Bab 41: Let’s start the hunt…
Then she pulled out what appeared to be a small bullet. Thrusting it into the ground, she moved a short distance away, silencing her footsteps.
She then approached the bike, untied the Dáinsleif that was attached to the back seat by a rope, and grasped it in her hand. Since she had the Bandersnatch wrapped around her arm as well, the weight didn't seem too heavy. With one hand holding it at the bottom, she drew a small switch from her pocket with her other hand.
"Here we go."
Saying that, she clicked the switch on. Immediately, the object that Iberis had inserted into the ground exploded, and a blinding white flash enveloped the area. Raffi involuntarily closed his eyes and went stiff.
–A flashbang.
By the time he realized it, Iberis, whose eyes had been closed at the moment of the explosion, had already stomped the ground with her fluctuating feet and leaped high into the air. Her body, like a small bird, danced and soared over the Twins' heads, landing on the roof of the building on the other side.
"What the hell! Tweedledee!"
"I don't know! It could be the other Alice!"
The Twins screamed and assumed a combat stance. The white light seemed to be blinding them, and they were buzzing around, sticking their hands out threateningly.
I knew it…
Witnessing this, Iberis gave a small laugh, as if gaining an insight in her heart. The Twins probably lacked the "fighting power" that the White Queen and the White Knight possessed. If they did, they would have used it to defend themselves without a second thought. Although there was no certainty as to what their abilities were, it seemed that "right now", they could not do any harm to anyone with "it".
There were several possibilities that can be derived from… Crouching on the rooftop of the abandoned building, Iberis had a flash of thought during the dozen or so seconds that the Twins' eyesight was restored.
The power to inflict a fatal wound while inflicting no external injury. It may be an attack on the psyche by presenting the target with a hallucination or something. Considering this, it made sense that Alice, who was unleashing a formidable offense, was beaten helplessly. Her physical defense may be imposing, but her mind was vulnerable.
Furthermore, the Twins had shown up at Iberis' place beforehand, perhaps as a provocation. Suppose they had interfered with the mind and linked it with their own consciousness by flying… Now, they seemed to be oblivious to their own, but there was a good chance that some trigger would cause them to succumb to their abilities.
It's still too early to attack them…
Muttering in her mind, Iberis ducked behind a rooftop. Then she gently peeked her face and began to observe the Twins' movements. When the two monsters recovered from their daze, they brought their backs together and scanned their surroundings with clenched teeth.
"Do you see anything, Tweedledee?" Tweedledum said with a face contorted in fury.
The other half of the twins shook his head in response to the question.
"I don't know… but I'm pretty sure she is close."
"I don't like it… I don't like it! She's observing us!"
Iberis was convinced of one thing when she noticed the Twins screaming and searching around. The fact that they hadn't attacked yet meant that her earlier assumption was fairly confirmed. In other words, they can't strike unless they are within sight of her.
Holding up her index finger, Iberis began to measure the distance between herself and the Twins. About twenty meters. She might be able to kill one of them by pouncing on him, but there was a very high likelihood that she would be struck back by the other.
Then how about the Dáinsleif? Eyeing the sword in her hand, Iberis gritted her teeth though.
… No.
It was difficult to determine how much of her life force this sword would suck out of her. If swung from here, it may… be able to kill them but it was too uncertain.
If a single blow failed to kill them and rendered her comatose, everything would be over. Alice will be killed, she herself will be killed, and the people in the shelter will be slaughtered. Even if she had to use it, it would be on the brink of death.
There, the twins grinned and shared a look. Then they grabbed Alice by the hair and pulled her up.
"The other Alice!" Tweedledee shouted, followed by Tweedledum on his back. "Now I'm going to cut off this Alice's fingers one by one!"
Raffi gasped on Iberis' shoulder. The Twins each pulled out a loose-fitting survival knife from their pockets and waved them around.
Tweedledum pressed the knife to Alice's chest and tore through her clothes. Alice's chest, which had been cut down to her underwear, was exposed, bleeding from a slight cut. Yet, she seemed to be unconscious.
"After the fingers are done, I'll do the feet. When we're done with those, let's skin them!"
"Yeah, let's do that, Tweedledee!"
The Twins giggled.
"We'll give you a reprieve! The other Alice. I'll give you two minutes from now!"
"You have two minutes to surrender! If you do, I promise I'll let you off the hook for the shelter you were in!"
"I'll honor my promise! So you better honor yours!"
Seeing the Twins with their ghastly smiles, Raffi nearly burst out. Iberis shoved Raffi further into the shadows of the building, restraining his mouth and holding him back.
–What a childish blackmail.
That was the first thought that came to her mind. Of course, she knew that the Nightmare had no hesitation in torturing her.
Alice would truly be subjected to whatever they said. That was certain.
But that didn't stop her from laughing at the thought of her personally stepping out to them.
Iberis was calm. There was no guarantee that they would keep their promise if she walked out. Moreover, the goal was to rescue Alice. There was no negotiation as to whether or not she should surrender, regardless of the circumstances.
Stupid…
She laughed in her heart. Iberis was positive.
You can't be in the sight of those Twins. Presumably, their eyes; back-to-back battle positions; and the way they were acting, attempting to drag her out of there by her own will, she could tell the impatience in them. Although Iberis was unsure how far their eyesight was, she assumed that once the two of them spotted her… she would be subjected to the technique.
It was a complicated ability. Once seen, you will lose. It will probably affect your mind and send you into severe pain or something.
The brain was a strange thing; if it received too much interference, even if it was an image, it would register it as real. Perhaps Alice was in pain or something and couldn't move at all. Her brain might not be able to take it and she might be breathing like a bug.
Now…
Iberis thought about this and adjusted her breathing as she held Raffi down.
Let's start the hunt…
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone