Chapter 24. The Infiltrator, No. 7 (1)
She was afraid.
Yukgap understood that immediately.
Victoria was clearly terrified of whatever she believed might be her mother.
“U-Uhhh?”
Suddenly, Seryun, who had been performing Bunshinsaba, was lifted into the air.
His collar crumpled as though something invisible had grabbed him by the throat.
Yukgap immediately realized something.
“Victoria, I don’t think that’s your mother.”
“What do you mean?”
Victoria asked quickly.
Before anyone could react, Seryun flailed in the grip of the invisible force.
“H-Help me! Something’s holding me!”
Despite his desperate cry, whatever had grabbed him was extremely strong.
Then something sharp slashed across his neck.
“Aaaaaagh!”
Seryun screamed in pain.
His head separated from his body.
Roll, roll.
Seryun’s severed head rolled across the floor and stopped near Victoria’s feet.
“Aaaaaah!”
Victoria screamed.
At that moment, Seryun’s blood floated into the air.
Letters were written across the nearby wall.
Yukgap and Victoria both read them.
[Hello, No. 6?]
“...Damn it.”
A curse naturally escaped Yukgap’s mouth.
He immediately turned toward Victoria.
“Victoria, get out through the back door.”
She quickly answered,
“Why? Are you going to fight a ghost?”
“That isn’t a ghost!”
Yukgap gripped monomolecular cutters in both hands.
Then he rapidly scanned the area.
“One of the most troublesome members of the Twelve Archons is here with us.”
“One of the Twelve Archons...?”
“Yeah. A chimera biological weapon like me. One of them is inside this room.”
Yukgap answered in a trembling voice.
A sharp laugh suddenly came from the empty air.
“Hahahahaha.”
Yukgap immediately threw the dagger in his hand.
“There!”
The dagger flew forward at high speed.
Then it suddenly stopped in midair.
Something invisible had clearly caught it.
“I’m flattered you think so highly of me, Zeta.”
A seductive laugh followed.
Yukgap shouted with certainty.
“So it really is you. No. 7!”
“Aww, that’s cold. We agreed you’d call me Eta when it’s just us.”
A woman slowly appeared as though emerging from empty space.
She wore a tight black suit.
Her skin was slightly dark, perhaps because she was of Latin descent.
Her body was lean, athletic, and muscular.
She was undeniably beautiful, with striking features.
But her green eyes seemed to look straight through people, giving her an unusual presence.
“Anyway, nice to see you again. Have you been well?”
The woman casually greeted Yukgap.
Victoria stared in shock.
“What?! She appeared out of nowhere!”
Yukgap pointed at the suit the woman was wearing.
“It’s because of the cloaking suit. That’s No. 7’s overtechnology weapon from Abraxas. When activated, it blends into the surrounding scenery and makes her invisible.”
“That’s incredible.”
Victoria muttered in admiration.
Yukgap continued,
“No. 7’s assigned role is Infiltrator. In a way, that weapon suits her better than anything else.”
No. 7 answered mockingly.
“I’m glad you still remember me.”
“How could I forget?”
Yukgap immediately launched himself forward.
His predator-like eyes gleamed fiercely.
He swung his dagger toward No. 7.
“You’re the Archon who nearly killed me!”
“Wow. Still as reckless as ever.”
No. 7 lightly dodged the attack with a flexible movement.
Then she stepped backward.
“But what will you do? Your speed is useless if you don’t know where I am.”
Her body vanished as though erased from Yukgap’s sight.
Yukgap shouted toward the direction she had disappeared.
“You stole the pork too, didn’t you?”
“That? I was hungry. It was really delicious.”
No. 7’s mocking voice came from empty space.
She was clearly enjoying herself.
Victoria quickly ordered Robert,
“Robert, activate detection mode! Find out where that woman is!”
A bright red light appeared in Robert’s eyes.
But his answer was hopeless.
[Impossible. Target cannot be identified.]
