【Shadow Assault】

  "You've been staring at me for four hours. Aren't you going to rest your eyes?"

  Yavanna opened her eyes, looking at Nomi, who was gring at her with one eye. She kindly suggested:

  "Rex, I won't run away. You've already taken my pressed biscuits and personal terminal. Traveling ier world without transport is no different from seekih."

  "Shut up." Nomi raised a wrend poi her, disdainfully saying, "There’s not a single good thing about the Four Nations. Our Rose Army kills dogs and ckeys like you."

  "Mr. Li Aozhi is also from the Four Nations, from the Red Arrow Empire. You seem to get along well with him."

  Yavanna said calmly, notig a flicker in Nomi’s eyes. She then blinked:

  "Is it because you like him?"

  "Fuck you (polite Frost-Pted). How could I like such a retty boy? Don’t disgust me."

  Nomi shivered with disgust:

  "We’re just cooperating, each taking what we need, so we’ve temporarily ceased fire."

  "Sihe Rose Army cooperate with people from the Four Nations, I think we also cooperate with Frost-Pted people."

  Before Yavanna could finish her sentenomi stomped on the car door beside Yavanna's head, revealing a ferocious smile from beh her bandages.

  "Yes, of course, we cooperate—after all, we’re still patriots from a racial standpoint!"

  She lowered her head, her face twisted, and the bandages showed signs of tearing:

  "—My parents, my siblings, my mentors, and rades all died at the hands of patriots! You’re talking about cooperation now, so why don’t you give back their lives?"

  Her knuckles whitened as she gripped the wrench, her eyes filled with hatred and anger.

  "Louis, Rowenko, Julei, Oren, Lilia, Teray... The entire vilge was forced out of their homes and into the outer world wilderness by your Frost-Pted army because there was a rich iron mine in the vilge. They starved and froze to death along the way. Now you’re talking about cooperation? I spit on that! Every inch of Frost-Pted nd is buried with the blood and bones of outer world people. You bastards born from sinful soil all deserve to die!"

  She was extremely emotional, but even so, she didn’t act violently. Notig Yavanna’s fusion, Nomi sneered:

  "Think I’d hit you? No, no, no, we in the Rose Army aren’t like the beasts of Law IV. We treat prisoners well. No matter how angry I am, I won’t do such a thing."

  After saying that, she put down the wrench, crossed her arms, and looked down at Yavanna.

  Yavanna was silent for a moment, then said:

  "I’ve never abused a prisoner. Never. During interrogations, I use reasoning and evideo leave them speechless, f them to fess. I’ve never killed anyone. In fact, I’ve only been w for three months..."

  "Oh, now you’re pying i?" Nomi sneered.

  Yavanna shook her head: "I’m not lying. In fact, I think the gover and media have somewhat stigmatized the Rose Army..."

  "Stigmatized, my ass. We’re rebels. Sooner or ter, we’ll tear down the whole Frost-Pted! Rebuild a try for ordinary people on your ruins."

  Nomi interrupted loudly:

  "That’s my motivation for living. Go ahead and stigmatize us. The Rose bandits will eventually break into the capital and drive out the big capitalists and bureaucrats!"

  "If that’s the case," Yavanna said, "we shouldn’t be enemies."

  "—Huh?" Nomi raised an eyebrow. "Are you (polite Frost-Pted) kidding me?"

  "No, I’m serious."

  Yavanna stared at her and said solemnly:

  "My name is Yavanna Huskisin, but that’s my mother’s surname. You should be familiar with my father."

  "Oh, which young dy now? You parasites are disgusting—"

  "My father is Daverin, director of the Frost-Pted Ministry of Internal Security Special Affairs Bureau. The Rose Army’s intelligence is outstanding. You should know he’s also a didate for the Minister of Defense."

  Yavanna said:

  "But the Rose Army wouldn’t know that a year ago, he was secretly tried and imprisoned for treason and collusion, held on Elf Isnd."

  Elf Isnd... It sounded dreamy aiful, like a resort, but it was actually a prison fh-level and dangerous criminals in Frost-Pted, guarded by superhumans and heavily armed soldiers, making escape impossible.

  Nomi was slightly stuheeo be indifferent: "So what?"

  "My father is a true patriot. He didn’t it treason or collusion."

  Yavanna said solemnly:

  "He was framed by female political enemies because he, as a maered the Twin Paces (Frost-Pted Presidential Pace)."

