Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The “Daily Life” of An Armed Detective

On the first day of the second semester of her second year in high school, Kanako Tohyama awoke to someone calling her name.

“Kanako-chan, Kanako-chan, wake up. If you don’t get up now, there won’t be any time left.”

A pleasant female voice echoed in Kanako Tohyama’s ear, accompanied by the gentle fragrance of peach blossoms lingering at the tip of her nose.

Shaken gently, Kanako Tohyama opened her eyes to see a face that was all too familiar.

“Oh, it’s just Shirayuki…” Kanako Tohyama muttered, releasing her right hand from under the blanket.

“Hurry up and get ready. I’ve made breakfast,” the person said softly.

This person’s full name was Shirayuki Hotogi. She was Kanako Tohyama’s childhood friend.

According to the description of one of Kanako’s otaku classmates, Shirayuki Hotogi’s precise archetype would be the “childhood friend who reappears in your life.”

“Before that, please hand me my phone,” Kanako said, sitting up and reaching out to Shirayuki.

Shirayuki, though confused, took her childhood friend’s phone from the nearby table and handed it over.

Taking the phone, Kanako dialed a number.

“Hello, Campus Police? Someone has broken into my dorm room illegally…”

“K-K-K-Kanako-chan, what are you d-d-d-doing???” Shirayuki instantly panicked. She never expected Kanako would call the police directly. With strength like an ox, she pinned her childhood friend back onto the bed, trying to snatch the phone away.

“What are you doing? I never gave you a key. How did you get in?” Kanako fired off three questions in a row.

Being abruptly awakened from sleep, Kanako had even prepared to confront the intruder head-on. Her right hand, hidden under the covers, was wrapped in a slash-proof neckerchief, and her Beretta M92F service pistol was tucked under the pillow.

Armed Detectives had a course dedicated to learning how to maintain vigilance while sleeping.

Of course, this was also Kanako’s own failing. She had been unaware that someone had entered her bedroom. Even if the intruder was her childhood friend, a period of recent despondency had made her complacent.

“I made a copy of the key last semester…” Shirayuki admitted quite honestly.

But Kanako felt her childhood friend had other motives. Was this a woman’s intuition?

“…Barging into someone’s dorm room is terrifying, you know.” Kanako felt utterly drained. She had just woken up, should have been refreshed, yet a sense of exhaustion spread through her entire body.

Shirayuki Hotogi’s skin was as fair as her name suggested. Her hair was jet-black, shiny, and smooth, styled with the same straight-across bangs she’d worn since childhood. Her gaze was gentle and steady, her eyelashes long and curled. Her personality was tender, the epitome of a Yamato Nadeshiko, yet she was exceptionally lacking in common sense in certain areas.

The two had met when they were about four or five years old, followed by a roughly ten-year gap until they reunited upon entering high school.

“I just returned from a training retreat at Ise Grand Shrine early this morning. It was still early, so I thought I’d come take care of you and make you breakfast…” Shirayuki stammered in explanation.

“I don’t need you to take care of me, and I don’t need you to make breakfast. There’s milk and bread in the fridge.”

“How could I! This is… it’s your brother who entrusted me to care for you like a mother. I absolutely won’t back down. A mother can’t let her child eat instant food.” Shirayuki suddenly raised her voice, but the thoughtful girl tactfully omitted that name.

“I’m not your child…” Kanako’s protest was weak, silently complaining about why her brother had to make such an ambiguous request.

Not seeing each other during the spring break had momentarily made Kanako forget that her childhood friend wasn’t simply overflowing with maternal affection—she genuinely harbored a strong desire to become Kanako’s mother.

“Hello? Hello? Is anyone there? Are you injured? Can you describe the assailant…” The phone buzzed with inquiries from the police station.

Shirayuki released Kanako’s hand, allowing her to continue the call.

“Ahh, false alarm, sorry. My student ID number is…” Kanako quickly dismissed the operator and hung up. Being questioned further would be another hassle.

Facing her childhood friend’s happy and slightly smug expression, Kanako couldn’t muster any energy. She didn’t even bother pursuing the matter of the dorm key because she knew all too well how stubborn the other girl could be about certain things. At least in the year since their reunion, Kanako had suffered plenty.

