‘Pulling the trigger was easier than I thought… I just had to suppress my fear of the weapon and the guilt of hurting someone else, then pull the trigger.’
‘Although the halo was unsteadily conveying something and giving me a headache, it didn’t matter—I wasn’t afraid of pain.’
‘However, the consequences of approaching and firing recklessly were more serious than I had imagined.’
“Bang!”
A 9×19mm Parabellum round fired at point-blank range slammed into her forehead, causing the unprepared Tuanzhang to jerk back violently under the immense impact.
The gunpowder smoke from the muzzle hadn’t yet dissipated, and a numb ache from the recoil traveled through my wrist, but…
That girl was stunned for a moment, then instinctively brushed her forehead with her hand, flicking away the flattened bullet shell.
“Clatter.”
The bullet casing fell onto the concrete floor with a crisp sound.
“…Doesn’t hurt at all? Hmph.”
After coming to her senses, she easily straightened her body, then grinned, looking at Hua Ye with a slightly irritated yet oddly proud expression.
“Defense Office Chief Buzhihuo Huaye, so you’re not good at fighting, huh?”
She quickly half-drew her assault rifle from her chest, and with the momentum of turning around, she suddenly swung the colorful stock at Hua Ye, who was somewhat taken aback—
“Eat my HK-461!”
The steel stock slammed sideways into Hua Ye’s abdomen.
Even though Hua Ye managed to jump back in time, guided by her previous life’s experience, she exposed herself to the Helmet Faction’s line of fire.
The Tuanzhang smoothly transitioned from crouching to kneeling, fully drawing her weapon, tilting her head to aim, and curled her lips with a smirk as Hua Ye’s expression showed a hint of panic.
“Hehe!”
That girl, wearing an infuriatingly excited smile, pulled the trigger without hesitation.
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
The thirty-round magazine was emptied in an instant, and the bullets chased after Hua Ye, who immediately sidestepped to dodge!
“What?! I forgot this girl also has a halo, so she’s not afraid of headshots at all!”
Thirty bullets might not be many, but the Tuanzhang was holding a fully automatic HK.
Even though the shooter’s accuracy wasn’t high, Hua Ye, with her halo flickering, was astonishingly able to cover over ten meters in an instant, dashing through the street, but she was still struggling in the rain of bullets, occasionally getting hit by one or two rounds.
“Hahaha! Even though I didn’t study hard in school and failed shooting class several times, you don’t seem like much either!”
‘This little brat!’
Taking advantage of the burst of fire, Hua Ye slipped into another alley, gasping for breath, gritting her teeth, her face twisted as she inwardly cursed her own weakness—
If she had just emptied the magazine into that girl’s forehead earlier, she wouldn’t be in this passive situation now!
She was held back by her previous life’s experience, forgetting that the students of Kivotos were monsters whose bodies could withstand tank missiles!
The halo seemed annoyed by this little brat’s impudence as well, flickering more and more frequently—
“Where do you think you’re running! Hiding in the alley won’t help, hahaha, I’m going to become a legend of the black market!”
Outside the alley, that little brat, after reloading, happily continued to shoot wildly.
The sound of innocent shop signs on both sides shattering incessantly filled the air.
The sudden change in the situation forced many shopkeepers to cover their heads, look helpless, and close their shops, lowering the bulletproof glass.
The students on the street had mostly evacuated, since they had already started running earlier when Hua Ye was on alert.
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
‘Is this bastard’s firepower so fierce?’
After taking several extremely painful shots, the opponent paused for a while because her magazine ran out…
But that pause was only three seconds!
Three seconds?
It only took about three seconds for her to reload!
Is Kivotos’s militarized education so intense?
Or is it the halo’s effect?
A thirty-round magazine felt like a hundred-round extended mag!
And such a fast reload?!
To pinpoint the opponent’s position, Hua Ye took a breath, grabbed a random wooden board from the alley, and tossed it out—
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
The bullets instantly shredded the board like rain—
Clearly, even though she was wasting bullets, she was still watching Hua Ye’s movements.
“I have to suppress her, or wait for her to run out of ammo… Otherwise, this will never end… But I’m holding a f*ing pistol, dammit!”
Trapped under a thug’s suppressive fire, Hua Ye instinctively cursed.
The next second, her phone in the inner pocket vibrated—
She pulled out her phone:
It was an unknown number calling.
At least, that’s what the contact’s automatic display said:
“Suspected unknown signal, intercept?”
“Who is it now?!”
She leaned against the wall, holding her gun, on alert, stomping her foot in irritation, grinding her heel against a small piece of wood on the floor.
‘Now she was pinned down here. Either wait for the police to rescue her, or wait for the enemy to run out of ammo… How could she, a Defense Office Chief, be so pathetic?! And now someone was even calling to harass her!?’
“Hey! This is Defense Office Chief Buzhihuo Huaye. What’s the matter? I’m handling official business. The situation is urgent. There’s no time for chatting!”
Hua Ye answered quickly, her tone implicitly hostile.
A familiar voice came from the other end.
Listening carefully, the background also included gunfire and the silly, extremely proud laughter of a certain Tuanzhang.
