Chapter 13.3 – Coarse Heart
The expression in Su’s green eye was serene and calm without the slightest disturbance, just like his skill.
The two gunshots sounded at practically the same time, one like a treacherous viper, one like a wild roar! Sparks flew on Su and the subordinate’s body at the same time, and their bodies involuntarily tumbled backwards. Both sides aimed for the other party’s heart during this exchange, and both sides hit the other party’s armor, unable to penetrate through the defense. However, the tremendous force the bullets carried unavoidably inflicted intense pain on both sides.
“Was I injured?” This thought entered the subordinate’s mind. He subconsciously assessed the condition of his chest and became relieved. There wasn’t the empty feeling that would immediately make one collapse! He steadied his mind, and his right hand instinctively made an adjustment, aiming the muzzle of his gun at Su’s forehead. In the subordinate’s eyes, Su’s head had been within his shooting trajectory from start to finish without any intention of dodging. However, this piece of information didn’t bring him any joy, and instead, during that brief moment, his many years of experience didn’t bring him the slightest explanation, and instead brought potential danger to his attention.
The Magnum roared once again, and the subordinate’s head answered by shattering.
If his courage was a bit greater, and he didn’t instinctively make a dodging motion during the second aiming, the new era pistol’s speed and accuracy advantage over the .44 Magnum might bring about a different conclusion. However, there were no what ifs in the wilderness.
Su sank into a state of silence. He returned the Magnum to his waist and then brought out the Barrett, the bullets, and tools. Without cleaning up the scene or touching anything on the subordinate’s body, he left the villa and quickly moved. Soon, he disappeared into the boundless fog.
This was a subordinate on his own, and following his death, the Black Dragonriders would inevitably hurry over in the shortest amount of time. That was why Su didn’t stay behind and instead ran towards the boundless grasslands in the north-western direction at the fastest speed he could maintain. From what Kane said, that was a large uninhabited region. Since it was uninhabited, the Black Dragonriders shouldn’t have any corresponding intelligence toward that region. Within that unfamiliar grassland, Su was extremely willing to compete in patience again with the Black Dragonriders.
Ten minutes later, Luthor, Justin, and four dragonriders hurried over. The other subordinates were still hurrying over.
Luthor looked at the indoor courtyard’s scattered soil with an ashen expression. Why did he never think that Su would bury himself underneath the ground to avoid the search? Underneath the ground, Su would then definitely have some type of hibernation ability that would substantially reduce his body’s activity. Like this, even the portable multi-purpose life detector would lose its efficacy. The life detectors would all be set above a certain level; otherwise, if they were to pick up cockroaches, earthworms, and other creatures of this size, then the dragonriders should just sit down and start digging, because this alone would already be enough to keep them busy.
Just as Luthor was feeling deep humiliation after being made a fool of, Justin, who was investigating the subordinate’s corpse suddenly screeched. What immediately followed was a groaning whisper. “Heavens, it was a Magnum! He actually used the Magnum! The exact same Magnum as mine!”
Luthor couldn’t help but shout, “Of course he used a Magnum! Roxland Company’s list clearly included the items he took, did you not look at it?”
Justin laughed sinisterly. “Only those as old-fashioned as you would look at a plaything like that and feel like it’s useful. Why would I look at it?”
Facing this dragonrider that clearly had far greater prospects than himself, Luthor quelled his anger and slowed down his voice before asking, “He shouldn’t have fled far. Can you sense his whereabouts?”
Justin rolled his eyes and gave him a sucilious look. Then, without the slightest trace of politeness, he said, “I cannot! Even if I could, I still wouldn’t use my ability again. In fact, I am tired of your overly conservative and opinionated way of doing things. I feel that now is a good time for you to declare your defeat! You should just let headquarters send other people!”
Luthor’s face was already darkening to the point of turning black. He truly wanted to crush apart Justin’s soft brains with his bare hands, but his reasoning that always reigned supreme held him back.
Justin released another groan. His voice was like a sharp point as it continuously pierced at Luthor’s nerve. “Ah, what a beautiful little one, what a rough gun! Could it be that he is the same as me, hiding a coarse and wild heart under a beautiful exterior? Heavens…”
“Can you shut the fuck up?!” Luthor was like an enraged lion. He completely lost his self-control and suddenly roared out! His right hand hanging from his side was clenched tightly, and his knuckles crackled.
Justin crossed his arms and revealed a sinister look that seemed to say ‘try me’. The other four dragonriders also looked at Luthor with shock. In addition, the two that excelled in Combat Domain abilities began to swell up their bodies, clearly increasing their strength. Should Luthor make a move in front of their faces, they were going to intervene.
