Chapter 47: Explosion of Glitter and Gunfire [Volume 2]

District E – [Deep Harbor Zone], [Huaxia Heavy Industries] Ruins

The air reeked of something indescribable — the salty, metallic stench of rust slowly rotting in the sea breeze, mixed with the acrid sourness of old machine oil.

Lin Yu’s consciousness drifted upward through that murky air, struggling to break free from the haze of electricity-induced paralysis and drugged drowsiness.

He could hear rough laughter and crude voices around him — men joking with vulgar words that scraped against his ears.

(…Where… am I?)

With effort, Lin Yu lifted his eyelids, heavy as lead.

What greeted him was the vast interior of an industrial relic — a space frozen in time.

Overhead, a single old mining lamp flickered weakly, casting a sickly white glow — the only light in the darkness.

Under that pale glow stood enormous, discontinued bottling machines — steel behemoths from a bygone era — their hulking frames rusted and coated in dust, silent as the bones of prehistoric monsters.

A few meters in front of him sat a grimy iron table, cluttered with objects that made his stomach tighten.

There lay the irregular hexagonal [Gray Crystal] brooch, and beside it, the sleek, high-tech [Contract Wristband].

(Huh…?)

Fragments of memory slammed together amid the pounding pain in his skull —
the fake “delivery package,” the cute little girl, the searing current that could drop an elephant in one hit—

(…A kidnapping…?)

The realization hit him like a bucket of ice water. His eyes snapped open wider as he discreetly scanned the room.

A few thuggish-looking men loitered nearby, each wearing something marked with a strange emblem — red flames crossed with iron hammers.

(That symbol… red fire and crossed hammers… wait. I think they mentioned this in training… the hidden underworld faction in New Sea City… the… “Akacheng Gang”?)

Before he could think further, a splash of ice-cold, briny water hit him square in the face.

“SPLASH—!”

Lin Yu gasped and coughed violently, droplets running down his jaw and soaking into his collar.

A harsh, impatient voice barked above him:

“If you’re awake, then stop pretending to be dead! Talk! Why the hell were you stealing our goods?”

Lin Yu looked up to find a burly man towering over him, muscles straining beneath a grimy work jacket.

On the man’s chest gleamed a worn-out factory badge — [Huaxia Heavy Industries].

In that instant, Lin Yu’s suspicions were confirmed.

The [Akacheng Gang] — most of its members were once workers of the old Huaxia Heavy Industries Group.

They had once been the pride of a past era — men who could forge the steel backbone of an entire city with their bare hands.

But when New Sea City was swept into the “New Wave” — an age ruled by data and biotechnology — their oil-stained craft and mechanical skill became worthless overnight.

Labeled “obsolete capacity” by the emerging tech giants like [SkyVault Group], they were torn from the machine of modern society like rusted bolts and thrown away without mercy.

Their name — “Akacheng” — came from the ruins of their former glory: the decaying industrial park of Huaxia Heavy Industries, now nothing more than corroded metal and red dust.

To call them a gang was almost too simple.
They were more like a violent, radicalized union of the abandoned — an “underground worker’s guild” twisted by resentment.

“Oi—”

The scarred man froze mid-motion and turned.

A deep knife mark ran across his face, and the look in his eyes was pure animal — the kind of sharp, feral hostility that belonged to a dog on the verge of tearing out a throat.

The man’s patience snapped.

He lifted his heavy steel-toed boot and kicked the iron chair beneath Lin Yu with brutal force.

“CLANG—!”

The metallic crash echoed through the hollow factory, bouncing between the rusted walls like a gunshot.

“Cough—cough!”

The impact rattled Lin Yu’s bones. His head spun as he weakly gasped,
“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about—what goods?!”

“Still trying to act tough?!”

The scarred man sneered, eyes glinting with cruelty, raising his fist as if ready to beat the truth out of him.

But before he could strike, a lazy, husky voice drifted out from the shadows — soft, feline, and laced with mockery.

“Tsk tsk… Butcher, be gentle with our little pretty boy, will you?”

The man froze mid-motion and turned instantly, lowering his head slightly in a show of respect.

Lin Yu followed the voice — and saw her.

