Masquerade (6)
The crack that suddenly appeared spread throughout the space in an instant.
“···Huh, what is this?”
Immediately afterwards, Malpi, a member of the Blazing Torch staff and the first builder of this isolated area, let out a breath as if he had noticed something.
“Malfi? What’s going on all of a sudden?”
“The spatial blockade has been lifted… No, this isn’t just that…!”
An, who was still holding the unconscious President and asking with a puzzled look, and Malpi, who was not even looking at her, hurriedly checking the surroundings.
But before we had time to do anything, the strange events had already begun.
Tsk tsk tsk—
The crack slowly opened, revealing the outside scenery little by little.
A dark night sky filled with twinkling stars and a small town with a slightly run-down atmosphere.
The place where Malfi, the center of the drinking party, was before he participated in the conference, was a hideout in an area bordering Malaysia in Thailand.
“Oh no, space is collapsing!”
The direction of the blockade that had been holding firm suddenly changed, and the things that had been stirred up inside in order to escape were now bursting out all at once.
Of course, it was no coincidence that the response came only now.
‘The connections with the magical tools used as media are being cut off one by one. This is also···.’
It could only be explained as external intervention.
Just as each door had been fitted with an antique silk as a procedure for entering this place, devices placed here and there to tie together the entire Southeast Asian region were transmitting abnormal signals one after another.
Jeez— Wajangchang—!
The surrounding landscape was crumbling before we could do anything about it, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading.
It was a situation where anyone would have been bewildered by the unexpected turn of events, but that didn’t mean everyone stopped.
[now!]
As if they had been waiting for it, the thoughts of Nagaraja, the head of the Southeast Asia branch, echoed through the minds of the members of the Bancheonhoe gang.
Since the announcement had already been made just before the incident, there was no unnecessary detail in the subsequent actions.
And of course, among them was the Executioner, who was in the middle of a fierce fight with Harley.
“Ugh— No, bro! Where are you going in the middle of a fight? Let’s end it here like a man!”
[Khaha! It’s really tenacious to the point of being disgusting. No matter how many times I tore and broke it, it showed no sign of dying?]
A vicious looking demon who threw the tattered Harley into the mountain of rubble that had just collapsed as the fight continued.
He stuck out his tongue as he watched Harley, who had sprung up again like a rock, writhing and regenerating her body.
Of course, the regeneration speed was noticeably slower than before, perhaps because of the excessive damage accumulated, but the process of making it happen also accumulated fatigue.
I was confident that I could definitely finish him off if I kept fighting like this, but considering that the mutant monster wasn’t the only enemy here, it wasn’t a good idea to keep being held back like that.
‘That vampire… is that the guy who hunted that duke who was snorting in Europe?’
I could tell intuitively.
In the current situation, if this savage and that vampire are added, no matter how actively you use your unique skills, you can’t guarantee your survival.
So, there was not a single bit of hesitation in his movements as he took advantage of the opportunity to retreat from the battlefield.
Because his desire to fight, which is a fake madness, can be satisfied at any other time.
“Where are you going in such a hurry? There’s still a lot left to prepare, and the host of the party is already gone.”
Of course, the other party didn’t just leave it alone.
As if he had been waiting for this moment, a monster wearing an opera mask appeared like a ghost, scattering fine blood particles all over the surrounding area as a countermeasure against time stopping, blocking his escape.
Openly expressing his intention to punish him without fail.
[···Well, can it really be stopped?]
But the executioner, who had no intention of fighting them head-on any longer, simply twisted the corners of his mouth.
Heinz’s expression turned sour as he faced him with the most devilish smile there was.
“No matter what you do, it won’t work. I’ve already thoroughly laid out the countermeasures.”
[Well? It’s not like I’m doing anything in particular.]
And as soon as the executioner finished speaking,
[You’re here.]
————!
Heinz and Harley, Heinrich and Harris.
Several transcendent beings, including the four avatars, hurriedly looked up at the sky.
‘What’s that?!’
The accident accelerated rapidly.
A detailed understanding of the situation and establishment of optimal countermeasures were achieved in an instant.
And then right after that, right away, I put it into action.
Hwaaaaak—!
Heinrich, who was rushing to finish off the Burning Clan’s gang, changed direction and soared high into the sky.
His three pairs of wings flapped and scattered brilliant light, brightening the surroundings, and a large blade of light shot out from the holy sword he held in his hand.
And right after that.
Kwaaaaang——!
There was a huge roar and a dazzling flash of light in the pitch-black night sky.
