OTO Chapter 115

[Collapse of War]

We don’t miss the opportunity.

The surviving members run through the passageway at once and go out to the parking lot.

Thanks to Utsusemi-san and Roll at the lead cut down the enemies, the formation collapses in no time.

The number of enemies slightly exceeds 100. Perhaps 150… no, maybe more?

Having rushed into the parking lot, I immediately leap to the side and hide behind the cars and pillars.

However, long-term defense would be difficult when half of us have died at this point.

Was there no one who could deal with the attack like the one from earlier positioned here?

Since it was a straight passage, they should be able to predict that such an attack would come.

Kemuri-san’s clone stands in the same place as before.

Was there a misplacement…?

“13th person! C’mon, c’mon, are there only small fries here!?”

I peek from the behind the pillar, and see Utsusemi-san jumping about the parking lot and cutting down enemies one after another.

Come to think of it, there was the contest, huh.

However, now that it has come to this, I have no leeway for such a thing.

I lower my posture and look around from behind to see the surviving members.

In the melee, there are Roll and Getsuri-san fighting in order to protect the entrance to the passage.

The other members are in the center, killing the enemies from the SDF one after another.

The number of corpses rolling on the ground is increasing at a fast rate.

Utsusemi-san dispersed the enemies, so it would be easy each person to deal with them.

I couldn’t stay still here, so when I see the opportunity, I jump out of the shadow, approach a soldier from behind, and cut off his neck with a knife.

“First person,” Let’s count it for the time being. Thinking so, I speak out.

Using the ultrasonic waves currently emitted by Utsusemi-san, I also grasp the space.

Currently, the number of enemies is over 80. Utsusemi-san’s success is the main reason why the number has decreased so much in such a short time.

By combining the Sound Control (Dominant) and the Superhuman (Braver), he kills enemies in a more efficient order.

Utsusemi-san marks the enemy and allies with sound, making it easier for me to move.

I modified the sound markings so that I could further differentiate our allies.

Of course, I couldn’t fire the Sound-Shot, so I erase my presence, go around behind the enemies, and then stab their vital with my knife.

The number of enemies was steadily decreasing.

“There sure is nothing but small fry here.”

“Ahh.”

I lean my back on Roll’s back who is near the entrance of the passage. But feeling the gaze of Getsuri-san, I widen our distance a little.

There are no reinforcements of the Self-Defense Forces; with the remaining about 10 members, or rather, I feel that Utsusemi-san alone could annihilate them.

“Shion, how many people have you got?”

“…6 people.”

“What? Do you even have the motivation to do this?” Roll says.

“Well, after all, the terrain is unfavorable for me…”

I think I shouldn’t have been placed here because I’m not suitable for melee.

If only I can use Sound-Shot, I can wipe them out in an instant.

“Then, how many have you got, Roll?”

“Twenty-two.”

“Heee… well done. But.”

“Fifty-seveeen!! C’mere you maggots!!” The screams of Utsusemi, who is leaping about happily, echoed.

“He’s about to get 3 times yours, it seems.”

“He sure is ridiculous… Then, I’ll leave this place to you,” Saying that, Roll breaks into a run. *Pyokon* and cat ears spring up on top of her head.

I look at Getsuri-san who is standing next to me.

“What!”

I’m already used to his usual oppressive attitude, so I don’t hold animosity for this person.

And there was that time when he saved me once.

“No, just that the number of enemies has decreased, hasn’t it?”

The members who are rampaging in the parking lot have driven the Self-Defense Forces to a corner. And many corpses are rolling near the entrance to the passage; I believe that Getsuri-san and Roll were the ones who killed them.

There are no more soldiers who could come this far, and the remaining enemies are being chased by Utsusemi-san.

“Seems so,” A brusque reply returned.

There is no reinforcement of the enemy, only light shining through the entrance of the underground parking lot that was blown up and expanded.

“Withdrawal! Withdrawal!” It was probably the enemy commander who shouted. I am surprised that he’s still alive.

Perhaps he wasn’t actively giving out commands, so he hadn’t been targeted.

