This factory beneath San Francisco was Leiman's most valued facility, and his crucial hideout. Unlike his other factories, this one's assembly lines were fully automated with intelligent machinery—no one was allowed inside.
"Now, I just need to wait..." Leiman smiled in the cockpit while calibrating equipment, hanging up on the black market dealer Old Zhou.
He then casually tossed the phone out of the cockpit. A mechanical arm caught it and physically destroyed it.
Caution.
That same principle—caution.
"Young people, always so impatient."
"The true winner is always the fisherman hiding at the end." Thinking of Marshal Stacker's earlier Jaeger forces battling the Precursors, Leiman couldn't help mocking them.
The Travelers in both camps were impatient players.
Too young.
Unlike him—deploying numerous unmanned Jaegers wasn't enough; he'd reserved one to protect himself. The very definition of playing it safe.
Only after the dust settled would he step fully into the spotlight.
"Tap."
Suddenly, in the factory filled only with mechanical sounds, something landed—like a footstep. Especially jarring in this environment.
Leiman was extremely sensitive to this. He immediately abandoned his work, opening the Jaeger's chest cockpit to look outside.
"My imagination?"
Nothing in the direction of the sound. Everything looked normal.
He frowned, wondering if he'd missed some aspect of his preparations.
After two full minutes of thought, he nodded slowly.
"Must be my imagination... seems being too sensitive isn't good either." Leiman returned to the cockpit, continuing the Jaeger's calibration, mentally warning himself not to be oversensitive—exhausting his mind would backfire.
This Jaeger's hardware was complete, but the system still needed adjustments.
Just as he focused on the screen, something felt off.
As if a burning gaze came from behind, making him restless.
"Who!?" Leiman suddenly turned, looking behind him.
Behind him was the white, sci-fi cockpit wall. No one in sight.
Tch...
Strange. This feeling shouldn't be baseless...
He'd never heard of ghosts in the Pacific Rim world.
Another hallucination?
Could hallucinations appear twice in a row?
"Seems I've been too tense lately. Better rest a bit." Leiman rubbed his temples, shutting down the Jaeger's internal systems. He left the cockpit, stepping onto the catwalk.
Walking through the dim factory catwalk toward the rest area.
This factory's security was excellent. If anyone broke in, alarms would trigger immediately. So right now, he was definitely alone.
Can't keep scaring myself...
"Tap tap... tap tap tap..."
Leiman's leather shoes struck the steel catwalk, making tapping sounds that stimulated his throbbing temples.
Recently he'd been monitoring his plan daily with barely any sleep. The pressure was clearly too much...
"Tap tap... tap tap tap tap tap..."
The footsteps remained crystal clear.
But unknowingly, another set of footsteps had mixed with his own.
At first he didn't notice.
After several steps, he suddenly realized!
How could there be two sets of footsteps in this factory!
"Who the hell is it!?" Leiman drew the pistol from his waist, aiming behind him while shouting.
No one!?
He quickly turned back around. Suddenly, an unfamiliar face filled his entire vision!
"Bang!"
Leiman's heart pounded violently. He pulled the trigger. After the loud report, a bullet fired toward the figure.
But an even more alarming scene occurred—the bullet didn't penetrate the body. Instead it curved, flying toward the factory wall.
Leiman didn't remember learning gun-fu.
"Bang bang bang!" Refusing to believe it, he frantically pulled the trigger at the figure ahead.
But the results were identical.
"You... who the hell are you!?" Leiman stared at the black-haired, golden-eyed man in a floral shirt and shorts—dressed like he was on vacation. His arm trembled as he demanded answers.
He couldn't figure out where his plan went wrong.
How did this person find this place?
Why didn't the alarms trigger?
"Let me check... Zachary Leiman, right?" The man opposite pulled out a phone, comparing Leiman's appearance before asking.
"Shit...!" Realizing this man was likely here to cause trouble, Leiman immediately turned and ran toward the Jaeger.
No time to worry about appearances now.
Full sprint, trying to reach the Jaeger for safety.
This man was like a ghost, appearing without warning, completely bypassing his security systems. Now he clearly intended to take his life!
"Want to run right under my nose?" Natsuki watched him bolt, unhurriedly following at a leisurely pace.
Having already tracked him down and locked his position, how could he let this guy escape easily?
Besides, where could he run?
Forget leaving this factory—even if he fled Earth, Natsuki could drag him back.
Leiman ran all the way to the Jaeger's cockpit. Ignoring the system calibration, he forcibly activated this white Jaeger that resembled the unmanned models.
The sound of gears meshing and machinery operating echoed through the factory. Lights illuminated the path ahead as the Jaeger powered up.
Natsuki stood on the catwalk, watching the primed Jaeger, raising an eyebrow.
Trapping himself in a big tin can?
White energy suddenly manifested in his naturally hanging right palm.
"Someone like you absolutely cannot exist in this world. You... who are you!?" Leiman's voice transmitted through the Jaeger's audio system. Simultaneously, the Jaeger broke free from its restraints, raising its hand to smash toward the catwalk where Natsuki stood.
For all Leiman's calculations, he'd never anticipated encountering such a ghost-like man.
The Jaeger's massive fist blocked part of the light, falling with crushing momentum.
Meanwhile, the energy in Natsuki's right palm had coalesced into a white light disc. Before the Jaeger's fist landed, he raised his hand and flung it forward.
"Whoosh!"
The white disc wasn't large, but flew at extreme speed, instantly reaching the Jaeger's shoulder joint and slicing through.
"Thud!"
The Jaeger's arm severed instantly, crashing to the ground below with a dull impact.
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