“……!!!!!”A soundless cheer.Keeping composure wasn’t easy with that damned Mother’s prized ride lying there, tempting him with its sleek shape.“Damn it……”Among the many rare drops he’d gotten during plays, this was one of the handful of true hidden pieces.And because of the current point in the game, the thing on display looked all the more precious.The black craft, shaped like a jet-ski, didn’t suit the name “bike” at all — there were no wheels.The reason was simple.It wasn’t meant to race on the ground; it tore through the air.Another name for it was [Black Wing].“Regular hover-bikes sometimes turn up, but this one’s different.”Not an entry-level supply model, but a high-end machine.It boasted power enough to be called a small fighter jet.Its drawback was that it consumed a lot of energy.“So Mother probably couldn’t use it at this point.”To run this thing you’d need a high-output reactor.The [Black Wing] — which Commander Hamilton of the Third Defense Force base had kept in his private collection — was the kind of vehicle that, in modern terms, ranked above a supercar: a hypercar-level ride.In the middle of a playthrough, the only ways to get one would be to take it from Mother or steal it, so acquisition difficulty was high.“Gale’s Archive you can enter once you know the trick, but Mother’s different.”Fighting the Liberation Alliance was a huge risk.If your goal was to clear the game, you’d be risking far too much.And yet, the [Black Wing] sat right in front of him now.His brain began working furiously.“If I take it now, it should be fine.”He might earn some hate, but not outright hostility.They’d probably just chalk it up to a vehicle taken from the Third Defense Force base.Even if someone asked about it, he could deny it.On the outside, it didn’t differ that much from other hover-bikes.“The item value is lower than the Master Key or Zero, but…”Its emotional value was at least on par with Zero.Higher than the Master Key.Was there really a need to hesitate?Personal desire pushed hard.“At least I have a way to power it.”The atomic reactor — the size of a tuna can — he’d kept in his backpack.Honestly, the atomic reactor was overkill for a hover-bike, but if he only ran it briefly, it wouldn’t be a problem.Besides, there wasn’t anywhere immediately handy to use the atomic reactor on anyway.“It’s also hard to use on Zero……”Mounting an atomic reactor on Zero to use the plasma blade posed practical difficulties.Using a plasma blade inevitably produced extreme heat.To withstand that heat you’d need a special suit to block it.At minimum, a nano-alloy suit.A basic power suit wouldn’t suffice.“I don’t need a plasma blade right now.”With his mouth going dry, he ran a hand along the craft.The surface was sleek to the touch.The best use would be to rise into the air and intercept mutants with optical weapons.If firearms were out of the question, charging in with a sword among the mutants might work.“The durability’s pretty good too. Not bad.”It felt like a heavily armored knight.Just imagining it made his mouth water.Considering endurance, it was an excellent option.Fighting on foot consumed far more stamina than using such a vehicle.And there’d be no more strenuous pedaling.Thinking further, one reason the hover-bike felt so appealing was the extreme contrast with an electric bicycle.“If I move with this, blocking the entrances to the criminal quarantine zone will be easier and much faster.”At that thought, he paused for a moment.“I should calm down a little.”He’d gotten too excited.It was time to be more realistic.If he wanted to operate the hover-bike, the most important thing would be getting it out of the warehouse.But sentries stood outside the warehouse.Clearing them was the priority.He started looking for a gap he could use to peek out.What he saw beyond the gap was…“This is bad.”The number of guards had grown.“Is the execution wrapping up?”There were easily a dozen or so people.This was a red flag.“Getting out easily is out of the question.”No one had come inside yet to check the warehouse, but he couldn’t sit tight forever.More people would arrive if he gave it time.“There aren’t many options.”Should he go out now and clear them?No — that didn’t seem like a good idea.If he were discovered here, it would make the Liberation Alliance an irreconcilable ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ enemy.Getting out with the hover-bike without revealing his identity.Those two conditions together suddenly made the task much harder.“If I put on a powered suit, I could hide my face at least.”Was there any better method?Meanwhile, his gaze drifted—drawn for some reason to the backpack he’d carelessly tossed aside“Wait.”The spoils taken from the central control center were still there.And among them were items identifying them as belonging to the Monello family.“A stiletto knife……”A weapon commonly used by the mafia.Add to that a tomahawk axe and a hip flask with liquor — the typical possessions of mafia members.“If this goes well…?”Could he create a situation of mutual suspicion?The Liberation Alliance that carried out the [execution] and the gangs rallying around those avoiding them were irreconcilable.And in his personal view, any gang or mafia family not aligned with the Liberation Alliance was more like vermin.If so…Wasn’t the answer already decided?