"The group backing those Scavengers is… let me check."
Roland stroked his chin and flipped through the data. It showed that behind them stood a corporation worth only a few tens of millions of eddies.
Oriel Medical.
Judging by what they were doing now, they were almost certainly just a small-time subordinate of some bigger power.
After telling Tina to investigate further, Roland settled back and switched to Jhin's point of view, ready to enjoy the show like a movie.
Meanwhile, the security team hired by Oriel Medical had completely cleared out all the Scavengers. They then turned their attention toward the factory. Because of the blind spots, they couldn't see what was happening inside.
The security captain called out, "Everyone inside, please come out. Our contract doesn't require killing you. Resisting here is meaningless."
Jackie and the others exchanged a look, nodded—then fired a shot.
The bullet skimmed right past the captain's lower body, sending cold sweat running down his back. Rage surged through him, and he had to take several deep breaths before calming down.
"Come out your ass! Who'd be dumb enough to let themselves get caught by you? I'd rather die than fall into your hands!!"
Even wounded, Jackie was still king of trash talk.
The captain's face turned green, then purple, but he silently repeated to himself not to get angry. Just endure. These people wouldn't be alive much longer.
He also had no choice. The client wanted these street rats captured alive. If he failed… he'd almost definitely be facing reprimands and a cut in pay.
He glanced at two of his team members, and they instantly understood.
They moved to the back of the vehicle and pulled out several grenades—EMP grenades and a recon grenade among them.
The captain lowered his helmet visor, tilted his head to signal the go-ahead, then gave a forward gesture as the rest of the squad closed in using a proper tactical formation.
Just as the operative in the center pressed the EMP grenade trigger to throw it, a brilliant red glow flashed. In the stunned eyes of everyone present, the operative blossomed into a gorgeous crimson flower.
The EMP grenade slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. Before anyone could react, the red flower began slowly turning.
A suffocating sense of danger burst in everyone's chest. They tried to run—
The EMP detonated, unleashing a wave that fried the cyberware of everyone nearby, blinding them instantly.
Some collapsed outright.
A flash of searing fire followed.
Boom!
"Holy crap… guess that's what they call a signature weapon?!"
Roland twitched at Whisper's sheer destructive power.
[Whisper: A super-energy weapon modified by Jhin, a hacker and cybernetics genius. Jhin never denied that its drawback was rate of fire, but "If the audience can't see the performance, what's the point?" Its terrifying penetration and built-in super-detection capability give it frightening beyond-visual-range accuracy.]
Jhin slowly lowered Whisper, splitting it into two pieces. The shotgun-like half clipped onto his back, snapping perfectly into a recessed mount.
"Bullet chambered, trigger on Whisper. Time for us… to take the stage."
With that, he leapt from the top of the building and vanished into the night.
...
Inside the factory, Jackie and the others stared at the huge fireball outside, completely baffled.
Lucy's eyes glowed orange. The netrunner who had attacked her earlier had simply vanished, leaving her uneasy. Nothing was more frightening than the unknown.
That same netrunner now slumped unconscious in his chair, blood trickling from his nose and mouth. Sparks spat from the cyberdeck implanted at the base of his neck.
The security captain, trembling in pain, forced himself upright. The sight awaiting him chilled him to the bone.
Not a single intact body remained. Some had completely disappeared, reduced to misty red blossoms. Those who died from injuries bore grotesque wounds with unsettling patterns spreading across them.
"Who's there?! Show yourself!!"
He roared, scanning wildly. A few lightly injured team members stood as well, though their bodies were covered in burns, and their combat gear was barely functioning.
As the captain shouted, a faint red glow appeared behind him.
Jhin leaned close to his ear.
"Friend, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Swoosh—
In an instant, a silver spike shot from the center of the captain's right fist. Twisting, he drove the spike straight at Jhin's face.
"Oh? Now that's enthusiastic."
Jhin let out a soft laugh, grabbed the attacking fist, pulled it forward, shifted aside, and gave a polite bow toward the remaining guards.
They didn't care. Terror and fury consumed them as they opened fire.
Jhin moved his hand. Bullets struck flesh—not his.
The captain's eyes widened in disbelief, refusing to accept what was happening.
"Thank you for your performance. Now… it's time for your curtain call."
He tapped a finger against the captain's forehead. As the body collapsed, four red streaks flashed.
The remaining guards watched another teammate bloom into a crimson flower. Panic broke their last bit of courage—they screamed, dropped their guns, and ran.
Boom!
Another dazzling flower exploded outward.
Jhin stepped toward the final survivor.
"Thank you for watching."
Bang!
...
Lucy had hacked into a street camera, watching everything unfold.
Jhin turned his head slightly toward the camera. Lucy's perspective snapped back to her own eyes, a faint headache hitting her—along with fear.
This meant his netrunning ability far surpassed what she expected.
"Lucy, how's it looking out there?"
Jackie leaned against a pillar, turning toward her.
"...Everyone outside is dead."
"All dead?!"
Rebecca and Pilar stared at her in shock. Jackie remained silent, but his eyes showed the same disbelief.
"Yeah… Jhin showed up."
"What's he doing here?"
The same question flashed through everyone's mind.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser