Carrying nearly one hundred kilograms of heavy gear, speeding across the desert proved to be far more grueling than I had imagined.
First there was the fatigue of my body, but the 'White Wolf' bike carried a stamina-drain reduction effect, and with the determination behind me I could just barely endure it.
Next was the obstruction of wind and sand, Shiroko used her scarf to cover my mouth and nose, but closing my eyes partially to deal with the grit felt awkward. Not bringing goggles or borrowing glasses from Ayane was my misstep.
And finally… the biggest issue lay in…
My body, pressed too tightly.
I had not anticipated that the scene would be so ravishing.
Two youthful, infinitely beautiful girls' bodies pressed closely to mine. One exhaling warm, moist breath beside my ear, the other burying her face deep into my back, breathing against me…
I knew that at a time this critical I must not let instinct take over.
Yet the wolf-eared girl, naive and innocent to these matters, after feeling the pressure, subconsciously squirmed a little restlessly, amplifying my torment.
It was practically torture already…
I attempted to focus all my attention on the mechanical motion at hand, and on the roaring music of the drill.
Truth be told, the music was quite stirring. The Engineering Club really were masters in that regard.
Gripping the bike's handle tightly, steering carefully at Shiroko's occasional prompts, my feet pedalled in loops.
Time passed excruciatingly slowly, and the pain seemed stretched forever. I lost track of how long it had been until my mind somewhat drifted, then a heavenly voice came in my ear:
"Sensei, Ayane has sent a comms. We've broken out of the encirclement."
I could finally bring the bike to a temporary stop and get some relief.
Shiroko and Serika jumped off me, unwrapped the cloth strips tied round the White Wolf's body, and strapped their weapons back onto their backs.
Just carrying two girls had pushed me near the limit; if the three guns together weighed twenty-odd kilograms clamped to my body too, I truly would have collapsed.
I dismounted, pushing the bike slowly, gulping air in large breaths, and exhaling thick sand from my mouth.
No wonder so many people had moved away from this hellish desert of a place, I couldn't imagine who would like it.
"Sensei, I'll carry you for the rest of the way." Shiroko proposed. "Let Serika push the bike, this will be faster."
Serika frowned, feeling that Shiroko's suggestion seemed off somewhere, yet her head was a bit hazy and she nodded.
Knowing the terrifying physical abilities of the Kivotos natives, I did not refuse, though I thought it odd in my heart.
Having the girls carry me was a little embarrassing, but actually… felt rather good.
"How far to the coordinate point?"
I closed my eyes to rest, reluctant to think more, and just asked.
"Less than ten kilometers remaining. At this pace about half an hour we might encounter small-scale combat." Shiroko said softly. "Sensei, please rest for a bit. You've worked hard."
"…Mm."
Nearby, Serika pushing the bicycle seemed like she wanted to say something too, but seeing my tired face, she remained silent.
About twenty minutes later, dazed, I felt my feet touch the sandy ground and my body gently shaken.
I snapped awake and asked Shiroko: "Have we arrived?"
"Mm…"
Serika's voice held surprise: "Is this… a school? These markings… this must be a school right?"
I surveyed the surrounding buildings; judging by their style they looked very similar to the current ruins of Abydos High School.
Shiroko murmured: "A school in the middle of the desert… could it be…"
At that moment a familiar voice emerged:
"That's right, this is the original main campus of Abydos High School."
Surrounded by a squad of elite soldiers, the Kaiser PMC board member who had been lurking here stepped forward and said with feeling: "Sensei of Schale, I never expected you'd bring them all the way here. The main force to the north is tied up… is this a feint?"
"Long time no see, Director." I greeted kindly. "In truth, Hoshino hasn't dropped out yet."
"…Oh?"
"If you advanced under the premise of her dropping out, then the contract is still in effect now."
"You are correct. Therefore, I and Kaiser PMC will not retaliate against the Foreclosure Task Force who did not initiate aggression against us. But…" the Director gestured to the soldiers at his side: "These gentlemen who recently left Kaiser PMC are no longer under my jurisdiction."
I locked eyes with the Kaiser PMC director, and we laughed together.
"So we have to fight, then?"
"Precisely so. The center of Abydos, abandoned because of desertification, the ruins of what was once the most powerful school in Kivotos lie buried under these sands.
"At the request of Nephthys, we built a laboratory here. And the student-council vice-president you seek is in the building opposite."
Rather than answering after being asked, the Kaiser PMC director had already given us the full intel as though pouring beans from a bamboo tube, refreshingly direct.
