Volume 1: Welcoming Gotham Chapter 11 Death's Sacrifice to the Stars, May It Light Our Way Forward
In the train carriage that is moving along the tracks towards Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the back compartment is full of spring scenery. The bomb girl wearing only a black vest is trying to "check the body" of Count Vertigo.
It's clear that she's a good girl who cares about the mental and physical health of her teammates.
Having served in Afghanistan, she was well aware of the terrible consequences of a person collapsing under stress. Since she herself was under a lot of pressure at the time, this considerate lady chose a way to relieve the stress for both of them as quickly as possible.
This fully proves that moderate indulgence is good for mental health.
By the way, it proves that humans are really scary creatures. Even in a dangerous world full of zombies, they still can't resist the instinct of estrus.
"Maybe we should just close the door."
The Dizzy Count whispered something, but was soon looked down upon by the Bomb Girl who took the initiative and put her finger into his mouth, so he obediently fell silent.
But just when he was about to let go of the pressure in his heart, he saw a dark shadow flash into the box.
"What is that? Wait! Something's coming in!"
He shouted, and the bomb girl, who was busy relieving her stress, turned her head and saw a tail standing up, so she snorted and complained:
"It's just a cat , you coward."
"There are no living cats in this damn world!"
At the critical moment, Count Vertigo, a former member of the Suicide Squad, was still calm enough.
He pushed the bomb girl off his body and placed his fingers on his temple, activating the device implanted there.
It was originally a device used to treat inner ear infections, but was later transformed into an electromagnetic transmitter, which is also the source of his ability to stun other life forms.
Of course, as a super villain who once participated in the sale of powder, he also possesses a special "drug" that can make people dizzy and lose control instantly.
The reason why the bomb girl is so crazy right now is because she took some of the medicine he gave her just now.
Although Count Vertigo reacted quickly and an uncontrolled electromagnetic wave was thrown at the tabby cat that rushed into the box, he obviously underestimated the mental resistance of a zombie-like high-level wizard and Animagus.
The zombie cat that pounced on him was indeed stunned, but the latter still completed the ferocious pounce.
The only difference was that the attack shifted from the Count's neck to the arm he raised to block.
"ah!"
The zombie cat's claws scratched across his arm.
Not only did it leave a bloodstain, it even took away a small piece of meat. The smell of blood immediately stimulated the zombie tabby cat, making the scarlet in its eyes even more captivating.
A shrill roar rang out in the box, along with the screams of Count Vertigo. The drugged and dazed bomb girl didn't react until then.
She screamed.
He didn't even bother to put on his pants and rushed out of the box with his head in his hands, almost bumping into Mason who was rushing over in Hagrid's leather coat.
"Help! There's a monster out there!"
The unconscious bomber yelled at Mason, and was knocked to the ground by the latter with the butt of his gun.
But this is by no means a deliberate vent of anger.
Because behind her, the zombie cat with blood in its mouth was already pouncing towards its second target.
"Shua"
Mason let go of the shotgun, letting it hang behind him by the strap while pulling out the Penguin's armed umbrella and opening it forward.
The umbrella-shaped shield perfectly blocked the zombie cat's fatal attack and pushed the deadly "little devil" to the back of the car under the young man's fierce push.
In this narrow and inconvenient area, the agile zombie cats are almost a deadly threat.
It was knocked over in the air, and with an agile flip, its limbs tensed up as it landed on the ground. It howled miserably and pounced on Mason and the bomber again.
The young man did not close the armed umbrella but twisted the umbrella handle. A raging flame spurted out from the tip of the umbrella, causing the zombie cat to hiss shrilly and step on the car next to it before falling into a safe area.
"Back off! Get out of my way!"
Mason backed away with his umbrella, creating some distance between himself and the deadly creature, while kicking the trembling white body that was holding onto his left leg.
This brought the unconscious bomber back to her senses. She used her hands and feet to crawl towards the box in front of her, opened the door, rushed in, and locked the door the next moment.
This reaction was expected by the young man.
He didn't expect this high guy to be of any help, it was good enough that he didn't cause more trouble.
"Meow!"
But the zombie cat, which had already smelled the sweet smell of flesh and blood, naturally refused to give up. It stepped forward with its tiger-like body, staring at the open armed umbrella and the young man behind it.
It was not only murderous gluttony that shone in those scarlet eyes.
It just looks like a cat.
But in fact this is another form of Madam Minerva McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts.
The special shapeshifting ability called "Animagus" is very similar to the legendary druids who walk with wild beasts. Although it cannot use magic, what such a cat can do is definitely far beyond the real cute kitten.
It's waiting.
A few seconds later, the fuel in the armed parachute was exhausted and the dangerous flames stopped spraying, and the zombie tiger cat pounced on him instantly.
It did not move in a straight line but jumped three times in a row in the corridors on both sides of the carriage, trying to bypass the umbrella and hit the target directly like a flash of lightning.
But just as it swooped down from the air, the armed umbrella instantly folded, and Mason, who was hiding behind the umbrella, turned the muzzle of his gun and raised it in a hip-shooting posture.
