Shissou suru Shishunki no Parabellum

The two boys and Shiho; they created their guns with their right arm and created a [Magazine] with their left hand at the same time. Though it seemed like a magic trick, there was no secret mechanism. They slammed their gigantic magazine in their left hand into their right arm gargantuan gun’s receiver. Without wasting a single moment they pulled the slide on top of the barrel a.s.sembly. The first bullet from the cartridge was loaded into the chamber as they pulled the slide. They could now fire at will.

As soon as her gun was fully deployed, Shiho’s power and movements enhanced. She lifted Itto with her left hand and kicked the bench at the two attackers before backing away.

“!”

The bench flew weightlessly and strongly at the two attackers. Let alone a girl, this act was impossible for any human. Upon deploying the firearm on her right arm (though the principle is still not understood), Hasegawa Shiho"s strength was boosted. That weapon on her arm must have increased her strength.

The two men fired at the bench flying at high-speed toward them and turned it to a beehive. With a loud roar, the bench was demolished in a single moment. While debris blocked their vision, Shiho moved further away while shooting, an impact several times more intense than a roller coaster hitting Itto as they moved. Using high speed movements, Shiho jumped into the wooded area, hiding in the bushes.

Everything happened in an instant.

Shiho held her breathe while scanning the area around her.

The two enemies temporarily lost sight of Shiho and Itto.

However, the park was small. If they searched the nearby bushes, the two would be found immediately.

“What….was that?”

Lowering his voice as much as possible, Itto asked Shiho

“Ah”

Shiho, in a small voice, responded.

“[Psycho Ballistic Firearms], alias [P.V.F.][1]. Translating it into j.a.panese... it would be ‘Firearms of Mental Bullet’…I guess? Although I am saying that, I"m not quite sure myself...”

“... In other words?”

“In other words, a human"s mind forms a weapon. The bullets are also created through our mental will.”

“…Huh?”

“Those who can use [P.V.F.] are called .”

“That’s the first time I ever heard of such things…….”

“Well, we try to hide our powers. Beside….”

“Beside…..?”

“ have only been present in recent years. In truth, no one really knows what the situation is.”

Itto was surprised. A special ability born only recently, and such a dangerous power was used to fight.

“I"ll give you more details later. There are others who can give you better explanations.”

So she said.

“Why did those two attack you so suddenly?”

Itto asked.

“That, well, I don"t know either...”

“What?”

“The from the high school in the next town... They must have misunderstood something. They said "Our companion was attacked by the from Kido High", but we haven"t done anything."

Again, word he didn"t understand.

“What is ?”

“A group of .”

Firearms produced by the human mind---

[P.V.F.]

[Parabellum]

For the time being, Itto needed to know one more thing.

So he asked.

“... How can I get it?”

“There are two methods...”

“Yeah?”

“One way is to perform surgery on you. It"s a simple operation, of course, but it"s impossible in this situation.”

--- Surgery. Definitely impossible.

“The other is... this.”

Shiho took out a small case of medicine from her pocket.

She opened the lid and showed Itto its contents.

Inside the plastic case were many white pills.

“This heightens the abilities of a . One tablet, no water required. If a takes it, it temporarily improves our abilities, but there are side effects, so not many use them often... If a normal person consumes it, there is a chance they will awaken... but that"s dangerous. It"s dangerous enough for a to take it; the average person"s brain might burn out...”

After taking one, Shiho returned the case to her bosom.

“…….”

Brain death---

A tremendous risk.

“Uu.”

Shiho"s face distorted in pain.

“Were you shot just now?”

“A bullet grazed me...”

Shiho rubbed her flank.

The clothes were not damaged.

“Since the bullet is made of human will,”

Shiho explained:

"It will hurt [only] the human mind and nerves. Even if someone becomes disabled, no evidence will remain. Ozuma says the [P.V.F] could be the worst a.s.sa.s.sination tool ever."

“Injuries...” Itto grated his teeth.

--- What the h.e.l.l should I do?

“It"s fine. Run away.”

Shiho smiled brightly as she spoke.

“You and I have only just met. There"s no need for you to worry about a girl you don"t know disappearing from school, right? It"s fine to forget, so run away.”

Leaving those words behind, Shiho jumped from the bushes. To let Itto escape, she planned to play the decoy without his permission. In the gra.s.s in the woods surrounding a park, Itto was left alone.

Itto was involved.

Shiho was protecting Itto. That was natural.

In the first place, he could not acclimate himself to such abnormal circ.u.mstances so quickly.

It"s fine.

Shiho told him to.

Itto only have to escape.

As if it was a bad dream.

