NOVEL NEXT Chapter 9: Night Raid
As Shirou observed Leone and thought about Night Raid, he realized that Leone seemed to be avoiding something. She dove into the dense forest and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
'It seems I've been spotted. She noticed me from this distance. Her vigilance is truly extraordinary.'
Shirou quickly understood the reason why Leone fled and stopped paying attention to her, knowing that as long as he didn't change direction, he would inevitably collide with Leone and the others from Night Raid—it was only a matter of time.
Thinking this, Shirou no longer paid her any mind and urged Keith forward.
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The Night Raid base was located beneath a cliff on the outskirts of the imperial capital. Its location was highly secretive, surrounded by mountains. The dangerous species living in the mountains provided a natural barrier. There was also a hot spring, and judging from the living conditions alone, the place resembled a resort more than an assassin's headquarters.
Although the location was hidden, the overall design of the base was quite extravagant. If there was an apartment-style house in the middle of the mountains, anyone would know something was off.
Considering that the majority of Night Raid members were women, this image seemed understandable. After all, for women, comfort in living was a priority. Combined with the remote location, it all seemed quite normal.
In a short time, the Night Raid base came into view.
So, how should he enter? Shirou thought it would be better if he didn't have to take any action, but he truly couldn't find a way to enter the assassin's headquarters, take what he needed, and leave quietly without causing a scene.
However, Shirou didn't have to think about it for long, as a beam of light suddenly attacked him, and the source of the beam was the Night Raid base. Keith swiftly dodged the attack.
"Have I been spotted?"
Shirou looked at the pink-haired girl with twin tails, wearing a pink princess dress and holding a pistol-shaped weapon at the base.
"Tsk, did he dodge it? The aerial advantage is really annoying." The pink-haired girl muttered.
"Interesting, if I'm not mistaken, that girl's name is Mine." While calming his slightly trembling body from the sudden maneuver, Shirou recalled the information in his mind.
Mine, a member of Night Raid, had an arrogant personality, calling herself a genius in marksmanship, and sported twin tails with a tsundere personality. She hailed from the western border of the empire. She was a mixed-race child from a minority ethnic group and had suffered discrimination since childhood. After the Revolutionary Army formed an alliance with the minority ethnic groups, she joined Night Raid and fought so that children like her would no longer face discrimination. She wielded an Imperial Arm named Pumpkin, which converted spiritual energy into shockwaves and fired them. Its output increased according to the level of crisis the user faced. Pumpkin had unlimited ammunition but required the user to brace against its powerful recoil.
"What should we do, Shirou? It seems the other side already considers you an enemy. Do you want to negotiate?" Zaruba said from the side, though it tone sounded somewhat arrogant. "By the way, you'll have to fight for both fragments you've found. You'll have to fight to get them. You're really unlucky."
"Uh..." Shirou's mouth twitched slightly. Perhaps this was the reason. He couldn't help but think about his luck stat. "Maybe, but now we have to fight."
He then directed Keith toward Mine, with Kanshou and Bakuya in his hands. At the same time, he stayed closer to Keith to avoid incoming attacks, and when he couldn't dodge, he used his twin swords to block them.
"What?" Mine stared at the opponent rushing toward her, "You're really giving up your aerial advantage. How foolish! But this is better. You can't stop this much power and firepower."
As Shirou got closer, Pumpkin's power also increased dramatically. Combined with Mine's marksmanship talent, he had fewer places to hide.
"Oh, is its power increasing?" He swung his sword again to block a beam of light and looked at the vibrating blade. "If I can't dodge it, then I won't dodge it. Let's see how strong you can be."
At this moment, Shirou stopped dodging and rode Keith straight toward Mine.
"Is he crazy?" Mine was shocked. She knew how powerful her attacks were. In her eyes, charging straight at her was like seeking death. However, despite this, her movements didn't slow, and every shot was aimed precisely at her opponent.
"Since you're seeking death, I won't hold back."
But at that moment, Mine realized why the enemy was charging straight at her.
"Rho Aias!"
As the voice rang out, the beautiful purple petal-shaped shield appeared in front of Shirou once more. Seven barriers, each with the defensive strength of an ancient city wall, firmly blocked the attacks. In the previous battle, he had also used this move to deflect Esdeath's ice spikes and meteor-like ice balls. Now, facing Mine's attacks, the same scenario repeated itself.
"What?" Mine's face was filled with disbelief. All her attacks had been blocked. "Is that a defensive-type Imperial Arm? This is really bad. Then let's see if your defense is strong or my attacks are sharper!"
The familiar confidence returned to her face. Mine gripped Pumpkin in her hand. At this distance and with the opponent's speed, there was no time to charge up and launch a stronger attack. However, there was no panic on her face. Because she still had someone she trusted.
*BOOM!*
Shirou's twin swords deflected the sudden attack, and Keith's charge was slightly diverted, narrowly missing Mine and landing on the ground beside her.
The sudden attack didn't surprise Shirou. He looked at the man in front of him, clad in full armor and wielding a red spear, and a hint of understanding appeared on his face.
"Bulat?"
"Oh? You know me, bro. That's right, my wanted posters are plastered all over the streets of the capital. No wonder you recognize me." A bold voice came from behind the helmet. He faced the enemy without fear.
Bulat was originally an Imperial soldier, known as the 100 Man-Slayer. When his superior refused to pay a bribe and was thrown into prison, he was framed while trying to seek justice for him. Eventually, he could no longer tolerate the empire's corruption and used his Imperial Arm to escape, joining Night Raid. He was incredibly strong. According to the Three Beasts under Esdeath, he was only slightly weaker than Esdeath, the empire's current strongest general.
Bulat kept talking, but his hands kept moving. He swung his spear, leaving trails and clashing with Shirou's twin swords repeatedly. However, Shirou was somewhat pressured. After all, Bulat relied on his close combat skills, which were enough to face three Imperial Arm users. In terms of close combat ability alone, Esdeath was slightly inferior to Bulat. Moreover, Incursio was originally an Imperial Arm that could enhance one's physical fitness to an extreme, but in terms of raw strength, Shirou was completely suppressed.
*CLANG!*
The sword in his right hand barely blocked the spear's strike, and the sword in his left hand slashed at Bulat's chest, but Bulat didn't care at all and kicked Shirou's stomach with his knee.
*BAM!*
Shirou quickly discarded his sword, crossing his arms to block the attack, but he was still sent flying by the tremendous force.
Standing still, Shirou saw that the previous attack had only left a small scratch on Bulat's chest armor.
"Should I say it's worthy of being called Incursio? Its defense is truly formidable." Shirou praised. Being able to withstand a Noble Phantasm in his hands, even if it was one that hadn't released its true name, was enough to make him proud.
Incursio: An armor-type Imperial Arm created using a tyrannical dragon-like dangerous species as its material. It had defenses as strong as a sturdy wall. However, it placed a heavy burden on the user. An ordinary person would die if they wore it. Additionally, the dragon-like creature, which was the armor's material, wasn't dead. It could adjust its size according to the user's body and continued to evolve. It had strong adaptability and was suitable for all users. It could slowly adapt to attacks and ignore them, and it was equipped with a spear-type weapon.
"You're not bad either. Your swordsmanship is quite impressive. If it weren't for the Imperial Arm, I'd be the one injured." Bulat said, not pursuing him but stopping. From the previous exchange, he knew that although the opponent's swordsmanship was slightly inferior to his, "So, young man, can you tell me why you're here?"