A crossover anime/manga story, set in everyday Tokyo, but within a loop of a game.

Page 190

Before they could even catch their breath, a blinding light suddenly appeared outside the hotel, followed by a hail of bullets.

"Blackwatch has launched a full-scale attack."

Seeing that Miniature Mita was at risk of being affected, Asagiri immediately canceled the summoning. Although Miniature Mita didn't have much combat power, if it were destroyed, it would consume a lot of his mental and physical strength, just like when other Personas such as Human Shura and Mad Mita were destroyed.

Which side will win?

When asked by Asuna Yuuki, Asagiri simply remained noncommittal.

"It's hard to say. Blackwatch has the advantage in numbers and tactics, but three priests plus twenty-seven... no, now it's twenty-two. The combination of three priests and twenty-two fanatics is also terrifying. Regardless of who wins in the end, there is only one thing we need to ensure."

"clear."

The woman wearing the fox demon mask nodded, speaking calmly.

“I have already set up a perception-type barrier on the sixth floor. I can sense anything that passes through it. As long as I make sure that group of believers do not reach the 24th floor of the hotel and come into contact with that ‘god,’ I can keep them fighting the Blackwatch and maintain a relatively balanced situation for the remaining hour or so of the instance, right?”

"Yes, that's the plan. As for the operation to kill Blackwatch members and followers to gain more points for completing the game..."

Asagiri glanced at the professional fighter player, then at the three members of Mr. Ichikawa's player team, and then spoke frankly.

“Mr. Ichikawa’s team is not strong enough, and the fighter in your team is in very poor condition. If you use the pre-borrowing skill again, he may die on the spot. Mr. Ichikawa should at least get an A rating, and the four of you will definitely get an S+ rating, so there is no need to take the risk to get extra points for clearing the level.”

"But……"

Just as the woman in the fox demon mask was about to ask a question, the man in the white suit pressed down on his teammate's shoulder, looked at Asagiri, nodded, and smiled.

"Okay, I understand. Thank you for reminding me. If we have the chance to meet again in the dungeon, I hope we can cooperate like we did this time."

The man in the white suit was intelligent and had very high emotional intelligence; he had already realized the important information revealed in Asagiri's words.

Since both Ichikawa and his player team are in poor condition, it's best not to take any more risks just to get extra points for clearing the game.

But speaking of being in poor condition...

Isn't the Asagiri Squad the same?

Kato Megumi's mental and physical strength have not fully recovered, and Iwanaga Kotoko's mental strength has also been depleted. Most importantly, the red-clad swordsman, namely Yuuki Asuna's right arm, although it has been healed by the priest, has not fully recovered and is still in a state where her right hand cannot hold a sword to fight.

So why did these four people dare to take such a risk?

There are two explanations. The first is that Asagiri is exaggerating and there is actually no risk involved. He just wants to take the other three members of the team and keep all the extra points for clearing the level. However, based on the nearly three days of contact between the man in the white suit and Asagiri, he does not think that the other party is a cunning person who would use such tricks to scheme and plot.

That leaves only one explanation.

Even at this point, even after so many battles, these four players still have trump cards up their sleeves.

Because they still have trump cards up their sleeves, they dare to take the risk.

However, some things are better left unsaid. Although they cooperated in this instance, the man in the white suit would not be foolish enough to ask the Asagiri Squad what their trump cards were, as that would only cause them dissatisfaction and disgust.

After the white-suited squad and Mr. Ichikawa's squad left the room, Asagiri looked at Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and Iwanaga Kotoko and smiled.

"Then what happens next..."

"Let's start planning for the final battle in this instance."

49

Chapter 49: The Shadow Appears.

"One minute."

Asagiri raised her index finger and said softly.

"If we want to be absolutely sure, we'll launch our attack when there's only one minute left in the dungeon's time limit. That way, even if something unexpected happens, we can use the Human Asura's time reversal ability to ensure we can escape the battle."

“This is indeed the safest approach, but…”

Kotoko Iwanaga frowned slightly and looked at Asagiri sitting opposite her, asking a question.

"If there are players on Blackwatch's side, your abilities will be exposed."

The ability of the Human Asura to rewind time is similar to that of the "Reversed Pocket Watch." Although it rewinds time, all players retain their memories of that period. This trait has both advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that after the time rewinds, Asagiri doesn't need to explain anything; Yuuki Asuna, Kato Megumi, and Iwanaga Kotoko, who have retained their memories, all know what happened.

The downside is that all players in the same world can feel the time rewinding.

