Prologue – The Backstage of Solaris Plaza
As always, Nanome was a picture of peace, a fact noted by a young woman as she strolled through its streets.
She exhaled, 'I can no longer take on missions or bounties, and my access to headquarters is restricted to appointments only.'
The red-haired woman reflected on her life outside of work, which seemed empty and unfulfilling. Despite their differences, one of her colleagues had consistently urged her to seek fulfillment beyond their shared profession. Although he couldn't realistically force her to reduce her workload, even with her new restrictions due to a vote against her, she valued his advice and resolved to follow his guidance.
'However, nothing else can make me happier than following simple instructions.' She mused, stooping to walk to observe her surroundings.
'Cotiny… I never really noticed how much this city has evolved.' A frown creased her brow as she gazed upwards. The sky was dotted with drones, shining like artificial stars against the night canvas, a makeshift substitute for the real stars hidden by light pollution.
Her frown deepened as she considered the technological reliance, a concern shared by her colleagues. Their apprehension wasn't born of technophobia but rather from concerns about a neighboring country close to Nanome. This geopolitical tension made their reliance on technology risky, despite the two countries operating on separate global networks.
'As long as no careless mistakes are made, we should be safe.'
Suddenly, her phone vibrated in her pocket, startling her. She had set it to vibrate only for important matters, which for her meant work-related. With a sense of trepidation, she swiftly retrieved the device.
[Mission assigned due to your proximity]
[Investigate Solaris Plaza. Reports indicate that hundreds of customers and workers are inside but are not coming out. All entrances and access points are reportedly sealed and cannot be forcibly opened.]
She almost exclaimed, "At last!" but paused, the seriousness of the situation sinking in. With growing unease, she typed a response below the mission details.
Red Painter : [The terrorists at work again?]
After a pause, a reply came.
Assistant (ID : frgh+3) : [Unlikely. They would have attempted to draw more attention. No matter who, deal with it. Since it's unlikely that you have your costume close by, a new set is on its way.]
'I see.' Her emerald eyes glinted with a cold light. Slipping into a deserted alley, an oversized drone landed before her.
Its screen showcased:
(◕‿◕) : [Clothes generation 99.9%]
(☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞ : [Clothes generation 100%]
DING!
The drone inside opened up, releasing a puff of smoke that carried the scent of fresh fabric.
She quickly changed out of her casual attire and into the drone-provided red ensemble: a jacket, dress, leggings, gloves, and boots. Her red hair now flowed freely, matching with the red mask that concealed her upper face.
'Come, and mirror me.' With a mere thought, a red sword scabbard appeared out of nowhere, now attached to her side.
She sprinted with incredible speed, matching that of a top-tier athlete, and soon arrived at Solaris Plaza, an expansive complex of buildings.
She saw a crowd trying in vain to break through one of the entrances. Nearby, she noticed a colleague, a small elderly man with a distinctive white cap, a mask, and a large beard, examining the side of one of the buildings.
As she approached, the elderly man commented without turning, "You are mentally unstable. I thought we agreed on a break for you."
'That was your doing since you initiated the vote.' She opened her mouth to respond, barely hiding her irritation, only managing an "I—" before he interrupted her.
"Ah, the proximity alert. It slipped my mind, sorry." He said, increasing her frustration. "No use asking you to leave now that you are here. If you want to understand what we are dealing with, step forward." Disregarding her presence, he then muttered to himself, "What could be its purpose?" as he reached toward something unseen near the wall.
Red Painter approached, her hands outstretched. Grasping at something unseen, she declared, "This is some kind of invisible fabric; it should cover all the buildings and somehow the underground." She couldn't say what it did except blocking every entrance, perhaps that was its sole function.
Her fingers tightened around her sword's hilt.
"Not yet." Her colleague stopped her.
She tilted her head, frowning, "Why? Lives are at stake."
