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Four hours before Violet’s friends assessed the situation, the Violets woke up one by one at 3 AM.

One hour before the operation commenced, at 4 AM, seven large advertising balloons ascended into the sky from various locations in the western district.

Each of the advertising helium balloons rising into the dark sky was attached to a rickety basket.

Inside, a Violet clad in thick winter gear lay in a hibernating state, securely bound to the basket and balloon to prevent the possibility of flipping over.

As the black sky gradually shifted to dark blue and then blue, the advertising balloons floated steadily, diligently rising into the sky.

The altimeters and satellite navigation devices relayed information that the balloons were ascending slowly into the sky.

“Alright, at this rate, we should reach the target altitude in a timely manner.”

“It’s going to be really cold! Don’t forget to warm up the hibernating body with hot packs as soon as you wake it up.”

At the same time, the hibernating Violets scattered across the western district opened their eyes.

With a rustling sound, the transparent plastic wrapping crackled, and short blades popped out.

The hibernating bodies, placed days to weeks in advance, moved adeptly as if questioning when they had fallen asleep as consciousness transferred to them.

The Violets shed the wrapping like a skin, inspecting the replica weapons included.

There was not a single discrepancy in their synchronized movements. They pulled back the charging handles to check the chambers and skimmed their fingers over the edges of swords and axes.

“Confirmation complete!”

Once prepared, the Violets flipped their masks double over and boarded the designated trucks.

Each truck carried roughly 10 personnel aboard. Including heavy weapons, it was an overload that might trigger complaints from truck advocacy groups, but the girls didn’t mind.

Most of the vehicles prepared here weren’t expected to last beyond today.

Thirty minutes before the operation commenced, the Violets casually pulled out a chocolate bar and bit into it.

The vehicles roared to life. Armed trucks and trailers loaded with bulldozers sped along the quiet dawn roads under the brightening blue sky.

The Violets hidden beneath floors and walls across various locations awaited their orders.

With nothing to do, they waited for instructions.

The Violets at the command center monitored the screens to track the balloons’ locations.

The balloons scattered erratically from their launch positions.

“They’re not far off the expected range. The important part is the altitude anyway!”

Ten minutes before the operation commenced, the Violets took deep breaths. This fight would determine their future movements alongside their friends.

Five minutes before the operation commenced, the Violets loaded their weapons. With sharp metallic sounds, they loaded rounds into the chambers of guns and bolts into the bodies of crossbows.

Some Violets checked the power and connectivity of the webcams attached to their helmets. These were key points for the operation.

One minute before the operation commenced, Violet 1 whispered.

“Nothing much. Just do as usual. Got it?”

“Kill and destroy!”

Thirty seconds, twenty seconds, fifteen seconds.

I don’t know why time feels so long.

In the tension, it felt as if time was stretching like rubber.

Ten seconds, five seconds, one second.

The Violets blinked.

The electronic alarm beeped lightly.

“Operation start!”

The Violet Brigade Command Center declared the attack.

The 1,800 Violets scattered across various locations began their actions.

In mansions, hotels, airports, research facilities, factories, and broadcasting stations. The fuses deployed throughout the western district ignited.

At Trist’s standard world time, 5 AM, the Witch’s Hammer operation had begun.

**

Our Violet Command Center had been troubled for some time.

Where and how to attack to deliver a fatal blow to those bastards.

The key objectives of this operation were roughly threefold.

First, the people.

With each well-trained Awakened One that dies, a piece of their future vanishes, and if their command structure evaporates, their ability to respond to future political offensives disappears.

On top of that, punishing those who have done wrong is a bonus.

Second, the significant facilities and equipment of the Magnavis Group and the academy.

To ensure they couldn’t pull any tricks in the future, we had to destroy and incapacitate most of the buildings, excluding the places that were public-facing.

Third, the clan’s equipment and materials.

Steal everything that can be carried, and burn everything that cannot. The secured materials will be distributed to the Academy City Inspection Bureau, the Federal Parliament, and the military.

Without a doubt, the first goal is the most important.

Thus, once the operation began, the Violets hiding in buildings burst through walls and charged.

First, let’s check the situation in room 1224.

I smashed through the living room floor and barged into the bedroom. An elderly man in pajamas lay on the bed, looking dazed.

