Volume 5, Chapter 14 – Fire Meteor

“Ah, ah, aaaah!”

“What are you screaming for? Why are you freaking out over nothing?”

While passing through an area, Anran’s attention was drawn by the shouting.

On the rooftop of a building, two people had set up observation equipment and aimed it at the evening sky.

One was the person who had been yelling, while the other was scolding him.

“I saw a meteoroid flying toward Kleber Star. I don’t know whether it’ll eventually become a meteor.”

“Where? Tell me where it is.”

“Don’t bother. You can see it through my equipment.”

“Oh.”

The other man squeezed in front of the observation device.

About five seconds later, he started shouting too. “I see it! I see it!”

He waved his arms. As he continued waving them, uh, someone caught hold of him.

“What are you doing?”

He turned and glared angrily at his friend.

“What… what are you trying to do?”

However, his friend was staring uneasily to the side.

A girl wearing an oversized blue-violet coat had just jumped directly up from the ground. This was the roof of a three-story building.

“Gulp…”

“It’s nothing serious.” Anran smiled, her gaze settling on the man in front of the observation equipment. “I like meteors too. Let me borrow your equipment for a moment.”

“You think you can borrow it just because you asked? Just because you’re pretty… FMLh, FMLh!”

Before he could finish, his companion covered his mouth. “Borrow it, borrow it. Look as much as you like.”

“That’s better.” Anran released her grip.

The two men immediately tugged each other aside.

“Are you stupid? She jumped straight up here from the ground. Do you have a death wish?”

“…”

The observation equipment was not particularly precise, but it was just good enough to make out the meteoroid they had mentioned.

“All right.”

Anran stepped back and said this to the two men. Then, with a light leap, she landed on the ground.

“Let’s go.”

“Mm.” Aila nodded slightly.

Their destination was still the Star Hunter Guild.

The object she had just seen should have been the same cluster she had spotted on the way back to Kleber Star.

Countless disgusting insects had gathered around some unknown organism. At that flight speed, it probably would not take long for them to arrive here.

A new version theme had arrived. It was time for the players to grind levels again.

The overarching theme of Version 1.1 was [Jungle of Fog], while the theme for the Sea Blue Forest region was [Insect Race Ball].

Unlike before, the number of second-tier maps was far smaller than the number of spawn planets.

For example, there were only three maps within the Empire: [Sea Blue Forest], [Nagelia Border Region], and [Black Tide].

In…

That might sound like very few, but in terms of area, all the spawn planets combined were not as large as Sea Blue Forest alone, let alone in terms of content and explorable elements.

Each major map had a different Version 1.1 theme, but all of them generally followed the central premise of [Jungle of Fog]: order begins to collapse within the fog.

The insect race, void creatures, space-pirate invasions, riots on prison planets.

Some disaster would always descend.

From a game-design perspective, every place where large numbers of players gathered was accompanied by unrest and instability. Yet when viewed on the scale of an enormous administrative entity like the Empire, these disasters were insignificant.

A game without a theme would eventually become dull no matter how beautiful its scenery was.

After giving all the players a sufficiently long adjustment period, turmoil had finally arrived.

It was a very sound approach to game design.

Anran also believed that as the version advanced, the sick Emperor of the Empire was probably going to die. Otherwise, how could the plot move forward?

“Hello. What would you like to purchase?” a staff member at the Star Hunter Guild asked.

“Psionic cores. Do you sell them here?” Anran asked.

“I’ll check how many we have left in stock.”

After speaking, he began operating the machine in front of him.

Psionic cores, remaining stock…

“We have six A-specification units, seventeen B-specification units, and nine C-specification units left.”

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The C specification was the size Anran needed. The other two were a little too large.

“I’ll take all the C-specification ones.”

Anran had already checked the market price of psionic cores.

Depending on the packaging manufacturer, a C-specification psionic core cost between five thousand and ten thousand Bilu.

Forget nine. Anran could afford them even if another zero were added to that number.

“I’ll take every psionic core of every specification! Bring them all out!”

Hmm…

All right, that dramatic scene of buying everything out did not actually happen. Anran smoothly obtained what she wanted, then bought several guns as well.

