Léon: The Cat Killer

Hearing Nana's questioning tone, Zilan pursed her lips slightly and then rolled her eyes at the two senior operators present:

"I think anyone who gets involved with that bunch of clowns will be exhausted."

"clown?"

Seeing that Nana still didn't understand, Wendy, who also had experience in the action team, realized what was going on:

"Oh, you mean the people in the A6 preparatory action group? I remember you were the captain?"

"Well... that's how it is... I have a bunch of weirdos under my command, but I can't just leave them alone. I feel like I've become a nanny or a mother hen, and the fact that there's a kid in the team makes that feeling even stronger."

The three of them sat down at the tea table in Nana's room, chatting and drinking the Colombian coffee brewed by the coffee machine—which Puff would probably describe as soulless—while waiting for the test results of the neutralizing agent spraying.

"A little girl? Oh, her name is Popka, right... I used to see her playing with my cat quite often. Has that child joined the preparatory action group now?"

"Yes, after all, they all need to earn money for treatment..."

"Speaking of treatment costs... Wendy doesn't have Oripathy. Zilan, how are you feeling? Would you mind if I accessed your monitoring ring?"

Zilan readily complied with Nana's gesture of pointing to her right wrist, but looking at the six percent fusion rate of somatic cells and Originium, and comparing it with past monitoring data, Nana felt slightly worried:

"At this rate, the infection continues to spread at a steady pace, and regular monitoring and control measures are still necessary..."

"That's just like what my attending physician said... Ah, I forgot you're also from the medical department, Medic. Don't worry about me, I'm cooperating with the treatment... But Medic, you're also an infected person, right? Is your infection rate okay? Your eyes... if you look closely, they seem to be completely petrified."

Hearing Zilan's slightly surprised words, Wendy also moved closer to Nana and said nervously, "Ah! Really... Nana, you've been on field missions for the past few years. I didn't even know your condition was so serious until Zilan told me!"

Although they were just colleagues, they were now talking like friends. Nana subconsciously covered her left eye with her hand, then gave a slightly melancholy smile:

"Actually, it's okay... I'll tell you something that might reveal secrets: the fusion rate between my somatic cells and Originium is actually steadily decreasing every year..."

Of course, given that the infection rate is over 70%, even with a steady decline each year, Nana's infection rate is still alarmingly high.

"And this eye of mine was actually transplanted..."

"Is it a prosthetic eye?"

“No, it’s the kitten’s sister… my neighbor, my friend, Kate’s eyes.”

Hearing this information-rich description, Wendy and Zilan paused slightly in their teacups, exchanging a glance.

In the past, Medic had never talked about this topic with anyone else... but because it sounded so heavy, and Wendy and Zilan weren't social terrorists, they found it really difficult to continue the conversation.

As complete strangers who had only met at the training ground and exchanged greetings after training, Wendy and Zilan changed the subject in perfect unison, like close friends:

"...Although it looks like it's been petrified, that emerald green color looks like a gemstone...Considering the kitten's appearance, that girl named Kate must be a beautiful girl who could be a fashion model...However, I've also heard about the rosemary thing, what a pity."

"Well, since it's classified, let's not delve any further... Speaking of which, it seems my testing on the neutralizing agent is finished. Shall we check the results?"

As Wendy beckoned over the bionic machine called 'Sea Dragon,' the three of them huddled together to look at the fabric that had been sprayed with a neutralizing agent.

"...The material... doesn't seem to be severely corroded. Has a new coating formed? The performance... doesn't seem to be affected."

Compared to Wendy's optimism, Zilan's brows were furrowed quite deeply:

"Isn't this color fading a bit too much? The city camouflage gray is almost turning pure white, and the fabric has become more like leather..."

"Is it the reflection of metal? The gaps in the paint have been filled and smoothed out like this?"

Seeing her equipment specialists deep in thought, Nana checked the time on her phone. It was probably another hour or two before she had to return to the front-line base to meet with the combatants.

"So, I'm about to participate in tonight's operation. Will I still be able to get my combat uniform in time?"

"Hmm... I just need to protect a few places with chips and primordial circuits, and then I should be able to start spraying the neutralizing agent... What did you say, Zilan?"

"Me? I'll have to see if our protagonist can accept a combat uniform that might have color differences due to different materials and be slightly revealing in public areas."

