As Summeri burst out of the water, she immediately activated her kotodama to hide herself in a corner. Luckily the scene was already chaos — Shirou was hacking down several "Melusine-version" dead servants, while the other two were shedding their gear. No one was paying attention to the shadows.
Out of the corner of her eye, Summeri noticed the surrounding walls were painted the same oceanic blue — clearly camouflaged. This hidden facility was built entirely underwater, using reduced lighting and special coatings to make it hard to spot from a distance.
Meanwhile, silvery-blue shimmering swarms of Kishiryū Dokue (Ghost Fang Dragon Vipers) spread through the water, their tails thrashing in excitement at the scent of warm prey.
Summeri knew them well. Human records of hybrid dragon vipers dated back to Sumerian times, when their steel-devouring bite and biological enrichment properties were used for primitive iron smelting — a kind of biological metallurgy.
But even earlier, dragon civilization used them as execution tools for disgraced nobles. Such criminals would be tied to bronze pillars and sunk into the deep sea to be devoured alive.
Their terrifying nature came from their translucent, needle-sharp fangs and the highly acidic secretions in their bodies, which could gnaw through even modern alloys.
Still… Summeri found it odd that humans dared breed these cruel, voracious creatures. Or… could this hellish little place actually have ties to her brother Odin's organization? The deliberate seawater environment did feel a little off, though.
Regardless, it was clear Shirou and his team were in big trouble — there were just too many of these vipers, and normal kotodama wouldn't cut it. Did Shirou plan to rely on Duanlongtai? Better not accidentally collapse the whole structure.
"Eh, whatever, if it comes to it, I'll step in," she thought lazily, still confident she had the situation under control.
After all, unlike hybrids who needed to bloody themselves in battle, all she had to do was let out her Ryūō Shoku no Haki (Dragon King's Dominance), and these little shrimp soldiers would grovel at her feet.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, beyond the ice surface Shirou had created, blazing azure flames erupted, roaring across the water. Shirou swung Duanlongtai again, this time releasing not cutting wind nor icy peaks — but a brilliant, terrifying blaze!
Though "Kuyin" was a composite elemental, he could choose to use just part of it — the difference between a Hōzenkai (full release) and Bubun Kaihō (partial release). With his current understanding of Duanlongtai, this was well within his grasp.
The burning light seared the water, boiling and vaporizing it violently, and dozens of vipers died screaming in agony.
Summeri smirked wryly in her corner. "Fine, fine, keep muscling through it yourselves. See how you fare when the real boss shows up. Then you'll need me, the King of Earth and Stone, to save you."
———
At almost the same moment Shirou and the others broke into the lower levels of the hidden facility — just a bit earlier, at the central laboratory above, a sharp, soul-rattling shriek was splitting the air.
It tore through the alloy walls, conjuring phantom visions in the minds of the researchers — like a siren luring sailors to their doom.
"Specimen 'Melusine Zero' is rampaging! Requesting more tranquilizer!"
"We've already used ten times the usual dose! Damn it, even a mammoth would be down by now!"
In the control center, technicians scrambled at their consoles, sweating bullets. None of them dared enter the sealed lab directly — that would just be suicide.
On the giant monitor, they could see the scene inside — chains of black metal wrapped tightly around a silver-haired "girl."
Calling her a girl might have been inaccurate now — black scales and jagged bone spikes spread across her limbs, snapping more chains by the second. Her once delicate back had sprouted black, curved wings that roared like a storm when they opened.
Her once soft face was now twisted, her dull eyes burning with golden fury and hatred.
"More tranquilizer! Where's the team leader? Didn't the medical society promise a new batch by now?!"
"Bet he's skimming from the budget again," someone muttered.
The researchers didn't really care about her as a person — she was just a refined dead servant turned semi-sentient through alchemy. Unfortunately she still needed constant suppressant injections to keep her sane.
According to their patron, the mysterious "medical society," she supposedly housed the very soul of the fairy Melusine. Most of the scientists scoffed — these fairies were probably just another dragon subspecies.
Still, the society's suppressants — the "Frigg" series — worked wonders. Just a tiny dose would make her docile for hours. But for some reason no new supply had arrived lately, and suspicion was mounting.
Meanwhile, the team leader was already rushing downstairs after a report from the surveillance room: three intruders had somehow bypassed the external cameras and destroyed the underwater defense line.
On the monitor, the red-haired youth's broken sword sliced through the Melusine clones with invisible wind blades, cutting them clean in half. A massive iceberg carried the trio upward through the water.
"Damn… tough customers…" the leader muttered, cold sweat on his brow. That sword looked like some ancient noble's divine heirloom — way out of their league. Why were they, a no-name little research team, fighting this?
"This isn't our fault," he suddenly realized. "It's the medical society's! They're the ones acting shady and attracting trouble. We're just collateral damage!"
This revelation made him feel strangely light, like slipping on fresh underwear on New Year's morning. Then anger surged — why should they suffer for the society's games?
He almost picked up the phone to curse them out — but stopped himself. Losing their funding would be worse. Better keep it professional and just whine a little.
"You lot stall them as long as you can!" he barked to his subordinates, already heading for a quiet corner to call his contact.
His men glared after him, muttering: "And just how, exactly, are we supposed to stall them?!"
(End of Chapter)
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