"What was that explosion on the rooftop? Were Militech Agents up there?"
"I don't know, but all the Mobile Units have been dispatched there. I don't know what happened in the building, but it's a Red Alert."
Inside the building floors, all the standard lights were off. Only the lights from the planters and the red fluorescent lines on the tables and walls were still functioning, providing dim, hazy illumination.
In front of a corridor, two building security guards in suits were talking.
It seemed the news of Saburo's death hadn't spread yet, Berry thought.
However, knowing this news didn't mean they could let these two guys go, since they were blocking the path to the elevator.
Jackie and V hunched over and moved forward. Each grabbed one guard, strangled them, and snapped their necks, putting the two security personnel "to sleep."
"It's Shiyu, and it even has a silencer! They really thought of us!" Jackie laughed, picking up the gun from the floor.
The Shiyu, a kinetic submachine gun, inherited the consistent design philosophy of the Arasaka Corporation: small and light, roughly the size of two palms put together, with good handling, and a pleasing sound when fired, like a cat purring.
Jackie and V each grabbed one, and Arno, with the Relic Black Box hanging from his waist, followed behind.
"Assassinate if we can. Arasaka's attention is all on the top floor, so we need to hurry!" The bare-chested Arno nodded and continued forward.
"...Guard every exit and entrance of the building. Don't let even a single fly get past. Dismissed!"
"Yes!"
The rows of heavily armored operatives assembled neatly in front of the Squad Commander immediately dispersed.
"Shit!"
Jackie had just poked his head out but immediately pulled it back. He had glimpsed the heavily armored Special Forces downstairs from the indoor balcony.
There were at least two infantry squads, all regular Arasaka Corporation Special Forces, far superior to the building's security guards.
These Arasaka Special Forces were all armed with Arasaka Masamune Series Assault Rifles, clad in black heavy body armor, and their thick helmets were equipped with two router-like receivers for real-time communication with the Squad Commander and team members.
"This is fucking trouble..." Jackie shook his head at V. These special operatives wouldn't be easy to sneak past.
"How far away is the elevator now?" Arno asked.
"Not sure, let me check..." V quietly revealed half his head. His Qilu Si Model 3 Cyber-eyes flashed brightly, clearly scanning for possible routes.
"Hmm, not far. Maybe a few hundred meters." V pulled his head back and said.
"Try to sneak past. As long as we move fast, we'll be fine." Arno assured them.
"Let's give it a try then!" Jackie took a breath, psyching himself and V up. "It's fine, V, just think back to that time Berry and I stole that car—we were completely undetectable..."
"Jackie, see that stairwell over there? You go first, and we'll follow right after!" Arno pointed towards the downward spiral staircase across the way.
"No problem, let's go!" Jackie gritted his teeth, hunched over, and using the railing for cover, he sprinted across with his butt sticking out.
"Someone's there! Open fire!"
"Shoot! Shoot!"
But just as Jackie's rear end reached the stairwell, the heavily armored special operatives in the dining area below, which was full of tables, raised their assault rifles and began shooting.
"Da da da da da~!!!!!"
"Shit!"
The furiously flying bullets sparked all over the surrounding metal floor. Jackie huddled by the base of the wall, covering his head, not daring to show even a single hair.
"Surprise motherfucker!!!!"
But just as the special operatives concentrated their fire on Jackie, the bare-chested Arno leaped out, raising the cannon barrel on his right arm while his chest pendant swung wildly.
"Boom!!!!"
Four or five micro-bombs slammed into the crowd downstairs, instantly causing a loud explosion and scattering flames that lit up a good portion of the floor.
"Jackie, what the hell are you waiting for? Shoot!" V, shaking his blue, ear-length hair, stood up and sprayed the floor below with the Shiyu submachine gun in his hand.
"Shit!" Reminded by V, Jackie, who had just been targeted by concentrated fire, stood up full of rage and fiercely opened fire on the floor below with his gun.
The earlier explosion of the tracking bombs had sent seven or eight operatives flying, along with overturned metal tables and chairs. When V and Jackie opened fire, the operatives below immediately scattered, scrambling to find cover.
"They've ducked down, what now!?"
Seeing the operatives retreat behind cover, Jackie became anxious.
Boom!!!
Without replying, Arno jumped over the railing and landed with a crash.
Standing up amidst the wreckage of tables and chairs, Arno searched for the hiding special operatives.
