episode_0012

It felt strange to just sit idly in someone else’s empty hideout, so I came out. But the port, where a magnificent, colossal vessel was entering, was eerily quiet, as if rats had been massacred.

Cyborgs that one might believe were Hellstream androids, stretched out, guarding the surroundings as if escorting it.

*Woosh* – In stark contrast to the refreshing sound of lapping waves, a grim atmosphere settled heavily, making it clear that if even a small incident occurred, war would break out then and there.

Becoming a spectator of this apocalyptic scene, I lit a cigarette.

‘Surely other gangs are hidden too. And many scavengers must have come.’

The vessel, which had quietly entered the port, naturally accepted the escort of those fearsome tin cans, as if it had already negotiated with Hellstream.

Inside, corporate soldiers, armed with high-performance cyberware comparable to Hellstream’s pathologically self-modified members, emerged, reporting the situation via radio. Following them, transport trucks carrying huge containers began to descend.

*Whirr* – Only the slow-rolling hum of machinery could be heard in Port Rossbord, so quiet that one could even hear someone gulping.

“Damn it. Look at this mess because of those bastards.”

“Once this is over, we should just wipe them out completely. They’re no help in life.”

Whispers erupted from Hellstream members here and there, cursing the unseen hyenas and wishing this boring time would pass quickly.

*Click* *Click* *Click*

Regardless, the corporate soldiers escorted the transport trucks without letting down their guard, as if simply fulfilling their duty.

Their movements were so professional and swift that an ordinary gang would find it difficult to imitate, perhaps as if flaunting that they were different from the others.

“Tch. Bragging for a corporate dog.”

“Aren’t they strong, though? They’re super tough.”

“Just shut up.”

Hellstream, perhaps relieved by the absence of the marauding gangs for quite some time, started chattering.

Even the corporate soldiers, proudly bearing the K&H corporate logo, seemed to lose their tension, exiting the port and sending a radio message that the situation was clear.

But as the saying goes, the most vulnerable moment is when the job is done, and the attackers aimed for that exact time.

*Boom!* A colossal explosion shook the entire Port Rossbord, and a massive pillar of flame erupted, sending the cargo transport truck flying into the air.

The corporate soldiers escorting it were swept away by the blast pressure of a pressure-sensitive mine, and disorganized gangs, not unified in affiliation, burst out simultaneously, opening fire on Hellstream.

“All die!”

“Fuck! It’s an ambush! Raise the blast walls!”

Thousands of rounds, exceeding the speed of sound, began turning the port into chaos.

Hellstream members, highly modified, absorbed a few rounds piercing their bodies and set up mobile bulletproof temporary walls for cover.

It was a surprise attack that caught them off guard, but Hellstream, having prepared for war, was no pushover. In fact, with their overwhelming equipment advantage, they quickly counterattacked the assailants.

“You goddamn cockroach bastards! I’ll wipe you all out with this chance!”

One Hellstream member, heavily armored with exoskeleton cyberware, went out wielding a heavy machine gun and unleashed overwhelming firepower. The attackers, in turn, threw flashbangs and EMP grenades, attempting to neutralize their cyberware.

The corporate soldiers who barely survived the explosion fought desperately in the middle of the enemy lines, slaughtering the attackers, but overwhelmed by sheer numbers, they were torn apart limb by limb, like grasshoppers entering an ant nest.

*Bang bang bang bang!*

Gunfire relentlessly pounded between them.

Caught squarely between Hellstream and the attackers, I was hiding behind the temporary wall set up by the Hellstream commander.

“Ah… fuck. I should have just gone home.”

I came out just to watch, and now look at this mess.

“Those bastards brought an HEDT (High Explosive Drop Tank)! Abandon the temporary walls and run!”

“HEDT?”

At someone’s shouting, I cautiously peered over the temporary wall and assessed the situation.

Then, a massive tracked vehicle with a colossal main cannon entered the port.

Its rough appearance and heavily peeled paint made it look like a retired tank from 40-50 years ago, and that’s exactly what it was.

“Oh, fuck!!!”

Even if it was a 50-year-old weapon, its firepower to easily obliterate a person remained unchanged. I, like the other Hellstream members, had to abandon the temporary wall and run.

*Boom!* The super-heavy high-explosive shell landed precisely on our clustered defensive line, sending enormous fragments flying and flattening the area. Hellstream members who couldn’t escape in time were reprocessed into a handful of blood and two handfuls of scrap metal.

War! This was a true war, incomparable to the small skirmish I had with the Neo Shinsengumi. It was truly felt anew.

“Goddamn! Those bastards all teamed up!!!”

Overturned transport vehicles, corporate soldiers who had swaggered and died, Hellstream members being turned into scrap metal one by one, overwhelmed by numbers, and countless gangs shredded into meat by counterattacks.

The dizzying stench of iron and gunpowder, and the pounding noise of gunfire that made my head throb.

“Ah, shit…!”

To survive, I had to fight.

I threw away the pathetic small-caliber shotgun tucked into my pants and picked up a heavy shotgun from the corpse of a Hellstream member who had become scrap.

“Mind if I borrow this? I won’t give it back after using it!”

I felt like I gave him about 0.3 seconds of silent prayer, so he’d probably rest in peace.

The magazine held 8 rounds, and it was a modified weapon, indicating the previous owner had considerable interest not just in cyberware, but also in firearms.

It felt good in my hands.

I ran along the outer edges, where visibility was poor, and occasionally slammed the shotgun butt into the face of someone who shared my intentions, then shoved the muzzle into their mouth, serving them a dessert of bullets.

Heads exploded cleanly, staining the port floor, and a disgusting smell of urine permeated the air.

