Editing Toaru Majutsu no Index:Biohacker Chapter6 (section)

===Part 5===

When searching with drones, efficiency was key.

First, you searched the entire field while taking note of any sort of blind spot: behind rocks, in caves, small cabins, and other places that the drone could not see from overhead. Then you would focus your search on those locations to find any evidence that someone had been hiding there.

Any footprints or tire tracks would act as the next hint.

It was nothing fancy. Just an efficient way of filling the gaps.

But…

Rikuri’s large chest rose and fell with a sigh.

“This may not work.”

It was not that she had found something.

Quite the opposite.

She searched and searched and found nothing. Time passed, yet nothing at all changed. No, something did change. If the situation was still underway, then Rikuri’s side was falling further and further behind.

It was like tickets for an event with an extremely limited number of spots had gone on sale, yet she could not find the site selling them.

It felt like some kind of crucial game piece was moving further away with every passing second.

Next to her, Kaibi looked up at the sky.

It would be night soon.

No one knew what had become of the creatures released by L.S.S. They had been so dangerous during the day, but the risk might grow even further once it grew dark. If any of the creatures were nocturnal, they might behave entirely differently.

And even if the adults of Anti-Skill learned what was happening and worked to exterminate the creatures, that would introduce another risk. Anti-Skill would be fully equipped and out hunting in the mountains. Assassins with a criminal past did not want to be out in the mountains then.

So…

“Time to withdraw?”

“I’m afraid they’ll try to get out of paying us if we do, but we can’t stay here any longer. I would rather not lose my life out of greed.”

They could imagine two different scenarios here.

First, Mitsuari Ayu had already left the mountain.

Second, Mitsuari Ayu was intentionally hiding herself on the mountain.

It was also possible she had been eaten by a creature such that not even her bones remained, but the best course of action for the sisters remained the same either way.

They would gain nothing by sticking with this any longer.

They had gotten along well with that boy.

It almost seemed a shame to cut ties with him.

But.

(I’m not sticking around if it means putting my adorable little sisters at risk.)

They belonged to the deep darkness of this city. They were not soft enough to stick around to the end ''only'' for emotional reasons.

Everyone had something to protect.

And following through on that had led Gokusai Rikuri down the path of an assassin.