"You abandoned her?"
"No, that's impossible. She is one of us. How could we abandon her?"
Faced with the woman's accusation, Gai immediately denied it.
"Let me put it this way... Inori carried out a mission last night. But due to my mistake, the mission did not go smoothly. At a critical moment, she fell into the sea and has been missing ever since. What you described earlier should be what happened after she came out of the sea. As for what happened afterward... I'm sorry, we don't know either."
"..."
The Shogun kept her eyes fixed on his.
"We have been waiting for her signal as well, which is why we gathered here. When we saw you bring Fyu-Neru over... we assumed she was with you. That is the situation."
Gai explained everything plainly.
"Gai..."
Beside him, Ayase looked at the man with a complicated expression before turning to the Shogun.
"He's not lying. It's all true. We're worried about Inori too. Please try to understand."
She spoke on Gai's behalf.
"Tch..."
Argo clicked his tongue irritably, still clearly displeased with her.
"Haa..."
Hearing this, the Shogun let out a slight breath, easing the faint anger in her heart. She lowered her eyes and glared at the robot in her arms.
"Squeak~"
The little machine immediately slumped in fear, its entire body trembling.
"Very well. My apologies for the disturbance."
She said it simply and turned to leave... however—
"Wait... woman."
Gai called out to her.
"...?"
She halted but did not turn around.
"Leave the robot in your arms. It belongs to us."
He gestured toward Fyu-Neru, indicating she should hand it over.
"This is... Inori's property. Not yours."
She replied calmly.
"Unfortunately... this item is far more complicated than you think. I hope you can hand it over. Otherwise, it will put us in a difficult position."
Clatter! ×N
In the next second, the group surrounded her once more.
"...You want this, don't you?"
She did not even look at them. Instead, she opened Fyu-Neru's compartment and took out the genetic serum, holding it up for them to see.
"!"
Gai's eyes widened instantly. Anyone could tell it was important—important to him in particular.
He had deliberately avoided mentioning Inori's mission objective earlier, precisely to prevent this situation. Damn it... this woman... had she known from the start?
"Ah... would you be willing to return it to us?"
He dropped the pretense and asked directly. He knew she would not destroy the serum. If she truly cared about Inori, she would consider her feelings. After all, this was something Inori had risked her life to obtain.
"I can return it to you. However... not yet~"
She finally turned around, lightly swaying the serum before her eyes. A teasing smile curved her lips. Her already breathtaking face became even more mesmerizing with that playful expression.
"What do you mean?"
He frowned.
"Until I find her and personally confirm that she is safe and unharmed, none of you will get this. If you want it, then trade her for it. Go find her. Understood, everyone?"
She asked with a faintly mischievous smile.
"..." ×N
Silence fell over the group. Some even began to look at her with hostility.
"Heh... I see. Now I finally understand why Inori became friends with you."
Gai gave a faint smile.
That kind of concern was perhaps exactly what she needed.
...
"You dispatched an entire squadron to Roppongi?"
At GHQ headquarters—the command room of the 24th District—the white-haired supreme commander, General Yan, stood with his back to the two research doctors before him, hands resting behind him as he asked the question.
"Yes. I believe it is necessary."
The male doctor, Shuichiro Keido, answered.
"...That will provoke unnecessary resentment from the civilians."
Yan responded.
"If it is not for rescue purposes, I will not approve it. You understand that, don't you?"
The colonel narrowed his eyes at him.
"I understand, sir."
Shuichiro nodded.
"It seems that in your judgment, this has already reached the stage where deployment is unavoidable. So... how dangerous is it exactly?"
Seeing his resolve, Yan gradually acknowledged the necessity and asked plainly.
"For example, the stolen Void Genome? The genetic serum?"
"That is—!"
The one who spoke was the female doctor standing beside him. Dressed in a white lab coat, with long brown wavy hair and the bearing of an intellectual beauty, she was Haruka Ouma. Hearing this, she attempted to explain further... however—
"This is classified as Level 3A."
Shuichiro interrupted her.
