"Is this the place?" The silver-haired hunter stood in
the wilderness, looking up at the colossal mobile city before her. "The
smell of the sea."
"Is this what attracted me? Why does the smell of the sea
almost cover the entire city?" Skadi gazed
at the brightly lit city before her.
Skadi's brows furrowed. Although the
smell of the ocean was so faint it was almost imperceptible, ever since hunting
the Sea God,
Skadi had become extremely
sensitive to this scent of the sea. It was precisely because of this that Skadi had
successively found several Deepsea Churches that had infiltrated the mainland.
"Is there a Deepsea Church Bishop
here?" Skadi felt the surrounding
ocean aura, and she felt her body somewhat eager, with a sense of urgency to
return.
"It's the smell of the sea, but why does it feel a bit
strange?" Skadi found her body's
reaction somewhat odd.
It wasn't as if she hadn't felt the ocean's aura before when
chasing the Deepsea Church on land, but
this time, her body's reaction was truly strange to her.
Speaking of the Deepsea Church, Skadi hadn't
encountered them for a long time. Skadi originally
thought that the Deepsea Church members who had
infiltrated the land had been hunted down by her, but now it seemed that was
probably not the case.
"Even if it's not a Bishop, there must be many Deepsea
Church members here."
Skadi tightened
the greatsword strapped to her back and walked towards the city ahead.
It seemed she had some long-overdue work to do today?
——Lungmen Ring Road——
A car drove on the highway. Through the car window, a young
Fangs-race man wearing a Fengchi Logistics messenger
uniform could be seen resting with his eyes closed in the back seat.
The butler in the front saw the young man resting in the
rearview mirror and spoke: "Young Master, are you asleep?"
At the butler's call, the young man rubbed his eyes and sat up:
"Ugh, sorry... Where are we?"
"We're almost at the agreed meeting point. Please perk up,
Young Master. Everyone from Penguin Logistics is already
waiting."
Bison rubbed his face: "Mhm, I
know."
The butler looked at Bison through
the rearview mirror: "You look very tired."
Bison shook his head, "Not at
all. I was just looking at the new Penguin Logistics member's
information all last night."
"Please forgive my bluntness, but Master's decision this
time was rather hasty. If Young Master has any difficulties, please do speak
up."
"...Father must have his own thoughts."
Bison clenched his fist: "And, as
long as I can achieve something at Penguin Logistics,
those people around Father might not obstruct me anymore."
"Young Master is the youngest messenger in the family's
history. Your work ability is impeccable, and that is enough." The butler,
seeing Bison's movements, quickly said.
Bison shook his head: "Perhaps,
but those adults may not think so."
Bison looked
out the car window at the city below the highway: "Now, most of Lungmen's
private messenger business has fallen into my father's hands."
"Penguin Logistics, they are the
last, and the most independent, the company with the most strange rumors." Bison paused,
"Although my father and Mr. Emperor seem to have a good relationship, we
must understand them, at least I have to."
"That's why I'm worried about you, Young Master. Penguin
Logistics is too special, I know that very well."
Bison smiled: "You don't always
have to make that face. I can handle it myself."
The butler looked at Bison's smiling
face in the rearview mirror and smiled back: "You too, Young Master. Smile
more like your peers. Tonight is Annihilation Night, you could
have gone out with your friends."
"...Are you making fun of me for having no friends?"
"How dare I, how dare I, hahaha." The butler's
laughter suddenly stopped, and he said with a serious face, "Sorry, Young
Master, is your shield still at hand?"
Bison casually picked up the round
shield at his feet: "What's wrong?"
"We're being watched."
Just as the butler was about to accelerate, there was a loud
bang, and an explosion suddenly erupted beside the vehicle.
"Ugh—an explosion!?"
"Young Master, hold on!!!" The butler spun the
steering wheel, trying to stabilize the vehicle, but the series of explosions
caused the car to directly flip onto its side and slide along the ground.
Bison heard the sound of the road
ahead collapsing: "They actually blew up the highway...? Who could it
be...?"
Just then, someone pulled Bison out of
the overturned vehicle. He tried to get a clear look at the person, but the
smoke was too thick, and the person seemed to be carrying a flashlight, making
it impossible for Bison to see clearly.
"Ugh!"
Bison only heard an unfamiliar muffled
groan by his ear, and a voice with an electronic filter coming from a radio.