“Hurry up and get ready. Breakfast is getting cold,” Shirayuki said with a smile before leaving the bedroom.

Kanako could assert with confidence that her childhood friend undoubtedly considered this another maternal victory.

Watching Shirayuki leave the room, Kanako sighed in relief. Prolonged close contact wasn’t good for either of them.

With sleepiness completely gone, Kanako had no choice but to get up. Today, April 1st, was the day of the opening ceremony.

She changed out of her pajamas into the bulletproof sailor uniform and bulletproof pleated skirt mandated by Butei High, tied on the slash-proof neckerchief, put on the slash-proof black thigh-highs, and, of course, couldn’t forget the Armed Detective girl’s best friend—safety shorts.

Then, Kanako went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face before returning to the dressing table in her bedroom.

Looking at her reflection—a face that could rival her older brother’s—Kanako couldn’t help but sigh. She combed her waist-length hair and carefully arranged her bangs to partially obscure her face.

On the dressing table were cosmetics her childhood friend had bought for her, but Kanako hadn’t touched them.

Ever since moving from Kanagawa to Tokyo for school, Kanako had decided not to adhere to the notion that makeup was a necessary courtesy for women going out. It only brought her trouble.

Finally, Kanako put on a pair of black-framed non-prescription glasses matching her hair color, doing her best to conceal her appearance and look like an ordinary high school girl.

By the time Kanako reached the dining area, her childhood friend had already set out two servings of a breakfast full of “mother’s home cooking”, white rice, miso soup with seaweed, rolled omelet, shrimp tempura, grilled salmon, chilled okra salad, and for dessert, Saijo persimmons and oranges.

“Preparing all this must have been a lot of work.” Kanako was speechless, staring at the spread. If she had to make it herself, it would take two or three hours.

“Not at all. I just woke up a little earlier. I worry whenever I think about you often eating convenience store bento just for convenience’s sake. You probably didn’t cook for yourself during spring break either, right? You’re still growing, won’t you lack nutrients?”

“I drink plenty of milk.”

“That’s not enough!”

“Itadakimasu.” Kanako decisively started eating before her childhood friend could launch into a lecture, gratefully and quickly devouring the meal.

Seeing the other girl start eating, Shirayuki had to swallow the lecture already on the tip of her tongue. “No talking during meals” was a family rule.

“Gochisousama.” Kanako finished her breakfast like a whirlwind, put down her chopsticks, and picked up an orange to peel.

“Ah, it was nothing much.”

Shirayuki, being more conventional in her actions, hurriedly placed her hands on the table with fingers interlocked and bowed forward so deeply her head almost touched the tabletop. If this were on tatami, she’d probably be performing a full prostration.

“…” Kanako watched her childhood friend’s formal bow wordlessly. She had tried to dissuade her back in their first year, telling her it wasn’t necessary, but it was futile.

‘That was close…’ Accidentally catching a glimpse inside Shirayuki’s collar, Kanako quickly averted her eyes.

After breakfast, just as Shirayuki was about to clear the dishes, Kanako snatched the apron.

“You already made breakfast. I can’t let you do the dishes too.”

“But…”

“No buts.” Kanako didn’t want to be raised into a useless person who just opened her mouth to be fed. She continued, “It’s the first day of school. With all your student council work, you have a lot to handle, right? If you don’t head to school early, you’ll run out of time.”

Unlike Kanako, who hadn’t joined any clubs, Shirayuki was a top student among top students. She held positions as Student Council President, Gardening Club President, Handicrafts Club President, and Girls’ Volleyball Club Captain, all while maintaining academic scores with a deviation value of 75 in general subjects. She was arguably Tokyo Butei High’s only triple-threat honor student.

“Well… alright… Even though it’s the opening ceremony, remember to take your gun and knife.” Shirayuki’s motherly instincts kicked in again. Afraid Kanako might forget, she specifically ran into the bedroom and placed her childhood friend’s knife and gun in a conspicuous spot in the living room.

“I know, school regulations, right?” Kanako replied dismissively.

Tokyo Butei High School regulations stated: Students of Butei High must carry firearms and bladed weapons on their person while on campus.

