Ark Chess Player

"I told you, don't look back."

Without hesitation, Lin Lu pulled the trigger of his pistol. The lever action released the hammer, which struck the firing pin, which in turn struck the primer of the tranquilizer bullet. The gas generated by this combustion propelled the bullet along the rifling, and the gas pressure pushed the slide, sending the brass cartridge case flying out and hitting the ground with a loud thud.

The silenced tranquilizer gun, improved by the Army Without Borders, can suppress the sound of gunfire, but it cannot block the sound of spent cartridge cases hitting the ground.

Pete's eyes widened. The instant he turned his head, his heart rate spiked to the limit, his limbs stiffened, and his hands and feet went numb. His brain was still in a state of explosive terror, utterly powerless to resist. Even though he had undergone countless disarmament training sessions in the past, making it easy for him to disarm a gun with his bare hands, he still couldn't muster the slightest thought of resistance.

"Pfft."

A dark purple circle appeared between Pete's eyebrows; the smooth, pneumatic tranquilizer dart had struck him directly in the head. Due to the close proximity, the wound burst open, spilling blood. Pete took a step back, his entire body jerking violently as if he had suddenly eaten something sour. His cerebral cortex went into hibernation mode, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground.

Almost instantly, everyone in the office turned their attention to the figure, raising their weapons and aiming them at the human form shrouded in shadow.

Even Swire, who was inspecting the elevator, couldn't help but look up as she heard a commotion coming from the office lobby.

Swire frowned as she saw Charlotte's gun pointed at her.

“Charlotte, what do you mean by this?” Swire questioned, her left hand reaching behind her back where her chain hammer hung.

"boom!"

Swire reflexively closed her eyes, but she quickly realized how foolish it was to close her eyes when facing an enemy, and hurriedly opened them.

Before Swire, Charlotte, the captain of the Hidden Dragon Squad, held up a silver-white pistol with both hands, the muzzle emitting a faint wisp of gunpowder smoke.

Swire paused, feeling a burning pain in her cheek.

Reaching out to touch it, warm, moist liquid slid down from the wound, and bright red blood gradually soaked my shoulder.

"you……"

Swire slowly turned his gaze to the right and discovered a crater in the elevator, which even penetrated the elevator's control panel.

Swire's eyes widened. Charlotte had never been inside an elevator before, how could she have hit the control panel so precisely?! You see, the control panel of this elevator was only the size of a palm because it only had one button, and it was placed very high up.

Is this just a coincidence?

Swire subconsciously considered the possibility of an exaggerated interpretation: Could it be... that Charlotte knew about this place from the very beginning?!

"It seems you guessed it all."

Charlotte's lips curled into a smile, and he couldn't help but laugh, "I've long heard that Superintendent Swire's criminal investigation skills are top-notch, solving countless mysteries in just two years of service. I used to think that those people were just praising you to the skies to be your sycophants, but it turns out it's true. Unfortunately, sometimes being too smart isn't a good thing."

"...What is your purpose in doing this?"

Swire dared not make any rash moves, as the other party cut off her escape route with a single shot, giving her no chance to flee.

However, even if the elevator is working properly, Swire won't just back down like that.

Her subordinates are still here; how could she just leave like this!

“Superintendent Swire, aren’t you very capable?” Charlotte brandished his gun, the muzzle moving back and forth, but always aiming at Swire’s torso, as if toying with her. He smiled coldly, “Why don’t you try to guess?”

"...Are you really sent by Wei Yanwu?"

Swire asked, her gaze fixed on Charlotte's face, observing his expression.

Charlotte paused for a moment, then smiled slightly and readily admitted, "Of course, besides him, who else in the Guard Bureau has the authority to directly mobilize our Hidden Dragon Squad?"

“That’s true. Under normal circumstances, only Governor Wei can dispatch special forces in a short time. Unless Wei Yanwu is out of contact or unable to command, special forces can only be deployed with the vote of the police superintendent or the four inspectors.” Swire agreed, and at the same time she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank goodness, it seems that the person who wants me dead is not Wei Yanwu.”

Charlotte frowned and said unhappily, "I didn't lie."

“Yes, you’re right, but… this world isn’t just A or B.” Swire shifted her stance slightly, calmly looking at Charlotte, and said in a deep voice, “What you said is true, but you didn’t finish your sentence. Wei Yanwu did send you here, but that doesn’t mean he sent you to kill me.”

