Volume 5, Chapter 9 – Stand Still and Behave

The people on the ground were desperately running toward the spaceship. Ordinary Armor-Eating Beetles could hardly obstruct them, but once the Armor-Eating Beetle Queens began moving, they became the source of everyone’s terror. The countless young Armor-Eating Beetles behind them only magnified that fear.

The threat posed by insectoids came from their numbers, as numerous as grains of sand, and their insane reproductive speed, which humans could not begin to understand.

A single insectoid was not enough to warrant alarm. But if tens of thousands of them surged forward together, even a warship could not withstand such a frenzied tide.

No one knew how many Armor-Eating Beetles were down there, so no one dared linger and fool around.

“It’s a swarm!”

As soon as the feed switched over, someone aboard the spaceship shouted.

“Damn it! Open fire immediately and kill the big one!”

The mere mention of an insectoid swarm was enough to make people pale.

However, the commander aboard the spaceship did not lose his head. He immediately issued an order.

Five turrets in total aimed at the Armor-Eating Beetle Queen below. Some were powerful kinetic cannons, while others were blue laser cannons.

Once they finished charging, the people on the ground did not even have time to notice the shadows in the sky before all five ship-mounted cannons fired simultaneously.

Two blue beams struck the Armor-Eating Beetle Queen’s shell in an instant. Just as it was about to swing its bone claw at the person in front of it, the blast smashed it flat against the ground and interrupted its attack.

However, the fallen man did not survive. The radiation energy contained in the blue lasers was far greater than that of the red lasers. The instant the beams landed, the residual heat cooked him alive.

Immediately afterward, a barrage of high-velocity shells came raining down.

“Boom!”

Dense explosions thundered across the ice field. The survivors who had already fled far away stared at the scene in astonishment.

The rising flames.

The Armor-Eating Beetles hurled away from the edges of the explosions.

And the people who stood frozen, asking in confusion:

“Our company’s ship doesn’t have any kinetic cannons, does it? Where did those come from?”

“Why are you standing there? Run!”

When the bombardment ended, the devastated ground was revealed.

The thick layer of ice had melted, and a huge crater had been blasted into the rock beneath it. The Armor-Eating Beetle Queen lay in the center of the crater, its entire body shattered and mangled.

“Is it dead?”

The silhouettes of three spaceships appeared in the sky and rapidly grew larger.

“Those aren’t our company’s ships.”

“That insignia… They’re government ships.”

“Why would government ships come here?”

Doubt filled everyone’s minds.

Many people stopped where they were. After the round of bombardment, the previously agitated Armor-Eating Beetles had temporarily vanished from sight.

“What’s going on? Why did government ships suddenly appear here?”

Shaya immediately took out a communications device and contacted the mining ship floating in outer space.

“This happened rather suddenly. First, make sure no one else is nearby. You absolutely cannot let anyone overhear this.”

No one else could hear it?

Shaya looked around, then moved a little farther away.

“You can speak now.”

The person on the other end paused before explaining the government’s entire objective.

“…”

The more Shaya heard, the uglier his expression became.

Harrison was very likely hiding among the crowd. That meant even without the insectoid swarm, they might have died even more miserably just now. The swarm’s sudden appearance had actually saved their lives.

“Holy shit, there are more?”

“There’s more than one Queen?”

“Run!”

The commotion made Shaya raise his head immediately. Sure enough, another enormous Armor-Eating Beetle Queen had charged out.

What the hell was there left to fight? Harrison or no Harrison, they needed to run first and worry about everything else later.

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The government spaceships were rapidly closing in, while enormous thudding vibrations shook the ground. As Shaya ran into the spaceship, he looked back and saw an even larger Armor-Eating Beetle emerging from the yellow crystal mine.

“!!!”

“Boom!”

A beam erupted from the Armor-Eating Beetle’s body, aimed at one of the ships in the sky.

The government forces had no time to react. One corner of the spaceship was struck, and the exposed kinetic cannon there melted away instantly.

“…”

“Pull back! Hurry, pull back!”

“Return fire!”

Three Armor-Eating Beetle Queens, along with an even larger Armor-Eating Beetle.

At a time like this, who still cared whether Harrison was aboard the ship? The mining ship’s hatch slammed shut, its engines ignited, and it immediately shot into the sky.

“Damn it, what a freak accident. Get us out of here first. And intercept that ship while we’re at it. We absolutely cannot let the person suspected of being Harrison escape.”

Several shells failed to inflict any substantial damage on the largest Armor-Eating Beetle. Seeing that Faraway Lands’ mining ship was about to disappear into the distance, the government pursuers turned around and chased after it.

Click, click, click…

Armor-Eating Beetles continued crawling through the opening of the Void Projection. Before long, the area around the yellow crystal mine was packed with them. However, the people who had already fled had no idea just how serious the situation had become.

“Shaya, tell the pilot to fly the ship to the Armed Forces Department spaceport outside Sarina City.”

When the mining ship reached the vicinity of Ruilanduo Star, Shaya received an order from the company’s upper management.