She could not create things out of thin air. Without blueprints, she could only buy finished products like these and analyze them.

However, when Anran walked out of the Star Hunter Guild, she witnessed a different kind of dramatic scene.

A fight was no big deal. The real issue was that a group of men came charging over aggressively from the distance. They roughly shoved aside everyone blocking their path and stormed straight into the Star Hunter Guild.

Someone who tried to regain his dignity was knocked flat on his back with a single shove.

That person happened to be a rather attractive, mature-looking woman.

Someone immediately raised a recording device.

“…”

Bang!

The man in front slammed his fist onto the counter at the transaction window.

“Pull up the surveillance footage from earlier and find out who used this account!”

“I’m very sorry, but we…”

“Sorry, my ass! Hurry up! If you waste my time, I’ll stab you to death!”

The staff member’s expression stiffened. He was an employee of the Star Hunter Guild. Although he had no family background of his own, the guild was his strongest backing. How dare these people threaten him?

“Security, there are…”

Bang!

Another loud impact rang out.

“Still calling security? Do you really think we won’t touch you just because the Star Hunter Guild supports you? Call the person in charge over here. You’re dead today!”

“You…”

The staff member’s expression changed abruptly.

The other party’s fearless attitude genuinely unsettled him. In any case, he should call the branch president over first.

They wanted to inspect the surveillance footage?

And match it against an account?

Anran clearly heard their conversation.

If they were looking for someone, then apart from her, only two other people had conducted transactions at that counter earlier.

Furthermore, the fact that they acted as though they did not fear the Star Hunter Guild meant that their backing was certainly substantial.

If their target was her…

Anran suddenly realized that these people might have been sent by Maggie.

She stood to one side and silently watched the situation unfold.

Even after meeting the branch president, the group’s attitude remained terrible.

They then revealed their identities. They were members of the Rampage Gang, but they were acting on the Governor’s orders. They remained on standby across various planets and were responsible for tracking down the criminal who had robbed Maggie.

Because of the Governor’s family, banks and other organizations were all very cooperative.

Even the Star Hunter Guild, now that the First Prince’s faction had recently gained influence, could only reluctantly agree to the request.

The branch president’s expression was ugly, but he still retrieved the information they wanted.

Good.

They had successfully confirmed the information.

They had found a suspicious person.

By comparing bank-account activity with deposits and withdrawals, they were searching for every suspicious individual.

So far, they had already captured three people. However, after interrogation revealed that none of them were the true target, they had been thrown into the sea as fish food.

One snap of its jaws, and a giant shark devoured a person.

“Report the information first.”

“She probably hasn’t been gone for long. If we check the surveillance footage now, we might still find her.”

“Mm.”

“After we find her…”

“Just make sure you don’t lose her. Are you actually planning to go up and capture her?”

“What if we manage to catch her?”

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“I won’t stop you if you want to die. She’s the ruthless person who robbed the boss. Do you think the dozen or so of us can catch her?”

“Didn’t they say she succeeded by ambushing her?”

“Heh. You actually believe that?”

“What…”

“You know what the boss is like. Even if it wasn’t an ambush, she’d still call it one to save face. And considering how furious she is this time, she must have been humiliated while she was being robbed.”

“…”

“Bro, you’re a genius!”

He gave him a thumbs-up.

“Naturally!” The man speaking looked immensely pleased with himself. As he walked, he continued, “As long as we report the information, we’ll receive credit. Why take the risk of trying to capture her?”

“When it comes to intelligence, you’re definitely the smartest among us, bro. Don’t you all agree?”

“Of course. Boss Difren is definitely the smartest.”

“Did that even need to be said?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? Isn’t it obvious?”

Holy crap…

“You really are a clever little devil!”

Huh?

That voice suddenly came from behind them.

The Rampage Gang members, who had just driven the flattery to its first climax, abruptly froze.

“Who is it?”

Difren, who had been inflated by all the praise, spun around sharply.

At the intersection, only about five meters away, he saw a girl standing there.

No, another, shorter girl emerged behind her.

“Do you recognize me?” Anran asked.

“I… I recognize you,” Difren stammered.

It was precisely because he recognized her that he reacted this way.

He had just said that all they needed to do was avoid losing her and that they did not have to confront her. Yet she had come looking for them herself.

