Léon: The Cat Killer

Pressing the integration function activation button on the watch terminal, as dark gold lines flash across the combat suit, at this moment, the Cat Killer will be in a state of 'non-existence' when facing all radar and detection-type Originium Arts.

With all preparations complete, the task begins.

……

……

……

As the high-pitched roar of propellers swept across the sky, the personnel at the observation post on the deck of the black steel landship glanced at the Colombian government's aircraft signal on the communicator and curled their lip.

"So what if it's a government department... You insisted on going through the air defense zone of the land-based aircraft. If it weren't for the government using aircraft, you'd see if my action team could even take you down..."

[Tower, report the situation!]

As the deep, elderly voice rang out over the loudspeaker, the control tower employee who had just been muttering to himself immediately straightened up. Although no one was looking at him, he still stood up, saluted, and gave his report:

"Report! It's a government aircraft. It shows no signs of stopping or slowing down; it's heading straight towards Tikkarendo!"

【…Ticalendo, is it? I understand. Continue vigilance, especially regarding the skies… Ship crew, pay attention to disaster information. Notify me immediately of any new developments!】

【yes--!!】

Hearing the high-spirited response over the loudspeaker, the Blacksteel biohazard defense team members, waiting in the break room, had Razer with a book in hand, while Franka lay on Razer's lap, playing Ursus Blocks on her mobile device.

"These guys on the ship are really energetic... Razer, have you heard? The old captain refused to sail into the Cataclysmic Zone right now, and it seems the boss had a fight with him about it... What do you think?"

"I sit and watch."

With a snap, Razer slammed the book shut and awkwardly nudged the fat fox who was clinging to his lap. But the shameless could not prevail over the shameless, and Franka remained comfortably nestled on his companion.

Seeing that his protest was ineffective, Razer could only sigh and say:

"Although this will cause us to miss the golden period for rescue, it's a good thing for us... After all, Franka, you recently inhaled Originium dust in Ironforge, so it's good for you not to enter the area of ​​the disaster."

When the incident in Forged Iron City was mentioned, Franka's expression stiffened, but the fox lady quickly recovered, then yawned hesitantly next to Liskarm.

"So, Razer thinks I'm more important than disaster relief and the company's reputation~ That's really great..."

"Don't joke like that. You can see how badly Oripaths will be ostracized in the unit... It's just that we don't know how our partners will view this, Captain."

"Oh, it's called... Rhodes Island?"

"...That's rare, Franka, you've actually started taking notes on our partners' information..."

"No... I just happened to see it."

Following the direction the fox was pointing, the navigation status board in the lounge now displayed the words 'Rhodes Island crew are waiting to board.'

"Ah... they've arrived... Franka, let's go pick them up."

Just as Razer stood up, Franka suddenly froze.

"Franka?"

"...Oh, it's nothing, I think something just darted past the window..."

"Outside the window? What floor do you think we are on in this land-based ship... and we're at sea right now."

"……makes sense."

Turning her gaze away, Franka picked up her sword and followed her partner.

"...An expert on the problem of mineral defects...?"

SP: Wuwu Little Horse

Image of 陾九〇伍叁 pulling up an umbrella: "Waaah... Little Pony?", Location: "Images/1682027968-100361166-110216173.jpg"

PS2: My computer keeps crashing, and my train of thought keeps getting interrupted. The memory won't arrive until this afternoon or later... It's getting painful...

But the new memory stick was donated by a reader... Thanks to Electronic Devil K6 for the great support... Once I plug in the device, let's try to write 10,000 words to celebrate.

The Mystery of 2nd Medic: Episode 042 - Perspective: Rhodes Island

The original form of the Black Steel International Landship was a decommissioned Victoria Class II armored warship.

As a product of the former 'comprehensive protection' theory, its running gear still retains the external fairing armor and the cone-shaped ram that best embodies the spirit of the old-era land-based ships.

Although the bow main gun was removed after the conversion to black steel to prevent it from posing a potential threat to the mobile city of Victoria, the twelve Victoria-made small-caliber secondary guns on the sides were retained thanks to the captain's intervention... These 18-inch twin-mounted multi-purpose gun corps still play an important role today, including close-in defense, air defense, and even providing fire support to friendly forces in war zones.

