Chapter 273: Where Is Lelouch!?
"That's right."
Iwanaga Kotoko nodded in agreement and sat down on the sofa, taking off her white beret and setting it aside.
"Through Leader's probing, we can confirm that there is a hostile relationship between those Fire Clad Believers and Black Watch. However, we still can't confirm whether pressing the button in the equipment room will attract Black Watch troops or some other existence. Although we've learned some information about this world, it's still only the tip of the iceberg. We can't make an accurate judgment yet. Even assuming Black Watch does come, we still can't be certain how long it will take them to arrive."
Kato Megumi listened thoughtfully.
"If we press it too early, we'll have to face Black Watch. If we press it too late, we'll have to face the thirty enemies mentioned in the system prompt…"
"Exactly."
Asagiri also sat down on the sofa, lightly tapping the table with his index finger. After thinking for a while, he spoke.
"Given the current situation, I can't think of any other possible way out. Maybe there are other methods to clear this Dungeon, but we don't have time to search for and verify them. If we can confirm the exact time it takes for Black Watch to arrive after the alarm is activated, then combine that with the system's prompt for when the next battle begins, we can arrange for both enemy forces to arrive at roughly the same time. That way, we only need to survive the remaining hour and a half to clear this Dungeon."
"Then should we search the Hotel for relevant information?"
"Yes. The system wouldn't make Players gamble on such a crucial decision without leaving any clues. So there must be relevant clues inside the Hotel. I think the difficulty of obtaining them shouldn't be too high either. They should be somewhere in the safe areas below the Twenty-fourth Floor, without requiring us to fight."
Yuuki Asuna asked in confusion, "Why do you think that?"
"Because we already completed the prerequisite tasks."
Asagiri shrugged and explained calmly.
"First, we needed to learn about the existence of Black Watch. Second, we needed to discover the hostile relationship between that group of believers and Black Watch. Those are basically two prerequisites. Only a small number of Players could fulfill both. If, after fulfilling those two prerequisites, we still had to fight tooth and nail just to open the hidden route, then this game mechanism would be too boring."
He spread his hands.
"A game with no positive feedback is a piece of shit."
Kato Megumi tilted her head. Although her expression barely changed, the small movement made her look rather cute.
"Listening to you, does this game also have a mechanism where things link together? Maybe information obtained in previous Dungeons can become useful in future Dungeons?"
At this point, Kato Megumi pursed her lips and smiled.
"Then it seems your overly enthusiastic desire for exploration does have benefits after all, Leader."
"Oh, listen to you."
Asagiri waved his hand and said seriously.
"What I'm overly enthusiastic about isn't just exploration."
Hearing this, Yuuki Asuna's pretty face flushed, as if she had remembered something embarrassing, while Iwanaga Kotoko nodded with deep agreement.
"That's true."
…
Several hours later, in the corridor on the Seventh Floor of the Hotel.
"We found this in a guest room on the Twenty-third Floor."
The White Suit Man handed a form to Asagiri.
Asagiri took it and lowered his head to read it.
There were only a few lines of information on the form. Under the column [Time of contacting Headquarters] were several timestamps. Under the next column, [Time of Black Watch Mobile Unit arrival], there were also several timestamps.
The time difference between the two columns was not consistent. The longest was forty minutes, while the shortest was only fifteen minutes.
"Mobile Unit… that should refer to Black Watch. From activating the alarm to Black Watch detecting the Curse and sending an action unit here, it won't take more than forty minutes at most…"
Asagiri frowned slightly, looking at the information recorded on the form as if pondering something.
Seeing this, the White Suit Man could not help asking curiously, "Do you think the information on this form is unreliable?"
"That's not it."
Asagiri shook his head, his tone calm.
"The system wouldn't link a possible clearance route of a Dungeon to information whose authenticity Players can't verify. Otherwise, how would that be any different from pressing the alarm and gambling on probability? I'm just thinking. A modern force like Black Watch shouldn't leave paper records in a place like this. That means someone else left this information behind."
Hearing this, Iwanaga Kotoko offered her guess.
"Could it be Players who came here before? Although the specific situation of each Dungeon is different, the same location can be used for multiple Dungeons. Haven't we experienced that ourselves?"
"Mm, that's possible."