He looked suspiciously at the people standing around him. Which one of them was Harrison?

Even so, he passed the order along.

“Where are we going?”

Someone immediately asked in confusion.

Shaya forced a smile and explained, “The company’s spaceport is already full, so we can only borrow a spaceport somewhere else.”

“Is that so?”

“…”

Meanwhile, many people had already hidden themselves around the Armed Forces Department’s spaceport.

Of all the cities on Ruilanduo Star, the one that hated Harrison most was undoubtedly Sarina City.

His previous rampage had paralyzed the entire police system. Although that had indirectly triggered a reshuffling of the police leadership, those who had benefited from the change would naturally do everything in their power to capture Harrison and consolidate their positions.

“Hiss…”

The spaceship landed in an open area of the spaceport. Its hatch opened, and the people aboard the mining ship descended one after another.

Three hours had already passed, but everyone on the ship remained unsettled.

Insectoids.

To be honest, the people living in Sea Blue Forest had rarely encountered them.

What made matters worse was the absurd escalation. They killed the small ones, and then a big one appeared. They killed the big one, only for an even bigger one capable of attacking spaceships to emerge.

Cry. Go ahead and cry your heart out.

Brother, you died so miserably.

People descended from the ship with grave expressions.

“Has everyone come down?”

“Everyone has disembarked,” Shaya replied.

“There’s no one left.”

“I didn’t see him,” a young man wearing a hat said to the superior standing behind him.

“He was definitely there when they left.”

“Could he have died on Frost Island?”

The superior immediately rebuked him. “That’s Harrison! None of those weaklings died, and you think Harrison would? Let’s do this instead. @#%#@”

A short while later.

“An inspection? Why do we need to be inspected?”

“This is to prevent the insectoids from reaching Ruilanduo Star through parasitism. We hope everyone will cooperate.”

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“So the real reason we were flown here was for this inspection?”

The scene descended into noisy confusion.

Most of these hunters had violent tempers. Once their tempers flared, they wanted to hit someone. Then, just as they thought about hitting someone, they saw the fully armed troops.

Their tempers promptly vanished.

(^_^)

Hehehehe.

And so, they accepted the inspection with smiles on their faces.

A good hunter knew when to bend and when to stand firm.

Anyone who could survive for long as a Star Hunter naturally had to be at least somewhat thick-skinned.

The people from the mining ship passed through a device one after another. At that moment, no one noticed the subtle movements of someone dressed as a crew member.

“Still nothing?”

“Wait. Let the crew finish going through first.”

One person after another passed through the checkpoint. Just as nearly everyone had gone through, a violent explosion suddenly erupted outside.

“Boom!”

Flames soared more than ten meters into the air. The deafening noise made some of the weaker people clutch their aching ears.

“What happened?”

“Robots! There are robots!”

“Boom!”

Chaos broke out outside.

“Harrison must be among the people who are left.”

There were seven people in total, including crew members and two Star Hunters.

How should they act now?

They could simply kill all of them. Although they sounded certain, what if they were wrong? Pressure from Faraway Lands would not be easy to handle. It was, after all, a major company with powerful backing.

Damn it, at a time like this…

The government official in charge felt a headache coming on. His career was at stake, yet he had begun to hesitate at this critical moment.

That was exactly what Harrison 47 had expected.

Standing among the crowd, he felt no panic whatsoever.

He did not know how his whereabouts had been exposed, but these people had failed to uncover his true capabilities after years of trying. The idea that they could contend with him now was simply naive.

After all, besides the various pieces of equipment he wielded with great proficiency, Harrison himself was also a piece of “equipment.”

A cyborg.

“Boom!”

The outer wall of the spaceport was suddenly struck with tremendous force, blasting open a massive crater. The people hiding behind it were pulverized into dust.

“Motherfucker! What the fuck is going on?”

“Why are you all still standing here? We’re under attack!”

“Are Night Owl’s people attacking us?”

“We can’t hold them off. The firepower outside is too strong. It looks like he planned this in advance and deployed a large number of robots throughout Sarina City.”

These robots had originally been prepared for the Faraway Lands company, but now they could only be used here. In addition to the robots, Harrison also had his companions.

Harrison 47 moved with the crowd in a show of “panic.”

At this rate, Harrison might actually get away.

“Why don’t we just kill everyone here?”

The young man made the suggestion, looking anxiously at his superior.

What was there left to hesitate over? This was their territory, and robots were attacking outside. They could kill everyone here, then agree on a single story and claim Harrison’s robots had done it. Who would be able to prove otherwise?

That settled it.

While the superior was still hesitating, Harrison 47, who was standing near the opening, moved.

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His clothes burst apart as he launched himself forward, all in one smooth motion.

Under everyone’s astonished gazes, he killed the four people blocking his path with a single punch.

The game of cat and mouse had begun again.

…

News from Sarina City quickly reached Nakan City.

It also reached Anran’s ears.

The facts proved that her report had been correct.

Still wearing her face-changing makeup, Anran returned to the relevant department and registered her information again. She then received the money transferred by the authorities.

