"To think that Hacker is rely using the data she acquired for this."
Looking at the files on his monitor, Westcott sighed, sounding almost disappointed. The content was an operational report on Hacker's recent activities.
"What do you an, rely using it for this?!"
Ellen practically exploded, erging from behind a literal mountain of docunts. She looked ready to grab a stack of papers and throw them directly into her boss's face.
Recently, every single region where Hacker appeared had been flooding them with complaint calls. The reason wasn't hard to guess: Hacker possessed the ability to completely disable the combat modules of Realizers. This had sparked mass panic among local anti-Spirit organizations. Naturally, DEM Industries—the company responsible for inventing and selling Realizers—now is in the front of the bla.
Right now, the phone lines across the entirety of DEM were ringing off the hook. Ellen's desk was practically buried under complaint files sent from various branch offices. Seeing her boss casually sipping coffee and using the excuse, "This is the kind of work a secretary should be doing" made Ellen's blood boil.
"But think about it," Westcott reasoned calmly. "Hacker bypassed our AI and stole a massive amount of highly classified data. That information isn't just enough to crack the Realizers; it's enough to bankrupt DEM Industries completely. If it were , I would have leaked all that technology to the world. Or built a secret factory, mass-produced weapons, conquered the world, and made Spirits the rulers of the planet."
Compared to the man sitting in front of her, Yutsuki's actions were as gentle as an angel's.
If anyone else heard Westcott say that, they would probably suspect he was an enemy spy. But Ellen, who knew his twisted personality all too well, simply replied, "Please try to show so restraint," before forcibly changing the subject.
"In any case, the Hacker issue must be resolved imdiately. Otherwise, I'm going to lose my mind."
Watching the endless stream of complaint ssages popping up on her screen, Ellen felt, for the first ti in her life, a deep hatred for the technological advancent that is the computer.
Just then, a blaring siren echoed through the air. But this wasn't the hacker intrusion alarm from last ti. It was the wail of an evacuation siren carrying an English broadcast, coming from a nearby city.
A spacequake alarm!
"Well, isn't that a coincidence? Is this what the Chinese an when they say, 'Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrives'?"(TL:chinese idiom)
Acting as if he had just witnessed a miracle, Westcott gave an exaggerated gasp and turned his monitor toward Ellen.
On the screen, standing in the center of a massive, bowl-shaped crater, was a girl with flowing brown hair. She was dressed in what looked like a school uniform covered by a black trench coat, holding a dark blue longbow almost as tall as she was.
"...I have an important matter to attend to. Excuse ."
Ellen pushed her chair back and stood up, radiating an unstoppable, overwhelming aura as she strode toward the exit.
"Ellen, preferably, try to capture her alive. Can you do that?"
Hearing Westcott's request, Ellen paused in front of the automatic doors. Letting out an exasperated sigh, she replied, "Of course. I am the strongest Wizard in the world."
-------------perspective shift divider line-----------------
A street that looked as if it had simply ceased to exist.
The only comparison that ca to mind was a crater left behind by a teor impact. Convenience stores, skyscrapers, playgrounds...everything within view had been cleanly scooped out, leaving a shallow, bowl shaped depression.
"Did I land in a populated city again?"
Looking at a scene she had sohow grown accustod to, Yutsuki couldn't help but frown in distress.
Honestly, Yutsuki had always hoped to immigrating into human society. But after realizing her very arrival brought disaster, she beca terrified that her spacequakes would harm civilians who couldn't evacuate in ti. Rather than cities, she much preferred landing in desolate, uninhabited areas.
But if this keeps up, won't I eventually turn into a savage?
Imagining herself playing Tarzan in the jungle out of sheer boredom was just too tragic. Yeah, no thanks.
"Hmm... this area. Uh, the UK?"
Pulling out her tablet, Yutsuki quickly checked her location online. Her face instantly froze.
Why? Because apparently, the headquarters of DEM Industries the Realizer ga corporation she had hacked a few months ago—was right nearby.
Recalling all the highly classified data she had downloaded, Yutsuki was one hundred percent certain she was at the very top of that company's hit list.
Well, their entire goal seems to be killing Spirits anyway, so I guess having a grudge doesn't change much.
Even though the anti-Spirit teams that usually arrived by now were nowhere to be seen, Yutsuki remained vigilant and summoned Ratziel.