“Wha…who are you—”

“Headmaster Old Man! You’re fired!”

The sword flew into John Wilbur’s neck, who wore a bewildered expression.

His head rolled onto the ground.

“Headmaster terminated! What about the Board members?”

“Engaged in combat! Engaged in combat!”

At 5 AM, those from the academy listed on the death list began to drop one by one.

-Whump!

The sound of a suppressed gunshot reverberated through the house. A hole pierced through Doctor Alexander’s head. He was the chair of the board.

“Who, who are you? Save—”

Professor Azarel, the director of research and development, was cut in half while doing morning exercises in the front yard.

“What’s with this room service? Aaaah!”

The finance officer, Luca, staying at a hotel, was torn apart by the Violets that crashed through the window.

One by one, the board members lost their lives.

Some were asleep in bed, some were caught in the bathroom mid-business, and some had their heads blown off while they were at the dining table.

“Ugh, kyaaaaaah!”

Just after killing the student affairs director named Eleanor, a woman who entered the room screamed.

She was the maid working at the target’s house.

-Thud!

I struck the maid to knock her unconscious and bound her up.

“Lady, you’re fired from today! Go find another job!”

“Well done, avoid touching anyone outside the targets as much as possible! Don’t forget the justification.”

We handled the targets according to the pre-arranged procedures.

We weren’t going to repeat the mistakes of those self-proclaimed revolutionary groups in the memories before transmigration. Our Violets are a group that adheres to international law.

“…Mom? Where are you?”

After binding the maid and tossing her into the bathroom, I heard a child’s whimpering sound, probably disturbed by the noise.

This is a bit of a tricky situation. A considerable number of assassination targets live with their families.

“Put all the corpses in the inventory and get out! Try to leave before causing a ruckus!”

Blood was cleaned up quickly. Those I encountered were all bound and confined in the corners of their rooms. The completed Violets disappeared without a sound.

“I’ve processed all the board members and professors on the list.”

In this manner, throughout the dawn, we ticked off names on the death list.

Not only the academy’s board, but also those connected to the clan.

First was the president of a subsidiary of the Magnavis Group; he resisted in the swimming pool wielding a halberd.

“You bastard…do you know who I am? How dare you—”

“You’re the president of Intelisia Manufacture. You know about Stregonics, right?”

“H-how do you…?! Urgh!”

Intelisia Manufacture is the company that makes key components for the cyborg that attacked Irene.

When the president resisted with the halberd, I showered him with bolts, turning him and his bodyguards into a pincushion.

The operating team leader from the Magnavis-affiliated sub-clan, Ascalaria.

The hunters and mercenaries guarding the secret research facility belonged to this clan.

“…Why are you doing this?”

“Just because!”

He deployed a shield and jumped out the window when bullets began to rain down on him.

“Where do you think you’re running? Violet beam!”

The Melting Ray cleaved through the air. The target was reduced to ash.

“Seles Security Service, Lutecia Industries. Processing complete!”

“The board members are also being dealt with!”

The extermination process wasn’t smooth.

Unlike scheduled, some were missing from home, and in some cases, we had to fight because they were already awake.

Nevertheless, our Violets remained patient, taking them down one by one.

With guns, crossbows, swords, bombs, and magic!

“Ah, no! Please, save me!”

“Attack! Attack!”

At one hour into the operation, at 6 AM, most of the names on the list had become corpses.

Only those who weren’t home or were somewhere else remained alive.

“Damn it! Where the hell are the others?”

“Don’t worry, we’re searching all the spots where they could be! By the way, how about the academy basement?”

When 890 asked, 1437 responded.

“Yup! The suppression is done! We’re currently collecting data!”

And then good news came in.

“Doctor Sturgis has also been captured!”

**

While the academy board and Magnavis executives were being ambushed, the academy itself was not exempt from the attack.

-Kaboom!

“Hands up!”

“P-please save us! We’re just people getting paid to work!”

At 6:30 AM, the Violets in the dormitory finished subduing the academy’s guards and began to take control of the academy’s interior.

The level of the guards was pathetic. Perhaps it’s that our skills have improved.

While we seized the broadcasting room, we opened the barriers at the entrance.

Armed trucks lined up to enter the academy.

“Disembark! Stay alert!”