No, perhaps it really was a nightmare. Itto recently felt a strange sense of neurosis from his continuous bad luck. It would hardly be strange to see a nightmare.

So it"s fine.

Itto looked at his feet suddenly and noticed a white tablet. It was the medicine Shiho said awakened the

“...!”

It must have fallen out when she opened the pill case.

Itto picked up the tablet and felt its texture. A dangerous medication. The feeling of reality within this nightmare crept up his fingertips.

--- One tablet, no water required.

Itto swallowed his saliva.

--- If I fight, I"m sure it"ll be h.e.l.l.

Misfortune awaited him. That much was obvious.

Itto lived a trivial and free life. If he jumped into such abnormal circ.u.mstances, he would have to endure a continuous life of fear and suffering.

--- Run away, Itto.

He persuaded himself.

Nothing I do will pan out.

Such an unusual thing, he would definitely ruin it.

I worked hard getting full marks on that test and was falsely accused of cheating.

He recalled Shiho"s smile.

The sister I loved eloped with some man with a piercing in his nose and was hurt.

Shiho was attacked. He recalled the two enemies.

My parents fought every night while I was preparing for my high school entrance ceremony.

He recalled Shiho"s expression as she suffered from injury.

And then they divorced.

Ah---

Itto noticed.

--- For someone like me, isn"t it strange to be afraid of death?

More than anything, Itto had something to say to Shiho.

Shiho said it as they parted---

There"s no need for you to worry about a girl you don"t know disappearing from school, right?

Itto was accustomed to the taste of contempt and humiliation.

However, he noticed something in Shiho"s words, maybe it was a coincidence.

Of course, Shiho had not spoken out of malice, she just spoke naturally. She just seemed like that kind of girl.

--- You said something unnecessary.

In Shiho"s eyes, Sasaki was reflected like a little Rabbit who would not mind even if a girl was killed in front of him. Shiho"s words were the largest humiliation Itto had ever received in his short life.

Besides, Itto wanted [The Worst a.s.sa.s.sination Tool].

If he had it, the things important to him would not have to be taken away any longer.

I want that power. I want to get the man who hurt my beloved sister.

“Even if I die...”

Itto reached for the tablet on the gra.s.s once again.

“It"s better than living this s.h.i.tty life.”

He picked it up and put it in his mouth with the intent to commit suicide.

Filled with unease and tension, he broke into a cold sweat.

The medicine took effect instantly.

From the nape of his neck to the crown of his head, he felt an impact, like a chill.

Dizzy. His ears were ringing.

He sweat even more, and became breathless.

His heart palpated, rapidly accelerating.

Itto fainted.

How much time has pa.s.sed---

“...”

He opened his eyelids.

Was it long, or was it short?

It no longer hurt.

His brain functioned as normal too.

Did something change?

Ignoring that thought, Itto stood.

He extended his right arm like Shiho had done---

He concentrated. He focused on the image of a weapon.

Good... Do it.

Itto"s wish reached the heavens.

Particles of light surrounded his arm, forming a weapon.

Though it was done by his will, Itto could not help but be surprised.

A large firearm was there.

A combination of bow and rifle, an unusual .

Amazing.

Though the size was unexpected, there was no weight to it at all, yet all parts composing the gun had the clear texture of a strengthened steel.

On the main portion of the gun – along the chamber, characters were engraved.

“68 Caliber Dangerous Rabbit...?”

It was the name of the gun.

The name of the Hasegawa Shiho uses is 68 Caliber Brilliant Catharsis. It is a ranged rifle with a sleek design, reminiscent of the long lance of a knight.

Shiho returned to the park and reunited with Goro and Kousuke. Goro held his handgun at ready, Kousuke with his heavy machine gun.

For a , in a two on one fight, their can be two, even three times the strength.

At this time, there are two confirmed types of , the Id Arms and the Ego Arms. The Id Arms is a weapon such as a handgun, typically used for close combat, while the Ego Arms is typically geared toward mid-ranged battles. The two had different types of Arm, covering their weaknesses. It was a good plan for victory.

Some gather and form a .

However, Shiho was alone today. There was no other to unite with. Shiho could do nothing but use her Ego Arms, Brilliant Catharsis.

Even if it was two on one, Shiho"s was superior.

Shiho typically fired in succession while hiding behind the trees.

Goro came out in front and held his left hand before his breast.

From the center of his left hand, a hexagonal shield appeared to repel Shiho"s bullets. The spirit shield a uses to defend is called a [Trauma Sh.e.l.l]; it is impossible to deploy alongside an Ego Arms because the mental burden required is too heavy. Unless the person uses an Id Arms like Goro, it is impossible to call forth a Trauma Sh.e.l.l.