With the support of this behemoth, which is 2,000 meters long and 600 meters high, Blacksteel International was able to stand out among all the mercenary groups and today has an international niche that far surpasses that of its peers.

It can be said that this ship and its captain are the 'Guardian Gods' who have protected Blacksteel and its crew all the way to this day.

Through the windshield, ignoring the dust kicked up by the surrounding vehicles, Susuluo watched as the massive warship ahead opened its bottom platform and lowered its landing ramps... Her expression was one of uncertainty and apprehension.

After seeing this land-based organization, which was already approaching the level of a mobile city, she became increasingly less confident about the tasks assigned to her by Medic.

After all, from a doctor's perspective, the size of a land-based ship should be a direct reflection of organizational strength... If Kroos were here, she would definitely scoff at this old guy who needed more than 500 people to take care of him just to keep him in service, and explain to Sussurro what automation, information technology, and the difference between a ship that can be operated by five people and one that requires 500 people would be.

Unfortunately, without any engineering personnel present, Rhodes Island's team seemed to be overwhelmed by the sheer size of the Blacksteel Landship the moment they met... just as the Blacksteel Landship's captain always seemed to guarantee a successful mission whenever he sent his ship into a conflict zone.

In this silent moment, Huang stepped on the gas, and the small car, marked with Rhodes Island symbols and only able to barely secure supplies during wilderness operations by following the routes of mobile cities, rushed onto the landing pad.

Just like a giant whale swallowing a shrimp, the whole process was completely obscured by the smoke and dust from the operation of the walking mechanism... Rhodes Island was completely invisible.

However, once the car entered the warship and the doors closed again, shutting out the intense noise, the oppressive feeling of the behemoth disappeared. Looking at the smiling PMCs in front of them, the Rhodes Island team realized that they were standing on their partner's landship, and that the two sides were not actually enemies.

"Welcome, Rhodes Island folks, welcome to Blacksteel International... We apologize for the inconvenience of boarding the ship while it's in motion. As an apology, we'll wash your vehicles for you... free of charge... Are there five of you in total?"

"Ah... um... five people..."

Just as Susulu was caught off guard and being led by the nose, the gate to the landing area was suddenly pushed open:

"Hey, hey, hey, where are you taking my partner?"

Seeing the two people walking quickly towards them, the woman who had just taken out the security checklist helplessly pushed up her glasses:

"...Franka, the boarding procedures aren't finished yet...no, they haven't even started! Can't you wait a bit?"

“BPRS work can’t wait… and why are they rushing over? Even if we hadn’t stopped the ship, they still had to board… Don’t you shipping department have any sense of propriety? From our perspective, being so rigidly businesslike right now is just too impersonal…”

Hearing Miss Fox's explanation, the bespectacled girl, also dressed in a black steel uniform, rubbed her eyes in distress. Fortunately, the short Vayvan who followed her out came to her rescue:

“It’s just the boarding procedures, it’s okay to wait a bit…Franka.”

Seeing Razer say that, Franka raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything more. But due to the tacit understanding between partners, Razer followed Franka's gaze and saw the ship crew turning off several buttons... At that moment, Razer suddenly understood Franka's look that said, "They'd better just be doing paperwork."

Clearly, the shipping department is prepared to conduct a thorough check on Rhodes Island boarding. From a procedural standpoint, this is standard procedure; after all, they are sailing within a disaster zone, and conducting comprehensive checks on outsiders is part of their job.

However... the Blacksteel Landship is currently carrying out the captain's orders. Everyone knows Rhodes Island's intentions. If the boarding inspection procedures are complicated, it can indeed delay the time, and may even prevent the Rhodes Island team from seeing the captain in person for three days.

But doing so would be a devastating blow to Blacksteel's reputation.

The BPRS members are stepping in now to prevent this situation... In fact, this situation seems to be more than just an office politics issue between BRPS and the land-based ship captain's faction, as it also involves a complex discussion about whether the crisis contract should be fulfilled...

