"Heh… since we can't get inside, then it looks like we'll just have to trouble you, Director Ross, to make the trip for us."
Kitazawa Ryōta said this lightly, then rose to his feet and strode straight toward Ross.
"W-What? What are you doing? What do you think you're doing?! I am a high-ranking official of Russia—what are you—"
Ross's voice cracked as he cried out, but Kitazawa ignored him completely. In a flash, he had seized the director, hauling him up with ease.
"You—! I warn you! Even if you want to die, don't drag me down with you!"
Ross shouted desperately, but Kitazawa gave no answer. Instead, his hand chopped down sharply against the back of Ross's head. The man slumped unconscious at once, and Kitazawa hoisted him up without hesitation, carrying him toward the door.
The Kremlin's defenses were another matter entirely compared to the Russian Federal Intelligence Bureau. Penetrating its walls was next to impossible—a fortress with sentries every five steps. Without an alternative, there was no hope of getting inside.
And if they couldn't get inside, then the true source of the EVA Unit-04 technology leak would forever remain in the dark.
Dragging the limp, unconscious Ross between them, the three operatives began their escape. Their initial infiltration had been possible thanks to their skill—none of the three were weak. Mari, in particular, though the same age as Kitazawa, was shockingly capable in combat.
But now, burdened with Ross, their movement was slowed.
"Who goes there? Halt!"
The moment they stepped out, a patrol appeared.
Spotting Kitazawa and the others—and the unconscious Ross slung across them—the guards immediately shouted and drew their sidearms.
Bang!
Before they could fire, Mari had already whipped out her pistol. Shots rang out in rapid succession—precise, merciless. Both guards dropped before they had even squeezed their triggers.
But those gunshots shook the entire bureau to life.
Kitazawa turned his head toward Mari, his eyes narrowing. He shook his head slightly, exasperated.
If not for his foreknowledge as a time-traveler—knowing Mari's political correctness in advance—he would have already suspected her of being a traitor. If not an outright spy, then at least a dangerously reckless partner.
Had she not just blown their cover wide open?
Mari, however, wore an expression of utter nonchalance, unbothered by the chaos she'd unleashed. Kitazawa and Katsuragi exchanged weary glances.
There was no longer any choice. They would have to fight their way out.
The Bureau's security was formidable even under ordinary circumstances. Now, weighed down with Ross, slipping away unnoticed was impossible. And with Mari's reckless gunfire, the whole building would soon be converging on them.
"There! They're here!"
"It's Director Ross! Release him immediately or we open fire!"
The alarm spread quickly. Armed agents swarmed toward them, guns leveled.
But Mari paid them no heed. Her pistol snapped up again, shots cracking through the hall. Bodies fell. One by one, the Bureau's agents collapsed in her wake.
Her marksmanship was brutally efficient—every shot lethal. But with every corpse, more reinforcements came running.
Only the fact that Kitazawa's team was carrying Ross kept the agents from firing wildly. None dared risk killing their own director. Ross was far too valuable to lose, and Kitazawa knew it.
Step by step, the three carved their way through, forcing their way out of the Intelligence Bureau in a storm of gunfire.
Bursting through the doors, they leapt into a waiting off-road vehicle. Ross was shoved unceremoniously into the trunk, and with a single slam of the accelerator, the vehicle roared off into the night.
Behind them, the entire Russian Intelligence Bureau had fallen into chaos.
The abduction of Director Ross—how could this not be a national crisis?
But more damning still: intruders had stormed the Intelligence Bureau itself, and the entire security apparatus had failed to even notice until it was too late.
The news traveled swiftly, sealed off as much as possible, but it reached the Kremlin all the same.
By that very evening, the President's office was filled with the sound of shattering teacups and furious shouting.
For the director of Russian Intelligence to be kidnapped was humiliation enough—but it was also an insult to the face of all Russia.
The incident was buried immediately, restricted to only the highest circles.
But on Moscow's streets, waves of secret agents soon flooded out. Their original mission—hunt down and kill the two Japanese operatives—was now joined by an urgent new directive: recover Director Ross at any cost.
And yet, even after scouring the city, turning it nearly upside down, they found nothing.
No trace of Kitazawa, Kaji, or Mari. No trace of Ross.
As though they had simply vanished into thin air.
It was… impossible. And terrifying.
At that very moment, far from Moscow's frantic search, in an abandoned construction site, a bucket of ice-cold water was poured over Ross.
His body jerked violently, teeth chattering as he shivered uncontrollably. Rage rose in his chest, ready to spill out in curses—
But when he opened his eyes, the sight before him made the words die in his throat.
Kitazawa Ryōta. Kaji Ryōji. Mari.
All three stood before him.
Only then did Ross realize—he had truly been taken hostage.
"You… do you have any idea what you're doing? Kidnapping a senior government official of a sovereign nation—this is a crime of the highest order under international law!"
Ross's voice was sharp, full of menace.
"Heh… our dear Director Ross," Kaji said lightly, stepping forward with an almost affable smile. "We only need you to do us one little favor. Do that for us, and you'll be free to go whenever you like."
"…What do you mean? What are you planning?!"
Ross's instincts screamed that this was leading somewhere dangerous. His voice rose with tension.
Kaji's smile widened ever so slightly.
"For you, it's a very simple matter."
He nodded casually, then spoke words that made Ross's blood run cold:
"Help us get into the Kremlin."
Pls drop some power stones supper me at my
PS: Access the complete chapters/series at