NIKKE, When the Milky Way Blossoms

An explosion was heard.

But all that happened was an explosion.

Anise was about to turn her head and ask the commander why he had fired for no reason when the next second, the scene in her field of vision gave her the answer.

Then, a damned electronic eye appeared in the smoke and dust in front of the Cross Toy Store.

Its position was exactly right in front of the doll.

"!"

How... how did the commander know a Lecher would crawl out around that corner?!

Despite her surprise, Anis's fingers didn't slow down at all. The moment she saw Lecher, she immediately fired a grenade.

boom! ! !

Because it had been aimed beforehand, the shot easily hit the Lecher's torso, blasting its chassis-like body into a brilliant red-hot iron flower.

They've got it!

Anis excitedly turned her head to the side, her beautiful, smooth, shoulder-length short hair swinging out in a charming, playful arc.

"Lord Commander!"

however……

Commander Phoenix, whose mind was solely focused on taking down Lecher, raised his sniper rifle once again and performed another unreasonable, indiscriminate firing exercise at close range for Anis.

Zzz—BOOM—!!!

Gunshots rang out, signifying that yet another Lecher had fallen in despair.

Immediately afterwards...

"Cough! Cough cough cough!!! Cough—!!!"

Amidst the worrying coughing, someone could be heard coughing and sighing:

"This sniper rifle... cough—!"

***strong enough!!!"

Chapter 8 Grouping

"Commander! This heavy weapon is clearly meant for Nikki. How can your body withstand firing like this continuously?!"

Seeing the commander coughing hysterically with every shot he fired, Anise was about to step forward to offer some words of comfort when Phoenix stood up and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, handed the sniper rifle back to her.

"gather."

The man frowned, swallowed hard, trying to stop his incessant coughing, and said:

"Everyone...follow."

Then, he reached out and patted the girl's shoulder in response, before running wildly toward the underpass next to the overpass.

Anise was left alone, stamping her feet in frustration.

"Ugh—really! Are you annoyed by me, Commander?!"

After saying that, she hurriedly followed after him.

……

……

"Lavi and Lorfu, you are responsible for guarding the southern underground entrance."

Upon arriving at the underground passage, Phoenix exchanged a glance with Lapi, who was standing at the back of the line, and said something somewhat inexplicable in a serious tone.

"Keep an eye on this place. No one is allowed to enter or leave without a threat."

"...Understood, Commander."

As the most disciplined member of the team, Lhapi immediately realized the most important logic in the order.

No “threats” are allowed to enter or leave.

This threat could be Leitch... or it could be Niki.

So, why would the commander believe that Niki is a threat to the team?

Watching the six figures depart, Lapi began to ponder this question worthy of careful consideration. Unlike the extremely sensitive Anise, she did not feel sadness, anger, hostility, or self-pity because the commander suspected Niki's actions.

She was already used to how humans treated Niki.

Moreover, the commander's abilities have been quite reliable throughout the journey. Since he believes there is a problem within the team, there must be some clues that she has not noticed.

Therefore,

Who has a problem?

……

……

Who has the problem? The problem itself is not difficult for Phoenix to solve.

The challenge lies in finding a quick, safe, and conflict-free way to resolve this issue.

Therefore, underground passages connecting to subway stations are the best place to quickly solve this problem.

“Anis, give my gun to Pepper! You and Sugar are in a group, head about 200 meters south of the subway tracks for reconnaissance. Sugar, I'll allow you to drive the motorcycle.”

In the pitch-black underground food court, Phoenix swiftly issued one order after another.

"Merry and Christine will work together to advance about 200 meters north of the subway tracks to conduct reconnaissance."

“Pepper and I are in a team, responsible for the entrance to the underground passage on the east side.”

"Attention everyone, retreat immediately upon encountering Lecher. Those who do not retreat will be considered to be disobeying orders and will be allowed to be shot non-lethally by other members and taken away for evacuation."

"Understood, Commander."

"Commander! Let Pepper accompany..."

"Time is of the essence, everyone hurry!" Phoenix interrupted Anise before she could finish speaking, urging her on again, and then said to Pepper, who had just taken over the sniper rifle:

"Pepper, hurry up."

"I understand, Commander!"

With a flushed face, Pepper hurriedly took the anti-materiel sniper cannon from Anise's hands.

However, asking a short, pink-haired person who is less than 1.6 meters tall to wield a sniper rifle that is nearly 1.6 meters long is indeed a bit of a hassle.

"Commander! Wait, wait, wait, wait..."

After finally managing to sling the sniper rifle diagonally behind her, Pepper realized that the Commander was no longer by her side. Only the sound of footsteps coming from the dark tunnel kept reminding her that the Commander had run to the east entrance of the underground tunnel alone.

"Wait! Wait for me, Commander!"

"..."

"Let's go, Anise."

Because Sugar had brought her own motorcycle, she wasn't in a hurry to get going. Instead, she leaned against the motorcycle with her shotgun on her shoulder, patiently observing Anise's sullen expression through night vision and the motorcycle's headlights, and said:

"Instead of wasting time standing here, we should hurry up and finish the mission to go back to the commander."

Are you in a hurry to finish the mission?

"?"

Under Sugar's astonished gaze, Anise glanced coldly at the white-haired motorcycle woman, said nothing more, and kept a subtle distance from her, holding her gun in both hands.

Christine and Merry, Commander and Pepper, herself and Sugar.

Anise isn't stupid; in fact, you could say she's the most suspicious person in the whole team.

The commander's allocation of personnel was completely inconsistent with the shrewdness and cunning he displayed in his previous negotiations with the Central Command.

A human and a medical Nikki guarding the entrance to the underground passage—an act that even those idiotic commanders who only know how to shout "for the central government" all day long know is practically suicide.

Therefore, the problem must lie with the support troops.

This also explains why the instructions received by Lhapi at the time were not "to block Lecher," but "to prevent any threat from entering or leaving."

only……

What was the commander's intention in separating Sugar and the other two?

……

"commander."

"Ok?"

"Do you really want me to stay with the commander and guard this entrance?"

"What? You want to go on a subway track adventure?"

Phoenix stood behind Pepper, carefully raising the sniper rifle over the girl's head, and explained with a smile: