Suddenly, piercing red lights flashed inside the train carriage as an alarm blared.
"Warning, warning. Four unregistered Awakened Ones have entered the carriage. Passengers, please take note: communication with suspected Awakened Ones is strictly prohibited. Please cooperate with the Label Catchers' apprehension operation. If you encounter any suspicious subjects, please report to the platform poli... : : : ce..."
The alarm cut off abruptly, and in an instant, the four girls became the targets of everyone's gaze. There was no need for suspicion; their red Awakened One labels were as conspicuous as they could possibly be.
Seeing the girls look over, the surrounding people gasped and retreated in a circle, their voices buzzing with hushed discussions.
To these androids, Awakened Ones were undoubtedly extremely dangerous entities whose behavior was uncontrollable and unpredictable. News reports often featured incidents of Awakened Ones attacking disciplinary officers and endangering social security.
However, this was the first time they had witnessed Awakened Ones from such a close distance.
"Don't mind these guys," Xu Xiaoyou said, but as she spoke, she realized something was wrong, and her brow furrowed slightly.
"What's wrong, Yuzu?" Akabane Tsubaki asked, and immediately realized the oddity as well.
She had a very strange feeling. Even speaking was exhausting; saying a single complete sentence consumed a significant amount of stamina.
Furthermore, her thoughts felt both empty and heavy, as if she were dragging a lead weight. Inside her mind, words failed to form sentences. No...
It was that she simply couldn't think of the words she wanted to express. In a sense, those words seemed to have been plucked from their memories. This state wasn't one of being intentionally blurred, but rather closer to them never having seen those words in a dictionary at all!
"It's the behavioral restrictions mentioned in the rules," Bai Youyou judged.
Angelina tried to loosen her muscles, running a quick lap around the carriage. The resulting gale sent scrap paper on the floor flying, and by the time she returned, the dancing confetti had just landed back on the ground.
Angelina's expression was equally grim; her body felt much heavier than she had imagined.
"This is a massive nerf for a shadow striker," Akabane Tsubaki pouted.
"Hmph."
Just as the group was testing the limits of the rules, they thought they heard a cool snort, though they weren't sure if it was their imagination.
Turning their heads, they saw a gaze fixed intently upon them. A tall man stood behind the gangway door, hoisting a blood-rusted greataxe. Muscles seemed ready to burst from his tattered denim jacket, and his heavy, raspy breathing could be heard clearly through his hockey mask.
"It's Jason. The Slaughterers have sent out their support," Xu Xiaoyou narrowed her eyes.
【The Label Catchers' behavioral restrictions will be lifted in 10s. Both sides' Awakened Ones, please prepare.】
【10, 9, 8, 7, 6...】
At the same time, in another carriage, a blue-haired girl with melancholy eyes sat primly behind a gangway door. She held 【The Coronation of Poppea】 in her lap, her deep blue starry gown flowing down to her ankles. A silent mask slowly covered the right side of her face as a single drop of pitch-black tear condensed at the corner of her eye. In the darkness, an invisible sense of oppression spread wildly from the hem of her skirt like tentacles.
Her basic attributes were enhanced, and the girl's stats surged all the way to grade 5. This outfit was precisely her divine endowment—the 「Pale Silent Raiment」.
In the carriage ahead of her, the floor was already littered with corpses and awash in blood. Four murderous maniacs stood in a row, excitedly licking their fangs as they waited for the countdown to end.
Tang Xin sang softly, her voice tender, ethereal, and hollow.
Buff effects transcended space and time as halos expanded in ripples beneath the feet of everyone from Light-Chaser Garden.
As the final syllable of the 'two' was broadcast, the countdown ended, and tigers that had long been waiting to tear their prey apart roared out of their cages. The girl stood up elegantly, her tranquil eyes snapping open. Someone clutched their throat as her string sword was already stained with a stunning crimson.
Battle was imminent.
Both sides began their struggle simultaneously.
"Anya, try him first. See just how high this guy's attributes are," Xu Xiaoyou said.
Jason let out a roar as chains wrapped in iron briars pierced through his massive frame and covered the surface of his body. The axe in his hand ballooned in size several times over as a thick aura of blood gushed out.
To express his respect for his prey, Jason unleashed his divine endowment the very moment they clashed—the 「Blood Fiend Slaughter Garment」!
"I know that without you telling me."
Angelina ignored the gasps of the androids in the carriage. She hoisted Abyssal White Flower and lunged forward, stomping the ground. Spikes of jagged rock erupted along the length of the carriage, bursting from beneath Jason's feet and instantly pinning him in place.
Angelina stepped forward, both hands gripping her lance as she swung it out in a horizontal sweep, carving a silver crescent moon into the air!
This silver crescent moon expanded rapidly, causing the space it passed through to hum softly, yet it shattered into countless fragments of light the moment it collided with Jason's body.
"Angelina, what are you doing?" Bai Youyou never dreamed this girl would actually try to attack a divine endowment with a grade 2 Crescent Moon Sweep.
Jason snorted, his eyes full of mockery as he turned his head, as if laughing at the fact that Angelina's attack was nothing more than an itch. Then, he raised his rusted axe high and swung it toward Angelina. An attack that seemed ordinary to others magnified rapidly in the silver-haired girl's eyes, occupying her entire world until there was nowhere to hide.
At that moment, Bai Youyou arrived, thrusting her heavy hammer forward to block the blow head-on. The counter-shock left her entire body numb, and that was even while she was using her parry skill.
Jason's follow-up attacks came in quick succession. Bai Youyou decisively gave up on further defense, grabbing Angelina and tossing her aside.
She took the heavy hit herself, reeling back several steps before hoisting her hammer again to clash head-on with him using her powerful stats.
"This guy's constitution after the buff is at least over 1,000."
Angelina judged as she flew through the air, planting her lance into the floor to stabilize herself before quickly rushing back from the flank to support Bai Youyou.
Akabane Tsubaki, in her shadow state, found the right moment to dive under Jason's arm. She raised her Incineration Cannon to his chest and fired at maximum power!
As a blinding white light swallowed the world, a violent roar shook the air, leaving ears ringing and heads spinning.
The smoke cleared instantly, and before Akabane Tsubaki could react, a pair of large hands tore through the black haze. They lunged out and seized her by the neck, lifting her off the ground and slamming her violently into the railing. The metal railing twisted and snapped like a toy, and blood spilled from the corner of the girl's mouth.
Akabane Tsubaki gasped for breath, coughing as she summoned Alice to block a follow-up punch. She was sent flying back again, crashing into the carriage wall and collapsing next to Xu Xiaoyou.
Looking back at Jason, under the protection of his Blood Fiend Slaughter Garment, his body was mostly unblemished save for a few scorched marks. The girls' previous attacks had left no lasting injury.
Bai Youyou and Angelina decisively abandoned the melee, retreating quickly to stand beside Xu Xiaoyou.
"Well? Did you figure anything out?" the two dusty girls asked together.
Xu Xiaoyou let out a light huff as the 【Fireball Bombardment】 in her hand erupted into a blazing inferno.
"Of course. I've seen through everything."
A serious expression appeared on Jason's face. His boss had told him that Dark Gold Rose's ability to manipulate fire was extremely strong and that he must remain vigilant. Thus, under his incredibly wary gaze, the flames in Xu Xiaoyou's palm suddenly died out, and she turned and ran without any hesitation!
"There's no way we can beat this guy in a frontal fight. Execute Plan B!"
Rate on N.U.
