He pulled one of the insurgents from his covered position and punched him in the face before he could finish screaming.
Simply take them down before being shot.
Rindo was actually capable of such a feat.
The seasoned gunmen watched in awe as the slim young man threw the insurgent like a ball over his shoulder, pulled his gun away, and kicked his body into his allies. He discarded the gun and unleashed a long kick, which landed on the top of the insurgent’s head.
It took only a couple minutes before all the previously hidden enemies were down.
“All clear! Come on!” Rindo shouted as everyone looked at him with fear and respect.
He wasn’t a Guard for nothing, as proved by his combat skill.
In Sanekazura’s arms, Nadeshiko grew pale. Autumn rarely found themselves under an insurgent attack during the manifestation journey; people coming to kill them out of nowhere without any negotiation was not common. Nadeshiko had seen Rindo fight before, but this was the first time she’d seen him take down enemies so ruthlessly. Her face was pale, not because she was afraid of him but because he could get hurt.
“M-Ms. Sanekazura, is Rindo okay?”
“He’s fine! Our boss is the best!”
Sanekazura’s response was full of energy; this woman did not flinch in such situations.
The team continued their advance, and finally, they saw the parking lot through the gaps between the trees. But as expected, a fight had already broken out there, too. They could see some Yamatoan escorts on standby and policemen on the ground. The sight was awful, but the situation was not the worst.
It seemed the insurgents had nowhere to run now.
They could hear occasional screams and sounds of falling debris coming from inside the church. The main entrance team must’ve advanced. They should be in the entrance hall by now.
It was only a matter of time before Rosei, Ruri, and the escorts finished off the enemy. Their goal would be to take the police down next.
They seemed unaware of the back door team still.
“Let’s leave the cars,” Jude suggested.
Rindo nodded. “We should climb the fence and get to the subway. It’s right there. I can guide you across Kashu.”
Rindo looked at the fence. He had already considered it tall when he arrived, but seeing it up close, it felt even taller.
Even he, with all his athletic abilities, would have a hard time scaling it.
“Okay. Let’s split up again. Sorry, we need people to push us over.”
“Take the puppy, too!” Liam cried anxiously.
Rindo and Jude looked at each other. Carrying the puppy with them would be easier than dealing with a child throwing a tantrum.
“Don’t worry, Lord Liam. Shirahagi will get him.”
The group split up again.
Heading to the subway were Nadeshiko, Rindo, Shirahagi, Sanekazura, Hanakiri, and two Town of Autumn escorts. The six special agents and two members of Agency staff would remain. Tsukihi’s subordinates and the Agency staff all paired up, holding each other’s arms, then crouched down to give the others a boost.
“Let’s go.”
Rindo ran first to show them how to do it. He jumped, then grabbed the shoulders of the pair boosting him up and stepped on their arms. As his weight sank onto them, the pair raised their arms as high as they could.
Rindo pushed on their shoulders at the same time and jumped. His body was thrown in the air and above the fence. Although he went higher than he needed, he quickly grabbed the fence to get on it.
“Next! I’ll pull you up! Nadeshiko first!”
It was like a circus stunt. Jude followed Rindo’s method to get up, and the rest were boosted and pulled up one by one.
“You go back up Winter and Summer!”
“Roger!”
The remaining team ran to join the fight in the parking lot.
Rindo wanted to stay and support them, too, but Rosei’s order was to get the children to safety first.
Even if victory seemed close, they had to prioritize their evacuation.
The passersby on the street outside seemed quite shocked by the group jumping over the fence.
“Lord Azami! There!”
Jude ran ahead and pointed at the road.
There stood multiple members of the Church; here in the city, their robes were easy to spot. They had a car stopped on the other side of the road and were running to it in a panic. They noticed Rindo’s group and waved.
“Hey! Can we use your car?!” Jude shouted, and the Church members beckoned to them with fervor.
“How many can fit in the car?” Rindo asked.
“Probably four… But let’s go!”
Rindo hesitated before nodding. They would have more security with them if they headed to the subway, but there could be insurgents blocking that escape route. Getting in the car was the best way to get away from this place as quickly as possible.
They crossed to the other side as the cars sounded their horns.
“Get in, quick!” the Church member said in Centrish. There were already four people inside, sitting in the driver’s, passenger, and rear seats. The car could fit in two more adults in the back with enough squeezing. The problem was who got to ride in the car.
Jude broke the ice.
“Lord Azami, could you take Nadeshiko? The rest of us will go to the subway. Splitting up could be a good idea if they’re going to pursue us.”
“But… Then you should take the car.”
“We won’t be far behind. Yamato’s goddess comes first.”