Violators, if caught by a teacher, would at the very least have to pay a visit to that monster’s nest known as the Academic Affairs Office. No student wanted to deal with the people there—it could shorten your lifespan!

“And also, there might be a ‘Butei Killer’ on the loose!” Shirayuki looked genuinely worried.

“You mean that serial crime incident from last year’s school notification emails? Wasn’t the culprit already caught?” Kanako didn’t understand why her childhood friend was worried about an already apprehended criminal.

“B-but there could be copycats! This morning’s fortune-telling indicated you have a ‘women-related misfortune’ sign. If anything happens to little Kanako-chan, h-how will I explain it to your brother…” Shirayuki’s eyes welled up with tears.

“That must be a mistake in your fortune-telling. How could I possibly have another ‘women-related misfortune’ sign…” Kanako tried to sound casual, but goosebumps instantly rose on her skin.

Kanako knew her childhood friend came from a shrine maiden background, and her divination skills were no joke.

“…I hope it’s a mistake in my fortune-telling too.”

Shirayuki composed herself, took a name tag reading “Kanako Tohyama” from her skirt pocket, and personally pinned it to her childhood friend’s chest.

Tokyo Butei High required students to wear name tags in April, the new semester.

Not only that, Shirayuki seized the opportunity to grab Kanako and inspect her appearance.

Although Kanako strongly objected, she couldn’t defy Shirayuki.

‘Damn it, is this the authority honed from having many younger sisters at home?’ Kanako thought to herself.

Shirayuki had formidable wrist strength. Kanako simply couldn’t push her away—at least not under normal circumstances.

Enduring the ticklish sensation as her childhood friend tidied her up, Kanako had to hold her breath, close her eyes tightly, and suppress the somewhat restless flow in her blood.

Seeing Kanako’s bare face hidden behind her hair and glasses, Shirayuki’s feelings were complex, thirty percent worry, thirty percent secret delight, thirty percent fascination, and ten percent helplessness.

But Shirayuki still couldn’t bring herself to ask. Ten years was simply too long—so long that she hadn’t even recognized the other girl during the high school entrance exam. If not for that accident, they might have passed each other by.

Shirayuki deeply wished their relationship could return to how it was before.

Finally, after much pulling and tugging, Kanako managed to usher Shirayuki out of the dorm.

Even as Kanako closed the door, Shirayuki was still reminding her not to forget her weapons, just like parents worried their children might forget things.

Having seen off her nagging childhood friend, Kanako cleared the table, washed the dishes, then tidied up the room a bit, killing some time in the process. She didn’t plan to go to school too early.

If it weren’t for maintaining attendance to secure the school’s approval for her transfer application, Kanako wouldn’t want to stay at this school for a single moment longer.

Seeing it was almost eight o’clock, she holstered her gun at her waist, slipped the butterfly knife her brother gave her into her pocket, grabbed her school bag, and headed out.

As she left the dorm building, a bus was just pulling out of the nearby bus stop. Kanako didn’t mind, she planned to ride her bicycle to school anyway.

The confined space of a bus was not friendly to Kanako, easily causing certain unnecessary troubles, so her bicycle was her preferred mode of commute.

The weather was quite nice, with comfortable temperatures. Kanako mounted her beloved ladies’ bicycle, placed her bag in the front basket, and enjoyed the scenery along the way to school.

Tokyo Butei High was located on an artificial island in Tokyo Bay. The island was rectangular, two kilometers from north to south and only five hundred meters from east to west. Facing the Odaiba area of Tokyo across the water, this artificial island was also known as “Academy Island,” a comprehensive educational institution specifically for training Armed Detectives.

Armed Detectives (Abbreviated as “Butei”), were a profession born from deteriorating security conditions. Obtaining an Armed Detective license allowed one to act like the police, with the authority to carry weapons and arrest criminals, serving as a supplement to the current shortage of police forces. This professional qualification was internationally recognized.

However, unlike the police, the defining characteristic of Armed Detectives was that money could make the devil turn the millstone.

For payment and within the limits permitted by Butei law, Armed Detectives could take on any job. Simply put, they were legal jack-of-all-trades.

Of course, compared to police officers, if Butei broke the law, their penalties were much more severe, starting at three times the usual punishment, with a death sentence rate also three times that of ordinary criminals.