“No way I’d let you gooo!!”

The twenty or so remaining enemies start withdrawing to the opened doorway. They immediately gather together, turn this way and restrain us while heading to the doorway to the outside

Utsusemi-san approach them in an attempt to kill every single one of them.

Seeing it as an opportunity, I start running.

After running through a distance of about 50m in a moment, I shout,

“Please back away!”

The members, led by Utsusemi-san, who are trying to chase after the enemy, turn this way and open the path.

Then I shoot a Sound-Shot.

Clean sweep. The twenty or so enemy soldiers are blown away, each made blood flowers bloom on the walls or floor.

I immediately head to a person who is still breathing, and stab him to death.

After that, I sigh.

When I feel a gaze and turn around, Roll is looking at me with a dispassionate face.

“Wasn’t that cheating?”

“No, it was not.”

I point my finger at the corpses I made and count; there are 15 corpses.

Well, it’s just this many probably because several people were killed when I was running this way.

“I got a total of 21. How about you, Roll?”

“…28 people. It’s unfair.”

“Then, it’s my win.”

I grin and head toward the passage, and Utsusemi-san hit my shoulder.

“I got 63 people, y’know. It’s exactly three times the difference.”

Utsusemi-san throw his arms wide open, showing off his haori, which was muddled with blood.

“I didn’t accept the contest against Utsusemi-san to begin with.”

Dammit, I should have done my best and killed one more person.

“Haha! That doesn’t matter!”

What doesn’t matter? I don’t want to be involved with you.

While thinking about that, we return to the underground passage and check the surviving members.

“9 people, huh. Even though we were able to annihilate them, we lost quite a lot of people,” Getsuri-san says with a sad face.

“If I wasn’t there, everyone would have been annihilated,” Hikisaki-san says. I thought that’s exactly the case.

At that point in time, half had died, and about two more died in the melee.

The members I’m particularly close to did not die, but there are many familiar faces for people who have belonged to the organization for a long time, such as Roll, Getsuri-san, and Hikisaki-san; they don’t hide their sadness.

Only Utsusemi-san is wandering aimlessly while looking murderous, and saying “Are the next enemies not coming soon?”

When I look at the parking lot again, a miserable scenery spread out there.

The corpses of the enemies are in a quite grotesque state, there is one whose head stuck in the windshield of a car, one with its neck twisted, one with only half of it’s face left, and one with its limbs cut off.

I wish they would have killed them in a little tidier way, but it is also unavoidable due to each ability.

“Kemuri-san, what should we do?” When I ask for instruction from Kemuri-san, he tell us to wait saying, “Wait as is”.

“Is anyone hurt?” I ask the members. Everyone shakes their heads.

At first glance, there are many people who are slightly injured, but it seems it wouldn’t affect their battle power.

“How’s the situation over there?” Hikisaki-san sitting on a corpse asks me.

“It seems that most of the enemies have been annihilated and the invasion of the enemy has stopped.”

“Hee~. Same as here, huh.”

The enemies are regrouping, I think.

“Have our reinforcements arrived yet?”

“Kemuri-san?” I can’t answer Roll’s question, so I pass it to Kemuri-san.

“They should take a little while longer.”

I louden Kemuri-san’s voice from the end of the passage and convey it.

They’re not here yet, huh. It’s been a little over an hour since the request for support was sent, so they should have been ready for the pincer attack though.

“I wonder what Boss and Shido-san are doing,” Roll says, that is probably the biggest question everyone has.

Originally there should be an executive meeting today, so it was strange that those two weren’t here.

I wonder if the enemy aimed for the absence of those two people.

However, there’s no way that those two would make a blunder such as letting the information of their absence be known by the Self-Defense Forces. No, to begin with, why was this hideout found…?

Dammit, I don’t know.

Since it is Boss we’re talking about, there is a possibility that he have arranged various measures behind the scenes.

The worst-case scenario is that they are being forced to stay somewhere by the Self-Defense Forces… I hope they come back soon.

“Hm……?”

While I’m thinking about various things, Utsusemi-san mutters and turns around.

