The car on the way to the place of confrontation was quiet. It wasn’t that the atmosphere was particularly bad or anything; it was just that the noisy mood from the start had disappeared due to the unexpected long-distance travel.
While it might not be considered a long distance compared to a really far trip, it was much farther than the usual distance we traveled by car for confrontations. This was because we had to move to Gyeonggi-do, which isn’t even in the vicinity of Seoul.
“Being affiliated with Seoul, does it make sense to go all the way to Gyeonggi-do for a confrontation?”
“There’s nothing we can do about it since it was decided by everyone.”
We, who are part of the Seoul Branch, were heading to a mountain located in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi-do. The reason for moving the confrontation site so far away from Seoul was explained previously. Due to too many people gathering during the last confrontation, reporters came to cover the HunterKiller Team and spectators watched as if it were a tourist attraction, making it impossible to proceed with the confrontation.
To prevent such an incident from happening again, the decision was made to move the confrontation site to the outskirts of Seoul. I don’t think it’s a bad method. It was easy to avoid the eyes of others by traveling a considerable distance and choosing a secluded spot.
Considering my position where I have to constantly think about the investigation and the situation of my girlfriends, going to a place where I could momentarily avoid people’s eyes was quite welcome.
Of course, my colleagues who weren’t entangled in such complex issues found it annoying to travel such a long distance.
“How’s your condition, Alt?”
Facing Theo, who was making a sour face, I turned my head towards the back seat. Alt, who finally joined the confrontation, was clenching and unclenching his fists in his suit.
“My suit is in good condition. There’s no problem with my condition at all. Everything is great.”
The biggest point of interest for today’s confrontation was Alt’s participation. Although his participation itself had various meanings, his hawkish nature made me more concerned.
I can confidently say that Alt is as hawkish as only a few people I’ve seen in my life.
As a biroid with excellent physical abilities, it’s natural that he’s strong, and like Roy, he was designed for close combat, making him significantly stronger compared to other biroids.
Among the three monsters in Team 3—Alt, Roy, and Luche—I believe Alt is the strongest in hand-to-hand combat.
One might think Luche, being the team leader and the youngest, would have superior skills, but biroids are artificial life forms created based on the DNA of planet citizens.
There are limits to their abilities, and when creating biroids in Spacystro, they aren’t enhanced in every aspect but designed to achieve specific purposes.
Therefore, it’s natural that Alt, whose purpose is close combat, is stronger than Luche.
“But when you consider their overall abilities, Luche has an overwhelming advantage over Alt.”
However, when considering their overall abilities, Luche clearly has the upper hand. Realizing anew how impressive Luche is despite her original purpose not being close combat, I felt admiration.
“Lucky it’s winter.”
“Yeah.”
Theo, sitting next to me, commented on seeing Alt excited before the fight. I nodded in agreement with his words.
Despite the strong force brought by Alt joining the team, I didn’t worry about my girlfriends getting hurt during the confrontation.
This was because I had already seen Roy, who was designed for close combat, lose against the HunterKiller Team.
After driving for quite some time, the medium-sized bus arrived at a mountain in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi-do, the location for this confrontation.
When we got off the bus, there was no one around, and having a confrontation in a strange environment after leaving the city was something that hadn’t happened since the start of the confrontation. This gave me a slight sense of tension.
“There they are.”
I saw the HunterKiller Team members sitting on a bench on a trail in the mountains, slightly away from the confrontation site.
They stood up from the bench and slowly approached us, turning their gazes toward us.
Although I had a premonition that we would lose today, I thought that with the improvement in Team 3’s strength and the return of Klugger, we could at least compete evenly with the HunterKiller Team.
But I quickly realized that this thought was delusional and shook my head, dispelling the notion.
“You didn’t come late and arrived right on time?”
Luche, who immediately showed hostility upon seeing the HunterKiller Team, carried a large scythe on her shoulder and glared at them.
“I sped up a bit thinking about sending you home early.”
Yura, wearing a pink suit, replied to Luche while provoking her. Even though she knew it was a provocation, Luche narrowed her eyes, clearly displeased by the presumptuous statement.
While the two were engaging in a minor verbal battle, I observed the suited girlfriends. Yura and Milky Way looked different in their suits today, possibly because of the sex, but thinking about the upcoming confrontation, I wasn’t excited at all.
“Let’s go first!”
Forgetting that speaking while wearing a suit was inappropriate, Alt led the charge toward the HunterKiller Team. Roy followed closely behind, and I instinctively felt that the formation would fall apart from the start.
“!”
SuA blocked Alt’s sudden punch. Despite the strength being comparable to soldiers I had fought before, she seemed to waver slightly but did not get pushed back.
“Adjust the output!”
“Understood!”
Following SuA, Luche, wielding a scythe, struck down at her with a sharp edge. Before Luche’s attack could reach, Milky Way’s spear intercepted the scythe.
Yubin, blocking Roy’s sharp claws, swung her sword toward Alt, who was facing off with SuA. To avoid an incoming attack from the side, Alt jumped into the air, and Yura, who was waiting with a rifle from behind, aimed at the airborne Alt.
At the moment the trigger was pulled, a beam shot out from the rifle and flew toward Alt, and flames erupted around Alt in mid-air.
“It’s here.”
Marveling at Alt’s ability, which I hadn’t seen in a long time, Theo and I rushed to assist the three monsters who had charged ahead.
“Haah!”