  "My family has always been protected and supported by my father. He was ho aed to the try. He never let us enjoy the privileges of the elite css. He rose to his position through hard work and achievements. But su ho and loyal father was framed because of his gender..."

  "My family colpsed ht. My mother broke down and, in an attempt to clear my father’s name, k in front of the Twin Paces to plead, only to be beaten and imprisoned by the military police for 'attempting to assassihe president.' My elder brother was implicated, fired from his job, and though he graduated from a prestigious uy, he couldn’t find work."

  "...Oh."

  Nomi carried the wrendifferently.

  "To save my family from dee, I joined Law IV."

  Yavanna said:

  "I’m at least a college graduate. Joining Law IV as a field agent didn’t require exams or political background checks. As long as I pleted two major tasks, I could work at the Twin Star City headquarters. It was the fastest way to enter politid save my father."

  "Do you think that’s possible? How could they not check your political background? Your father has been arrested. The on people don’t care, but the high-ups know. They’ll never let you join the inner circle of power."

  Nomi mocked:

  "People like you only care about your own is, trary to the ideals of the Rose Army."

  "There are only two ways to save my father."

  Yavanna said:

  "One is to bee president and sign a pardon."

  "The sed is—to find the location of Elf Isnd and storm it."

  "Don’t bother. Let him die."

  Nomi y on the sofa, cross-legged, hands behind her head, ued. She shrugged:

  "You want to be president? Sorry, but even Qiu Ran looks more reliable than you. At least she seems kind and likable, even if she’s not very bright. What skills do you have?"

  Nomi tapped her head, mog:

  "As for attag Elf Isnd, I suggest you save your energy. No one knows its exact location, and it’s guarded by Frost-Pted’s elite troops. You’d be better off finding a new father."

  She watched Yavanna lower her head and added:

  "I uand your iion, young dy. You want to use the Rose Army to save your father. But why should we do that? High-ranking officials in Frost-Pted die as many as possible—it doesn’t matter."

  Bang!

  Before Nomi could finish, a loud noise came from behind, something hitting the car door hard. The two inside became alert, and Nomi grabbed the wrench, ready for battle.

  Shhh—

  The outer camoufge cloth was instantly torn open, sharp shadow cws scratg the bulletproof gss, leaving deep cracks. The beast lowered its head, opening its mouth wide at the two inside, letting out a pierg roar:

  "Ziaaaaa—"

  "What the hell is that?!"

  Just making eye tact with the shadow filled Nomi with intense disfort, as if her body temperature had dropped by several degrees, leaving her hands a cold.

  Whoosh!

  A sliced through the night sky, heavily accelerated by gravity, like a silver-gray holy sword, instantly decapitating the shadow beast.

  "s—Li Aozhi!"

  Nomi's eyes lit up. She quickly opehe car door and jumped out.

  "Good job, Li—"

  Her praise was cut short as Li Aozhi's figure flew toward her like a broken kite.

  "Shit! Don’t e over here!"

  Thud!

  Li Aozhi’s back crashed into Nomi. Without time to expin, he immediately adjusted the dire of gravity, leaping into the air and throwing Nomi, who served as his cushion, to the other side of the car.

  "Nomi, drive!"

  As he looked up, the one-armed girl’s figure appeared in his vision, her lifeless, thin form starkly trasting against the biting cold wind... looking so grotesque.

  Nomi, thrown to the ground, quickly got up, opehe car door, and sat in the driver's seat. Without fastening her seatbelt, she immediately started the car.

  Vroom—

  As the engine roared to life, the one-armed girl suddenly appeared in front of the car.

  "Move!" Nomi shouted, turning on the high beams, hoping to force her away.

  Snap!

  The blinding light reflected off her pale skin. Nomi's pupils shrank; the girl's young age and numerous wounds shocked her. In that moment, she hesitated, failing to press the accelerator.

  This brief hesitation gave the one-armed girl an opportunity.

  She stiffly raised her hand, and from the wounds all over her body, shadowy bck mist gushed out like a flood, ready to engulf the entire car.

  "Kneel!"

  The thunderous roar startled the one-armed girl, causio kneel instantly, her knees smashing into the snow, bones breaking.

  Whoosh—

  Li Aozhi, with a taut , desded from the sky. The increased gravity turhe into a straight spear, pierg through the girl’s skull from her and nailio the frost-cround.

  FAL