The large buckshot in the chamber of the Critical Hit Shotgun is ready to go.
The action of drawing the gun is as fast as lightning. It is the shooter talent "Quick Drawing" that Mason unlocked when he was shooting at Lv2. The effect is simple and crude. When encountering the enemy at close range, the attack speed of the first three shots is increased by 100%.
With a dull bang, eight hot steel balls flew out of the barrel and almost covered all the space in front of the muzzle.
But Mason did not stop. He fired a second shot in an instant, and another eight steel balls swept out, causing the tabby cat to roll to the back of the carriage while screaming in pain, and dark red blood spread all over the aisle.
Before it could get up, the third buckshot was fired from the gun.
But as Mason watched with great regret, only one steel ball pierced the zombie cat's hind legs but failed to directly harvest its head.
This "witch cat" has amazing reaction, attack and dodge speeds after becoming a zombie.
The first two quick blind shots had low hit rates, but even with the third shot, it still rolled on the ground to dodge most of the steel balls.
Three large bullet shells were spinning under Mason's feet. The young man did not dare to neglect the zombie tabby cat that was limping to its feet. He put the Penguin's umbrella back behind his back, then retreated cautiously to the head of the car with both hands holding the gun.
Mason felt the pressure.
The enemy in front of him was so fast that Mason could only see a shadow when it pounced.
Lv2's shooting skills can't even lock on and aim at close range, so you can only use large-scale attack buckshot to buy time, but the opponent's claws and teeth are stained with poison.
Once the skin is torn, even if it's just a break, you will experience "rebirth as a zombie in an alien world".
Fortunately, he was wearing Hagrid's fur coat, which could barely block the claws. However, if the battle lasted longer, he had no confidence that he could defeat the zombie Animagus one-on-one except by using engineering bombs to blow up the carriage.
And Professor McGonagall is a high-level witch.
God knows if she will do a gorgeous second transformation after getting rid of the cat form, and use magic in her zombie body to throw an Avada munching melon or a Shenfeng Wuying at herself or something like that.
This opponent is a bit out of scope.
Mason squinted his eyes and thought, maybe he should give up fighting head-on and choose to outsmart others?
Also, why hasn't that bastard Lao K come yet? Didn't you say I was your favorite new player? Is this how you treat the backbone of your team? No wonder your previous team was wiped out!
"Shua"
Just as Mason's "inner little theater" was opening, the tabby cat launched another attack.
Even though he was hit in the leg by the steel ball, the speed of this deadly hunter did not decrease much. His zombie-like body was tougher than normal skin and so as long as the bones were broken, it was not a big problem.
The young man could only see the scarlet flickering light of the cat's eyes suddenly appear in front of him. He quickly drew his gun, activated it, and fired two shots, both of which missed.
At the critical moment, he turned around and squatted, wrapping Hagrid's coat around himself, like a funny little guy holding a quilt.
This kind of defense is somewhat unrefined.
But it works great.
He could feel the zombie cat clawing at his neck frantically, the fur on his black moleskin coat flying, and the rustling sound of claws scraping against leather.
Hooked!
Mason was delighted.
He held up his big leather jacket with both hands and threw it backwards to "catch" the zombie cat like a net. Then he swiftly grabbed the corners and sleeves of the coat and closed them together, just like catching a fish.
The biggest weakness of this zombie cat is its size and strength.
Although it is a size larger than a normal cat, it is not a little tiger after all. The fact that each of its attacks is a sneak attack rather than a head-on attack also illustrates this point.
After being wrapped in Mason's half-giant coat, the little creature scratched madly inside the coat, making increasingly shrill cries.
"This little beast is so strong!"
Mason, a young man, could hardly hold the wrapped coat, so he could only swing it against the train cabin wall like a rat and slam it twice, but it still failed to calm it down.
At this moment, the door at the front of the carriage was directly cut into an X-shaped crack by two sword lights. Amid the harsh metallic explosion, the murderous Old K kicked open the broken door and rushed into the carriage in a flash.
The old hunter holds the Golden Eagle one-handed sword in his left hand and the Giant Hunting Knife in his right hand, and it seems that he is ready to roll up his sleeves and fight the boss alone.
But he looked around and didn't find the attacker. Finally, following the increasingly miserable sound, he saw the coat in Mason's hand and the things rolling inside.
"Let it out! Get out!"
As Old K applied some kind of gray sword oil to his sword, he said coldly:
"I'll take care of it."
"No need."
Mason pulled off the belt of the kite flyer who was running over with sweat all over his forehead, and swiftly wrapped his coat around his waist several times and threw it at his feet. He wiped the sweat off his face, looked up and said to Old K:
"This is my trophy, I have the right to deal with it, right?"
"That's a dangerous zombie-like magical animal! Mason Cooper, I can tell you responsibly that you can't handle it!"
Old K sternly warned:
"According to the intelligence of the Star Society, the wizarding system in this world is very weak, but the magical animals that coexist with them are very amazing.
