Chapter 4 - A Live Target Shooting?
As dawn approached, the situation turned critical.
Clang!!
Clang!!
The ear-splitting bell immediately woke up several people in the refugee tent and they understood the critical situation that was occurring.
I, who had secured the plastic box containing various equipment belonging to Hoshino, had to prepare myself to face the worst situation that would become one of the background stories in this Eroge world.
"Hufftt... it's going to be a busy day as one of the backstories for my current character."
"Why do I have to be trapped in a character who has a tragic fate just to survive?" I grumbled in a small voice without attracting the attention of the people who were panicking and running here and there.
While observing the situation, I also saw my remaining stepfamily in a panic, including one of the Maids who was currently trying to calm down my Stepmother and Stepsister, who were cowering in fear.
When I was looking at my Maid who was calming them down, I saw her maid uniform skirt lifted and showed her black panties and garter belt containing small knives.
The beauty of black panties and a garter belt containing knives…
If I think about it again, it seems like this Maid of mine can do martial arts that will keep my two remaining step-families alive.
Just in case, I also prepared Hoshino which was fully loaded with seventeen bullets in the magazine.
Sruukkk...
Ctaakkk...
While cocking and placing my finger on the trigger, I aimed the Hoshino's barrel at the back of my Maid's head.
"This may sound sudden, but what kind of maid has a knife hidden under her maid uniform skirt?" I asked, placing the tip of Hoshino's barrel behind my maid's head.
"Young Master? What are you doing?" She asked herself back as if she didn't know anything.
"I'm just asking you. Don't make me feel suspicious," I replied, giving her a threat and intimidation.
As far as I can tell in the game's complex lore, the NPC character I'm possessing is a fallen noble who has all sorts of political enemies and a classic revenge plot.
The NPC character that I am currently possessing is not a villain or a supporting character for the main character, but rather someone who is a compliment in the story's lore and someone who can survive or die in the middle of the main story.
However, from all the challenges, I remembered one of the storylines that this NPC character was betrayed by the friend he trusted the most since childhood.
Seeing that one clue, I could conclude various things and one of them was the Maid's calm demeanor in a situation like this.
With her calm and innocent attitude in the midst of an emergency situation like this, I can only have great suspicion towards her.
"Young Master?" The maid in front of me still maintained her calm demeanor as if wearing a mask of a maid's loyalty who was not afraid in every situation that endangered her.
"I only ask once, even though my memory has disappeared, I feel like you are hiding something right now," I said in a cold tone as if I knew the situation she was hiding.
"Oh my, Young Master. Did you get a false memory before your memory disappeared?" the Maid in front of me asked back with her skill in words that were able to act calmly as if I was the one who was wrong at this time.
The maid in front of me immediately turned around and gave me a warm smile.
"If that's the case, then show me something that will make me sure of this," I replied in a calm tone and didn't lower the tip of Hoshino's barrel to her head.
"..."
The maid just stood there in front of me, while maintaining a gentle smile on her face, she immediately bent down towards me and pulled up her maid uniform skirt which consisted of various small knives suitable for killing someone.
"Is this what makes Young Master worry about me?" she asked, pulling her uniform skirt up again.
As the maid pulled her skirt uniform up and revealed her panties, I could see a slave crest engraved below her navel.
Something very rare to find for a maid who only works on a contract for a certain time without getting a slave crest like this.
My head suddenly felt dizzy and the memories of this NPC's body seemed to be spinning inside my head.
Long ago, this fallen noble character was nearly killed by an unknown Assassin after her mother was involved in an affair between nobles. However, for some reason, the Assassin bowed in front of him and ended up becoming someone who received slave crest and worked as a personal maid for this NPC character.
Nggiingg...
Nggiinngg...
My dizzy head made me lower my guard towards her, "For the time being, you sit on your knees without underwear."
While holding back the dizziness in my head, I gave her an order to do it immediately.
Shhhhhh...
After I gave that order, the slave crest engraved under her navel seemed to glow and made her immediately stand up straight to take off the panties she was wearing.
"Huh?!" I was a little surprised by this, as if the maid in front of me was very obedient to the orders I gave.
Sliipp...
While watching the glowing slave crest and her actions of taking off her panties, I understood a little about my relationship with her.
Plopp...
Her underwear had been removed, revealing the beauty of her hairless lower body and the knives ready to be used to kill someone.
