It was night and the day's raid was at the end. The losses were greater when compared to the first day, but they still didn't have much impact on the true power of Riber City's military.
The strongest of the military, the commanders still haven't joined the battle yet, for there was no need.
But accidents happen and there were some losses besides the immortal anoman. But death is part of the war.
A war that Girisia was far from.
Unlike what Vanras told him. He didn't meet any mutant beast underground. And following the map he obtained, he exited the sewers and went to the west, opposite the defense wall.
On his path, he saw the rest of the Riber city. A place he rarely visited.
The city at the moment was under curfew, with only a few defense personnel active. If not for the light from windows shining at night, Girisia would have thought he had found a ghost town.
So turning to his back, he asked the players who were walking behind him.
"Have you ever killed a person?" Girisia looked back. His eyes stayed on Spoon who was the leader of this group.
As the time came close, the thought of ending a life that can form thought for itself made Girisia a bit unnerved. In his previous life, he thought of this world as a game. Something he later learned was false.
But coming to the past also cleaned his hands of all the sins he committed. But this time, it will be different. Because he will not only be killing Yoshikov, but also the men that came with him.
'What kind of question is this?... another trap?' Spoon thought this question was a bit weird from his perspective. "I have only ever killed animals and some mutant beasts, never killed a person," From a person, he meant an NPC.
"Well, so it's your first time?... You, youngsters, are in for a treat." Girisia laughed as he looked toward the first and only humanoid he ever killed, Tara.
"Don't worry Sir, we can take care of ourselves. We just need to distract them anyways." Spoon said, his words sincere, unlike his team that was still cursing Girisia under their breath.
"Then I will take your word for it."
The place of meeting was ten kilometers away from the city outskirts. And as it was inside the safe territory, there was always some drone patrol on the more frequented path.
So even though Girsia wanted to travel on a four-wheeler, he needed to put up an act and walk his way to the destination.
And after reaching halfway point to the destination, Girisia paused and warned his entourage, "There is a high chance we are already under the eye of our host. So be attentive." Girisia abandoned his easy-going attitude at this moment.
Placing himself in Yoshikov's shoes, Girisia thought of how he would react and plan appropriately. He understood one fact and it was that he shouldn't look down on old men in whose line of work people die young.
"Also, no more talks of useless stuff. Act like professionals, we are not here on a field trip." Girisia reprimanded Spoon's group. Tara was her usual self, sticking close to Girisia. But Spoon's group due to their hate for Girisia, still talk incessantly about how they will kill Girisi after the quest was over.
All he wanted at the moment was complete silence, he was replaying countless scenarios and accidents that can happen from this moment forward. Which included the ones in which he will die or may get captured.
Tarkov failed in his previous life for a reason and he was not that sure about the details. But Girisia was different, he can predict the battle tactics of Yoshiov from his own experience as an Externalist.
'Just wish Tarkov reaches the point on time.'
*****
After walking for a few hours, Girisai reached the abandoned mine where he had requested the meeting with Yoshikov. And in his journey, Girisia also was sure of one thing, he was followed all this time.
His danger discernment trait didn't activate as the drones didn't hold any animosity toward him' But his high wits that enhanced his senses did pick up similar noises following him all this time.
Ignoring the buzzing in his ears, Girisia entered the mining area and then stopped. He was not sure where Yoshikov would be and he was not too keen on doing some unneeded work of looking for him when Yoshikov already knew where he was.
And he was right. Yoshikov slowly stepped out of a mining cave followed by two other soldiers, both of them women and wearing mechanical armor.
'Shit… he is too wary.' Even though Yoshikov didn't wear his mecha, he didn't look down on him one bit.
"Are you Mister Fedorov?" Yoshikov asked, suspicion filling his eyes. The current man in front of him was nothing like the man he saw weeks ago. Though still not dangerous, the current Girisia possessed a grade two aura of the mutant system which was impossible to obtain in just a few weeks.
'Only two… no… Tarkov came with a team of seven. Among these, only four were in grade two. Meaning the rest are in hiding, their guns probably aimed at my head.' This was a dangerous situation in Girisia. A single slip and his brain will be splattered all over the stones.
"Of course it's me, I know it's harder to digest such drastic change I went through. But this is the truth and the reason why Wilkis detained me." Girisai explained. He already had a story in his mind since he came here. The changes in his body are hard to hide and it is better to be upfront about it.
But being upfront doesn't mean he should act foolish, while telling his tale, Girisia remained at his place and didn't try to narrow the gap between himself and Yoshikov. He didn't want to take chances in case someone was to trigger happy.
"But how is this possible, you are a mutant now. This is an impossible feat to achieve… Are you truly Korus?" The lack of use of surnames suggested to Girisia that Yoshikov was truly not an easy bird for picking. He was suspicious and simple words without explanation won't work on him.
"I truly am Commander! The mutation that gave me the ability to understand anomans is to blame for this." Girisai told a fake story again, whose validity Yoshikov can never check.
"When they injected the regeneration serum in me, the damaged part of my brain also recovered and the mutation inside it grew too…" The story Girisia told was super absurd. If not for experiencing even more absurd things in these few days, Yoshikov would have taken Girisia for a scammer.
"This is why they detained me, they wanted to replicate my brain mutation and even planned to kill me. Hence I got adamant to leave that place."
"And if not for some insider help, I would still be detained and probably never see the light of day," Girisia spoke the rest of the story too, how he needed to find a new backer after the previous one betrayed him and the only option he found was Yoshikov.
"That is a great tale and I would like to believe this too." Yoshikov was telling the truth, if Girisia's words were written, then his brain was a lot more special than one might accept and his capturing priority would go up. "But I still can't be sure, the current state of Riber city has everyone on edge. Including me."
"So is there a way for me to prove my identity?" Girisia asked, not sure what Yoshiov would ask of him.
"A simple blood test will suffice." Even after Girisia's blood has completely changed due to the mutations he went through, his core identity still remained inside his blood.
"Of course, please take it." Girisia didn't question where Yoshikov obtained the original sample from. He knew not to waste time on baseless things.
So after Girisia's agreement, a metallic tentacle grew out of Yoshikov's back and slowly approached Girisia. Its speed was slow to not scare or startle Girisia. Yoshikov was pretty careful in this instant, he didn't want to leave Girisia with a bad impression after he was sure of his identity. Not knowing that this simple action of his has given Girisia a lot of understanding of what kind of combat specialist Yoshikov was.
'From the control group… hence the support around him… troublesome, but manageable.' Girisia puts his hand forward, his mind working on tactics that will work and those that won't.
*picks
A snippet of blood was taken from Girisia's hand. Only a single drop, but it still annoyed him.
As for Yoshikov. He placed the drop of blood obtained from Girisia inside a mechanical box that he digitized from his arm. Further solidifying his understanding of Yoshikov's combat method.
"So what's the result commander?" Girisia asked with a smirk on his face, sure that it would work.
"Well… You truly are Mister Fedorov, I apologize for my prior behavior, you should understand why I acted that way.." With a bright smile, Yoshikv answered while sighing in relief. His job was completed and the prize he will be taking back holds a lot more value than previously thought.
"No worries Commander, it's you I should thank. For you will be the one saving me today."
'I almost feel bad for killing such a jolly old man.'