Sworded Affair

Chapter 119: Country Roads

"Yeah, I'm not getting anything out of this," Emma admitted, passing the cigarette back.

The men unloading had left quickly, dragging the mechanic's assistant with them. The mechanic had gotten into the truck after finishing his work on the engine; apparently, he pulled double duty as a driver. That left only the guard from before to keep Emma company as she waited for the others to arrive.

[Status condition: Poison resisted!]

Speaking of which, it turned out she could smoke in her true form, but nicotine didn't work properly, meaning she only got the foul taste and none of the pleasure. It wasn't that surprising an outcome, given that alcohol had proven no more effective to date, but that was little consolation. Emma was almost tempted to bring out the homunculus for a bit, to get the proper experience, but ultimately decided not to risk it. Given the latter's proven sensitivities concerning the realities of life, there was a non-zero chance she'd end up coughing her lungs up in broad daylight, doing her reputation a grave disservice.

"Fair enough, it's not for everyone," The guard consoled her, before taking a long drag.

[Lighter (Half-full) obtained!]

That wasn't to say Emma came out of the exchange empty-handed though; to her delight, Eden's Echo worked exactly as she'd theorised, taking the lighter out of the guard's pocket with him none the wiser. It was a good proof of concept for potential combat actions in the future, and the lighter itself was a bonus; having a convenient fire-starter on hand could never be a bad thing.

[50 EXP gained for thinking with portals.]

The rumbling of engines drew Emma out of her thoughts, turning around, she found two more pickup trucks had arrived to join the empty one from before. The main difference here was that, rather than canned food, there were two armed men riding on the back of each. One of them carried a rifle, guarding the back, while the other stood at a mounted heavy machine gun bolted to the vehicle. With their rumpled uniforms, long beards and slight potbellies, none of the men looked like the kind of soldier to feature on a recruitment poster.

[Oxford Light Cavalry - Level 3]

Emma turned a questioning glance to the guard; it had only been a few minutes, nowhere near an hour.

"Dammit, I knew I forgot something," He cursed, fiddling with his watch. "Sorry about that, Daylight Savings got me again."

In his embarrassment, the guard turned and left with indecent haste, only resuming his slow patrol around the motor pool once he was some distance away.

"You're our linebreaker for the day?" One of the machine gunners grunted, looking her up and down with thinly veiled scepticism.

Emma didn't bother with a long explanation, instead opting to summon Epitaph; giving everyone present a few seconds for a good look at the blade, before switching it to bow form as she tilted her head. Dark red sparks raced up and down its limbs; emanating primal hunger for the blood of the living. Emma could relate; the past few days had been incredibly peaceful compared to her trial in the tower, and while shopping had been fun, she was more than ready for a bit of action.

"You can fight at a distance then." The man nodded, looking a lot happier now that Emma had a weapon in hand. "Good. Usually we head out in two trucks; multiple points of failure to get us all back if one fails. The Mayor's vouching for you, so we're bringing a third today. The empty truck's yours, climb onboard. Our guns can take care of the small fry; anything the M2 can't handle is yours, got it?"

[He means the heavy machine guns.]

"Got it," Emma replied verbally this time, already climbing into the back of her designated mount.

All told, it wasn't quite the setup she was expecting; the description of a raiding party had brought to mind the APC from before, or maybe a tank squadron, not that it would pose a problem to her either way. Emma spared a thought for the Earthbound Immortal, recalling it before she got too far away, and freeing up her summon slot in case it was needed. The soldiers wasted no time; not even thirty seconds after embarking and they were already outbound. Emma just about managed not to fall over at the starting line, widening her stance to stay steady, her bow at the ready.

"So where are we headed?" She yelled over the wind.

"We'll be doing a sweep along what used to be Oxford." Her driver replied this time. "Concentric circles, starting from just outside our fortifications, the safe zone, and heading steadily further out until we reach the edge of the old borders, five miles out. The further away from home we go, the bigger the demons will get; they've had six weeks to marinate so we're expecting some dangerous ones."

"Sounds like a job for some Challenger tanks," Emma noted. "Last I heard, we had one and were looking to get more?"

"Too slow," The driver shook his head, never taking his eyes off the road. "Big guns are great for an open field, but some of the demons are a lot faster than they look, and are smart enough to know how to flank. All it takes is for one to get too close, and they'll both shred the tank and the poor sods inside. Trust me, fast and light is the best way to go."

"No complaints here," Emma reassured him. "Whatever's waiting for us, I'll get us back here safely."

She had a bonus objective that depended on it, after all.

---

With a final twist of Saint's neck, Romulus fell to the floor; his head followed moments later with a wet splat. For once, the crowd was silent, nobody knowing what to make of the unexpected challenger; who had appeared from nowhere and become only the second to go all the way. Up in the Emperor's box, Felix facepalmed, feeling the distinct suspicion that someone was trolling him.