I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 297: Echoes of Pressure

Lt. Cole is growing more and more frustrated. She is not getting any useful information on the four men Arthur asked her to investigate.

She has reached out through official channels, but it feels like they are stonewalling her.

DEU may not be an intelligence unit or have the authority to arrest anyone like law enforcement, but their cases sometimes overlap, and they usually cooperate.

Not this time.

None of her usual contacts have given her anything useful.

She lets out a quiet grunt of frustration just as Liam enters the tent.

"What’s wrong, Lieutenant?"

Lt. Cole straightens immediately. Liam is not her chief, but he is Rhaenas. In her mind, that places him above her.

She quickly explains the situation.

"I haven’t really paid attention to those men. Show me their faces again," Liam says.

He leans closer as the images appear on one of the monitors.

"Hm." He frowns.

"I think I’ve seen this guy before." He points at one of them. "Let me think..."

He blinks a few times, then takes out his phone and taps on it.

He turns the screen toward Lt. Cole. "Do you think this is the same guy?"

Lt. Cole leans in. "I believe it is, sir. Too many similar facial features, except... the nose."

She glances back at her monitor. "Now his nose looks more... crooked."

Liam nods. "That makes sense. This picture was taken before his nose was broken."

"You knew him, sir?" Lt. Cole asks.

"Yes. And don’t call me ’sir.’ It makes me feel old. Use it when you’re talking to my father. He was a Monfort Sentinel before he resigned," Liam says.

Lt. Cole blinks.

What does Mr. Monfort being a Sentinel have to do with Crooked Nose?

Wait...

"But, Mr. Liam... during his time, Sentinels didn’t exist yet. Monfort Industries only came into existence about seven or eight years ago, right?" Lt. Cole asks, confused.

"Huh? What are you talking about? He was a Monfort Sentinel, did a few jobs, and resigned due to personal reasons. I think his sister went missing or something, and he decided to look for her. I don’t really remember. I’ll need to check his files," Liam says, sounding absentminded.

Lt. Cole blinks several times.

His sister? That would be Mr. Liam’s aunt, right?

How does he not know? Or remember? And checking his father’s files? Monforts have files on their immediate family members?!

Liam turns and notices her expression.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"My apologies, Mr. Liam. I didn’t know your aunt was missing. Has she been found?"

"Huh?" Now it’s Liam’s turn to frown. "I don’t have an aunt. Or an uncle, for that matter. Both of my parents don’t have siblings."

"But... you just said your aunt went missing," Lt. Cole says, trying to clear the misunderstanding.

"When did I say that?" Liam scratches his head. Is she okay? Why is she suddenly talking about my aunt when I don’t even have one?

A muffled laugh comes from the tent’s entrance.

Both Liam and Lt. Cole turn toward it.

Maeve stands there, one hand over her mouth, trying to hold back her laughter. When she realizes they are looking at her, she shakes her head.

"I’m sorry."

Then she breaks again.

"I can’t... I just can’t... the two of you... oh my God..." She laughs harder.

"Liam," she manages between laughs, "she thought you were talking about your father, not Crooked Nose."

She turns to Lt. Cole. "Lieutenant, he’s talking about Crooked Nose."

And she laughs again.

Liam and Lt. Cole look at each other.

Liam starts to grin, while Lt. Cole is still trying to process it.

"I’m sorry," Liam says. "I think I understand why you thought I was talking about my father."

He takes a breath.

"No, Lieutenant. I was talking about Crooked Nose. It was his sister who went missing. Or something like that."

"Oh." Lt. Cole’s cheeks flush slightly.

Then the three of them laugh together.

------------------------------

Hawk scans his surroundings.

He has managed to kill one haelion, but the others are still feeding. He is lucky. This group does not actively hunt. All they care about is eating. Their long, powerful tongues snatch anything within reach.

Their bodies move slowly, like real-world tortoises.

But their tongues are fast.

Sometimes, two of them grab the same prey and start a tug-of-war.

"Help!"

A man nearby is being pulled by two haelions in opposite directions.

He is suspended nearly three meters in the air, out of Hawk’s reach. And Hawk cannot use his fire without risking exposing his fire.

A third tongue lashes out and wraps around Hawk’s waist.

He burns it instantly.

As the grip loosens, Hawk twists free and lands hard.