It seemed this matter could no longer end peacefully.

“Actually, there was one thing Maggie said that was true.”

“???”

“I really did rob her through an ambush back then,” Anran said.

“!!!”

“But don’t overthink it. I’m very strong now!”

As soon as she finished speaking, Anran activated Mechanical Interference and Electrical Surge at the same time.

No matter what, the skills had at least some effect.

Then, with a gun in her left hand and another in her right, she pulled both triggers.

Bang, bang…

They were only five meters apart, and the guns had appeared in Anran’s hands without warning.

The skills [Precision Shooting], [Fine Mechanical Enhancement], and [Intermediate Mechanical Enhancement] activated.

Weak-point critical hit.

Two instant kills.

17,000 EXP received.

Anran naturally filtered out the game’s notifications.

There were thirteen opponents in total.

Eleven remained… No, ten. Aila had shot down the person on the far right.

Clatter!

Someone immediately kicked an object on the ground toward them. The others used the opportunity to search for cover. Those with faster hands had already drawn their guns and returned fire, while the slower ones had at least gotten their weapons into their hands.

Bang!

A sharp armor-piercing round, propelled by electromagnetic force, passed through the dark barrel. Yet the instant it met the air, the figure ahead of it had already disappeared.

Swish!

A pale-green wind blade flashed and vanished.

Before the man’s startled expression could turn into one of pain, his kinetic gun and arm fell to the ground together.

[Severely Wounded], [Massive Bleeding].

Bang!

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Anran pulled the trigger with her left hand and did not look back.

By instinct, that man was already a corpse.

The game’s notification confirmed her judgment.

Next.

[Flash Step] + [Wind Slash].

When [Hurricane] failed to complete the kill, a gun delivered the final shot.

The occasional [Backstab] and [Weak-Point Critical Hit] instantly killed enemies with low health.

Combined with the burst damage of [Advancing Slash] and [Charged Strike], Anran moved back and forth through the crowd like a drifting phantom.

Eleven against one, yet they were slaughtered until only one remained.

“Do you people even know how to play the game?!”

Someone would probably have shouted something like that.

But Anran was a ruthless pragmatist who followed no rules when dealing with enemies.

Crash!

Anran slammed Difren directly against a wall. A flowerpot fell from above and happened to strike him on the head.

“I’m going to ask you a few questions!” Anran said with a smile.

“Go ahead,” Difren replied, his face ashen.

Her strength had not exceeded his expectations. However, perhaps he should not have rushed so eagerly into the Star Hunter Guild. He should have waited until she left before going inside. She clearly had no fear of making enemies of either the Rampage Gang or the Governor.

Ten minutes later, Anran dusted off her hands and walked out with Aila.

It seemed Maggie had truly mobilized every resource available to her in order to find Anran. She had started with the movements in Anran’s bank accounts, then used surveillance comparisons, behavioral analysis, and other methods. The moment they found someone similar, they captured them.

Those people had only regarded her as a suspect earlier.

By killing them, Anran had effectively told Maggie that she was on Kleber Star.

But…

Who cared?

The insect race was about to arrive. The entire Sea Blue Forest region would soon become even more chaotic.

The time had come for her to fish in troubled waters.

A theme of chaos.

Because of the chaos, she could avoid the authorities’ pursuit more easily and bite them viciously from the shadows.

…

“Contact request received from Claire. Accept?”

Inside a spacious bedroom, Maggie lay lazily on a reclining chair.

A live obstacle-racing broadcast was playing on the wall.

“Accept.”

Beep.

A figure appeared in front of Maggie, and she sat up from the reclining chair.

“What happened?”

Claire was a senior member of the Rampage Gang and usually helped Maggie handle many matters.

“We just received a report. A suspect has been found on Kleber Star.”

“Oh.” Maggie yawned. “Do what we did before. Capture her first and bring her back.”

“The situation is a little different this time.” Claire looked grave.

“How is it different?”

Claire explained, “I tried contacting Difren, the temporary person in charge over there, but couldn’t reach him. A report says their bodies were discovered at an intersection. All thirteen of them are dead.”