“I can probably punch through the warehouse outer wall.”No need to fight them directly.Hide his identity and break through.Leave a few clues behind and that would be enough.“I’d rather have them misunderstand me completely if I’m going to do it.”The situation was bad.The few sentries were steadily increasing in number.Kyle, who’d infiltrated, could only hope they noticed what was happening.There wasn’t much else to do.Perhaps because of that, Eli’s expression stiffened, her emotions playing out openly across her face.“This won’t do.”She had a bad feeling that things could go irretrievably wrong.Those instincts tended to be right.She released a safety and pumped; the heavy click of a load echoed.She sensed it was her turn to act.If she drew a little attention, it would be enough.Kyle could slip away in that brief moment.“Hoo……”She took a slow breath to relax her muscles and anticipate the next moment.The distance was about 300 meters.If she fired, the gang members gathering would be drawn to the sound.Her foot was already on a pedal, ready to go once she drew attention.As she finished gauging the situation, paradoxically her mind calmed.“Let’s do it.”Thankful for her steadying breath, she raised the muzzle with a composed expression.Once she’d decided, there was no hesitation.The instant her finger rested on the trigger —KWA-A-A-A-A-ANG—“……?”She’d only just rested her finger on it—Did it fire?Why?Her eyes filled with shock and confusion at the sudden, unexpected turn of events.And perhaps she wasn’t the only one feeling that way.“Uh…? Wh-what the hell?”Voices filled with bewilderment broke out among those who couldn’t yet grasp what had happened.“W-who the hell is that bastard?!”“Fire!!!”Bang! Bang! Bang!Gunfire erupted all at once, rattling her eardrums.“…What is this? What am I even looking at?”She could only doubt her own eyes.A collapsed section of wall—And from that wall burst a flying craft.Atop the craft stood a man shrouded in mystery.It was unmistakably Kyle Han.His eyes met Eli’s, and as if on cue, the craft accelerated toward her at explosive speed.“Uh…?”Something charged straight at her—There was no time for rational thought.She could only crouch down reflexively to shield herself.“Guhk!”But the action was meaningless; pain shot through her shoulder like it was about to be torn out of its socket.“Did I… get hit?”A traffic accident? In a situation like this?She was dumbfounded.But—at least she was alive, wasn’t she?Then she heard a familiar voice.“Eli, are you… all right?”Before she knew it, she was on the craft.The roaring whrrr of the wind muffled his words, but she recognized the voice immediately.“Ugh…”“Don’t tell me—your shoulder’s dislocated…?”When she finally forced her eyes open, the scene before her stunned her.They were flying in the sky.And that alone brought on a wave of primal fear stronger than she’d expected.“……!!”When humans are suddenly lifted to great heights, instinct kicks in—You reach out for something, anything, to hold onto.In her panic, she gripped too hard, clutching at his chest so tightly that it felt as if her own ribs might crack.But Kyle, now dressed differently, didn’t even flinch.All of that aside—Eli felt something close to despair.The rapid shocks of the past few minutes had blurred the line between reality and illusion.“Is this… a dream?”Too vivid to be a dream, too unreal to be reality.A stream of moments that made no sense in either world.“I wish it were a dream…”When she opened her eyes again, she wanted to be able to just mutter, “What a nightmare.”She wanted to start a normal day again—Eating cereal soaked in low-fat milk.“……”But the realization that she couldn’t escape this—That this was reality—Sank into her like a swamp she couldn’t climb out of.And with it came something darker.A creeping, unfamiliar emotion.For over a decade, she’d been taught morality, rules, and ethics.Fragments of emotion she’d repressed beneath those teachings began to rise.As if hypnotized, she looked down at the shotgun in her hands.And for a fleeting moment, she felt a fierce urge to fire it—To shoot at the people shouting in the distance.But she stopped herself there.Barely managed to regain control.“Haa…”“Eli, are you all right?”“What… what on earth is happening right now?”“Well, things just… turned out this way.”“Wait—don’t tell me this was part of your plan?”“That… it wasn’t.”She couldn’t see his face behind the mask, but she could feel that he was smiling wryly.“What about the bomb?”“It’s not exactly a bomb,” he said, “but I brought something that can serve as one.”Kyle really did intend to blow open the entrances to the criminal quarantine zone.And he didn’t even seem to be hesitating about it.How could someone keep making decisions like this—without a shred of hesitation?“He doesn’t seem like an android…” she thought.Then Kyle’s voice came again.“So, what do you think?”“About what?”“This,” he said. “This is the hover-bike — Black Wing.”“……”“Masterpiece of the Gears Company. The finest bike of this era.”“Ah… I see.”“Well, technically it’s a fighter jet disguised as a hover-bike.”Maybe she’d worried too much.His flat response drained the moment of any sense of seriousness.It was, at least, proof that he wasn’t an android after all.

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