Chapter 347: Out of the Wolf's Den, Into the Tiger's Jaws
"Go!" Yanagi's voice sliced through the chaos, sharp and entirely devoid of hesitation.
The squad pivoted on their heels in perfect unison. Guided by Ei's precise spatial coordinates, they sprinted back the way they had come, desperately pushing toward the newly calculated, last-chance evacuation point.
Harumasa, hauling the dead weight of Pearlman over his shoulder, couldn't hold back his complaints as he bounded over shattered debris. "Uncle! Save your breath!" he barked over the roar of collapsing architecture. "Crying isn't going to solve a damn thing! It just wastes oxygen and stamina! You keep wailing like that, and I swear I'll dump you right here and run for it myself!"
His threat was entirely half-hearted, but the effect was immediate and deep.
The primal instinct for survival overrode the corrupt executive's panic. Though Pearlman's flabby frame still trembled violently against Harumasa's armor, he bit down on his lower lip hard enough to draw blood. He fought back the impending flood of tears, only allowing a few pathetic, stifled whimpers to escape his throat.
He wanted to live. Desperately.
However, the environment around them had deteriorated into absolute hell. Explosions were no longer sporadic warnings echoing in the distance; they had merged into a relentless, deafening chorus of destruction.
Massive shockwaves continuously battered the already fragile Hollow structure of the Ballet Twins. Enormous slabs of concrete and twisted, jagged rebar rained down from the obscured ceiling like deadly hail. The ground beneath their boots fractured into grotesque, glowing fissures with every violent tremor, while scorching thermal currents and thick, suffocating smoke surged at them from all directions.
To make matters worse, corrupted Deadwalkers—clearly disposable pawns left behind by their unseen enemy—lunged from behind the crumbling cover. Their eyes burned with a frenzied, crimson light as they threw themselves at the squad in suicidal attempts to stall their escape.
Deep within their communication network, Fairy's processing core ran hot. Thanks to the nearly infinite, pure energy provided by the Primogem, the AI was able to forcibly tear through the enemy's heavy signal interference and data shielding. handling the chaotic storm of ether energy, Fairy scanned the collapsing domain with terrifying speed.
She locked onto two microscopic Hollow fissures that the enemy had deliberately concealed. They hadn't been fully detonated or sealed yet, making them the ultimate lifesaver in this desperate, crumbling void.
"Stay close to me!" Miyabi commanded, her voice dropping to a dangerous, icy register.
Her katana, Tailless, finally cleared its scabbard with a sharp, ringing hiss. The moment the blade was fully unsheathed, a torrent of razor-sharp kinetic energy erupted forward. The tangible force of her slash cleaved through falling boulders and charging Deadwalkers alike, forcibly carving a temporary, bloody path through the heart of despair.
With mere seconds to spare, the squad dove after Miyabi into a corridor that was rapidly being consumed by roaring ether flames. At the very end of the hall, a Hollow fissure pulsed with highly unstable, shimmering energy ripples.
"That's the one! Hurry!" Ei's voice crackled urgently through their earpieces.
Without a single backward glance, the team threw themselves into the rift. Just as the sickening, twisting sensation of spatial teleportation enveloped their bodies, a cataclysmic roar shattered the air behind them. A towering pillar of fire erupted, completely vaporizing the corridor they had just occupied, reducing the Ballet Twins' interior to absolute ash.
After a brief, nauseating bout of vertigo, the reassuring sensation of solid asphalt met the soles of their boots.
A damp, biting night wind immediately filled their lungs, forcefully sweeping away the oppressive heat and the metallic stench of ozone from the Hollow.
They had done it. They had successfully breached the Ballet Twins Hollow and stepped back into the reality of New Eridu.
However, before a single sigh of relief could be breathed, or before their eyes could even adjust to the dim streetlights, a chilling, synchronized chorus of mechanical clicks echoed through the quiet street.
Click-clack.
It was the unmistakable sound of dozens of heavy firearms disengaging their safeties and chambering live rounds.
Dozens of dark, gaping muzzles, gleaming with a cold, unforgiving metallic sheen under the flickering neon signs, were locked onto them from a perfect 360-degree perimeter.
Standing just beyond the heavily armed encirclement were over a dozen stern-faced, fully armored Public Security officers.
A PubSec captain stepped forward, raising a heavy-duty megaphone to his lips. His electronically amplified voice sounded exceptionally harsh against the backdrop of the silent city night.