Rindo hesitated. He worried about leaving his companions behind, but if he was going to forsake Liam’s safety at this point, it was better for all of them to take the subway. Then the passengers got out of the car.
“We’ll stay here. We just have to go to the subway, right? We’ll help whoever stays behind. Esteemed Agents and Guards, please. And the woman, too.”
This was fortunate. That way, the Agents would be safe, and the locals could support the others taking the subway. It was the best plan possible. Rindo thanked the ones who had left the car, and then they got in. Jude took the passenger seat. Rindo sat behind the driver on the left, followed by Liam, then Sanekazura, who had Nadeshiko on her lap.
“We’ll see you again later, right?”
Nadeshiko asked her question from within the car. Shirahagi and the Autumn escorts were too big to fit in. Better for them to take the subway and meet back up later.
“Yes. It shouldn’t be too long,” Shirahagi said.
“Run if you come across anyone dangerous,” Nadeshiko replied.
“I will.”
“Don’t get into any danger, okay? Please.”
Shirahagi tried to smile, but Nadeshiko’s expression was too serious.
“I’m serious. Be careful.”
“…”
“I don’t know how I could possibly apologize to your families if something happened to you… So run away from anything scary…”
“Lady Nadeshiko…”
“Your mother is waiting for you all by herself back home, right, Mr. Shirahagi?”
His lady’s concern weighed on his heart.
“I have the Goddess of Autumn on my side…,” Shirahagi said, staring at Nadeshiko.
“No. Don’t rely on God. Put your own safety first.”
“No, Lady Nadeshiko.”
She blinked.
“You are my Goddess. I have your blessing. I’ve been with you always. If anything happens, your blessing will protect me.”
Shirahagi smiled now.
“We had our three o’clock snack together. I consider myself very blessed.”
“…Mr. Shirahagi.”
The young man had no idea how much those words encouraged her. The small goddess who had recently learned of her evil wanted to cry in response to Shirahagi’s pure prayer.
Seeing her reaction, the other escorts tried soothing her, too.
“We’ll be back with you right away. Please worry about yourself first…”
“We’ll meet back up as soon as we can. We can’t worry you, Lady Nadeshiko.”
Nadeshiko still seemed uncertain.
“You go now,” said Shirahagi. “And let Hanakiri go with you.”
Hanakiri had spent most of the time on this trip with Shirahagi and licked the human’s nose before barking loudly.
Nadeshiko blinked back her tears and smiled. “Hanakiri says he doesn’t want to leave you.”
“Really? He isn’t making fun of me?”
“No, he wouldn’t do that. You’re his friend.”
“So he’s just being playful?”
“Yes. Because you’re so kind… I think he likes loving on you. And I feel the same. I let you spoil me because you’re so kind, even though I shouldn’t.”
Her words pulled at his heartstrings.
“I’ll spoil you whenever you want. Please…take care of my furry friend.”
He cordially offered Hanakiri.
“Huh…?”
But the car door shut before Hanakiri could come in.
The ruthless thud echoed as Shirahagi exclaimed in shock.
“Get us out of here!” Jude ordered the driver, and the car peeled away before anyone had a moment to object.
Rindo looked through the rear window desperately, and he saw something unbelievable—something he did not want to believe.
The three Church members were holding Shirahagi and the escorts at gunpoint.
They had let their guard down while saying their good-byes.
“…Thank you for getting in the car.”
Rindo turned back ahead and found Jude pointing a gun at the rear seats—at Sanekazura and Nadeshiko on her lap.
“Please don’t resist. It won’t do you any good.”
Gunfire echoed outside the car, and Hanakiri howled. After a harsh bark, the dog yelped. There was no telling what they’d done to him.
Rindo couldn’t look back to check.
“…Jude?” Liam blinked and stared at his Guard. “Jude, what are you doing?”
“Shut up, Liam.”
“Jude, stop it! Get that gun away from Nadeshiko!”
Liam and Rindo reached out at the same time.
But Jude had already pulled the trigger.
The sound of death echoed in the dark.
One shot, then two. Rindo was holding down the gun by the third shot, but then, the driver let go of the wheel and pointed a second gun at him. The same noise played again.
One, two, three. The silenced, point-blank gunshots were harsh against their ears.
Blood sprayed out onto Liam’s and Nadeshiko’s cheeks.
The driver was too skilled.
Once he finished the job, he grabbed the wheel and corrected the car before it could swerve too far.
“I warned you. You shouldn’t have resisted.”
The first victim was Sanekazura. Her arms were already limp, no longer holding up Nadeshiko.
“Liam, you better not do anything stupid, either.”
The second victim, Rindo, writhed in pain as blood bubbled from his mouth.
“There are no more adults to take care of you now.”