"But if even I, as the supreme commander of GHQ, am not informed..."
Yan sounded troubled.
"My apologies. However, please rest assured. The culprit has already been apprehended by our Special Virus Disaster Response Unit—Anti-Bodies. They are currently searching for the stolen genome."
"...Very well. Proceed. I do not want any complications."
Yan nodded.
"Understood."
With that, Shuichiro turned and left.
"..."
Haruka Ouma followed after him with a complicated expression, pressing her lips together as she looked at the man ahead.
...
Meanwhile, in a transport vehicle parked within the Level 1 quarantine zone of Roppongi...
Inori sat restrained inside the transport compartment, her hands and feet bound with rope as she endured interrogation by GHQ. A cloth covered her eyes, and tape sealed her mouth. Her entire body was confined.
"..."
Her hands, cuffed behind her back, subtly adjusted their angle, the restraints rubbing against each other as if searching for a way to break free.
Noticing the slight movement of her fair shoulders, a soldier beside her suddenly stomped down on her shoulder, kicking her backward into the metal wall.
"Mm..."
A muffled sound escaped her. Her wrists, which had been rubbing together, separated instantly, trembling from the sting of pain.
Rip...
In the next moment, the person beside her tore the tape from her mouth, exposing her soft lips once more to the air. She pressed them together lightly, clearly trying to endure the pain.
"Speak... Where is the genetic serum?"
Click...
The dark-skinned officer grabbed her chin with one hand, forcing her head up as he stared at the cloth-covered eyes and questioned her coldly.
"..."
Inori did not answer, as if she had not heard him.
"Don't play tricks with me, woman... You know my methods."
He threatened her coldly.
"..."
Silence was still her only response.
"!"
Bang!
He grabbed the girl's pink hair and slammed her head against the wall behind her.
"Mm~!"
A wave of dizziness flooded her mind, forcing several coughs from her throat.
"Speak!!"
"Cough... cough..."
Inori remained silent.
"Still not talking?! Your mouth is stubborn!"
Smack!
A sharp slap struck her across the face, snapping her head to the side.
"Woman... let me tell you, we have the authority to dispose of infected individuals without prior warning."
Buzz~
The man drew a dagger and pressed the blade against Inori's cheek. The piercing cold spread through her entire body, making her tremble instinctively. Yet the next moment, she returned to her usual calm.
"If you don't tell us the hiding place, we'll cleanse every resident on this entire street, you know?"
The icy blade drifted down from her face to her thigh. The edge sliced open her pale skin, and a streak of crimson seeped out, soaking into the white stocking wrapped around her thigh. The already dirt-stained white was dyed a glaring dark red.
"...!"
Inori's legs trembled. Her toes curled tightly inside her boots as she tried to endure the sharp, focused pain.
"...Heh, well? Going to talk?"
Noticing the subtle movement of her legs, the officer chuckled and asked again.
"...Is it fun?"
The next second, the girl finally spoke. But it was a completely unexpected question. Her voice was soft, concise.
"Huh?"
The officer froze.
"This game... the game of 'justice.' Is it fun?"
Inori asked again.
"You filthy bitch!!!"
Bang!
"Mm!!"
A kick slammed into her abdomen, making her body curl inward reflexively. He then stood up, withdrew the dagger, and gestured to the soldiers beside him.
"Don't regret this, woman!!"
Tap, tap...
He sneered at the trembling girl before turning and switching on his communicator.
"All units, listen up!!"
The eyes of every mech present lit up instantly.
"All residents within the combat zone are now confirmed at Infection Level 4+! Authorization granted for epidemic control measures!!"
"I will purge them. Leave no one alive."
He walked to the edge of the ruined, abandoned street and spoke into the communicator in a voice as cold as a demon.
"Understood!" ×N
All surrounding mechs immediately slid into motion, activating their weapon systems.
"What about the girl?"
An aide at his side stepped forward to ask.
"There are many other ways to obtain clues about the serum. Once the battle begins, kill her and throw her into the garbage heap."