"Nobody move! The Public Security Bureau is conducting official business! Officer Bringer received an anonymous, high-priority tip that Pearlman, the primary fugitive suspect in the Vision Corporation Scandal, intended to illegally infiltrate New Eridu from the Outer Ring via an unregistered Hollow passage."
The captain's visor caught the glare of a nearby streetlight. "I certainly didn't expect that the ones assisting and harboring this fugitive would be the elite operatives of Hollow Special Operations Section 6."
His gaze swept over the soot-stained, battle-worn members of Section 6, finally landing on Pearlman, who was still shivering violently in Harumasa's grip. The captain's tone remained strictly cold and bureaucratic.
"Our body cameras are currently documenting every second of this encounter. The footage is being uploaded in real-time to the PubSec internal network for permanent archiving. I advise you to cooperate actively, lower your weapons, and submit to our investigation."
The ambient temperature in the street seemed to plummet below freezing.
This wasn't a random patrol. This was a carefully orchestrated ambush.
Bringer not only knew the exact details of their highly classified operation, but he had also pinpointed their precise exit coordinates and time of arrival with terrifying accuracy.
Yanagi took a slow, measured breath. She adjusted her glasses, stepping forward to diplomatically explain the situation and maneuver their way out through bureaucratic loopholes—
Screech—!
The ear-piercing shriek of tires burning rubber against asphalt violently interrupted her thoughts.
A sleek, black patrol cruiser, heavily modified and bearing the gold insignia of a high-ranking PubSec official, drifted around the corner with obnoxious arrogance. It slammed on its brakes, coming to a perfect, screeching halt just outside the armed perimeter.
The heavy armored door popped open. Bringer, impeccably dressed in a tailored, high-ranking officer's uniform, stepped out unhurriedly. A sickeningly smug, victorious smirk was plastered across his face.
His eyes immediately zeroed in on Miyabi. He feigned a dramatic gasp, his tone dripping with theatrical mockery.
"Well, well, well... this is truly a shocking discovery," Bringer drawled, spreading his hands wide.
"I never would have imagined that the absolute pride of New Eridu, the youngest Void Hunter in our city's history—Hoshimi Miyabi herself—would stoop so low as to become an accomplice to our most wanted criminal, Pearlman."
He clicked his tongue, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "And it appears you even 'coerced' your loyal subordinates into participating in this illegal border-crossing operation? My, my. If the press gets wind of this, Section 6's sterling reputation will be dragged through the mud... tsk, tsk."
He paced forward leisurely, stopping just a few yards away from Miyabi. The smile of a conqueror never left his lips, but his tone hardened into a sharp, obvious command.
"As for right now... given the irrefutable evidence right in front of my eyes, I must ask the members of Section 6 to kindly cooperate. You will accompany us back to headquarters to 'assist in the investigation.'"
He deliberately leaned heavily on the words assist in the investigation. The dark implication behind the phrase was universally understood.
The situation had rapidly spiraled into a checkmate. Caught red-handed at an unregistered Hollow exit with a wanted fugitive, both public optics and physical evidence were entirely on Bringer's side.
Once they were disarmed and taken into PubSec custody, whatever happened to them on Bringer's home turf was entirely up to his discretion.
In that split second of suffocating tension, Hoshimi Miyabi made a move that absolutely no one anticipated.
She didn't spare a single glance at Bringer. She didn't even look at her own teammates.
Her fox-like eyes simply darted toward the Hollow exit behind them—the spatial rift that had just stabilized, its edges still rippling with residual ether energy.
Before a single person could blink, let alone react, Miyabi pivoted on her heel. With flawless, terrifying precision, she delivered a devastatingly clean side-kick directly into Pearlman's chest.
The corrupt executive, who had just barely begun to relax his tense muscles upon returning to the real world, didn't even have time to scream.
He only felt the impact of a freight train slamming into his ribs. With a pathetic, garbled yelp, Pearlman was launched backward, flying straight out of Harumasa's grip and directly back into the shimmering, unclosed Hollow fissure.
His flailing body was instantly swallowed whole by the distorted spatial ripples, vanishing completely from sight.
The street plunged into a stunned, absolute dead silence.
"Hoshimi Miyabi!!!" Bringer's smug smile shattered instantly, twisting into a mask of extreme, vein-popping rage and utter disbelief. He practically foamed at the mouth as he roared, "What the hell is the meaning of this?! How dare you—!"
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