NOVEL WEB Chapter 198
– Kyaaah!
– Kieeeeh!
The horde of Cryptids surged forward like a tidal wave toward the enemies.
The resistance from the foe, who had been holding out with small passageways as their shields, met its end. They were torn apart by teeth and sliced by blades, their critically injured bodies falling to the ground.
Seoli and Ryong approached the fallen pheromone.
Seoli’s hand extended toward the pheromone.
“Yap!”
A bead rose from the fallen pheromone.
The round bead flew toward Seoli, and Ryong attempted to jump and grab it but couldn’t reach due to his short stature.
“Heehee~”
Seoli, with a playful expression, rotated the bead slowly by moving her fingers back and forth.
Ryong, following the bead with small, trotting steps, continued to jump while trying to reach it.
Upon thinking about it, the bead was successfully retrieved intact from even Brain, who had been squashed by the tread of a tank-like machine into almost a lump of meat. Therefore, it seems this bead is no ordinary object, despite its appearance.
At any rate, with the elimination of this pheromone, all the dangerous elements remaining in the tunnel have been dealt with. Preparations to return are being made.
“Seoli, Ryong, shall we go back now?”
“Yes! Small Mom!”
“….”
Upon hearing my words, Seoli stopped playing with the bead, lowering it to Ryong’s level.
Only then was Ryong able to jump and grab the bead.
The bead shone as it was absorbed into Ryong’s body. After gazing intently at Seoli for a moment, Ryong turned around and trotted towards me with small steps.
Seoli followed Ryong.
With Marionettes conveniently kneeling, Ryong climbed onto my back, sticking only his head out and firmly gripping my clothes with his small hands.
“Then, shall we head to the place I’ve found?”
“Yeah! Let’s go! Go!”
– Kryung.
– Kyaryuk.
The group of Cryptids waiting quietly reacted to Seoli’s words.
Thus we moved through the largest passage, carving through an entrance hidden by the enemy using a Harvester and ascended to the surface.
Communication was re-established, and Sita appeared beside me.
[Sister, are you alright?]
“Yes, everything’s resolved.”
[Then, I will land the ship nearby.]
Seeing Jason hovering in the sky, he slowly descended and landed in an open area of the factory zone.
Friends emerged from the ship while the Predators, who had been moving slowly out of the tunnel, made their appearance.
The massive predators, shaking the ground with every step, created slight tremors and impacts.
“Hmm? That is…!”
Edward, startled, opened his eyes wide.
“Wow….”
Jena let out a sigh of amazement with an open mouth, and the other friends reacted similarly.
Edward quickly approached.
“E-Edu. If I’m not mistaken, that’s a Predator, right?”
“Yeah, that’s correct.”
Edward’s eyes widened.
“That’s the Predator… but, is it alright to just leave it here? What if something goes wrong-”
“It’s fine!”
Seoli’s sudden voice interrupted.
“Everything will be fine now! Don’t worry!”
Whirling around, Seoli called out to the waiting crowd of Cryptids.
“Sit!”
The crowd of Cryptids crouched tightly on the ground.
Despite being delayed slightly due to its size, the Predator mimicked the same action.
“Stand up!”
“Jump, jump!”
– Kyruk?
“Like this!”
The Cryptids accurately followed Seoli’s instructions, leaping high and landing with a thud, creating a cloud of dust and tremors.
“Ohh…!”
Edward gasped in awe.
“Isn’t it fine? Don’t worry!”
Seoli, with her hands on her waist, grinned as if proudly presenting a fantastic toy.
“Hmm, fair enough. Seoli, you seem to have everything under control… I’m sorry for doubting you.”
“Yeah!”
Satisfied, Seoli stepped back.
“You’re always full of surprises… Anyway, what about all the metallic pieces and the things wrapped around their bodies? Some of them seem to have similar things, if I look closely.”
“They are not regular Cryptids; they are a type of mutation called Immersion Bodies.”
“Immersion Bodies?”
“Yeah, Cryptids who have fused with machinery and have the ability to manipulate them.”
“Wha–?!”
Edward’s eyes sparkled as he took large strides toward me, placing his hand on my shoulder.
“What you just said, can you explain it in more detail, Edu!? Cryptids that can fuse with machinery, and also samples required for experiments–”
“Ah, I understand. I’ll explain it on the way back.”
“Great!! Later there will be no excuses!”
Edward retreated only after receiving a firm answer.
“Still, Sister, what do you plan to do with those Cryptids?”
“I thought about bringing them to the forward base, but that’s something to worry about.”
“To the forward base?”
“Yeah.”
Although it was a risky endeavor, these Cryptids, with immersion mutation traits, could significantly boost our forces if utilized properly.
However, there is the preconceived image that people have of Cryptids, and there’s also the habit that Cryptids only obey the Queen.
These Cryptids are well-behaved now because they’re being controlled by Seoli through the collective consciousness, but it’s uncertain what might happen when they are outside her influence.
“Small mom, why?”
“I have something to think about.”
“Huh? Why?”
Seoli tilted her head.
“Because I need to figure out what to do with these guys, it would be great if someone could take charge of the group in place of Seoli–”
“In place of Seoli?”
“Yeah. The group listens to you well, but they only follow you. It’s impossible for you to always bring all of them with you, right?”
After explaining to that extent, Seoli, looking as if she’d grasped something, widened her eyes and nodded her head.
“Oh, I see! Yeah! I understand!”
With that response, Seoli suddenly whirled around.
