35 – Explosive Pursuit (1)
“What about the other gangs?”
“…They’re all silent.”
“They must be in a similar situation. They got hit hard.”
A calm voice echoed in the room.
[Currently, evacuation orders are in effect for District 19, and… the city government has mobilized the police force to control the surrounding roads….]
“Turn it off.”
At his command, his subordinates jumped in surprise and turned off all communication.
Just a few minutes ago, an emergency summons for all former officers. Despite preparing numerous weapons, including armored vehicles, based on substantial financial resources, the situation had drastically spiraled out of control due to the intruders.
“The damn La Place mercenaries… Do they think the treaty means nothing?”
Joltan Pashur licked his lips and put on his titanium gauntlets.
Broad shoulders. A physique that left nothing to be desired.
But despite that, instead of fat, his body was filled with solid muscles.
“Set off first.”
“…Just us?”
“Yes.”
Joltan Pashur opened his mouth as he set fire to the thick cigar.
“We suffered losses here, so we have to make up for them elsewhere.”
“Ah, understood!”
Gang members hurriedly boarded the vehicles.
Vroom…!
Engines roared from all directions. Illegally modified vehicles. Some were even modified military armored cars. The fact that they existed was practically evidence of their connection to the military, so under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t dare to show themselves so openly…
In the midst of a full-scale battle between large gangs, there was no room to spare for such things.
Joltan Pashur waved his finger towards the rugged man in the crowd.
“Kidel.”
“Yes, boss.”
“You take command. If you see anyone trying to escape, shoot them on the spot.”
“Understood.”
Thud, thud, thud!
The massive iron gate rises, and numerous vehicles speed out.
Joltan Pashur, watching the scene until the iron gate is fully closed, immediately shifted his gaze towards the direction of the surveillance cameras.
– Kwaack!
– Block them! Block them!
Gang members swept away in an instant. The one responsible for this spectacle was none other than a young boy. However, instead of expressing shock, Joltan Pashur silently burned incense, knowing they wouldn’t be able to stop them anyway. Their role was simply to wear down the intruders’ stamina.
Joltan Pashur massaged his throbbing temple, staring intently through the screen.
“I won’t let you move as you please.”
From being an executive in the Partisan to being demoted to the boss of the Camento gang, he had experienced so much.
If it was going to end like this, he wouldn’t have willingly walked out that day.
*****
Thud!
In the silent corridor, only the echoing footsteps of two people running reverberated loudly.
If not familiar, the complex and twisted corridors might seem confusing enough to get lost in at any moment. However, there was no hesitation in Lian’s steps.
It wasn’t a reckless run.
The building’s structure was as complex as the countless surveillance cameras installed inside. Yet, Lian suggested utilizing this complex structure to hack into the internal network using Amila’s hacking skills. They could grasp the building’s internal structure and calculate the real-time shortest route to Joltan Pashur.
Even in this moment of running, the constant movement of Amila’s eyes was all because of that.
“The forces have decreased.”
Lian narrowed his eyes, surveying the surroundings. Logically, as they approached where the boss should be, the number of security forces should increase, but…
Instead of increasing, the number had actually decreased since their initial entry.
“Amila, do you know how many members are affiliated with the Camento Gang?”
“…At least a few hundred-“
Amila’s face stiffened. No way, that can’t be right. Amila urgently connected to the internal network. Countless lines of code swirled in her mind, and a completely different scene unfolded before her eyes.
A four-lane road connected to the surface.
On it, countless modified vehicles were racing.
…
Amila felt a dizzying sensation. Could this be possible? The Camento Gang was not just an ordinary gang. With their immense financial power, they smuggled all sorts of illegal weapons from various countries.
If their smuggling operation was exposed, they could simply cut off their tail. But if the ledger was made public, the story would change.
“There’s enough justification for the Special Forces to intervene.”
And undoubtedly, that ledger would be stored in the Camento Gang’s headquarters.