Leaving the defense to Goro, Kousuke fired his giant heavy machine gun.

Bullets of emotional strength – that is, a mental system which forms cartridges – only destroy the human psyche and nervous system.

However, Kousuke loaded his weapon with armor-piercing ammunition, since “Mental Bullets only hurt the target.” His armor-piercing bullets would hurt [Anything Non-human]. A uses a gun with the right arm and forms a variety of ammo with the left.

Kousuke"s bullets destroyed the tree trunks and branches. In doing so, he planned to strike the final blow once Shiho was completely bare.

If I can use my special shot ---

Shiho thought to herself.

The had a special ability, called a Special Shot. Using it would use all ammunition and render the weapon unable to reload for a time.

The power invested in this bullet could not compare to a typical attack and typically caused some abnormality to the target"s psychology.

In order to prepare her Special Shot, Shiho jumped backward while paying careful attention to her cartridge.

However---

“Naive.”

Goro"s voice.

Before she knew it, he had gotten behind her.

With his Trauma Sh.e.l.l dispersed, Goro used high-speed movement to attack Shiho from behind.

The 50 caliber mental bullet pierced Shiho"s right thigh.

“Nn!”

Shiho m.u.f.fled her scream.

Though there was no bleeding, her nerves felt the pain.

Her leg could not move, as if she had a severe cramp.

Shiho lost her balance and fell over. Goro fired three more shots, purposely missing her vitals – the head and the heart – to remove all possible movement of her limbs.

Saliva spilled from Shiho"s mouth, her breathing rough.

Shiho"s , Brilliant Catharsis, was forcibly released. With her mind and nervous system injured to such an extent, it was impossible to maintain her .

“I"ll ask you. Why did you attack our companion...”

Goro looked down at Shiho as he asked.

“I don"t know...”

Shiho replied with a desperate look.

Her answer did not satisfy Goro, so he kicked Shiho"s stomach.

“!”

He kicked seriously. As proof, Shiho"s body trembled with a sharp pain; she was involuntarily crying.

Kousuke closed in.

“Let me take care of the torture.”

Goro responded.

“What"s with that?”

“You go too far.”

The two had a conversation moving in a dangerous direction.

“Wait.”

A boy"s voice hung in the air.

Itto had returned.

“Sasaki-kun...!”

Shiho let out a voice of surprise seeing Sasaki Itto return.

In his hand was a 68 caliber Ego Arms .

“That amateur from a bit ago...”

Goro said.

“No, he"s not even up to that level.”

“What the h.e.l.l are you two doing!”

Itto was enraged to see Shiho so injured.

“Kicking a girl on the ground, is there something wrong with your head?”

Itto began running.

Goro and Kousuke, convinced he would shoot with his looked with wide eyes.

--- What is he doing!?

Itto had become desperate midway.

He intended to shoot first, but it did not go so well. He did not yet understand how the lever or safety operated. Before he could properly learn it, he had jumped out to stop the two. Even now, he did not know how to fire his .

His body, it was light.

No, that would not be enough to describe it.

The moment he developed his , he could control gravity to some degree. His body could become so light that a large jump would be simple. Just by kicking off the ground lightly, he moved about ten meters without knowing it.

--- This too is an effect of the .

Seeing the enemy surprised by his suicide attack, Itto used the brief interval to help Shiho.

“This guy is fa-.”

Fast – Goro"s face clearly said. Itto thrust his , Dangerous Rabbit, forward.

It could give a good beating.

Though a special firearm, it was a blunt weapon.

Itto was anxious whether the would be effective as a blunt object...

There was a clear response at the moment of impact.

Thinking about it... It"s been a long time since I hit anyone so seriously.

Itto swung Dangerous Rabbit horizontally, blowing Goro further away.

The barrel struck Kousuke"s shoulder.

“...!”

Kousuke retreated, his face distorted with pain.

He moved to Goro, his partner.

Goro had received a concussion. Worrying about this, Kousuke ran away, carrying Goro on his shoulder.

They ran away...?

Itto looked at the surroundings.

The sign of the two disappeared completely.

Really – They ran away.

In other words, Shiho survived.

Itto was relieved and sat down involuntarily.

Then, his eyes met Shiho"s.

“Ah!”

It was too early for Itto to relax.

Shiho was wounded.

“Sasaki-kun, you became a ... It was my mistake.”

“Of course not.”

Rather, Itto was grateful to Shiho. Though he wanted to express his grat.i.tude... it seemed impossible now.

For now, he needed to take care of her injuries.

“What... should I do? Take you to the hospital?”

“The hospital is useless.”

Shiho said.

“Call President Nikaido...”