"Uh… so… what do we do now?"
Nicole opened her mouth, closed it again, and hesitated for a long while before finally forcing the question out.
Nineveh—the overlord of Hollow Zero's outer perimeter. Her level of danger went without saying.
Anyone who paid even minimal attention to Hollow Zero knew her name. The military and veteran Hollow raiders were intimately familiar with her known capabilities.
But nowhere in any of those records did it ever mention Nineveh using a blade.
Let alone the fact that she could shear off half of New Eridu with a single strike.
Nicole felt her heart sink. An Ethereal this powerful, combined with a Hollow Zero expanding under abnormal conditions… was this really something just a handful of them could handle?
"Hey, Nicole, what are you spacing out for? No. 11 already told us to get ready and move!"
She felt a hand pat her shoulder. Turning her head, she saw Caesar standing there.
Seeing Nicole's stiff expression, realization dawned on Caesar's face. She raised a thumb and flashed a smile as bright and open as sunlight.
"Relax! It's just an Ethereal, right? As long as everyone's united, we'll pull through!"
"Nicole, we're heading in first!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, Caesar stepped forward.
At some point, the purplish haze in the sky had quietly faded. The white clouds at the horizon stole away the afternoon, and the setting sun stretched Caesar's shadow long across the ground.
Lighter followed without hesitation. As he passed Nicole, he casually tossed his sunglasses into the wind.
The strong gust tousled his hair. Aside from the red scarf at his neck, his resolve allowed nothing else to tug him backward.
Nicole stared blankly for a moment, only snapping back to herself when Anby brushed the back of her hand.
She looked around—and realized that nearly everyone had already moved ahead.
The Sons of Calydon charged forward like they hadn't fought in centuries.
Public Security and Section 6 followed close behind.
After them came Lycaon and Rina, with Ellen holding the rear.
With the Black-White Doll acting as a living power source, aside from Hoshimi Miyabi and Misha, Ellen was the strongest one left on the field.
"Nicole, we're moving too. If things get dangerous, stay back. Nineveh is really strong… I don't want you getting hurt."
Anby held her dual blades ready, positioning herself half a step in front of Nicole.
"Hurt? Who's getting hurt? Anby, don't block me. Anby?"
Spurred by Anby's words, Nicole felt her blood heat up.
Tch. So what if it's risking my life? I just wonder whether my inheritance will actually make it to the kids at the orphanage if I die.
…Wait. I heard debts get inherited too. Yeah, maybe not.
Having made up her mind, Nicole stepped forward—only to realize Anby had stopped moving, one hand raised to her earpiece.
[Hello?]
Anby let out a quiet sound of surprise. A familiar voice quickly came through the comm, calm yet edged with relief.
[It connected? Excellent. Everyone, this is No. 11. Due to the Hollow crisis, we're temporarily setting aside hostilities and cooperating with the vampire clans.]
[To facilitate coordination, the vampire clans have shared their technical frequencies and information channels. All headsets are now linked to Command. I—No. 11—will be handling unified command.]
[Understood.]
[No problem.]
[Huh, Miss Misha didn't fight for command? Well, fine.]
[Whoever it is, just hurry up and give orders!]
[Let's charge straight through together!]
[…]
Though they couldn't hear one another through the comms, everyone responded affirmatively to No. 11 at the same moment.
[Thank you for your cooperation. Pureblood vampire allies, take to the skies and prevent Nineveh from escaping at all costs!]
"Hah… Quite the underestimation of us. And it does feel strange not being led by Miss Misha… but we accept the task. Please rest assured."
The leading pureblood vampire bowed midair. Then his wings beat sharply, and in a flash, he was already above Nineveh, hands raised and poised.
One by one, more pureblood vampires gathered around him. The light in their hands converged into shimmering, multicolored brilliance, glowing vividly under the setting sun.
"Smash!"
At the moment the colors reached their peak, the leader roared and slammed his hands downward.
Hundreds of pureblood vampires followed in unison.
A colossal surge of energy crashed down toward Nineveh.
Nineveh shrieked as her body was forced downward, bracing herself with the long blade in her hand against the combined assault from above.
[Now! All human agents, move! Target Nineveh's lower body—charge!]
No. 11's urgent command rang out through the comms. The human agents surged forward together, flames and lightning erupting across the battlefield.
Caesar led the charge without hesitation. When her shield met Nineveh's massive, fan-like hand, it flared with brilliant blue light and forcibly knocked the strike aside.
"That's all you've got? Everyone, move in!"
With the advantage gained, Caesar's eyes shone as she shouted encouragement, clearly aiming to finish Nineveh in one decisive push.
Seeing her momentum, the other agents were fired up as well.
Qingyi planted her staff into the ground, gripping Zhu Yuan tightly with her other hand.
"Zhu Yuan—go!"
With a sharp shout, Qingyi hurled Zhu Yuan forward with explosive force.
Zhu Yuan clenched her teeth, gripping her hand cannon with both hands. Twenty-two dark muzzles locked onto Nineveh's slender waist midair as she roared with everything she had.
"Suppressor K22—blow her apart!"
Boom!
Sixteen shells fired in rapid succession, detonating across Nineveh's body in bursts of flame.
Wherever they struck, flesh split open instantly. Streams of Ether poured out from the wounds.
Nineveh screamed in agony, her body shuddering violently. She nearly lost her footing under the pressure from the vampires above.
But amid the frenzy, no one noticed that the Ether flowing from her wounds carried faint tongues of flame.
Had anyone touched it, they would've felt lingering warmth.
No one did.
Anton barreled in next, grinning wide as he slammed his right hand down.
"Brother, together!"
Electric light exploded as lightning surged up from behind Nineveh, tearing straight through her back.
"Spin, spin, spin, spin!"
The flickering blue glow intensified, and Nineveh's body trembled violently, struggling to stay upright.
Seeing this, Anton grew even more excited—baring his teeth, completely unaware of the danger closing in.
"Anton, move!"
Clang!
Ben suddenly flashed to Anton's side, his body thrown uncontrollably toward him.
Fortunately, Anton reacted fast, catching Ben and steadying him on his feet.
But the very next second, a tremendous force surged from Ben's body. Both of them jolted, their palms going numb.
"This is… Strangler Vine?"
Anton turned in shock, stepping aside from Ben. His view cleared—and a purplish-red vine immediately filled his vision.
"And it's not just that…"
At some point, Lycaon and Rina had converged beside them. Their eyes narrowed, dangerous light flashing in their pupils.
Scanning the surroundings, they realized that while everyone focused their fire on Nineveh, a dense forest of Strangler Vines had erupted from the ground.
Through the gaps between the vines, the faint sound of wings beating could be heard.
Ethereal Bees.
It wasn't just Nineveh that had emerged from the Hollow—her attendants had come with her.
"We're surrounded. We need to clear these obstacles."
Lycaon assessed calmly, then suddenly called out, "Ellen!"
"I'm here!"
Ellen answered from somewhere within the vine forest.
"We'll hold off the Strangler Vines and the Ethereal Bees. You keep breaking through. Can you do it?"
"No problem. It's just…"
"Just what?"
Ellen hesitated for half a second, instinctively stepping back as she swallowed.
"My gut says… Nineveh's about to unleash something big."
"What?"
The others froze, unease surging up their throats.
But in the next instant, Nineveh's [Nucleus] flashed. The blade in her hand ignited in crimson-purple flames, and a faint, mournful sigh echoed through the air, filling everyone's hearts with inexplicable sorrow.
[Eighteen Flame Crossings!]