I deflected the beam with my ballistic shield.
It was a shield with the same structure as a Zork’s outer shell—light, but incredibly sturdy. Even against live ammunition, it offered protection on par with any standard-issue shield. Unless it was hit by an output equivalent to a battleship’s main cannon, nothing was piercing it.
That didn’t make it any less terrifying, though.
My custom protector followed the same design. It was built to dissipate energy, rendering weapons like pulse rifles practically useless.
...Okay, that was a lie. If I stayed in the line of fire from a fixed turret for too long, the temperature would spike and melt the reflective layer. Some things were just unavoidable.
It could handle minor explosions too, but because it sacrificed mobility, it wasn't popular with the squad members. Honestly, who cared? If you put up with the weight, you didn't die. That seemed like a fair trade to me.
I pushed upward, my Gatling gun roaring.
Phew! This was exhausting! No matter how "light" they claimed this gear was, the weight was still ridiculous. Ah, I see... so this was why everyone hated it.
I blasted my way past the fiftieth floor, leaving a trail of demolished walls in my wake. At this point, I’d completely given up on the mansion’s furnishings. I’d also made quite a few arrests. Honestly, they were totally cornered—I didn’t know why they were trying so hard.
The local residents were likely in "wait-and-see" mode. They were probably waiting for us to win before siding with us. I didn't expect much from them anyway, so it was fine. If you’ve spent your whole life under an absolute ruler and someone suddenly shows up saying, "There’s a new boss in town, support her," you wouldn't know what to do either. Leo-kun and Veronica-chan were the only ones weird enough to make that transition look easy.
"Heave-ho..."
Haa... I was out of breath. I finally reached the broadcasting center on the fifty-fifth floor. The place was eerily quiet.
"Lieutenant Colonel! There’s no one here!"
"That old woman! She ran awa-ay!!!"
After acting all like she'd choose death over dishonor, she’d actually fled! I wasn't going to let her off the hook for that.
I aimed even higher, finally reaching the rooftop where the aircraft landing field was located. An old-model military transport was already preparing for takeoff. So she really was planning to bail!
"You said you wouldn’t yield!" I screamed.
Then, for some reason, the old woman—who seemed certain of her victory—shouted back. "Oho-ho-ho-ho-ho! Victory is ours!"
Oh, so that was her attitude. Fine then.
The transport began its ascent.
"Thrusters at full throttle!"
As if I’d let you escape!
I ditched my protector and shield, soaring into the air with my thrusters at full power. I hooked my fingers onto the transport’s frame—wait, that’s a lie. Okay, fine. I used the beam pile bunker on the frame. I thrust a spear hand strike through the fuselage and forced my way on top.
"Wh-Wh-Wha?! Are you even human?!"
"I’m just an ordinary person."
"There’s nothing ordinary about that!!!"
She was being too loud, so I stood up and let the Gatling gun rip. Holes began to tear through the transport’s frame.
"F-Fire!"
"Why don’t we just stop this useless resistance, okay~?"
"SHUT UUUUUUP!"
They fired back with pulse rifles. Without my protector, those would actually hurt. Of course, we were on a swaying aircraft. They weren’t going to hit me~. Though to be fair, I wasn't having much luck either.
So, I aimed right at where I was standing and... PILE BUNKER!!!
With a deafening boom, a massive hole opened up. Oops... fuel was leaking. Oh, look—fire!
"Hogeraaaaaaaaaaa!"
I didn't have the luxury of being picky about my methods anymore. I bailed off the transport. Goodbye, Gatling gun! The weapon I’d discarded plummeted toward the ground.
I tried to land on the roof of the mansion, but... the wind! A sudden gust caught me, throwing off my balance. I went crashing straight through one of the mansion's windows.
"I’m home!!!"
CRASH!
I successfully "landed" by smashing through the glass. I tumbled across the floor and slammed into a wall. I definitely broke something.
"Nanomachines! Repair mode!"
The transparent shield on my custom combat suit's helmet was cracked. This thing was a one-of-a-kind order!
I staggered to my feet and looked out the window. I watched as the transport aircraft went down in flames. Phew. Evil had been vanquished. In the end, I hadn't even used my melee gear. Hahaha!
After a while, Vilma-san and her team found me.
"I’ve truly come to understand the terror of the Kamishiro Squad today," she said.
"We’re not scary at all~."
Vilma-san and the others just smiled and shook their heads. She let me lean on her shoulder as we headed to the first floor. This time, we took the elevator.
This planet was a total dud. But maybe this would finally pacify it?
"Good work!"
I waved to Thomas’s squad downstairs. They all had expressions that said, No way... she’s actually a girl... Hey, I’m not a heavy infantry unit!
Well, time to wrap things up...
I was just beginning to feel relieved when it happened.
"REVENGE FOR THE MISTRESSSSSSSSS!!!"
A humanoid heavy machinery came charging at me. Everyone else scrambled, but I remained calm. It was a public order heavy machinery—an old model, at that. I could handle this.
I drew my urumi.
"Y-You fool! You think you can stop me with that?!"
Snap!
"Wh-Wha?"
The machine’s arm was severed clean at the joint.
"This urumi is made from the same material as a Zork’s shell, you know."
"A-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"
As it lunged forward, I took out its ankle with the urumi. The humanoid heavy machinery collapsed spectacularly. I hopped on top of it and used my beam pile bunker to pry open the cockpit.
"St-Stopppppppppppp!"
The pilot was a middle-aged man—the steward, likely. He was having a complete panic attack. What a hassle. I drew my kattara, the knife with the knuckle-duster handle. I slammed it into the seat right next to his head with everything I had.
"Are we done yet?"
I gave him a smile, and the pilot burst into tears. "I surrender!" he wailed.
And so, I successfully pacified the planet. Everything hurt! And I wasn't even married yet! I didn't even have a partner!
Actually, I really needed to sort that out.
"Veronica-chan! I need a husband, please!"
That was the first thing out of my mouth at the report meeting with Veronica-chan that night.
"Ah... about that. Do you want the bad news?"
"I have a bad feeling, but go ahead."
"Because of this incident... the name of the 'Bloody Rabbit' has spread everywhere. Well... when the candidates heard the potential bride was the Bloody Rabbit, they all started begging for their lives."
"But why?!"
"The reputation of 'Leo Kamishiro’s Executioner,' the Bloody Rabbit, was already legendary among those in the know... but this time, you completely dismantled a combat-grade humanoid heavy machinery without breaking a sweat..."
My marriage prospects were in critical condition!
"Do you want to see the conceptual illustration?"
The drawing depicted a muscle-bound freak in a leotard and sunglasses with breasts slapped on. Why did it have a mullet?! That was just a drawing of an old man!
"That looks nothing like me!"
"...Just give up already."
"Veronica-chaaan!"
In this manner, the name of the Bloody Rabbit echoed across the galaxy. I would like to reiterate, however, that I am a perfectly normal girl and a total mob character."