Flames erupted from Alt’s body in mid-air, propelling him forward. Yubin, who managed to block Alt’s kick with the flames, felt a force akin to a sharp spear.
“!”
Though she managed to block the attack, Yubin was pushed back quite a distance. Compared to the last time I saw her, Alt’s power had improved tremendously, and I was genuinely impressed.
Pushed back, Red judged that Alt couldn’t be pushed further. She wrapped herself in flames and grabbed Alt’s leg, spinning him around and throwing him away.
“Grr.”
“Pink!”
Just as Alt regained balance in mid-air and tried to ignite flames again, Red shouted.
Caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, Theo and I, who had rushed ahead, couldn’t get close enough to intervene.
As if waiting for it, Pink aimed her rifle at the airborne Alt and fired.
“Where are you aiming!”
But Luche, freed from her confrontation with Green thanks to Roy’s help, intercepted the beam headed for Alt in mid-air.
“Fire!”
The moment Luche shouted, flames burst from Alt’s body. With the boost from her firepower, Luche flew toward Red, swinging her large scythe.
Just as Red tried to block Luche’s scythe, I reached her.
During confrontations, we are thoroughly enemies. Both the girlfriends and I understand this well. Given our unique combination of a hyper-human and a Spacystro, we understand each other’s positions better than anyone.
Since we recognize that we shouldn’t show any favoritism during confrontations, I didn’t intend to show any leniency toward the girlfriends. In fact, showing leniency might be arrogant, considering that Team 3 has always lost to the HunterKiller Team.
In order for Luche to successfully attack, I swung the sword I had drawn toward Red. I thought I would lose my balance, but before my attack could land, a bullet from Blue hit me first.
The bullet exploded upon reaching me, causing me to lose balance instead of Red.
Still, I had bought some time. Luche’s scythe, descending from the sky, hit Red.
Amid the loud noise, Red’s sword clashed with Luche’s scythe.
I briefly marveled at her reaction speed, which was faster than I could track visually.
Since I had anticipated that Luche’s attack wouldn’t land properly, Alt flew toward Red again behind the pushed-back Luche.
“Blazing Shot!”
Hearing Alt’s shout, I was momentarily stunned.
“A finishing move?”
Seeing Theo mutter with a hint of disbelief, I realized that Alt’s shout was more of a war cry than a skill name.
Despite Red blocking Alt’s attack, the impact caused the ground to shake, indicating the power of the attack.
“What is this guy?”
Surprised by Alt’s power, Red must have been even more astonished than I was.
Alt’s flames melted the snow and ice on the mountain. Though I couldn’t feel the intense heat through his suit, I could tell how hot it was by the ripples around him.
Red tried to grab Alt’s leg again, but Alt stepped back, saying that he wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice.
“Ouch!”
Hearing a scream from the landing, I turned my head and saw Roy and Alt collide after being thrown at Yellow.
I attempted to support them to regain their stance, but another beam hit both me and Theo, sending us crashing to the ground.
When I regained my senses, I saw Luche confronting Green, Alt and Roy subdued, and my other teammates who hadn’t even entered the fray yet.
“What’s going on?”
I confirmed that teamwork wasn’t going well. While I didn’t expect immediate improvement, it was clear that we couldn’t even synchronize properly, let alone fight together effectively.
“The flames are the problem.”
I marveled at Alt’s flames. They were incredibly powerful and impressive, unlike anything I’d seen from Team 3 before.
However, the damage from his flames also affected our allies. Although he could control his flames to some extent, controlling the spreading flames and keeping his teammates in mind was challenging.
Despite quickly identifying the issue, the confrontation had already reached a state where it was hard to regain its previous structure.
On the way back in the bus, reflecting on the importance of Klugger’s role, I started to ponder how to improve teamwork when the team was suddenly reorganized.
“What if I fought alongside the girlfriends?”
Even though there’s no real enemy and we’re already adversaries, I imagined it. However, the power gap is too vast. If I were to form a team with the girlfriends, it might be better for me not to join the team to be more helpful in fighting.
Fighting requires a purpose, and it’s crucial to distinguish between what’s necessary and unnecessary for that purpose.
“Purpose…”
Suddenly, I thought about the purpose of what I was doing.
I am still a member of Spacystro, invading Earth. At the same time, I’m also the boyfriend of five members of the HunterKiller Team.
And the reason I’m investigating the hyper-human is, of course, for the sake of the girlfriends.
Regardless of the outcome, I hope the investigation goes smoothly and that there won’t be any more confrontations with the girlfriends. Although I’m handling it without personal feelings, it’s not entirely comfortable.
After returning to headquarters, I comforted the crying Luche and sat back down.
Despite working late for several days, the location of the signal base remained a mystery. The sun had set, and I continued analyzing the captured signal data from my chair.
Holding onto the hope that there might be a way if Klugger decrypted the code, I didn’t lose my enthusiasm. Just as the proverb “even a tiger will come if you call it” suggests, a call from Klugger came at the perfect moment, and I answered the phone promptly.
“Yes, what’s the matter?”
“Hey. Do you know the hyper-human named Baido?”
From the beginning, his tone was filled with uncertainty.
To Kreuger, who was unsure, I responded with confidence.
“Yes.”
Even though I had never met or seen him, I knew the name ‘Baido.’
Given that I had seen the name multiple times during the investigation of hyper-humans, it was impossible not to know it.
“He’s the youngest hyper-human who appeared six years ago.”
Upon hearing this, Kreuger was speechless.
