allendalepharm Chapter 1801 - 1799: Showdown (Seems Like Tomorrow Is Lunar New Year’s Eve)
Chapter 1801 - 1799: Showdown (Seems Like Tomorrow Is Lunar New Year’s Eve)
"Pfft......"
The warehouse door opened again, and Reiji looked up, only to see a young girl in a black dress walk in.
With a smile on her face, she walked slowly toward Reiji. Although on the surface, the girl seemed to be very graceful and charming, the moment she fixed her scarlet eyes on Reiji, Reiji felt as if she were being stared down by a terrifying beast. She quickly stood up with a "swish," reaching out to grab her gun—only to find it was gone.
It was then that Reiji remembered her gun had been kept away by Fang Zheng.
"You’re Reiji, right?"
Seeing Reiji, the young girl smiled and lightly parted her cherry lips.
"Nice to meet you, I’m......"
However, before the girl could finish her words, Reiji suddenly reached under her skirt and pulled out a dagger, fiercely stabbing it at the girl.
But facing Reiji’s attack, the girl was unperturbed. Reiji only saw a blur before her eyes, and the next moment, the dagger was firmly caught between two of the girl’s fingers.
"......I’m Mr. Fang Zheng’s fiancée, Tokisaki Kurumi."
The girl calmly finished her introduction, smiling as she looked at Reiji. Reiji, still expressionless, clinged tightly to the dagger in her hand.
"I heard you want to propose to Mr. Fang Zheng? Hmm, that’s not impossible, but as his fiancée, I won’t easily let another woman approach Mr. Fang Zheng. How about a duel?"
Upon hearing this, Reiji finally stopped, staring at Kurumi, who continued smiling and speaking.
"It’s simple. If you win, I’ll agree to your marriage with Mr. Fang Zheng, and I’ll help persuade him. But if you lose......well, forget about the marriage; just stay here as a maid, how’s that?"
"......What are we competing in?"
This time, Reiji finally spoke.
"You decide, since it was you who wanted to propose to Mr. Fang Zheng, wasn’t it? In that case, you should determine what the contest will be. Otherwise, if I win in areas you’re not skilled in, you wouldn’t be satisfied, right?"
"..........."
Faced with Kurumi’s response, Reiji pondered for a moment, then nodded.
"I understand."
Seeing Kurumi return, Fang Zheng also let out a sigh of relief.
"Indeed, it seems it has to be you, Kurumi."
"Hehehe, leave it to me, Mr. Fang Zheng."
Facing Fang Zheng’s words, Kurumi also smiled as she came closer.
"I can assure you, there’s definitely no problem."
"That’s best, but......well, I hope you’ll show some mercy to Reiji."
"Oh?"
Upon hearing this, Kurumi blinked curiously and looked toward Fang Zheng.
"It’s rare for Mr. Fang Zheng to say such a thing. I rarely see you pleading for a girl......do you like her?"
"For now, it’s not quite a matter of liking or not liking, as we haven’t interacted. But......there’s some connection."
While speaking, Fang Zheng sighed. The main headache he had about this matter was that after he detained Reiji, he used "Ratziel" to investigate her background, and found out she was a descendant of Genghis Khan, specifically a descendant of Genghis Khan’s second son, Chagatai.
Well, that’s fine, but the problem is......the land of Chagatai Khanate was south of the Heavenly Mountains, and the capital was Alimari—which is now Huocheng County in Xinjiang Province...
That is to say, although Reiji has Mongolian blood, she was born in Xinjiang......how to put it......
It’s rare to see a fellow countryman.
Although it’s not quite "seeing a countryman, the eyes well up with tears," how could he easily chase away a fellow countryman? Fang Zheng naturally felt a little bit troubled. Therefore, Kurumi came to help Fang Zheng solve this problem, which made Fang Zheng glad. But he also hoped Kurumi wouldn’t be too harsh on Reiji.
It’s worth noting, even though this Kurumi is a clone, aside from not possessing Chronos, she is almost identical to the original in other aspects. And the original Kurumi isn’t human, but an Elf. Her speed, strength, and physical quality are far beyond human; if Reiji truly wants to duel with Kurumi, it won’t end well.