"...I understand color difference, but what about exposure?"

To address Nana's confusion, Zilan pointed to an inconspicuous piece of fabric in the sample. Now, thanks to the neutralizing agent, it appeared as a thin layer with a sheen like silicone or leather.

"This is the elastic thermal insulation material in the abdomen of the combat uniform, and a lot of other parts that need to absorb sweat and breathe also use this material... Spraying that neutralizing agent might cause these fabrics to turn yellow or black... That's easy to fix, as long as you spray it as evenly as possible, you can make their color differences as consistent as possible... But the original cotton-like material will become thin like silicone and leather, which will inevitably expose a lot of body lines... Medic, can you handle this?"

When Zilan said this, Wendy covered her mouth slightly in surprise. Obviously, for the Agor people who wore protective suits with transparent material, the design that was too close to their body lines... seemed to remind Wendy of the Agor homeland.

Bodysuits, especially those with smooth outer materials, are widely used in the sea.

However, this seems a bit too advanced for land dwellers.

But Nana didn't care; she nodded so quickly it was as if she hadn't even thought about it.

“I’ve worn similar styles of clothes a lot in the past, so it doesn’t matter…and I have a coat to cover it up.”

"...Just so you know, if I remember correctly, you need to take off your jacket when you're equipping your tactical gear..."

Nana shrugged at Zilan's deadpan expression and prompting:

"It's okay, if I can't beat you, I'll just put your summer uniform design inside."

"Wow...you still remember that? Never mind then."

While talking, Nana installed spray cans on Wendy's bionic mechanical device, and at the same time, she took out the 'Summer Set' series that she had prepared with the combat suit from her wardrobe.

"So, are you sure you don't want to change it?"

Seeing Nana nod without hesitation while holding a set of blue clothes, Wendy said, "I don't care what you'll do if you can't wear it out later," and then pressed the button.

The hissing sound of the spray can immediately filled the entire room.

PS: Waaaaaah, kitty

PSS: By the way, Nana's summer combat outfit looks like this ↓

After applying the neutralizing agent, the actual effect is roughly as follows ↓

Combat uniform (Summer.jpg)

PSSSS: In addition to the footed socks that cover the thighs, I was thinking that since it's a black-feeted cat, it must also have black gloves.

But should Nana wear long-sleeved gloves that extend to her elbows? Or should she wear the regular gloves shown in the picture, or the short gloves that the kitten gave her...? It's a difficult choice.

The biggest problem is the conflict between the actual need for waterproofing and the desire to make the character wear a suede-like outfit... I just wanted the cat to wear a nice latex suit, why does it have to be so complicated...?

9th Dragon Gate Seafood: 344 Type 77 Variable Tactical Armor

Just as initially predicted, Nana's combat suit was 'rebooted' as expected.

Fortunately, the significant changes in materials did not affect its most important function, and Nana can still wear it normally. After applying the neutralizing agent, the next step is the key modification.

Opening the liquefied metal storage box, which resembled a miniature safe and had a password, Wendy stroked her chin with interest and touched the material that, in her hand, was like mercury scattering, but in Nana's hands, it transformed into a form that could take shape and spread across the body like 'cloth':

"This is the 'liquid fabric' produced by a certain group. Not only can it self-shape itself by absorbing pre-programmed Originium Arts, but it can also be customized for different uses through spell programming... Let me guess, the reason why such a near-omnipotent property is not mass-produced or reported in the news is because it is very expensive."

Nodding in agreement with Wendy's guess, Nana let the liquid fabric spread from her arms to her whole body according to the initialization program. As it completed the process of fusing with the original combat suit, Nana recalled the price of this thing.

"Yes, I'm not entirely clear on the specific technical details, but its unit price is dozens of times that of pure gold of the same quality... Although the prices of certain specific precious metals are even more outrageous, considering that it is an item that can be programmed through Originium microcircuits, as equipment, it has probably already exceeded the level of a luxury item."

As she spoke, the originally pure black liquid slowly spread over Nana's body. The originally impenetrable black gradually became transparent as the liquid stretched and diffused... until it completely penetrated her original combat suit and covered Nana's body, starting to extend towards her head, its color becoming faintly visible through her skin.

"...It seems to be covering your face, is that normal?"

"Yes, this is a new generation product, and even the head is a full-coverage mode. This is a specialized function taken into account that the enemy is Hai Si... But don't worry, it will form a self-forming mask, and the eyes will also form eyepieces."

