The Spatial Fault was spreading faster than expected.
Russell stared at the minimap at the edge of his vision.
The red zones representing high-risk areas were devouring the green pathways at an alarming rate.
Behind them, the rumbling tracks of three Typhon Destroyers echoed through the passages of the Topological Structure, distorted and reflected until it was impossible to judge how far away the machines actually were.
“The eastern passage has closed.”
Russell’s voice emerged from behind the Fox Mask, carrying a tone that deliberately suppressed emotional fluctuations.
“The next opening is in the Northern Old Factory District.
Two hundred and forty meters away in a straight line, but there are two half-collapsed Extraction Workshops in between.”
The level of detail in Russell’s report was almost unbelievable.
Yet Tsukishiro Yanagi didn’t question his route selection.
During the fourteen-minute escape just now, this masked man had already demonstrated a kind of Battlefield Situational Awareness that bordered on clairvoyance.
He could find the only gap between Ethereal hordes and pursuing enemies, then guide them through it in time.
His precision was as if he had read the script beforehand.
In the past, Tsukishiro Yanagi would probably have suspected that someone like this was an enemy operative sent to lure her into a trap.
Fortunately, after years in the Hollow Special Operations Section, she had seen all sorts of bizarre Ether Aptitudes in the archives.
At the very least, she wasn’t completely ignorant.
“Lead the way.”
The Vice Section Chief was equally efficient and didn’t waste words.
The two moved through the ruins.
Russell wasn’t particularly fast.
It was obvious that he truly possessed the physical conditioning of an ordinary person.
Forget elite Agents like her.
Even a standard Defense Force soldier would likely have better stamina than him.
As a result, following behind him required almost no effort for Tsukishiro Yanagi.
She even had spare attention to monitor the distance of their pursuers and check whether any wandering Ethereals were nearby.
Yet the facts proved that Russell’s chosen route was exceptionally safe.
For the first time in her life, Tsukishiro Yanagi experienced what it was like to charge recklessly through a medium-to-high-risk Hollow like H-037 for twenty minutes without encountering a single Ethereal.
As they continued walking, Tsukishiro Yanagi suddenly sniffed the air.
She had caught a strange scorched smell.
Soon she realized what it was.
The scent of burnt circuit boards.
Mixed with a trace of Ether Energy.
“Stop.”
Russell suddenly halted.
The abrupt stop caused the light-footed Tsukishiro Yanagi to stumble slightly.
If not for her agility, there might have been a full-fledged collision.
Russell paid no attention whatsoever to what had happened behind him.
His attention was completely drawn to the structure before him.
It was an extremely solid-looking building.
Most of it was encased in concrete, with only one wall exposed, revealing an inner alloy framework.
But that wasn’t what caught Russell’s attention.
Inside the structure was an unmarked white icon.
According to the minimap’s classification logic, gray icons represented threatening neutral entities.
…Could there actually be harmless baby Ethereals?
An absurd thought surfaced in Russell’s mind.
“What is it…?”
Having already recovered from her brief awkwardness, Tsukishiro Yanagi stepped forward from behind him.
Then she froze halfway through her sentence.
“…Belobog Industries’ Vault.”
“You know this place?”
Russell blinked.
Tsukishiro Yanagi’s expression became somewhat complicated.
“…This is exactly what I came here to find.”
As she spoke, she stepped forward and walked around to the front of the structure.
The front consisted of a cylindrical blast door roughly two and a half meters in diameter.
Its surface was covered in fine rust particles.
The hinges were wrapped in blackened sealing strips.
Just as Tsukishiro Yanagi had said, it was a vault.
And a remarkably large one.
A nameplate sat to the left of the vault entrance.
Most of the lettering had been eroded beyond recognition, but the words “Belobog Heavy Industries BV-7” could still barely be made out.
“Got any treasures in there?”
Glancing at the white icon on his map, Russell asked in what he hoped was a casual tone.
Tsukishiro Yanagi gave him another long look from head to toe.
“You really are trying your best to play the role of a Hollow Raider.”
“Uh…”
Russell was momentarily stunned.
He hadn’t expected her to interpret his question that way.
“Ma’am, as you can see, I really am a Hollow Raider.”
“Then what’s your commission?”
When Tsukishiro Yanagi asked that question, she stared directly into the black eyes beneath Russell’s mask.
As if the slightest flicker of deception would be immediately detected.
“An old man hired me to find the belongings his children left behind in this Hollow.”
Russell answered with complete honesty.
“If those soldier-bandits hadn’t decided to kill every witness, I honestly wouldn’t have had much reason to help you.
To tell the truth, I regret it now.
I should’ve abandoned the commission and slipped away quietly.”
The woman’s crimson-violet eyes shone like jewels as she stared at him.
Russell had to admit that she was genuinely beautiful.
But this wasn’t the time to lose confidence.
So he met her gaze without blinking.
Tsukishiro Yanagi stared at the Fox Masked man for nearly ten seconds.
Only after confirming there wasn’t the slightest trace of fear in his eyes did she finally realize he might actually be telling the truth.
There was still one thing she needed to verify. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“The client who gave you that commission.
Who was it?”
She continued before he could answer.
“Don’t tell me it’s confidential.
There aren’t many commissions involving H-037.
A quick search on the Inter-Knot would reveal it anyway.”
“Lin Guodong.”
Russell didn’t see any reason to keep it secret.
“…So it really was him.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi naturally recognized the name from the archives.
She simply hadn’t expected…
Well.
After a brief silence, Tsukishiro Yanagi suddenly realized she had been locking eyes with a strange man for nearly half a minute like some kind of couple.
Her expression immediately became slightly unnatural.
“Ahem…
Actually, the commission target you’re looking for is in the factory where we encountered the rebels.”
“Huh?”
Russell froze.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“How was I supposed to know that was your objective?”
Tsukishiro Yanagi deliberately turned her head away, concealing the faint blush on her face.
“You never told me.”
“Fair enough…”
Russell felt there was little point in blaming her now.
“Then I’ll have to go back there later.”
“No rush.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi waved a hand.
Her attention returned to the vault before them.
“Once we get out, I’ll contact the Section Chief.
We’ll definitely have to return anyway—there are people to rescue and clues needed to open this vault.
We also need to retrieve whatever information is stored inside.
It would be safer if you came with us.”
“Uh…”
Russell hesitated.
The thought of accompanying the people from Section 6 on such a massive detour was naturally unappealing.
And to be honest, he was beginning to suspect that she had taken an interest in his abilities.
“How about this?”
“I’ll just help you open this place directly.
You can take the information back and report in.
As for the belongings, I’ll find time to retrieve them myself.”
“That way I won’t trouble the people of Section 6.”
★ ★ ★
Shilling time!