"The problem is that—" Mid-sentence, he suddenly pushed her, as bullet holes appeared where she had been standing moments before, the sound of gunfire echoed. Normally, they would be more discreet in public; they were even the members who knew the definition of this word the best. However, usually the missions of Nanome which didn't involve other countries were far less dangerous. Even the main terrorist organization was insignificant, if not for one of their members.
Reacting swiftly, the young woman took cover.
"From the sky! The drones?!" The elderly shouted surprised. 'Only one type of drone possesses weapons: the governmental ones. They were either hacked, stolen or they are custom-made to look the same. All three possibilities are a serious crime that can be punished with execution!' Even if this wasn't a supernatural accident, this was enough for him and his colleagues to be alerted. Whether they like it or not, the drones were now an important part of Nanome.
Unperturbed on the surface, the elderly stood still, bullets harmlessly bouncing off him and fell on the ground without a single dent.
"Call backup, Red." He returned to the wall examining the invisible sheet as if countless bullets were not fired at him.
The figure in red dodged another wave of bullets, her movements a blur. With a swift motion, she swung her sword skyward. Miraculously, the drones hovering dozens of meters above were sliced to pieces, plummeting to the ground like metallic rain.
Panic erupted as onlookers initially drawn by morbid curiosity fled in terror at the sight of the drones' erratic firing and inexplicable destruction.
The assassin took out her phone.
╮(︶︿︶)╭ : [No signal.]
'Huh? But it worked before… So, Dwarf felt that the signal won't work. A signal jammer is nearby? Or in the drones?' As she pondered, she continued to dodge bullets, using the drones' lights in the sky to anticipate their firing trajectories. 'Blocking signals seems futile since the headquarters know our position. Yet, the perpetrator attacked us, and jammed our signals, maybe it is to gain time… I won't allow it!'
The drone swarm multiplied from a handful to hundreds, their gunfire filling the air from every direction.
Eventually, she couldn't dodge any longer. No matter her speed, she wasn't faster than bullets. Eventually, several rounds found their mark, ricocheting off her suit in a shower of sparks. Fractures spread through her bones as she crumpled to the ground, appearing lifeless.
Putting aside her bulletproof costume, bullets were not as effective on her as on normal people. However, this did not mean she could afford to ignore them.
The drones ceased fire momentarily but continued to hover menacingly.
'This is why I prefer assassinations,' Red Painter thought, lying motionless. 'Striking from shadows, leaving only my red paintings… A shame they're machines this time.' She exhaled slowly, her earlier boredom replaced by cold focus. The pain from her injuries faded into the background as excitation surged within her.
Suddenly, the ground beneath her was carved into a perfect circle. She leaped off the circular platform mid-fall, dodging the bullets raining from above as she landed on the train tracks below.
As the drones tried to follow her into the hole, they were inexplicably cut without her using her sword, leaving them unable to continue their pursuit.
Racing ahead, she withdrew her phone from her pocket.
v(￣ｏ￣)v : [No signal.]
'Of course, why would any network be around here?' She raced forward.
Suddenly, a deep rumble reverberated through the tunnel, the tracks trembling beneath her feet like a slumbering beast awakening.
'Huh…' Heart pounding, she recalled her surroundings and more importantly… the speed of 600 km/h of the tramway! Her life could be ended, as abruptly and unceremoniously as a bird splattering against a car window.
The sound of the approaching tramway gradually grew louder, like a monstrous roar.
With urgency, she slashed upwards several times with her sword, creating a square hole in the ceiling. A noise sounded through the tunnel as a section of the ceiling fell. Leaping against a wall, she propelled herself skyward, reaching a street near Solaris Plaza.
Seconds later, the mighty tramway reverberated through the area, crushing any rubble in its path as if it had never existed. The behemoth continued its relentless journey without the slightest hint of delay. The noise vanished as it emerged, leaving behind only echoes which in turn gradually subsided.
'I will make sure to draw red from whoever is behind this.' A smile formed on her lips. Then, once again, she took out her phone.
ヽ(°□°*)ノ! : [No signal!]