"Shoot! Fire at the enemy!"
Seeing the enemy foolishly jump down, a Squad Leader wearing a combat cap popped his head out and commanded his subordinates to kill Arno, unaware that this action instantly caused Arno to lock onto him.
"Da da da da!!!!!"
A frantic rain of bullets struck, but Arno, seemingly impervious to pain, charged toward the Squad Leader, his boots thudding heavily against the floor.
"Shit, shit, what the hell is that monster!"
"The bullets won't penetrate him!"
The special operatives originally thought they could quickly take this guy down, but their eyes widened in shock when they saw the bullets deflect harmlessly off Arno's body.
"Shit!"
The astonished Squad Leader stared blankly upward at Arno, who had stomped the floor and leaped high into the air.
Arno was expressionless, his bare metal left arm, devoid of synthetic skin, raised high like a claw.
With a dull clang, Arno landed. His steel left hand swept down from the air, starting at the Squad Leader's head and ripping downward across his body.
Like tearing through tofu, the Squad Leader's body armor, along with the flesh of his chest and abdomen, was ripped open by Arno, leaving a deep red furrow. Shredded clothing and long strips of red and white flesh hung from Arno's hand.
The next second, blood and slippery organs instantly gushed from the wound torn open in the enemy captain, and the man crashed to the ground!
The atmosphere instantly froze; even the gunfire seemed to pause for a second.
"Shotgun!"
"Bang!"
Arno's body was covered in dense bullet holes, and his steps faltered slightly.
"Bang!"
A special Agent, holding a long-barreled shotgun, charged at Arno. Each shot made Arno retreat a step. Seeing that his attack seemed effective, the special Agent pressed on, wanting to completely take Arno down.
Finally, Arno was covered in bullet marks, hunched over in agony, as if one more shot would finish him.
Just as the special Agent raised his gun, intending to finish Arno, Arno suddenly looked up, flicked his left hand, and the flesh hanging on it splattered onto the assailant's face.
"Damn, I can't see..." Before the Agent could finish speaking, Arno balled his five fingers into a fist and punched his heavy helmet, knocking him to the ground.
The Agent on the ground groaned in pain. Arno stepped forward, raising his metal left hand, covered in scraps of flesh, high.
Pfft!
A flesh-tearing sound that made one's spine tingle rang out. The Agent straightened up like a carp leaping, and Arno's left hand was completely embedded in the guy's eye socket.
He pulled out his arm, creating a viscous sucking sound. The yellow and white matter clinging to his hand was still dripping, splattering onto the metal floor, and the surrounding air fell silent.
"Damn it, V, open fire!" Jackie was the first to react, jumping down from the upper floor and firing at the stunned Agents as soon as his feet hit the ground. Then V also jumped down and joined the fight.
And Arno moved again.
The Agents, having lost their commander, were quickly annihilated by the trio working together. Soon, only various dismembered corpses and scattered weapons remained.
"Arno, you... you're so damn awesome!" Jackie stammered for a long time, finally only managing to blurt out such a straightforward remark.
He admitted that he had been careless before, bragging and thinking too highly of himself.
Remembering his earlier ambitious demeanor, as if he was about to accomplish great things, Jackie now felt ashamed.
Compared to Arno, he was nobody.
He had thought they were companions before, but now it seemed like nonsense. Arno was clearly a big shot leading two rookies!
If not for Arno, Jackie felt he would probably be groaning on the ground by now.
"But, that being said, still..." Jackie scratched his face, looking at Arno strangely and saying, "Brother Arno, did you use me as bait just now?"
Jackie had realized something was off earlier. Arno had told him to sneak past, then immediately opened fire. It looked exactly like he was trying to draw enemy fire.
"No." Facing Jackie's questioning, Arno, wearing sunglasses, showed no discernible expression, only shrugging.
"Really?"
"Really."
Alright, that's enough, Jackie.
Berry thought, feeling a little guilty.
Some things are no fun if you keep digging into them.
Besides, people forget many things in their lives, why don't you forget this one too?
"Alright, I believe you." Jackie pouted helplessly. He had no way to deal with Arno's unyielding attitude.
The trio finally boarded the elevator and quickly arrived at the underground parking lot.
The elevator doors opened, and the three of them crept out, crouching low.
..."Just through this hall, and the parking lot is over there," Jackie said excitedly, looking at the distant door. He finally saw a chance to live.
