NOVEL WEB Chapter 50
“Whew… This is tough…!”
“Eek?!”
Even though she wasn’t particularly large in stature, and her expression didn’t seem overly intense with scrunched-up features or raised eyebrows, Helena, the team leader of the Day Shift at Gate 3, was known for her unyielding principled stance and skills that could easily qualify her as a mercenary. As she prowled the hallway, growling, the perceptive staff stepped aside, and even those who didn’t want to get involved with her stayed clear.
There was no point in bickering among themselves… after all, the city police were the main body responsible for resolving most disputes, and with no one to complain to, they had to cover things up internally.
…Those adventurous enough to want to verify the truth behind the rumors of someone splitting a visor in half with a knife hand typically weren’t in occupations like public service.
– This is Gate 7. Search of the barracks and review of the recorded footage have been completed. …No unauthorized intruders were found. –
– Gate 5 is the same! But… do we really have to continue extending the Day Shift until we actually find someone? Are the higher-ups in command out of their minds?! –
– …Same here. Even at Gate 1, they were distributing impressions of the person of interest; if that’s too difficult, then I request that the search area be narrowed down. –
– Gate 3 is… still searching. Except for the two engineers who are on assignment, we’re checking along the road next to the barrier and the gateway as ordered. …Team Leader, could you… please return soon.”
“……Tch.”
Helena clicked her tongue upon hearing the flow of reports that didn’t sit well with her.
However, despite the noisy emergency contact and replies indicating an incident occurring, she wasn’t in a position to prioritize her personal suspicions and sense of responsibility.
…To be more precise, no matter how strange the situation seemed, suspicion remained nothing more than suspicion.
The fact that she hadn’t uncovered anything concrete kept her from insisting any further; Helena Valentine was capable of blazing through obstacles without hesitation.
Especially now that her doubts about the command structure had also arisen.
“……”
Even as she calmly turned her steps back to her assigned area, the thoughts she had entertained wouldn’t easily fade away.
Initially, Helena held no bias against the riot police, Mega Cop, or the Paradise corporation.
After all, her grandfather, who raised her, was a broker who offered to make citizen IDs in exchange for credits, so she considered the work of the gateway guard an essential duty to root out serious criminals threatening the safety of the city.
Although she didn’t particularly like corporate oppression, she understood there was a necessity for rules established for people to gather and live, even in a small settlement.
But why, after first claiming that an accidental incident occurred at the heavy weaponry depot, was there now a call for the full mobilization of forces due to unauthorized intruders?
“Hah… Should I just stop for today?”
Letting out a deep sigh, she unconsciously deleted the message she was writing to Anastasia and closed her cyberware.
She felt a twinge of guilt for overworking her younger sister, who had become almost twice as busy accommodating her stubbornness as of late.
Instead, it might be better to ask Anne, who frequently visits the underground for work, to grasp the situation.
– …Anne? How’s it over there? Can you share a little about what’s causing the commotion? –
– Ah, sorry…! I have an urgent matter and am on my way to the command structure… –
– …That’s too bad. I guess we juniors always have to remain ignorant while being thrown into the field. –
Oh dear. The timing couldn’t be worse.
She comforted her timid friend, who had always had a somewhat fragile side, as she kept apologizing with vague words.
Not everything in life fits perfectly together, so it might be better to take the current sense of disappointment and unease as fuel to work harder tomorrow… Just as she was pondering this, Anne seemed to pick up on Helena’s frustrated mood and offered encouragement.
– Still, if Lena puts in the effort, she’ll surely catch even a small clue. …You’ve always done that. –
“Uh… yeah, thanks…?”
She considered it quite an unexpected form of support and offered her late gratitude to the disrupted communication.
On another note, she had merely intended to ask about the intruder, but strangely enough, it also felt like Anne was touching on the context of the issues she’d been mulling over with Anastasia lately.
Such a specific piece of advice made her curious about its source; it seemed too coincidental for just a random occurrence.
“Ugh! Sniff…! Ugh…!!”
“…?”
Her keen hearing picked up on a subtle noise.
In a police outpost where hiding behind anonymity and pretending to be strong and brave was the norm, it was unusual to hear… a sobbing sound?
The source appeared to be the restroom right next door.
It was a place primarily used by personnel working at Gate 3.
…Everyone has moments of weakness, but especially at a time when a mobilization order was issued, hiding away in a corner and crying wouldn’t be of any help.