“You mean…”

“If we rule out the possibility of a personal vendetta, I think this one is very likely to be real.”

“Excellent!”

Maggie sprang barefoot from the reclining chair. She looked around and finally found her shoes, then said, “Prepare everything. I’ll speak to my brother. Be ready to depart at any time. Also, tell the people over there to find a way to delay her. Don’t let her escape aboard a spaceship.”

“Yes.”

Maggie ended the communication.

Her gaze swept across the wall. On the uneven racetrack, several giant spherical hammers swung back and forth. Car No. 8 was unlucky and was immediately smashed flat.

“No. 8! It’s No. 8 again! Suyi Company’s No. 8 car has now been destroyed at the giant-hammer stage for the third time. I truly feel sorry for their driver. Ho-ho!”

The commentator shouted loudly.

“What a useless bunch.”

Maggie turned off the projection.

Her family also owned a racing company like that, registered under her eldest brother’s name.

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After changing clothes, Maggie walked out of the room.

…

“The starry sky in Night of the Stars really is more beautiful.”

On the grass outside the city, a photojournalist lay on his back and stared up at the distant, boundless stars.

He loved photographing the night sky, but in the real world, the only thing visible was a monotonous backdrop filtered through intense artificial light.

“Lying here like this makes my depression improve naturally.” A girl in summer clothes was lying beside him.

She was the photojournalist’s girlfriend.

That was right. He was an enemy of the FFF Inquisition.

“A night sky like this is normal in Night of the Stars.”

“The stars would be even brighter if we looked at them from a planet without an atmosphere, right?”

The girl reached out and blocked a first-magnitude star with her hand.

“How about holding our wedding in Night of the Stars?” The photojournalist suddenly rolled onto his side and propped his head on one hand as he looked into her eyes.

“Sure!”

The girl slowly moved her palm.

“Once our levels are high enough, we can go into outer space, or to the largest cathedral in the Empire, or to the Machina tribes’ Mechanical Divine Pillar…”

“Outer space sounds more interesting.” The girl smiled. “No one has ever held a wedding in outer space before, right?”

“That’s true. We could take our wedding photos near a star. A black hole or an asteroid belt would also be good ideas. And then…”

“Oh, a meteor!”

The photojournalist was still speaking when the girl lowered her hand and abruptly sat up.

“A meteor?”

The photojournalist looked in the direction she indicated.

A meteor had indeed appeared in the sky.

It was an orange-red meteor, trailing a long tail as it flew diagonally toward them.

“Make a wish! Close your eyes,” the girl said, tugging unhappily at the dazed photojournalist’s hand.

Wait.

It was flying diagonally toward them.

That trajectory…

“Something’s wrong…”

“What are you doing? Hurry up and make a wish, or the meteor will fly away.” The girl glared at him with puffed cheeks.

Holy crap.

That meteor was flying straight toward them!

“Run!”

The photojournalist grabbed the girl’s hand and tried to flee.

“Run where? Liu Xinning, are you deliberately messing with me?”

“My dear lady, that meteor is coming straight at us!”

“What are you talking about? You…”

“Look for yourself!”

The photojournalist could not be bothered to argue. He grabbed the girl’s shoulders and turned her around.

She was nearly furious enough to explode, but once she turned around, she saw the “meteor.”

A “fire meteor” was hurtling toward their location. Dazzling orange light illuminated the sky, and a long tail streamed behind it.

“Aaaah!”

“Run! Run!”

However, the “fire meteor” was descending far too quickly.

“Sparks” continuously broke away and fell elsewhere, but the main body of the “fire meteor” continued charging straight toward them without slowing.

The firelight grew brighter and brighter, illuminating everything behind them more intensely with every passing moment.

Finally, the entire “fire meteor” slammed violently into the ground. The resulting shockwave instantly hurled the fleeing couple through the air, while the spreading flames swallowed everything around them.

Before dying, the photojournalist clearly saw the “burning objects” that had fallen from the sky. When their densely packed outer shells dropped away, what was revealed beneath them was unmistakably a vicious eye.

It was filled with cold killing intent.

A m-m-m-monster!

Whoosh.

Not long afterward, he and the girl stood up from the resurrection point at the same time.

The photojournalist immediately logged onto the forums.