Poseidon in Arknights

Is glanced at Mostima, who was battling the Rat King: "Are you worried about her?"

Fiameta turned her head away: "I'm just here to make sure she doesn't do anything out of line."

"But, well, what terrible acting. Since she's so leisurely, it seems there's nothing worth paying attention to." Fiameta commented from the high platform, looking down at the battle, or rather the performance, below.

After watching for a while, Fiameta turned to leave: "I'll go first. Also, don't tell her I was here. I'll go find her after I'm done."

“…They’ve left.” Is turned to look at Fiameta, who had disappeared off the rooftop, his tone somewhat strange. “Appeared suddenly, questioned suddenly, and then left suddenly.”

"Latran has become like this now?" Is shook his head, sat down at Yuuki's table, and picked up the black tea that had been poured for him. "It tastes good."

"Thanks for the compliment."

Chapter 47: The Law of Noise (Part 10)

"...Ha, I'm suddenly starting to envy young people like you." The Rat King looked at Mostima. "You always like to choose your own path without considering your place in the current situation."

Mostima smiled and said, "I've been working hard too."

The Rat King stared at Mostima: "But no one has ever been able to find out your background."

Mostima shook his head: "If you actually find out something, that's the most troublesome thing."

“That’s right. Some things shouldn’t be investigated too deeply, especially when it comes to the messenger Mostima.”

Mostima dodged another gust of yellow sand: "What is this? Is it occupational discrimination?"

"This is just based on experience." The Rat King tapped his cane lightly. "Let's pause for now."

“Hmm.” Mostima’s expression darkened. “The spell has been suppressed….”

"What's going on? So you were the one who was holding back all along?"

“Likewise.” The Rat King shook his head at Mostima. “But at least you bought yourself enough time.”

------

"You little rascal, how come you're so resilient... uh..."

Bison, panting heavily, said, "Huff, huff, when it comes to endurance, I won't lose to anyone."

"Hmm, well done." Mostima jumped off the float. "It's amazing how quickly you managed to take care of so many enemies."

"Hey, this time I won't let you disappear all by yourself again." Exusiai swiftly arrived beside Mostima. "Besides, this guy's the mastermind, right? Of course, we'll personally give him a good beating!"

"Today's exercise was beyond my imagination, and the bills are ridiculously long too." Croissant didn't care about much else, looking at the damaged things around her with a pained expression. "Texas sister, I feel like a lot of things won't be reimbursed tonight..."

Texas sighed, looking uninterested: "Don't ask me, ask the boss."

Kong pointed only to the penguin carcass lying not far away: "But the boss is dead..."

Texas glanced at it casually: "...We'll talk about it later."

Kong shrugged: "Speaking of which, isn't anyone going to take care of the boss's body? Just lying there being trampled on, isn't that a bit...?"

"It seems everyone's here." The Rat King looked down at the crowd that had gathered around him. "...Young people always make their own choices."

"Even if you are shattered to pieces on a stormy earth, you will always be so determined to do things."

Exusiai raised an eyebrow: "What is he talking about?"

"Forget about the old man's nagging."

The Rat King glanced at Mostima and smiled: "Let's leave it at that. Are you happy on Requiem Night?"

"It's alright, just like a hangover, you absolutely can't think about what to do the next day."

Kong glanced at the emperor's corpse: "So, is no one going to take care of the boss?"

The Rat King looked at Penguin Logistics, who seemed to be on a completely different wavelength, with a hint of speechlessness: "...Penguin Logistics, it really is unpredictable."

“There’s no need to worry about that now,” Mostima shrugged. “Penguin Logistics is Penguin Logistics. The reason for starting this war is simply that the boss’s taste has been questioned. It’s that simple.”

Bison still seemed out of sync: "What? Is that so?"

“To be willing to give one’s life to defend one’s aesthetics, that’s what an emperor is all about,” Mostima casually explained.

"At least in terms of surprising people, you have never surprised me." The Rat King tapped his cane lightly, and yellow sand began to rise around him.

"Ouch! Where did this sand come from?!"

Kong shielded himself with his arm: "Does he still have any strength left?"

“…That’s right, everyone be serious. This is different from all that playful fighting.” Texas perked up a bit. “Don’t let your guard down for even a second.”

"How can Requiem Night not be a little lively?" The Rat King smiled as he looked at the penguin logistics in front of him. "Let me see for myself what kind of freaks the Emperor is raising."

"The sword broke as soon as it touched the sand... What a nuisance." Texas frowned as she glanced at the broken sword in her hand.

The Rat King glanced at Texas and shook his head: "Hmm, over the years, there haven't been many people who dare to get close to me and brandish their weapons."

"Then try this!" Exusiai exclaimed, watching the pointless bullet fall into the sand. "Ah, it's useless! Croissant, it's yours now!"

"But my hammer is stuck in quicksand! I can't move it at all!"

The Rat King shook his head: "Useless effort. Is that all, Penguin Logistics?"

Mostima's voice suddenly rang out: "It's not just that."

