Chapter 206 – Burglary

Two Days Later

It was a cold night, the wind chilly and strong. The leaves of forest trees rustled as they hit each other. The sky was clear though, devoid of any clouds letting the stars shine down on the land with their full strength. Yuna, however, felt warm in her thin black jacket. A cloth mask covered her face, keeping the wind away from most of it. 

‘Oh, there they are,’ Yuna thought as she spied a group of people making their way to where she was hiding. 

She popped out, the bushes around her shaking a bit at the sudden movement. The people coming towards her sped up before stopping. There were four people, all women from their figure. One held what looked to be a bow. Another had a spear. The other two had swords.

“Hey Yuna,” Erica’s voice greeted, waving her spear. Yuna waved back.

“The backup is here as well?” Yuna asked.

“Yes,” Akira’s voice replied. “You can’t see them right now because they’re already set up. They’re waiting for us.”

“Then let’s proceed shall we?” another person sang, her voice washing over Yuna. It was Zero.

“Yes,” Yuna said, nodding. The voice was from the other person with a sword. Yuna was glad that the lighting was fairly dark in the forest. The clothing they were wearing weren’t the most modest.

“Follow me,” Zero said.

She took the lead and zoomed off into the night. Yuna quickly followed after her along with the others. Her feet pounded against the forest ground as she ran. She was careful about quieting her steps as much as possible. However, compared to the other four around her, she might as well have been stomping around on the ground. Erica was the next loudest one, but her traces were barely audible. The other three might as well have not existed.

“Slow down,” Zero said. Her voice was soft. “We’re approaching the target.”

The group slowed to a walk and carefully picked their way through the rest of the forest. Zero still led them forward though Yuna had to try hard to keep her eyes on her. At last, they completely stopped right before a clearing. 

In the middle of the clearing a one story building sat atop a small hill. It looked to be made of primarily glass and metal. Dim lights illuminated the inside of the building though there shouldn’t be anyone inside since it was well past work hours. It looked very different from the last building that Yuna had infiltrated.

‘So this is one of the labs for Mason Inc.’ 

“You all remember the plan?” Zero asked as she stared at the building. “We can’t speak much once we’re inside.”

“I’m good,” Erica replied.

“Yuna?”

“I’m ready,” Yuna said with a nod.

“Perfect.” 

Before they went in, Zero announced that they’ll be doing a quick equipment check. Yuna didn’t have much in the way of technology, only her sword as well as the earpiece she had on. The body fitting onesie she had on underneath the hooded jacket she wore was probably the most complicated piece of tech she had. And it was only a soft layer that had small sensors in it that fed information about her body to a pair of glasses she had.

“How’s the sniper?” Zero asked. She was directing her question to Sarah who was busy with her own gear.

“I checked it before going out,” Sarah replied. “So it should be in tip top shape. Worst case situation, I take out my bow.”

“Mmm. Everyone ready then?” Zero said.

The team answered in the affirmative. Then they stood up. Zero gestured to Erica to take the lead now. It was time to initiate the start of the plan. 

The air crackled as Erica stepped out into the open, zooming forward until she was halfway between the edge of the clearing and the building. She slammed her palm on the ground and released a charge of electricity. The moment the pulse was let out, Zero, Yuna, and the other two sprinted out from their hiding place, their feet pounding against the dirt until they reached the side of the lab.

From what Yuna remembered, the entire building was wired to the teeth with sensors. The glass was not an exception. According to Yuki, they were sensitive to magic, sending feedback every few seconds about the surrounding levels of mana. The electric impulses Erica was giving out were meant to disrupt them.

Akira reached out and placed her finger tips onto the glass. Mana hummed around her before she removed her hand. Then she snapped her gloved fingers and a hole opened up as if the glass was water. 

Wasting no time, Zero stepped right in, making sure not to accidentally touch the liquefied glass. Yuna followed after her along with the others. Akira was the last one through. Zero marched down the halls quickly. She navigated the lab as if she had been working there for years until she stopped in front of a room filled with screens.

She snapped her fingers and pointed around. Yuna nodded and drew her sword. Akira did the same. Erica and Sarah readied their own weapons. Though Yuki had told them that he didn’t expect anything to happen at this phase, he did warn them that anything could happen.

The seconds ticked by in Yuna’s head. Her eyes flickered about, searching for anything that seemed out of the ordinary. Then a beep.

“Hey there~,” a cheery voice said right into Yuna’s ear. She nearly yelped, stifling her breath at the last moment. It was Uriel. “I’m in. Let’s finish this up, why don’t we?”

Yuna nodded. She turned to the others and Akira lifted her arm before tilting her head. Then they left, leaving Zero behind. She had a different assignment.

Akira set a fast pace, Yuna having to almost run in order to keep up. She understood why. They had a short period of time where they could fool the sensors before they would for sure draw attention. And even that tiny period was doubtful.

A set of glass double doors laid before them. Akira placed her hand on them, and much like how the panels of the side of the building opened up, so too did the doors. However she waited with her other hand to her ear. Yuna knew she was listening for Uriel’s go ahead.

“You’re all clear,” Uriel announced. “For about ten seconds. Go.”

Akira nodded and stepped in, Yuna and the others following right behind her. They were now inside the main research facility of the lab. The location of where their target was. Yuna did the next step. She reached out with her senses, searching for the water attribute jewel. Since it was her main attribute, she was the best suited for locating it.

A bright cluster of mana responded to her. It drew her attention to an alcove off to the side of the room that had a glass window covering it. She went to it. On the other side of the glass, she found a deep blue gem pulsing back at her. The water jewel.

She turned and lifted her hand, calling over the others. Akira signaled to the other two to guard before marching over to where Yuna was. Yuna pointed at the glass. Akira nodded but tapped her head. She was reminding Yuna of what Yuki had written about this part.

“The parts before the actual taking of the jewel are all fairly simple. There aren’t many things that could go wrong,” Yuki wrote. “However, once we come to the part where we must take the jewel, a number of variables come up. There was a reason why I said that there was support to help get you all out no matter how successful the mission was.”

The reason why there were so many variables was because of the lack of information. Tiar had given Yuki as much information as possible, but once the team was inside the lab, the amount of information dropped immensely. Because of that, Yuki had surmised that something will inevitably go wrong. 

Yuna came back to reality and gave Akira a nod. If something went wrong, there was nothing they could do except escape as fast as they could. Akira nodded back and rested her fingers on the glass for a bit. Yuna noticed her eyebrows furrowing before she removed her hand. She went to the side of the alcove now. 

“Yuna,” she said quietly. “The glass was resisting me so I have to do a roundabout way of getting to the gem. This may or may not set off alarms. If it does, well.”

“Go ahead. We don’t have much time,” Yuna replied.

Akira nodded again. Then she drew her sword and stabbed it right into the wall. It cut right through it like butter. She shifted her position and pressed on the side of the sword handle. Yuna saw the blade pop out inside of the alcove where the gem was. With another push, the blade pressed against the glass before it the glass neatly popped out of its place.

‘Oh. That’s the roundabout way?’

Then the alarms began to blare. 

‘Oh. Of course.’