Even so, as Nana was gradually covered by the black liquid, from head to toe, even with red lenses forming around her eyes and a mask taking shape around her mouth and nose, Zilan's words hit the nail on the head:

"I don't think you can go out wearing this..."

What does it look like now?

Regarding Nana's body temperature, the other two tacitly made way for Nana to look in the dressing mirror... And regarding the outfit in the mirror, which seemed to be a black bodysuit with a tight-fitting combat suit that outlined the girl's body lines, even Nana, who had worn many clothes to accommodate her manager's strange interests, couldn't help but admit that this initial outfit looked suspicious no matter how she looked at it, and resembled those thieves in Yan Country who wore thin black clothes.

However, this is the necessary process for the liquid metal to complete its connection with the original combat suit. Fortunately, Nana can control it through the panel of the tactical unit. Compared to the pure magic operation of the past, the liquid fabric can now be reprogrammed through the visualization system.

After the hardened mask and goggles softened again and were folded and stored away in the neck brace of the combat suit, Nana looked at the maintenance and design personnel of her equipment with a slightly speechless expression:

"It seems like this is the full coverage model. What do you two think?"

"Hmm... how should I put it, if you only look at it when the buffer layer isn't constructed, the way the artificial muscle bundles bulge out... it's actually quite aesthetically pleasing..."

"Doesn't it look more like a naked body? Or like an unknown humanoid creature that has been skinned? I remember only seeing similar curves on some bodybuilding shows by professional trainers... But Nana, your figure is very well-proportioned and beautiful... but it is really suspicious."

"I myself find it very suspicious, but it is indeed a necessary setting for using the accompanying spells. Without full coverage, the external muscle enhancements cannot take shape in human form, and the three-defense system will not function properly..."

As she spoke, she reverted to the default mode that covered her head, and Nana tried to activate its newly added important function according to the instructions.

It is based on the SHD protocol and will not burden the practitioner. Instead, it is a new technology that reconstructs the liquid fabric itself using a biomimetic system.

"Power Mode".

Accompanied by a voice prompt that seemed to be based on her manager's voice, 'Maximum Stronger,' a bright red magical light spread across her body along the contours of her externally enhanced muscles... Considering that she was in her own room, Nana did not try to punch or sprint to test the equipment's performance.

However, if the instruction manual is not misleading, the new spell amplification mode is based on the user's physical attributes and simultaneously enhances them as a percentage.

According to the instruction manual, the power mode is specifically designed to address the insufficient power output of the user in the 'Film' mode. Furthermore, if activated in full-power aura mode, the power amplification, based on the ancestral Vyvan, can increase exponentially.

Aside from the power mode, the instruction manual also records speed, armor, and what appears to be a 'stealth mode' specially designed by Nana... This optical camouflage spell was even written by Nana herself.

If the liquid fabric itself can perform spellcasting in place of the user, Nana could even cast multiple spells while remaining invisible...

For skilled casters, multicasting might not be a particularly impressive skill, but the thought that if similar equipment were mass-produced, Columbia would have a group of gunnery operators capable of consistently multicasting... is quite frightening.

But considering the price of liquid fabrics, this idea remained just a thought... Compared to the Colombian military's reconnaissance, Nana felt that figuring out how to go out tonight was more important.

During her conversation with Wendy and Zilan, Nana discovered that once the liquid fabric fully covered her and formed an artificial muscle structure, she would inevitably be quite unsightly... Nana found that her new equipment, which enhanced her combat power, seemed to have become a problem for her, and she seemed a little discouraged.

Seeing Nana's reaction, Wendy tried to reconsider Miss Medic's equipment needs:

"Therefore, the more realistic the system becomes, the more complex the structure of the liquid fabric becomes... When the artificial muscle bundles are fully deployed in force mode, their thickness can bulge by three centimeters..."

"The more liquid metal is used to enhance the biomimetic properties, the more human-like the structure of this system becomes... The lines of artificial muscles, even with a full-coverage helmet, will make you look like you're running around naked... That's the problem."

Holding the tactical unit control interface shared by Nana, Zilan tried adjusting the spell-assisted functions of the liquid fabric. Then, she used the stylus to write and draw on the tablet. Wendy's eyes lit up, and the two looked at Nana again.

