Book 9: Chapter 22: Hell’s Song

“Leader Qin Lun, isn’t it a waste for all three of us to guard this spot?” Lace puffed out her cheeks, putting on a cute, clueless expression as she stared at Qin Lun.

Qin Lun glanced at her but didn’t answer. After spending time in two Quest Worlds together, he had basically figured this girl out. Though her planning abilities weren’t strong, that dark-minded, twisted sense of fun was absolutely ingrained in her bones, matching Shepherd Hill himself.

Their current position was atop a building directly across from the MI7 headquarters, on the north bank of the Thames River. Though Superpowered Beings had started appearing more frequently before the public in recent years due to Space-Time Rifts, governments worldwide still habitually covered up the existence of Superhumans.

The MI7 building was already short and old, and after the previous terrorist attack, it looked even more dilapidated from the outside. Of course, the MI7’s true headquarters wasn’t the building above ground; it was three floors underground. The facilities there were mostly state-of-the-art technology.

In truth, nearly this entire small street where the British MI7 was located fell under their surveillance. And because the main facilities were underground, with only a few elevators as entrances and exits, the defensive setup was actually quite solid.

The reason the Byron brothers from the Millennium Bug managed to breach the MI7 last time relied mainly on two things: surprise and using ghouls as human bombs.

Qin Lun’s attack force this time couldn’t recklessly use human bombs again. However, their strike went much more smoothly than the last, facing less resistance. Besides the MI7 still recovering from heavy losses, Lieutenant Solin’s illusion abilities truly shone.

This female soldier, whose temperament and appearance were somewhat masculine, used her unique illusion powers to bypass most of the surveillance. It wasn’t until the assault team descended to the second basement level via elevator that the British inside realized something was wrong.

For this raid, Qin Lun divided the assault team into two parts. Madame Monica led Grant, Captain Hans, Lieutenant Solin, and a platoon-sized force of elite paratroopers responsible for the forceful breach. He himself stayed with Lace, Lieutenant Lieber, and a few German Army snipers spread out on nearby rooftops opposite the MI7, tasked with blocking any potential external enemy reinforcements.

Soldiers like Captain Hans had no issues with the tactical plan, upholding the German Army’s strong discipline. Grant and Lace, however, weren’t convinced with Qin Lun’s people assignments.

Setting up snipers outside was logical, but whether three experts like Qin Lun, Lace, and Lieber needed to stay guarding it was debatable.

This raid could have three possible outcomes. First, the British wouldn’t expect another attack on MI7, making the whole operation smooth sailing. Based on intel from Millennium Bug spies planted in London, this had over a sixty percent chance.

The second possibility was the British having already prepared a large ambush within MI7 waiting for the assault team to fall right in. However, this possibility was vanishingly small, practically negligible.

After attacks on London, Moscow, and Washington, major world powers mostly tightened security within their own borders. Though the three Nazi organizations deliberately leaked Qin Lun’s group’s intel during the attacks and hinted at a second wave in London, major powers still wouldn’t fully support Britain – they needed to keep enough Superhumans at home.

Intelligence intercepted by UK Customs suggested London now hosted roughly two hundred Superhumans. But strength varied hugely between them. Most among these two hundred were merely Enhanced, not true Superhuman heroes like Captain America.

An Enhanced could handle a squad of regular special forces soldiers, but against a real Superhuman, even a First Order fighter like Lace, they’d be instantly killed.

The number of genuine Superhumans in London capable of facing Qin Lun’s group wouldn’t exceed twenty, including the powerhouse factions like the Avengers Alliance and Grimm Academy.

Naturally, the Reincarnators and Apostles hiding in the shadows couldn’t be counted. But Reincarnators and Apostles had their own agendas; unless directly caught in the fight, they wouldn’t charge out to be targets, so they could be ignored for now.

Twenty Superhumans should be sufficient, but London was the capital. There were too many places needing protection: Downing Street, Buckingham Palace, major government buildings, residences of high-ranking officials… Twenty wasn’t enough to cover them all. Concentrating them at MI7 for an ambush was highly unlikely.

If such a catastrophic scenario did happen, their only hope was relying on the Queen of Sandstorm’s power to break through from underground so everyone could escape.

The third possibility, however, had perhaps a thirty to forty percent chance. MI7 was Britain’s official Superhuman agency. After such heavy losses, they might temporarily recruit some “civilian Superpowered Beings.”

In other words, the current MI7 had a chance of having recruited a temporary mercenary force, a Superhuman team likely composed of Reincarnators or Apostles.

If this was the case, things would get messy. Both sides’ Plot Missions would be opposed, leaving no room for compromise.

