Just as Zhang Ge pressed the trigger to see how many explosive rounds he could fire from this magazine, Amelia had already dashed to stand before the Chaos Commander.
Though the commander possessed some psychic ability, her attempt to envelop herself in a protective Psychic Shield failed. Her psychic energy was far weaker than that of the previous inquisitor, and without thousands of heretics rushing to her aid this time, Amelia had more than enough time.
When Amelia's longsword made contact with the Psychic Shield, it merely slowed down for an instant but showed no signs of stopping, forcefully slicing through the protective barrier right before the commander's eyes. It then plunged directly into her abdomen, severing her spine and leaving her paralyzed on the ground.
At that moment, having just eliminated the remaining dozen Chaos PDFs aiming at their side, Zhang Ge was about to pivot his gun when he noticed that Amelia had already engaged, forcing him to pause his shooting to avoid any friendly fire.
He ejected the empty magazine and found this one completely depleted... The strange thing was, even though he hadn't deliberately controlled the remaining amount of explosive rounds, he had fired off the last bullet just as he stopped shooting. Could the machine spirit have secretly stashed an explosive round into subspace?
He had no doubt that the explosive gun could fire that many shots, given that it was a noble-grade crafted weapon, so having some special design was perfectly normal.
Nearby, Dominika, who was responsible for supplying support to Zhang Ge, clearly remembered that she had loaded less than half the amount of explosive rounds he had just fired. She assessed the situation and thought, with the Emperor's guidance, seeing that Zhang Ge himself didn't say anything meant he was already accustomed to this, so she decided to keep her mouth shut.
As Zhang Ge loaded in a new magazine, the previously lively remaining Chaos PDFs had turned into a scene of severed limbs and scattered bodies. The exo-armor had cuts so smooth that it seemed like they had been sliced in half the moment they were produced, and the ground was stained with a vast amount of blood.
Meanwhile, the noble lady was now kneeling on the ground, retching.
Most psychics had some degree of short-term precognition, and they indeed made use of it in battle; however, given her psychic strength, it was impressive for her to have used it so frequently for self-preservation without triggering some kind of backlash.
Now, her luxurious gown was finally soiled with dirt and grime, as she could barely maintain the shape of her polearm, let alone use her psychic abilities for anything else.
On Zhang Ge's side, having put a round in the bodies other than the commander with Dominika, he approached Amelia and pointed at the noble lady, asking:
"Not a demon's disguise, right?"
Noting that the three of them could easily crush their side, it wasn't unlikely that this was all a ruse to lure them into a false sense of security before launching a surprise attack.
Amelia looked at the noble lady and moved closer, slashing her sword across the lady's face before answering Zhang Ge:
"Not at all."
Standing nearby, although Zhang Ge didn't fully understand why Amelia was leaving this Chaos Commander alive, he nonetheless walked over to her side after finally disabling the commander's limbs and crouched beside the noble lady to ask:
"Now then, explain the current situation."
The noble lady did not respond, but it was clear she had heard him as she trembled and pointed weakly at the remains of a dead steed nearby.
On it hung a leather pouch.
Zhang Ge stepped over to the pouch, pulled out his Power Sword, and prodded the contents out—several translucent little boxes filled with murky white serum. After taking one out and unscrewing the lid, it was evident that it was a liquid, intended for oral consumption rather than requiring a syringe.
Of course, he didn't immediately give it to the noble lady. Instead, Zhang Ge asked Amelia:
"What is this?"
Amelia summoned a Cherub, directing it to scan the vial beside her before she replied:
"Hmm… not in the records. The ingredients include purified water, purest bone ash, extremely fine black stone particles, and her own genetic material…"
"Alright, alright, that's enough."
He moved closer to the noble lady and poured the liquid into her mouth. After a brief moment, she finally calmed down; although it left her with completely depleted psychic energy for the time being, at least she wouldn't suddenly turn into a pile of mush and launch an attack on the others.
Weakly, she murmured:
"Kill… kill her. She is the commander of this defensive zone, one of the traitors."
"There's no need for you to say that. What I mean is, should you not explain why she looks so much like you? It can't just be a coincidence, can it?"
The noble lady fell silent for a moment and then slowly raised one finger.
What did that mean? Were they talking about bribing me with a million Throne Credits? That amount wouldn't even suffice to pay off a beggar.
"A million Throne Credits—forget what happened here."
Then again, the situation wasn't so absolute.
A million Throne Credits? A single life outside is only worth a hundred Throne Credits; for a PDF to earn that much, it would take five to six thousand years of service. Conversely, maintaining a force of five to six thousand private soldiers could easily be done with a million; a little skimming off the top could likely cover the salaries for ten thousand men.
This price would be more than enough for a commoner to rise to become a factory owner, and let's not even mention the wealth afterward; the status alone—which could equate to many more years of life—was a lethal temptation for most people.
To be fair, offering such a hefty sum as a silencing fee meant that the noble lady wasn't quite as foolish as she appeared.
Unfortunately for her, she was up against Zhang Ge. What use did he have for money? Would he need it to buy his own life? He hadn't even found a way to spend the gifts that Ernest had previously given him.
Zhang Ge gave Amelia a look, signaling her to use the greater memory restoration technique. She understood at once and pressed the cold blade of her sword against the noble lady's neck.
"I will repeat my question one last time: how do you explain the current situation?"
Sure enough, she was able to respond more fluently now. However, after she had recounted everything, Zhang Ge realized that there were many details she couldn't repeat when he asked her the same questions again based on her own words.
Was she lying? Was she stalling for time?
Just as Zhang Ge was about to tell Amelia to take action, they began to hear a cacophony of hooves approaching from afar, and the noble lady, who was under Amelia's sword, visibly relaxed.
The Bioweapon Cavalry they had seen earlier soon surged in from the entrance. They had already lost a few men since their initial appearance, but over twenty still remained.
Upon seeing the noble lady kneeling beneath the sword, the cavalrymen dared not act rashly, and both sides faced off in a tense standoff.
Although their reinforcements had arrived, the noble lady showed no signs of intimidation. Instead, she raised the terms from earlier, stating:
"Sister Amelia, Colonel Zhang Ge... and another sister of the order, one hundred fifty thousand Throne Credits. As long as you can forget what has happened here, I guarantee there will be no retaliation. I and those cavalry members can undergo brainwashing and forget everything about you."
Her tone, lacking the previous arrogance yet still brimming with confidence, struck Zhang Ge as odd. He replied:
"You don't really think it was your people who surrounded us three, do you?"
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