Autumn Mountain Yawata, who had always prided himself on being a “brainy type,” was currently undergoing the most strenuous physical activity he had experienced all year.
Yes, a “brainy type” like him would always rather talk than move his legs. Passing the military academy’s basic physical fitness test was cause for celebration. After all, for his strategic research major, physical fitness, shooting, and basic combat didn’t account for much of his overall score.
But now, he had to flee through this small alleyway, like a rat fallen into a gutter.
He felt as if his legs were filled with lead, and his breathing, exhaled from his nostrils, grew heavier and heavier. Autumn Mountain Yawata guessed that he must look terrible right now. If the Brotherhood—no, the Lionheart Society, as they were now called—saw him, he would definitely withdraw and never show his face again.
…If Yu Lian saw him, he’d rather die.
“Young Master, don’t be afraid! As long as we get out of here and onto the main road, we’ll be safe!” the large man in the suit said to Autumn Mountain Yawata.
“Yes, our car is parked outside. There are police and surveillance cameras on the main road! We have nothing to fear!”
Autumn Mountain Yawata nodded. Although he felt anxious, he wasn’t in too much panic. As a “wise general,” he had long been mentally prepared for the current situation. At worst, he could find a way to escape.
However, unless it was a matter of life and death, he truly didn’t want to use that precious item. After all, it was a one-time use item, passed down by his ancestors for self-preservation.
What made him relatively relieved was that the spiritual energy user who was currently chasing him, though elusive and hard to catch, clearly wasn’t very fast in terms of absolute speed, nor was his attack power strong. Otherwise, the three of them would have died many times over.
To be honest, this attacker was only tricky because his true form couldn’t be found.
But just then, the large man in the trench coat, who had been covering their retreat, suddenly let out a cry of pain. Looking back, Autumn Mountain Yawata saw that he had stepped on a patch of ground that had inexplicably caved in, causing him to stumble and fall head over heels.
Autumn Mountain Yawata stopped, turned, and ran towards him, his hand reaching into his embrace.
“Young Master, hurry and go!”
“The lives of loyal comrades and subordinates are far more important than so-called money and treasures! Remember, Yawata, people are the city, people are the wall, people are the moat!” Autumn Mountain Yawata’s grandfather’s teachings flashed through his mind in an instant, and without another word, he prepared to activate the treasure on his person.
But at this very moment, a friction sound echoed in the air, and a dark shadow, like a giant eagle, swept across the street in the twilight. It directly passed over the large man in the trench coat who was lying on the ground, soaring into the distant air.
He raised his knee and violently struck the void, then a tearing roar of air was heard.
In Yawata’s vision, it was as if he saw a wave of sound spreading, and a figure was sent flying backward, crashing into the wall with a muffled groan of pain.
And the dark shadow that had descended from the sky landed lightly, and it was indeed Yu Lian.
Autumn Mountain Yawata was filled with mixed emotions for a moment, and all his words turned into a sigh of relief. But then, he saw Yu Lian turn and glance at him, saying, “Autumn Mountain, you dropped your glasses, you know.”
Autumn Mountain Yawata felt so ashamed he wanted to die, but he quickly pulled out an identical pair of glasses from his pocket and put them on.
On the other side, the attacker, who had been sent flying by Yu Lian’s knee and was now plastered against the wall, was struggling to raise his upper body. He was wearing a very suspicious black jumpsuit and a mask, clearly not a respectable person.
“You, who are you?”
Yu Lian didn’t immediately think of a reply, then he heard the other person say again: “…Someone from the Kuki-gumi? Hmph, whatever they offered you, the Norman Gang will give you three times that!”
What the hell is the Kuki-gumi? Is this really a gangland revenge drama?
Yu Lian couldn’t help but turn to look at Autumn Mountain Yawata, who was pushing up his glasses and said, “The Norman Gang hasn’t paid their own subordinates’ living expenses for years. Furthermore, they even silenced all the mercenaries they hired because they couldn’t pay the final installment.”
That’s a bit much!
“Hmph, those are all rumors! The Kuki-gumi’s men are useless, but their tongues are very active!”
“But your own subordinates really haven’t been paid living expenses for years!” Yawata added.
This time, the other party remained silent.
“And what exactly is the Norman Gang’s connection to the All-Unification Church? And who are you in the All-Unification Church?”
Yu Lian frowned, glancing at the black-clad man with a look as if he were seeing something dirty, and couldn’t help but pat his knee.
The black-clad man, who exuded a regrettable aura from head to toe, felt offended. He snorted coldly and slowly let himself merge into the wall. Immediately after, the solid bricks and stones behind him seemed to turn into liquid, slowly enveloping his body, swallowing him bit by bit.
“Oh? Environmental assimilation? The Dark Side of the Fanatic, Second Ring, Adaptor?”
Just as Yu Lian confirmed the other party’s identity, he heard him say again: “Kid, I’ve memorized your face! I’ll find out who you are sooner or later! The Norman Gang’s hatred can only be repaid with blood!”