My reaction is late by a second compared to Utsusemi-san. He has inhuman reflex due to Superhuman, so it can’t be helped.

Anyway, I also notice the sound.

*Step, step* I hear the sound of military boots coming down the distorted stairs of the blasted doorway.

Footsteps of seven people. They are new enemies no matter how you think about it.

“Their number sure is small. I hope they got some bones.”

“Well, with this number, they are definitely elites…”

“Since there are seven of them, it might be good to propose one-on-one fight to death to decide the winner.”

I take my eyes off Utsusemi-san, who is saying something incomprehensible.

Then, I see the seven men who had just come down to the underground parking lot.

I can see a three-star badge shining on each of their chest.

“It’s a joke, right? …seven lieutenant generals…?”

“OHHH!” Utsusemi scream in joy next to me, who lightly despaired.

Is the one coming not only the Anonymous Countermeasures Department?

Even as a reinforcement, to gather so many lieutenant generals in one place, is the enemy’s military strength that massive…?

“You guys have done well coming here… Let’s play a game, Self-Defense Forces,” The loudened voice of Utsusemi-san echoes.

Utsusemi-san said such a villain-like, or rather a scoundrel’s line, as if he doesn’t care about the enemy’s military force.

If they are lieutenant generals belonging to the center of Saint Celia, only in terms of combat power, they might be at general class.

Of course, I don’t think they’re undefeatable enemies. However, we you fight, there is no doubt that this small force we have here will be further reduced. There’s also a good chance of defeat.

It might be better to withdraw and block the entrance here.

However, although Kemuri-san should be informed of the situation, he hasn’t instructed us to withdraw.

It means he want us to fight.

In that case, Utsusemi-san’s one-on-one battle proposal might be a rather good idea…

Aside from whether the other party will accept it.

“Your evil deeds end here. Anonymous,” A lieutenant general standing right in the middle of the seven says.

It seems that they have no intention of amuse themselves with the game that Utsusemi-san said.

“Haah?” Utsusemi-san, the temporary leader of this group, stare at the lieutenant general. He puts his katana on his shoulder and slowly moves forward without hesitation.

Utsusemi-san also seems to have realized that the enemy is not going to play the game, and he is already ready for battle.

“Are you sure?” Utsusemi-san slowly lower the tip of his sword to the side and stop after 10 steps.

“Of course.”

*gun* I feel my vision shook for a moment.

It wasn’t just a feeling, it was some kind of interference, which meant the activation of the enemy’s ability.

And when I notice it, an enemy is standing behind me, and when I look back, he is swinging up an imposing thorned iron block toward Roll. Everyone is taken aback.

Contrary to my body that does not move, my head spins well.

He could get pass Utsusemi-san. Was it an ability of the coginitive interference system? How about the other six people…? It’s better to withdraw. Roll is in trouble…!

Although I’m able to react, my body doesn’t move. It seems that Roll is the same, as she is just standing still and looking at the iron block.

Immediately after that, a dull sound is heard.

“Wha…!”

The one who raised a surprised voice is the lieutenant general.

And the one who received that iron block with his body is Getsuri-san.

Immediately my body become able to move, and in reaction, I jump away from the spot.

“Hah, hah… you bastard… what the fuck were you going to do to my angel…”

Blood is dripping from Getsuri-san, who blocked the iron ingot with his left hand and the back of his neck.

His right hand is firmly clutching the lieutenant general’s arm.

“Getsuri…!”

“Move, you guysss!!” Utsusemi-san’s voice echoes over Roll’s voice.

The tension runs in an instant, and each side starts to move. I grasp the position of the six lieutenant generals of the Self-Defense Forces who have spread.

I approached the lieutenant general who is firmly caught by Getsuri-san from behind and stab my knife in the back of his neck.

At that moment, there is an enemy who aimed my back, but Roll repel him, protecting my back.

Two sounds that had been marked on allies had already disappeared. Since the mark work by sensing the changing frequency of one’s heartbeat, the disappearance of the mark means their heartbeat stops. In other words, two people died in an instant.