"Hello? Hello! Is anyone else there? Can you hear me?
Seriously, they got taken out that easily?"
A cold snort came from the radio: "Tch, I don't like such a
cliché movie plot."
"Penguin Logistics."
"Yo, looks like you're well aware~" Exusiai walked
out of the fog, looking at the radio fallen on the ground.
"Speaking of clichés, to me, setting up road barriers and
burying bombs in the middle of a suburban highway, that method is quite retro,
wouldn't you say?"
"Demolition is just a personal hobby. Look around you,
things aren't that simple."
Exusiai smiled
as she watched the suited thugs gradually gathering around, and a bespectacled
person with a crossbow a little further away.
Capone, whose road was blown up,
frowned deeply: "Damn it, that idiot actually used so much Originium
explosive. If Rat King finds out, we'll be
in deep trouble."
Gangster extra: "Found Penguin Logistics'
messenger, it's Exusiai. She took out everyone in
the demolition team..."
Capone said impatiently:
"I'm not blind, it doesn't matter. Where's that wolf named Texas?"
"No, I haven't seen her."
Capone snorted coldly:
"Hmph. Then never mind, surround them, finish this quickly."
Exusiai scratched
her head and raised the gun in her hand: "As expected, there's still an
ambush. You've done a thorough job."
Exusiai nudged Bison, who had
slumped to the ground, with her foot: "Hey, can you still move? Your limbs
are all wobbly."
Bison propped himself up, holding the
shield in front of him: "...Barely. You are... Miss Exusiai?"
"Yep! And you're called, uh, what was it again?"
"Bison." Bison vigilantly
watched the surrounding gangsters gradually closing in: "We... I think we
need to get out of here first."
Exusiai looked
at Bison's face and smiled: "Don't be so
tense. That old butler is safe and sound."
'And he ran unusually fast.'
"Really!?"
Exusiai nodded:
"I did manage to get him to the side of the road, but he didn't really
seem to need much help... But never mind!"
"But more importantly, next up..." Exusiai raised
her gun, looking at the surrounding gangsters, "It's party time!"
The gun in Exusiai's hand fired rapidly under
her operation, and Bison, in pain, also completely hid his
upper body and head behind his shield, charging forward.
The gangster holding a crossbow was headshotted first, falling
to the ground with a rapidly swelling bump on his head.
"What a shame, Lungmen doesn't
allow live ammunition." Exusiai continuously
knocked down the surrounding gangsters with triple shots, but because the
bullets used were rubber bullets, unless it was a headshot, it was impossible
to cause any actual reduction in personnel.
Bison knocked down a gangster, then
turned and used his shield to knock down another gangster who was getting
close: "Is this the time to care about such things? They already used
bombs first!"
"Exusiai of Penguin
Logistics, and this young master, surrender and come with
us."
"Quite a few new faces, are they all your relatives from Syracuse?
Have you reminded them of the precautions for doing business in Lungmen?"
Capone snorted coldly:
"That's none of your business. This time, we will completely crush
you."
Exusiai pondered
for a moment before saying: "Hmm... After all these years in Lungmen,
your method of seizing territory is certainly the most simple and crude."
Then, Exusiai showed a slightly
mischievous smile: "It seems the Sicilian mafia
aren't just good for getting beaten up in bars~~"
Upon hearing Exusiai's words, Capone's
face immediately darkened: "Argh, you bastard! You'll regret
underestimating Sicilians, *Lungmen expletive*,
attack!"
To vent his anger at being mocked, he also raised the crossbow
in his hand and fired several arrows in quick succession.
Looking at the incoming arrows, Exusiai didn't
panic, because she had already heard the footsteps of her teammate.
"Oh dear, did I just barely make it?" Two arrows
clanged against a shield, then fell weakly to the ground. The shield moved
away, and Croissant looked at the arrows
on the ground: "The power isn't even half of Reinette's water
arrows."
"Perfect timing, Croissant!"
Croissant slowly
retreated, holding her shield: "But they don't seem to be stopping, what
do we do next?"
Exusiai smiled
slightly, reloading her gun: "The usual, you lead the way, I'll cover the
rear, and the bonus is split in half~"
Croissant smiled
faintly, raising her shield in front of her. She stomped her foot forcefully,
and the asphalt ground cracked from the immense power: "Then I'll... make
myself at home!"