He smirked, preparing to escape, but then he suddenly felt a sharp, excruciating pain in his head, as if someone was stirring his brains with an invisible steel needle. He wanted to scream but couldn’t, only instinctively clutching his head.
In that instant, he also lost his grasp on his surroundings. The wall, which had been like mud, regained its substance, quickly returning to a solid state.
This reinforced concrete structure was much stronger than a strongman’s arm strength, and it immediately trapped him entirely within the wall.
Steel, rock, and other stronger alloy constructions, like unbreakable iron chains, pulled at the black-clad man’s body, then slowly crushed his bones.
The intense pain in the black-clad man’s brain also made him involuntarily let out gasping sounds of pain, but he couldn’t say anything coherent. He felt as if his lungs were squeezed against his bones, and now he couldn’t even breathe, let alone speak.
“Spare me!” He squeezed out a pleading expression towards Yu Lian, who was approaching him, hoping the other party would show mercy. But seeing no reaction from the other party, he suddenly realized that he was wearing a mask.
Then, Yu Lian casually pulled up a manhole cover from the side of the road and smashed it directly into the other person’s face, embedding the other person’s upper body along with the steel plate into the wall before letting go with a relieved sigh.
The black-clad man’s limbs were still twitching, like a frog that had just had its head cut off, but no one would probably want to open it up and see what his upper body, smashed into the wall by the steel plate, looked like now.
Yu Lian clapped his hands, then looked at Autumn Mountain Yawata. His two companions, the man in the trench coat and the man in the suit, were both trembling slightly, not even daring to make eye contact with Yu Lian. However, Yawata’s own expression hadn’t changed much, but behind his glasses, a light suddenly shone, startling even Yu Lian.
The emotion this light conveyed was so complex that it even caused Yu Lian to waver slightly. Then, Autumn Mountain Yawata, whose poker face was as unchanging as ever, actually managed to squeeze out a faint smile.
“Thank you, Brother Yu Lian, for descending from the heavens in such a desperate crisis to save my life. You are truly a soulmate!”
The scene was truly a bit unsettling, like a stiff wax doll grinning at you. Yu Lian couldn’t help but twitch his mouth and unconsciously took a step back.
“I see… Well, I’ll be taking my leave now!”
But at this moment, Autumn Mountain Yawata had already pounced, grabbing Yu Lian’s sleeve: “We’re friends, right? We’re good friends, right?”
Brother Yawata, your character is breaking! Yu Lian watched the other party in amazement, unable to help but sigh at how a seemingly reserved, emotionless man with glasses actually had such a talent for taking advantage of situations.
“You absolutely must help your good friend!” He was half-bent, saying his plea in a flat, monotone voice: “Can you really stand by and watch me die? This is the request of my entire life! Please, you must help me! My dear friend!”
It must be said that speaking such a shameless plea in a monotone voice felt quite incongruous, and coupled with that placid face, it truly had a somewhat unsettling effect.
Yu Lian looked at the other party, who seemed ready to prostrate himself if he didn’t agree, and started to feel a headache coming on.
“I’m telling you, let go of me now, don’t force me to get rough!”
He remained bent over, saying in an unwavering tone: “It’s fine, please feel free to get rough! However, after you’re done getting rough, please do listen to my heartfelt plea!”
“I’m very busy, I have to cross the Atlantic Ocean soon!”
“No problem, I’ll send you in my private jet afterward! No, I’ll give you my private jet directly!”
Yu Lian admitted that for a split second, he was actually tempted.
“…I also need to hurry and prepare some equipment!”
“I’ll prepare whatever equipment you need! Whether it’s for robbing banks, kidnapping, or bombing the National Assembly Building, I have all the equipment, and it’s definitely better than what you’d find on the black market!”
Yu Lian had to admit that for a split second, he was tempted again, and then he felt like silencing this guy.
“This isn’t the place to talk.” Yu Lian sighed, feeling that further entanglement would only waste more time.
“Indeed, this place is not suitable for a long stay!” Autumn Mountain Yawata nodded in agreement, pointing in a direction: “Come with me, my soulmate!”
Why the hell are you imitating my speech? And also, can you please stop saying such disgusting things with a straight face and in a monotone voice?
After tidying up the scene, they quickly left. Perhaps because the widespread riots in the city were too chaotic, a violent murder that occurred here didn’t even attract anyone’s attention.
They left the alleyway and got into a large commercial hovercar parked on the street.
Fortunately, the unrest hadn’t spread to this area yet. If they had been a few minutes later, this car would probably have been burned by the rioting crowds.
The man in the suit and the man in the trench coat sat in the front seats, one driving and the other holding a gun, watching their surroundings. The off-road vehicle continuously accelerated, retracting its wheels and beginning to hover and ascend even before leaving the no-fly zone. It quickly left the old city district, moving further and further away from the center of the unrest.