Asagiri nodded noncommittally, but did not dwell on the issue. After all, there would be plenty of time to think about minor details like that after the Dungeon ended.
"Then it's decided."
Asagiri looked at the four members of the White Suit Team and the three members of Mr. Ichikawa's Player team before him, then smiled.
"When there are two hours left before the Dungeon time limit ends, activate this Hotel's alarm system. Based on my understanding of Black Watch, they are still a regular military force. Before confirming that there are no threats in the surrounding area, they definitely won't advance recklessly. Even if they arrive earlier than that group of believers, as long as we stay on the upper floors, we can bridge the time difference before Black Watch and the believers encounter each other."
"I see."
The White Suit Man roughly understood Asagiri's plan, then asked again.
"Let me confirm. Since Black Watch is a modern military organization, they should be using firearms, right?"
"They used to. Not necessarily now."
"Ah? What do you mean?"
Seeing the White Suit Man and the others look puzzled, Asagiri smiled.
"Because a while ago, they encountered an enemy who was immune to bullets. Every member of the mobile unit they sent was killed. So we'll only know how their combat style has evolved once we see them."
"Uh…"
The White Suit Man's expression became complicated.
"Let me ask first. That enemy immune to bullets… was you?"
"Yes."
"But how could you… how could you…"
The White Suit Man struggled for a long time before finally finding a suitable phrase.
"How is it that after confirming Black Watch will arrive here when we activate the alarm, you seem inexplicably excited? It feels like you're finally meeting a long lost friend again."
Asagiri spread his hands, his tone filled with the joy of a bountiful harvest.
"Killing them gives bonus points for Dungeon clearance. I originally thought it was a shame I wouldn't meet them this time."
"But… could it be… you…"
The White Suit Man and his teammates, as well as the three members of Mr. Ichikawa's Player team, all showed expressions of disbelief.
"You guys… at a time like this, are you still thinking about getting bonus points for clearance?"
"That's why I say you still have a long way to go, newbie."
Asagiri patted the White Suit Man's shoulder and smiled.
"My HP bar is full. There's no difference between clearing the Dungeon at full HP and clearing it at low HP. If I refuse to try just because I'm afraid of danger, doesn't that mean I'm wasting my HP and MP bars? As a game Player, I absolutely cannot tolerate such a thing."
…
Soon, there was an hour and a half left before the Dungeon time limit ended.
Ten minutes ago, a Black Watch unit consisting of eleven regular members and a commander wearing a white mobile combat suit underlayer had arrived in the Hotel lobby on the First Floor and begun reconnaissance.
It was obvious that a battle had taken place here. Based on the marks left on the floor tiles, an extremely high temperature fire had appeared in this location.
That immediately reminded the commander leading this unit of the religious organization that could control fire and fanatically worshipped some kind of "God."
He had already contacted Black Watch Headquarters and was waiting for reinforcements.
However, at that moment, dozens of dazzling fireballs suddenly surged out of the darkness outside.
Leading them were three men dressed in ordinary crimson Roman robes.
They broke directly into the Hotel lobby on the First Floor.
When they saw the Black Watch members raise their firearms and form a combat formation, they did not seem surprised at all. The Priest leading them took two steps forward, showing no fear in the face of the gun muzzles. His face was filled only with twisted fury and killing intent.
"That guy… where is that guy!?"
The Black Watch commander frowned slightly upon hearing this.
He did not answer. He merely maintained full alert.
Seeing that his question had not been answered, the Priest grew even angrier. His body began to tremble.
"That blasphemer of God, your Blackwatch Commander…"
"Lelouch Lamperouge! Where is he!?"
The Black Watch members were all confused.
Lelouch Lamperouge?
Who?
Had one of their own commanders already arrived here? Headquarters had not notified them.
"Heh, you won't say?"
Hearing the Priest's words, the Black Watch members were speechless.
It was not a matter of whether they were willing to say anything. The problem was that they had no idea what he was talking about.
What Lelouch? What blasphemy against God?
How could they answer something they had never even heard of?
Black Watch believed this group of believers were delusional lunatics hallucinating and spouting nonsense.
The believers led by the three Priests believed that Black Watch, who placed the mission above all else, would never reveal any information.
In short, both sides thought the other was insane.
And under the guidance of Blackwatch Commander Lelouch Lamperouge, the war between the two sides officially began.
.....
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