Originium explosives, Shirou had only seen this kind of thing once inside the Guard Department and even then they were extremely rare.
Strictly speaking, most explosive-related items here used Originium as fuel. From small fireworks to large-scale demolition charges used for buildings, it was all based on Originium.
But what the man was carrying was not an ordinary explosive. It contained an enormous amount of Originium. Once detonated, it would spread a dense cloud of Originium dust over a localized area.
Setting aside the damage from the blast itself, just inhaling that dust could infect people. Even with immediate use of inhibitors, there was still a high chance of becoming infected.
So anyone carrying this kind of Originium explosive… definitely did not have good intentions.
In fact, bringing any kind of explosives into a place full of civilians already made that obvious.
After watching the man walk a short distance away, Shirou immediately turned and followed, grabbing his communicator to report the situation.
"This is Shirou. I have identified an individual carrying Originium explosives, it is an Ursus male. Currently near the rear of the concert, moving toward the left side. I am following the target. If he makes any suspicious moves, I will neutralize him on the spot. Requesting authorization."
Thanks to his excellent eyesight, Shirou could track the target from a safe distance. The area here was relatively open with few obstructions.
If this were the winding alleys of the slums, he would have had to stay much closer.
While reporting, Shirou also considered the worst-case scenario that the target might attempt to detonate the explosives before reinforcements arrived.
That was why he made his request clear. If the man showed any sign of triggering the explosives, he would not hesitate to kill him immediately.
"…Authorized. Prioritize your safety. Hoshiguma and I are on our way."
On the other end, Ch'en fell silent for a moment after hearing the report, her expression turning grim.
Originium explosives… if they detonated here, the consequences would be disastrous.
The worst possibility was that the man had accomplices or that multiple explosive devices had already been planted nearby.
Thinking this, Ch'en switched channels on her communicator.
"C2 to C5, be advised! Confirmed presence of hazardous materials! All squads, increase search efforts in your vicinity! C1, move with me!"
After issuing orders, Ch'en quickly left the command position, leaving the rest of the Guard Department members to continue their duties.
No one found it unusual. As the on-site commander, she was naturally busy.
"What is going on?"
Carrying her shield, Hoshiguma jogged after Ch'en and asked.
Shirou's communication channel was connected only to Ch'en and Swire. Since Swire was inside maintaining order, only Ch'en had heard the report.
"Shirou found someone carrying Originium explosives. We are moving to surround and capture him. We need to force out information about possible accomplices."
As she explained, Ch'en also began warming up.
"That is… bad. Where is he?"
Hoshiguma's expression darkened as she tightened her grip on her shield.
"He headed left. Shirou is tracking him. If necessary, he is authorized to eliminate the target. Originium explosives… this already counts as a major incident. I cannot believe someone let these things get into their hands, they are supposed to be controlled materials!"
By the end, Ch'en was practically gritting her teeth.
She was angry at the perpetrators, at the failure of inspections and at herself.
The enemy had managed to bring Originium explosives this close, yet she had noticed nothing.
If Shirou had not discovered it in time, the Guard Department might have only reacted after the explosion.
And by then, it would be too late.
Lives, property, everything destroyed could not be recovered.
Some people might even become infected because of it.
"I know you are angry but calm down, anger will only make you slip up."
Seeing Ch'en trembling with rage, Hoshiguma quickly tried to steady her.
Otherwise, when they encountered the suspect, Ch'en might just draw Chi Xiao and cut him down immediately.
They still needed information.
"Calm down? Do not worry, I am perfectly calm. I have already decided that when we get there, I will open with a Shadowless strike and show them the Guard Department is not to be messed with."
Ch'en forced a smile as she spoke, her hand already resting on her sword.
"No you are not calm at all, we need to interrogate them!"
Hoshiguma felt those suspects were doomed.
Even if they survived the initial encounter, they would likely be beaten thoroughly afterward.
Meanwhile, as the two advanced while trying to restrain Chen's temper, Shirou continued tracking the target, ready to project weapons at any moment.
The man moved through the crowd, clutching his coat, this behavior alone had made Shirou suspicious in the first place.
"What is he trying to do…?"
After following him for quite some time, Shirou had not seen any further action.
The man was simply wandering around, occasionally pressing a hand against whatever he carried under his coat.
Shirou could not figure it out.
But he did not need to.
His job was simple: prevent those Originium explosives from detonating here.
Even if he had to use Broken Phantasm to completely obliterate the man, it would still be far better than letting the explosives go off.
