Forty minutes earlier, when No. Four and No. Five had just shown up near the villa and No. Seven headed out to meet them, a piece of the night that No. Ten didn’t know cracked open.
“No. Five! Why are you back?!”
From afar, No. Seven saw No. Five carrying No. Four like a fallen willow branch. No. Five halted, silent, eyes fixed on her like cold iron in moonlight.
“...”
“What happened to No. Four? Are you hurt?”
No. Seven slipped under No. Four’s weight, holding her like a shield against the wind.
“No. Seven, someone’s chasing us.”
No. Five’s voice dropped, heavy as mist.
“Hm?”
No. Seven peered down the mountain road. It was just a black ribbon curling through trees.
“Then we need to get back to the villa. It’s safer there.”
Her words moved like lanterns in rain.
“But...”
“What is it?”
No. Seven watched the knot on No. Five’s brow tighten like a drawn bow.
“No. Four... she’s betrayed us...”
The words fell like stones into dark water.
“What?!”
No. Seven’s shock flared like a startled bird.
“What happened?”
Her tone was a blade trying not to cut.
“You saw her wounds. The other side is cruel as winter frost... No. Four had no choice...”
No. Five spoke with a face twisted like a storm. No. Seven looked at No. Four; those wounds were raw, a map of pain carved in red.
“Maybe... we should leave her...”
No. Five tested the idea like a toe in icy river.
“Then why bring her back?”
No. Seven’s voice was a quiet drum.
“I... couldn’t decide alone. She’s our teammate. I wanted your say before the tide takes her.”
“...”
No. Seven looked at No. Four and let silence gather like snow. Her tight brow showed a heart caught in thorny branches.
“Put her down here...”
After a few breaths, No. Seven spoke, slow as falling dusk.
“Hm?”
No. Five stared, not understanding.
“If we take her back... No. Ten... will kill her.”
The memory of No. Eight was a blade still warm in her mind.
“...”
No. Five watched No. Seven. A strange light flickered in his eyes like a hidden ember.
“No. Seven, you’re still you, aren’t you...”
No. Five’s words sounded like a lock testing its key.
“Huh? What are you even saying?”
No. Seven’s gaze was a question mark traced in rain.
“No. Four trusts you completely... That’s why this is happening.”
“What do you mean? Speak clearly.”
Confusion pushed through her like fog over water.
“If you trust No. Four and don’t want her to suffer for nothing, then listen—carefully.”
No. Five’s voice became iron carved with oaths.
————————————
Back to present time.
“Illusion—Puppet—”
No. Ten turned toward the corner of the living room. No. Seven stood there, arms raised and crossed like a sigil, red marks burning on the backs of her hands.
“So you’ll betray me too?”
No. Ten’s voice held winter frost.
“No. I won’t betray. I’m Shadow Division to my last breath. But... I suspect an heretic among us.”
Her tone was steady as a drawn line.
“Heh... an heretic?”
No. Ten’s smile was a moon with teeth.
“So tell me—who exactly is the heretic?”
His gaze slid toward the second‑floor stair. No. Four and No. Five stood there like silhouettes against stormlight.
“I should’ve killed you the moment you came near.”
No. Ten’s words were knives wrapped in silk.
“You wouldn’t. We’re still useful. Unless you drop the mask, you’ll keep lying.”
No. Four met his eyes. Her voice was a blade under velvet.
“...”
“No. Ten, you’re being controlled. I believe you can break it. Don’t let anyone steer your will.”
No. Five shouted like a fire trying to catch. His heart clung to a sliver of dawn.
“This is what Asura told you, isn’t it?”
No. Ten’s mouth curved, a hook in dark water.
“...”
No. Four and No. Five froze for a beat, surprised he knew of Asura.
“Hahaha—Asura, reduced to cheap tricks? How shameful.”
No. Ten laughed, a string of black bells.
“It’s fine. Losing you three won’t dent our plan. So...”
“Die.”
His word fell like a guillotine.
“Roar!!!!”
A ragged howl tore through the villa. On the floor, the teleportation array that had sent No. Eight away birthed a nightmare. A two‑meter beast crawled out, fur gray and filthy like ash‑soaked wool, claws curved on all fours, a lion’s head shrouded in torn cloth, only a jaw of dagger‑teeth bared.
On the sofa, No. Nine lowered his head, a thin smile cutting his lips. Twin black energy orbs spun by his hands like eclipsed moons.
“Roar!!!!”
The creature charged at No. Four and No. Five, a storm of muscle and knives.
“Let me!”
No. Five bellowed. His stone‑hardened body, also over two meters, slammed in head‑on.
Bang!!!
The room shattered into splinters. Furniture flew like startled birds.
“No. Five! I’ll help!”
No. Seven called, strings of phantom light tugging her puppet avatar toward him.
“Worry about yourself...”
No. Three’s voice bloomed behind her like a thorn. No. Seven’s pupils widened. She could feel the blood claw rushing for her back like a cold tide.
Bang!
No. Four, moving at blistering speed, kicked aside the arm that would’ve reaped No. Seven’s life.
“...”
No. Three straightened, disdain a shadow on his face.
“Don’t think your rank over mine means you can beat me. Our ranks... aren’t on your scale.”
His body vanished from the spot like a flame snuffed by wind. He launched a savage assault on No. Four. In mere seconds, new blood painted her already torn clothes. He didn’t finish her—he toyed with her, a cat with a bird—slow, cruel, relentless. No. Four could only defend, waiting for a gap like a knife‑thin crescent.
