"Oh? Are all you hackers on Punklorde always this bold?"
Himeko watched the Aether Spirits roaring toward them with a sense of resignation. For a trivial matter like this... she probably wouldn't need to step in, right?
Looking at Stelle standing protectively in front of her, Himeko smiled gently. This child... when she's serious, she's actually quite reliable.
"Sigh... why do we have to fight everywhere we go? And there's always some brainless person like this, no matter where we are. It's the same whether they're good guys or bad guys..."
March 7th shrugged helplessly, her longbow materializing in her hands. A Six-Phased Ice shield enveloped Stelle.
"Here's a blessing for you. I'll leave these things to you and Dan Heng~" March said with a wave of her hand, looking completely relaxed.
"Well... it seems I'll have to re-evaluate the baseline competency of Punklorde's police force," Topaz said, pressing a hand to her forehead with slight exasperation. While she had subordinates like this too, it was still a pain to encounter one in the wild... She made a mental note to conduct a training camp when she got back. Anyone who didn't show up would have their year-end bonus docked. That should teach them a lesson.
"Heh, you dare to resist? Get them!"
Hiding behind his four Aether Spirits, the hacker, clad in a Punklorde police uniform, was completely oblivious to the severity of the situation. He sneered self-righteously and commanded his four humanoid Aether Spirits.
"Aaaargh!"
The four mindless Aether Spirits, capable only of following commands, let out a cry and charged ferociously at Stelle.
"So, why do they have to scream when they attack?" March asked, watching the four spirits surround Stelle with a puzzled look. Doesn't that just make them look stupid?
"It seems this hacker directly copied the Aether Spirits' default settings, didn't he? This is a very serious act of infringement! Looks like this business trip has some unexpected bonuses. I'll draft a legal notice and hand it over to the company's legal department right away. It appears this hacker is about to have a very bad day."
Topaz's eyes lit up with a smile as she watched Stelle beat the pulp out of the four Aether Spirits, and the panicked look on the hacker's face. This was another bit of extra business!
"Wh-what is this? This woman... how is she so strong!?"
The infringing hacker stared in horror at Stelle, whose combat power was off the charts. Th-these were Aether Spirits he had hand-picked! He had spent ages using Aether Editing to crack and materialize them!
"Hello? Hello? Why did the comms cut out? What's the situation over there? Did you manage to invite the person from the Corporation? Hello?"
"Uh... well, I..."
Watching Stelle advance on him with her lance, the infringing hacker instinctively raised his hands, stammering into his communicator.
"Sigh~ Allow me to speak for you."
Having already prepared the infringement template in her mind, Topaz walked casually to the hacker's side, took his communicator, and spoke to the person on the other end.
"Hello, I am Topaz, a senior manager from the Interastral Peace Corporation's Strategic Investment Department. And you are...?"
"Th-the Strategic Investment Department's Senior Manager Topaz? Hello, hello! I am the squad leader of the First Alert Team of the Punklorde New District Police Department. May I ask, esteemed Manager Topaz..."
The moment he heard "Interastral Peace Corporation" and "Strategic Investment Department," the voice on the other end of the communicator became noticeably quieter.
Inside the New District Police Department, a middle-aged man wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and spoke to Topaz with extreme deference.
"Oh, I've come this time with the Astral Express on a rescue mission to Punklorde. However, this officer of yours seems rather unwelcoming of our arrival. Furthermore, the combat methods he is using, by privately cracking the Corporation's game and illegally materializing the likenesses of Aether Spirits, means that according to the Corporation's Property Rights Protection Regulations, this employee of yours has seriously violated the Interastral Peace Corporation's copyright..."
"W-wait! Esteemed Manager Topaz! This officer has nothing to do with us! He's a temp we rented from the Hacker Alliance! He has absolutely no connection to us! I... I will bring my men to personally welcome you, Manager Topaz! We can discuss this... we can discuss this..."
Seeing that the other party was so sensible, Topaz nodded in satisfaction. Then, under March's admiring gaze and the hacker's look of utter despair, she hung up.
"How... how could this happen... The planet was cut off from the outside, I thought it would be fine to just use them for a bit..." The infringing hacker's hands dropped to his sides, his face a mask of hopelessness.
"Sigh. A little late for regrets now," March said, shaking her head with a helpless look.
---o---
"Ah, this plot seems to be alluding to something. We don't know what it is, though~" Sister Guoguo commented on the scene with a peculiar smile and a subtle shake of her head.
[Yeah, who could they possibly be talking about? No idea. (smirk)]
[Huh? You guys dare talk about this!? You've got a death wish!]
[I hereby sever all ties with this comment section. They said it! Not me!]
[Topaz: I'm on Punklorde, and performance bonuses are literally falling from the sky!]
[Honestly, if you had used four Overlord-tier Aether Spirits, I could have fought for a while longer. But you used four basic soldiers???]
[He's got skills, but not many.]
---o---
"Dammit! I told them we shouldn't hire those hackers! They all walk around with their noses in the air, and now they've caused huge trouble by messing with interstellar communications! Good, good, he was a rental. Let the Hacker Alliance deal with the headache!"
After equipping all his gear and straightening his uniform in the mirror, the squad leader quickly gathered a few trusted officers to go and welcome the distinguished guests. These people were reinforcements sent by the Corporation! As long as he brought them before the Council, his future career path... hehe, at the very least, he could trade up for some better prosthetics! And update his jamming chip while he was at it. It would be a total disgrace if he got hacked by one of those script kiddies!
---o---
"Say, Brother Jack, are you sure the cops who can help us get out of the Old District are in here?"
Wende looked at the luxurious mansion before them, frowning in confusion.
"Heh, this is Little Meryl's house. The monsters wrecked the cops' old station. Meryl felt bad for them, so she let them use this place."
Jack shrugged nonchalantly and started walking toward the opulent mansion.