Tokyo Butei High School, as the name suggested, was a school specifically for training Armed Detectives. In addition to general subjects like Japanese, English, history, and geography, it also taught professional Butei skills such as assault, deduction, and driving.

Strictly speaking, Tokyo Butei High was not an academic high school but a vocational one.

The professional courses were divided into seven departments, each with two specialties:

Assault Department: Assault Specialty, Sniper Specialty,

Detective Department: Detective Specialty, Forensic Investigation Specialty,

Espionage Department: Espionage Specialty, Interrogation Specialty,

Communications Department: Communications Specialty, Intelligence Specialty,

Logistics Department: Vehicle Specialty, Equipment Specialty,

Medical Department: Medical Specialty, Rescue Specialty,

Research Department: Supernatural Search & Research (SSR), Criminal & Violent Research (CVR)

Kanako Tohyama had been in the Assault Specialty during middle school and the first two semesters of high school. She transferred to the Detective Specialty in the third semester of her first year. This specialty was considered relatively gentle and closer to normal at Tokyo Butei High. Remembering her days in Assault filled her with bitterness.

Riding past the monorail station leading to Odaiba, passing through the “Safe Zone” where buildings for gentler specialties like Detective and Communications were located, Kanako didn’t head to her classroom building. Instead, she went straight towards the gymnasium. Barring accidents, she should make it in time for the principal’s opening address.

However, just when you think there won’t be an accident, one happens.

“There’s a bomb on your bicycle.”

A synthesized electronic voice reached Kanako Tohyama’s ears.

“If you get off or slow down, it explodes immediately.”

Kanako first thought it was a prank, but then she noticed a self-balancing electric scooter catching up from behind, maintaining its distance and riding slightly behind and to her right, about two meters away.

The scooter was riderless. Only its central control pole seemed to have something attached.

Glancing back out of the corner of her eye, Kanako observed that a fully automatic gun mount had been installed on top of the scooter’s control pole. The dark muzzle of an Uzi submachine gun was pointed directly at her.

The Uzi was a classic firearm, considered a masterpiece since its debut. Its compact size made it easy to carry and conceal, with excellent reliability and resistance to jamming. Whether submerged in water, buried in sand, or dropped off a cliff, it could remain intact and functional. Additionally, it was comfortable to use in any firing position.

It used 9mm Parabellum ammunition, with a theoretical rate of fire of 600 rounds per minute and an effective range of 200 meters.

Just then, the speaker mounted below the automatic gun mount issued another threat.

“You cannot make external contact. If you dare use a phone, the bomb will explode!”

The term “Butei Killer” flashed through Kanako’s mind. She quickly recalled the modus operandi she’d read about in the school notifications.

First, plant a bomb on the target’s vehicle to restrict their movement. Then, pursue with a vehicle-mounted automated weapon, forcing them into the sea.

Cold sweat broke out on Kanako’s forehead. This matched her current situation exactly.

To verify the threat, while maintaining speed, Kanako carefully freed one hand and felt under the bicycle seat—the only place on the bike where something could be hidden.

Suddenly, her hand jerked in fright. Her fingertips encountered a somewhat familiar, resilient texture. If the speaker’s message wasn’t a lie, she guessed the thing under the seat was plastic explosive, probably packed full.

If this amount of plastic explosive detonated at close range, forget the bicycle, keeping her body intact would be a pipe dream. The distance between her toes and nose could be stretched to tens of meters. Bulletproof uniforms couldn’t withstand explosions!

Recalling her explosives training, Kanako was already sweating profusely, desperately wondering why the culprit had targeted her???

To be safe, Kanako carefully maintained her speed and steered the bicycle towards a deserted area.

Fortunately, it was the opening ceremony, with students and teachers gathered at the gymnasium.

The only advantage now was that the speed wasn’t too fast. The enemy only demanded no slowing down, not acceleration, so she could maintain a relatively steady pace.

The ladies’ bicycle had limited speed potential even when pedaling hard, lacking gears. Kanako worried that pedaling too hard might snap the chain.

Soon, she arrived at the second athletic field. As expected, it was empty.

