CH 186

Chapter 186. Peony Subjugation Battle Part 4



****



Countless “somethings” explode out of Peony and get fired in all directions with bullet-level velocity.



(Bullets…No, this is—)



With enhanced vision and heightened concentration, I figure out what they are.



—Seeds.



Countless seeds the size of acorns. 



Compared to everything that Peony has shown us until now, they’re really small in scale.



That said, despite being only a few centimeters in diameter, the danger level of these seeds far exceeds that of Peony’s roots and vines.



They’re extremely dangerous. 



Both my skills and my instinct are ringing alarm bells and warning me not to get hit by them.



“—!”



I immediately deploy a “wall” in front of us using the items in the Item Box.



To prevent any seeds from passing through, I pack the items close together and make sure that there isn’t even the slightest gap.



A few seconds later—



ZUGAGAGAGAGAGA!!



The Peony’s seeds strike the wall that I have created.



For a brief moment, I got worried over whether the wall would hold.



“…”



The sound stops.



Thankfully, the wall hasn’t been penetrated. 



I let out a sigh of relief. 



It seems the projectiles’ power isn’t so great.



The “wall” made using the Item Box has managed to block all the seeds.



“W-what was that just now…?”



Nishino-kun is still in a daze from the surprise.



I give instructions to Sora.



“Sora! We need to leave this place soon!”



‘Nu—?’



Confused, Sora grunts for a second, but she picks up on something and immediately turns around to escape from Peony.



It was the right call.



The wall that I made through the Item Box should have plummeted down under the influence of gravity, but it has instead fallen apart and scattered.



“Wha—!?”



What…are those?



It’s a bit difficult to describe, but there are some green spheres floating in the air, and each of them have a diameter of about 1 meter.



Giant marimo moss balls—I guess it’d be appropriate to describe them as such?



There are lots of tentacles wriggling on their surface.



Rather than being naturally round, they appear to have taken spherical forms because the tentacles had been entwined into such shapes. 



They remind me of the Shub-something monster from Cthulhu Mythos.



They aren’t alone either.



Just from a cursory glance, I can tell that there are dozens of giant Marimos floating in the air.



(…Were they born from the seeds from before?)



Did they grow to this size in such a short time? How does that even make sense?



No, I shouldn’t try to apply common sense to these monsters and their skills.



I should calm down and analyze the situation.



Peony had fired those seeds in all directions.



That means—



“K-Kudou-san…l-look down…”



“…Down?”



I follow Nishino-kun’s words and look down.



What the—



The entire town has been covered in green, and giant Marimos have overrun the town.



What a surreal sight this is.



Coupled with the destroyed townscape, the scene before me makes me think of the phrase “The End of the World”.



Modern society has been overrun by plants. 



It’s as if the hourglass known as the ecological pyramid has been flipped upside down.



“———”



In front of us who have been stunned into silence, the giant Marimos peel off their outer skins, revealing their mouths from beneath. 



The giant Marimos have distorted mouths present in many parts of their bodies, and their teeth are like that of humans’, but poorly aligned.



‘…enough…’



A voice.



‘…not enough…’



‘…not…’



‘…enough…’



‘N-n-n-not….



‘………enough.’



‘Not enough.’



‘Fa…mished…’



‘Let me…eat….’



‘It hurts…’



‘…me eat…’



‘…don’t want pain.’



‘It…hurt…’



‘Let me eat.’ ‘Let me eat.’ ‘Let me eat.’ ‘Let me eat.’



‘LET ME EAT.’ ‘LET ME EAT.’ ‘LET ME EAT.’ ‘LET ME EAT.’ ‘LET ME EAT.’



‘‘‘‘‘‘‘LET ME EAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!!’’’’’’’



Their teeth rattle, and their voices overlap with one another.



It’s an eerie sight that’s enough to make me shiver.



I’ve had some concerns about our decisive battle against Peony, and one of them had been the possibility of Peony possessing an “unknown skill”.



Attacks from roots and vines, regeneration, automatic defense, pollens that induce hallucination. 



We’ve already witnessed many of its powerful skills, but there was the worry of Peony having a hidden card. 



That possibility has been on my mind for a long time. 



(The more unpleasant a premonition is, the more likely it is to become reality…)



I take a glance at Peony.



Unlike before, Peony’s emitting a dense presence. 



—Hostility. 



Until now, it has only seen us as its “prey”.



That’s why we were able to read its movements and damage it.



However…



(It has now recognized us as its “enemies” instead of as its “prey”…)



To be honest, I don’t really welcome this change.



I would’ve preferred Peony having its guard down.



The feeling that I’m getting from it is now is more along the lines of wanting to kill us through whatever means available.



…It can’t be helped.



“Nishino-kun, we should change our strategy!”



“You’re right. Let’s go with Plan B instead!”



Since Plan A isn’t working, we’ll move to Plan B.



It’s a good thing that Nishino-kun and I came up with several plans in advance.



