Neon, observing the situation, stepped forward, patted Anis on the shoulder with mock pity, and said to her dazed companion, "My condolences."
Anis stood frozen, holding the water gun in her stiff hands, her body unmoving, her gaze blank, as if she were in a dream. She didn't react for a long time.
Could it be... that the one who's fallen out of favor... is me?
A sense of crisis she had never experienced before surged in her heart.
Finally, she snapped out of her daze. She bit her lip, and an unprecedented determination flashed in her eyes.
She had made up her mind.
Tonight—she would take action!
Mo Chen knew he had gone a little too far.
Originally, he had planned to exchange a new weapon for Anis, but at that moment, Shifty's urgent voice suddenly came through the communicator, sounding like something serious had happened.
"Commander, we've got a problem!" Shifty exclaimed, panic evident in her tone.
A problem?
Mo Chen could tell from her tone that something was definitely wrong—she wouldn't have contacted him otherwise.
"What's going on? Speak slower," he said.
Shifty seemed to be running, her breathing labored and her words coming in short bursts.
"The Ark—a hole has opened! Raptures are pouring out of it! The location... it's near you!"
"Near me?" Mo Chen frowned.
"Yes… wait… it's right above you!"
Above him?
Mo Chen froze for a moment, then instinctively looked up—and his scalp tingled.
Above him, the simulated weather screen had been torn open, leaving a gaping hole. A swarm of Raptures was crawling out of it, densely packed like a disturbed beehive.
So many of them!
The Ark's defensive artillery and high-energy particle cannons fired in volleys at the swarm above, raining down a storm of attacks.
But there were simply too many Raptures. The attacks fell like raindrops into a surging tide and were quickly swallowed, leaving no trace of their impact.
"Commander, the Ark's elite forces are en route, but they'll take an hour to arrive. Until then, you must defend the breach to prevent the Ark from falling!" Shifty's voice was filled with urgency over the communicator.
The situation in the Ark was dire.
"I understand," Mo Chen replied curtly and ended the call. He knew there were no better options in this situation.
Without hesitation, he turned and quickly explained the situation to the Counters squad, giving swift instructions for battle deployment.
"Anis, Neon, you're in charge of defense. Rapi, provide me with long-range fire support. Marian, take me to the breach."
"Understood!" everyone responded in unison, their earlier playful demeanor replaced by solemn determination.
"Operation starts now!" Mo Chen commanded.
"Yes!" they all replied.
After issuing the orders, he hopped onto Marian's Lancelot Conquista as she piloted it toward the breach.
Marian, maneuvering the mecha, cleared the way with ease. The energy shield absorbed most of the incoming attacks, while her shots eliminated the Raptures blocking their path.
Amidst a series of deafening explosions, it didn't take long before the area ahead was cleared of a large number of Raptures.
Marian displayed exceptional skill in piloting the Lancelot Conquista, so much so that even Mo Chen was astonished.
However, Marian herself seemed unaware of her impressive performance. She happily cut down wave after wave of Raptures, like a child playing with a beloved toy: to her, this life-and-death struggle felt more like an entertaining game.
Even if Mo Chen were piloting himself, he likely wouldn't be as fluid.
Meanwhile, as they moved forward, the Raptures spotted Anis and the others' position. Like jackals catching the scent of blood, they descended from the breach in the Ark, swarming toward them.
"They're coming!" someone shouted.
The counteroffensive team immediately readied for combat, firing upon the advancing Raptures.
"Rat-a-tat-tat—!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom—!"
Gunfire echoed and explosions roared as the area erupted in chaos. The smoke of battle billowed into the sky.
Behind cover, Neon held the boltgun and opened fire on the leading wave of Raptures.
The boltgun in Neon's hands seemed to perfectly align with her. Every shot she fired struck true, detonating with devastating force and dealing massive damage to any Raptures within a 10-meter radius of the blast.
Under the boltgun's indiscriminate firepower, all were equal. Even Master-class Raptures couldn't withstand more than a few hits.
"More firepower! More firepower! MORE FIREPOWER!" Neon shouted excitedly as she unleashed relentless waves of fire.
It was as if the boltgun resonated with Neon's unwavering dedication to firepower, unleashing the same might it had when wielded by Mo Chen himself.
Under the barrage, Raptures fell like harvested wheat, each explosion sending them tumbling down in rows before they could even approach.
Neon, gripping the boltgun, radiated fury as flames burst from its muzzle. Her eyes sparkled with exhilaration and joy, as though, at that moment, she was the most powerful woman in the world.
The Commander was right!
Firepower is king! There's nothing firepower can't solve!
Meanwhile, Anis, watching from the side, was filled with envy.
Neon was tearing through Raptures with a boltgun, while she was stuck with a water gun… how was she supposed to fight with that?
The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became.
Commander, even as a joke, this is going too far!
She felt aggrieved, questioning why she—someone so close to the Commander—was handed a water gun.
Who wants a water gun, anyway!?
Lost in thought, Anis didn't notice as an Exceed-class Rapture broke through the defensive line and lunged straight at her.
Startled, Anis instinctively squeezed the trigger.
"Boom!"
A thunderous roar echoed.
As the smoke cleared, Anis cautiously opened her eyes, which she had instinctively shielded with her hands.
The Rapture before her had been turned into a pincushion, riddled with holes like a beehive. It wobbled for a moment before collapsing to the ground with a loud thud.
Staring at the Rapture's mangled body, then back at her water gun, Anis froze in shock.
Did… did she do that?
Are water guns… this powerful now?
Elsewhere, Mo Chen sprinted toward the breach in the Ark, moving with incredible speed thanks to Marian and Rapi's cover fire. Their combined efforts allowed him to advance like a whirlwind, leaving trails of exploding Raptures in his wake.
Mo Chen's relentless charge quickly drew attention.
Various Nikke units began converging toward him, following the path he carved to counterattack the Raptures.
Unaware of the growing forces rallying behind him, he pressed forward.
Up ahead, he spotted a group of Nikkes under attack by Raptures. They seemed to be part of a security detail, armed with only stun batons and small pistols, clearly on the verge of being obliterated by Rapture artillery fire.
Without hesitation, Mo Chen leaped into action. His hand transformed into a blade as he dashed forward, slicing through the Raptures with surgical precision while simultaneously rescuing the imperiled Nikke.