She chose this field for three reasons: first, it was open, second, circling the track to maintain speed was easier than on complex road environments, third, once the opening ceremony ended, people would pass nearby, notice something was wrong, and come to help.

With no further demands from the culprit, this was the best choice Kanako could make. Even in the worst-case scenario, she could ensure no one else was harmed.

It also bought her a little space to think of a countermeasure, at least to recall where explosive disposal equipment might be on campus.

Remote control? Timer? Or a pressure sensor?

Kanako desperately tried to deduce the bomb’s detonation method and think of an escape plan. She hadn’t ruled out disabling the pursuing scooter first, but without knowing the culprit’s motives or exact location, she didn’t dare gamble on whether they’d detonate the bomb immediately.

After careful thought, Kanako decided it was better to maintain the status quo and see what else the other party demanded. With such a grand setup, they couldn’t just want to watch a high school girl perform a bicycle version of The Fast and the Furious.

But fate had other plans. Another sudden change occurred.

Just as Kanako was about to reach the entrance to the second field, her peripheral vision caught a figure appearing on a nearby apartment building.

The figure stood at the edge of the rooftop. It was the girls’ VIP dormitory apartments, where each room’s conditions rivaled a five-star hotel’s presidential suite, specifically for female students from well-off families. It was on a completely different level from the ordinary student dorms where Kanako lived.

The next second, something jaw-dropping happened.

The figure suddenly jumped off the apartment building. A flash of pink descended towards the earth like a cherry blossom petal.

Staring blankly at the scene, Kanako was at a complete loss. She could barely save herself, how could she spare energy to save someone else? The jumper was a girl with twin pink pigtails.

Just as Kanako’s mind went blank, a parachute bloomed like a flower on the twin-tailed girl’s back. Her pink pigtails fluttered in the wind like two wings.

The twin-tailed girl was gliding towards Kanako.

“Get away! There’s a bomb!” Kanako only had time to shout this. The support she wanted wasn’t this kind. Recklessly approaching would just give the culprit a double kill!

The twin-tailed girl’s parachute handling skills were superb. She maneuvered it with ease, entering the second field first and positioning herself directly in Kanako’s path.

Moreover, by adjusting her body posture, the twin-tailed girl could draw two pistols, one silver and one black, from holsters on her thighs.

“Idiot! Lower your head!” The twin-tailed girl raised her gun barrels directly towards Kanako.

Kanako instinctively reacted to evade. Gunfire followed immediately.

According to FBI data over nearly forty years, 90% of effective handgun engagements occurred within 15 meters, with some even as close as 8 meters or less. Hit rates beyond 15 meters were only around 30%.

The distance between the twin-tailed girl and the scooter happened to be right at that 15-meter threshold. But she was on an unstable parachute and using dual pistols.

And Kanako was positioned between the twin-tailed girl and the scooter.

Kanako didn’t know who this girl was and feared her bullets might hit her. She tried to curl up and prepared to withstand bullet impacts, praying she wouldn’t be shot in the head.

However, Kanako’s worries seemed somewhat unnecessary.

The twin-tailed girl’s marksmanship was quite remarkable. Bullets whizzed past Kanako, hitting their target one after another, instantly tearing the scooter to pieces. The submachine gun, speaker, and scooter separated and crashed to the ground.

The instant she finished shooting, the twin-tailed girl inverted her body, using her feet to hook onto the parachute control loops. She holstered both guns, stretched out her arms, and opened them towards Kanako in an embrace.

Under the last of its gravitational potential and some wind influence, the parachute carried the twin-tailed girl towards Kanako.

“Don’t be so reckless!” Kanako vaguely guessed the other’s intention. There were still about ten meters between them.

“Believe in your allies, save your allies!” The twin-tailed girl shouted the first article of the Butei Charter.

The situation was desperate, leaving Kanako no time to think. This might be her only chance to escape.

Gritting her teeth, Kanako pedaled like mad during the final distance to the twin-tailed girl, pushing the bicycle to its maximum speed. Success or failure hinged on this moment.

At the instant they converged, Kanako released the handlebars and collided heavily with the girl in mid-air. She kicked off forcefully to send the bicycle as far away as possible while propelling herself backward.

‘So hard!’