Swire said seriously, "Weren't the inspectors from Alexander's faction the ones who actually sent you here?"

"...I didn't expect that I still underestimated you."

Charlotte couldn't help but want to applaud Swire. He sighed softly, "A woman like you must be very painful for her husband if he wants to have an affair after marriage, right?"

"hehe."

"What an ungrateful and boring woman, she can't even take a joke."

Meeting Swire's murderous gaze, Charlotte chuckled and said, "Can you explain where you got these baseless speculations from?"

Swire slowly straightened her back and said coldly, "Ever since we were nearly burned to death in the fire while defending the Executive Hall, I've been wondering why Wei Yanwu didn't send special forces to support the Reunion Movement when they launched their attack a few days ago. If it weren't for the officers of the Guard Bureau risking their lives, the outer ring of Lungmen might have fallen that night. Even if the people in downtown Lungmen and the wealthy areas were safe, the people in the slums would have suffered heavy casualties!"

"What do you think is the reason I asked Wei Yanwu for permission to provide special forces support today?"

"I never even wanted Wei Yanwu to send you here in the first place!!"

Swire moved. She had somehow untied her weights and rushed toward Charlotte with incredible speed.

Charlotte fired without hesitation. The bullet, powered by Originium Arts, not only generated powerful kinetic energy but also created a wide-area sharpness.

Swire's facial wound was caused by the sharp metal energy. It was lucky that this irregular and uncontrollable bullet didn't take away her right eye on the spot.

"--hiss!"

No matter how fast Swire ran, she couldn't outrun a bullet. Even though she did her best to dodge it, the invisible sharpness of the bullet's trajectory still grazed her. Her standard police uniform was custom-made, with bulletproof and high-strength cushioning. It could even withstand some damage from a knife strike, but it couldn't stop the aftershock of this bullet.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Charlotte fired continuously with both hands, each shot anticipating Swire's next move.

Swire narrowly avoided the bullets time and again, but the sharp metallic energy generated by the bullet trajectories kept exploding, confining her within the blast radius. Swire's coat was torn in many places, revealing her fair, jade-like skin, with faint red lines blooming on her skin.

"Waaah..."

Swire swayed and trembled, then uncontrollably knelt on the ground, stubbornly raising her head.

Although none of the wounds were deep, the feeling of being cut all over in an instant must have been extremely unpleasant. In addition, she had been exercising vigorously while covered in wounds, resulting in excessive blood loss. She felt soaked, and her coat became heavy because it was covered in blood.

"Etched bullets! Could it be that everyone in this building was killed by you—" Swire asked angrily.

"Heh, you're even more interesting than I imagined, Superintendent Swire. I'd like to admit it, but unfortunately, we're not quite at the level to spend so much money to save mercenaries' lives. If we really wanted to slaughter these people, we have better and more convenient solutions."

Charlotte brandished the gun in her hand; there was still one etched bullet left in it, but she wasn't in a hurry to change the magazine.

With his marksmanship, one bullet would actually be enough.

After playing for so long, there are only two main objectives: to disable Swire's mobility and to suppress her momentum in order to conduct negotiations later.

"Really, it's such a shame that someone as interesting as you would die like this."

Despite saying this, Charlotte kept her gun carefully aimed at Swire's head.

“We want to give you a chance, Beatrice Swire.”

"Abandon your pointless ideals and pretenses, join us, and become us."

"Did you hear those sounds outside? Your direct subordinate squad wouldn't last three minutes against my Hidden Dragon Squad. If you're willing to surrender, I might consider sparing their lives. But you need to understand... we're not after your talent, we're after your background, understand?"

Charlotte looked down at Swire from her elevated position, the silver pistol reflecting the dim light in the secret room.

"Therefore, there is only one answer!"

Shi Huaiya stood up shakily, her emerald green eyes filled with determination.

"Eat shit, Xia Feifan!! Don't underestimate my men, they won't lose to you bunch of losers!"

Ignoring her injuries, Swire pounced on Charlotte like a tiger descending a mountain.

Charlotte smiled coldly, shoving the gun back into its holster at his waist and raising his left arm to block Swire. He remained stationary, effortlessly deflecting all of Swire's punches. He didn't even move an inch, and there was even a hint of him pushing back.