During that Ajin instance, Asagiri had already used the "Reversed Pocket Watch" to rewind time, but there were no other players nearby when he and Yuuki Asuna were there, so even though the players noticed the time rewind, they didn't know what caused it.

However, this time, if any member of Blackwatch takes over the registration right and becomes a player, they will retain the memories of the time reversal period. Combined with the situation on the ground, with a little thought, they can connect the phenomenon of "time reversal" with "Shadow" and perhaps come up with some countermeasures.

Asuna Yuuki nodded slightly, her face showing concern.

"That's certainly a possibility. After all, it's the third phase now. Although we can beat Blackwatch every time, it's also very possible that players die in other instances and their phones are taken by Blackwatch, who then steals their registration rights."

"Then it's time to make a decision, isn't it?"

Kato Megumi's expression remained calm as she spoke softly.

"Should we try our best to improve our completion rating in this dungeon and get the best rewards, or should we abandon our original attack plan in order to hide the Leader's abilities?"

After they finished speaking, Kato Megumi, Iwanaga Kotoko, and Yuuki Asuna all turned their gazes to Asagiri, waiting for him, the captain, to make a decision.

"There is no right or wrong in choosing either one."

Asagiri rested her chin on her hand, a hint of eagerness in her eyes.

"However, even with such a heaven-defying ability as time reversal, it is useless if one is not strong enough. What is difficult to counter is us who have the ability to rewind time, not just the power of time reversal itself."

"I knew you would choose this."

Asuna Yuuki gave a gentle smile and sighed, feigning helplessness.

"In that case, let's fight."

……

More than an hour later, on the third floor of the hotel.

"Father, we can't get through... what should we do?"

Listening to the words of the believer beside him, the tall priest, wearing heavy crimson armor and hiding behind the wall, took a deep breath, feeling the oppressive silence in the room, looking at the pieces of flesh and corpses scattered on the way there, and gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice.

"That Blackwatch commander Lelouch... how on earth did he discover God... and actually lead the main force of Blackwatch here... what a despicable guy..."

Although the believers were very powerful, the Blackwatch forces were not to be underestimated. Even though hundreds of elite members had been killed or wounded in the past hour, the Blackwatch forces continued to provide support, effectively blocking the believers' advance on the third floor of the hotel.

Furthermore, whenever Blackwatch's forces are on the verge of collapse, they release special infected individuals. Blackwatch currently has no means to control these special infected individuals, and these monsters will attack believers, and naturally, they will also attack Blackwatch members.

However, they were not afraid of death at all. Although Blackwatch was a military organization, in terms of fanaticism, they were no less than these believers in the flame of faith.

and……

A believer peeked out and saw the Black Watchman, dressed in heavy tactical gear and holding a riot shield in one hand, still standing there quietly. At his feet lay the body of a priest, cut in two, his eyes wide open in death.

The believers and priests never expected that, after only a short time apart, such monsters would appear in the Black Watch, which they considered to be just weak and pitiful mortals. Not only Lelouch Lamperouge, but also the two squad commanders possessed power that seemed to be supernatural beings.

What are those magical shields? And what are those water spheres that look like cannons?

Is this technology? Or is it true supernatural ability?

Why are these Blackwatch guys able to use such power when they don't believe in any gods?

"Have they exhausted their strength...?"

The Blackwatch commander, seeing that the followers hiding behind the corner had no intention of coming out, raised his right hand and made a tactical gesture. A Blackwatch member behind him immediately drew a flashbang from his waist, which bounced off the wall and was thrown behind the corner.

"boom."

After the flashbang exploded with a muffled thud, the Blackwatch squad commander gave the order.

"assault."

As the two Blackwatch squads formed a tactical formation and slowly advanced, the followers behind the corner finally made their move.

"God descends."

Two priests rushed out from behind the corner, facing the large-caliber bullets fired by the Blackwatch members without dodging or flinching, charging straight in. Their flaming greatswords sliced ​​through the Blackwatch members in their combat suits like butter with a hot knife.

"retreat!"

Blackwatch clearly knew the abilities of these Flame Cultists, and knew that the priest, who had entered a state of divine possession by offering himself as a sacrifice, could not be easily stopped. He immediately began to retreat, and the two did not press their advantage. After all, they could only maintain this state for a limited time. Their priority was to reach the upper floors of the hotel and prevent these Blackwatch guys from blaspheming the gods.

