[Ugh! You’re annoyingly persistent. I’ve ripped and smashed you to pieces multiple times, yet you still show no signs of dying?]
The cruel-looking demon had slammed the battered Harley into the remnants of debris. He clicked his tongue as he watched Harley rise like a weeble, wriggling and regenerating.
Certainly, due to the excessive accumulated damage, his regeneration speed had clearly slowed compared to before, but he was equally fatigued from the process of making it that way.
While he was sure he could finish the fight if he continued, considering the fact that the opponent wasn’t just this mutated monster, staying tied down like this wasn’t a good idea.
‘That vampire… That guy is the one who hunted the Duke who strutted around in Europe, huh?’
He instinctively knew.
In this situation, if the barbarian and that vampire teamed up, no matter how actively he used his unique skills, survival couldn’t be guaranteed.
Thus, there was no hesitation in his movements as he took the opportunity to withdraw from the battlefield.
Satisfying his fake madness would be possible any other time.
“Where are you rushing off to? The party host still has plenty left to prepare, you know!”
Of course, the opponent didn’t let that slide.
As if he had been waiting for this moment, a specter in an opera mask appeared, densely swirling fine particles of blood around to block his retreat, openly expressing the intent to eliminate him.
[…Well, can you really stop me?]
However, the Executioner, no longer considering a direct confrontation with them, simply twisted his lips into a grin.
His distinctly evil smile furrowed the brow of Heinz facing him.
“Whatever you do is meaningless. The countermeasures have been thoroughly laid out.”
[Well? I’m not necessarily saying I’m going to do anything.]
Just as the Executioner’s words fell, he continued.
[Here it comes.]
———!
Heinz, Harley, Heinrich, Harris.
The four avatars, along with several other transcendent beings, hastily looked up at the sky.
‘What’s that?!’
Their minds accelerated rapidly.
In the blink of an eye, understanding the situation and establishing the optimal countermeasure occurred.
And immediately thereafter, they put it into action.
Whoosh—!
To finish off the Buncheon Society crew, Heinrich turned and soared high into the sky.
His three pairs of wings fluttered, scattering brilliant radiance that illuminated the surroundings as a massive blade of light erupted from the holy sword in his hand.
And right after that.
Boom——!
With a massive roar, a dazzling flash lit up the pitch-black night sky.
A tremendous shockwave followed, sweeping through the area and creating a storm.
“Whoa! It’s a bombing! We’re being bombed!”
“Aaah— what’s happening all of a sudden? Mom!”
“Close the door! Close it quickly!”
The aftermath echoed in the city as the citizens screamed.
Even though they tried to disperse the shockwave before it reached the ground, it was still severe.
Heinrich grimaced as he felt the arm that had blocked the attack tingle painfully.
If he hadn’t blocked it, the damage would have been unimaginable—much worse than being bombed by a missile.
Perhaps among the high-ranking executives of the Burning Flame, few would have escaped without suffering serious injuries.
‘…Who the hell unleashed this attack…?’
Heinrich recalled the shadow he saw just before deflecting the attack and gauged the attack that had just occurred.
If he wasn’t seeing things, it had definitely been…
‘A steel stake the size of a forearm.’
Of course, it wasn’t a normal stake.
It could be said to be a serious magical equipment with a dangerous aura about it.
Essentially, it could well be considered a mini missile.
But there was no time to think about that in detail.
‘Another one is coming, and this time it’s a barrage…!’
As if the first attack was just to find the range, a torrent of unidentified attacks began to rain down like carpet bombing.
Zzzzzzz—
Heinrich’s senses expanded.
Earlier, he had been too flustered to take a close look, but now he began to spot details he had missed before.
‘Speed calculation, trajectory analysis, tracking the flow of energy… It’s not just a physical attack but traveled through the astral plane as well.’
The sudden onslaught from above was destructive enough to be aptly described as a strategic bombing.
Even Heinrich, whose abilities leaned heavily toward protection as an angel, felt burdened defending against it; one could only imagine how others fared.
Boom—! Rumble! Rumble—!
Using the mobility afforded by his wings, Heinrich danced through the sky, deflecting the falling bombs with his sword, creating explosive noises and flashes in the dark night sky.
And while deflecting several attacks, he could compile various analytical results, giving him a rough idea of where the attack was originating from.
‘…Insane. If this is real, the distance must be at least 5,000 kilometers.’
Over 5,000 kilometers away from Thailand, to the north.
That was where he suspected the sniper responsible for this attack might be.
No, at this point, it couldn’t even be called a sniper.
What kind of sniper could launch attacks from over 5,000 kilometers away that were akin to intercontinental ballistic missiles with each shot?
‘Hoo, let’s not think too rationally. The priority is to stop the bombing first. If something goes wrong here, not only the Burning Flame but also the citizens of this city will face total annihilation.’
Fortunately, the avatar forces dispatched here were not so weak that Heinrich’s absence would cause immediate problems.
But since they couldn’t predict what might happen next, it would be best to wrap things up quickly and regroup before the plan went awry.
‘It might be a bit flashy, but… let’s go for it decisively.’
Soaring high above the city, Heinrich spread his three pairs of wings wide, emitting a holy light.
Like a protective barrier shielding the humans below from the plague falling from the sky.
A massive veil spread wide enough to cover the entire city shimmered like the aurora.
“…Ah. What is that?”
“Is that… an angel? A real angel?!”
“Oh! An angel has descended from heaven! To save us!”