“Hua Ye! Hiss… Hua Ye! … Zzz… It’s me, Sensei! Sensei! No time to explain! I saw another Helmet squad gathering and rushing out of a side alley through the back door of a shop! The Helmet members who fled before are also coming back! I’m providing you with guidance now! I’m providing you with guidance now!”
‘What the hell?!’
But the man on the phone completely ignored Hua Ye’s confusion and continued to arrange things methodically.
“It’s been determined that the Helmet leader is steadily advancing toward your alley’s entrance. The new Helmet group seems to be attempting to ambush the original leader, while the original group is preparing to ambush the new group… Hua Ye, please immediately report your position and current situation!”
‘Damned advisor, just an outsider, and he dares to speak to me, Buzhihuo Huaye, like this…’
‘No, breaking out is the priority!’
Hua Ye immediately cut off her wandering thoughts and, based on the memories flooding her mind, quickly completed the report.
“I am Buzhihuo Huaye. I am approximately ten meters from the alley entrance. This alley is straight, about fifty meters deep, not connected, with no other external passages, no significant cover, no serious injuries, and cannot be used to set traps or create cover. Over!”
‘The sound of gunfire outside the alley briefly weakened… Reloading?! Good opportunity!’
“Wait! Based on the average reload time before… The enemy hasn’t run out of ammo. Suspected lure tactic! Hua Ye, don’t go—…”
In her excessive anxiety, Hua Ye pushed off the ground and, bolstered by a strange warmth surging through her body, suddenly dashed out of the alley—
“Haha! Fooled you! You must have slacked off in tactics class!”
The sound of gunfire instantly resumed! Unable to change direction in time, Hua Ye instinctively looked at the source of the shots.
Then her eyes narrowed—
The Helmet girl had somehow really swapped her HK-series fully automatic assault rifle for a long, hundred-round extended magazine!
That girl laughed heartily.
“Have a taste of this, Director! This is an extended magazine I specifically prepared to fight the clack-clack Helmet faction!”
Unable to stop, Hua Ye spat out a bleeped word.
“…F*!”
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
…
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
Sensei listened to the fierce gunfire coming from the Shittim Chest, followed by the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground.
His heart sank to the bottom.
Ersi Hemo had given him Hua Ye’s number, but the current situation…
Was not optimistic.
“Hua Ye?! Hua Ye?!”
There was no response from the other end—
Or rather, only continuous gunfire and low, strange laughter that couldn’t be identified.
No way.
Even though his waist still hurt badly, he had to find a way to cover for Hua Ye…
There were only three officers from the Valkyrie Police Station nearby, and they couldn’t make it in time.
Although waiting for the police to clean up would eventually solve the problem, what kind of teacher would he be if he couldn’t protect his students!
Moreover, from the short day he had spent with Hua Ye, he could tell she had a strong sense of pride and self-awareness.
She had only just seemed to change her view of the Helmet faction yesterday.
If she were bullied again by the Helmet girls here, it might hurt her psyche…
And second, the Helmet kids might also face retaliation…
Sensei calmly placed his palm on the shield activation button on the side of the Shittim Chest, cocking his ear to carefully listen to the sounds around him.
“Tap tap tap…”
“Pitter-patter…”
Though faint under the gunfire, he could still discern that both Helmet groups had seized the opportunity of Hua Ye’s reckless charge and were quietly advancing, ready to strike their respective targets.
The new Helmet group and the original one still plotting an ambush?
Could he guide and persuade them?
—No, the time and place weren’t right.
Last time he had managed to persuade the Waga Waga Helmet group mainly because his identity as an outsider without a halo was too unique, plus the Waga Waga Helmet group themselves were confused and didn’t really want to continue following the rioters.
That’s why he had a chance to convince them…
If he rushed out to try to persuade them, even with the protection of the Shittim Chest, there would be a risk to his life.
Rather than trying to persuade, he should think of how to provoke their conflict early to disrupt the situation and take the chance to rescue Hua Ye…
—But as a teacher, he wouldn’t think that way!
Every student was a precious child.
Instigating conflict among pure children to achieve his goals—
He wouldn’t accept that! The so-called adult is one who can protect the innocence and kindness of children!
If he couldn’t choose a third path in a dilemma, how could he have convinced the Student Council President back then, and how could he have come to Kivotos to become a teacher!
After rapidly constructing a possible solution and a backup plan in his mind, Sensei resolutely pressed the activation button and stood up, surrounded by the azure ripples emanating from the Shittim Chest.
[Shittim Chest activated. Current battery: 98%. Please be aware of the battery level.]
A mechanical prompt sounded.
Clutching the Shittim Chest to his chest, gritting his teeth against the sharp pain in his waist, Sensei slammed into the shop door.
Under the gaze of the shop assistant, who had gone into standby mode at the start of the conflict and hadn’t yet processed what was happening, he officially charged into the battlefield!
“Everyone! I am the one chosen by the Student Council President to serve as Kivotos’ ‘Sensei,’ [ ]! The device in my hand is a communicator directly linked to the Valkyrie Police Department system and the Defense Office system. Now, I am speaking to everyone present!”