Although the shipping department was on the captain's side, the situation had escalated beyond a simple matter of choosing sides. Franka's words ultimately led the woman to sigh and wave goodbye, streamlining the procedures to the level appropriate for a partnership.

After a simple registration of names and organizations, and the distribution of electronic keys for visitors, Franka replaced the original crew members as the group's guide:

"Well then~ let me, a member of BPRS, and Razer lead everyone to the lounge. This way, please..." Phosphorus

Watching the unpredictable fox and her model student follower lead the guests onto the landship, several members of the shipping department looked at their captain, who had previously declared he would firmly side with the captain, and scratched his head, asking: "One..."

"...So, are we really going to wash their cars?"

"Yes, although they're definitely here to cause trouble for the captain, they are, after all, partners... and they even drove all the way from the outskirts of the disaster zone..."

Looking disdainfully at the floating and sinking Rhodes Island mark, the bespectacled woman reluctantly put on her dust respirator: I

"We can't leave a vehicle that might be contaminated with Originium dust here. Cleaning foreign vehicles is part of our job, and it has nothing to do with personal bias." V

As he spoke, the isolation barrier unfolded, and the high-pressure water gun was activated.

They decided to focus on their own tasks first.

……manage

"Thank you so much just now, otherwise things would have suddenly become complicated..."

"Haha~ The trouble is on our side. You guys actually have a clear objective, don't you... It's different for us. Right now, everyone's still debating whether or not to go to Kalendo." (Bah)

As they discussed a heavy topic, Susuru tilted her head as she looked at her fellow clansmen... She wondered if it was just her imagination, but it seemed that this Franka seemed to have a strange fondness for them.

Before Sussuruo could delve deeper into her thoughts, Franka had already led everyone to the office marked with the BPRS—Biohazard Response Specialist.

"Dr. Franco is waiting for you... Hello~ Jennifer, may we come in?"

For some reason, Susuluo seemed to hear a sigh behind the door, followed by a response of "Come in."

Entering this office, which seemed to be exclusively for BPRS, Sussuro looked around curiously. It seemed not much different from Medic's office... If she had to say, it would be that the space was much larger, the windows were bigger, and the lighting was quite good.

The head of the Black Steel Biochemical Defense Specialist Office, a middle-aged O-type woman dressed in a white lab coat who looked more like a researcher than a PMC specialist, was sitting behind her desk at this moment.

"Franka, Razer, thank you for bringing us here. Let me introduce myself. I am Jenny Franro, the person in charge of Blacksteel's cooperation with Dr. Kal'tsit of Rhodes Island. Thank you for coming all this way."

Looking at the sophisticated woman in front of her, Su Su Luo adjusted her mindset slightly and decided to get straight to the point:

"...I think you must know why we've come."

"Of course, after all, there is still a lot of internal debate about Tikkarendo within Blacksteel... Everyone knows what refusing a crisis contract means, but... there are also many people who are unwilling to be in danger."

As she spoke, Jenny pulled half a cigarette from the ashtray full of cigarette butts and lit it; she had clearly been troubled for a long time.

“PMC is just a job, there’s no need to risk your life for it… I can understand people who think this way, but when this idea is embodied under a big banner, it overshadows the true nature of the organization, turning a military organization into a warlord faction fighting amongst itself… that’s when things get complicated.”

"The captain knew perfectly well that, but he did it anyway..."

"Is it because he really wants to split Blacksteel?"

Jenny gave a wry smile at Huang's rather conspiratorial speculation:

"On the contrary... he actually only believed that such an operation might cause heavy losses to the Blacksteel Landship, which is why he refused to take action."

As she spoke, Jenny tilted her head back and thought for a moment, then pointed to the ceiling:

"Do you know the aftermath of the Tikkarondo catastrophe? Unlike the blizzard ten years ago, this year's Tikkarondo is experiencing a very rare but extremely destructive active Originium disaster... As a vehicle specifically designed to combat natural disasters, the Landship's bow ram can break through glaciers, and its wide tracks can cross fissures in the ground. This 2,000-meter-class Landship can travel in almost all harsh environments... except for the active Originium disaster."

"What needs to be fought is not 'nature' such as strong winds or lightning... but 'Originium' itself."