But speaking of it......
"What duel did she suggest?"
"Hehehe......"
Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s inquiry, Kurumi giggled lightly.
"You’ll know when the time comes, Mr. Fang Zheng."
Soon, a day passed.
After that, Kurumi met with Misaka Mikoto and the others, and they exchanged words. Simply put, the little girls had a favorable impression of Kurumi, and Kurumi didn’t particularly tease them either, so their initial meeting was quite harmonious. After seeing Kurumi in person and chatting, Misaka Mikoto and the others were satisfied and went home to sleep.
Night fell.
"Click, click, click."
Kurumi quietly stood in the hall, looking at the pocket watch in her hand, the hands now indicating 11:59.
Then, the second hand, minute hand, and hour hand overlapped.
Twelve o’clock struck.
"Well, I’ll be back soon."
Kurumi lifted her skirt, bowed to Fang Zheng, and Fang Zheng nodded.
"Return soon......I’ll make tea for you."
While speaking, Fang Zheng lifted the kettle and poured a cup for Kurumi, who chuckled lightly, then turned and walked out of the hall.
At this moment, she had once again donned the red and black Spirit Armor.
In the midnight quiet of Academy City, Kurumi wandered as if strolling in her backyard. Just then, gunfire broke out.
"Bang!!"
Almost simultaneously with the gunfire, Kurumi’s body twirled gracefully, and the floor beneath her feet shattered with the bullets, but Kurumi glanced at the direction of the shot and leaped toward it.
At this moment, in the hall, Fang Zheng sat there with Rem and Ram, watching the screens.
"Mr. Fang Zheng, is Miss Kurumi really going to be okay?"
Rem asked somewhat uneasily. She wasn’t concerned about Kurumi’s safety; she just didn’t like the idea that if Kurumi lost, Fang Zheng would have to marry that uninvited woman—which really annoyed Rem.
"Don’t worry. Although the conditions are a bit stringent, they are nothing for Kurumi."
Fang Zheng waved his hand, signaling to Rem not to worry too much. However, he did understand why Rem was concerned. Because the conditions for this duel were indeed quite demanding for Kurumi.
According to Reiji’s conditions, the duel would take place within the Seventh School District. Within ten minutes of starting, Kurumi must find and defeat Reiji. If Kurumi fails to do so, then Reiji wins. Conversely, if Kurumi defeats Reiji, then Kurumi wins.
Ten minutes seems neither too long nor too short, but the problem is—Reiji’s absolute sniping radius is two kilometers.
This means Kurumi has to find Reiji within a two-kilometer area in ten minutes. Meanwhile, Reiji would do everything possible to prevent Kurumi from approaching.
This maximizes Reiji’s advantage to the limit, and Kurumi, lacking long-range sniping ability, is at a clear disadvantage.
But Kurumi is very confident about it.
In fact, Fang Zheng is confident as well.
If it were an ordinary person facing such conditions, winning would be nearly impossible.
However, Kurumi is not an ordinary person.
She is an Elf.
"Clack."
Kurumi landed on a lamppost, lightly stepping on it like a graceful bird, and then leaped again. However, just as Kurumi lifted off, the sound of gunfire echoed once more.
"Bang!!"
As a sniper, Reiji, of course, wouldn’t miss the chance to fire at the right moment. She keenly seized that instant when Kurumi, in mid-air, could neither change direction nor gain momentum, launching her attack. However, Kurumi was equally formidable. At the same time, her right hand quietly twisted, wielding a long-barreled firearm like a sword in front of her. With a flash of spark, Reiji’s sniper shot was effortlessly blocked by Kurumi.
And Kurumi herself, like a weightless ghost, suddenly twisted after blocking the shot and vanished into the darkness of the shadow.
Seeing this, Reiji was stunned.
Indeed, although this Kurumi wasn’t the original and couldn’t use Chronos, she still had the ability to traverse freely through shadows. This ability alone was enough to leave Reiji in a cold sweat!
"........."
But Reiji was only stunned for a moment before she aimed again at the area ahead. No matter what, since Kurumi disappeared from here, she’s still within Reiji’s sniping radius. As long as she’s in range, Reiji doesn’t have to worry about losing target!
