Mi!ka - 10

I touched the corner of my upturned mouth with my free hand and realized I was enjoying this situation. To be precise, it seemed like the body of "Misono Mika" was finding this situation enjoyable—

I pointed Quis ut Deus at Joshua, who was rushing towards me. It had been quite a while since I'd fired a gun, so I thought I wouldn't remember how to load it or the proper firing stance. But somehow, possessed by Mika's body,

"This is fun—!"

I felt confident I could shoot immediately. Was shooting stance even important in the first place? After all, the body I was currently possessing had the strength to handle the recoil like crazy.

I smiled brightly at him and started firing the gun imbued with Misono Mika's mystery. I didn't know why, but subconsciously, I realized how to use the mystery. It was as if someone had taught me—

Was it because I was firing indiscriminately, or was he just that skilled? Living up to the title of Command Team Leader, he miraculously dodged all my bullets. His movements made it even more fun for me. Besides, it didn't feel real! This place really was—Lobotomy Corporation.

"Okay~☆ Then how about this—!"

I quickly reloaded and changed the direction of the gun barrel, firing at the employees behind him. Joshua, startled by my sudden action, tried to move to protect his team.

"Team Leader Joshua! Are you alri—"

The employee who was about to stop Joshua from turning around was hit by the bullet I just fired. He couldn't finish his sentence. But shouldn't a single bullet be enough to knock an administrator down? I had a brief moment of doubt.

"...Wait, could it be...the attack type..."

"PALE... Yes, Team Leader Joshua, it seems O-01-25's attack type is PALE..."

Considering how much it hurt after just one hit... He clutched his wounded stomach and spoke.

"Whoa—?!"

Suddenly, a headache washed over me, as if someone had hit me on the head. I turned around and saw a woman attacking me with three spherical orbs with heart shapes embedded in them—wasn't that the weapon of the Blue Star? I couldn't remember the name well. ...Yeah, I don't like weapons that mess with the mind. In a way, that's my weakness. Mental attacks aren't good for Mika...

While I was turning around trying to find the source of the pain, I heard the sound of someone running quickly from behind. Right, while the weapon that woman was using was quite bothersome, distracting, and painful? The priority was dealing with this.

I imbued the gun itself, not just the bullets, with mystery. Then, I blocked Joshua's Mimicry attack coming from right behind me with the mystery-infused submachine gun.

Judging by his expression, he seemed quite surprised. Honestly, I was a little surprised too. How could I have known it would actually work? I think I've heard it somewhere before. Guns are ranged weapons, but they're also quite useful in close combat.

"Hey—! Have you ever been hit with a gun—not the bullets?"

Maybe he was flustered that I blocked his attack. He raised his weapon for a moment to swing Mimicry again. I didn't miss the chance and struck him directly on the head with the gun. A clear sound echoed through the entire hallway.

"Ugh..."

He staggered back after being hit on the head. It didn't seem to do much damage. Too bad.

"Okay☆ Should we continue?"

I smiled brightly again and spoke to the administrators blocking my path.

"This time—I won't hold back."

I reload the gun once more. And this time, I'll aim "precisely" at people and shoot. No need to avoid on purpose...no need to hesitate like before...

From that point on, I have no memories. It's as if someone neatly erased them from my mind—

...?

This is not a story of bright youth. This is not Blue Archive...not Kivotos. And, the me from just now, that's not me. Because, I couldn't possibly harm people. If only...if only this place were Kivotos...

Regaining consciousness, I looked around. There were many bullet marks on the walls.

And—and...

The floor and walls were covered in blood, real, human blood. Yeah... I shot them, I hurt them. I didn't want to do this... No? Why did I, who used to live a normal life like everyone else...why did I have to become an Abnormality, Misono Mika? So...so...

"It's not my fault."

If you think about it—they got hurt because they tried to harm me first, didn't they? They tried to subdue me, right? That's it, isn't it? Yeah, it has to be! I was just trying to fire warning shots—!

I can't keep my sanity. I can't believe I hurt people. The hand holding the gun is trembling.

...

"Huh..."

My vision, my consciousness is fading. But...if I collapse here... I feel my body slumping down against my will. Even the sound of the gun falling from my hand... Are other administrators running over? I hear so many footsteps, so loud... With that memory, I lost consciousness.

And so, my world went dark again.

...

Please answer me, &@—...

I—...

—————————————————

Even though Abnormality O-01-25 was not subdued, it showed symptoms similar to panic and collapse. (Judging by the fact that it didn't transform into an egg form, it's presumed not to be subdued.) Employees were injured by the suddenly manifested weapon, but there were no fatalities. Rather, this escape allowed us to obtain information about O-01-25. Of course, it would have been quite troublesome if there had been casualties. Anyway, before finishing the work, I need to back up the newly acquired O-01-25 information into the Abnormality Compendium.

-> Abnormality's attack type, defense type information, backup complete.