“No matter what, I should get paid for this! Working for free is absolutely repulsive!”

One shot from the side for the attacker trying to swing a hammer at a fallen Hellstream member, and one shot for the idiot who spotted me and came swinging a katana.

*Bang!* *Bang!* Half of the hammer-wielding brute’s upper body was pulverized from the defenseless hit, and the idiot swinging the katana staggered, his jaw ripped off.

Since using another round was a waste, I simply spun the shotgun, slammed the butt onto his crown, shattering his skull to finish him off, then kicked him aside.

“Urgh… you are…”

“Save your thanks for a future deposit. I’m off first!”

Leaving the struggling Hellstream member behind, I ran towards the corporate soldiers who were still alive and fighting back.

Even though they were idiots who couldn’t detect mines and stepped on them, leaving them on the verge of death, as long as they were covered in military-grade cyberware, they were the strongest bastards on this battlefield.

My appearance, which didn’t look like Hellstream, seemed to work on the attackers, allowing me to easily blend into their ranks and reach the group that was tying down the corporate soldiers.

Among the eight corporate soldiers, only three remained, fending off the attackers.

Just like Raleigh last time, they vanished for an instant, then suddenly six or seven attackers fell to the ground, their heads pierced.

The side effects seemed similar, as the corporate soldiers with streaming nosebleeds didn’t look very good.

“Hey, you idiots! Do you know what this is?”

“Who’s that bastard?”

“Dunno. Probably some attention-seeker from a small gang.”

A fleeting glance of interest came my way as I shouted, raised my fist, and drew attention, then quickly vanished.

Since my appearance didn’t show much cyberware and didn’t look like Hellstream, they probably just assumed I was on their side.

However, the corporate soldiers, perhaps sensing what I was about to do, prepared for evasive maneuvers.

*Click* The grenades loaded inside my arm locked into place, ready for a simultaneous launch.

“Smash Grenades!!!”

A punch thrown with full force.

Six charges, modified to be twice the normal explosive power, flew from my open fist, the recoil-triggered hammer striking the grenades’ primers.

*Boom!* A colossal roar, erasing the battlefield’s noise in an instant, completely swallowed the clustered attackers.

Despite being far away, the heat searing my skin made me feel as if my entire body had been cooked, and the dense smoke made it impossible to see an inch ahead.

But the chunks of flesh raining down like hail and the scalding drops of blood indicated that these idiots, living only for today with no thought of tomorrow, had been completely pulverized.

*Thump!* *Thump!* *Thump!*

With my heart pounding madly from excitement and adrenaline surging, I curved my lips into a grin and charged towards the impact zone.

“Hey, you idiot soldiers! Get out here and link up with Hellstream!”

“Ugh… who are you?”

“Who are you? What kind of nonsense is that? Don’t just stand there dumbfounded like an idiot, move it if you don’t want to die!”

“We cannot. Our mission is to protect the cargo.”

The three soldiers who remained alive until the end, perhaps veterans, emerged cautiously and relatively unscathed from the blast’s epicenter.

“The attackers are trying to open the cargo hold. Whatever else happens, we absolutely must protect what’s stored deep inside.”

“Is that more important than dying?”

“If we don’t protect that, we’ll be purged by the higher-ups even if we survive here. What’s the difference?”

“That’s true. Those idiotic corporate bastards.”

“…It’s a dangerous statement, but I agree for now.”

Even the strong individuals who had taken the elite course and caught the corporate eye seemed unable to escape corporate restructuring. With gloomy faces, they picked up their guns again, seemingly content with having taken a brief breather.

“Seeing as you helped us, you must be from Hellstream. And seeing you’ve pushed through this far, your skills seem excellent, so please cooperate with us.”

“Sorry, but I’m not Hellstream. I’m just an innocent Eclipse Point citizen who got caught up in this.”

“I’m not sure if someone who comes to watch a battlefield like this can be called ‘innocent’… but I’m listening.”

“Compensation?”

Does it make sense for a mercenary to work without compensation?

I’d extort from the corporations and extort from Hellstream too.

Following Luna’s and Jay Q’s advice, I could achieve excellent mercenary thinking.

“Our squad members are covered by Trauma Team insurance.”

“Must be nice having expensive insurance.”

“I’m not boasting. It means if we can just hold out for the 5-minute response time guaranteed by Trauma Team, the attackers will have no choice but to retreat.”

Trauma Team, who rescue by pulverizing all threats.

They knew it seemed a bit strange to ask a medical corporation for armed support, which was why they averted their gaze.

“Our corporation is a sub-contractor to a megacorp anyway, so our combat capability isn’t that strong on our own. And besides, Trauma Team already anticipates situations like this, and it’s been discussed between corporations.”

“Right, well… let’s just go with that.”

“As for compensation… if there’s any military-grade cyberware inside the transport vehicle that you want, I’ll hand it over. I can do that much with my squad leader authority.”

The squad leader transmitted a voice contract to me and also handed me a keycard.

“Use that to enter the cargo hold.”

“The contract is for you to take the black case from the innermost part and evacuate to a safe location while we defend the outside. Don’t even think about running away with it. It has a tracking device and is protected by a nine-stage security protocol.”

“You’re quite cautious.”

I received the keycard and, under the soldiers’ cover, approached the overturned transport vehicle and used the keycard to open the cargo hold.

*Beep* *Click* Along with the sounds, enough time had passed for the smoke to slowly dissipate, so the attackers spotted me and the soldiers.

“Get in quickly!”

“Alright!”

Pushed forward, I tumbled into the cargo hold. With the rough sound of the door slamming shut behind me, I had entered a treasure trove.

I should take a commemorative photo first to brag about later.