From the dim light, a woman stepped out.

Her heavy smoky makeup accentuated sharp, seductive features.
A cigarette holder hung loosely between her painted lips, glowing faintly in the dark.
Dressed in a tight black leather jacket, she exuded a dangerous allure — like a Marilyn Monroe dragged through the underworld.

Her red high heels clicked crisply across the dusty concrete.

“Tap. Tap. Tap.”

Each step sounded like a countdown.

She stopped before Lin Yu, swaying her narrow waist with calculated grace, and blew a puff of cheap, perfumed smoke right into his face.

“Look at him — you’ve scared him half to death.”

Her slender fingers — nails painted blood-red — tilted his chin upward with chilling ease, forcing his eyes to meet hers.

Through the haze of smoke, her gaze shimmered with something wild and predatory.

“Little pretty boy,”

Her voice dropped to a whisper, dripping with venomous charm,

“Be a good boy and tell big sister… why did you steal something that doesn’t belong to you from that Huolala driver?”

“Do you know what was inside that package? Something very important~”

Lin Yu’s brain had never worked so fast in his life.

Amid panic and confusion, everything suddenly clicked.

(That package… the wrong delivery box!)

He hadn’t even known what was inside — hadn’t even opened it.

Caught in the storm by sheer misfortune, he stammered in terrified desperation, voice trembling with genuine fear:

“I—I swear I didn’t know! I thought it was my moving box! I never opened it! I’m just a broke nobody trying to move houses—I don’t know anything!”

The woman — Scarlet Fox, as the others called her — listened quietly.

Her cigarette burned down slowly between her fingers, orange light flickering in the gloom.

Her eyes, sharp and knowing, lingered on Lin Yu’s pale, terrified face for a long ten seconds.

Then, with a disappointed click of her tongue, she waved dismissively as if shooing away a fly.

“Tch. What a waste of time. Just an unlucky idiot.”

Her tone was laced with cold impatience.

“Butcher. Take two men and deal with him.”

“Got it, Sister Fox.”

The scarred man — Butcher — cracked his knuckles one by one, the sound crisp and cruel.

“Same as usual? Barrel and concrete? Or should I just—”

“No need to make it complicated,” Scarlet Fox interrupted, her voice as calm as if she were ordering coffee.

“He’s just a civilian. Break one leg, blindfold him, dump him at the C-Zone waste plant. And don’t leave traces on our turf, got it?”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The two thugs barked their reply with eager delight and yanked Lin Yu from the chair.

As the ropes fell away, the raw sting of circulation returning to his wrists made him wince.

“Wait—no, no, please! It was just a stupid package! I didn’t even look inside! If you want money, I’ll pay! Please, don’t—mmph—!”

“Shut up!”

Butcher’s hand clamped around his throat like a vise.

“Make another sound and I’ll feed you into the canning machine myself—”

“BOOOOOM!!!!”

A deafening explosion cut him off!

The factory’s front gate shuddered violently—then blew inward with a thunderous crash!

The massive iron door was kicked clean off its hinges, slammed against the ground, and skidded across the floor in a storm of dust and sparks.

Through the settling haze, a tall silhouette strode in — framed by the cold, white glare of city floodlights.

“Police! Nobody move! Hands in the air!”

The voice was deep, commanding, and sharp as a blade — the kind that could silence a room in an instant.

For a heartbeat, the air inside the derelict factory froze solid.

No one moved.
No one breathed.

The long night had just been split open by the authority of the law.

For a few seconds, every member of the Akacheng Gang froze as if turned to stone.

Then, instinct replaced shock — kill or be killed.

The two thugs closest to the entrance dove behind cover with panicked shouts, while Butcher lunged toward the fallen iron door, trying to take shelter.

Amid the chaos, Lin Yu felt… nothing.
No fear, no pain — not even the murderous pressure from moments before.

His mind went blank.
He stared at the silhouette standing in the doorway — that tall figure, framed by blinding light, face half-shadowed yet achingly familiar.

And then, disbelief crashed into his chest.

(That’s… Luo Shaotian?)

At the same time, the man holding the gun flinched ever so slightly.

Their eyes met.

Shock. Recognition. Pain.

(A-Yu?! What the hell—why is he here?!)

Luo Shaotian’s expression twisted for a split second — but the “police officer” in him swiftly crushed the “friend.”

His aim stayed firm, unwavering, the muzzle locked squarely on the most dangerous person in the room — Scarlet Fox.

“I’ll say this once more,”

His voice was low, cold, and full of suppressed fury,

“Drop your weapons! Release the hostage!”

A silvery laugh echoed through the still air — sweet, lilting, and utterly deranged.

Scarlet Fox was the first to recover.

Instead of fear, amusement curved her crimson lips.
Her eyes glittered like a cat’s that had found a new toy.

She gracefully retrieved a fresh cigarette from her pocket, flicked open a skull-engraved Zippo, and lit it with slow, theatrical flair.

“Well, well… brave little cop, aren’t you?”

She exhaled a perfect smoke ring that shimmered in the dim light.

“You walk into our den alone, and you’re not afraid you’ll leave here in pieces?”

“I’m not alone,” Luo Shaotian lied smoothly, his face unreadable.

“The factory is surrounded. There’s nowhere to run. Surrender now, before I open fire.”

“Oh, really?”

Scarlet Fox laughed — a sharp, musical sound that dripped with mockery.

“Then go on. Shoot me.”

The smile vanished from her face in an instant, replaced by something cold, serpentine.

“The moment you pull that trigger…” she hissed, her pupils narrowing,
“Do you think your imaginary teammates will reach here first—
or will my boys slit your precious little hostage’s throat before you even blink?”

A deadlock.

Luo Shaotian’s chest tightened painfully.
Every nerve screamed at him to act, but he knew — the moment he fired, Lin Yu would die.

He clenched his jaw, calculating, desperate. But every path, every possibility, ended in the same unbearable outcome.

Before he could move, Scarlet Fox had already relaxed — utterly in control.

She was enjoying this.

Watching a man of justice cornered by helplessness — that was her favorite kind of entertainment.
Killing was dull. Breaking spirits was art.

After a brief pause, she sighed dramatically and shrugged, like a bored queen deciding to spare a pawn.

“Fine then, brave cop.”

She flicked her half-burned cigarette into an oil drum, where it hissed and smoked.

“You’ve got guts. I’ll give you that much.”

She shot a commanding look at Butcher, who had a knife pressed to Lin Yu’s neck.

“Let him go.”

The men exchanged uneasy glances, clearly unhappy.
Their expressions screamed we’re letting them go just like that?!

But no one dared defy her.

They cursed under their breath and roughly untied Lin Yu.

“Lucky bastard,” one spat.

“Go on, pretty boy.”

Scarlet Fox’s lazy smile returned. She tilted her chin toward Luo Shaotian.

“Your hero’s waiting. Oh—don’t forget your little trinkets on the table.”

Lin Yu staggered to his feet, barely staying upright.

Ignoring the searing pain in his limbs, he rushed to the greasy metal table and grabbed the Contract Bracelet and the Gray Crystal brooch — clutching them tight against his chest.

Then, step by step, he moved toward the light — toward Luo Shaotian.

Each step felt like climbing out of hell.

Luo Shaotian’s gun remained steady, his body a shield between Lin Yu and the gang. Together, they edged slowly toward the blown-out doorway.

Three meters…

Two…

Lin Yu’s trembling fingers reached for Luo Shaotian’s coat — salvation, so close—

And then—

A blur of black exploded from the shadows.

A small figure, silent and fast as a ghost, shot out from behind a rusted machine — a killing shadow.

It was Aque, the quiet, almost invisible girl no one had noticed until now.

“Watch out!”

Luo Shaotian reacted instantly — reflexes honed by years of training.
He spun, raised his gun—

But when the sight aligned on that face — that childlike face, no older than fifteen or sixteen — something inside him hesitated.

That split-second mercy cost him everything.

BANG—!

Aque ignored the bullet tearing through her shoulder.
Her tiny hand was already gripping a black cylinder — a stun baton disguised as a flashlight.

Before Luo Shaotian could react, she jammed it hard into the base of his neck.

“—ngh!”

A violent surge of electricity tore through him.
His body convulsed, his weapon fell, and he collapsed like a felled tree — motionless.

