After the brief argument, two female figures finally stepped out from behind the portal.
The first figure radiated a very dense aura of military intimidation. The woman wore a long military uniform coat draped over her shoulders like a grand cape.
A portion of her face and the area around her neck and eyes were covered by severe burn scars, but instead of looking disfigured, the scars actually further emphasized her authority as a ruthless veteran commander.
Meanwhile, the second figure walking beside her had a much wilder and unruly appearance. The reddish-brown haired woman wore a minimal top, boots, and short jeans cut to reveal most of her thighs. Her eyes stared watchfully around, and in both her hands, she already gripped tightly a pair of short-barreled firearms, ready to shoot anyone who looked threatening.
The appearance of these new members instantly drew everyone's attention. All eyes in the room were fixed on the two of them.
However, a completely different reaction was shown by Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg.
Instead of looking at the two armed women, the old Magician's red eyes looked up, staring straight into the empty air right above their heads.
"Hoo... this is truly very interesting," Zelretch muttered softly with a faint smirk.
A smile of interest was clearly etched on Koko's face. "Oh, it seems we got new members who—"
Her words were cut off in the air. Without warning or a signal, the brown-haired woman in short jeans instantly raised both her weapons and pulled the triggers straight at Koko.
BANG! BANG!
Two bullets shot through the air with deadly speed. However, before the hot lead could touch Koko, Ritsuka reacted with a speed that far exceeded human limits. The young man blinked across the distance, positioning himself right in front of Koko like an impenetrable shield.
Using only his pair of bare hands which were now glowing brightly, flowing with magical energy, Ritsuka caught and stopped the bullets' trajectory.
"Calm down, you two," Ritsuka said briefly, letting the dented bullet projectiles fall to the floor.
However, Valmet, who saw her boss's life almost taken, was instantly ignited with anger. Her warrior instincts exploded. Ignoring Ritsuka, Valmet immediately pointed her weapon at the newcomer and returned fire brutally.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
"Damn it!" cursed the brown-haired woman.
She immediately threw her body to the side with wild acrobatic movements to dodge the barrage of gunfire. Her reflexes successfully saved her life, although some of Valmet's deadly bullets managed to graze and scratch her skin until it drew blood.
As soon as she regained her balance, the woman immediately aimed the muzzles of her weapons back at Valmet for revenge. However, her movement was halted.
Who knows since when, Ritsuka was already right in front of her. Both of the young man's palms tightly gripped the ends of both her firearm barrels which were still smoking.
"Let go of my guns, you damn brat!" the woman shouted full of anger, trying to pull her weapons but they didn't budge at all in Ritsuka's hands. "I don't care about your business with them, but that smiling bitch over there has to die—"
Her rough shout suddenly choked in her throat.
The woman suddenly got goosebumps. She just realized that the sharp gaze of the young man in front of her was not directed at her at all. Ritsuka's emerald eyes were staring straight into the empty space right behind her back.
The hair on the back of the woman's neck instantly stood on end.
"Calm down, Salter, Nobu," Ritsuka's voice was soft, not loud, just his normal voice but full of command, his emerald eyes glowing sharply. His gaze pierced through the woman's shoulder. "Pull back your power, they are just ordinary humans."
Hearing Ritsuka's words, the brown-haired woman finally realized an anomaly. An incredibly cold metallic sensation suddenly pressed against the skin of the back of her neck.
With very slow movements so as not to trigger anything fatal, Revy glanced over her shoulder. Her breath caught instantly. A pitch-black sword blade was already right at her jugular, held by a black-armored woman who stared at her with a look like looking at a dead insect.
"Revy, lower your weapons now. We're finished."
A very calm and authoritative voice broke the tension. Revy hurriedly turned her head toward the source of the voice and her eyes widened in shock.
"Balalaika?!" Revy exclaimed in disbelief.
The woman wrapped in the military coat had apparently already raised both her hands in the air in a gesture of surrender. However, what shocked Revy half to death wasn't her boss's action, but the nonsensical sight around her. Dozens of long-barreled rifles appeared floating in the air, surrounding Balalaika's body from all angles and ready to riddle her with bullets like a honeycomb at any time.
Seeing Revy still frozen and reluctant to throw away her weapons, Balalaika threw a sharp and deadly glare at her.
The glare from a supreme commander demanding obedience.
Revy clicked her tongue roughly. "Tch... got it, Sis," she grumbled, conceding. The wild woman immediately lowered the muzzles of both her weapons and relaxed her muscles, canceling her fighting intent.
Even though the two newcomers had surrendered tactically, Artoria Alter and Oda Nobunaga did not budge from their positions at all, keeping their respective targets locked with drawn weapons.
Ignoring the dozens of rifle muzzles that could take her life in the blink of an eye, Balalaika instead smiled coldly. She slowly turned to Nobu without the slightest fear on her scarred face.
"Well," Balalaika said casually, her tone of voice very calm and flat. "Considering the two of us have surrendered... are you still not going to dispel this floating magic trick of yours?"
