– Strange entities have appeared at the lake!
– For now, they aren’t getting closer! Let’s deal with the contaminated entities first!
Following Agni’s words, the other agents focused on the contaminated entities.
In fact, they had only shown themselves at the lake so far and hadn’t come out of it.
Of course, they were moving slightly toward the outside of the lake.
We couldn’t help but feel tense about an unexpected entity suddenly appearing.
After all, it had never crossed our minds at all, nor did it exist in the original work I remembered.
“……”
“……”
“……”
It was so sudden that the three in the command room were at a loss for words.
For now, we were quietly observing the situation, but we had essentially run out of things to say.
“What are we going to do?”
“I’m not sure. Is the artillery prepared?”
“The preparation is complete. We can drop it as soon as you give the order.”
“…Let’s observe a bit longer. The surrounding contaminated entities haven’t been wiped out yet, and we don’t want to obstruct our agents’ line of sight unnecessarily.”
“Understood.”
The commander’s words made sense for now.
After all, the agents were focusing on capturing the contaminated entities that were rushing toward them.
In such a situation, attacking the strange entity could obstruct our view and cause unnecessary chaos.
– To the right! A big one is coming!
– I’ll handle it!
– Just a bit longer, and we’ll have captured all the contaminated entities! Hang in there!
The squad members were all communicating in their own ways, and luckily, we weren’t short on supplies.
Honestly, there were a few comments at first about it being a bit much, but it turned out we needed to be a little over-prepared.
I gave myself a slight pat on the back for firmly rejecting Midori’s comments.
After today’s operation, should I treat myself to an energy drink or something?
“Commander, the signals from the contaminated entities emerging from the lake have decreased significantly.”
The signals detected by the radar have dropped significantly.
What remained was a reptilian entity that had suddenly appeared from the lake.
“Squad members, we have mostly dealt with the contaminated entities, but there’s one strange entity ahead. Can you see it?”
– I can see it… but what should we do about it?
– From what it looks like, its outer shell seems really tough. It doesn’t look like ordinary bullets will pierce it…
The strange entity resembling a reptile seemed to have thick scales.
It hadn’t revealed its full form from the lake yet, but there were dark green scales running from its head to its back and tail.
It appeared smooth as it came out of the water, but it was clear that it was made of a tough material.
As Easter said, it probably wouldn’t be easily pierced by bullets.
“Commander.”
So, I called the commander and nodded slightly.
Did he understand my actions?
“We will start bombarding from the ship. While we might not be able to eliminate it completely, we should at least be able to inflict significant damage to its outer shell.”
– What should we do in the meantime? Should we just wait?
“No, first move away from that spot and go behind the barricade. You aren’t too far from the strange entity, and we can’t be sure of the artillery’s accuracy.”
“Even though we prepared the bombs, we have no idea how much damage they might cause.”
“As Linda said… it could be devastating, or it could have minimal impact. For now, let’s check the response from a distance before we re-engage in combat. Got it?”
In response to the commander’s question, each agent answered.
Naturally, there didn’t seem to be anyone refusing the directives.
The commander’s orders weren’t problematic, and from the agents’ perspective, it was probably the best strategy.
Of course, with Agni leading the charge, it would’ve been fine to jump right into battle.
After all, Agni was considered a very strong character in the early stages.
But for now, that wasn’t an option, as the lake environment might limit the effectiveness of Agni’s fire-wielding sword.
– Everyone, move behind the barricade, completed!
“Linda.”
“Yes!”
Following the commander’s orders, I operated the controls and pressed the artillery button.
To be honest, I never expected that I would actually get to use artillery, but there was some anticipation.
While the situation could be risky, it was exciting nonetheless.
After all…
– Fweeeeee!
I heard something falling from the sky through the speakers.
And the strange entity was gradually moving away from the lake.
The bombardment point was quite close, and in fact, it wasn’t far off at all.
The strange entity’s speed was slow, while the bombardment’s speed was fast, so it was only natural.