But to execute Plan B, we must first return to the “Safety Zone”.



‘They’re coming!’



Sora roars, and the giant Marimos floating in the air make their moves. 



Opening their mouths, they stretch out their green tongues and hurl them towards us in great numbers.



“—Item Box, open!”



“GUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!”



“Kyu!”



“—‘Do not move’!”



We activate our skills simultaneously.



Sora’s breath burns them, Nishino-kun’s command stops them, Kiki’s “Reflection” repels them, and my tetrapods sinks them to the ground.



However—



(—There’s too many of them.)



Hundreds—no, are there thousands?



There are so many Marimos now that it would be ridiculous to count them one by one, and they’re extending just as many tongues towards us.



Some of them slip past our attacks and latch onto Sora’s body.



‘Gu…!’



Sora raises a voice of agony.



The tongues have wrapped themselves around Sora’s legs and tail, and those parts have begun to rot.



(Acid…? No, it must be poison!)



Not only have they begun to rot, they’re turning purple as well.



This is bad—!



“Aka!”



“Furu furu…!”



I quickly convert a portion of Aka’s suit into the orc’s knife. 



Then, I extend the knife’s blade like a whip and slice off the tongues that have latched onto Sora.



“~~~Furu furu!”



Aka twists its body as if it’s in pain.



It must have touched some of the poison as it was cutting the tongues. 



Sorry, Aka. Please endure for now.



Thanks to Aka’s sacrifice, Sora regains her freedom.



“Sora, it’s now or never.’



‘I know!’



She flies at full speed and reenters the “Safety Zone”.



The moment we pass through the barrier, the tongues that have been chasing us in hot pursuit get blocked out by the invisible wall.



…We someone made it out alive, but the problem still remains.



Fujita-san and the others rush over to us as we land on the ground.



“—How’s the situation?”



“The worst.”



Fujita-san asks a concise question, and I return an equally concise answer.



“It was within our expectation, but Peony has been hiding a skill from us.”



“And by that you mean this…”



Outside the “Safety Zone”, there are countless giant Marimos wriggling around.



Just the sight of them licking at the invisible barrier with their tongues is enough to cause psychological trauma.



“The giant Marimos have innumerable mouths, and they attack with their tongues. They aren’t that powerful, but there are a lot of them, and their tongues are poisonous.”



“Poisonous…?”



Fujita-san turns to look at Sora.



The scars on her tail and her right leg seem rather painful.



“Sora, how are you faring?”



‘…I’m fine.’



It’s clear that she’s putting up a front.



I hope the recovery potions that we’ve prepared would be enough to cure her…



Sora rubs her belly as if to distract herself from the pain that’s coming from the poison in her leg and tail.



(What about Peony…?)



Just like before, Peony is standing in the suburban regions.



It hasn’t recovered from its injuries yet, and a part of its body is still burning.



That said, the fire would be extinguished sooner or later.



(Its presence has changed though…)



I’m getting this tingly sensation due to Peony’s “hostility”.



There’s no room to doubt that Peony has recognized us as its “enemies”.



‘OOOOOOOOOoooooOOOOOOOoooo…’



‘LEEeeeeTTT mmmmEEEEeeee EEEeeeeaaaAAAAAAAtttttt…’



‘GYIIIIIIIIII…’



‘LeeeeeeeEEEEEET MEEEEEE EeeAAAAAATTTT….’



Armies of giant Marimos are slamming at the invisible wall of the “Safety Zone” with their tongues.



What’s the point of all this if they can’t enter?



One of the giant Marimos “explode” just as I am having such thoughts.



“Gigaa…!”



“Gaa….”



“Gyaooo….!”



Pan. Pan.



One after another, the giant Marimos begin to burst like water balloons, spraying their green bodily fluid to the surrounding. 



“Wha…?”



Nishino-kun, Fujita-san, and I are taken aback by what happens in front of us.



None of us know what’s going on.



Nevertheless—



“Hey…wait a second…”



Someone eventually says something.



They must have realized the abnormality in this “abnormal” situation.



Strange. Impossible.



“How are their fluids passing through the wall…?”



Yes, the fluids from the giant Marimos that have popped are passing through the invisible barrier of the “Safety Zone”



Jyiiuuuuuu…



The fluids sizzle on the ground before evaporating.



“—D-do not approach the fluids! Make sure you don’t breathe in the gas either!”



Fujita-san quickly gives out orders.



I expected no less from him.



Heeding his instructions, we cover our mouth and nose with our hands.



Then, we distance ourselves from the source of the gas.



The gas probably contains poison, poison that’s been inflicted to Sora.



“But how…?”



If all of this is happening because of Peony’s skill, how are the fluids entering the “Safety Zone”?



The “Safety Zone” prevents monsters from entering, and attacks from their skills will be repelled as well.



This has always been true until now, and it has saved our lives many times.



Of course, it’s not likely there aren’t any exceptions.