The massive shockwave that followed swept across the area, causing a storm to rage throughout the area.
“Whoaaah! It’s a bomb! It’s a bomb!”
“Whoa—what, all of a sudden? Mom!”
“Close the door! Close the door now!”
In the aftermath, the screams of citizens echoed throughout the city.
Even though we tried our best to disperse the shockwave so that it wouldn’t reach the ground, it still happened.
Heinrich frowned as he felt his arm sting as he parried the blow that had fallen from the sky.
If this had hit the ground directly without being stopped, the damage would have been incomparable to being hit by a missile.
——————
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Perhaps, among the executives of the Burning Torch, who were the target, except for a few who were close to transcendence, they were not able to properly pick up even a single bone.
‘···Who on earth is carrying out this kind of attack···?’
Heinrich measured the attack just before, recalling the vague image he had seen just before the attack.
If I’m not mistaken, then it’s definitely···.
‘It was a metal stake as long as my forearm.’
Of course, it wasn’t an ordinary stake.
Because it could be said to be a proper magical tool that exuded an aura that was unusual even at first glance.
In fact, you could think of it as a micro-missile.
But there was no time to think about it in detail.
‘Here it comes again. This time, back to back···!’
As if the first attack was merely a starting point, unidentified attacks poured down like a carpet bombing.
Wedge-aeaek—
Heinrich’s senses were heightened.
I was so flustered earlier that I didn’t have time to look closely, but now that I look at it this way, information that I had missed earlier is starting to come into view, one by one.
‘Speed conversion, trajectory analysis, ability flow tracking… It didn’t just cross the material world, it went through the astral world.’
The sudden attack from the sky was so destructive that the word orbital bombardment was more appropriate.
Even Heinrich, who had a great deal of protection as an angel, felt burdened while defending, so how much more so must others have felt.
Kwaaaaang—! Kuuuung! Phuuung—!
As Heinrich flew through the sky using the wings on his back for mobility, he swung his sword and intercepted the pouring bombs, and a series of loud noises and flashes of light erupted from the dark night sky.
And while he was firing off a few attacks like that, he was able to piece together the trajectory of the projectiles and other analysis results to get a rough idea of where the attacks were coming from.
‘···Crazy. If this is true, then the distance must be at least 5,000 kilometers?’
More than 5,000 kilometers north of Thailand.
That was the exact place where the sniper was believed to be attacking right now.
No, at this point, he couldn’t even be called a sniper.
What sniper in the world fires shots from 5,000 kilometers away, each shot sounding like an intercontinental ballistic missile?
‘Whew, let’s not think about it with common sense. First, we need to stop that bombing. If we make a mistake here, not only the burning torches, but also the city’s citizens will be slaughtered.’
Fortunately, the Avatar force dispatched here was not so weak that even if Heinrich were to be missing, there would be a major problem right away.
But since we don’t know what will happen in the future, it would be better to finish up and join as soon as possible before the plan goes awry.
‘It might be a little flashy, but… let’s definitely go for it.’
Heinrich flew over the city, spreading his three pairs of wings and emitting divine energy.
As if protecting humans on earth from the punishment that falls from the sky.
A huge curtain spread wide enough to cover the entire city, shimmering like an aurora.
“···Ah. What the heck is that?”
“Angel…? You’re a real angel, aren’t you?”
“Oh! An angel has descended from heaven! To save us!”
Some of those who looked up at Heinrich’s appearance began to pray out of the blue, as if the charm he possessed had surpassed its limits and turned him into an angel.
As if faith was imprinted upon one by directly encountering the object of faith.
Of course, it was nothing special to Heinrich, who had no time to worry about such trivial matters.
“Hey, hey! Are you filming? If you miss that, you’re disqualified as a reporter! Zoom in a little more! The angle isn’t very good!”
“It’s not the angle, Chief! How am I going to capture something like that in its entirety on screen?”
An angel wearing white armor, with wings of light and a halo, who floats through the sky and protects the city from disaster.
That scene was also captured on camera by a broadcasting station that happened to be visiting the area to film a documentary.
It wasn’t that important of an issue.
***
Near Lake Baikal, Russia.
“Whew~ What the hell is this in the middle of the night.”
The thick vapor that rose along with the smell of sweat slowly settled down.
A blonde woman emerged from the center, her neck bent and her arms flailing.
As if checking here and there to make sure there were no injuries from the sudden exercise.