Justin’s eyes that were surrounded by rings of dark circles revealed a strange glint. He laughed like a viper. “Lieutenant Luthor, don’t think that you can do whatever you please just because you have the Fabregas family’s backing. There are four other dragonriders here, and none of them would allow you to kill me. If you aren’t able to kill me today, then the story between us will become quite long. According to regulations, as a lieutenant, you can retire after five years. I hope that after you retire, you can find a quiet and beautiful place to enjoy the rest of your days. Of course, that place needs to be hidden extremely well, a place where I can’t find you. Don’t you agree? Lieutenant?!”
Justin continuously emphasized the word lieutenant again and again. Luthor’s face became unpleasant to the extreme. His chest under his uniform continuously rose and fell. This was a sign that his ability was about to activate. Luthor obviously knew that both the ability and rank of Justin, who became a second lieutenant before the age of thirty and possessed six levels of ability, would exceed his own in the future.
Humans were born with gifts, and each person was born with different gifts. It was impossible for one to use endless resources like genetic strengthening medicines and formulated abilities to ceaselessly advance their capabilities. What ability domains each person could develop abilities in, and the highest level one’s ability could reach were mostly things decided at birth. The current biochemistry science and technology could artificially create some space, allowing one to gain a few extra evolution points. However, it was extremely limited, because the higher the level of an ability, the more one would be restricted by their own innate potential. If one crossed this limit and tried to promote their own ability, the outcome would inevitably result in the complete collapse of one’s genome.
As such, even if Justin’s six levels of ability in the Mysterious Fields stopped advancing, just from gaining battle experience, once his other ability domains’ potential opened up, he could also obtain the rank of lieutenant colonel. If a lieutenant colonel wanted to torment a retired lieutenant, as long as the lieutenant colonel did it cleanly without anything noticeable at the scene, no one would interfere.
Moreover, right now, the two Combat Domain dragonriders’ uniforms had bulged to the point of almost bursting. It was clear that they had already finished making preparations. The force fields around the two Magic Domain dragonriders had become unstable, another sign that their abilities were ready to be used. If Luthor made a move now, he would suffer the counterattack of all four dragonriders.
Luthor took a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the anger that had filled his chest. With difficulty, he said in a coarse voice, “The operation has failed. Let’s return to the camp. When headquarters sends a new commander, I will return and make a report. During this short period of time, apart from the most important matters, everyone is free to move on their own.”
After speaking these words, Luthor seemed to have aged a few years, and his hair became quite a bit more pale. He walked out from the abandoned village without saying another word. He climbed onto the command vehicle and brought his own subordinates towards the camp.
Even though Luthor was still standing perfectly straight, only now, his back seemed a bit bleak and desolate. Justin used a spotlessly white handkerchief to wipe his lips, and a drop of blood appeared on the handkerchief. He originally wanted to shout out ‘beautiful person, rough gun’ a few more times, but now that they’ve completely given up on their target, he completely lost interest.
On the boundless and endless grasslands, Su’s body was slightly arched as he maintained a steady speed of 60 kilometer per hour. Strings of data continuously transferred into his body, and then even more data was sent back to his brain. Each part of his body was in a state of equilibrium as they tried to maintain their frequency of movement to decrease as much energy expenditure as possible. Along with his movements, the bandages around his body had also been moved, with the joints and other important areas exposed to allow for unhindered movement. As for the other areas, the bandages kept the seemingly negligible heat that was emitted from his skin from escaping.
Su had already ran continuously for three hours. After killing that subordinate, Su knew that his current speed was the most important thing. The subordinate that died under his gun showed signs of fatigue in both his strength and willpower. This showed that during his seven days hidden under the surface, these dragonriders were not relaxed at all. Otherwise, why would that subordinate be so exhausted? The dragonriders might have more stamina, but with all the power, authority, and pleasurable lifestyles they lived, their willpower might not be better off than their subordinates right now.
What Su needed right now was to gather the strength he used up during those seven days of concealment and then compete against the dragonriders again. From the way Laiknar and O’Brien did things, dragonriders still liked to use transportation like off-road vehicles. However, off-road vehicles needed fuel, and consequently, they limited their range of movement.
However, despite the fact that he knew this, he didn’t know how many people the dragonriders had with them, what kind of abilities they had, or what kind of equipment they brought. He could only rely on this simple deduction, as well as the bit of information O’Brien brought with them. As for everything else, he could only leave it up to fate. The dragonriders’ current technology shouldn’t be able to detect his movements, and right now, not being chased after was the best proof.
A lone wolf always had its own unique way of thinking and craftiness.
Su’s legs suddenly buckled, and he almost fell onto the ground. He had no choice but to stop. Supporting himself on top of the thick and tall underbrush, he breathed heavily. All of the energy he had left within him had been used up in the last three hours. Only the energy to maintain his most fundamental functions remained. In the last three hours, Su determined that he had put himself 165 kilometers inside of these boundless grasslands. This distance was still not safe enough, but it at the very least created a temporary buffer.