While the armed trucks kept watch, reinforcements disembarked and entered the academy building and dormitory.

Shortly after, we cut off the internal electricity and communications.

The method was simple, just break it down.

“Antenna, base station destroyed!”

The underground facility was not exempt from our attack as well.

“Run quickly! We need to catch them alive!”

A cracking sound echoed. A red blade flashed from the wall.

The Violets who had been hiding for weeks burst out of the underground research facility after awakening.

We sprinted down the concrete corridor toward the research building.

Meanwhile, the Violets inside the school were also launching a coordinated attack.

“We’re deploying tear gas! Everyone put on your gas masks!”

We outside dumped a large quantity of tear gas into the ventilation that led underground.

The inside of the research building quickly filled with dense smoke. At the same moment, the power facilities of the bunker were destroyed, plunging the research facility into darkness.

“Cough, cough! Is it fire?”

“Help!”

The Violets dressed in black cloaks turned on their lights and approached the researchers.

Most of the researchers were still at work overnight instead of going home.

It was proof that their plans were running out of time.

“Over here! This way! We’re here to save you! Here, wear this gas mask!”

“Cough, cough…thank you. I can live now. But you guys. I’ve never seen you before, who…?”

As one researcher began to question, I swung my buttstock and a mace.

“Ahhhh! Stop it!”

“Kyaaaaaah! Don’t hit me!”

I beat the researchers until they were a mess.

Among them, I spotted the familiar face of an elderly man who was at the top of the death list.

“Doctor Sturgis, isn’t it?”

“Who are you?”

The white-haired old man covered in bruises stared up after hearing my words.

Before he could say anything else, I gagged him and put a black hood on him.

“Binding complete! Move him to the corridor!”

As the Violet squad dragged the researchers like slaves down the corridor, another platoon searched inside the research facility.

What needed to be done was simple.

Collect all the data and set up explosives. To blow up this massive facility, a considerable amount of explosives would be needed.

And we had a mountain of homemade explosives and a vast amount of gasoline.

“What about the dormitory students being suppressed?”

“Done!”

The students living in the dormitory were rubbing their eyes, following our announcements as they came outside.

Armed soldiers clad in black searched the building and woke up every sleeping student to lead them out.

The students looked at us with a mixture of fear and displeasure, still not grasping the situation in their drowsy state.

“What the heck…? Hey! Who the hell are you!”

“Uncle, why did you call us?”

“I have to study…”

Hmm, have they not caught on yet? They’re so slow.

I raised my arm to gesture behind me.

Trucks loaded with machine guns and recoilless guns came rushing in, encircling the students.

Seeing this, the startled students hesitated, and 1320 took the megaphone.

“Listen up! You all are no longer students of this academy. Polaris Academy now belongs to our Ariel Group from today. So scram!”

No sooner had the words left my mouth than I detonated the bombs I had set in the dormitory.

-KABOOM!

“Wh-what? It blew up!”

“Are you insane!”

“See that? Those who resist end up like this. Get the hell out now!”

The Violets in the armed trucks fired their machine guns into the air and bombarded the building. Following them, the squad of Violets wielding sword energy approached the students with an imposing presence. Terrified, the students retreated.

“Ahhhhhh!”

“Hahaha! Run away! You commoners!”

The group of Violets rained gunfire into the air. The frightened dormitory students fled to the front gate, crying and screaming.

Running away from gunfire, such weaklings.

“The evacuation of the dormitory students is complete!”

“Great work! The brigade command center reports. All troops stationed in the academy are to start preparations for the academy’s incineration. Gather anything valuable and splash incendiary agents and gasoline everywhere!”

Following the brigade command center’s orders, the Violets rushed into the building.

“Companies, report the situation! How’s the airport and base capture going? What is the team on the factory and research facility doing? What’s the status at headquarters? Is the broadcast station’s takeover ready?”

With the gunfire amidst the network, reports came through.

“Engaged in combat! The enemy resistance is fierce!”

“Requesting artillery support! Where’s the air force?”

“Filming preparations are complete. Broadcast station! Now!”

Amidst the scene, heated reports mixed with the senses were coming in.

It seemed the Magnavis bastards were beginning to respond in their own way. Truly, a reaction speed befitting a giant clan.

But what of it, our operation had only just begun.

I’ll show them what true combat skills taste like.