Sure enough, it didn't take long before she spotted a white speck flying toward her from the distance. Judging by the speed, it was just a hair slower than the Yamai twins' absurd, rule-breaking velocity.
Seconds later, the figure was close enough to be seen clearly with the naked eye.
It wasn't wearing the standard, mass-produced Wiring Suit used by regular AST units. The armor covering her body looked more like chanical plating, and the massive sword-like equipnt mounted on her back made her stand out even more.
"Pendragon."
Yutsuki whispered the ch's na. Having seen its blueprints in DEM's database, she knew this armor, nad after King Arthur, boasted theoretical specs capable of rivaling a Spirit. It was arguably the strongest ch humanity had ever designed.
The figure suddenly stopped, seemingly ignoring the laws of inertia entirely. Transitioning from high-speed flight to absolute stillness in an instant left Yutsuki speechless at the blonde woman's piloting skills.
"So, it really was you who hacked DEM that day? Hacker!!!"
"What if it was?"
Maybe it was just her imagination, but after she admitted it, Yutsuki could feel a massive wave of resentnt radiating from the woman.
"Ike said to bring you back alive... but I suppose dragging you back half-dead works too!"
At that exact mont, Yutsuki felt like she had died.
No, more accurately, she had a precognition of her own death.
Acting purely on instinct, Yutsuki brought Ratziel up to guard her chest.
CLASH! The body of the longbow collided violently with the laser broadsword, sending a fierce shower of sparks flying between them.
If she hadn't reacted in that split second to block the strike, her arm would definitely have been severed. In other words, if the woman had aid for her head...
Cold sweat broke out on Yutsuki's back. Since arriving in this world, this was the first ti she had felt the threat of death so vividly.
"Ho~ Quite the impressive reflexes!"
Looking at Yutsuki blocking her attack with the bow, Ellen flashed a smile of genuine praise.
Yutsuki stared at Ellen as if looking at a monster. Spirits wearing Astral Dresses possessed physical strength that defied common sense. While humans could use Realizers to project Territories and achieve superhuman feats, this was the first ti Yutsuki had seen a human capable of physically locking blades with a Spirit.
A bow is not a lee weapon. Even if the Angel was incredibly durable, clashing head-on with a beam sword was not a smart move. Yutsuki subtly shifted the angle of her grip, using a martial arts principle of deflection to guide Ellen's sword to the side. Imdiately after, electricity surged as she unleashed a fierce kick. Even though Ellen blocked it and wasn't hurt, Yutsuki successfully created so distance.
"Iron Sand Tsunami!"
As distance opened between them, the ground around them began to agitate violently. Black iron sand surged upward like a sea dragon breaching the surface, threatening to swallow Ellen with overwhelming montum.
If it were a normal AST mber, the high-frequency vibration of the iron sand would have shredded both their Territory and their body to dust. But Yutsuki knew that against this opponent, the move would only buy her a little ti.
"Ratziel, can you hack the core of that ch?"
[The enemy is using a high-density Territory to block all external electromagnetic waves. Wireless intrusion is impossible. Direct physical contact required. Estimated ti to acquire access: 2.56 seconds.]
Hearing that, a bitter smile crossed Yutsuki's face.
As a computer, Ratziel's processing power was easily at the apex of this world. But as an AI, it only had basic data analysis capabilities.
2.56 seconds. For hacking a top tier, peak of humanity ch, that speed was essentially god like already. But practically speaking, if she got into zero-distance physical contact with this monstrous Wizard, one second was more than enough for Ellen to kill her three tis over.
"Manipulating the iron sand on the ground... Is that your other ability? No, are you controlling it via electromagnetic force? You're surprisingly clever with these little tricks."
Ellen's voice echoed from within the storm of iron sand. A high-intensity Territory expanded outward, effortlessly blasting the binding iron sand away.
Seeing that her restraint had failed, Yutsuki seemingly lost her will to fight. Turning around, she transford into a bolt of lightning and fled into the distance.
Trying to escape? Ellen's eyes flashed with disdain. The thrusters on Pendragon flared, generating massive propulsion as she chased after her with a sonic boom.
What followed was a fierce high speed pursuit. Two blurs—one blue, one white—weaved through the ruins of the deserted city. Everywhere they passed, violent explosions erupted.
