Vento walked along a rainy street.
(Shit…)
Her movements were slow. She held a hand to her mouth and thick blood leaked through the gaps in her fingers. Her back would occasionally jerk just before she coughed a red clump to the ground.
(What is this? Is this some sort of attack? Damn you. I was so close to killing my target.)
An artificial light illuminated her.
That light was moving.
A large screen was installed on one wall of a department store. It was displaying the news. The announcer's frantic voice reached Vento's ears.
It seemed to be a public broadcast.
"Um, currently reports of people suddenly losing consciousness are coming in from all over the country. The police are hurrying to identify the cause, but…"
"Gah…"
The pain and chill deep in her body prevented her from focusing on that news.
Even so, she moved her bloody lips to speak.
"So it's spread there too. Designating a target for my attack is not easy. But I only needed… to suppress Academy City…"
"Reports of the same symptoms are coming in from some areas overseas as well. This has begun to have an effect on the schedules of airports, railroads, and ships."
"Sigh…" Vento let out a deep breath before saying, "I hope there are no victims in the Vatican."
Her tone made it clear she did not care all that much.
The chaos on the news continued, but the show had its own schedule to follow. A different reporter came on and read from the next script.
"Now for economic news. The Fall Sweets Fair has begun at Parallel Sweets Park where different sweets are gathered from around the world. When the park opens…"
"…"
Vento's eyes rolled over to look at the large screen.
"In the week after the fair opens, over 200 thousand guests are expected to visit the park. Small- and mid-sized businesses plan to help with the production of the goods, so this will affect the economy of the entire area and-…"
With a great roar, sparks flew and the screen was destroyed.
Vento brought her hammer back up onto her shoulder.
She began walking down the rainy street once more.