Fated to Die to the Player, I'll Live Freely with My SSS-Class Ship!
Chapter 161 161: A Riot of Opportunity

Everything was as usual in the Bastion.

Prisoners drowning in despair, shuffling about with empty eyes devoid of purpose.

Guards laughing, fooling around, unconcerned even if someone dropped dead right beside them.

And officers—ever so majestic—sipping on wine during duty hours like it was just another lazy night.

"What? What's going on?!"

But just then, in the midst of that warped sense of normalcy, the sirens inside the operations center wailed like banshees. Red warning lights spun wildly, casting a crimson hue over the room and replacing confusion with panic.

"Sir! There's an uprising among the prisoners!"

One soldier shouted, eyes fixed on the monitors showing live feeds where the alerts had been triggered.

"Just that?" The officer, unfazed, rolled his eyes and slumped back into his chair. "I thought something serious happened... Turn off the sirens and deal with those worms. Remind them what happens when they try this kind of crap."

"S-Sir..." the soldier hesitated, sweat forming as he gulped nervously. "It's not just one or two cells, sir... It's practically all of them. Every block's in chaos!"

"What?!"

The officer immediately straightened, finally grasping the weight of the situation.

"How the hell did that happen?! Did the locking mechanisms malfunction or something?! How did all the prisoners get out of their cells?!"

"T-There's nothing in the system logs, sir… No hacking, no override detected. I think it's a full-blown mechanical failure. Something broke the locks themselves!"

"Eei! Useless junk!"

The officer stomped across the room toward the wall-mounted emergency line—a direct hotline to "higher authority." He snatched the receiver and pressed it to his ear. No ringing tone; it connected immediately.

"Sir, we have a problem. All the locks in the Bastion failed at once. The prisoners are rioting—complete anarchy out here." He didn't wait for permission to speak. "Requesting authorization for a full lockdown!"

A brief silence followed, before a slow, guttural voice came through—cold and commanding.

{Proceed. But you know who matters most. If she escapes…}

The voice trailed off, yet its menace was unmistakable. A silent threat, sharp as a blade.

The officer's back straightened in instinctive fear. He saluted reflexively, even though the other side could not see him.

"Y-Yes, sir!"

He slammed the receiver back into its cradle and spun around with renewed urgency.

"Raise the alert level to Red! Arm all guards and personnel—permission to shoot on sight! All prisoners must be captured—dead or alive!"

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

The command center roared to life as orders echoed down the halls and across comm lines.

Within minutes, the Bastion became a warzone. Guards and soldiers suited up, wielding an arsenal ranging from non-lethal tasers and stun grenades to full-on railguns, ballistic firearms, and searing laser blasters.

Five minutes later, the hunt began.

---

"Get down, or I'll shoot!!!"

*ZIIN!*

Right now, I'm sprinting through the halls with a team of soldiers, clutching a railgun in my hands. Some of the troops were firing wildly, unloading round after round into fleeing prisoners. Others held their fire, using their weapons more as intimidation—but those were rare.

So, how did we get to this madness?

Well, it started with a little request I made to Nyssra: to "disrupt" the Bastion and make it easier for me to slip past defenses.

I imagined she'd just cause a power outage or disable a few systems to create chaos—force some guards to scramble. But no… what she did went above and beyond anything I expected.

{I disabled every lock in the Bastion—cells, vaults, doors, everything. The alert should trigger any moment. Good luck!}

That was her reply, casual as always.

But by "disabled," she meant destroyed.

If the Bastion wanted functioning locks again, they'd need to replace the entire system. Whatever she did, it wasn't patchable. It was scorched-earth level sabotage.

Anyway, I was lucky enough to blend in with one of the response teams sent to suppress the riot in the inner sanctum—the very place I needed access to.

We charged down the connecting corridors, shooting anyone who resisted, subduing and cuffing those who didn't. The whole ordeal was time-consuming, and slowly but surely, our squad was being split—some staying behind to guard swathes of prisoners.

"You there! Stop!" our squad leader barked, aiming his laser blaster ahead. "Down on the ground, hands where I can see 'em, or I'll open fire!"

"Hiik!"

The trembling prisoner instantly dropped, lying face-down and putting his hands behind his head, shaking like he'd already given up on life.

"You, rookie! Process that bastard!"

The leader gestured at me, his tone dismissive. Then he turned to the rest of the team.

"The rest of you, we're heading for the armory! That's where they'll likely strike next!"

"Sir, yes sir!" I barked, along with the rest, boots clicking together as we gave a sharp salute.

And just like that, the group vanished down the hall, leaving me alone behind.