"Since performance and requirements cannot be fully met, let's prioritize tasks within the city and try to reduce performance requirements, how about that?"

"Subtraction...does that mean removing the normal external muscle mimicry and restoring it to the original form where the liquid metal existed only as 'cloth'?"

Nodding in agreement with Nana's guess, Wendy followed Zilan's lead, completing the calculations on the artificial sea dragon's terminal before looking up and continuing:

"Yes, although doing so almost completely loses the mimicry muscle bonus in strength mode and 70% of the mimicry muscle assistance in speed mode... but according to the magic feedback of liquid metal, even if you temporarily switch to those two modes, this set of... liquid metal equipment will still reconstruct muscle bundles at a speed of 150 milliseconds and 75 milliseconds respectively."

"So the solution is actually quite simple: just avoid forming muscle-like bundles in your daily life..."

Following Wendy's suggestion, Nana immediately configured the liquid metal in the newly added subsystem of the tactical unit... and as Nana's external silhouette returned to that of a 'little black woman' wearing full black stockings, Zilan, recalling the properties of the liquid metal, tried to suggest:

"Then there's the issue that this set of equipment is essentially a full-coverage headsuit, which looks suspicious even when it's not being used... Speaking of which, Medic, since you can customize the structure of this equipment, why don't you try to divide its distribution on the body by key areas? Right now it should be evenly distributed all over the body, right?"

"That's right..."

"It was originally pure black, but it started to become transparent after being spread out... What if you try spreading the head part evenly towards the body? Make it thinner... The color will lighten again, right?"

"Try it?"

As she spoke, the mask, glasses, and helmet that were assembled together began to soften and be reshaped... After going through several stages, from a suspicious person with a strange mask, to a suspected bandit with a black veil, to a dark-skinned Iberian, Nana's head, as the liquid metal became thin to almost transparent, would no longer be considered a purely suspicious person if it weren't for the fact that the girl's short hair was still lying flat on her head.

Nana is now a suspicious person in the city wearing a diving suit!

Now that we've found a method, the next step is to gradually adjust it.

First, the liquid metal is soaked into the hair strands, allowing the hair to fall naturally. Then, the arms and thighs are outlined with a light layer of skin-colored liquid metal. Any excess liquid metal can be used for defense of key areas such as the chest, as well as for shock absorption in the grip areas.

After a period of dedicated adjustment by everyone, Nana's new battle suit finally returned to a look very close to the original version.

However, this did not solve the problem of the performance of the equipment that Nana needed.

Although the thin liquid metal still maintains a minimum level of biochemical protection, its physical thickness is so thin that the physical defense of areas such as the head, face, neck, arms, and thighs (the "absolute territory") is difficult to describe.

It's not even suitable to describe it as 'paper' anymore; it's more like an invisible 'coating' or simply a physical thickness similar to 'sunscreen'.

Clearly, this single-film form has said goodbye to defensive capabilities. Fortunately, at the cost of response time, Nana still has a way to restore it to its combat form.

To avoid the problem of the simulated muscle outline in the power mode making her look like she was naked, Zilan temporarily designed a set of armor for the 'skin' that needed to construct the simulated muscle pattern.

"...Actually, letting the liquid metal instinctively construct its 'skin' is the most effective way to maintain its sensitivity. After all, shaping it into 'armor' still requires some extra time... But, compared to letting the mimicry muscles describe your body's outline, it's definitely better to cover it up with armor or something to look more normal... But in doing so, the response time of the armor mode is extended to three hundred milliseconds... Compared to the original default two-digit millisecond units, this performance loss... doesn't seem unacceptable?"

Looking at Nana, whose face mask had been reshaped, whose entire body was matte black and whose design, though lacking ribbons, was exactly the style of modern Kazimierz athletic armor… Zilan, holding a tablet with various design sketches crossed out on it, wiped the sweat from her forehead with satisfaction:

"Let's set it to standby mode as it is now, and then try switching from low-power mode to other modes?"

Hearing Zilan's words, the black matte knight nodded. The angular helmet folded into the neck guard, and the red goggles and breathing mask liquefied and dissipated only after the helmet had completely disappeared.

We are now switching to a 'low-consumption mode' for normal city movement.

In this state, Nana's head protection is almost non-existent, with only a thin layer of liquid metal film for passive breathing filtration.