"We now see, Reiji has lost track of the target, but Kurumi also hasn’t found where the opponent is... Hmm, time is almost up, the poison circle... doesn’t exist, chicken dinner... can’t be attained, now it depends on who spots the other first..."
Watching the screen, Fang Zheng once again took on the role of commentator.
Indeed, although Kurumi’s shadow traversal is very useful, the problem is, in the shadow, Kurumi can’t find Reiji’s location. If this were a battle of endurance, both could drag it out for days or even half a month, but the problem is that there are only ten minutes.
If Kurumi cannot find Reiji within ten minutes, then she loses!
Thus, Kurumi now needs to take the initiative!
"Shush!!"
Kurumi wasn’t stupid; she knew it was impossible to waste time like this. Quickly, she was seen flashing out from the shadow of a high building on another side. However, just at that moment...
"Bang!!"
With the gunshot, a spark flashed across the trash bin beneath Kurumi, then another spark shot past the lamp post on Kurumi’s right side, following which Kurumi abruptly turned around and flicked the long spear in her hand once more!
"Clang!!"
The incoming bullet was deflected once again, but this time, Kurumi slightly furrowed her brow.
"Hmm, we can see Reiji, an impressive professional sniper, executing a very clever play."
Fang Zheng certainly understood what was happening. It was apparent that Reiji noticed Kurumi’s quick reactions and ability to deflect her bullets. If she just stood there foolishly shooting, she would only offer her opponent a chance to adjust and catch her. Therefore, Reiji also came up with a strategy—ricochet shots!
Just now, the bullets fired by Reiji ricocheted twice through the trash bin and the lamp post before reaching Kurumi. This could both disrupt Kurumi’s attention and conceal her own firing direction and angle. Although the gunshot exposed her direction, without trajectory correction, it was another matter!
Meanwhile, Kurumi also had a plan, once more flashing into the shadows.
"Hmm, as we can see, Kurumi also has her own plan. While Reiji is indeed formidable, she is a sniper. A sniper needs to be observant and aware of her surroundings, so she must be in an open space, and in Academy City, such spacious places are only on rooftops, so..."
"Shush—!"
Before Fang Zheng’s words could finish, Kurumi suddenly leapt from the shadow of a rooftop, soaring high into the sky. Then she turned her head, scanning around! In the next moment, Kurumi narrowed her eyes and locked onto her target!
"Bang!"
The gunfire rang out again!
While Reiji’s sniping was formidable, Kurumi’s shadow traversal capitalized on being unpredictable. She could traverse anywhere in the dark shadows, while Reiji had to search passively. So even if she wanted to find Kurumi, she had to wait for Kurumi to come out of the shadow.
Therefore, at this moment, the initiative was in Kurumi’s hands, with the next challenge being a test of reflexes.
No matter how skillful Reiji was, she was still a normal person.
Kurumi, on the other hand, was an Elf!
"Bang Bang!!"
With a missed shot, Reiji fired two more consecutive shots, but Kurumi deflected them with ease—even if she didn’t deflect them, it didn’t matter. An Elf’s Spirit Armor was virtually invincible against ordinary weapons. As shown in her past in the Elf World, when Yoshino was besieged and bombed from all directions, her clothes didn’t even lose a thread, which already speaks volumes.
With three consecutive misses, Kurumi had already landed on the ground, but she didn’t stop. Instead, she disappeared into the shadow at her feet as if submerging into water.
Seeing this, Reiji was abruptly shocked internally. Then, without hesitation, she picked up her gun, ready to leave!
However.........
"I’ve got you."
Kurumi’s voice came from behind Reiji. Reiji picked up her SVD sniper rifle fitted with a bayonet and turned to stab, yet as soon as she raised her hand, she saw Kurumi lifting her right hand, the long gun aimed directly at Reiji.
"Checkmate."
"........."
Gazing at the black muzzle before her eyes, Reiji was silent momentarily and ultimately dropped her sniper rifle.
When Kurumi brought Reiji back to the lab, the tea was still warm.