ch95

Even though the battles I’d fought only involved a handful of people, I had experience fighting the dregs who only caused harm in the wasteland.

It’s not like I’m trying to brag about how many guys I took down like a mercenary or how the feeling was; I just wanted to emphasize that I had some useful experience. …But unfortunately, the conclusion I came to after compiling the data I obtained from taking down each one was disappointing.

“…Don’t overestimate them, but don’t underestimate them either. Think of those outside gang members as surprise boxes with who-knows-what inside.”

It’s like the graph only had wildly deviating points all over the place.

On average, their equipment was terrible, but there was no consistency at all, so a grenade could suddenly pop out of nowhere.

Some guys would get distracted by irrelevant things during a mission, while others were sharp killers who would exploit any opening.

It’s not like there are qualification requirements to become a bandit, so it’s a natural phenomenon in a way, but the fact that it’s annoying to deal with doesn’t change.

Confirmed. –

Anyway, information is information.

With a confident response, Zero entered the hallway first.

Bang!!

The metallic sound of something hitting the floor and the fierce sound of joints moving take over my hearing.

Aside from the commotion heard through the wall, this place was quiet.

As the crew member said, they haven’t reached this front section yet… or they haven’t come because their goal is the cargo hold.

“…What to do, I suddenly have business over there.”

I muttered to myself, telling my body to prepare for a gunfight I hadn’t experienced in a while.

Following Zero, who was clearing the rooms without hesitation, we passed the medical room and the bar and arrived at the familiar security door, making it clear that there was no time to hesitate.

I think this is a bit too much work for something that was suddenly given to me.

After breaking through the gangs, who knows how heavily armed they are, I had to check on Rosalyn and Asif, who would be in the middle of that mess, and immediately confiscate the toy car the gang came in and scrap it.

And above all, the constant, distant gunshots kept fueling my impatience.

These bastards… have triggers that are too light.

I think most of it is warning shots, but if I arrive in the back compartment and find a sea of blood with the corpses of innocent people….

Crack!

“…Hey, hey! What if they ask me to pay for it? I can’t take responsibility for that?”

If this situation has occurred, the traveler’s insurance included in the ticket price will automatically take effect, so Asha will have no responsibility unless there are casualties. Rather, you should prepare a list of compensation claims in advance. –

“……They were selling that kind of thing as a package?!”

My knowledge has increased.

No wonder a one-way ticket costs over 200,000 Credits per person; it must have been a basic package deal. These people are really ruthless.

Muttering inwardly, I placed my hand on the integrated circuit board of the security door that Zero had pried open for easy hacking.

Authorization Confirm, Load Verification List.

…Override existing priority, add Anonymus Guest, and open.

Beep.

No loud sparks or complicated calculations were involved. Although the cover was thrown away, the door opened smoothly as if a card key had been recognized.

Finding the target and manipulating it was clear, so the hacking was completed in an instant without needing to change my perspective.

The sense of accomplishment that I’m getting more skilled every day was fleeting.

The iron door slid open, and I stepped into what I expected to be a cargo hold full of boxes, but… there were guests who had arrived much earlier than me.

“Huh…?”

““What……?””

Both sides hadn’t expected each other’s appearance, so a strange silence was formed.

I quickly rolled my eyes, picking out only the information needed to assess the situation.

First of all, the security door on the opposite side, which was clearly torn open through (physical) hacking, was crushed and thrown into a corner, and the people lined up were staring blankly at us, seemingly in the middle of a unloading-looting- operation with boxes in both hands.

Skin tanned by the scorching sun and streaked with grime from not being washed, and clothes covered in sand, worn haphazardly, as if they didn’t have a firm image like the Triads.

And, as the crowning touch, a shotgun barrel pointed at us and a thick finger on its trigger…?

Thwack—!!

“Crazy?!”

Sparks fly on the door frame right next to my head.

It’s not that I miraculously dodged it, or that the other guy shot so badly that he missed. After all, the shotgun was a weapon for those kinds of guys.

It’s just that I had Zero, who reacted and blocked it for me.

Those triggers are really damn light. I almost died, damn it…!!

If you intend to observe the interior further, I will block it. –

“No?! I’ll pass…!!”

Bang! Bang-bang! Bang-bang!!

Rat-tat-tat—!!