Hearing Balalaika's request to dispel her weapons, Nobu actually smirked faintly.
"Sure. But before that... throw away the extra toy you hid under your military coat first," Nobu demanded with her chin slightly raised.
Balalaika clicked her tongue softly. Her cold smile faded slightly. "Tch. Busted, huh," she snorted softly.
CLANK!
A large-caliber backup pistol was taken out from under her coat and just tossed onto the mirror floor, sliding until it stopped right in front of Nobu's feet.
"Good instincts. How did you know I was hiding that?" Balalaika asked, her tone of voice now radiating respect for Nobu.
"Don't underestimate my eyes. In the past, I've dealt with sly and bloodthirsty people like you far too often on the battlefield," Nobu replied casually. She snapped her fingers, and instantly all the rifles surrounding Balalaika faded into dust particles.
Balalaika straightened her posture, adjusting her slightly messy coat. "A very deadly yet fascinating magic trick," she praised.
However, instead of continuing to look at Nobu, Balalaika's gaze now shifted and locked entirely onto Ritsuka. Her sharp instincts were dissecting the young man from head to toe. She saw Ritsuka's speed in catching the bullets earlier, saw how the young man tamed two deadly monsters just with a command, and saw how calm the young man's heartbeat was amidst a rain of bullets.
"Hey, Kid," Balalaika called out in a heavy tone. The scarred woman narrowed her eyes, as if trying to skin Ritsuka's secrets. "Answer me honestly. How many bloody battlefields have you been through, Kid? You have the experience of a veteran which is unnatural for your age."
Pointed with such a sharp question, Ritsuka fell silent for a moment. But a second later, his expression changed 180 degrees.
"Eh? Me? What do you mean by battlefields?" Ritsuka tilted his head and scratched the back of his neck while laughing awkwardly. "Hahaha, how could I have such terrifying experiences! I did have combat instructors in my previous life, but it wasn't anything extraordinary!" Ritsuka answered in a tone deliberately made silly and overly innocent.
"Previous life?" Balalaika repeated. The scarred woman's eyebrows rose slightly, seemingly very interested in the words just spoken.
"Oh, that's right!" Koko exclaimed suddenly, clapping her hands with an innocent smile.
"Ritsuka, you've never told us anything about your previous life. What crazy thing actually happened to you in the past that you had to die at such a young age?"
The blunt words from the arms dealer were like a lightning strike in broad daylight for Nobu.
Nobu turned her head stiffly towards Ritsuka. Her red eyes instantly widened.
"Wait a minute... what did that woman's words mean, Master?!" Nobu demanded with a slightly raised tone. Her gaze pierced sharply, implying shock while also demanding answers to the huge secret that had been hidden by her Master all this time.
Hearing that, Ritsuka jerked hard. His face instantly paled and cold sweat began to drip from his temples.
"T-T-That... let's discuss it later!" Ritsuka replied haltingly, turning his face away in panic. "H-How about we let our new members introduce themselves first?!"
Seeing the young man's reaction, Balalaika stared at Ritsuka intently, as if recording that secret into her head.
"Kid, your way of changing the subject is truly very bad and amateurish," Balalaika commented flatly. She then let out a long sigh, deciding to play along with the young man for the time being. "Alright. Since we are new members in this weird facility, I will introduce myself. My name is Balalaika. And that unruly woman over there is..."
Balalaika pointed at the brown-haired woman who came with her. Following the direction of Balalaika's index finger, everyone's attention shifted.
However, instead of seeing someone ready to be introduced, they were instead treated to a chaotic scene.
"Hey, One-Eyed Gorilla! Do you want me to gouge out and destroy your other eye, huh?!" the brown-haired woman shouted with veins of anger clearly etched on her neck.
"You better watch your dirty mouth, Cheap Whore," Valmet hissed no less sharply, her voice as cold as ice.
The two dangerous women had apparently stepped forward and were facing each other. Their foreheads clashed hard against one another.
The two glared at each other from a few centimeters away, radiating an aura of pure hostility and street-level killing intent that was ready to explode into a physical fight at any time.
"Revy!" Balalaika called out in a firm tone.
"Valmet!" Koko exclaimed simultaneously.
The reprimand from both leaders made the two women who were busy cursing at each other and clashing foreheads jerk stiffly in unison.
"Come here," Koko and Balalaika ordered almost simultaneously.
Without daring to argue in the slightest, Valmet and Revy nodded obediently and immediately stepped back, returning to their respective sides. Ritsuka, who saw the incident, couldn't help but hold back a faint smile.
"Her name is Revy," Balalaika finally took over the introduction. "She is actually not my subordinate, but rather an underling of one of my business acquaintances. Her boss was supposed to be the one meeting me today. But for various reasons, this delinquent woman was sent to replace her boss to discuss business matters with me. And well... this series of bad luck from being with her is what ultimately caused me to get dragged into this weird place; it's because of her that I'm here."
