After confirming that something was happening above, Shirou focused his analysis magecraft upward, toward the top of the building.
At the same time, he activated the communicator on his chest.
"Officer Swire, are there any personnel stationed on the concert rooftop?"
Just to be safe, Shirou made sure to ask first.
It would be awkward if he rushed up there only to find allies.
"…No. Is someone up there? The drone feed looks completely normal."
After a bit of background noise from the other end, Swire's voice came through.
However, she sounded somewhat agitated.
Shirou guessed it was probably because of the Ursus Infected that had just been sent over.
"Give me a moment…"
After confirming it was not one of theirs, Shirou focused entirely on the feedback from his analysis magecraft.
Inner and outer walls, windows, drainage pipes, the rooftop…
The magecraft continued to extend until he detected a person.
The target was moving very stealthily, crouched low, sneaking along using both hands and feet.
They had managed to avoid the Guard Department's line of sight, but not Shirou's magecraft.
"Can you see my position from your side? I am currently on the right side of the building, near the back entrance wall. From where I am, at about the one o'clock direction, roughly twenty meters out, send a drone over to take a look."
After pinpointing the location, Shirou asked Swire to confirm his position and dispatch a drone to the spot he indicated.
After all, she had just said the drone feed looked normal, yet his magecraft had clearly detected something.
That meant the target was very likely using Originium Arts that interfered with vision.
Shirou had heard of such abilities, ones that could partially render the user, or even others nearby, effectively invisible.
However, careful observation could still reveal flaws.
"It is already arranged."
Although she did not fully understand why Shirou was so certain, Swire immediately dispatched a drone, skimming it close along the rooftop.
A sharp snap rang out. The drone feed instantly went black.
The last image showed a crossbow bolt flying straight toward the drone.
That meant the drone had been destroyed.
"There really is someone!?"
Seeing the black screen, Swire reacted with surprise.
After all, from Shirou's position, it should have been impossible to see anyone above yet he had pinpointed the exact location.
She had been wondering how Shirou could identify Infected individuals or detect dangerous items so accurately before. Now it was clear that he had his own unique methods.
He was starting to seem increasingly all-capable.
"Should I proceed with the capture?"
Shirou stepped back a few paces, waiting for Swire's order so he could sprint forward and jump up.
"Approved. I will also immediately have people evacuate those inside."
Granting permission, Swire began mobilizing personnel to evacuate the concert attendees.
With the suspect directly overhead, if they blasted a hole in the roof and threw Originium explosives down, the consequences would be disastrous.
Originally, the plan had been to capture all suspects without alarming the public. But now that only one remained, Swire was concerned the suspect might resort to desperate measures.
This was part of their contingency planning: if the Guard Department judged civilians to be in danger, evacuation would proceed without hesitation.
The best-case scenario now was for Shirou to go up and take the suspect down instantly.
"Understood!"
The moment he received approval, Shirou broke into a sprint toward the wall.
With reinforcement magecraft, even though the rooftop was three stories high, he leaped up with ease.
There were points along the way where he could grab and push himself upward, making the climb manageable.
Once on the rooftop, Shirou quickly spotted the target.
The figure was somewhat blurred, an ordinary person might easily overlook them.
But Shirou saw them clearly.
"Target confirmed."
His communicator had remained active, so he immediately reported the situation.
At the same time, Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands.
The opponent had to move in stealth.
Shirou did not.
He had a Guard Department badge so long as he did not blow the roof apart, there would be no issue.
Still, precisely because he wanted to avoid accidentally destroying the rooftop, he chose not to use his bow.
"!"
The Ursus man ahead seemed to notice the movement behind him. Without hesitation, he sprang to his feet and began to run at full speed.
Although Shirou was faster than his opponent, there was still some distance between them to begin with.
He threw the black-and-white twin blades in his hands. One of them only grazed the opponent's leg, leaving a faint cut before embedding itself nearby.
It was not that Shirou had missed but his target had suddenly changed direction.
"That way is the emergency exit?"
Shirou did not get discouraged by the failed strike. Instead, he quickly analyzed the opponent's movement.
Rather than dwelling on the miss, it was better to think about what to do next.
Besides, it was not as if he could only throw once.
Another pair of Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands, and he hurled them again.
"You…"
Hearing the sharp sound of air being cut from behind, the fleeing Ursus man knew another attack was coming.
After narrowly avoiding the first strike, he had already realized who was chasing him.
The one who had been disrupting their plans all along, the one who possessed Originium Arts identical to that "guardian of the Infected."
He knew most of Shirou's attack methods, but he had no way to defend against or evade them.
The gap between them was simply too great, like an unarmed villager facing a trained Ursus soldier.
But he did know Shirou's weakness.
To exploit that weakness, he needed to reach a crowded area.
However, the situation was clear and he would be caught before reaching the emergency exit or struck down even earlier.
So…
"That is…!"
As Shirou watched the man barely dodge the second volley, something seemed to fall from his body.
It was round and all too familiar,Shirou had handled countless of them today.
An Originium explosive and it was already activated.
If he ignored it, it could fall below and detonate.
He could not be sure whether there were people underneath.
Beside him, a projected blade formed out of magical energy and shot forward, instantly slicing the explosive into two.
Although he successfully prevented it from detonating, the opponent used that moment to reach the emergency exit and force it open.
What should have been an escape route for people inside in case of emergencies had now become the criminal's escape path.