The maid sat on her knees in front of me, surprising my stepfamily.
"Um, Hans, what are you doing?" my stepmother asked in a worried tone.
"It's okay, just making sure you all are under her safe protection," I replied while giving my stepmother a gentle smile.
Grapp...
My right arm felt like it was being touched by someone and made me immediately glance at my right arm, right next to me, my step-sister who had been cowering in fear seemed to want to say something to me.
"Older Brother, are we going to be okay?" said my stepsister with a question that was difficult for me to answer.
"I don't know, but at this point, we can only hope that the defenses of the royal army don't crumble too quickly," I replied hopefully.
KAABBAAMMM!!
BAAAMM!!
The hope I had expressed earlier was suddenly shattered quickly, during an emergency like this, I could hear a loud explosion and it seemed that the last defense in this place had been destroyed.
Dang!!
Dang!!
The loud ringing sound of the bell made me immediately look for an opening to act quickly in a bad situation like this.
"Stand up and use your weapons to protect my stepmother and stepsister," I said to the maid who was still kneeling and obeying my orders.
"What about you, Young Master?"
"I'll be fine, if things aren't too bad," I replied as I walked out of the large tent my family was using for shelter.
As one of the families that used to be a noble, we got decent protection. Unlike the emergency refugee tents made of tarpaulin or cloth, we got a decent tent like an LDK-type Apartment.
Tap...
Tap...
As I stepped outside and took a closer look at the situation, I could see several hordes of human-type monsters approaching the makeshift tent my family was occupying.
"Hoshino, is this what you were talking about earlier?"
"Something like a living target for me to shoot at?"
Hoshino didn't answer my question and it coincided with my family coming out of the refugee tent.
"Hans, it's a little dangerous outside. Our tent has been reinforced with anti-monster magic, so we'll be safe when we're inside," said my stepmother with anxiety etched on her face.
"I doubt it will be safe with monsters like these, my esteemed mother," I almost forgot that this stepmother of mine was not close to me, but in an emergency like this, she still treated me like her own child.
Should I be grateful for having a stepmother like this?
"Young Master, although this may seem embarrassing, it will sadden me to see you injured at a critical time like this. It would be better for you to take shelter inside while waiting for help to arrive," said the maid, holding a knife in her hand.
Sriingg!!
The small knife that looked shiny was suddenly thrown towards me, with a movement of my head that was able to avoid that one surprise attack, I immediately directed my gaze at the blade of the knife that had been thrown by my maid.
Stab!!
"Keeeeek!!" far behind me, a monster that looked like a kobold began to show itself.
"Nice throw," I said praising the maid in front of me.
"Young Master, this will be a dangerous situation if they attack in groups."
"If that's dangerous, I just have to make sure they don't grouping right?" I said, pointing to the end of Hoshino's barrel and firing.
Banngg!!
Banngg!!
The deafening sound of the bullets made my stepmother and stepsister scream.
"Hyaa!! Mama!!" my stepsister screamed, startled by the loud sound of gunfire.
Banngg!!
Banngg!!
"H-Hans!!" My stepmother also screamed as I shot the hot lead that came out of Hoshino's short barrel.
Banngg!!
Banngg!!
The shot I fired hit the line of kobolds that were approaching. By aiming my shot at their heads, it drastically reduced the kobolds that were approaching me.
The loud sound of gunfire and falling kobolds caused panicked people to immediately approach my family's refugee tent.
Banngg!!
The 9mm caliber bullets were able to penetrate the kobold's skull with ease until I realized that a magazine containing seventeen bullets had been used up quickly.
Ctaakk...
Ctaakk...
Just as I was about to shoot the last of the kobolds, the remaining bullets in the magazine ran out, causing the maid who was guarding my stepfamily to throw a knife at the remaining kobold.
Stab!!
"KIIIEEEHH!!" the scream of the remaining kobold made me turn my head and give a small code to move out of this unsafe place.
Like a habit recorded in my muscle memory, I gave a circular hand signal to gather in one place, making the maid and my stepfamily confused.
They tilted their heads at the same time and it made me realize that the hand gesture I was doing looked weird to them.
Some of the refugees who were panicking and taking shelter around my family's refugee tent were also confused, making me look like a weirdo who was twisting my hands above my head.
"We will go to a safe point from this breached defense," I said to explain my intentions and goals.