“Shion! Take care of Getsuri!”

“I know!”

Due to the death of the lieutenant general with an iron block, Getsuri-san collapse to the ground along with his body.

I immediately remove the iron block and check on Getsuri-san’s injuries.

“Tsk… you, huh… If possible, I want my angel to take care of me though…”

“We don’t have time for that! I’ll carry you to the rearguard, so please stand up…!”

“…I can’t. This can’t be cured even by Chiyaku-san…”

Looking at it, the back of Getsuri-san’s head is severely injured. I lose words.

Then, I notice the approach of the enemy and jump out of that place.

Running as is, I immediately hide in the back of a pillar. The enemy approaching me changes his target and heads towards Utsusemi-san.

Looking at the battle situation, the number of surviving 9 people has decreased to 5.

If excluding Getsuri-san, there are 4 people.

Roll, Hikisaki-san, Utsusemi-san and I.

It seems that one of the enemy lieutenant generals was killed by Utsusemi-san, so there are five left.

The underground parking lot has become stormy battlefield.

“We should we withdraw…” When I mutter, I hear Kemuri-san’s voice from the other side of the passage.

“Withdraw,” Hearing that, I immediately raise my voice.

“…! Withdraw! Withdraw!”

“Hah! We’ll withdraw only after killing these guys!”A disobedient reply come back from Utsusemi-san immediately.

At that time, I sense more footsteps from the other side of the doorway. Enemy reinforcements.

Crap. If we don’t withdraw now, we’ll be annihilated.

No, that’s wrong… Even if we withdraw now, we will still be wiped out…

I look at the battlefront from the shadow.

The hands of Roll, Hikisaki, and Utsusemi are full and they couldn’t afford to withdraw. If they show their back, they will die. That’s the situation.

Utsusemi-san is dealing with the enemies while supporting the two.

Utsusemi is thinking about it properly.

If we don’t defeat them, we can’t withdraw.

——Silent World.

I quickly decide.

The sound in the place disappears.

The surviving enemies are, five people…

Can I do it…? No, if I don’t do it, I’ll die…!

Stretching out my palm as if to grasp the empty space, I concentrate.

I aim for each of their hearbeat.

The inside of my head is hot as if it is boiling.

But endure it. Endure and survive.

“The first one…”

With the image of crushing a heart, I squeeze my fist.

*Ba-dump, ba-dump* Such sounds echoes from my chest; and they jumps around for no apparent reason. It’s no use running away.

This technique cannot be avoided unless your speed exceeds the sound.

Die…!

*Burst* The lieutenant general that Roll was dealing with bursts open.

“The second person! The third person…!”

*Burst, burst* The two who are highly mobile burst and scatter.

Due to overusing my ability, blood is dripping from my nose.

“Hah… hah…”

After a few seconds, I target the fourth person. My blurred vision is irrelevant.

I only have to listen to the sound.

“The fourth person!!”

*Burst* Blood fireworks.

The blood and flesh stick to the nearby Roll and Hikisaki-san.

“Hah… hah…”

I chase the fifth person with my eyes that were congested with blood.

In practice, I had never shoot more than 3 Heartbeat-Shots though, will my body hold for the next one?

“It doesn’t matter…! Die!”

The Heartbeat-Shot misfired. It’s because Utsusemi-san cut the enemy’s body in half before I fire the Heartbeat-Shot.

At that moment, I feel like I’m about to collapse, but I shout,

“Withdraw!!”

The enemies are annihilated. But more reinforcements are invading the underground parking lot.

I manage to carry the collapsed Getsuri-san and proceed through the underground passage.

Utsusemi-san and Hikisaki-san go ahead, and I have Roll, who caught up, carry Getsuri-san and run after them.

A new Self-Defense Forces reinforcement have just entered the underground passage.

At that time, the pillars of the underground parking lot explode one after another.

The blast and dust cloud invaded the underground passage, and we are pushed and blown into the hideout at the end of the underground passage.

Then, I collapse on the spot.

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Dang, Shion being a badass. He must be really desperate to escape since he even pushed himself and risked his life.

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