"The target has entered the building!"
As he reported, Shirou did not hesitate. He immediately projected a blade and blasted open an entry point at the emergency exit.
Jumping through the opening he created, he quickly assessed the situation inside the concert hall.
The Guard Department had already evacuated about seventy percent of the civilians. The once crowded and lively venue now felt noticeably emptier.
"You are not worried I might have set traps?"
Seeing Shirou break in without hesitation, the Ursus man looked at him with a grin.
"Surrender."
Ignoring the question, Shirou pointed Kanshou and Bakuya at him.
He was angry.
These people repeatedly trying to drag innocent civilians into danger had finally pushed him over the edge.
Yes, becoming Infected was tragic. Being oppressed was tragic.
But that did not justify using Originium explosives to cause chaos here.
Especially not specially modified ones.
Those were designed to turn even more ordinary people into the Infected.
Shirou's anger was not only directed at the man in front of him, it was also directed at himself.
He should not have hesitated earlier. He should have taken the shot and eliminated the target immediately.
If that explosive had not been dealt with in time and had detonated midair, would someone have become Infected because of it?
He could not guarantee otherwise.
And he could not bear that outcome.
"Surrender? I think you do not understand. Right now, here, you should be listening to me."
The Ursus man sneered.
He then opened his coat, revealing the situation clearly.
Several explosives were strapped to his body. One of them was far more complex, covered in dense wiring and connected directly to him.
"Let me make this clear. If my heartbeat stops, this thing will detonate and it will set off the others too. The resulting blast will be enough to fill this entire place with Originium dust in an instant. We have done our research on you. You are the kind of person who cares about others, right?"
The Ursus man explained while watching Shirou grit his teeth.
This feeling of holding control, it was intoxicating.
Especially when facing someone they hated so deeply.
They could have carried out their mission more safely, but Shirou had repeatedly disrupted their plans, forcing them into this desperate attack.
They all knew that after this, they would be captured by the Guard Department.
Their fate might be death.
Or something worse than death.
But they had no choice but to do this.
Reunion had other operations underway today. They needed to draw most of Lungmen's attention here, to make those operations proceed more smoothly.
This attack was nothing more than a smokescreen, everything was for Reunion's next plan.
Even if they had already been reduced to expendable pawns, it did not matter.
"…."
Looking at the smug expression on the man's face, Shirou appeared furious on the surface, but inside he was rapidly analyzing the situation.
He wanted nothing more than to rush forward and cut the man down.
But he had no way of knowing whether the explosives strapped to him were real or not.
The enemy had truly seized his weakness.
The evacuation below still needed time. His communicator was still on, Swire should already understand the situation by now.
So the only thing he could do was stall the opponent and wait for the Guard Department to act.
At the very least, he had to wait until the civilians below were fully evacuated before making a move.
"Let me guess, are you thinking about waiting until everyone is evacuated, then cutting me down in one strike? I will not give you that chance. Drop your weapons and go down."
Seeing that Shirou remained silent, the Ursus man glanced at the situation below and easily guessed his thoughts.
It was a nice plan but he would not allow it.
"Hmph."
Hearing that, Shirou threw Kanshou and Bakuya onto the ground in front of him, then vaulted over the nearby railing, landing below and walking toward the center.
"Good, very good!"
Seeing the man who had just held his life in his hands now forced to obey him, the Ursus man felt exhilarated.
"So that is… Shirou?"
Hearing the commotion, everyone present turned their attention toward him.
The members of Penguin Logistics, who were assisting with the evacuation, noticed something was off about Shirou and felt confused.
Following his line of sight, they soon spotted the Ursus man above, his body covered in Originium explosives.
"At this distance… it is a bit difficult."
After estimating the position, Liskarm considered the possibility of shooting him down with her firearm.
However, a nearby Guard Department officer quickly stopped her and explained the situation.
"This is too…"
After hearing that one of the explosives was linked to the man's heartbeat, the Penguin Logistics team immediately understood why Shirou was acting so strangely.
Unfortunately, there was nothing they could do to help directly.
All they could do was speed up the evacuation, so Shirou could act without hesitation.
Meanwhile, the Ursus man fully understood why he held the advantage.
He would not force the civilians to stay as hostages. Once the Guard Department fully reacted, he would be subdued regardless.
At first, he had planned to blast a hole in the roof and throw down Originium explosives to create more Infected and spread panic.
But now that Shirou was here… he had changed his plan.
He would use these explosives to kill the one who had been ruining everything.
Even if it did not kill him, turning him into an Infected would be enough.
"It is not too late to stop."
Watching the man climb down from above, Shirou kept his tone as calm as possible, trying to persuade him to stand down.
But he knew very well that people like this would not stop with just a few words.
This was more about distracting him.
As long as he could find an opening and destroy all the explosives at once…
Shirou fixed his gaze on the man, carefully observing every movement, waiting for a chance to counterattack.
"Not too late? More like just in time for you to kill me, right?"
The Ursus man laughed, clutching his stomach.
"If you stop now, the Guard Department will not treat you too harshly. After all, you have not caused any serious—!"
Shirou continued, gathering magical energy and preparing to project Kanshou and Bakuya at any moment.
But before he could finish, the man suddenly moved.
Still laughing, the Ursus man flung four Originium explosives in a single motion.
"Shirou!"
Seeing the explosives thrown toward him, Exusiai shouted his name, hoping he would react in time.