As a barrage of bullets began to rain down, fireworks were exploding on the inner steel plate next to the cover I was hiding behind, but I dissuaded Zero, who was calmly trying to block it with his body.

It’s so annoying that even if they’re just a bunch of scrubs, they don’t shoot bullets gently.

Seeing the dented bullets that had been embedded in my upper arm armor fall off with a light shake, it was clear that telling him to charge in was definitely an option, but it seemed better to identify the risk factors first.

Just because I was lucky enough to be grazed by cheap ammunition didn’t guarantee that the rest would be the same.

“What was that, damn it! What was that black hunk of metal just now?!”

“Damn it! They said there’s only the engineer behind the opposite door, so we don’t have to worry about it at all?!”

“Brothers! There’s a Droid! Does anyone have a spare electric shocker or flamethrower??”

The enemies were screaming and yelling, seemingly terrified by the brief glimpse they got, which made my head spin.

It didn’t seem like they cared about me, who had made eye contact with them… but anyway.

I tried to return fire by sticking my hand out slightly, but only the metallic sound of bullets ricocheting echoed, as if they had all hidden themselves. Just casually firing with a single pistol seemed to provoke them, and they started consuming ammunition even faster.

But I can’t just go into a war of attrition….

“…Do these guys have a reason to hold out?”

If we drag this out, they’ll abandon whatever they couldn’t grab and run away.

In the end, we’re the ones who have to push forward and break them down, which is a shame.

Ugh… The entrance is too narrow, so the crossfire will inevitably be concentrated momentarily, but should I trust Zero and ask him to break through?

Ping…!

Just as I was agonizing over it, the lights that brightly illuminated this compartment shattered with a clang!

Whether it was intentional or they accidentally broke it while indiscriminately firing to keep us in check, the density of the barrage of bullets temporarily lessened.

“…Tch.”

Is now…? Is now the chance?

I didn’t want to make enemies, but I didn’t want to make grudges either.

Thanks to the overprotective Care Bot, I felt safer, but if I were to be ambushed out of nowhere or get caught up in irrelevant problems and be threatened, I wouldn’t die of old age due to stress.

But if the other party hated me for no reason… rather than giving them a reason to hate me, silencing them so they can’t hate me again was the more comfortable decision.

In the darkened vision, I licked my lips, which had dried up in that short time, and checked the grip of my pistol, and Zero’s body pulsed like a drawn bowstring, sensing my intention.

The sensor lights, which originally existed to indicate whether power was properly supplied to each connection, shone brightly like combat makeup.

“They said all the guys with heavy weapons went to break through the cargo hold in the back!”

“Damn it, are we just going to abandon the stuff here?!”

“…Oh, really?”

The guys who saw that there was no response were chattering among themselves as they pleased.

No, are you just carelessly leaking such important internal information because you’re in a hurry?

That’s about it. I just need to push in with force and provide support as needed.

I had a rough plan. As I recalled the structure of the cargo hold and the locations where they might have taken cover, which I had briefly checked, I realized why that area looked darker than the other sections, whether there were people there or not.

……The cargo hold didn’t have any separate windows, probably due to security concerns.

“….”

Once at the darkened area, once at the Care Bot, which was unaffected by the presence or absence of light. Finally, I recalled the location of the lights over there.

Thanks for providing a good idea, thank you very much…!

Click, rat-tat-tat!!

“Whoa?!”

“Damn it. Turn on the lights!”

As shards of broken glass rained down and they were engulfed in darkness, I hid my head again and pressed my back against the wall.

Waiting any longer would be a waste. The battlefield has been prepared, so I need to send out my Champion.

“Zero, go wild.”

Annihilation mode, commencing. –

Suddenly, a will-o’-the-wisp appeared in the room, which had become chaotic with loud curses and abusive language.

I thought there was a possibility that they wouldn’t notice it in the confusion, but humans seem to instinctively recognize the danger of death.

The pig-squealing noises that everyone was making disappeared, and only tense breathing remained in the dark world.

I don’t know how his ghostly figure was reflected in that darkness. I can only guess from their reactions.

“Fi… Fire!! Shoot everything you have! If we get close, we’re screwed…?!”

Screams, and the fear that spread from there.

As soon as the first shot was fired, the situation rapidly deteriorated. For them, it was a fall into an irreversible abyss.