"You Rhodes Island are experts in Oripathy, so you naturally know the ferocity of Oripathy patients during acute attacks when Originium proliferates and accumulates in their bodies, breaking through the surface... If you scale that up to an equal amount, you can imagine how terrifying the Active Originium Catastrophe is."

"First, the Originium dust in the air absorbs energy and lowers the temperature. The negative pressure will form a terrible storm. Then, the activated Originium increases in value and condenses at high altitude, turning from Originium dust into palm-sized coarse ore, which falls from the sky with a yellow light."

"Unstable Originium will explode upon landing. The impact and high heat will stimulate the Originium dust to absorb energy again and repeat the previous process... until the Originium dust condenses into a huge, inactive rock."

"But that last wave is the most dangerous. To date, Originium crystals exceeding 100 meters or even 1,000 meters in size have fallen from the sky... The total weight may exceed 10,000 tons, and the pressure will cross a distance of over 1,000 meters and hit the ground directly... or the ship itself."

"Even the most robust mobile cities can be severely damaged in such a natural disaster, let alone a black steel land-based ship that can't move fast at all and is essentially just a decommissioned warship... This is the main reason why the captain firmly opposes entering the area during dangerous times."

"After all, once a ship is hit within the range of a natural disaster, not only will Blacksteel itself be affected, but also the personnel and supplies of the Crisis Contract, as well as allies and valuable employees, could be lost in the accident... At that time, let alone follow-up support, Blacksteel itself might go bankrupt and be removed from the list due to this accident."

At this point, Jenny looked at the silent Sussuruo:

"As far as I know, Rhodes Island's main ship has the same attitude towards its land-based ships as the captain... After all, Rhodes Island had already left Tikkarondo when the signs of the natural disaster first appeared... 'What right do they have to ask us to be in danger?'... This is also the main excuse of the rejection faction."

"……That is……"

Sussuro couldn't explain why she could ask Black Steel to sacrifice himself for her as a third party... After all, the assassin and her manager had already reached a conclusion on similar issues, and any claim that she could ask Black Steel to sacrifice himself for others as a third party was untenable.

As a respectable doctor, Sussuro couldn't possibly be generous with other people's money... but thinking of her companions still in the heart of the disaster, and of Amiya and the kitten, Sussuro couldn't give up.

Susuluo touched her chest with some embarrassment, then resolutely raised her head:

"...The captain's choice is the same as that of our ship's management personnel, which is only natural...Our captain also said before leaving that it would be acceptable to wait for the intensity of the natural disaster to decrease before entering the scene with this ship...But...But, even if it's unreasonable, I want to have a proper talk with that captain...We all know that perhaps waiting outside is the right choice at this time, but if we want to enter the scene sooner so that we can reunite with our comrades sooner and do something sooner, even if it's just to save one more innocent life...Even if it may come at a high price, I might accept it."

"You mean, if the talks don't go well, you'll be the first to leave this ship and rush straight into the Cataclysm?"

"...I don't know...I haven't told my companions about this idea yet...Perhaps some of them disagree, but that's okay, I don't think that idea is wrong...I might leave those who don't want to come with me on this ship...If you're willing to help look after them, that would be a great help."

Seeing Sussuruo's increasingly fluent and seemingly genuine statement, Huang tightened his grip on the weapon case, wanting to say something... but then he thought better of it and shut his mouth.

Anyway, she's definitely not among the people who stayed here.

As for the newcomer who hasn't even signed a work contract... perhaps he really needs this partner's help.

Just as Huang nodded in agreement, it was unclear whether he was agreeing with his own idea or Susuru's, Meili nervously pinched the end of her hair and said:

"I will follow you too!"

"Merry?!"

"……really……"

Ignoring her companions' strange reactions, the girl with long, peach-blonde hair clenched her fist: "What reason do you need to help others!? Just tell me if you can help! Even if I'm not a full-time employee of Rhodes Island yet, I'm still a member of the Letania Sled Rescue Team, so don't underestimate me!"

Seeing Su Sulu suddenly freeze in shock, the two white-haired boys exchanged a helpless glance, then stepped forward as well: