SLKD – Volume 3 Chapter 11Previous Chapter | Project Page | Next Chapter
Robbers, Slight Movement, Hostage
“Excellent! Now, you are on the right track. Everyone, please gather in the center of the lobby in an orderly fashion and get down on the floor with your hands on your head, without making any noise! As long as you don’t make a fuss and don’t do anything stupid, I believe the gun in my hand will not make another sound.” When the leader of the robbers saw that everyone had quieted down, he nodded his head as though he was satisfied. Then, he began to make arrangement for whatever next step he had in store for us. He wanted to gather all the people in one place.
Without even knowing who the first person to move was, the crowd followed blindly, hundreds of people walked slowly towards the lobby center and squatted down with their hands on their heads. Kamiki Kuji and I also followed the crowd heading towards the center, but as we were initially at the counter by the bank teller, a distance away from the lobby center, we had to squat down at the edge of the crowd.
Since the robbers are here only for the money, as long as we don’t resist, they won’t kill anyone.
In this world, bullets and gunpowder are not needed for guns and are replaced by spiritual aura. As long as there is enough spiritual aura, no matter how much you fire the gun, the ammunition will not run out. Not only that, the a.s.sault power of the aura gun changes according to the wielder’s spiritual power… To fight back against seven gun-toting criminals would be foolish and reckless. Unless there’s a Battle Spirit contracted with a wind spirit, or if there was a Magus present to a.s.sist in magic casting secretly, it would be impossible for anyone to subdue all seven robbers within a short enough period of time.
Never mind whether there is any Battle Spirit or Magus among the crowd, the problem remains whether any magician can effectively summon a spirit or cast a spell in this situation. I think there shouldn’t be anyone foolish enough to want to be a hero, right?
“Bang!” Just as I thought that no one would want to be a hero, the sound of a gunshot went off. With just one shot, I saw a man, dressed in a security uniform, tumble out onto the ground from behind the checkout counter, his head a splattered mess… blood oozing out slowly… His hand still clutching onto a magic wand. It seems like he had been hiding behind the checkout counter and tried to retaliate when the time seemed right…
Then again, how strange was it that I did not notice the security guard when I was clearly facing the bank counter? Could it be that these robbers are professionals?
But, what do they plan to do now? Don’t robbers usually start by ordering the bank’s officers to open the vaults once they have finished gathering all the hostages? Why are these robbers checking out each and every hostage? Is it to pick out those who seemed like they will resist? Then again, how can they possibly do that?
The head-honcho of the robbers swept his gaze over everyone’s face. Just as his gaze swept past me; was it my imagination, or did it seem as if his eyes stayed a little longer on Kamiki Kuji? It can’t be that he was attracted to her beauty, right?
After glancing through the crowd briefly, the head of the robbers yelled, “Who is it? Who is the manager of this bank? Step out now! I want the vault opened! Number 6 and Number 7, go and stand guard at the door. I don’t believe that no one has called to alert the police.”
The two he named Number 6 and Number 7 glanced at each other, nodded, and headed for the door, carrying their aura guns with them.
…
“Oi!” The head of the robbers roared, when no one stepped forward, “Didn’t you hear what I said just now? Who is the manager of this bank? You better get over here now! I am going to count to five, if no one steps out after my five counts, I am going to kill one person every second.”
No one doubted what the head of the robbers just said. After all, he had just killed a few people right in front of us without a hint of hesitation.
“Five! Four! …” Each time the leader of the robbers counted down, my heart skips a beat. I think everyone here is just like me, feeling very frightened, right?
No… no… I cannot let myself get too emotionally affected by this. I need to calm down. Otherwise, Silent Water will sense my distress and teleport herself here. I don’t want Silent Water to have to face seven ruthless, cold-blooded, murderous criminals all by herself.
At the thought of this, I took a deep breath and started to calm my nerves. Since I have already died once, what is there to be afraid of in death? Also, how can their bullets be compared to the might of Derecho’s fists? So long as they are firing at me, Freed should be able to activate the dragon power, right? This way, even if I am hurt, I won’t die.
Moreover, at the moment, Freed and Yalide are not speaking to me, just so I can have time to calmly think things through and be able to train my willpower… I cannot disappoint them… When I thought about this, my fear vanished. Even more so, I felt a bit of excitement? At this moment, it felt like I was not being threatened and held hostage by criminals, but rather, I was just watching an exciting scene at the movie…
I couldn’t have been so afraid to the extent that my fear turned to excitement, could I?
“One! Seems like someone is quite the coward… well then, I shall fulfil my promise and start killing people. By the time my gun points at you, no matter how much you beg, I am going to ignore you and just use explosives to blast the vault open.”