She shouted loudly toward the barren wasteland.
“Beasts!!”
Beasts? Beast? Could she have summoned the Beast Knight by mistake?
I watched Seoli with that thought in mind, but there was no small movement visible across the vast wasteland.
Indeed, no matter how much Seoli has grown and gained power, it would be strange for something summoned to arrive immediately–
Thudududud–
Sand storms rising from the wasteland.
The silhouette of a creature rapidly approaching from far away could be seen.
Though human-like, its form was subtly distorted, and its massive size was unmistakable even from a distance.
A thick exoskeleton encased its body like armor, and its long tail was topped with a sharp spike.
The Beast Knight.
…This will work.
As I thought that, in the blink of an eye, the Beast Knight who had answered Queen’s call crossed the wasteland and stood before our party.
– Gurrrl…!
Somewhat threatening roar.
Seoli screamed after hearing the sound.
“Nope!”
– Grung?
The startled Beast Knight.
Seoli firmly shook her head and said.
“Then don’t be mean! Understand?”
– Grun…
The Beast Knight bowed its head like a scolded child, shrinking away.
Seoli reached out her hand, and the Beast Knight lowered its head upon recognizing the gesture.
Seoli’s hand touched the Beast Knight’s head.
After a moment of silent connection, Seoli slowly withdrew her hand, and the Beast Knight emitted a sound as if understanding something.
Turning toward me, Seoli said.
“It’s fine now, Small Mom!”
“Hm? What did you do, Seoli?”
“Beast will take care of it!”
“Beast? Beast will manage this group?”
“Yeah!”
Nodding Seoli.
When Seoli’s gaze returned to the Beast Knight, the creature, mimicking her movement, nodded its head to confirm.
“Oh…”
An unexpected solution.
“Will it be okay?”
With those words, I looked at the Beast Knight, who nodded once more in affirmation.
The method of communication was surprising, but since the issue seemed well-resolved, I nodded in agreement.
“Alright, then let’s head back to the forward base with the Predator and a few Cryptids!”
“Yes!”
The white ship headed towards the Forward Base.
Despite the minor disturbance, I immediately explained the whole story to Principal Ryeoju and Freya.
“…and that’s what happened!”
“Truly impressive!”
Seoli standing beside me followed my explanation.
“Edu, I generally don’t interfere with what you do, but…”
The Principal trailed off.
“Isn’t it a bit odd to describe bringing these creatures as if you’re picking up lost puppies?”
The Principal, looking at the hologram screen, spoke.
Inside the screen was the Predator, an Immersion Body, along with a small group of Cryptids.
“…Is it a little odd?”
“…Very much so.”
“Dehehe.”
Feeling embarrassed, I scratched my cheek, and the two sighed softly.
“…Well, what’s done is done, and if it increases our strength, it is something to celebrate. Good work, Edu.”
“That’s right. Good job, Edu.”
“It was more Seoli who worked hard.”
Saying this while looking at Seoli, their gazes also shifted towards her.
“That’s right, Seoli also worked hard.”
“Thank you for your hard work, Seoli.”
“Hehe.”
Seoli’s cheeks turned red.
“Then, let’s discuss what to do from now on?”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
…
The completely emptied cave.
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble, and cracks formed in the weakened ceiling.
Flying dust.
When the ground’s shaking reached its limit, with a loud explosion, a massive hole was formed in the deepest part of the cave, revealing a gigantic creature.
A worm-like appearance with a thick exoskeleton.
The Giant Worm, a Cryptid of Hazard Level 7.
Its multi-faceted mouth closing like a flower closing its petals, the Giant Worm entered the cave and moments later, many Cryptids appeared.
– Kyaaah!
– Shaaah!
Cryptids flooding out, emitting cries.
Another Giant Worm appeared on the side, digging a hole, and more Cryptids emerged from its tunnel.
The Cryptid army quickly filled the caves.
Among them, the Cryptid Commander, the Brain, floated around, revealing itself.
The Brain receiving information through the hive mind.
After receiving one particular piece of information, the Brain swiftly headed towards the corner of the cave.
– ….
A completely crushed lump of meat.
This mass of flesh was the Brain that had been given command of the cave by the Queen.
The Brain concentrating its thoughts before it.
The intelligence gleaned was relayed back through the hive mind to the colony’s Queen.
“Huh?”
A voice resonated from the deepest part of the colony.
“You’ve already fallen victim? There were even Immersion Bodies present!!”
Bang!
The woman erupted in fury.
The handle of the jade throne cracked under the pressure.
“Wait, what?! You also sent a Predator. How did that happen? What kind of foe could possibly handle all that?!”
Unable to contain her rage, the woman leapt from her seat and grabbed her head.
The startled Cryptids.
“Aaaaaah!!”
Her hysterical scream echoed through the vast chamber, and numerous Cryptids cautiously observed her.
The woman, breathing heavily, sat back down on the jade throne and focused her mind.
– Search thoroughly and verify exactly what happened. If you don’t bring back proper information, don’t even consider coming back. Understand?
The woman sharply commanded, sending a hive-mind pulse toward another Brain.
– Gather information from the parasites we’ve scattered and send out small groups to increase the frequency of reconnaissance. Immediately.
Her unhesitant orders.
The woman’s eyes filled with hatred.
“I don’t know who did it, but… just find them. I will ensure they pay for this.”
Her voice filled with anger.
Chewing her nails, the woman stewed in thoughts of defeat.