The moment Russell pushed aside the shelf blocking the way and stepped onto the alloy floor inside the vault, a faint mechanical unlocking sound came from the ceiling.
Several circular panels slid open overhead, and two disc-shaped machines about thirty centimeters in diameter descended vertically.
They were standard security drones.
The charging lens at the center lit up with a crimson scanning beam that swept rapidly across Russell’s body.
Then, as if sensing hostility, the three stabilizing fins around the perimeter began spinning at high speed, producing a buzzing sound like a swarm of hornets.
“Careful!
Security system!
Get back!”
Tsukishiro Yanagi’s warning slipped out instantly.
Yet the Tsukishiro Yanagi who entered after him reacted even faster than Russell.
She vaulted over the shelf in a single leap.
At the exact moment she jumped forward, the lead drone opened fire.
A purplish-red beam tore through the air, effortlessly slicing through the shelf behind Russell and even leaving a charred groove in the reinforced wall.
As for why Russell himself was unharmed—
Naturally, because he had immediately slapped down a stone Block in front of himself and hidden behind it.
Russell had complete confidence in the defensive power of Cobblestone.
A one-meter-thick stone block was the Wall of Sighs against any anti-personnel weapon.
Tsukishiro Yanagi’s response displayed far greater combat skill.
Rather than dodging sideways, she lowered her body and charged directly into the beam’s projected firing path.
Her high heels scraped sharply against the floor.
Then her blade came free.
The handle extended.
The weapon transformed into a Naginata.
Its edge sliced precisely into the connection point between the drone’s stabilizing fin and main body.
Crack.
The drone emitted a crisp snapping sound.
It spun wildly out of control.
The detached main body was flung sideways and crashed into the second drone beside it.
At that exact moment, the second drone had just finished locking on and begun firing.
As a result, the two drones collided.
Bang.
They exploded into a cluster of sparking electrical flames beneath the ceiling, accompanied by the smell of scorched circuitry.
“Needle Eye-II Sentry Drones.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi narrowed her eyes at the heap of scrap metal on the ground.
“I didn’t expect they already had this model three years ago.”
“Are these things…
advanced?”
Russell asked cautiously from the side.
As a secondhand goods dealer, what he really wanted to know was whether they were valuable.
But whether they were advanced and whether they were valuable were essentially the same question.
After all, the more advanced they were, the more money they were worth.
“Average.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi’s evaluation sounded rather indifferent.
“If I remember correctly, they’re security units produced by Belobog Heavy Industries.
Their attack mode is a 3.5-second charge Ether Focused Beam.
Effective range is only about twenty meters.
The marketing claimed they could penetrate standard armor, but field reports said the specifications were exaggerated.
They can only penetrate relatively poor-quality standard armor.”
“I think the newest version is around Mark IV by now.
I’ve seen people from Section 1 tinkering with them before.”
Russell nodded.
Understood.
This woman truly was a memory monster.
She remembered even details like this.
Then again, for someone with her combat power, drones themselves probably counted as little more than clever gadgets.
Still, hearing about Section 1 was interesting.
Russell had heard that Section 1 was the largest section in the Hollow Special Operations Section, with over a thousand members.
He had originally imagined it operated like a military unit.
Now it sounded more like a collection of specialized gadget teams.
“More importantly—”
While Russell was making assumptions about her, Tsukishiro Yanagi appeared to be doing the same.
She turned and glanced at the waist-high stone Block in front of Russell.
“So your thing can be deployed like that.”
“Yep.”
Russell nodded without elaborating.
“Otherwise, why would I need a Pickaxe to mine it?”
Tsukishiro Yanagi didn’t continue the topic.
The Block itself had only briefly caught her attention.
What she was truly pondering was something else.
This man genuinely seemed like an ordinary civilian.
He showed no signs of combat conditioning whatsoever.
His movements.
His posture.
His reactions under pressure.
Every detail screamed amateur.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of tactical training.
…Was he really a naturally occurring special Ether Aptitude user?
Aside from that absurdly overpowered Ether Aptitude, nearly every aspect of this man’s behavior pointed toward him genuinely being an ordinary Hollow Raider.
Precisely because that ability was so outrageous, Tsukishiro Yanagi found it difficult to believe that someone like him could remain completely unknown until now.
At that moment, six scanning beams from six drones simultaneously locked onto Tsukishiro Yanagi.
Apparently, while the two of them had been talking, the ceiling hatches had quietly opened again.
This time their target selection was very clear.
The woman before them was obviously a much greater threat than the man behind her.
“I’ll handle them all.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi didn’t look back.
Her tone carried a deliberate air of unquestionable certainty.
She wasn’t the type to play the role of a decorative vase.
Being forced into a passive position ever since being rescued by him had made her instinctively uncomfortable.
Now she intended to use her combat strength to change that dynamic.
Russell said nothing.
He merely retreated behind the Cobblestone Block.
He had never intended to compete with Tsukishiro Yanagi for combat duties.
Besides, it was obvious these drones considered her the higher-priority target.
…Like I’d bother taking over a job like that.
Russell obediently crouched down.
Then he covered his ears with both hands.
Ding! Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
Ding!
Dong!
Dong!
Clang!
Clang!
Bang!
Bang!
In reality, the whole thing lasted only about thirty seconds.
All six drones went silent.
Holding her Naginata, Tsukishiro Yanagi let out a light breath.
She even walked a lap around the open area inside the vault.
At last, there was no more irritating drone buzzing.
Nor were any additional drones triggered.
“Excellent.
Area cleared.”
She tapped the heel of her shoe lightly with the weapon’s handle.
The extended shaft snapped back into place.
Tsukishiro Yanagi spun the blade in a flourish before smoothly sheathing it.
While women dressed up for those who appreciated them, Russell couldn’t help feeling that her performing such an elegant series of blade flourishes in such a confined space was at least partly meant as a demonstration directed at him.
Yeah.
Very impressive.
Maybe don’t be quite so impressive next time.
Russell nodded with feigned composure, then gestured toward a corner of the vault.
Tsukishiro Yanagi raised an eyebrow slightly.
Following his gaze, she turned around.
Then she saw a large cylindrical device.
Adjusting her glasses, she revealed a look of surprise after getting a clear look at the dark metallic machine.
She had not expected to find something like this inside the vault.
A Cultivation Pod.
She had never seen any mention of such a thing in any Belobog Heavy Industries records.
The interior had been dim when they first entered.
Combined with her old injury, which affected her eyesight somewhat, she simply hadn’t noticed it before.
Fortunately, she hadn’t accidentally sliced the Cultivation Pod in half while destroying the drones.
“Can you open this thing?”
Russell could tear down walls.
He couldn’t dismantle this.
Well, he probably could turn it into spare parts.
But the white marker on the minimap was located right here.
He definitely wasn’t about to start smashing it with a Pickaxe.
“That’s easy.”
Tsukishiro Yanagi reached out and felt along the edge of the pod.
She flipped open a cover panel and pressed the button hidden underneath.
Psssh—
Accompanied by the sound of hydraulic pressure releasing, the Cultivation Pod, roughly the size of a motorhome, slowly opened.
★ ★ ★
Shilling time!