Ritsuka nodded in understanding. "I see. My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru. Nice to meet you," the young man greeted politely. "But excuse me, if I may know... why did you instantly aim your guns and shoot Koko when you first appeared from the portal earlier? Did the two of you already know each other?"
Hearing Ritsuka's name, Revy's eyebrow raised slightly. "Wait, you're Japanese, Kid?"
"Yes, that's right," Ritsuka nodded, puzzled. "What's the matter?"
"Well, it's nothing. I just happen to also have a stubborn coworker who comes from Japan," Revy snorted casually, briefly recalling the figure of her colleague.
Revy's gaze then shifted, staring sharply at Koko with full hatred. "And as for the reason why I shot her earlier... that was purely because of my instincts and past experiences."
Revy clicked her tongue roughly. "I've seen sickening expressions like that far too often. The fake smiles of greedy monsters who rake in profits and live prosperously upon piles of corpses and the suffering of others."
Instead of being offended by the direct accusation and insult, Koko just laughed lightly. She waved her hand in a humbling gesture.
"My, my, that accusation of yours is very cruel!" Koko deflected with an innocent face.
"I am not that kind of monster at all. I am just an ordinary arms dealer who always operates and abides by the rules, you know~"
"Wipe that disgusting smile off, Monster," Revy growled, her face wrinkled with disgust. "In my world, not a single loan shark disguised as an arms dealer like you cares about that nonsense called 'rules'."
"So, you reacted aggressively because of your trauma and bitter experiences, huh," Ritsuka concluded understandingly. The young man then turned towards Balalaika. "Then, what about you, Miss Balalaika? Is your reason for letting her shoot the same as Revy's?"
Balalaika carved a cold smile. "Even though I can smell the 'scent' of the same monster from her, that isn't my main reason," Balalaika answered calmly, her eyes staring straight at Koko.
"My instincts simply told me that this silver-haired woman... could one day become a very troublesome rival, or even a deadly threat to my business empire."
Before the clash of dominance between the arms dealers and the mafia could continue, L's flat voice suddenly interrupted the conversation.
"Wait a minute. Before you continue this argument, there is something far more important that I want to ask," the detective interrupted.
"What is it, L?" Ritsuka asked, turning to the messy-looking man.
L's pitch-black eyes locked onto Revy's and Balalaika's figures alternately.
"What was the meaning of your earlier words... 'it's because of her I got dragged into this place'?" L demanded in a fast tone. "Are you two actually from the exact same world? And... before arriving at this place, did you also run into that 'glowing boy' entity simultaneously instead of one by one?"
Hearing the barrage of interrogation-like questions, Revy clicked her tongue in annoyance and rolled her eyes.
"Tch, you're so damn noisy, Panda Eyes," Revy grumbled roughly while crossing both arms in front of her chest. "Yeah! Sis Balalaika and I are indeed from the same hellhole!"
Revy shrugged her shoulders with an annoyed expression. "Earlier I was bored to death representing my boss to discuss some damn business matter with Sis in her office. Then out of nowhere, a fucking black hole suddenly appeared in the middle of the room and sucked the two of us up alive!"
The wild woman sighed roughly, still unaccepting of the incident that befell her. "And yeah, before being thrown into this weird mirror room, we came face to face with that holier-than-thou boy whose body was shining blindingly. He babbled at length about this 'Interdimensional Gathering' nonsense. So what?! Got a problem with that, huh?!"
Hearing Revy's explanation, L suddenly fell stiffly silent.
"If the two of them come from the same dimension and were pulled by that 'glowing boy' simultaneously... that means they both count as a single representative, not two separate members," L muttered softly, his brain spinning to process the information at incredible speed.
"L? What are you thinking about?" Ritsuka asked, surprised to see L suddenly freeze.
"Something is off," L hissed with a tense face. "The system earlier clearly announced the arrival of two new members. Based on the pattern, one world counts as one member slot. Out of these two people, one of them is the gathering member and the other just got sucked in along with her, so one of them is the first member... then where is the second member?"
As if realizing something very fatal, L instantly swept his gaze quickly around the room.
His eyes immediately caught another anomaly. He saw Zelretch, who had been silent all this time, staring sharply into the empty air above them. In another corner, L also saw Kagaya Ubuyashiki suddenly trembling violently while clutching his chest, with his wife, Amane, trying hard to calm him down. L's instincts screamed loudly that there was something very wrong with this situation.
However, before L had the chance to warn the others, a heavy and cold voice broke the silence.
"What are you going to do to my disciple, huh?"
L immediately looked up. His eyes widened in shock.
Somehow, Zelretch was no longer in his original spot. Zelretch teleported and now stood right beside Ritsuka. The old man's right hand was stretched straight forward, tightly gripping something completely invisible—just a few centimeters away from Ritsuka's chest.
Seeing that, Kagaya's mental defenses finally broke.
"Ritsuka! Get away from there!" Kagaya screamed hysterically, his voice filled with fear. "There is something else in this room! It's right near you!"