The lower-class underlings of the Revolutionary Party were merely puppets manipulated by Brainwashing Magic.
When the Weckener bathed the area at full output and dispelled that control, absolute chaos erupted.
The Revolutionary Party executives ordered these discarded pawns cut down on the spot, and their loyal subordinates drew their daggers to carry out the command.
However, those daggers never found their mark.
"Ah...? Wh-What the... Gwah?!"
The World Security Guard Pandor Continent Squad had breached the facility.
"Enemy attack!"
"Damn it, how did we not notice them?!"
An executive frantically barked at his close aide.
"I don't know, sir! By the time we realized it, they were already inside!"
"Just intercept them at once!"
Inside the headquarters hideout, everything was in total disarray, just as Deus Ex Machina and the others had anticipated.
Even so, knowing the confusion wouldn't last forever, the breaching squad was determined to bring about a swift, decisive end to the battle.
"The first floor has been suppressed! The defense line is falling back!"
"They've breached all the way to the second floor!"
"Urgh..."
The Revolutionary Party's hideout consisted of two floors above ground and four basement levels.
The above-ground section housed the brainwashed subordinates, while the basement served as the living quarters for the non-brainwashed executives.
However, the basement they had assumed to be safer turned out to be a dead end with no way out once they were cornered.
Furthermore, the Revolutionary Party's executives belonged to the former ruling class. They had lived lives entirely sheltered from violence. Consequently, they were completely out of their depth in a crisis like this.
Most of the subordinates they had maintained for combat were people they had controlled through brainwashing, making them utterly useless now.
"Is this the consequence of relying solely on brainwashing...?"
One of the executives muttered bitterly. It was far too late for such realizations.
"The second floor has been breached! They're storming this floor!"
"Guh..."
"This floor"—namely, the third basement level—contained the executives' quarters and the commander room, making it literally their last bastion.
"Deploy all golems! Repel the intruders!"
It was an order they should have issued the moment the first floor fell.
With the second floor suppressed, they were effectively making a desperate last stand.
However, the golems felt neither a sense of impending tragedy nor a sense of duty; they existed merely to execute commands. There were twenty-five of them in total.
Yet their performance was only on par with the golems developed by Groma and his peers back during the Mercana Principality era.
In other words, far from rivaling the golems of Jin or Deus Ex Machina, they fell far short of even standard World Security Guard models.
It was a technological disparity that could not be overcome even with a threefold numerical advantage.
In fact, with Deus Ex Machina's Arma and Squire Rei joining the fray, the outcome would not have changed even if the enemy had ten times the numbers.
"They're weak..."
"Yeah, that was anticlimactic."
"Don't let your guard down!"
Voices of squad members unable to hide their surprise at the utter lack of resistance echoed through the suppression force.
"Was brainwashing really such a useless spell?"
Such remarks were tossed around, but that wasn't quite right.
To be precise, it was useless once countered.
This was a victory made possible only because Jin, having been plagued by brainwashing and Subliminal magic numerous times in the past, knew how to neutralize it.
Without those countermeasures, even the World Security Guard would not have had an easy time.
During the suppression of the first floor, not a single squad member was taken out of action; with nothing more than light scratches, they neutralized and captured fifteen enemies.
On the second floor, thanks to the accompanying golems leading the charge, they captured nineteen more while sustaining only minor injuries.
However...
"The third floor... there are golems down here, huh."
Squad Leader Northernon Quetos, commanding the unit, halted his advance to consider his tactics.
Just then, Arma and Squire Rei arrived at his side.
"By Lady Machina's orders, we are here to assist."
"Oh, that's a huge help."
With their entry into the battle, the World Security Guard's momentum surged.
Arma's Healing magic completely mended minor injuries, while damaged equipment was swiftly repaired using magi-craft.
And as for the Revolutionary Party's golems...
"...U-Unbelievable..."
A single blow from Arma was enough to disable them.
A single strike from Squire Rei sent two flying at once, causing them to cease functioning entirely.
Within three seconds, all twenty-five units were rendered completely immobile.
"Now then, will you surrender?"
Northernon Quetos asked in a calm, steady voice.
"Ugh..."
Only three executives remained.
Calling themselves the "Big Three," the trio had made every decision together.
"Uuu... We surrender."
"A wise choice."
"...I surrender as well."
"Me too."
Once the first gave up, the other two seemed to lose their will to fight, surrendering one after another.
"It seems to be settled. No casualties, and no severe injuries. The lightly wounded have been treated. The stolen food has also been recovered."
Aboard the Hurricane, Laojun, who had been monitoring the operation through a Peeper, delivered its report to Jin and the others.
"Yeah, good job."
"Still, it bothers me that we haven't found anyone capable of using Brainwashing Magic. Besides, the candidate for Duke... what was his name again? Ah, right, that guy named Vladimir Hangazone Melkana isn't anywhere to be found either."
"That's certainly true."
Jin and Deus Ex Machina wondered if the ringleader might be among the captured bandits, but...
"No, that is not the case."
Laojun promptly dismissed the idea.
"Thus far, no one has attempted to use Brainwashing Magic against the World Security Guard members. Furthermore, there is no one matching Vladimir's description."
"In that case, does that mean he's somewhere else?"
"Sounds like a mastermind—or rather, the true boss behind the scenes."
"We can't call this resolved until we capture him."
"Yes. I believe we will have our answers once the executives are interrogated."
"Mm. And in the absolute worst-case scenario..."
If push came to shove, they might need to extract the truth by copying memories through Trans Info, so Jin and the others remained on alert.
However, an unexpected situation was already unfolding.
Having captured eight executives (including the three top executives of the Big Three), forty subordinates, and nineteen brainwashed thralls, the World Security Guard Pandor Continent Squad escorted them back to the garrison.
"Now then, how about you tell us everything?"
Northernon Quetos brought the three top executives in for simultaneous interrogation.
"I-I understand, I'll tell you everything!"
"I'll talk! Just spare my life!"
"I-I just want to be paid in gold."
While one made a rather bizarre demand, two of them seemed more than willing to cooperate.