‘So soft!’

The twin-tailed girl had greater speed and momentum, so Kanako was the one sent flying backward.

To quickly escape the blast radius, the twin-tailed girl simultaneously detached the parachute from her back to avoid it slowing them down. The two flew in the opposite direction of the bicycle, tumbling and rolling together several times on the open field of the second athletic ground.

The bicycle, riderless, continued forward a few meters before losing balance, falling, and sliding. A violent explosion followed immediately.

“BOOM!!!” A deafening explosion reverberated around the athletic field. The bicycle was torn apart in the blast.

The violent hot wind stirred by the shockwave swept towards Kanako and the twin-tailed girl, blowing them both towards the sports equipment warehouse at the corner of the field.

Thud! Kanako only felt her back hit something before losing consciousness.

…………

“Ah!” After an unknown amount of time, Kanako jolted awake. Her consciousness slowly returned. She felt she was curled up facing upwards inside some kind of box.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch!” Kanako sucked in a cold breath, touching her nose and smelling a strong gardenia fragrance. When she had collided with the girl earlier, the impact was too strong with no cushioning, and her nose bridge was painfully pressed by her glasses!

Besides her nose, Kanako felt aches and pains wailing from all over her body.

However, still feeling pain meant no body parts were missing. Kanako privately felt relieved.

“…My glasses…” Kanako pinched her nose bridge, only then realizing her disguise prop had vanished.

Just as Kanako intended to look for her glasses, she noticed someone was still sitting on top of her, pink strands of hair scattered over her.

The twin-tailed girl was sitting on Kanako’s stomach, legs clamped around her sides, hands resting on the edge of the vaulting box, in a somewhat indelicate position.

Kanako guessed they had been blown by the explosion’s shockwave into the sports equipment warehouse, breaking open the unlocked warehouse door, knocking off the top lid of the vaulting box), and finally landing together inside it.

Kanako felt the beatings she took in the Assault Department hadn’t been in vain—at least nothing seemed broken.

A normal person going through that would already be unable to get up. Having strong shock resistance was one of the few benefits Kanako gained from the Assault Department.

‘Did she pass out?’ Kanako looked up at the twin-tailed girl’s face. Her eyes were closed, but thankfully she was still breathing.

Glancing downward, Kanako could see the twin-tailed girl’s sailor uniform had ridden up, her pink, playing card-patterned bra brazenly exposed. A name tag reading “Kanzaki H. Aria” peeked out from a fold in her clothes.

‘Kanzaki… That transfer student from last semester… 65A → B concentrated uplift type… This kid is trying hard, though it doesn’t seem to do much…’ Kanako could tell the other’s bra size and type at a glance. Although she didn’t need such things herself, she had bought similar items for her brother before.

Kanako reached towards the twin-tailed girl Aria’s sailor uniform, intending to pull her clothes back down. Keeping them open like this was bad, for both her and Aria.

“Wha-what are you trying to do?”

Just as Kanako reached towards the other’s chest, Aria suddenly opened her eyes.

The scene looked as if Kanako was trying to take advantage of an unconscious person and grope Aria’s chest.

“Um… Your clothes are bunched up. I was trying to help?” Kanako didn’t know why she used a questioning tone. Perhaps Aria’s crimson eyes were too intimidating, and the timing was indeed rather unfortunate.

“…” Aria quickly pulled her clothes down.

Aria seemed to connect this to something. Although hard to see clearly due to the light, Kanako was sure the other girl’s face was slightly flushed.

Having dealt with her own disheveled state, Aria looked Kanako up and down, noticed the name tag, and finally fixed her gaze on Kanako’s face. Her breathing seemed a bit more rapid than before?

Kanako and this transfer student didn’t know each other, and for a moment, they both fell silent.

“You are…” Aria began.

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat!

A burst of gunfire interrupted Aria.

Bang! Crash! Chaos instantly erupted inside the sports warehouse. Bullets poured in through the warehouse door, a storm of metal sweeping through the entire warehouse.

“Again?” Kanako could feel a few pushes against her back—the vaulting box being hit by bullets.

The failure of the bicycle bomb attack hadn’t made the Butei Killer retreat. Instead, they had launched another assault.