– BOOM!!
– KABOOM!!
– KABOOM!!
The explosions were truly a work of art.
It wasn’t happening to me; it was the enemy—a hideously ugly reptilian monster that was getting hit.
Naturally, such bombardment looked incredibly cool.
It felt like a scene straight out of a movie.
Of course, this wasn’t a movie but a world based on a game, so it was a bit different.
It just felt like an incredible bombardment.
– KYAAAAAA!!!
The strange entity vocally cried out after being hit by the bombardment.
My ears were a bit hurt, but thankfully, Midori grimaced and lowered the speaker volume.
Both I and the commander gave Midori a grateful look for her action.
After all, it really was loud!
“The dust is clearing; get ready to move in.”
– Yes!
“We need to attack the areas where the scales have been torn away due to the bombardment. If there are high-power weapons like bombs left, don’t hesitate to use them right away.”
The commander said, and everyone quietly awaited the clearing of the dust.
Gradually, the dust cleared, and the strange entity emerged unsteadily from the lake.
While it wasn’t quite a dragon, it appeared somewhat similar to one.
It had no wings, but it was too large to be called merely a lizard, with a long, serpentine body.
And its jaw and legs looked far too strong to categorize it as just a lizard.
Of course…
– Charge!
– Agni! You’re too fast!
– I don’t care! We just need to charge in!
Since the bombardment had damaged the previously tough outer shell, the agents were able to charge in.
The agents on-site ignored the damaged floor caused by the bombardment and started running mindlessly.
Honestly, I was worried about them getting hurt, but the state of the strange entity was so poor that I didn’t dwell on those concerns for long.
Instead, I just wanted to capture it quickly and break its core so we could head home.
*
“KYAH! Time to go home!”
“I’m tired…”
“Today… I think I’ll skip dinner!”
After letting the squad members recuperate in the recovery room, we gathered in the office.
The squad members were left to rest, and we still had a bit of work to do.
After successfully completing the operation, we had to do a bit of reporting.
It wasn’t difficult—just reporting that the operation had been a success.
Of course, I would have to write a separate report later, but there wasn’t much time to do that today.
“Midori, why are you suddenly like this? You usually gobble up food like it’s the best thing ever.”
“W-Well! Today I’m just too tired! Plus, I have to come in tomorrow… I think I’ll just have some instant noodles in my personal room!”
“Do as you like. I’m not forcing you to eat.”
It was quite surprising that Midori suddenly didn’t want to join us for dinner.
After all, she was always the one racing to eat whenever we had meals together.
While it was perfectly fine for her to skip eating, it was still surprising since she usually put her all into meals.
“Well then, Commander. Let’s just eat among ourselves today.”
“…Yeah, let’s do that.”
Well, it couldn’t be helped.
I felt a bit burdened eating just the two of us, but I had no intention of skipping a meal.
I was even hungrier than usual after the operation, and I definitely wasn’t going to skip meals.
After all, I usually ate meals with the Commander, so it wasn’t anything too new.
Now I was pretty much used to it, so it was just a slight burden.
“Are we leaving right away?”
“Hmm… what do you think?”
Since Midori asked, I turned to the commander.
After all, he was the superior, and I was the vice commander, right?
Now that our work was done, it was clear we would be heading out for food.
“If Linda is okay with it, let’s go now.”
“I’m good.”
“Hmm…”
Midori, who was somehow smiling beside me, probably just thought about enjoying some delicious ramen alone.
After a long day’s work, there’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to ramen on the way home.
“Wait, Linda!”
“Yes?”
Just as we were about to move toward the dining hall, Midori suddenly stopped me.
She told the commander to go ahead and sent him off.
I truly didn’t understand what this was about.
After all, I had no clue why she suddenly stopped me.
“What…”
“What?”
“Hang in there!”
“…Huh?”
Suddenly, I had no idea what she meant.
Was she telling me to eat well?
With that, Midori dashed off down the hallway, escaping to her personal room.
“What just happened…?”
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