In the middle of the hall stood a quadrilateral-designed flowerbed and an artistic sculpture, paired with dim lighting, making it feel like entering a 3D data world, full of the mathematical beauty of regular shapes.
"We're almost there, just a little more, V. A huge sum of money is waiting for us."
Hearing Jackie's unrestrained words, Berry wanted to stuff a dirty sock into his big mouth.
Jackie, can't you set fewer flags?
Berry felt utterly speechless.
And as if Jackie's jinxing had come true, a special squad suddenly entered through the hall entrance, along with a massive centaur mech, rumbling and stomping on the metal floor.
This wasn't the worst part; what was worse was this:
"Heat sensors detect enemies! Right there!"
The infrared beams from a dozen or so enemy guns immediately covered the bewildered faces of the three hiding in the shadow of the flowerbed with red dots.
Chapter 61 Arno! Arno is still dealing damage!!! (Reward Chapter!!!)
"Jackie, I promise, I'm going to sew your mouth shut when we get back!"
"Hehe, V, don't be so superstitious."
In the spacious hall, the three of them were scurrying around, heads down, under fire from the mech's flaming rotary cannon.
The massive centaur mech was over three meters tall. Its right arm was an oversized Gatling rotary cannon. When it fired, the muzzle flash was like a flamethrower, illuminating at least half the room, and the rapidly spinning barrels glowed red, almost spitting out thick white steam.
This terrifying killing machine could reach a rate of fire of ten thousand rounds per minute at full speed, which was incredibly frightening.
The current situation was exactly that. The art-filled hall, with its quadrilateral sculptures, was torn apart by the terrifying hail of bullets. Large chunks of plaster and metal shrapnel flew everywhere, forcing Jackie and the other two to dodge among the flowerbeds.
The airborne Gatling's bullets were as thick as an index finger. Just one hit, and one's soul could ascend to heaven from this earthly purgatory. Therefore, Jackie and V were constantly on edge, in a very sorry state.
"No, this can't go on!" Jackie took advantage of a gap to fire, taking down an Arasaka Agent, but when he looked back, he was startled—there wasn't much space left for them to hide.
The centaur mech was quickly cornering them.
"This damn mech!!!"
V was unwilling to give up. Hiding behind a flowerbed, she raised a salvaged 'Authentic' assault rifle and fired fiercely at the centaur mech's driver, who was partially exposed.
But it was useless.
The mech's left arm was a rectangular alloy shield. The mech only tilted slightly, and V's hail of bullets all landed on the alloy shield painted with red and white stripes.
There was a series of clanging sounds, very intense, but when the smoke cleared, not even a speck of paint had chipped from the alloy shield.
"Damn it!"
Instead, the mech discovered V's position. In her widened eyes, a deafening tearing sound erupted, and the flowerbed in front of her, with its various exotic flowers, was shattered to pieces, forcing V to quickly roll away to dodge.
"Jackie, V, you two cover me!" Seeing the trio gradually fall into a disadvantage, Berry knew she couldn't delay any longer.
Arno roared and, bare-chested, darted out from behind the flowerbed.
The autocannon bullets were not like the rifle bullets that merely tickled Arno; their powerful force could now threaten Arno's body, but only if they could hit him.
Arno's internal motion support system operated frantically, driving him to quickly maneuver and leap among the ruins of the flowerbed.
And seeing Arno emerge, the mech also turned its gun barrel, its six-barreled muzzle aiming at Arno.
The familiar terrifying tearing sound rang out again. The exploding bullet stream closely chased Arno's heels, tearing everything in its path to shreds.
But Arno's expression didn't change a bit; he was calmly controlling the distance.
He leaped to one side again, circling the mech from the left. The mech immediately turned its gun barrel, re-aimed at Arno, and fired again.
But Arno wasn't annoyed by this; instead, he exclaimed that the opportunity had arrived.
Berry had studied the centaur mech. She knew that the centaur mech had a large turning radius, but it couldn't reach 360 degrees. When it rotated to about 345 degrees, there would be a 15-degree angle—because a full 360-degree rotation would sever the thick bionic nerve conduction lines inside the mech.
And after Arno's intentional circling just now, the mech was unknowingly approaching that extreme 15-degree angle.
Now was the time, the opportunity had arrived!
As the mech turned its massive body, reaching the limit of its angle, Arno clearly saw the mech pause for a moment, and the stream of bullets no longer chased after him.
