Book 9: Chapter 40: The Decisive Moment

“Boom, boom, boom…” The continuous explosions placed the aristocratic manor back at the center of a violent storm, like a lone leaf boat that could be destroyed at any moment in the vast sea.

Unlike the armor-piercing shells that shrieked with each impact and the black arrows that blended into the night, the air was met with drifting green lights resembling spring rain.

A closer look revealed that these green lights were all solid, emerald-colored small arrows. The green arrows seemed to rely on quantity over power, as their strength wasn’t very great, but their firing trajectories were extremely bizarre.

Each time a wave of green arrows appeared, it began as a single thick beam of light, rising from the horizon on the other side of the manor like a rocket, then blossoming in the air like a firecracker, scattering a wide area with green light rain.

The light rain drew graceful arcs in the night sky, perfectly covering the cannon shells and black arrows every time. It was like a net made of light arrows; whether it was the powerful armor-piercing shells or the silent metal explosive arrows, they would all be knocked off course. Even the shockwaves after explosions were weakened by the continuous light rain.

Watching the chain of explosions ahead, the guards in the manor finally realized that this wave of the enemy’s attack wasn’t easy to withstand. By now, there were few manor Guardians left alive. Apart from Integra, the leader of HELLSING headquarters, there were one man and two women remaining.

The man wore a bulletproof leather jacket, his exposed arms muscular, embodying a strong tough-guy style. However, even in such darkness, he still wore a pair of sunglasses on his face, which somewhat ruined the atmosphere.

Of the two remaining women, one had red hair and green eyes. Not only did she have a bewitching figure, but she also possessed a face of peerless beauty. She wore a black tight-fitting leather outfit that accentuated her curvaceous body, with full breasts and ample hips. But this beauty had a cold gaze, her pretty face frosty, making it hard for anyone to entertain wild thoughts at first glance.

The other woman seemed young, more a girl than a woman. The girl had blonde hair and blue eyes, with a youthful face, and wore HELLSING’s earth-toned military uniform. Surprisingly, she had a pair of huge breasts that could be called lethal weapons. Compared to the cold, mature beauty of the previous woman, the combination of a childish face and large breasts had its own unique charm.

“Natasha, is that woman still refusing to evacuate?” The sunglasses-wearing man stared blankly at the green light rain in the night sky, his eyes flickering as if lost in thought.

For Clint Barton, “Hawkeye,” who had reached the peak of human ability but didn’t possess superhuman Constitution, this kind of clearly superhuman archery was the ultimate pursuit. If it weren’t for his mission, he would have gladly continued this game with his opponent.

“Hah, no wonder Steve left the two of us behind. These Brits, even the women are so stubborn.” The red-haired woman said coldly, spat, and raised her sniper rifle equipped with an infrared scope again. Through the broken window, she aimed at the tall black figure charging madly towards them.

“Clint, I think that Nazi handsome guy shoots faster than you!” Black Widow’s shoulder jolted, and the sniper rifle automatically ejected a shell. But her target seemed to predict it, his body shifting oddly, narrowly dodging the bullet.

“Hey, Natasha, that’s not funny at all!” Clint had a dark expression as he looked back at this Russian beauty who appeared cold but was actually fiery and bold.

Clint knew his partner was encouraging him. He secretly clenched his stiff fingers and nocked another black arrow onto his alloy bow. But… he had reached his limit.

He had never felt such intense shooting before. Using a metal arrow with an alloy bow to achieve the firing rate of a machine gun was truly astonishing. Combined with the stealth and precision of the black arrows, the suppressive effect he had on the enemy was actually greater than that of the vampire girl operating the 30mm cannon.

Qin Lun’s rapid shooting, like continuous spring rain, was also out of necessity. Only by expanding the coverage to such an extent could he block “Hawkeye’s” elusive archery. Otherwise, relying solely on the vampire girl’s imposing cannon fire wouldn’t have suppressed Grant’s frenzied charge.

However, Qin Lun and Grant both had Law Bodies, so this high-intensity combat had little effect on them. Although Hawkeye’s physical fitness was quite good, he was still just an ordinary person—he could be called enhanced, but not superhuman.

In less than a minute since the enemy began their charge, he had already emptied two quivers, a total of thirty composite alloy black arrows. On a conventional battlefield, this would have been enough to suppress a fully armed armored company, but against the current enemy, it only slowed down the tall black figure’s assault speed.