In fact, it is precisely because of this "special resource" that this weak world is rated as C-level.
And you, a novice, are about to challenge those enemies that even veterans find difficult. In my opinion, you are either crazy because of too much pressure, or you were already abnormal when I picked you up.
But that's understandable, after all, there aren't many normal people from Gotham."
"I'm not challenging it."
Mason blinked.
Judging from Old K's attitude, he was basically certain that Old K and the Star Society did not seem to know much about Animagus, a special inheritance that was extremely secretive in the wizarding system.
So he made up a story:
"I want to keep it! It would be really cool to have a zombie cat as a pet, wouldn't it? By the way, do you have a magical cage? I can pay for it."
"You're crazy!"
The now awkward Kite Man, holding up his pants, whispered to Mason, but the opinion of a younger brother was never important in negotiations like these between big men.
Mason stared at Lao K, and Lao K looked at him.
After a few seconds, the old hunter let out a strange laugh, sheathed his sword, and took out a small black birdcage-like ornament from his backpack and threw it to Mason.
He said:
"It's a good thing for young people to have hobbies. I support it. But if you take this from me, you won't be able to take the spoils later. Deal?"
"Yeah, deal."
Mason grabbed the birdcage in his hand, but before he could take a closer look, he heard the bomb girl scream.
"No, Werner, what's wrong with you?"
The lady who had been frightened since the beginning of the fight finally came to her senses. Perhaps it was the arrival of Lao K that gave her the courage to push open the door and walk out.
As a result, I saw the dazed Count covered in blood crawling out with the help of the door.
That guy was miserable.
His chest was almost scratched and several fingers were bitten off.
He fell to the ground tremblingly and reached out his hand to the bomb girl. The bomb girl, not knowing whether she was really in love or her mind was not clear yet, actually stretched out her hands with her bare buttocks to try to pull up the earl.
But before her hand could touch Count Vertigo, there was a dull bang, and Count Vertigo's head exploded right in front of her eyes.
That scene was disgusting.
The Kite Man covered his mouth and turned around, while Mason turned away with a look of disgust. As for the Bomb Girl, who had her face covered with brains, she knelt down in front of the twitching headless corpse in a daze.
It was not until then that she noticed that Count Vertigo's hand, lying in the blood and flesh, had been twisted into a zombie claw.
Behind her, Old K removed his fingers from the golden bomb controller expressionlessly. Then, he picked up his pipe and glanced at the bomb girl who was sitting in a pool of blood.
The old hunter shook his head, his tone complex and heavy, and he held something in front of his chest with his hand, as if holding his heart, and said like a eulogy:
"May this death please the dark stars and illuminate our path forward."
——
Ten minutes later, Mason returned to the carriage and was chewing a bag of beef jerky, while the Kite Man who was leaning against him was dozing off in Hagrid's coat.
Seeing him humming comfortably, it is not difficult to guess that the magical effect of this coat is probably to maintain the most comfortable body temperature at all times, just like lying in bed at home.
In a sense, this coat can be regarded as a must-have artifact for home travel.
Unfortunately, it is too bulky to wear and will greatly affect the movement speed, which is totally unacceptable for a shooter like Mason.
After making sure the Kite Man was asleep, Mason quietly took out the key ring he had gotten from the zombie Hagrid and put it in front of him to examine it carefully.
There are two keys in this set, but their item information tags are very simple, with only one line of text:
Hagrid's Flying Motorcycle Key
Effect: Unlocks the flying motorcycle that Sirius magically transformed and gave to Hagrid as a gift.
Tip: Getting the key is just the beginning, you have to find the vehicle first.
Hagrid's Ranger Key
Effect: Open the secret passage to the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Tip: This key is stained with the blood of its owner, so be careful when approaching Hagrid's pets.
"They are all very useful things, but I can't use them now."
Mason bit the jerky and thought about his next course of action.
He put the key into his pocket, looked around, and then stealthily took out something still covered in blood from his shoe.
It was a very strange device.
It looks only as big as three button batteries stacked together, but it exudes a sense of precision.
The young man took it in his hand, and after a moment the item label popped up:
"An advanced engineering artifact has been detected, currently being analyzed... The object is 'Count Vertigo's Intracranial Disruptor'.
The effect is that it can emit unique electromagnetic waves that affect the sense of balance to all life or individuals within a thirty-yard radius. It can also be used to release EMP shocks to destroy nearby electronic equipment.
My knowledge in the engineering branch is too low to analyze the complete blueprint."
Mason stared at the small thing in his hand, then touched the wound on the back of his neck. Then he skillfully disassembled the double-barreled hand cannon for maintenance while considering whether to modify the structure of the gun. He was extremely relaxed and even hummed a song.
Now the only thing missing is a medicine that can heal the wound instantly.
He looked at the kite flyer who was sleeping soundly opposite him, and the smile on his lips became brighter. Great, everything was going according to plan.
I'll leave your head in your temporary custody, Mr. Lao K. I'll pick it up soon.