Fortunately he is an opponent, not a teammate otherwise I might be lost.
Ignoring my odd stare, the director continued:
"Perhaps the experiment has already begun. If you want to reach her side, then defeat us first. If you are able.
"In any case, under the contract, to avoid misunderstanding, I'll take my leave now."
With that he elegantly bowed and turned to depart.
The soldiers shielded his retreat, raising guns to aim at us.
Shiroko and Serika quickly found cover nearby, readying to return fire.
As for me, I mounted the bicycle and used the Shittim Chest's deflection to dodge stray bullets, then sped away from the battlefield heading toward the building where Hoshino was held.
From a distance I was somewhat surprised. No troops were stationed outside the building.
Then again, if Nephthys had abandoned the experiment, it made sense.
I calculated that Kaiser PMC and Nephthys knew my identity, and that the Shittim Chest still had enough power, so I probed forward.
The main entrance appeared to be made of special alloy, when I knocked it made a dull thud.
I unsheathed the shotgun and fired at the door lock. Unsurprisingly, no damage.
After all, I had no halo to amplify the weapon's power. Hoshino's shotgun in my hands probably could not even make an ordinary student flinch.
So maybe I must wait for Shiroko and Serika to finish off the Kaiser PMC soldiers first…
No, two girls alone without heavy weapons might not be able to destroy this door either.
There was a more feasible way.
Thanks to the intel from our enemy-camp ally the Kaiser PMC director, I learned that a large stock of gunpowder was stored in a nearby Kaiser PMC base.
But the problem was, we did not know its exact location.
Searching would consume more time.
I suddenly recalled what the Kaiser PMC director had said:
"Perhaps the experiment has already begun."
How much longer could Hoshino wait?
Thinking this, my hand unconsciously brushed the cold body of the White Wolf bike, and I frowned.
What if… there was an attack that, with one strike alone, could make a student fall unconscious?
I suddenly had a bold idea and weighed the pros and cons quickly.
We had reached the tail end of the plan. To use one high-speed vehicle that played a key role in rapid movement, in exchange for the possibility of saving time…
It's viable.
With decision made, I pushed the White Wolf back to a sufficient run-up distance, and as I prepared to launch I felt a bit nervous.
I whispered to my beloved bike:
White Wolf, I'm relying on you this time too.
Show all your power, for me, and carve a brand new path.
A faint wind passed the drill's air vents, producing an imperceptible whine, as if the White Wolf answered.
I know it's just a coincidence, maybe only my imagination.
But at this moment there was no more doubt in my heart.
"Hoshino, look at me."
I pressed the pedal. The wheel spun. As the White Wolf accelerated, the drill connected to the transmission also spun faster and faster.
Breaking through the raging wind, the stirring music rose like the accompaniment in a drama.
Charging toward the fortress where my precious princess was imprisoned, I and my mount launched an unafraid assault!
Our drill was going to break through the skies!
In a mere few hundred meters, time flew.
The high-speed spinning, indestructible drill carried unstoppable kinetic energy, struck the door-lock with precision, and in an instant both twisted and deformed into scrap metal.
Then the front wheel and bike head burst the gate wide open.
As a cost, under the enormous recoil the White Wolf emitted a shrill lament, the wheel came out of the frame, shattered, and after skidding a few meters the bike fragmented into several parts.
And I myself fell hard onto the ground. Without caring about the remaining power in the Shittim Chest, I quickly rose.
A few dozen meters ahead, the pink-haired girl bound in place lifted her head in surprise, and our eyes met.
She appeared uninjured... thank goodness, we made it.
I exhaled, then shouted excitedly: "Hoshino! I'm here to save you!"
Yet Hoshino's reaction doused me in cold water.
"Why is it you! Get away from me!!"
I froze, and smiled wryly, thinking that Hoshino truly hated me to the extreme.
But that did not matter, I had already prepared myself.
I pulled myself together and continued toward Hoshino: "Hoshino, no matter what you think, I will rescue you for sure!"
"You idiot!" Hoshino yelled more angrily, and I could see urgency on her face. "Run away! This place is a trap!"
…What?
Before I could react, a mechanical noise sounded, and heavy weights crashed down behind me, blocking the sunlight streaming through the breach, plunging the laboratory back into darkness.
Then, in the empty chamber, footfalls echoed with crystal clarity.
The Kaiser PMC director stepped out from the shadows, blocking the path between me and Hoshino.
"Truly… spectacular." he said, gazing at me.