“Fifty meters left, Clint, can you still do it?” The red-haired beauty put down her sniper rifle, her gaze inadvertently sweeping over Hawkeye’s slightly trembling fingers.

Having worked with Hawkeye for so long, Black Widow knew her partner’s abilities very well.

Even with the help of high-tech sunglasses, targeting a swift superhuman and forcing the enemy’s superhuman shooter to counter-suppress and evade instinctively every four seconds was, in a way, a miracle.

The two of them weren’t suited for frontal combat—one was a long-range support shooter, the other a female agent skilled in disguise. Using them as thick-skinned Captain America in superhuman battles was certainly putting the cart before the horse.

“Natasha, go check on Miss Integra!” Clint glanced towards the other room where the vampire girl was and lowered his voice. “Take her to find Steve and Tony. Tell them the target has appeared!”

“You mean… one of those two is Gerthard Heinrich, that German World War II ace sniper?” Natasha frowned as she looked out the window. “But…”

She understood what her partner meant. Integra was a key figure who absolutely couldn’t fall into Nazi hands. If necessary, they should use force to take her away. However, although Integra wasn’t superhuman, she had some combat ability and wouldn’t be easy to subdue. Only Black Widow, being a woman herself, would have a better chance of succeeding.

“Hmm, Steve said Gerthard can use curved trajectories. Even though I don’t know why he switched to a longbow, in my eyes, that kind of bizarre curved shooting is hard to conceal.” Clint smiled and pointed to his sunglasses. “Hurry and go. We can’t handle the enemy; only Steve and the others can fight these two head-on.”

“What about you?” The red-haired beauty raised an eyebrow. “Planning to stay behind and die alone?”

“I’m not that stupid. I’ll hold them off a bit longer and then catch up!” A smile appeared on Clint’s strong-featured face as he joked, “Since you care so much about me, why not agree to go on a date with me!”

“You can go die alone!” Natasha tossed her red hair, her face cold as she turned and left.

“Heh.” Listening to the fading sound of Black Widow’s high heels, Hawkeye chuckled softly. He took a cigarette from his pocket, put it in his mouth, and drew his alloy bow again.

“This battle is over. If you’re not dead yet, I’ll go watch ‘Othello’ with you. I heard ‘Metropolis’ will have a performance next week.” Natasha’s cool voice faintly came from the dark corridor.

“I’ll do my best!” Watching the tall black figure that had broken through to the front door, Clint smiled bitterly and spat out the cigarette he had just taken a puff from. “FUCK, not even giving me time to smoke!”

…

In the central hall of the manor’s main building, Integra, draped in a brown military coat, sat behind a desk holding a cup of coffee. Even in such a dangerous situation, her slightly androgynous face showed no signs of tension, earning the admiration of Black Widow who entered.

This tenacious, strong-willed woman truly lived up to being the descendant of the legendary Van Helsing and the head of HELLSING. However, in Natasha’s eyes, this woman was a bit too stubborn.

“Natasha, how’s the situation?” Seeing the red-haired beauty enter, Integra put down her coffee cup, opened a cigarette case, and took out a cigar.

“Not bad, the enemy has temporarily retreated!” Natasha’s eyes flickered as she smiled and quickly approached, grabbing the Zippo lighter on the table.

The explosions outside had indeed stopped. Through the hall’s bulletproof armor plates, the surroundings returned to complete silence.

“Don’t come any closer to me!” Integra sighed, turned her wrist, and drew the rapier from her waist, holding it against Black Widow. “Natasha, I’m not a fool! I’m grateful for our S.H.I.E.L.D. allies’ help, but… the upcoming fight is mine alone. Let it end here!”

“Miss Integra, what do you think we’ve fought for until now? Please don’t be willful anymore!” Natasha slowly stopped smiling and spoke expressionlessly. “Come with me. Steve and the others aren’t far. Either we take you to them or send you to find that Alucard. Only by reaching them can we ensure your safety!”

“Natasha, you don’t understand!” Integra’s usually stern expression suddenly relaxed as she looked at Black Widow with a faint smile. “Alucard’s battle won’t change because of my life or death. The same goes for Captain America.”

“Putting aside my position as head of HELLSING, I am also a Vampire Hunter. This is HELLSING headquarters; there’s no more room to retreat. Life or death isn’t important. I am here. This is my home, my command post, my grave!”

Integra opened the desk drawer, took out another lighter, lit her cigarette, and watched the rising smoke. Squinting her eyes, she smiled sincerely. “Soldier, thank you for your brave fighting. Now I order you to retreat!”