I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

This is really frustrating.

To say that it was entirely Amamiya's fault would not be entirely true.

Our side also made a mistake... The mistake was that we mistakenly identified the facilities on the island as 'hostile facilities controlled by a special force using a virus'.

But at least from the albatross's perspective, what do you do when you get hit? You can't just keep quiet and suffer in silence, can you?

Therefore, 'retaliating' is only natural.

After his initial 'reflection,' the albatross began to tell a short story that perfectly suited the occasion—

A well-chosen short story is often the best way to ease tension.

Sigh. It reminds me of when we played games together not long ago.

[At the time, when I and the other four from the engineering department were in a five-person flexible squad, we happened to be assigned to another squad that was also in a flexible five-person squad.]

The enemy mid laner is as strong as a pro, while their bot lane is either as bad as a bot or not much better. Their teamwork is sometimes unpredictable and sometimes abysmal.

[The jungler didn't see anyone the entire time... Only the top laner managed to hold her own against me. She's practically living in the game; her actions are completely lag-free, she can start with zero frames and dodge skills at lightning speed.]

I strongly suspect the opposing top laner is cheating, so I reported them after we lost this game.

[Later I learned that... the other team that fought against our engineering department's flexible squad was actually Kei from the game development department.]

Amamiya: "..."

I can't stand it any longer.

The albatross's little joke was so funny that no one else in the audience, except himself, could understand the punchline.

First of all, Albatross is essentially a 'human-machine' – although she is indeed very emotional, she is fundamentally similar to Alice, Sophia, and the others.

The engineering department's "flexible five-man squad" should be a combination of Hibiki, Cortoline, Utahara, Yuriko, and Albatross, a "four-person-one-machine" team.

Coincidentally, they happened to run into the game development department, but the game development department's composition was even more bizarre—'three people and two computers'.

If the bot lane's performance was rated as bot-like by Albatross, then it must be the sisters Momoi and Midori.

The mid laner is so strong, he's like a pro... Is that Yuzi?

After all, if Yuzi were a jungler, he wouldn't just wander into the jungle without any awareness of providing support.

The jungler I've never seen from beginning to end must be Alice... Yeah, that's definitely how bot junglers are.

As for the top lane... the most challenging lane for skillful play is Albatross versus Kei.

Then these two 'human-machine,' or rather 'computer (which drives people crazy),' 'cold computer'... started competing against each other, and they ended up evenly matched.

Albatross suspected that the opponent was using a cheat, or even a cheat created by a highly skilled hacker.

I imagine the other side isn't much different either...

Kei probably had similar doubts at the time: How could there be other opponents who could compete with him, a 'cheat' that was directly connected to the server?

Kei, who originally just played games with the princess and mentored her (and incidentally the gaming club), gradually came to understand what "increasing intensity" meant and what "the top lane is a big stage, if you have the skills, come on in" meant.

After being under pressure for the entire match, Kei managed to win the game, albeit with a heavy sweat, thanks to the advantage of having a skilled player (Yuzu) on the game club side.

It seems that Kei's actions after emerging were similar to Albatross's—reporting the opposing team immediately.

After carefully considering the amusing little story that Albatross told about a real event that happened recently, Amamiya couldn't help but laugh.

"That certainly fits the current situation very well..."

After a moment of reflection, Amamiya looked up at the albatrosses and asked, "So, why are you here?"

Well... let the controller explain.

After saying that, the albatross seemed to have activated some kind of mechanism.

With a 'crack' sound as something broke, a stream of silver light descended from the sky.

—It was a flight seat that looked like it had been simply 3D printed or 'hand-made' on-site using other technologies.

The flight seat, made of some special metal, landed with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.

A fox-eared girl, barely visible in the sandstorm, flicked her ears, swung her tail, brushed the sand off her body, unbuckled her seatbelt, and lightly leaped forward, jumping out of the sandstorm...

Then, she almost fell due to losing her balance, stumbling forward several steps before barely managing to regain her footing.

The small movement of almost falling due to loss of balance transformed the imposing aura of a boss into an equally adorable one, like an iceberg melting.

Ayane: "...?"

'The person who piloted that enormous "aerial behemoth"...how could he be so...'

Hoshino: "..."

Is this what they call "gap moe" (or "unexpected cuteness")?

'She looks like a cute junior, but she's 'similar yet different' from me...'

Hoshino had a feeling—this girl who looked like a junior and almost tripped on flat ground was somewhat similar to herself.

Within her seemingly petite and delicate body lies an indescribable power.

However, unlike herself... she doesn't seem to be good at control and coordination.

While possessing immense physical strength, his coordination is a major concern...

Celery: "(Alert)"

'Another student with animal ears... Ugh.'

Bai Zi: "(Alert) x2"

'A fox...it's a fox again...'

Nomiya: "(Smiling)"

'If only we could recruit Abydos as our new junior...'

Wakazama: "(Over-vigilance) x3"

'Damn it...it's that little fox again?'

Facing a crowd of gazes, some welcoming and some wary, Yuriko calmly introduced herself before turning her attention directly to Amamiya.

"I've received a request." After giving a brief explanation, Yuriko's gaze passed over Amamiya and briefly fell on Wakamo. "However, it seems... we don't need to complete it according to the original objective."

Considering Lan Wu's rather obvious semantics during her previous communication session...

What is this?

As I said before—Amamiya has never been as speechless as she is today.

Lan Wu, however, after realizing that something was amiss, took the initiative to approach and asked, "You... know each other?"

Without needing to exchange a secret signal, Amamiya and Yuriko spoke at the same time, answering in unison, "We know each other."

Lan Wu: "..."

Immediately, the red-haired girl's expression turned strange.

She gave Amamiya a fixed look that said, "Wow, you're amazing!" and then gave her a thumbs up.

Sensei's connections are just too numerous, it's unbelievable...

After a moment of silence, Lan Wu looked up at the sky.

"It seems like this whole thing has gone wrong again..."

After getting a general idea of ​​the situation, Lan Wu was speechless.

What kind of situation is this? Did I mean well but end up doing something wrong?

How could there be such a coincidence, such a misunderstanding?

"It wasn't a complete disaster, was it?"

Amamiya's words drew the attention of the red-haired girl beside her: "Sensei... are you trying to comfort me?"

Amemiya shook his head.

Although Lanwu's act of 'calling for support' had the opposite effect in every sense... she still achieved her goal.

At least, the support she called for truly did, from another perspective, temporarily relieve Amamiya from the 'deep suffering' of being relentlessly clung to by Wakamo.

【~???~】(from Lanwu)

Amamiya's serious expression and his immediate shaking of his head made Lanwu remain silent for a moment before she let out a soft hum with a slight twitch of her lips.

"So, Sensei..."

Yuriko was still watching Amamiya and Wakamo, who was clinging to Amamiya, staring at Wakamo with an unprecedented hostility.

Being stared at with hostile eyes by a 'stranger' would make anyone feel uncomfortable.

"A commission..."

Just as Yuriko was about to ask whether the mission should continue, Wakazama suddenly spoke up.

Suddenly, the woman blocking Amamiya's path pointed her index finger at Yuriko: "Don't come any closer."

"Most importantly, I absolutely will not allow the time I spend with Sensei to be taken up by some unknown vixen... I will never allow that to happen!"

Yuriko: "?"

After a moment of slight surprise, the girl slowly narrowed her eyes.

It seems... this task has to continue.

[Oh ho ho...]

The albatross, having thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle, emitted a slight 'click' sound from its cockpit—likely the sound of some kind of artillery or other 'small-caliber' (relatively) firepower preparing.

Should we continue executing the delegation?

Yuriko didn't reply immediately. Instead, she turned back to the flight seat that had accompanied the 'emergency landing' and pulled out a gun from a hidden compartment. The gun was painted in naval camouflage, seemingly to suit the mission environment.

'Click'.

The slight clicking sound of a gun being cocked.

The girl slowly lowered the goggles from her forehead to cover her eyes.

"Continue with the entrustment."

Chapter Seventy: A girl's personal use of a brand new 95-inch airplane...?

Wakazama was driven away.

The mouse, or rather the fox, was suppressed by the overwhelming firepower of Yuriko and Albatross.

"My dear, wait for Ruozao~ After I've regrouped, Ruozao will definitely come back to find you!"

After uttering those words in a tearful voice, Wakazao, her large fox tail slightly charred, swung her teeth and, tears streaming down her face, reluctantly chose to retreat.

The Crimson Catastrophe Fox swung its large fox tail and disappeared into the forest of the resort islands, its figure quickly vanishing from sight.

The 'little fox' that chased away the big fox calmly freed one hand and pushed its goggles to the top of its forehead, just below its fox ears.

"Commission completed."

After gesturing to Lan Wu, who was standing to the side in a daze, the girl paused slightly, her sea-blue eyes revealing a gentle and earnest expression.

She immediately turned her gaze to Amamiya, her words seemingly carrying a peculiar hint—

“Sensei, consider this a ‘special offer.’ Do you have any other ‘special requests’? If it’s within my capabilities… I can consider giving it to you for free or at a 50% discount.”

After asking the question, Yuriko began to observe her surroundings, her gaze briefly lingering on the helmeted group members, all of whom were dressed in light summer clothes, as well as on the five-member countermeasures committee.

Noticing Yuriko's increasingly interested expression, Amamiya realized her 'true intention'.

It has to be said that the keyword "island vacation" carries a great deal of vitality for any teenage girl with a relatively normal sense of self.

Yuriko, who usually stays in her gunsmith workshop, has been gradually "influenced" by the atmosphere of thousands of years, developing a kind of homebody air similar to that of a science-oriented woman. Of course, she is no exception.

'If I could stay on the resort island for a special reason... perhaps I could take this opportunity to enjoy a little vacation...'

Sensing the girl's fleeting thoughts, Albatross suddenly said, "I am truly sorry for 'accidentally destroying the island's defense system.' If you, Mr. Phantom Thief, would be so kind as to accept... I can serve as an airspace force during my vacation, conducting reconnaissance and defense of the surrounding area."

Amamiya: "..."

He looked up at the object in the sky that the others called the "aerial behemoth".