Anran was surprised that they had handled it so efficiently.

But more than anything, she was delighted.

Although they had still failed to capture Harrison, the government had caused him considerable trouble this time. Harrison was said to have suffered serious injuries, and one of his arms was probably ruined.

As a result, the authorities awarded her a full sixteen million Bilu.

($ _ $)

Just replace the dollar signs with the symbol for Bilu.

Nothing else could more perfectly describe Anran’s current expression.

Her newly opened account held sixteen million Bilu.

Even among the middle class, that placed her within the wealthier tier.

Anran immediately went to the bank and divided the money among several of her other accounts.

That was much safer.

“Creak…”

As soon as Anran stepped out of the automated booth, she saw the person standing outside.

The antenna-like hair buns were easy to recognize.

So was the outfit Anran had set her sights on.

The woman standing before her, proudly displaying her impressive curves, was Maggie.

There was no robot beside her, nor were any of the men and women who had accompanied her earlier present.

A lollipop hung from her mouth.

Did she want to use the automated booth too?

Puzzled, Anran took a step forward.

Then she was blocked.

Maggie braced one hand against the wall, crossed her legs, and leaned sideways to bar Anran’s path.

She looked down at Anran from above.

That gaze was irritating.

The tone she used when she spoke was even more irritating.

“You’re the person who reported Harrison’s whereabouts?”

Anran’s face-changing makeup made her look utterly ordinary. Combined with her modest height, she appeared entirely unremarkable.

It seemed Maggie had come prepared.

As Governor Fitch’s youngest daughter, she presumably had plenty of influence within official circles. Finding out this information had probably been easy for her.

“That’s right. It was me.”

Anran nodded without denying it.

“Tell me how you learned Harrison’s whereabouts.”

The lollipop slid from the left side of Maggie’s mouth to the right. She showed no intention of moving aside.

“Not interested. Why should I tell you?” Anran frowned slightly.

She was not exactly known for having a good temper.

“If you won’t talk, then don’t expect to leave,” Maggie said. “Want to see which of us is more patient?”

She smiled at Anran.

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Patient, my ass. I’m still waiting to get back and make cannons. Who has time to stand here talking nonsense with a rebellious brat like you?

“Move,” Anran said coldly.

“No. If you won’t tell me, I’m not moving.”

Maggie removed the lollipop from her mouth with her other hand. “Or perhaps you have some difficulty you can’t talk about. Let me guess…”

She tilted her head. “For example, perhaps your so-called report was deliberate. You and Harrison are working together. The two of you conspired to set this whole thing up so you could collect the bounty while dealing Sarina City a second devastating blow.”

“That would also explain how Harrison predicted the government’s operation and escaped…”

“…”

Not a bad theory.

Anran actually wished she had a partner like that.

It seemed like an excellent way to scam money from the imperial government.

However, she still had to deal with the practical problem in front of her.

“Did I actually guess correctly?” Maggie said. “If you refuse to answer, I’ll take your silence as an admission, and I can kill you right now.”

“Oh, and the money you just received? All I have to do is report this to the higher-ups, and it’ll be taken back immediately.”

“Ding! Player [starshine] has accepted your quest [Collect Blueprints].”

At that moment, Anran suddenly noticed that the status of the quest she had posted had changed. It was now awaiting submission.

Hmm…

“Forget it. Since you won’t speak, I’ll use another method to make you talk. It might hurt a little, though. But you forced me into this. I’m actually a very reasonable person, but once I get angry, I stop caring about such things.”

“Heh.”

Anran sneered.

Whether it was anti-gravity technology or miniature force-field technology, obtaining either one would be good enough.

There was no longer any reason for her to remain here.

Before leaving, she might as well pull off something big.

She could not defeat Maggie in a direct fight, but when it came to the backup measures she had prepared here, Anran was not afraid of her.

“Thud!”

In the confined space, Anran suddenly hauled an ultraviolet laser cannon out of subspace. It was fitted with four purple crystals and could fire eight times, though each shot cost roughly sixty thousand Bilu.

“Thud!”

That was the sound of the laser cannon hitting the floor.

Maggie, who had been leaning against the wall with a lollipop in her mouth, recoiled a step at the object that had appeared without warning.

What an enormous, thick laser cannon!

Where did this thing come from?

She abruptly lowered her head and stared at the hostile-looking Anran.

Subspace.

As a privileged scion who had once lived in the empire’s core regions, Maggie naturally knew that such a thing existed.

She had access to subspace?

And then there was the weapon she had suddenly pulled out.

How was that possible?

Maggie’s mouth fell open. She did not even notice the lollipop dropping to the floor.

“A small ultraviolet laser cannon. Even if that outfit of yours has a small force field, it definitely won’t withstand a single shot. In less than 0.1 seconds, you’ll be reduced to gas. Of course, I’ll definitely die too. But would you like to try it?”

Anran chuckled. “Shall we see whether you can move faster than I can fire?”

Anran placed her finger on the button.

“…”

Maggie swallowed. How could she possibly dare gamble on something like this?

“Stand still and behave!”

Anran barked softly.