Her escape skills are top notch, Ellen thought. She continually fired the ch's built-in weaponry, but the target seed to dodge everything in a bizarre, almost incomprehensible manner. Despite unleashing a fierce barrage all the way, Ellen couldn't spot a single scratch on Yutsuki.
Feeling a sting to her pride, Ellen gritted her teeth in frustration.
Watching Yutsuki phase straight through a skyscraper without slowing down, Ellen followed closely behind.
However, to Ellen's bewildernt, the wall Yutsuki had passed through showed no signs of damage, as if a ghost had phased through it.
Swinging her beam sword, Ellen carved a neat, triangular hole through the wall. Looking ahead, the Spirit was completely gone from her line of sight.
Did she disappear?
It wasn't uncommon for Spirits to suddenly return to the 'Neighboring World' during a fierce battle. Yet, for so reason, the unease in Ellen's heart refused to fade.
Suddenly, a massive wave of mortal danger washed over her. Like a viper that had been lying in wait, finally bearing its fangs at the perfect mont. Ellen deployed her maximum shields on instinct.
The very next second, a blinding pillar of orange light completely swallowed the white figure.
----------------------perspective shift divider line-----------------------
"Phew~ That makes us even for the sneak attack."
Standing on a high platform about two kiloters away from Ellen, Yutsuki lowered Ratziel, which was currently shifted into its "Pincer Cannon Mode." She felt imnsely satisfied.
Optical Refraction. By using electromagnetic force to manipulate the refractive index of the air, Yutsuki created a slight deviation between her visual image and her actual physical location while running. Over a long, high-speed chase, that tiny deviation compounded into a distance gap of nearly two kiloters.
Was there any scenario more perfect for sniping?
Because of that near fatal ambush earlier, Yutsuki had been absolutely furious. She had essentially gathered every single speck of iron sand in the vicinity, condensed it into a massive block, and fired it at maximum output as a Railgun. The sheer destructive force of that shot was enough to level a small city.
However, even though she scored a direct hit, Yutsuki could feel it. The target was still alive.
"What a monster!" (The Author: "Do you really have the right to say that?")
After muttering her complaint, the familiar sense of imbalance hit her, and Ryougi Yutsuki "disappeared" from the physical world.
---------------------Return to Ellen's perspective divider line---------------------
"Hey, hey! Ellen, you still alive?"
Hearing her boss's entirely too casual tone, Ellen let out a helpless sigh and replied:
"What do you want, Ike? If possible, please refrain from opening communications. It would be highly problematic if Hacker intercepted the signal."
Through the video feed, Westcott spoke without a hint of tension. "Relax. I've already confird it. After firing that shot at you, Hacker disappeared."
"Is that so?" Ellen gave a brief response and fell silent.
"So, what are your thoughts?" Westcott asked, smiling broadly at her.
"It was my carelessness. I underestimated Hacker's capabilities."
Her ch was in tatters, with damage exceeding fifty percent. If she had to fight Ryougi Yutsuki in this state, she would undoubtedly lose.
Ellen readily admitted her defeat. Hacker had originally been classified as an S-Rank threat primarily because she stole a massive amount of DEM's classified data and possessed the ability to disable Realizers. But one couldn't forget that, even before that, Westcott believed Hacker's combat capabilities could rival Princess's.
"Indeed. From my observation, she used electromagnetic force to create optical refraction, causing a deviation between her visual projection and her true physical location. Over a long chase, you ended up significantly far away from her."
"And that beam of light just now?"
"Based on the data analysis, it was a railgun on the scale of a space battleship's main cannon. To think she could utilize her power to such an extent. Utterly fascinating."
It was true. Hacking, iron sand manipulation, optical refraction, the railgun. While all of these could theoretically be linked to the manipulation of electricity, being able to employ so many versatile, highly complex applications was astonishing. No wonder Westcott called it "fascinating." In reality, applying powers with such precision was incredibly difficult. Any other Spirit would have found it impossible to manipulate their abilities with such ticulous detail.
"This was undeniably my failure. I will ensure such an embarrassnt does not happen again."
"Mhm! I believe Ellen always keeps her word," Westcott nodded in satisfaction, then grinned maliciously. "But before that, please finish your paperwork. While you were out, another massive stack of complaint files arrived."
"Σ(°△°|||)︴"
Seeing the mountain of docunts piled on her desk through the screen, the iron willed heroine—who had stood tall even after taking Yutsuki's ultimate strike head-on—instantly collapsed in despair.
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