“I will definitely collect this debt. If it weren’t for the Oracle’s request, I wouldn’t have cared whether that annoying executioner died or not.”
As if she had been called out of her sleep, a woman dressed casually in a tank top and shorts was ruffling her messy blonde hair, tied back roughly.
I was in a hurry so I went straight into the gym without any special warm-up exercises. The heat coming from my scalp made my head itch so much that I couldn’t stand it.
Beads of sweat ran down his body, dripping down his slender muscles.
“Ha, then should we start over again?”
Unfortunately, the work isn’t over yet.
Even though she was specialized in long-range sniping, this distance was quite burdensome, so she took a break for a moment.
She picked up one of the iron stakes lying on one side.
It was her own ‘bullet’ that contained rare metals as well as the unique complex technique of the Buncheonhoe.
“Hoo~ hoo.”
With a deep breath, steam began to rise from her flushed body again.
Those eyes were already looking far away, not here.
A point thousands of kilometers away that is usually impossible to see, let alone estimate the direction.
thud!
One of her feet stepped forward powerfully.
The energy, amplified from the legs, passed through the waist and shoulders and then to the wrists through rotation.
And finally, the moment when that power is fully at your fingertips.
As I swung my arm with a mighty shout, the iron stake in my hand disappeared.
Whaaaaaaaaaa— Kukukung!
Leaving behind only a shock wave, as if a rocket had been launched, tearing through space.
The surrounding bushes swayed back and forth as if they were being uprooted by the encroaching aftershock.
It didn’t end with that one time.
After finishing her throw, she took another step.
In her other hand she was holding the same stake as before.
Kurururung! Kwaaaaah— Kwaaaaang—!
Despite the barriers set up to cushion the impact, the surrounding environment began to turn upside down due to the shock waves that erupted one after another.
If they hadn’t gone out to a place where people didn’t go on purpose, the aftermath alone would have been enough to cause mass slaughter.
The bullets fired in that manner only ended after more than ten shots.
“Whew, it’s been a while since I’ve had a nice sweat.”
Her blue-tinged eyes turned south.
From launch to impact, it takes about ten seconds.
Her sniping, which was a combination of various long-range skills including “Piljung”, had already mostly reached the target.
In fact, considering the distance of over 5,000 kilometers, it was not only physically impossible, but also difficult to explain in terms of physics, but she was a being that was not bound by such laws.
She was someone who not only went beyond the laws of the world, but was also able to impose some of the laws she had defined on the world.
“···Oh, that’s great? Hmm, but I think I did my best. If I help you this much and you die, it’s because I’m incompetent.”
This time too, she had only done it because of the Oracle, and she didn’t like the executioner very much, who was a total rascal.
No, strictly speaking, I hated it very much.
If the leader hadn’t banned the fight, I would have wanted to stab the back of his head with my ultimate attack several times already.
‘He’s a typical bully who fights without any belief or anything, and he’s the weak and the strong. I hope he gets beat up badly by this and comes to his senses.’
She glanced south, yawned deeply, and walked away.
Since I had worked up a sweat from the unexpected exercise, I planned to go back to my lodgings, wash up, and get a good night’s sleep.
There was no more thought left in her mind.
***
Attempts to trace the exact location from which the attack originated were unsuccessful.
Compared to its tremendous power and speed, the projectile was so small, and special abilities were also involved, that it was impossible to track it down even with Hesperon’s satellites and other means.
‘But I figured out the general direction and distance.’
russia.
In fact, the situation was certain.
Well, the land is so vast that just that alone won’t be of much help.
‘Probably the highest ranking officer there, slightly below the executioner. And he’s specialized in long-range attacks.’
Otherwise, this power makes no sense.
They are launching attacks from thousands of kilometers away, each of which is as powerful as a tactical nuclear bomb.
Considering that the emission of the inherent energy is not large and is concentrated, the destructive power applied to a small area may have been greater than that.
‘Of course, I have never actually been directly hit by a tactical nuclear weapon.’
Anyway, thanks to the enemy having such extreme attack power, I was able to better understand the abilities of Heinrich, an angel who specialized in protecting something.
The result is this.
The view of the city, somehow preserved without much damage, except for being dizzy due to strong winds—.
“Cough!”
“shit.”
It was the sight of six remnants of the Bancheonhoe lying in front of him, captured and almost on the verge of death.
The reason it was six and not seven was simple.
‘Tsk, I didn’t think he’d use the rest of his subordinates as pawns and run away.’
Because the executioner, who could be said to be the most important target, had not been caught yet.
