I chased the granny through the casino’s gaming area, bar area, kitchen, and finally out of the casino, entering one of Arein Tertius’s back alleys. I turned off my terminal’s light and put the device away, then resumed my pursuit.
She’s leading me somewhere. That old lady has definitely gotten high-level physical augmentations, so she could easily run at full speed and leave me in the dust. But she’s moderating her speed so I don’t lose her. Following her any farther will be dangerous—should I just give up now?
The moment I stopped, she stopped too. “No need to panic. It’s finally just the two of us.” Her clear voice carried well.
Facing the grinning granny as she spread her arms to either side, I swapped the sword in my right hand to my left, then pulled my laser gun from its holster and aimed at her.
“How cowardly,” she said. “Is that really necessary? The lady before you hasn’t raised her weapons.”
“Cowardice is a necessary attribute for mercenaries. What’re you plotting?” I asked, my finger on the trigger. However she answered, I planned to shoot her.
“Who knows? How about using your brain a littl—whoa! You damn brat!”
I had no intention of listening to her ramble, nor did I want to let her buy time. The moment she shrugged in condescension, I’d shot my laser gun—its set output just short of lethal—directly at her, firing three times.
“Impatient little brat, aren’t you? Acquire the composure to enjoy the art of conversation!”
“Rambling in front of an enemy is the mark of a third-rate fool.”
That damn granny had dodged two shots by turning slightly and drawn her cutlass to knock the last one away. Is she actually an imperial noble? Her movements definitely suggest physical augmentation.
“A man must be composed! Only then can he attract women!”
“I don’t need any help on that front!”
The granny’s left hand drew her own laser gun, and she began firing at me as well. I deflected her shots with the sword in my left hand. She has her laser gun on a nonlethal setting too. She doesn’t want to kill me?
“Tch…prepare to lose an arm!” She flung her laser gun at me.
“Mgh…”
I dodged, but then something fell right at my feet. Assuming that it was some explosive, I retreated backward. A moment later, the object detonated, and smoke obscured our surroundings. I fired through it, aiming toward where I’d seen the granny last. That seemed not to have any effect, though. Is that an anti-laser smokescreen?
“Hah!” The old lady’s cutlass came swooping at me through the smoke, its speed astonishing.
“Tch!” I knocked the blade away with the sword in my left hand, completely exposing the old woman’s torso. Then I pointed my laser gun at her. Before I could fire, though, her cutlass reversed course at lightning speed, nearly slicing off my right hand along with my laser gun and forcing me to abandon the attack.
“Take that—and that!” she cried.
“You…!”
Her swordplay was incredible. Mei was faster and stronger, but this granny used her sword in a much tricker way. Even though I held my breath and slowed down time, I was barely holding on. At this rate, I’d lose.
It was time to use my trump card. “Haaah!”
“Whoa! Hey, that’s not fair!”
“Do you think I give a damn?!”
I’d used telekinesis to knock the granny away from me, then pinned her down with a gigantic telekinetic hand. If I blanketed the area with my overwhelming psionic powers, she had no way to fight back, regardless of how skilled she was. As I considered whether I should just crush the old lady here, or if it would be better simply to keep her subdued, a shadow appeared on the other side of the alley. I detected hostile intentions emanating from above the building to my left as well.
“There!”
“Mgh?!”
I couldn’t see these people, but I detected their hostility and fired my laser gun at whoever was ambushing me from above. As the nonlethal laser beam struck them, they cried out in pain.
Right before the beam from the laser gun struck the unseen enemy, it had seemed to bend. Are they using something similar to that kunoichi’s thermal optical camouflage?
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