Even though the assault team had four fighters near or above Second Order, plus distinct First Order talents like Solin, Lieber, and Lace, plus a full squad of Enhanced Guards – enough to crush any Apostle team – splitting into two squads, as Qin Lun did, gave the enemy opportunity to hold out for reinforcements or escape.

This was why Grant and Lace kept complaining. Yet, after weighing the options, Qin Lun still insisted on dividing the team. One reason was crucial: at the start of the raid, the German warships, led by The Zeppelin, hadn’t started their covering bombardment on time.

Qin Lun knew something must be wrong aboard the ships, but he trusted Pakunoda was there and would take control soon.

He just didn’t know how long the bombardment would be delayed. If it took too long, and only Lace or Lieutenant Lieber remained outside to block reinforcements, they might be overwhelmed by powerful groups like the Avengers Alliance. If the main force got surrounded inside, it would be a disaster.

Reason two was that during the prior raid by the Byron brothers leading ghouls, they failed to penetrate the deepest, most critical area of the third basement level. Though they inflicted heavy casualties on the British, once they entered the second basement, the HELLSING reinforcements arrived and wiped them out.

Consequently, post-battle intelligence failed to uncover MI7’s secret evacuation routes. This meant even if Qin Lun’s team breached the third basement level, key targets might escape via hidden passages while the exterior guards, lacking sufficient strength, couldn’t intercept them.

“Major, look!” While Qin Lun carefully pondered the tactical layout, searching for flaws, Lieutenant Lieber’s soft voice reminded him.

Qin Lun followed her slender finger. At the mouth of the Thames, facing the North Sea, the sky blazed as bright as day. The previously dark night now resembled late twilight, the horizon washed with a vast glow.

BOOOM… Several seconds later, a series of deep, rumbling thunderclaps rolled across the distance, completely drowning out the faint sounds of gunfire coming from the MI7 building.

“Major Montana, finally makes his move!” Qin Lun sighed softly with relief. Although he couldn’t see British reinforcements arriving yet, he believed the news of the second assault on MI7 was surely out.

If The Zeppelin ships’ covering fire had been a few minutes later, their situation would have been dangerous. Now, with such a widespread attack launched, Superhuman forces in other areas wouldn’t be sure if defending MI7 was their priority anymore.

Qin Lun glanced towards the sea, then raised his eyes to the sky. The pointer in the silver dial of his right iris slowly flickered. With vision far exceeding normal humans, he could already see countless objects trailing tails of flame rapidly plunging from high altitude, aimed at various parts of London.

Correspondingly, countless missiles also ignited their fiery tails across London’s ground, rising gradually to form a defensive net seeking to catch the incoming projectiles raining down from above.

BOOM… Endless fireworks exploded in the high sky, so bright they seemed to light every corner of London. The very world appeared to tremble before the immense force of war unleashed by mankind.

“Spectacular,” Qin Lun murmured, standing up from his hiding spot unnoticed, gazing at the bright-white night sky. Even from this distance, he could feel the shockwaves carrying the strong tang of sulfur.

The duel of missiles was decided almost instantly. The British defense systems worked partially; most of the incoming missiles were destroyed in mid-air.

But in a way, they still failed. A significant number of air-to-ground missiles penetrated the net and struck diverse neighborhoods of London.

To prepare for this raid, Major Montana had virtually depleted the entire stockpile of missiles within the Millennium Bug Organization. The three Zeppelin-class aerial warships – Zeppelin, Germany, and Kiel – carried nearly three hundred air-to-ground cruise missiles. Even if only a third struck earth, it was enough to turn London into a massive pyre.

Standing on top of this fifty-plus-meter-tall building, Qin Lun saw one dazzling mushroom cloud after another slowly blossom and rise into the sky from London’s various sectors.

Plumes of thick black smoke shot skyward. Explosions, cries of agony, the crashes of collapsing buildings… it all merged into a symphony worthy of Hell’s Song, violently rousing London from her sleep and forcing out a moan of anguish.

“We… we created hell,” a low whisper reached Qin Lun’s ears. He turned to see Lace, usually all grins, now frowning deeply, he gaze drifting. Even her soft, baby-fat oval face carried an unusual heaviness.

Lieutenant Lieber, the other female, remained focused on her duty. She calmly scanned the surroundings through the sight of her strange muzzle-loader rifle, though her cheeks were flushed, and a trace of excitement glimmered deep within her pupils.

“Hell? Heaven? Both are creations of man. What’s the difference?” Qin Lun observed the scene before him with indifference, a faint, cold smile touching his lips.

Crackle “Gerthard, we’ve hit a snag,” Madame Monica’s voice suddenly cut through their comms. “Two significant targets got away. Prepare to intercept!”