Chapter 120: A Fragile Alliance
Wesley, with the misunderstanding cleared up, held the bolter, ready to get familiar with the weapon in his hands.
"Do I really need to go into the adrenaline rush state? Isn't that a bit overkill?"
As a deadly assassin who either kills or prepares to kill, Fox rarely had time to browse the internet.
So it was totally normal for her not to understand the power of the bolter, because she simply had no opportunity to learn about sci-fi stuff like this; the two worlds were completely separate and never overlapped.
After all, not every assassin is a hardcore nerd.
Or rather, isn't it weirder for a hardcore nerd to be an assassin?
Chris thought of a certain famous anime assassin who was legendary across multiple franchises, then quickly pushed all memories of him out of his mind.
Otherwise, who knew what bizarre crap might get attracted.
His power source just happened to involve various wavelengths, which could potentially link him up with some karma from interdimensional entities lurking in the timeline.
To avoid trouble, Chris quickly spoke to change the subject, "If you don't want your newly trained student to have his guts turned to mush, you can tell him not to enter the adrenaline state."
Fox looked at Chris suspiciously, feeling like his words were implying she was clueless.
But Wesley, testing the gun, seemed oblivious; the moment he adjusted his condition, he entered the heightened state.
The world slowed down before his eyes, his body's strength suddenly increased, directly breaking through human limits and reaching superhuman territory.
Then Wesley aimed at the concrete pillar in front of him and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
— BOOM!
A massive explosion erupted from the pillar, and this support column instantly shattered into rubble.
But the bolter's power didn't stop there; the target behind the pillar, and the wall it was mounted on, all turned to smoke and debris.
While the bolter created shocking destruction, Wesley, who'd fired it, also took a serious hit from the recoil.
Even though he fired while in the heightened state, the powerful kickback still left him reeling.
He didn't have massive body weight to anchor him, or any supernatural energy to increase his grip on the ground.
The moment he fired, Wesley got thrown backward.
If his body in the heightened state hadn't exceeded human limits, he probably would've become a ragdoll after firing, sprawled out on the ground.
There's no way he could've remained standing like he was now, just with a flushed face.
"So? You satisfied with this gun's firepower?"
"Satisfied? Hell yes!" Wesley excitedly stared at the destruction caused by the bolter, his heart rate increasing again with excitement, instantly breaking through four hundred and fifty beats per minute.
Chris noticed Wesley's state was about to spiral, so he raised his hand and patted his shoulder, helping him release the built-up energy in his body.
"Since we've got this gun to help out, we won't step in. It's a good chance to see what you can do."
Feeling the sudden relief of pressure, Wesley didn't take Chris's words as a joke, confidently saying, "Leave it to me! With a weapon like this, I'd even dare to storm the White House!"
Listening to Wesley's pumped-up declaration, Chris smiled and looked at Fox, then gestured for her to reveal the Brotherhood's headquarters location.
Meanwhile, as Chris and company were heading toward the textile factory for the kill, Sloan had already set his plan in motion.
Placing the evidence that Wesley and Fox were still alive into a drawer, he said without missing a beat, "I've located the kid. He's been staying at the Marriott these past few days and goes to the shooting range next door to practice during the day."
"Practicing shooting?" Cross noticed Sloan's subtle movements but didn't pay too much attention.
Since fate had appeared and demanded this unknown kid's death, then until he completed fate's mission, Sloan was a tool he could use.
Considering the variables in the plan, Sloan said with a neutral expression, "I'll send people to create an opening for you, to give you a chance to take him out. I hope you won't let fate down."
Hearing Sloan mention the mission, Cross stopped dwelling on it. He snorted and stood up, saying, "I just hope you've truly received fate's forgiveness, otherwise you're next on my list."
Watching Cross leave the room, Sloan's expression stayed unchanged, but after waiting a moment, he dialed a number and said, "What's the situation?"
"The kid and Fox have left the shooting range. Their target seems to be... ugh!"
"What is it?"
Hearing the sudden silence on the other end, a bad feeling crept into Sloan's gut.
Fortunately, he still had a backup plan for this, though it was a shame to lose such a useful assassin as Cross.
Sloan dialed again, but this time it was to the members still at the textile factory.
"Hello?"
Hearing no response on the other end, the Butcher paused his knife-sharpening, then casually hung up.
Everyone present, geared up for action, looked at him in unison. The already tense atmosphere instantly became suffocating, like a powder keg ready to explode with just one spark.
Cross, inspecting his sniper rifle, seemed oblivious, still adjusting his scope.
The Butcher pressed his palm down, signaling everyone to stay cool, then set his knife aside and approached Cross with a grin.
"Cross, I'm wondering if your blade work's gotten rusty during your time away from the organization. How about we have a friendly little sparring match?"
Cross stopped what he was doing and looked up at the Butcher, whose meaty face wore a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
The Butcher, being stared down, stopped in his tracks, his facial muscles straining even harder to maintain his grin.
However, the increasingly heavy atmosphere was exhausting him, and he was about to crack.
Just then, Cross spoke calmly, "Sure, consider it a warm-up."
Hearing Cross agree, a gleam appeared in the Butcher's eyes, and he turned to grab his boning knife.
As Cross seemed to take the bait, the others present unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, they had zero confidence in surviving if they faced Cross with a loaded gun.
But as long as they prevented him from getting a shot off right away, the people present were confident they could stay alive.
However, just as they let their guard down, Cross immediately pulled the trigger on his sniper rifle, and before anyone could react, he drew the pistol from his hip and fired several rounds.
With his superhuman skill, all these bullets flew in arcs, perfectly bypassing obstacles and hitting several people in his blind spots.
Cross, having fired a few quick shots, didn't get cocky. He dove away from his original position, then adjusted his stance and kept firing.
And the instant Cross dove away, his previous position got riddled with bullets.
If he hadn't anticipated it, he'd be lying dead right now.
At this moment, besides Cross himself, three other people were still breathing in the room.
Their previous positions posed less of a threat to Cross, so he wasn't in a rush to take them out immediately.
As for those who'd posed the biggest threat to Cross, including the Butcher as a bonus kill, they were all now lying dead in this room.
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