“Toys of the Butei Killer! I count seven. Equipped with Uzis again.” Aria peered through a gap in the box towards the outside, confirming the enemy count.

With that, Aria patted her own cheeks, seeming to suppress something. She drew her two pistols, ready to return fire.

“Quick! Help me provide covering fire! I can’t do it alone!” Aria said, preparing to take advantage of a lull in enemy fire to lean out of the box and counterattack.

Kanako hurriedly pulled Aria back.

“Mmph!” Aria, caught off-balance, fell against Kanako’s chest again.

“Don’t be impulsive. Haven’t you noticed their fire isn’t concentrated?” Kanako dissuaded her. “The enemy’s firing trajectories are scattered, meaning they don’t know our exact position. If you return fire, you’ll give it away. Besides, all the sports equipment here, including the warehouse itself, has bulletproof properties. A mere seven Uzis couldn’t break through even if they shot all day, unless they toss another bomb in here.”

Tokyo Butei High might be sloppy in other areas, but they were wholehearted about bulletproofing. Bulletproof equipment was everywhere on campus, indirectly improving student survival rates.

Incidentally, Butei High had a mortality rate. Every year, students died during training or missions. News of so-and-so from the Assault Department dying on a mission was not uncommon. Some students would simply vanish without a trace.

As far as Kanako knew, by the end of the first year, several students from her grade had disappeared—some said they were on secret missions, others died in training accidents, and some just naturally vanished off the face of the earth, leaving no trace.

This was one reason Kanako wanted to leave Butei High. It was simply too dangerous. Bullets grazing your scalp was commonplace. Moreover, she had lost her motivation and goals for staying here.

Perhaps wary of the marksmanship Aria had shown earlier, the scooters didn’t dare charge into the warehouse for close-quarters suppression. Instead, they kept their distance, separated by the warehouse entrance, pouring relentless suppressive fire into the warehouse, though the area of fire coverage was actually quite limited.

Unfortunately, the vaulting box Kanako and Aria were in happened to be right within the Uzis’ area of fire coverage.

Kanako thought they should at least change position. The enemy’s suppressive fire was intense and sustained, indicating those Uzis were likely connected to high-capacity drums.

Also, the warehouse was full of bulletproof equipment. Bullets could easily ricochet off some items. They couldn’t ignore the possibility of being hit by a ricochet. Their heads had no cover protection.

“Those vehicles have cameras installed to monitor the battlefield, but probably lack thermal imaging capabilities,” Kanako added her assessment.

“Uwah!” Aria suddenly lifted her head from Kanako’s chest and took a deep breath, as if drowning.

Breathing rapidly, gaze unfocused, face flushed, Kanako realized Aria’s condition wasn’t right. This seemed like…

“Wha-what did you do to me?” Aria struggled against her weakening waist, moved off Kanako, and hugged herself, shrinking into a corner of the vaulting box, not understanding why she felt this way.

“Ah, this is bad, don’t be impulsive, don’t be impulsive!” Kanako felt this was bad. If they didn’t get out of here quickly, the consequences would spiral out of control.

The crux was, Kanako could feel herself being affected by Aria too. The pleasant gardenia scent, the utterly vulnerable demeanor, making one want to hold her close… If this continued, she would… she would…

The roar of the submachine guns now seemed like heavenly music to Kanako because it helped her maintain what little rationality she had left.

Disregarding the pain, Kanako used her back against the vaulting box, pushed with her legs, and slowly inched the box towards a blind spot in the sports warehouse, trying to get out of the Uzis’ firing trajectory.

Noticing movement inside the warehouse, three scooters approached the warehouse entrance. Aria used a gap in the box to fire a few shots at the advancing scooters.

Bullets struck the scooters’ bodies, forcing them to retreat again.

Seizing this opportunity, Kanako mustered her strength and pushed the box behind a wall in the sports warehouse, finally out of the enemy’s firing range.

Kanako quickly helped Aria out of the box and placed her on a mat against the wall. She herself drew her Beretta M92F and went to guard the warehouse entrance, not daring to look at Aria.

Kanako was escaping Aria’s spring-filled eyes, afraid things might worsen. Aria’s gardenia fragrance grew increasingly intense in her perception. A familiar yet unwelcome sensation gradually invaded her thoughts. An instinct rooted in her bloodline was awakening within her.