Being the captain of the Hidden Dragon Squad isn't an easy job. Charlotte, at such a young age, became the top special forces officer, naturally through his exceptional skills. He used the most direct and brutal methods to subdue others, climbing the ranks step by step. He also liked to use his brain; knowing about this secret room beforehand, he deliberately lured Swire inside, forcing her to be unable to use her signature chain hammer freely, then severely wounded her with a gun, using force to coerce her into submission.

Charlotte had basically controlled the whole process. The only discrepancy was that the location of the operation was much more dangerous than he had imagined.

Charlotte was quite aware of the capabilities of Silverwing Security Contractors, given that Silverwing President Edward Wenger and his faction had conducted numerous transactions. They knew Silverwing inside and out. To secretly build a building with a hidden chamber in Lungmen without Wei Yanwu's knowledge required not only a large sum of money but also genuine power.

The real mission of the Hidden Dragon Squad in this operation was to seize Edward Wenger's secret ledger.

This document contains far too much information that shouldn't be known. While Wenger was alive, they could turn a blind eye. After all, Wenger was sensible, knew how to behave, and even knew how to be a dog. But now that he's dead, it's time to take back what was once given to him.

"enough!"

Charlotte used both hands simultaneously. He could already suppress the injured Swire with just one hand, but now, with his full strength, Swire was no match for him.

After three moves, Swire's vision went black, and Charlotte's right hand locked her fair and slender neck. With just one more move, she could kill her.

"This is your last chance—"

Before Charlotte could speak, Swire spat a mouthful of bloody foam directly in his face.

If it weren't for the severe pain in her neck, Swire would have liked to hurl a few curse words at him.

"Okay, okay, okay!!"

Charlotte exclaimed "Good!" three times in a row, showing just how angry she was.

"Damn you, you bitch! You won't listen to reason, so you'll have to suffer the consequences! If it weren't for the Swire Group, I would have raped and killed you long ago! You won't shed a tear until you see the coffin, huh? Well, just you wait!" Charlotte cursed inwardly, abandoning all pretense of composure, and grabbed Swire by the neck and right hand, dragging her out.

“Take a good look at your men. I will slit their throats one by one in front of you! Don’t worry, this process will be extremely long, until you change your mind.”

Charlotte dragged Swire step by step toward the main hall of the office, but he stopped just before reaching the door of the secret room.

Something feels off.

By the way, it's so quiet. Why is it so quiet?

Apart from the sound of the helicopter coming from outside the building, it seemed that nothing else could be heard.

Charlotte was puzzled. Even if his squad members had annihilated Swire's direct squad, they should have come to report to him. As for being defeated by Swire's squad, that was simply impossible; he hadn't considered that possibility from the beginning.

Could it be... the killer who massacred the entire building has returned!?

Charlotte's mind was instantly filled with the nightmarish corridor, which sent a shiver down his spine.

Charlotte slammed Swire to the ground, instinctively drawing his pistol to kill her so she wouldn't become a burden later. But he couldn't bring himself to do it, not for any other reason than that he only had one etched bullet left; the rest were regular magazines.

"Damn it, we've gone too far."

Charlotte broke out in a cold sweat. He shouldn't have wasted etched bullets trying to toy with Swire; these bullets were specifically designed to target her incredibly expensive, custom-made bulletproof vest. If he had known, he would have just shot her in the shoulder—she wouldn't have died anyway.

Charlotte held the guns in both hands, extending them horizontally in front of her chest, forming a triangle with her hands around her body.

These precious etched bullets must not be wasted. If we encounter Death, let Death know what death means!

A surge of confidence welled up within Charlotte. She walked along the wall to the door of the secret room, took a deep breath to adjust herself to her optimal state, and immediately drew her gun. Her eyes darted around rapidly, scanning the area. Both the special agents of the Hidden Dragon Squad and the police officers of the Swire Squad were lying on the ground, their postures remarkably peaceful.

"What's going on...?"

Charlotte raised her gun, aiming at the possible hiding place, and carefully observed her surroundings at a slow pace.

His heart was pounding. This was perhaps the most formidable opponent he had ever encountered; even the astronomers of the Imperial Observatory were far easier to deal with.