With agile grace, she weaved through the air, her movements a graceful dance amid the crackling thunderbolts of bullets that pursued her. Glancing upwards, she noticed the night sky's diminished drone presence.
'They must have split up to cover more ground. I can't allow what happened before to repeat if more of them arrive.' She hurried toward a chain of buildings under construction.
Her sprint unwavering, she launched herself toward a nearby window, her foot connecting with the glass in a burst of crystalline shards. With a tumble, she rolled through the opening, her body a blur of motion. Without pausing, she leaped through another window, shattering the glass with another swift kick. In a matter of seconds, she had traversed multiple structures, her swiftness a blur as she moved from one building to the next.
Upon reaching a windowless wall, she executed precise, swinging motions with her sword while running. The metal sang as it carved a square in the air itself. Mysteriously, without her blade ever touching the wall, a square cut appeared. After a jump, she kicked the top of the new opening, dislodging it. She then landed on the top of this moving wall section, immediately jumping off forward, accelerating the cut section's descent.
The symphony of destruction echoed through the quiet streets. A cacophony of sounds filled the air: the heavy thud of dislodged walls crashing to the ground, the ringing shatter of broken windows, and the ominous crackle of gunfire.
Behind Red Painter, drones in pursuit mysteriously split apart, despite her sword remaining sheathed when it happened.
＼(＾▽＾)／ : [Signal up.]
'At last.' She contacted her headquarters, her fingers dancing across her phone as she ran. 'Let's see if whoever is behind that will still feel at ease with some flying toys!'
A smirk played on her lips and her sprint persisted, when, instinctively, she dove for cover instead of leaping through another window. The sound of gunshots followed, as the window above her shattered. It became clear to the drone's operator that merely chasing her was insufficient; they needed to get the drones on her path to get her.
'I can get rid of these annoying flies in one swoop, but the issue is that I don't know their quantity. I can't waste my energy if there are several hundred more of them lurking around.' She got back to her feet and continued running in a different direction.
Her sword, a mere extension of her will, sliced through the air, cutting everything on her path.
__________________
Near one of the shopping center buildings, the elderly, name coded Dwarf was thinking while touching the invisible sheet. Bullets rained upon his back, but they bounced off harmlessly, unable to even hurt him.
'…No, it's unlikely that this country will target us. Nothing is in their interest to attack us first, and undetected border breaches are impossible, given the Absolute Rule.' The old man dismissed his worry.
He pondered, focusing his attention on the invisible cloth. 'This barrier does more than merely block the entrance; its true purpose remains elusive.'
With his available hand, he rubbed his beard.
'I instructed Red Painter to call for backup following the unexpected attack, ensuring our entry with an overwhelming force. The culprit needs time; this is clearly evident, however, attacking us was foolish. Even if successful, such an act would only elevate the threat level, prompting more of our organization to intervene. The perpetrator might not know our protocols, but this outcome is evident to anyone with a brain. We weren't even trying to breach the—' He paused.
'I was right. We can't just enter. Choosing to attack us, the orchestrator seems willing to risk this Accessory's destruction by our hands, rather than letting us discover its main purpose, which might remain forever unknown.'
His thoughts raced as he considered the significant factor leading to the item's inevitable destruction: the usage of signal jammers. 'In the first place, us not being reachable will prompt reinforcements, but they would arrive faster if we could simply call them. Sending Red Painter away wasn't a bad idea.'
He also reflected on the drone attack. As core members of the Supernatural Collective of Nanome (S.C.O.N.), they couldn't be killed so easily. However, what if it had been one of the reserve members or an average supernatural passerby who grabbed the invisible fabric? Death.
'The culprit will lose time, but ensure that discovering the fabric's secret hardly becomes a priority.'
Despite his understanding, Dwarf would still inevitably opt to breach the entrance as soon as possible, given the hundreds of lives at stake and the fact that the culprit or accomplice inside that could answer his question with some imaginative persuasion.
'With the time I have left, I must uncover the item's primary function and rules.'