With two priests who could withstand bullets holding the line, the remaining dozen or so believers followed the priests and broke through the black-clad Watchmen's defenses in the fire escape. In just over ten seconds, they had reached the sixth floor of the hotel.

"We've broken through... Quick, get to the top floor..."

Just as the two priests were beaming with joy, they saw a tall, dark figure appear above the stairwell.

"That is……"

"Go forth, human demon."

Upon hearing Asagiri's order, Ren Shura rushed forward without hesitation, ignoring the flaming giant swords piercing his body. He grabbed the two priests by the neck with both hands and slammed them heavily against the wall.

"boom!!!"

Under such terrifying force, the hard concrete walls and floors crumbled like tofu, the narrow fire escape stairwells collapsed instantly, and the entire hotel began to shake.

The Blackwatch members, who were originally guarding the lobby on the first floor and ready to provide support at any time, felt the ground tremble and shake. They saw the expensive crystal chandelier on the lobby ceiling fall to the ground and shatter into pieces. They all became instantly on high alert.

The next second, when they saw the group of fanatics, like fireballs, falling from the hole in the ceiling, they immediately raised their guns and aimed. But when the smoke cleared, the figure that appeared in the scene made them all change their expressions.

"Dark...shadow..."

Upon seeing Asagiri standing in front of Yuuki Asuna, Iwanaga Kotoko, and Kato Megumi, and noticing her dark gray mask and signature black trench coat, the Black Watch members couldn't help but show expressions of shock.

"Fifty seconds left."

Hearing Kotoko Iwanaga's reminder from behind, Megumi Kato nodded, then cast a special skill to reduce the presence of Asuna Yuuki, Asagiri, and Kotoko Iwanaga, while she herself activated her exclusive talent.

Amidst the chaotic scene of smoke and dust, Kato Megumi's skill was greatly enhanced, making the four members of the squad virtually invisible, disappearing from the sight of the Blackwatch members and the fanatics.

The next second, a deep red afterimage flashed through the smoke and dust.

"What happened inside!?"

The Blackwatch troops stationed outside had no idea what was happening. All they could hear were screams coming from the communication channel, fire, smoke, and afterimages—all mixed together, making it impossible for them to understand the situation.

"Persona, based on Mita."

The moment the original Mita was summoned by Asagiri, it immediately opened its mouth and emitted a noisy, electric mental attack. Not only the Flame Cultists, but also the Black Watch members in the area were severely disturbed, and their consciousness even became somewhat blurred.

Although Asuna Yuuki and Megumi Kato were also affected to some extent, it did not significantly impair their actions. Moreover, they had taken precautions in advance and launched their attack while the prototype Mita was distracting the enemy's mind.

Both Blackwatch and the Followers were targets of the four-person squad.

"Shadow...it's Shadow!"

Upon hearing the report from the on-site team members through the communication headset and hearing this name, the Blackwatch commander responsible for guarding the perimeter couldn't help but change his expression, and then immediately issued an order.

"Send out all special infected individuals, call the two commanders on site, and order them to immediately proceed to the first floor of the hotel, abandon all original plans, and prioritize killing 'Shadow'!"

50

Chapter 50 Black Rain (Instance End)

"'shadow'……"

The two Blackwatch commanders on the third floor of the hotel heard the message in their communication headsets, exchanged a glance, and then made a decision simultaneously.

"We cannot kill both Shadow and the cultists at the same time. The original plan remains unchanged: kill the cultists as our primary objective, and we must not allow them to reach the upper floors of the hotel!"

Just like the speculation made by Kotoko Iwanaga, there are indeed players among the current Blackwatch members, and these two Blackwatch commanders are players.

After members registered as players, Blackwatch gained a general understanding of the so-called "game" and solved many questions, such as why people would appear in their strictly controlled areas, do some strange things, and then suddenly disappear.

"Shadow"... is most likely not from this world.

Shadow is also an enemy of Blackwatch, that much is certain. But they are not native to this world. They can only appear in this world when running dungeons. No matter how powerful they are, the threat they can pose to Blackwatch is limited. But the cultists are different.

Those guys are in this world, and this isn't the first time they've clashed with Blackwatch; the two sides are sworn enemies.

The two on-site commanders didn't know why the cultists were there or what they wanted to do, but through the fighting over the past hour, they had realized that the guys wanted to reach the upper floors of the hotel.

We don't need to know the reasons; if the enemy wants to do something, then we must not let the enemy do it.

While the shadows are indeed terrifying, those cultists are still a higher priority.

……

Meanwhile, in the hotel lobby on the first floor.

"Thirty-five seconds left."