Then he runs.

Toward the camp.

Leaving the man.

Leaving the others.

When he reaches the camp, he sees a dome shielding the area. Tongues slam against it, unable to break through.

He searches for Theo inside.

Only Alicia.

She is busy helping the survivors.

"Chief Lutherford! Where’s Ms. Montrose?" he calls.

Alicia turns and sees him outside the dome. She shakes her head.

"I don’t know. I haven’t seen her. She was pulled in a different direction than me."

She tries to look worried.

She is not sure if it works.

Luckily, Hawk is already worried.

He does not question her.

"Damn it! I didn’t see her either." He looks back at her.

Alicia quickly adds, "We need to stay calm. She’s a Rhaenas."

Hawk scoffs. "I don’t see how that matters. Let’s not pretend. We both know the real powerhouses in Rhaenas are Arthur Montrose and Liam Monfort."

Alicia cannot argue without raising suspicion.

She simply shakes her head.

"I’ll go look for her," Hawk says.

"Be careful." It is all Alicia can say.

"Oh my God!"

One of the survivors suddenly shouts and points.

Everyone turns.

A group of haelions is approaching the camp.

These are different.

Their shells are pitch black, covered in sharp spikes. Slightly smaller than the red-and-black ones.

But faster.

Much faster.

They move in formation, marching forward without hesitation.

Like soldiers.

Within moments, they stop.

They form a semicircle around the camp.

"Are they... in formation?" Alicia frowns. "That’s not good."

The survivors huddle together.

Terrified.

The tongues attacking the shield stop as the black haelions arrive.

Silence.

Then one of them steps forward.

It stomps one foot.

The next second, the entire group opens their mouths and roars.

The sound is deafening.

"Ah!" The survivors cover their ears.

Hawk and Alicia do the same.

The roar lasts for nearly thirty seconds.

Then it stops.

Ears ringing.

The silence that follows feels even louder.

Then the leader stomps again.

Another roar erupts.

Louder.

Alicia clenches her teeth, enduring it. She glances at Hawk. He looks worse.

She looks back at the survivors. They are struggling, but not as much as Hawk.

Alicia frowns.

Is it because of the shield?

Is it blocking the sound as well?

There might be a way to strengthen it.

Hope sparks, and she rushes toward the Pod as fast as she can.

She slows when she gets close.

What if I accidentally turn it off?

Her heart pounds hard in her chest.

Can I really take that risk?

The haelions unleash their third roar.

Silence.

Then the Pod’s screen flashes red.

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised! Aegis is now at 93%.

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised! Aegis is now at 93%.

"What?! How?!" Alicia’s heart drops. Her hands tremble.

She tries to hide it.

"I need to strengthen the shield. But how?!"

An option appears on the screen:

Repair Aegis

"Oh thank God!" Alicia taps it immediately.

The Pod hums.

On the screen, the shield integrity begins climbing back to 100%.

Alicia feels her own strength returning.

Another roar erupts.

This time, she sees it clearly.

The sound is affecting the shield.

"How in the world did they figure that out?!"

The screen flashes red again.

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised!

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised!

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised!

Warning! Aegis integrity is compromised!

"Would you stop with the warnings?! I know that already! Give me an option to reinforce the shield, damn it!"

"Excuse me, if it’s really a product from Montrose Corporation, I can help."

A woman suddenly appears beside Alicia.

She looks like she has just gone through hell. Her clothes are dirty and disheveled. Her arms are covered in cuts, some deeper than others.

By all appearances, she could collapse at any moment.

But her eyes show strength and determination.

It takes Alicia only a second to realize this woman might be able to help.

"You know how? We need to increase the shield’s strength. The roar is affecting it," Alicia says, stepping aside.

"I can try. But what about that man?" She points at Hawk.

Hawk is on the ground, leaning against the shield, his hands clamped over his ears. He cannot even stand.

Alicia makes a split-second decision.

"We need to open the shield so I can pull him in. Then we bring it back up immediately."

The woman nods. "Understood."

Alicia hesitates. "You’ll need to be fast. No trial and error. You have to be sure you can do it. We need this shield to stay up."

The woman nods again, then says rapidly, "I understand. I work at Montrose Corporation, at the head office. My job is to test products before they hit the market. I’m familiar with most of them. Trust me."