Whether it was a member of the day shift, unable to leave work and feeling so sad they wanted to cry, or a member of the night shift who had just clocked in and felt overwhelmed by the remaining time, Helena thought she should somehow ensure their working evaluation wasn’t impacted by this and stepped inside.
“……What’s this?”
“……!”
The metallic stench of blood pierced her nostrils.
On the other hand, as if sensing her muttered words, the man’s groans of pain abruptly halted, accompanied by a gasp.
The hidden figure was clearly injured, and it was likely he was one of the intruders the entire gateway force was busy searching for.
Creak…
Helena, gripping her sheathed weapon to use as a means of restraint, began to push against the closed stalls, trying to locate the targeted individual.
She had an idea of his position based on the sensations of life he couldn’t hide, but what she wanted to see was the opponent’s demeanor.
Thus, instead of calling for basic support, she didn’t even radio in that she had discovered an enemy.
Thud… Thud…
The sound of footsteps grew louder as she approached openly.
It felt more like an act of consideration for a wounded beast rather than preparing to face an enemy. If anyone questioned why she was going through the trouble, she couldn’t provide a logical explanation.
“……”
“Ugh… Ughhh…!!”
Creak…
Focusing intently on the man’s ragged breathing in the face of a sudden situation, she carefully twisted the locked stall door open.
As Helena stepped inside, a shard of glass smeared with fresh blood was aimed at her.
…For someone who had intruded into the gateway alone, it was a rather pathetic weapon.
Moreover, he was gripping it so tightly with his bare hands that blood seeped from the torn flesh and trickled down his wrist, staining the restroom floor.
She felt the first hints of information being deliberately omitted by the command structure.
“…Could you calm down for a moment? I am here to issue an arrest warrant, not to harm your life.”
“Ugh… F*ck…! Who would believe a word that demon bastard says!!”
What flowed down to the ground was not only blood from the injury.
The first thing to catch her gaze was the man’s attire. The thin surgical gown stood out glaringly, nowhere to blend in.
Additionally, his abdomen, possibly torn during a procedure, was bound up by one arm to prevent it from splitting open.
Tears streamed from his shaking eyes, and saliva dripped from his mouth, which was colliding with fear.
No matter how you looked at it, he was undoubtedly a patient who had escaped recklessly.
“…Did you try to sneak in about four days ago by getting into the secret compartment of a trailer…?”
“Ugh… Ughhh…! Yes!! I’m just livestock you bastards captured…! Why?! Did you not think a product with legs could escape from that deep underground?!”
…Indeed, if he wasn’t one of the smugglers they had been searching for diligently for days, it would have been a simple matter to contact the medical area and have him taken away.
The absence of records indicating that any of the missing individuals, including this man, had been hospitalized in the medical area was a fact Helena had confirmed multiple times with the materials provided by Anastasia.
…Then where did this critically injured patient come from?
With each scream laced with anger, his remaining life spilled in every direction.
Helena realized that if she didn’t calm him down, she would lose a valuable opportunity and witness altogether, so she displayed her palm and slowly placed her sheathed weapon down onto the restroom tile.
Her gesture, devoid of hostile intent, desired only conversation, seemed to slightly calm the rapid breaths.
“…If you’re hiding in the heavily armed depot in the depths, is it the harvesting zone that you corporate bastards are proudly labeling with the initials HA?”
“……”
Upon hearing a response that contradicted her long-held beliefs, Helena instinctively knew.
…Ah, if I learn about the other side of the mission here, and engage in conversation, I will no longer be able to turn back.
However, she had always favored clear endings over ambiguous outcomes, and she would continue to do so.
But… this stubbornness of hers could not lead those close to her into an unfortunate situation.
“Here, let’s apply some clotting agent first.”
“?!”
Clang…!
The medicine thrown without warning caused the glass shard nearly embedded in his hand to drop and shatter.
Whether he was wary of her unexpected goodwill or not, she was occupied with operating her cyberware.
She sent a message to her sister, who would be waiting for her to finish work and return, instructing her to take cover for a while.
She also cautioned her friend, who might suffer due to the remaining communication record, to deny any relationship if things went wrong.
“Then… could you explain exactly how you escaped and what happened?”
…The river had been crossed, and the dice had just been thrown.
Confronted with the mud that had rubbed against her lifelong convictions, Helena Valentine seethed quietly with rage.