RE - Chapter 296: Enemies Are Bound to Meet (Patreon)

“You know what to do, right?”

Grace took several explosives in her left hand and drew the Grapple Gun hanging from her waist with her right.

“Just watch.”

She turned to study the surrounding structure. The moment the guards above moved into a blind spot, she fired the Grapple Gun.

The hook shot from the barrel, tracing a straight line through the air before firmly catching onto a wooden post on the opposite side of the circular mine shaft.

Grace gave the cable a tug to make sure it was secure, then lowered herself into a sprint. As she jumped, she kicked off a nearby structure for extra momentum.

Her body swung through the air, and with the Grapple Gun reeling her in, she smoothly reached the other side of the shaft.

After putting away the Grapple Gun, Grace found several structural support points, attached the explosives to them, then took cover nearby.

“Charges are set.”

Leon activated the control unit for the explosives and gave the guard positions above one last glance.

“Copy. Brace for the blast.”

After checking Grace’s position from a distance, Leon ducked behind cover and pressed the detonator.

A spark flashed through the circuitry.

The explosives ignited instantly.

A deafening boom tore through the entire vertical mine shaft.

Flames erupted around the support points, bathing the rock walls in a blazing red glow.

The entire shaft shook violently as fragments of stone and clouds of dust poured from every direction.

Before the thick black smoke had even cleared, the platform above collapsed with a thunderous crash.

It smashed through the wooden platforms below one after another as it plunged deeper into the shaft.

Every so often, guards fell along with the debris, their screams echoing through the darkness.

Leon waved the dust away and looked up at the guards who had been thrown into complete chaos.

“Move while they’re distracted!”

Grace rose from behind cover, brought her handgun up against the edge of the barricade, and opened fire.

Several guards trying to flee were completely unprepared and dropped almost instantly.

Taking advantage of the opening, Grace vaulted over the obstacle, drew the Grapple Gun, and pulled herself up to the next level.

By the time she finished off the remaining guards, Leon was already making his way over through a damaged section of the shaft.

He launched himself upward, caught the edge with both hands, and hauled himself over in one smooth motion.

Landing without a scratch, he immediately continued toward Grace.

When the two met, they quickly checked each other for injuries before pressing forward.

“What happened?!”

“The mine shaft collapsed! We’re still assessing the situation!”

“Damn it. Understood. I’ll report it immediately!”

By the time the guard finished his call, Grace had already closed the distance.

“Done talking?”

Before he could react, the claw knife sliced through his airway.

The man could only stare helplessly as blood poured from his throat. Clamping both hands over the wound did nothing to stop it.

Leon ended his suffering with a single shot.

Looking down at the fallen guard, he turned his attention toward the passages above, searching for the entrance to the laboratory.

A platform at the highest level, untouched by the collapse, caught his eye.

“That should be it.”

“I’ll check.”

Before Leon could respond, Grace had already fired the Grapple Gun onto the platform and launched herself upward.

The instant she reached the top, she found every surviving guard gathered there.

“Oh.”

Grace immediately dropped backward.

With the hook still attached, she rapidly lowered herself back below the edge.

“What was that?”

One of the guards had caught a glimpse of a dark figure suddenly appearing at the edge of the platform before vanishing again.

He quickly called several others over to investigate.

The hook lying near his feet made him pause.

Just as he leaned over to look down, a black object came flying up from below.

He instinctively caught it.

By the time he realized what it was and tried to throw it away, it was already too late.

A blinding flash engulfed the platform.

Grace immediately reeled herself back up.

Facing the guards who were now completely defenseless, she pulled the trigger again and again.

The dull sound of bullets punching through skulls mixed with the repeated thuds of bodies hitting the floor.

By the time Leon arrived, the platform was covered in corpses.

“Are you Ada now?”

“Oh, thanks for the compliment.

“I’m just making good use of the tools I have.”

The two continued through the mine tunnel and soon found the entrance to a pipe sloping steeply upward.

It was far too steep to climb normally.

“This looks like some kind of maintenance shaft. There’s probably a laboratory above it.”

Grace nodded, pulled out the Grapple Gun, and fired toward the rock wall farther up the shaft.

A sharp metallic sound rang out as the hook caught.

Grace reeled herself upward and successfully reached the middle of the passage.

She pressed her back against the wall and braced her legs against both sides in an L-shaped stance.

Then she detached the hook and fired the Grapple Gun downward.

The hook shot past Leon and buried itself firmly into the wall beside him.

Leon stepped forward and grabbed the steel cable.

Grace began reeling it in.

Using the pull for support, Leon planted both feet against the walls and steadily climbed upward until he reached her.

Leon looked at the remaining distance above, then glanced at Grace, who was already starting to slip after hauling him up.

“Get ready. Hook your arm around mine and turn your back to me.”

Grace blinked.

She first pressed one hand against the wall to steady herself, then spent a few seconds figuring out what Leon meant.

“…Got it. Let’s do it.”

Leon nodded.

He quickly hooked his left arm through Grace’s right arm while turning to face the wall beneath their feet.

Grace twisted with the motion and leaned her back against his, facing the wall above while bracing both feet firmly against it.

Once they were stable, the two locked their arms together and used each other as support.

They steadily worked their way upward.

At the end of the shaft, a metal door blocked the exit.

“Don’t rush. Listen first.”

Grace nodded.

Not that she had much room to argue in their current position. If she let go, she would fall.

She might as well use Leon’s head as a pillow.

Ignoring the hair that had been blocking his view for quite some time, Leon quietly listened to the conversation beyond the metal door.

“You’re saying that alarm was caused by the collapse below?”

“Yes, Dr. Carla. But don’t worry. The underground mine shafts aren’t directly beneath the laboratory, so the collapse won’t affect us.”

Carla’s eyes shifted slightly.

Why do I feel like this is Leon…

No. That can’t be right. Haha. It’s only been one day since I sent the message.

“I’m heading down to inspect the mine shaft situation for Mr. Simmons. You don’t need to worry.”

“Ah… okay.”

“I’ll be going, then.”

Carla watched the security captain leave and turned to walk away.

Then she heard the garbage chute beside her speak.

And it called her name.

“Carla.”

Goosebumps instantly rose across her skin.

Carla turned toward the metal door of the garbage chute with a wary expression and instinctively began backing away.

“Carla, it’s me. Leon.”

Her steps stopped immediately.

Her heart tightened as she hurriedly checked her surroundings.

Fortunately, Simmons hadn’t installed any cameras near the garbage chute.

Carla stepped forward and struggled to push the metal hatch upward.

Then she stared silently at the bizarre sight in front of her.

“Judging by that look, you don’t seem very happy to see me.”

“…I’m just surprised.”

Only after the two climbed out of the chute did Carla finally get a clear look at the person who had been clinging to Leon’s back.

Shock and anger immediately flashed across her face.

“You?! …Mm!”