“What?”
Victoria stared in shock.
She knew how sharp Robert’s detection capabilities were.
Even he could not find her.
Yukgap spoke quickly.
“Scrap heap is right. Once No. 7 activates her cloaking suit, you can’t detect her with infrared, thermal imaging, X-rays, or anything else. And her body is flexible and light enough that she doesn’t make any sound.”
Victoria gave a short assessment.
“She’s like a ghost.”
“A ghost would be easier.”
At least a ghost might be exorcised.
This opponent was a biological weapon that even Yukgap struggled against.
In a way, she was far more frightening and troublesome than a ghost.
“Ah!”
Victoria suddenly cried out and was dragged backward.
Something invisible had clearly grabbed her.
“Let Victoria go!”
Yukgap shouted desperately.
No. 7 slowly appeared behind Victoria, one hand gripping her neck.
“Zeta, after you disappeared, I was so curious I thought I’d go crazy. Where were you? What were you doing? Why would you do something as stupid as running from Abraxas?”
She glanced at Victoria.
“And now there’s a woman beside you? So you’re still a man after all.”
“Sorry, but Victoria and I aren’t like that.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Believe whatever you want. But you made one mistake.”
Yukgap grinned.
As if waiting for those words, Victoria grabbed the arm holding her.
“Hah!”
With a short shout, she threw No. 7 over her shoulder.
No. 7, who had been completely unprepared, crashed forward.
“Ack!”
She slammed into the floor.
Yukgap clicked his tongue.
“Victoria’s ridiculously strong despite how she looks. If you want to take her hostage, you should’ve learned that first.”
Victoria glared angrily down at No. 7.
“You break in without permission, pretend to be my mother, and scare the hell out of me?”
Whatever else had happened, the fact that No. 7 had involved her mother seemed to have genuinely enraged Victoria.
No. 7 quickly got back to her feet.
“You’re the one who got scared on your own. Why are you blaming me?”
“Just understand that I’m extremely angry. I can forgive a lot of things, but I won’t forgive anyone who uses my mother against me!”
There was an unfamiliar anger in Victoria’s voice.
No. 7 snorted.
“And what are you going to do about it?”
Her body vanished instantly.
She had activated the cloaking suit again.
Victoria quickly scanned the area.
Then she suddenly punched empty air.
“There!”
The sound of her fist striking something echoed.
No. 7 appeared again with a grunt.
“Ghk!”
Victoria’s fist had landed perfectly in No. 7’s side.
The blow sent her flying into the corner.
Victoria chuckled.
“So I was right.”
“H-How did you know?”
More than anything else, No. 7 seemed shocked that her cloaking had failed.
Victoria answered calmly.
“I can estimate where you’ll move by analyzing your stride, heartbeat, muscle movement, and the direction of your eyes. Even if I can’t see you, predicting your position is easy enough.”
No. 7 stared at her in disbelief.
“So you’re not ordinary either.”
“I am ordinary! I’m just a little better at math than most people!”
Even now, Victoria continued insisting she was ‘ordinary.’
But No. 7 was no longer listening.
“I figured the woman Zeta chose wouldn’t be ordinary... Fine. I’ll play seriously too.”
No. 7’s emerald eyes suddenly glowed.
Her body slowly expanded.
Soft black fur spread across her body.
Her muzzle extended.
Sharp fangs emerged.
Hook-like claws appeared on her hands and feet.
In an instant, she transformed into a black beast.
It looked almost as though darkness itself had wrapped around her.
Because of the cloaking suit, her body looked like one massive shadow.
The only color visible within it was the green of her eyes.
“Grrrrr.”
A predatory growl escaped No. 7’s mouth.
Victoria took a step back.
“What is that?”
Black fur.
Sharp claws and fangs.
A body that looked as though pure wild instinct had been forced into human shape.
Yukgap quickly answered,
“That’s No. 7’s true form. She’s a chimera fused with a jaguar.”