Suddenly, Arno leaped high into the air, pouncing down on the mech's driver from above. Arno could even see the astonishment on the guy's ugly face.
Whoosh~
The shield mounted on the mech's left arm rotated, attempting to block Arno.
But, no chance.
Arno sneered mockingly, his entire body contracted, his feet landing in a crouch on the shield, causing a thunderous boom.
Then, Arno hooked his hand onto the edge of the shield and violently pulled himself over.
As his body hung upside down, the driver's gritting teeth appeared beneath the shield's shadow, right in front of him.
Without hesitation, Arno smiled maliciously, his right hand rising, and the dark muzzle of his hand cannon pointed at the driver's face, which had turned terrified upon seeing the hand cannon.
"Boom!!!"
Arno rolled once in the air and landed.
Behind him, the upper half of the mech exploded with a roar, and the soaring flames instantly illuminated the entire hall.
"Damn, saved..." Jackie lay there, his feet propped in the narrow gap of the flowerbed, his gun smoking faintly. In front of him lay a pile of Agents he had taken down, sprawled haphazardly.
And seeing the exploding mech, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
"Nice one, Arno!" V, who had just knocked down the last approaching Agent while re-gripping "Kongou," also shouted excitedly.
Good job, with the most troublesome mech taken care of, they could now quickly run to the parking lot and make their escape. Thinking this, V wanted to call Berry and tell her to drive over and pick them up.
"Wait a moment..." But Arno, standing up, called out to V with a grave expression.
Something wasn't quite right.
Even though the enemies were dealt with, Berry's heart tightened. Arno's thermal sensor transmitted worrying signals—three massive, glowing red high-energy objects were behind the glass wall of the building's main entrance.
Arno had seen one such anomalous signal earlier and dealt with it personally—it was the centaur mech.
"Take cover!!!"
Arno suddenly shouted.
And in the next second after he spoke, the inky black glass wall in front of Konpeki Plaza shattered with several crashes, scattering like snowflakes. Huge mechanical legs stepped into the hall, and three tall, almost identical mechs rushed in.
"Damn it!"
The trio had barely managed to take down one mech, and now three had appeared at once. V and Jackie were instantly disheartened, almost unable to hold their guns.
"Quick, hide!"
Arno's almost distorted roar had just sounded when a thunderous boom erupted. The thick muzzle of a black mech's right arm opposite them fired a dense swarm of over a dozen homing missiles. The missiles, spewing steam like a celestial maiden scattering flowers, twisted in curves towards the two, visibly closing in on their faces.
Seeing this, Jackie and V were scared out of their wits, grabbing nearby debris and scrambling behind the flowerbed.
But the missiles were too fast. Just as the missiles, trailing long smoke, were about to catch up to Jackie and V, Arno made his move.
"Bong!!! Bong!!! Bong!!!"
Several explosions rang out in succession, and the flying fragments covered Jackie and the others in dust. When they struggled to get up, they belatedly felt the pain in their shoulders and arms. It hurt, but in their daze, they felt lucky, because they were still alive.
As the plumes of smoke from the explosions dissipated, Arno appeared within them.
Arno held up his right hand, the hand cannon extended from his arm, its muzzle still smoking.
It was Arno; he had used his own homing projectiles to intercept the incoming homing missiles.
However, even though he had dodged an attack, Arno couldn't be happy, because the three mechs opposite him moved simultaneously.
One black, one red, one blue.
Their colors were different, and the weapons mounted on their arms also seemed different.
The black one had missiles, as seen earlier. The red one's right arm was a charging cannon sparking with arcs of electricity. The blue one's right arm had four or five energy cells like bundled rods attached to its back, and a small nozzle at the front, likely a high-heat flamethrower.
This would be a tough battle, Berry thought from behind the scenes, her jaw clenched tight without her realizing it.
It seems I'll have to use that move, then.
Berry made the incredibly difficult decision.
She had originally intended to save that move as a trump card against Adam Smasher, but now... Berry looked back at the three gradually approaching mechs. She knew she couldn't delay any longer.
Arno stood in the ruins, blocking the path of the three mechs, showing no sign of backing down.
"V, do me a favor." Arno's eyes behind his sunglasses stared at the three mechs walking with heavy steps from the main entrance, but he suddenly reached out and pulled off the dog tag from his chest. "Help me return this to its owner."
Without hesitation, Arno tossed the dog tag to V.
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