"Where are we?! Let us off this bus!"
"The driver's a corpse—something's wrong with this bus!"
"Help! It's haunted!"
The passengers screamed one after another, gripped by terror.
Moments later, the buses all pulled up in front of an abandoned tunnel.
And then—shockingly—the front of each bus split open like a giant beast's mouth, jaws yawning wide.
All the passengers were violently spat out onto the ground.
Dozens of them tumbled out, scrambling away in fear, huddled together as they stared at the surrounding buses.
The buses began extending insect-like legs, and insect wings unfolded from their backs.
These were the Predator Buses.
Tonight marked their first hunt in the Tiga Universe.
From deep within the tunnel, came a chorus of cricket-like chirping.
A swarm of smaller Predator Buses crawled out.
They hadn't learned to roll on wheels yet, instead crawling with their insect legs.
In no time, nearly thirty Predator Buses, large and small, had surrounded the over a hundred passengers.
"Now!"
Suddenly, one man wearing a cap stood up and shouted.
He pulled a gun from his waist and opened fire on the nearest Predator Bus.
The weapon shot lasers.
The others immediately followed the command, as if performing a magic trick, drawing out laser guns from beneath their coats and opening fire all around.
Caught completely off guard by the counterattack, the Predator Buses shrieked in pain as sparks flew from their bodies, and they stumbled backward in retreat.
They had not expected their "prey" to fight back.
Why did these passengers have guns? And why was Munakata here?
It was because these passengers were actually TPC Security Bureau operatives in disguise.
At the same time, Unit-1 soared overhead.
"Put on your masks!"
Seeing the aircraft, Munakata immediately pulled a gas mask from his collar and strapped it on.
The rest followed quickly.
Gen-1 descended close to the ground and released a dense white mist from its undercarriage.
As the Predator Buses inhaled the mist, they immediately began twitching violently before collapsing.
Their limbs trembled uncontrollably, unable to stand—clearly tranquilized.
Indeed, the white mist was a powerful anesthetic gas.
"They really were monsters disguised as buses. Who would dare ride public transport after this?!"
Shinjō couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"Thankfully, we had the intel from Gallantmon, or who knows how many would've been victims."
Horii spoke solemnly.
Earlier that evening, every TPC computer had received a message from Gallantmon.
The message detailed everything about the Xenomorphs and Predator Buses, including their locations.
He requested TPC's assistance.
It was Daigo who had asked Gallantmon to do this.
His goal was twofold: recruit extra manpower and ensure others shared in the rewards—boosting their strength to face future threats.
So he asked Gallantmon to upload the information to every terminal in TPC's network.
At this point, Gallantmon was already recognized by all as a trusted ally of Tiga.
So his message was taken seriously.
TPC spent the evening discouraging civilians from riding night buses and instead dispatched operatives to stations, disguised as passengers, to ambush the Predator Buses.
They played along, allowing themselves to be taken to the monsters' lair.
All their frightened reactions had been an act—
—to trick the Predator Buses into feeling safe enough to transport them home.
Now, the buses lay paralyzed, subdued by the anesthetic.
Soon after, multiple TPC transport planes descended.
As they landed, heavily armed troops disembarked and began loading up the Predator Buses for research purposes.
"This mission was a breeze. These guys are creepy, but not that tough."
Shinjō said after exiting Gen-1, watching the buses being hauled away.
"Don't let your guard down. Who knows when they might retaliate."
Munakata remained cautious as ever.
"Horii, go with the transport team and assist with the research. Shinjō, you're with me—we'll sweep the area and check for stragglers."
He began issuing orders.
Both men stood tall, saluted crisply.
"Understood!"
"HQ, this is Munakata. Capture of the Predator Buses completed successfully. We are now sweeping the surrounding area."
Munakata reported through the radio.
Victory Team HQ.
"Copy that. Good work, Captain."
Captain Iruma responded, then turned to Yagami.
"How's the team handling the Xenomorph situation?"
"They've reached the underground mine."
Yagami replied promptly.
"Good. Let's pray for their safety."
Iruma said sincerely.
At that moment, in the depths of a subterranean mine, Daigo, Rena, and over twenty TPC Security Bureau operatives armed with Victory Hyper Guns advanced into the tunnels.
Outside, additional units stood by for support.
"Daigo… Do you think the captain and the others will be okay?"
Rena whispered.
"I'm sure they'll be fine."
Daigo replied with confidence.
He had already seen on the screen that the Predator Buses had been captured and hauled away.
They'd existed in this world for a while…
But only began hunting at night—so they hadn't yet multiplied or harmed civilians.
They were relatively easy to handle.
TPC was very interested in researching monsters capable of mimicking buses.
But to Daigo, the true threat was still the Xenomorphs.
They had already harmed many.
And their evolutionary capabilities were terrifying. He couldn't help but worry they would become far more dangerous.
"There's a body!"
Rena suddenly called out.
A corpse lay ahead.
The lower half of the body was completely missing, with the upper half hanging by strands of intestine—grotesque beyond words.
Though everyone here had seen monsters before, this was a human corpse.
The grisly sight made many gag in horror.
"Everyone be alert! It's going to get dangerous!"
The discovery made it clear—they were heading into peril.
Every operative braced themselves and pressed forward.
What they didn't know was—
above them, hidden in the shadows of the mine's ceiling, several Xenomorphs watched silently.
Then they began crawling across the ceiling, disappearing into the darkness.
(End of Chapter)
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