The charm that Heinrich possessed seemed to have elevated beyond bounds, causing some among the crowd to abruptly start praying as they looked up at him.
It was as if their faith had been engraved upon them simply by directly facing the object of their devotion.
Of course, such a trivial matter was inconsequential to Heinrich, who had no time to spare on minor distractions.
“Hey! Are you taking pictures? If you miss that, you might as well be disqualified as a journalist! Zoom in more! The angle’s no good!”
“The angle isn’t the issue, Chief! How could I possibly capture something like that completely on camera?!”
The sight of an angel clad in white armor, with radiant wings and a halo protecting the city from disaster.
That very image was being filmed by a broadcasting station that had happened to visit the area for a documentary.
But that wasn’t the most critical issue.
*
Near Lake Baikal in Russia.
“Phew~ What a fuss in the middle of the night.”
The smell of sweat and dense steam gradually subsided.
In the center, a blonde woman appeared, cracking her neck and swinging her arms around.
Was it due to the abrupt workout, or was she checking herself over?
“I’m definitely going to collect this debt. If it weren’t for the Oracle’s request, I wouldn’t have cared if that annoying Executioner died or not.”
As if she had been urgently summoned from her sleep, the woman wore a tank top and shorts and scruffed her tousled blonde hair at the back.
In her haste to begin power training without proper warm-up, the heat radiating from her scalp became unbearable.
Beads of sweat trickled down her entire body, following the sleek definition of her muscles.
“Alright, let’s start again slowly.”
Unfortunately, the job wasn’t over yet.
No matter how specialized she was in long-distance sniping, this distance was quite a burden, so she only took a short break.
She picked up one of the iron stakes lined up on one side.
It was her unique ‘bullet,’ infused with rare metals and the distinctive composite magic of the Buncheon Society.
“Phew~ Phew.”
With a deep breath, steam began to rise once more from her reddening body.
Her eyes already gazed far beyond this place.
To a point thousands of kilometers away, where generally one couldn’t even dream of seeing or measuring.
Thud!
She stepped forward powerfully.
The energy amplified from her legs surged through to her waist and shoulders and finally into her wrists.
And finally, the moment the power fully concentrated in her fingertips.
With a fierce shout, as she swung her arm, the iron stake vanished from her hand.
Zzzzzzz— Kaboom!
A shockwave surged through the air as if a rocket had been launched, tearing through space.
The resulting air pressure caused the surrounding vegetation to sway violently as if uprooted.
But this was just the beginning.
After completing the throw, she stepped forward again.
In her opposite hand, once again gripped was a stake identical to the one before.
Rumble! Bang— Kaboom—!
Despite having a barrier established to mitigate the shock, the subsequent shockwaves began to wreak havoc on the environment.
If she hadn’t deliberately stepped away to an unfrequented area, the ensuing chaos alone would have resulted in mass slaughter.
Thus, the barrage of stakes continued for over a dozen shots.
“Phew, it’s been a while since I’ve broken a sweat.”
Her bluish eyes turned southward.
The time from launch to impact had been just over ten seconds.
Her sniping, a blend of skills including ‘Marksmanship,’ had mostly reached its targets.
Thinking in terms of distances exceeding 5,000 kilometers, logically, it made no sense, both physically and in terms of the flow of energy, but she was a being unconcerned by such principles.
She had transcended the logic of the world to the point where she could impose her self-defined laws onto reality.
“…Oh, that’s impressive. Hmmm, but if it’s this much, I’ve done my part. If they die after this much help, that’s their fault, right?”
She was only helping because of the Oracle; she certainly didn’t harbor any fondness for the Executioner, who was as destructive as a reckless boy.
In fact, to be more precise, she despised him intensely.
Had the Head of the Buncheon Society not prohibited fighting, she would have wanted to insert her finishing move into the back of his head several times by now.
‘A scoundrel who throws tantrums without a shred of belief, letting loose whenever he likes. I hope he gets a hard lesson from this.’
Stealing a glance southward, she yawned widely and began to move.
Having exercised unexpectedly and broken a sweat, she planned to return to her lodging for a wash and a restful sleep.
Her mind was already devoid of thoughts about what would come next.
*
Tracking the precise origin of the attack ended in failure.
Despite the overwhelming power and speed, the projectiles were too small, and with unique abilities also in play, it was impossible to trace them using various means, including Hesperon’s satellites.
‘But at least I have a general direction and distance figured out.’
Russia.
That location was all but confirmed.
Well, given the vast expanses of land, simply knowing that wouldn’t be of much help.
‘The one there is probably a high-ranking officer just slightly below the Executioner. Specialized in long-distance attacks.’
Otherwise, such power wouldn’t make sense.
Attacking indiscriminately like this from thousands of kilometers away with every shot probably packing the punch of tactical nuclear weapons?
Considering how the energy emitted is not great but concentrated, the destructive power per unit area could be even more significant than that.
‘Of course, I’ve never directly experienced a tactical nuke.’
Regardless, the enemy’s extreme offensive capabilities allowed Heinrich, who specialized in protection, to grasp his abilities more accurately.
The result was clear.
Other than being slightly disoriented from the strong winds, he managed to protect the city without suffering much damage—
“Gack!”
“Damn…”
Before him lay the remnants of six scattered Buncheon Society affiliates, nearly on the verge of death.
The reason there were only six instead of seven was simple.
Tsk, I can’t believe they left all the other minions as expendables and fled.
The most important target, the Executioner, was still at large.