Just as Shirou waited for reinforcements to arrive, he suddenly sensed something and immediately rolled to the left.
Boom—
A massive explosion rang out. At the spot where Shirou had just been standing, dirt and chunks of earth blasted outward.
The surrounding crowd was startled by the sudden commotion and quickly fled the scene.
"Oh? Not bad instincts."
A figure, partially obscured by dust, waved his right hand as he spoke, his tone full of disdain.
"…."
Although his dodge had been a bit messy, Shirou successfully avoided the attack, he just ended up covered in dust.
"You are… the one who bumped into me earlier?"
Seeing that the person he attacked was the same one who had collided with him before, the thin Ursus man immediately realized it had been intentional.
He did not know how Shirou had become suspicious of him, but now that he knew that, this guy was finished.
"Tsk tsk. Playing the hero is not a good habit. The last guy who tried that got smashed into nothing by one punch from me."
A burly Ursus man stepped out from the dust cloud, wearing a mocking expression.
"Being a hero is still better than you infected turning into villains."
Shirou spoke while pretending to touch his chest, quietly activating the communicator there.
He did not know if the burly Ursus man was infected, but since they were together, he treated him as one.
He held no prejudice against the infected but for people like this, he would not hold back his words.
"Hmph! You have a big mouth. Let us see if you can still talk like that after I smash it in."
The burly man's mocking expression instantly darkened, his tone turning threatening.
"That is, if you can catch me."
Shirou showed no fear at all.
Compared to a certain golden Archer this was nothing. Compared to Berserkers, not even close. Compared to Casters not even worth mentioning.
Honestly, even Chen's scolding at work was harsher than this.
So there was nothing to be afraid of.
He did not rush to use projection.
Holding that card back for a surprise was the best choice, he was worried that revealing projection magecraft might push the enemy into desperation and trigger the Originium explosives.
Even though people nearby had run, many were still watching from a distance.
And Shirou was not sure how large the blast radius might be.
"You are quite confident, huh? Then let us see whether I tear your mouth apart or beat you into a pulp!"
With that, the burly Ursus man charged straight at Shirou.
Facing the incoming attack, Shirou calmly observed his movements.
The communicator on his chest had vibrated three times which meant that Chen was already on her way with reinforcements.
Until then, his priority was clear: prevent the explosives from being detonated, and subdue the enemy.
"Trace on—"
As he chanted, circuit-like lines of magical pathways appeared across his hands.
He threw a punch, meeting the opponent's fist head-on.
"Ha! Suicidal!"
Seeing Shirou choose to clash directly instead of dodging, the burly man laughed.
He had just punched a crater into the ground yet this guy wanted to meet him head-on?
Where did that confidence come from? Those sunglasses?
"Hmph!"
Bang—
Their fists collided with a loud impact.
With reinforcement magecraft, Shirou's punch carried significant force.
Enough to make the opponent misjudge him, what he thought would be a one-sided blow was completely blocked.
Shirou did not stop.
He opened his clenched fist, grabbed the opponent's hand, and pulled him forward.
Then his left hand drove hard into the joint of the arm.
Crack—
With a sharp sound, the burly man's arm twisted unnaturally in the opposite direction.
"Ugh—AAARGH—!"
Before he could react, the intense pain hit. He dropped to his knees, screaming.
Seeing his own arm bent grotesquely, the pain only intensified.
"Shut up. You were just all talk."
Hearing the screams, Shirou kicked upward into the man's jaw.
The phrase he used was something he had picked up from Croissant, who often said it while gaming.
The jaw is a fragile point and even a slight impact can cause dizziness.
Let alone a kick enhanced by reinforcement magecraft.
The burly Ursus man was sent flying, landing on the ground with rolled-back eyes and foam at his mouth, completely unconscious.
At the same time, Shirou noticed something fall out from the man's clothing:
small Originium explosives.
He had seen this model before. It was one of the easiest kinds to deal with. The blast radius was small, and the amount of Originium inside was low. Unless there were a lot of them, they posed little danger as long as proper protection was used.
And he knew exactly how to handle it.
As long as it was cut cleanly in half before detonation, the explosion could be prevented.
Simple and brutal.
"The one over there, are you going to surrender quietly or do you want to keep resisting? Personally, I would advise surrender."
After identifying the type of explosive and confirming how to deal with it, Shirou raised his head and looked at the thin Ursus man as he spoke.
At the same time, he began walking toward him.
"You...!"