Amila was shocked for another reason. The fact that the Camento Gang had abandoned them and left to help the Partisan Gang meant that they had deleted all the data that could be used against them by the authorities.
“They managed to delete all that vast amount of data in that short time?”
No matter how she thought about it, it seemed impossible.
“If some of it remains, we won’t know…”
“Amila.”
In that moment, as Amila was biting her lip…
Thud!
Lian grabbed her arm and pulled her.
Kwaaang!
At the same time, the floor where Amira had just been standing shattered into pieces.
Amira felt around her body with a dazed expression and slowly raised her head.
“Your instincts are sharp.”
A voice that filled the corridor.
“If you had been a little late, your colleague’s body would have had a hole in it.”
A tremendous power that couldn’t even be compared to the guards they had just encountered.
Bulging veins on his arms and a shirt that looked like it would burst.
It was the first time they had come face to face, but in that moment, they realized who the man in front of them was.
Joltan Pashur.
The leader of the Kamento Gang, who controlled the weapons trade in a district, was standing right in front of them.
*****
“If there was a warrior like you in my hometown, I would have at least heard your name.”
-Clank.
As he moved the massive gauntlets on both hands, he slowly started approaching.
Just looking at it, the weight didn’t seem ordinary.
“It seems that only two of you were trying to capture me.”
Lian didn’t respond. The fur on their whole body stood on end.
“It must be about 2 meters.”
The data was not incorrect. Lian sensed the intense power emanating from Joltan Pashur.
It was clear that it appeared larger than the information suggested.
Lian looked down and surveyed the shattered corridor. It was not just broken; it was pulverized into dust.
It didn’t seem like an attack. The moment Amila concentrated her magic where she stood, Lian instinctively pulled her back without hesitation.
“…We got lucky.”
The vitality contained in the magic.
If she hadn’t been able to read it, she wouldn’t have been able to react so quickly.
Her physical condition wasn’t that bad. She had taken down dozens of people so far, and she didn’t feel out of breath or physically exhausted.
Urgent voices came through the radio. They said they couldn’t hold on much longer. They asked if they could retreat from Amila.
Lian smiled bitterly and raised her head.
“Yeah.”
Time was on the other side. But her mind was chilling. She wasn’t even nervous. The fact that her palms were clenched and yet not a drop of sweat formed was evidence of that.
“I didn’t expect you to come in person, though.”
Kooong!
At the same time, the ceiling above Lian’s head collapsed into pieces.
-Ukshin.
“…Got it.”
Thanks to quickly redirecting the attack upward, she didn’t suffer much damage, but Lian’s temples narrowed to an extent incomparable to earlier.
“…The attack came from thin air.”
Lian’s face twisted. Come to think of it, the attack just now was the same. Was there no limit to its range?
“Your face looks like you have a lot on your mind.”
Joltan Pashur chuckled and threw a punch. Thud! A solid collision of magic and gauntlet. The defense was flawless, yet he was pushed back this much. Lian grimaced, clutching his tingling right arm.
“I’ve faced countless guys who’ve replaced their bodies with machines. So nowadays, I can tell with just one punch if they’re cyborgs or not. But you see…”
Joltan Pashur, with shimmering magic in both hands, said,
“Whoa…!”
In an instant, the spreading magic wrapped around his body like fur. Suddenly, a soaring heat.
“You, aren’t you a cyborg?”
“…”
“hahahahaha! I had my doubts… but the one who killed my elite guard, turns out to be a damn kid!”
Instead of answering, Lian adjusted his stance silently.
“How old are you? Fifteen? Sixteen? You might have used drugs to shorten your height, but my eyes can’t be fooled.”
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“It would have been better not to say anything.”
“Why?”
“If you kill me, you’ll just become someone worse than that kid.”
“You were quite a witty kid.”
Joltan Pashur said without hiding his teeth.
The tension escalated to an unprecedented level.
The next moment.
The two warriors clashed.
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