The moment the robber finished speaking, a fatty climbed onto his feet shakily, his limbs trembling viciously, “No… Don’t… I… I, am the manager… Please forgive me… I will open the vault for you now…”
This b.l.o.o.d.y fatty! To be hiding in the middle of the gathered hostages, how much of a coward are you?
The rest of the people slowly moved aside to clear a path for the fat manager.
I stole a glance at Kamiki, who was right beside me. Her face was expressionless, and her body was not trembling or shaking. She just kept staring at the robbers, keeping track of every action they made… giving off a very calm and collected aura.
“Oh? So you are the manager? From a moment ago, I got the feeling that you might be the one and planned to kill you first the moment I finished my countdown. Who knew that you would step out voluntarily. Mmhm! Your bravery is commendable.” The robber patted the fat manager on his shoulder as though they were friends.
After receiving a pat on the back by the robber, the fat manager’s legs trembled even harder… it seems as if he might faint at any moment.
“Good! Number 4, Number 5, go with the manager to get all the money out of the vault, oh…, no, just grab however much you can, as long as all the bags are filled, but try to get more of the foreign currencies.”
“Roger!” Number 4 and Number 5 nodded, then with their guns against the fat manager’s back, they proceeded deeper into the bank.
Then, the criminals, whose name were probably Number 2 and Number 3, together with their leader, occupied the two sofas on each side of the reception area, their attention kept coming back to where we were every now and then…
…
“Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!” Several gunshots came from within the bank. Almost immediately, I noticed several men and women, covered entirely in blood, came stumbling out with their hands on their head. They walked nervously towards the crowd. Then, they squatted down onto the floor and joined the rest of us.
From the looks of it, those people were hiding somewhere inside the bank and attempted to escape the robbers’ attention… Unfortunately, this group of robbers are professional…
Eh?! What does Kamiki think she is doing?
Just then, I noticed that Kamiki Kuji slipped her hand into her pocket and withdrew her magic wand secretly… her movements were slight… had I not been by her side and paying attention to her, I wouldn’t have noticed that there was a magic wand in her hand…
However, what can a level five Magician like her do? Oh right… she is a fog and poison user… Fog and poison can be used to confuse enemies… In that case, she might just be able to deal with these robbers.
At this moment, the head robber stood up, Kamiki stilled… my heart pounded as he started to walk in our direction… Stopping in front of us, he then pointed his gun at Kamiki and said coldly, “Little girl… if you don’t behave, uncle robber will get angry… On account that you are still young, uncle robber will forgive you… Now… hand over the magic wand.”
How is it possible? How could he have noticed it? I am right next to her and I would not have noticed anything had I not been paying attention to her… How on earth did he do that? Or has he been paying attention to Kamiki this whole time?
Kamiki’s hands started trembling… she took out her magic wand slowly… and, with a flick of her wrist, she threw the magic wand on the floor not too far from us…
Seeing the magic wand rolling on the floor, the robber chuckled, “Mhmm, that’s right… just be obedient…” He then withdrew his gun and returned to the sofa where was sitting a while ago…
He did not open fire, that is very good… I looked at the robber, who was sitting comfortably on the sofa, and let out a relieved sigh. I turned to Kamiki…
The current Kamiki… her expression had completely changed, the initial calm and collected face had been replaced with fear… her body was trembling slightly…
Come to think of it, Kamiki originally must have been confident that she could wait till the number of robbers had thinned out and distanced from her, before she would stealthily unleash her magic on them – it would definitely catch the robbers by surprise then. However, right now, even with that distance between the thug and her, he had noticed her very slight movement… I think she must be really scared… That masked man… is truly frightening…
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“To the people inside, listen up; you have already been surrounded by the police, drop your weapons and surrender now.”
The h.e.l.l?! The d.a.m.ned police had only just arrived? How many are already dead? How many minutes had already pa.s.sed? Furthermore, can you at least show some creativity in your opening lines?
Hearing the police over the loudspeaker, I can’t help but let out a sigh of frustration…
The head of the robbers scowled upon hearing the arrival of the police, not looking even the least bit afraid, “Number 6, Number 7, go shut the police up. While you are at it, just toss any one of those bodies out.”
“Understood!” I heard the reply from Number 6 and Number 7, then I heard the sound of the door opening… then, the police’s initial arrogant tone of voice was replaced by a hurried plead, “No… no, no… Don’t kill the hostages. If you have any demands, just let us hear it.”
The head of the robbers ignored the police outside, looked at his watch and continued to recline comfortably upon the sofa…
…
After about ten minutes… Number 4 and Number 5 came out, carrying with them two large, black bags. Following right behind them was the trembling bank manager who looked like he could barely walk…
Seeing Number 4 and Number 5 coming out, the head of the robbers stood up, “Good! Since Number 4 and Number 5 are already out, let’s have a chat with the police. Number 6, pick any one of the hostages out and tell the police to retreat one kilometer away from the bank or we will kill the hostages.”
“Understood.” Number 6 nodded his head in a soldier-like fashion, and grabbed the man nearest to him. With the gun pressed against the hostage’s head, he marched him out… then, I heard Number 6’s coa.r.s.e voice echo throughout the quiet lobby, “All of you policemen listen up! We need all of you to retreat one kilometer away from the bank or else, be prepared to clean up hundreds of bodies!” Then, after a loud gunshot sound, Number 6 returned… his body was stained with drops of blood… and the man who went outside with him… he did not return…
As to what might have happened, I am pretty sure almost everyone here understood. The robber by the name of Number 6 must have killed the man in front of the police…
To have the guts to off a man right in front of the police… this band of cold-blooded killers… just how scary can they be…
…
After Number 6’s return, I could hear cars starting up and the distinctive sirens of police cars gradually fading away…
The head of the robbers stood up, stretched lazily and told the rest of his members, “Alright, the troublesome police are now gone temporarily… time to go. Bring along a hostage, just in case…” As he gave instructions, he walked in our direction and stopped right in front of Kamiki…
“Little girl… I shall give you a chance to make up for what you did earlier, you shall be our hostage. After all, with such a cute looking hostage like you, a group of men like us will surely be happier even when we are on the run.”
Upon hearing what he said, the intelligence that was once in Kamiki’s eyes was replaced by despair. She shook her head vehemently, “No… I don’t want… I don’t want to go with you guys.”
“I don’t think you have a say in this.” The robber snapped as he grabbed hold of her slender wrist and lifted her onto her feet forcefully. Wrapping his arm around her neck in a head-lock, he pointed his gun at her breast, licking his lips, he said, “You know what… I actually wouldn’t mind watching these cute little b.r.e.a.s.t.s burst.”
“No… I don’t want…” Kamiki struggled with all her might. However, one of the robbers came over and gave her a slap on the face. With a resounding “Pa~~” the pearly white skin of her face turned red with hints of purple… a lonely tear rolled down her face…
d.a.m.n! I can’t take this anymore… but in front of these ruthless robbers? What can I do? I glanced at Kamiki, whose eyes showed complete despair…
Even though I don’t like her much, I still don’t wish to see her suffer such humiliation…
…
“Hey! You want a hostage? How about me?” The moment I stood up, all the robbers pointed their guns at me.
“Oh? Hero-kun? You want to be the knight in shining armour to rescue this damsel in distress?” Although the head robber’s face is covered by a mask, I could still tell from his tone that he was a little surprised.
“No… I simply do not wish to see you bullying a girl like this…”
“Wow~~ So chivalrous of you… Then… are you not afraid that we will kill you?” asked the robber as he continued to point his gun at me.
“Me? Scared? By standing up, I have already proven that I am not afraid of death.” I laughed fearlessly.
“Bravo! In that case, what can you offer us in return for replacing this cute little girl as our hostage?”
“The fact that I am a guy. Aren’t you all going to be on the run? Think about it: would it be more convenient to bring a guy or a girl along?”
“Oh? Now that you mentioned it, it does sound reasonable.” After hearing that, the robber was having second thoughts, I promptly struck while the iron was hot.
“Plus, you can see how weak my spiritual power is – it would be impossible for me to retaliate against you, wouldn’t it? I am practically the best candidate made to be a hostage for any criminals.”
The robber scrutinized me from head to toe, smiled, and said, “You… is there something wrong with your head? This is the first time I have had a person selling himself to a robber… Ha~~ But what you said makes sense… mmh, I will bring you along. However… this beautiful lady here, I will bring her along too.”
“Hey! How could… oof… *cough*… *cough*…” Again, one of the robbers, number “whatever”, struck my stomach with the b.u.t.t of his gun… I couldn’t help but hold onto my stomach from the pain…
“Oh? You can actually withstand muscle man Number 3’s attack and not faint from the pain? Not bad…” the robber chuckled.
No wonder my body that was clearly six to seven times stronger than any average person, still felt intolerable pain after the attack by number 3… so his nickname is “muscle man”…
“That’s right… My tolerance for pain is quite high… So… please, could you release her and just bring me along?” After a while, the pain faded away but, I continued the pretense that I was still hurting… or else, based on my body’s healing ability, they would be sure to become suspicious.
“No deal… but I will bring you along too… no robber will complain about having too many hostages… hostages are our life insurance after all… the more the merrier.” The head robber laughed, his laughter… sent a chill down my spine…
d.a.m.n it!!! I can’t believe that my actions did nothing to save her? I secretly let out a sigh, looked towards Kamiki’s direction and gave her an apologetic look.