Lin Yu froze.
He could only stare as his friend — his savior — hit the ground at his feet.

Time shattered.

The world slowed to a cruel crawl — the gang’s victorious howls, Butcher’s vicious grin, and the pale shadow of Aque retreating soundlessly into darkness…

It all played out like a warped, slow-motion nightmare.

Then came Scarlet Fox’s laughter — low, throaty, euphoric.

“Hahahahaha—”

Gone was her mask of lazy amusement.
Her eyes burned with raw, feverish delight as she nudged Luo Shaotian’s unconscious body with the tip of her stiletto heel, inspecting her trophy.

“What a pity, officer. So unlucky.”

She crushed her cigarette underfoot, the ember hissing out.

“You know what I hate most, sweetheart?” she said softly.
“Self-righteous heroes like you.”

Her gaze lifted, locking onto Lin Yu — pale, shaking, cornered.

“And you, little pretty boy…”

Her voice dripped honey and poison in equal measure.

“I wasn’t going to hurt you. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

She smiled — a dazzling, terrible smile.

“But now that you’ve seen this—”

Her tongue flicked across her lips, eyes glowing with predatory excitement.

“—I’m afraid you’ll have to come with us to see the bottom of Deep Harbor’s icy sea.”

The words crashed into Lin Yu like a hammer.

He looked down at Luo Shaotian’s motionless body — his friend who had risked everything for him — and at the encroaching circle of killers.

There would be no help this time.
No Nightingale. No Chen Bing. No Li Qing.

Just him.

For half a second, the thought of running flickered through his mind.

Then it was gone — burned away by something fiercer.

(Lin Yu… you pathetic coward.)

He tightened his grip on the Gray Crystal, breath trembling with rage and resolve.

(It’s time to stand up.)

And then—

“Shining… entrance!!!”

BOOOOOOOM!!!!!

A blinding explosion of light erupted, flooding the grimy factory with impossible brilliance.

Pink hearts. Golden stars. Sparkles.

It was as dazzling as it was absurd — like a magical girl transformation dropped into a crime scene.

“What the hell is that?!”
“My eyes—!”
“AAAHHHHHH!! IT’S TOO BRIGHT!!”

The gangsters screamed as the world went white.
Their vision, tuned to darkness, was instantly obliterated by the searing flash.

They clutched their faces, blind, staggering through a heaven of pain and tears.

In that blinding sea of light—

Transformation: complete.

Bones shifted. Muscles reformed.
Gender, form, and logic melted away in a swirl of glitter and heart-shaped radiance.

And when the light faded—

In a shower of twinkling stars and pink sparkles stood… a petite girl.

Short silver-gray hair, a frilly white lace headband, and a perfectly fitted black-and-white maid outfit.

(Damn it… transformation timer ended already? And the outfit doesn’t auto-reset?!)

This was Gray Crystal, or rather—
Maid ☆ Gray Crystal.

There was no time to question, no time for shame.

Using the chaos, she darted forward in a blur, seized the unconscious Luo Shaotian, and — in flawless “princess carry” form — bolted toward the shattered doorway.

Moments later, the blinding light finally began to fade.

The derelict factory returned to its grim, pale glow.
The air stank of burnt ozone and cheap smoke — and pink, heart-shaped motes drifted lazily down from the ceiling.

“Cough… cough…”

Butcher rubbed at his tear-streaked eyes, dazed.

“What the hell… was that?!”

No one answered.

The gang members stumbled about, half-blind, surrounded by the fading afterimage of stars and hearts — and the empty doorway.

Their hostages — and the cop — were gone.

Scarlet Fox was the last to recover.

She stood slowly, rubbing her temples, then walked to the doorway — empty, silent.

Turning back, she stopped before the floating remnants of pink light.

She reached out a gloved hand, touched one — and it shattered into nothing.

A slow smile curved her lips again.
But this time, it was different — sharper. Hungrier.

“…A magical girl?”

Her tongue traced across her lips, tasting the word.

Then she laughed softly — a low, trembling laugh full of dangerous excitement.

“Interesting.”

Her smile widened, eyes glinting with feverish glee.

“This just got very interesting.”