Croissant held her
shield in front of her and charged straight ahead, completely disregarding
everything. The surrounding gangsters were also intimidated by her aura and
backed away.
"Th-that crazy strong person just crashed through a
path!?"
Capone looked at the hole that
had been broken open, scratched his head, and said: "...You guys chase
first, don't get too close, wait for the leader's support."
"Yes, yes!"
Capone sighed, then took out his
radio: "They got away."
"You let them get away? Useless."
Capone sneered: "Tch,
kidnapping was never my strong suit. Other Penguin Logistics members
haven't appeared. Before deployment is complete, rashly entering Lungmen city
is disadvantageous for us."
"Make whatever excuses you want. A car is heading your way.
It's a convertible, and the occupants are old acquaintances, practically burnt
to a crisp."
Capone heard the voice on the
other end of the radio and said with some surprise: "...That fast?"
— — — — On the other side — — — —
Croissant pulled Exusiai and Bison through
the dilapidated urban area.
Exusiai: "Ah,
damn it, how many dead ends is this now?"
Croissant, however,
looked unconcerned: "Anyway, the surrounding area is full of unfinished
buildings that haven't been touched in hundreds of years, so why not just make
a hole in the wall?"
Bison took a few breaths: "Wait,
wait, you two! Where exactly are we going?"
The gangsters also caught up at this moment: "They're here!
They actually ran into a dead end to wait for death, surround them!"
Bison took a deep breath, then raised
his shield. He regretted not bringing any other weapons.
"We're not out of options, are we!?"
Exusiai looked
at the gangsters in front of her, then suddenly slapped her thigh: "That's
right!"
"What's the plan!?" Bison took a
breath. Is this really Penguin Logistics? How could they
just run around aimlessly? They must have set some kind of trap nearby, right?
Exusiai smiled
and extended her hand to Bison: "We
haven't officially greeted each other yet, have we?"
"Kill them all!"
"Now is not the time for this! Is this really
important!?"
If it weren't for the current situation, and the only thing in
his hand was his weapon, Bison would
really want to throw something right now.
At this moment, a steady male voice echoed in the alley:
"No, it's very important, extremely important, incredibly important."
"We place great emphasis on building corporate culture, and
today's cultural keyword happens to be 'sense of ritual'."
Bison looked up and saw a black and
white penguin standing there majestically.
"Although it was just decided."
Reinette emerged from a blind spot:
"That's very casual, Mr. Emperor."
"It, it's Emperor! Quickly notify the leader!"
One of the gangsters was about to pull out his radio when he
noticed another person slowly emerging from the other side of the alley:
"Wait, there's another one behind!"
Texas appeared on the other
side, at the end of the alley, chewing on a Pocky stick: "The bait's gone, Exusiai."
Exusiai looked
unconcerned at Texas's words: "The guys from Syracuse aren't
all idiots, there'll be another chance next time, don't mind it, don't mind
it."
Exusiai walked
next to Bison, creating a backdrop for him with her
light wings: "More importantly, let me introduce you. This is our
temporary member of Penguin Logistics, Bison."
"That guy is blocking the retreat, we just, we just have to
fight!" The gangsters looked at Texas,
who was blocking the exit, and raised their weapons.
Texas casually swung the hilt
of her knife, knocking out a gangster: "Lie down, it's not your turn to
die."
The gangsters slowly retreated: "Tch! Don't panic, as long
as we stall until the leader's support—!"
Suddenly, all the Lupo gangsters
present felt a chill run down their spines, and their bodies became immobile as
if they had fallen into an ice cave.
"Stall?" Emperor's voice was full of mockery,
"Lights on, ah ha!"
With a few soft gurgling sounds of water, the entire alley was
instantly filled with a bright, luminous blue light.
"So, so bright! Where did that spotlight come from!?"
"Welcome to Penguin Logistics,
little kittens and puppies." Emperor stood on top of a pile of old boxes,
looking down at the gangsters below, "You have appeared within my sight,
and within my sight is the territory of the Penguin Empire."
"Excuse me, do you have your transit visas with you?"
Before the surrounding gangsters could respond, or rather,
Emperor never intended for them to respond from the very beginning.
"No? Then you'd better get ready to roll back home and
cry."