Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 785

Chapter 785: Title: Chapter 434, Assassination

The operatives hidden among the civilians weren’t having much success storming the hotel.

Despite the continuous explosions and gunfire, Arno knew that the operatives positioned by the Alliance were unlikely to breach the ‘hotel’ and complete their mission.

The intelligence gathered earlier had indicated that the security level around Zelos was very high. The elite guard was equipped with Feedback-Type Power Armor, and there were both Spiritual Energy users and Anti-Psychic Devices to contend with, making the assassination exceedingly difficult.

The Alliance warriors hidden outside were indeed elite. They were either agents from military intelligence or special forces élite from the military regiments. But because they had infiltrated surreptitiously for a surprise attack, they couldn’t bring heavy equipment, relying only on light weaponry and hand grenades, with at most a few rocket launchers or grenade launchers-like gadgets, it was normal that they couldn’t break through.

But the target was never there in the first place.

After the hotel was struck, what would Zelos’s reaction be?

She shouldn’t be panicking, but it would be only natural for her to try to leave the ‘hotel’.

She could only bring a limited number of her security team with her, and even though the ‘hotel’ had been swept for security, it definitely wasn’t as safe as her own official residence. There, she would have more numerous and elite guards for protection, multiple escape routes, and the ability to directly communicate with various forces, making it a safer place and more suitable for coordinating efforts after a significant incident.

So, run.

Arno, who’d been ‘hurriedly’ pushing a dining cart along the corridor, was rudely shoved aside by a bodyguard and sent crashing into a private room.

Through the door of the private room, which had been left slightly ajar, Arno saw a stream of security personnel passing by.

He couldn’t see who was in the middle of the crowd, but he could guess.

Having worked at the ‘hotel’ for this period, he had become very familiar with the layout.

After taking stock, Arno knew they were on one of the two routes he had prepared in advance.

Then there was no problem.

Estimating their pace, Arno silently counted the seconds, his hand reaching into his pocket where there was a remote control.

When the time came, he gently pressed it.

Instantly, the roaring sound of an explosion resounded, followed by searing heat waves that he could feel even here.

Those were high-performance thermite bombs!

Installing them had been no small feat.

Zelos’s guard had been extremely cautious and vigilant, conducting checks constantly over the past two days.

Confident in his skills though he was, Arno had not set up the bombs in advance. He didn’t want to gamble on this chance; if they were detected, today’s banquet would have to be canceled due to security risks, ruining their many plans.

Instead, he chose this very day, after witnessing the security sweep, to install the bombs.

Key areas like the banquet hall and lounges were out of the question, as they were constantly guarded.

But after all, it wasn’t feasible for guards to cover every location in the hotel. That was unrealistic.

From the banquet hall and lounges to the garage, there were several porticos, corridors, and galleries to pass through and one needed to use either an elevator or three staircases… In any case, it was impossible for guards to be present at all times; a patrol every fifteen minutes was already quite stringent.

And today, Arno had relied on those intervals of less than fifteen minutes, after the final security check, to complete the preparations for setting the bombs.

When armed conflict broke out, naturally, the patrol team wouldn’t have time to continue their rounds. They would either gather near Zelos’s location to perform security duties or engage the armed attackers at the hotel’s entrance.

This was Arno’s last, and best, opportunity.

He seized the time before the patrol was diverted and Zelos evacuated, to finish placing the bombs and then, to detonate them on the spot.

Though he couldn’t bring in large bombs due to infiltration restrictions and could only bring ones the size of hand grenades, and also because he couldn’t be sure through which exit the target would evacuate, leading him to place bombs at all necessary locations, only two of them would actually be effective.

But those were thermite bombs.

Even an Interstellar Warrior’s ultimate Powered Armor wouldn’t withstand a thermite bomb.

If it’s big enough, such a bomb could even destroy a Starship—some Boarding Tactics involve an Elite Assault Team getting to the core of a Starship and detonating a massive thermite bomb.

The device used now was small, but the target wasn’t a Starship.

The explosion had probably occurred in a passageway. The splattered high-temperature liquid from two thermite explosions would be enough to engulf the entire area, and no creature inside could survive.

Of course, that was theoretical.

As an agent, Arno had to verify with his own eyes whether he had truly completed the mission.

Drawing his pistol, he stepped out of the room.

This was a laser pistol, which was naturally quiet, and with a specially made silencer, it was practically soundless.

Approaching the explosion site cautiously, Arno saw a few injured bodyguards, helping each other out.

When they saw Arno, they also paused, with one trying to speak up, but they were restrained by their companion.