“Just endure a little longer, just endure a little longer…” Kanako muttered quietly, hoping her blood flow would settle down.

“Endure what?” Aria’s voice sounded right next to Kanako’s ear.

In the mere few seconds) Kanako had looked away, Aria had silently come to her side, like a cat.

Startled, Kanako turned her head. The intense gardenia fragrance rushed to her head. She met Aria’s gaze. The other girl’s tender lips, glistening with lip balm, were so close, tempting her to steal a kiss.

It erupted.

Kanako could no longer suppress the impulse in her blood. The instinct within her bloodline erupted.

“I’ll lead. You cover. Let’s charge out from here.” Aria also seemed afraid to meet Kanako’s eyes, turning away as if escaping.

Aria’s two guns were both Colt M1911A1 Government models. The large-framed pistols contrasted sharply with her petite stature.

“No way~~ How could I let cute Aria take such a risk~~” Kanako’s tone shifted from its earlier subdued and indifferent attitude to became flirtatious.

“Huh?” Aria looked at Kanako, bewildered.

“Cute? Wha-wha-what are you t-t-t-talking about…”

The word “cute” seemed to deliver a critical hit to Aria’s psyche. Her tongue got tied, unable to form a sentence.

“So~~ Aria just needs to be a good girl and watch~~ I’ll take care of everything myself~~”

“Why are you talking so smooth-tongued? And you’ve become… become…” Aria wore an expression of incomprehension, her flushed face honestly reflecting her impending mental overload and crash.

Aria seemed to want to say more, but Kanako gently pressed a left index finger against her lips, interrupting her.

Then, Kanako leaned closer to Aria, pressed on her shoulder, and whispered softly in her ear: “I haven’t changed at all~~ I’ll protect Aria~~ Hah~~”

“Kya!” Aria let out a small cry of distress, covered her ears, and her waist went weak, about to collapse onto the floor. Blowing in her ear was too stimulating for her.

This was part of Kanako’s little scheme to temporarily incapacitate Aria from combat.

Kanako helped Aria sit back on the mat and slipped her guns back into their holsters.

“Mmm-hmm~~” Before starting her move, Kanako threw a flirtatious glance at Aria.

Aria completely overloaded and crashed. Her face was flushed as if about to drip blood, mouth slightly open but unable to utter a word.

Kanako took out a small mirror she always carried from her student handbook and used it to quickly peek at the scooter distribution outside the warehouse.

Then, Kanako took action. She grabbed a bag of slaked lime powder stored in the warehouse.

This powdered lime was used for marking lines on athletic fields and happened to be perfect for Kanako’s purpose.

“Hey~~” Adjusting the angle, Kanako staying close to the door frame, tossed the lime powder bag outside.

Bang! The bag was shredded by the submachine gun fire. White powder instantly enveloped all seven scooters.

This result came from Kanako’s visual estimation and calculation. The bag would appear on a specific trajectory, bursting at the right position for the powder to most quickly envelop all scooters. The bag’s flight angle through the air was also carefully designed.

As if startled, the Uzis’ suppressive fire paused for a moment. This was the opening Kanako wanted—a chance to turn defeat into victory.

In that instant, Kanako leaned out from beside the wall. Without waiting for the lime dust to settle, she decisively fired.

Bang! x7

Seven shots in rapid succession. Kanako’s Beretta M92F was personally modified to have a full-auto firing mode.

Though the lime dust blocked her vision, she had remembered the positions of all seven Uzis from her earlier peek. That was enough.

Clatter! Clang! Sounds of objects falling to the ground arose. It seemed Kanako had succeeded.

As the lime dust cleared, Kanako saw all seven scooter control poles had been severed by bullets. Despite a few months’ hiatus, her shooting skills hadn’t grown rusty, though that was also thanks to her current special state.

The unsupported submachine guns all fell to the ground, falling silent.

The vehicle bodies below also seemed to lose balance due to the damaged control poles, toppling over and coming to a stop.

Kanako and Aria’s crisis was temporarily resolved.

[Author’s Note: Started a new book. I hope both new and old readers will show their support.]