Tojo Aoi sprinted through the new building.
Her shoes had long been thrown into the swarm of insects. After evading patrols, she walked stealthily on tiptoes through the empty, deserted corridor.
Her wine-red toes touched the ground first, feeling the cold tiles, moving slowly and quietly, step by step.
Her other hand rested on her waist.
It was a miniature firearm.
As the heir of the Tojo Family, a suitable 'little indulgence' could be tolerated.
In the silent space, the sound of insect legs walking occasionally came from a distant place. The ceiling, walls, underground, and all around, there were traces of crawling sounds.
The power was out, and in the pitch-black corridor, only the short-haired woman moved slowly, accompanied by the crawling sounds.
She dared not get too close to the walls, for fear of suddenly swarming insects.
Rustle, rustle.
Faint dragging sounds entered her ears.
The woman, who was about to move, instantly froze, like a clock whose time had been stopped, rigidly still. She pricked up her non-existent long rabbit ears, turned her face slightly, and cocked her head to listen to the source of the sound—
Ahead, about thirty meters, in the classroom on the right.
Rustle, rustle.
And... heavy breathing.
Tojo Aoi moved her arm extremely slowly, her long fingernails sliding as she touched the gun handle tucked at her waist.
She drew the gun and proceeded towards the source with her hand lowered.
In a building full of insects, human breathing could only mean two possibilities.
Either it was a Contactee she had just shot and killed;
Or... Sen Getsusa?
The slightly joyful woman placed her finger near the trigger and quietly walked over.
The classroom door was wide open.
What she saw first were a pair of leather shoes, then ripped jeans, human legs, and a waist.
It was the corpse of a young man.
The huffing and puffing sound reappeared. Someone was dragging the body, disappearing from Tojo Aoi's line of sight.
Tojo Aoi felt a bit disappointed; listening from a close distance, the heavy breathing clearly indicated the other party's gender.
It was a man, not Sen Getsusa.
Then... a Contactee?
Resting her left hand on her firearm, Tojo Aoi gritted her teeth and chambered a round as quietly as possible.
But it still made a sound.
Click.
The crisp metallic ring echoed through the originally silent corridor!
In an instant, the man inside the room seemed to become alert!
After a faint thud against a table corner, the sound of a firearm being readied rang out, just like Tojo Aoi's.
Click!
A long silence followed—
Hiding behind the wall, Tojo Aoi parted her red lips slightly: "Who is it?"
Clatter.
The sound of something dropping.
Immediately after, a familiar voice, excited yet deliberately lowered, came from inside the room: "My Lord Aoi!"
The man wept with joy: "My Lord Tojo Aoi! It's me, Noguchi Tadashi!"
Turning the corner into the classroom.
A blood-stained, filthy man was looking at Tojo Aoi with uncontrollable joy.
Several corpses of men and women lay at his feet, each with a bullet hole between their brows.
The man had long hair tied into a single braid at the base of his neck and back, with two strands of black hair falling on either side of his forehead, narrow eyes, and a high bridge to his nose.
This man, who should have looked elegant, now looked like he was seeing his own mother. He threw down his gun and stood there in a daze.
"My Lord Aoi! You... you came to save me?!"
Trembling with emotion, the young man knelt with a 'thud,' his face covered in tears.
"My Lord Aoi, you actually... actually risked yourself... to come and save me!"
What are you talking about, you fool.
Tojo Aoi blinked. While the man was moved, her mind wandered to other things.
If Tsukisa isn't here... could she be on the second floor?
Tojo Aoi didn't want to interrupt the man's self-indulgent moment. She turned around, closed the classroom door, blocked it with tables and chairs, and then holstered her weapon.
"Noguchi, are you injured?"
On Noguchi Tadashi's shoulder was a large, visible scar, as if he had been struck by a sharp blade. The outward-curling flesh was mixed with white fat.
"It was the Contactees."
The man sitting on his heels turned pale. Although he was still moved by Tojo Aoi's actions, his years of training and experience were enough to help him regain his composure.
"I discovered several Contactees. They tried to stop me, to assimilate me."
The young man furrowed his delicate brows, stood up, and pulled out a chair for Tojo Aoi.
"The bugs are endless, and..."
After wiping the seat clean and respectfully inviting Tojo Aoi to sit, the man stood straight by her side and reported: "It seems every Contactee has the Ability to manipulate the swarm and communicate with each other."
"Their collective nature is very strong. I judge that they must be hive mind organisms."
Hive Mind, also known as swarm intelligence or hive consciousness. Similar terms are often mentioned in sci-fi movies—swarm, collective, consciousness.
This kind of collective thinking is terrifying:
Within a massive group, every individual has independent thought—but not entirely independent.
Above that, there is a powerful consciousness manipulating them.
Just like a queen.
In other words, you think you're facing one enemy, but in reality, you're facing an entire communication network and consciousness connecting all enemies.
They will follow a single will, under the command of the supreme consciousness, fearless of death, one after another.
This is trouble.
Tojo Aoi gritted her small teeth, fiddling with her firearm with a worried expression.
"My Lord Aoi..."
Noguchi Tadashi looked a bit dejected: "I think I saw Miss Sen enter, but she... vanished in the blink of an eye."
"the mist on the first floor is getting thicker, I could only—"
Tojo Aoi forced a smile, not blaming Noguchi Tadashi: "You did your best."
"Please let me go to the second floor!"
Noguchi Tadashi stood straight, a certain emotion congealing on his delicate face.
"Please leave here quickly! I will continue to the second and third floors until I bring Miss Sen Getsusa out safely!"
Tojo Aoi opened her mouth, about to say something... when a powerful surge of energy pierced through the entire building!
Boom!
Crack! Crack!
In the ears of the master and servant, the sound of fine glass shattering exploded one after another!
In their vision, space began to fold, colorless yet shimmering like the prisms of a kaleidoscope.
Noguchi Tadashi, as if facing a great enemy, took only a second to shield Tojo Aoi behind him.
The well-trained man showed none of the delicacy or youth on his face. Instead, he professionally drew a combat knife from his leg, leaning forward slightly—while holding his gun in his right hand, his aura instantly stabilized.
He was poised and cautiously scanned the surrounding environment.
Breathe... breathe... the shattering sounds faded, leaving only the sound of their breathing.
After a long while.
"Noguchi."
Tojo Aoi stood up, patted the young man's shoulder, then walked to the window and looked outside.
"We... can't get out."
She pointed at the swarm outside.
A dense, black mass, a tide of buzzing tentacles, was frantically spreading outside the building—they rushed toward the festival plaza, the playground tracks, and the woods.
Rushing toward the whole World.
And an apparently invisible wall cleverly separated and blocked the swarm within the smog.
As if they were two different Worlds.
"Some kind of barrier...?"
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