“No. Seven! Break No. One’s barrier!”
No. Five shouted. To run their plan, they had to crack the shield fast.
“Illusion—Thousand Leaves.”
A storm of leaves sliced toward No. One, but he didn’t move—still as a stone lantern in rain.
“Woo—”
A violet‑black energy shell bloomed around No. One like a night flower. Every attack skittered off its skin.
“Dual Field...”
No. One’s face was a calm lake. He spoke as if he’d tightened a boot strap.
“...”
No. Seven fell silent. Her hope folded like paper.
“Now you see the gulf between us, don’t you? Isn’t it better this way? The Shadow Division should make everyone tremble, make fear arrive like wind.”
No. Ten’s face burned with confidence like a beacon in storm.
“...”
“Puh—”
At last, No. Four, under constant attack, spat blood and fell like a cut reed.
“No. Four!”
No. Seven rushed in, catching her like a net.
“Hold on—”
“Swish—”
A thin sound rose behind her like a snake through grass.
“Not good!”
No. Seven’s pupils flared.
Puh—
Blood sprayed again, a red arc in smoke. She dodged the kill shot, but her right shoulder was pierced clean through.
“Ugh...”
She bowed in pain, breath a broken bell. But it wasn’t over.
“Yo—progress? Then here’s my second strike.”
No. Three whispered at her ear, and his other hand stabbed forward, a black branch seeking heartwood.
No. Seven felt the Anomalous Energy surge at her back. She closed her eyes, despair falling like night.
Boom!!!!
The villa detonated. A last image etched in vision: a brilliant blue lance shot through the roof, then a tide of power erased the entire building.
Boom!!!!
With the blast, the outer disguise field peeled away like shed skin. A larger energy shield snapped over the ruins—a new sky of glass.
——————————
“Cough... cough...”
Amid ash and flame, No. Seven sat on the ground, cradling No. Four like a wounded swan.
“What... happened...”
She opened one eye against the smoke, vision swimming like heat over desert.
“It’s fine... We’re... safe...”
No. Four whispered, the words a soft leaf. Then she fainted.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
No. Seven’s confusion hung like mist.
Across the ruins, as dust dispersed, No. Ten’s side reappeared—unburned inside No. One’s Dual Field. The blast hadn’t pierced that violet‑black shell.
“Cough... ptoo...”
No. Five spat grit, then looked ahead. The monster lay dead, skewered from four directions by mechanical greatswords nearly four meters long, like a boar pinned by iron trees.
“Damn... one second slower and I was done...”
A weary grin tugged his face. He dropped to sit, chest heaving like bellows.
High above G City, beyond cloud tops, a blue‑white Mech hovered like a hawk on updraft. Two massive thrusters kept it steady. In its hands, a giant sniper rifle hummed. The diamond‑shaped muzzle still glowed with leftover energy.
“Sorry—haven’t used Anomaly Power in a while. Took me time to get a lock.”
Hawkeye licked his lips, voice dry as wind.
Below, No. Ten stared at three Mechs floating like gods over a battlefield. He’d seen Princess and Phantom days ago. His gaze fixed on the middle Mech, black‑purple, a thundercloud armored.
“You don’t look surprised.”
Tang Coco’s voice was cool, a blade resting in snow.
“Heh—nothing to be surprised at.”
No. Ten’s tone was a shrug carved in stone.
“Right. Hongcheng must’ve told you about the base.”
Her words flickered like sparks.
“Didn’t expect this. The mighty Asura of the Shadow Division, turned into this.”
No. Ten eyed Tang Coco’s long white hair, a winter waterfall.
“I pity your teachers.”
His voice carried a cold smile.
“Hm? Pity what?”
Tang Coco frowned, genuine confusion like a ripple.
“You had two girlfriends. Now all three of you are women. How’s it feel—liking, but not getting?”
No. Ten sneered, a fox baring teeth.
“...”
Tang Coco felt a dark line drop on her forehead like ink.
“Is... his brain broken?”
Gu Xin pointed at No. Ten, eyebrow arched like a bow.
“Hm?”
This time, No. Ten looked lost, fog in his eyes.
“Yeah. Which eye says we’re unhappy?”
Meng Yuting chimed in, oil to the fire, smile sharp.
“Wait... you mean...”
A possibility dawned on No. Ten like a bad sunrise.
“Ah—yuri’s great. Shame about kids...”
Tang Coco sighed, palms open to the wind. Then she glanced at Gu Xin and Meng Yuting, smiled, and added:
“Even without kids... yuri’s still great.”
“...”×N
“Fine... wonderful... Even as women, you’re this arrogant! Today I’ll show you who’s number one in the Shadow Division!”
No. Ten roared. Black armor rose around him like a night tide. He blasted off the ground, charging Tang Coco like a thunderbolt.
“Xin’er, hit No. Nine. Yuting, take the speedster. Hawkeye, pin the shield caster.”
“Yes!”×3
“Then come on. Let’s play.”
Tang Coco lifted her long blade and surged at No. Ten. The fight snapped into being like lightning splitting sky.
“Heard you’re fast?”
Meng Yuting blinked into place behind No. Three, smile hooked. No. Three dodged aside in a flash—landed—and Phantom appeared at his back again like a shadow made of silk.
“Boys—shouldn’t be too fast.”
Meng Yuting said, lifting her long leg for a kick that came like a scythe through reed.
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