The sand surrounding the Rat King was melted by the sudden burst of solitary light, and the Rat King was also struck by the remaining solitary light: "...Ugh."

Mostima shouted quickly, "The sand shield has been broken! Now, Exusiai!"

Exusiai drew another submachine gun from inside her clothes: "Barrage firing time!!!"

The Rat King looked at Exusiai: "...Multiple Guardian Guns? What a troublesome angel."

Bison's shield blocked the sand pillar unleashed by the Rat King: "Don't even think about it!"

"Oh? It actually blocked it?"

Exusiai nodded to Bison, who was standing in front of her, and said, "Thanks, Bison!"

"And me too! Don't blame me for being too harsh on the elderly!"

Croissant charged forward, hammer in hand, only to be repelled by sand. "Ouch! I missed again!! Texas!"

"Don't think about it."

The Rat King frowned, looking at Sora who was whispering in the distance: "Hmm, using Originium Arts with sound, an interesting little girl."

"Do you still have time to look around?" Texas's voice rang out, her sword already piercing the sand.

"Ugh..." The Rat King let out a muffled groan, looking at the coat he was wearing.

Texas clicked her tongue: "That angle, and they actually avoided it..."

Bison's tone became slightly more relaxed: "But at least it made him move a step. Standing still and dealing with us made him feel like he was being looked down upon."

“…Hmm, Penguin Logistics.” The Rat King looked at his coat with a pang of heartache. “That coat was a gift from my daughter.”

"In all these years, you are the first outsider to have encountered it."

The Rat King shook his head with a pained expression: "That's about enough. With this, the goal of establishing authority has been achieved."

Mostima looked at the Rat King: "Are you angry?"

"No, it's just a mix of feelings..." The Rat King looked up at the sky, "but there's not much time left in the night, and it's time for the revelry to end."

"Ah, after fighting to this extent, you say it's over?" Exusiai looked at the Rat King, who had jumped off the float and was about to leave surrounded by a crowd, with a strange expression.

Texas pulled Exusiai back: "Never mind, Exusiai, don't forget, the Rat King left us a big gift, don't forget it."

Mostima stretched: "Maybe it's a bomb, after all, that Syracuse loves bombs."

After thinking for a moment, Exusiai looked at the crowd around her and said, "Isn't that a bit bad?"

Bison pointed to the crowd still surrounding them: "And the enemy hasn't completely left; it's like they're waiting for us. What's going on?"

Texas stroked her chin. She didn't believe there was really a heavy bomb planted here. She wouldn't allow it. But Texas looked around at the gangsters who were still blocking other people and looked up at the foggy sky above the square.

'But if that bomb was meant for her, it doesn't seem impossible...'

“In that case, let’s split up. Sora, Croissant, Exusiai, we’ll hold off the remaining enemies.” Texas assigned tasks to the group. “Bison and Mostima, take care of that gift.”

"Sunrise is approaching, we don't have much time left."

-------

"Damn it, where is it?" Bison searched anxiously.

Mostima patted Bison on the shoulder, who looked anxious: "You're panicking. Don't always be so impatient."

Bison took a deep breath: "...Miss Mostima, didn't we meet the Rat King before?"

Bison’s words sounded like a question, but his tone seemed to confirm a certain fact.

Mostima nodded, confirming Bison's idea: "That's right."

Bison stopped and looked at Mostima: "So you guessed it from the beginning?"

“Hahaha, well…” Mostima turned his head away, trying to avoid Bison’s gaze.

Bison stared intently at Mostima, who was chuckling: "Don't try to get away with this!"

“Well, okay, okay, I can’t figure out what he’s thinking either. I’m just an actor who joined halfway through, and I guessed part of the script.” Mostima half-raised his hand, indicating surrender. “But time is running out, and the Guard Bureau will get restless.”

"This area is in complete chaos. With all the people who just want to join in the fun, it's impossible to conduct a proper reconnaissance."

Bison looked at Mostimatan's technology and forced himself to regain his composure and think: "...Victoria gummies, candy boxes, maybe that's a clue."

"However, logically speaking, it would be very foolish to reuse the same trap."

Mostima smiled as he looked at Bison, who was deep in thought: "If that's the case, why?"

“If the Rat King truly foresaw everything that would happen tonight, then our earlier encounter with him must not have been a coincidence.” Bison looked around. “From the very beginning, he has been talking to us.”

Mostima nodded and asked, "If this is his trap, why would he give us a hint? It doesn't make sense."

“I don’t know either. Maybe we shouldn’t be so hasty in making him our enemy… But I have this intuition,” Bison said, looking around. “It’s not just a guess; ever since we met the Rat King, he’s been trying to hint at something… something like today’s event. Maybe it really is just…”

“I’ve got it,” Mostima suddenly said.

Following Mostima's hand, Bison looked in that direction: "...Is this it?"

Mostima examined the object in front of him: "About 80 centimeters long and wide, and 40 centimeters high, placed in an iron box—hmm, is this a large-sized surprise gift box?"

Looking at the metal box in front of him, Bison asked nervously, "Can...can it be disassembled?"