Seeing Shirou approach, the thin Ursus man panicked for a moment.
Then he remembered the Originium explosives in his coat. He immediately pulled one out, pressed the button to arm it, and hurled it at Shirou.
The distance was close but for him the explosive would only worsen his Oripathy symptoms.
For the man in front of him, however, it could turn him into an infected.
"You chose the worst possible path."
Shirou's eyes turned cold as he watched the explosive fly toward him.
If the man had chosen to surrender, Shirou would not have done anything excessive.
But he had chosen to resist.
And he had chosen to trigger an Originium explosive.
That meant he had to accept the consequences of that choice.
Channeling magical energy into his hands, Kanshou and Bakuya instantly appeared in Shirou's grip. He slashed in an X across the explosive flying toward him, splitting it into four pieces.
The moment it was divided, the explosive became a dud.
Not only did it fail to explode but thanks to Shirou's precise cuts not even a trace of the Originium inside leaked out.
"Those black-and-white twin blades... you are the Red Devil!?"
The moment he saw Kanshou and Bakuya in Shirou's hands, the thin Ursus man recognized him.
The one who had disrupted their plans again and again.
Damn it.
How could they have run into him by sheer coincidence?
Had they not said he was inside?
If he had known this man would be outside, he never would have wandered the streets so openly.
"I have said this before. I am not some Red Devil so could you stop giving me strange titles?"
Hearing himself called that again, Shirou guessed the man was probably from Ursus.
For a moment, Shirou thought of that infected man—
the one who had believed until the moment he died that Shirou was a traitor.
"I know you are not him. He died three years ago. You are just a counterfeit with his abilities!"
The thin Ursus man gritted his teeth as he replied.
The Red Devil of Ursus, the protector of Ursus's infected…
to them, he was one of the most revered figures besides Reunion's leaders.
And now his legacy was being denied by some imitation.
"A counterfeit, huh... if you want to call me that, I suppose that is not entirely wrong."
Hearing the man's angry shout, Shirou finally came back to himself and answered.
He truly had not expected that one day someone would call him a counterfeit.
How should he put it?
It almost felt nostalgic.
If the man had shouted "mongrel" too, it would have felt even more familiar.
"You bastard!"
Enraged by Shirou's indifferent expression, the thin Ursus man tried to throw another Originium explosive.
Unfortunately for him, Shirou was already very close and only a few steps away.
The moment the man pressed the detonator and prepared to throw it, Shirou's blade moved first.
With a single slash, he split the explosive in two.
At the same time, the man's hand was split in half as well.
Blood sprayed everywhere.
Some of it even stained Shirou's trousers.
Watching the man clutch his mangled hand in agony, Shirou felt some pity.
But far more than pity, he felt anger.
From the man's words, it was clear he had long known that the real Red Devil had died.
Yet they still continued acting under the banner of the Red Devil's betrayal.
And many people had died because of it.
Shirou could not accept why they would do such a thing.
"Shirou! Are you alright?"
Just as Shirou was about to deal with the remaining explosives, Chen and Hoshiguma finally arrived.
They looked at the scene:
a large crater,
a man with a twisted arm,
another clutching his severed right hand while trying to stop the bleeding,
and nearby, half a hand and a split Originium explosive.
Just from seeing that, the two of them could roughly guess what Shirou had done.
But compared to the criminals, Chen was more concerned about Shirou, especially since he had blood on him.
"I am fine. The explosives were the crudest kind. I was just about to finish dealing with them."
Facing their concern, Shirou shook his head and calmly split another one apart with Kanshou and Bakuya.
He could have left them for the Lungmen Guard Department to handle, but Shirou felt it was safer to make sure the explosives could never be used again.
After all, if people had to wear protective gear to dispose of them anyway, handling one or two was not much different from handling five or six.
"Hey! Be careful! Even if splitting them can stop them from exploding, it is not guaranteed!"
Seeing Shirou doing something so dangerous, Hoshiguma hurriedly tried to stop him.
Unfortunately, she spoke too slowly.
Shirou had already cleanly neutralized another one.
"..."
The two of them were speechless.
Mainly because Shirou's method was absurdly clean.
He aimed, then brought the blade down in one stroke, splitting each explosive neatly in two.
It was true that this type of explosive could be handled this way.
But if the force was even slightly off and it was not cut properly, it could explode immediately.
Yet every movement Shirou made was perfectly precise.
Like a machine.
Only after he had finished neutralizing every last explosive did the two of them finally snap back to reality.