Good riddance.

"You." I approached the man who had been forced to the ground, gently patting his shoulder. "You want to escape? Do you know how to use one of these?"

I handed him a pistol-shaped blaster, a compact sidearm I took earlier just in case.

"...Huh?"

He blinked in confusion, clearly unsure of my intentions.

He probably thought it was a trap—that the moment he reached for the weapon, I'd gun him down for "arming" himself. That's a common tactic, after all, but not what I was doing here.

I slung my railgun onto my back, making my stance clear, non-threatening. Then I placed the pistol beside him and took a step back.

"Take it and run. Get to safety, and if you can, shoot any guards in your path. Pass their weapons to the other prisoners along the way to get more help."

I leaned down slightly, coaxing him further.

"I tweaked that blaster's output—it should cut through even the toughest armor they've got. With that in your hands, you're a one-man army."

Naturally, that last bit was a lie.

I didn't have the time or tools to enhance the weapon. But a little white lie like that might just give him the courage he needs to act. Sometimes, belief is more powerful than any upgrade.

I stood and turned away from him, picking up my pace into a jog.

Right—this wasn't some altruistic gesture.

I didn't care about saving him specifically. What I needed was someone armed and unhinged running wild—a walking nightmare scenario for the guards.

Chaos would follow.

And in that mess, I'd have the opening I needed to reach my target.

"Nyssra, where to next?" I asked over the comms.

{Turn right at the next corridor!}

She already knew the plan. I'd filled her in before things kicked off. We were heading toward the third tower—the one most heavily defended and deeply embedded in the inner sanctum.

With her guidance, I arrived at the base of the tower within three minutes.

But a problem immediately stood in the way—a full platoon of soldiers, stationed directly in front of the entrance.

'Damn it!' I cursed inwardly.

There was no way around them. And since they're there, their task definitely was to not let anyone enter the tower.

With numbers like that, sneaking past was impossible.

They'd see me, stop me, and probably shoot before asking questions.

Still, the fact that so many troops were guarding this place only confirmed what I already suspected—this tower had to be it. Our target was up there. No doubt.

"...Well, so much for subtlety." I muttered under my breath. "Eva... clear the way."

Though I hadn't heard a word from her yet, I knew she was listening. The comms I used were tuned to the party channel—open to both Nyssra and Eva, and anyone else on our frequency.

{...Target acquired.}

That was all she said, right before—

*THUD!*

—every single guard dropped, lifeless or unconscious, in a synchronized instant.

It happened so fast, I couldn't even register the method. One second they were alive, the next they weren't. Absolute precision. That's Eva for you.

"Thanks." I whispered, sprinting toward the now-clear entrance. "Nyssra, get the Black Halberd closer. We'll be leaving through the rooftop."

The lower levels were chaos incarnate now—screams, gunfire, running feet, broken alarms, pain, fury, death. No way we were flying out through that. Not without being reduced to ash.

{Copy that! I'll prep the Human Tractor Beam!} she replied, casually referencing our very illegal extraction mod.

Yeah, I was the one who asked to have that system installed. Whatever works.

I charged forward and kicked the entrance door open—its lock had already been rendered useless in Nyssra's earlier stunt.

What greeted me inside was...

"Stairs?"

I blinked in disbelief.

No lift? No elevator? No hover platform? Just... stairs? Really?

This tower was four hundred meters tall—easily over a thousand steps—and they expected someone to climb this monster manually?!

I rolled my eyes and sucked in a breath. No time to complain. Without hesitating, I launched myself upward, flying up the steps in long bounding strides. My muscles strained, heart racing faster with each level.

"This... this would be a hell of a cardio regimen..."

About halfway up—or what I hoped was halfway—I was already drenched in sweat, panting like a stray dog in a desert. My breath was ragged. I had to pull off my helmet just to get more air.

Five minutes later—yes, five minutes of nonstop sprinting up a spiral death trap—I reached a tiny landing. Barely enough space to collapse without a limb sticking out.

I fell on my hands and knees for a moment, gathering my breath. My vision swam. My legs burned.

But this was a rescue mission, and not just any mission—the one waiting at the top was the Empress herself, ruler of an entire solar system.

I couldn't look like a mess when I met her.

I wiped my face, took a few deep breaths, and fixed my clothes. I ran my fingers through my hair, making sure I looked somewhat presentable. First impressions matter, after all.

Once I was composed, I reached for the doorknob and twisted it open.

"Excuse me, Empress—!"

But before the words were fully out of my mouth—a shadow leapt.

And in that moment, I felt a tangible threat to my life.

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