For example, monsters like Aka, Kiki, and Sora can temporarily enter the “Safety Zone” as “companions” if they’re in a party with humans.



If a monster is identified as a “companion”, it would be allowed to enter and exit freely.



Not only that, the monster would be able to activate its skills inside the barrier as well.



(Did someone betray us…?)



Has someone betrayed us in favor of Peony?



For a split second, the worst scenario passes through my mind.



However, I immediately dismiss this thought.



No, that can’t be it.



If someone did betray us, the giant Marimos should be able to enter as well.



Then how in the world…?



Nishino-kun, who has been deep in thought next to me, jerks his head up as if he’s come to a realization.



“C-could it be…? Kudou-san! Please try storing the ‘poison’ inside the Item Box!”



“Eh…? O-okay!”



I hold my hand over the poison, and the poison disappears from my sight.



“—! What…”



I quickly check my list of items in the Item Box.



“God Tree’s Venom 1L ×1” is displayed there.



“‘God Tree’s Venom’…?”



Nishino-kun calls out to me as I’m standing there in a shock. 



“As I thought. Kudou-san, they’re probably being treated as drop items.”



“Drop items…?”



“Think about it. We’ve been bringing back the Orcs’ knives, the Giant Ants’ shells, and the Treants’ branches to the ‘Safety Zone’. They’re all weapons and body parts of monsters.”



His words make me open my eyes.



He’s right.



He’s absolutely right.



Even without becoming our companions like Aka and Kiki, we can still bring in “parts” of monsters into the “Safety Zone”.



When monsters perish, their bodies disappear.



However, parts of their bodies that have been separated from them before their deaths get left behind. 



It’s like the Goblins’ blood on the washing machine. 



The same is true of the monsters’ weapons and Peony’s branches which were burned down by Sora’s breaths. 



We’ve subconsciously been collecting these drop items and brining them back to the “Safety Zone”.



“The giant Marimo’s fluids are probably the same. The fluids that splatter out as they explode are recognized as drop items instead of ‘monsters’. That’s why the ‘Safety Zone’ does not protect us from it…’”



“I see…”



That makes a lot of sense, but— 



“This is bad news …”



“Indeed, it is.”



A great number of Marimos have filled the surrounding areas.



Not only are they on the ground, a lot of them are floating in the sky.



“Gigiga…”



“Gigi…”



“Gigaga…!”



The giant Marimos covering the sky burst out into fluids and rain down on the “Safety Zone”.



“———”



I try to store them all into the Item Box, but the fluids are awfully hard to aim, not to mention that there are simply too many of them.



The Item Box can store rainwater collected in a bucket, but it can’t store “rain” itself.



The reason behind it is that it’s hard to tell just how much of it I’m supposed to store.



(—I won’t be able to store them all in time!)



I have no way of storing all the poison that has been spread over such a vast area.



Should I contact the others that have the Item Box?



—No, that won’t do.



Phrasing it this way might sound a bit offensive, but the level of their Item Box is much lower than mine.



They won’t be able to do anything about the situation either.



It is at such a moment that Fujita-san shouts.



“Do not panic! All non-combatants have already evacuated indoors! For the time being, they should be fine from the poison rain! Shimizu-chan and the others will take care of things on their end, so we must focus on our attacks!”



Everyone’s attention is on Fujita-san.



“But Fujita…how are we supposed to deal with so many of them…”



“Think about this calmly, Towada! With such a convenient skill at its disposal, why would Peony have waited until now to use it? It could’ve easily massacred us if it had used it from the beginning.”



We are struck dumb by his words. 



He’s right. Why did Peony save this skill until now?



With such a powerful skill, Peony could’ve used it against us much earlier on.



If Peony had activated this skill, it wouldn’t have had to suffer so much damage from us.



(—Is it because we’ve been recognized as its enemy? Is it because Peony’s finally willing to be serious…?)



No, that shouldn’t be the case.



“It didn’t use it until now…no, could it be that it couldn’t use it until now?”



“Is there a ‘risk’ that comes with using it…?”



Nishino-kun and I speak over each other. 



Our eyes meet, and we both nod.



“Sora!”



“Fujita-san!”



““Launch an attack on Peony straight away!””



Fujita-san and Sora grin at us. 



Sora unleashes her breath, and Fujita-san orders the Self Defense Force to resume the bombardment.



“GUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!”



“ATAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!”



Sora’s breath and the Self Defense Force’s bombardment pierce through the army of green and shoot towards Peony.



“~~~~~~!”



Peony defends against the breath and the artillery by sending many of its vines and roots forward.



With this, I’m convinced.



“—There’s no doubt about it.”



I clearly felt Peony’s “will” just now as it defended against the attacks. 



This is unlike before when Peony had “Automatic Defense” activated.



In other words—



“Peony cannot use ‘Automatic Defense’ at the moment.”



This is probably the price that it has to pay.



While it’s commanding the army of green, Peony cannot deploy “Automatic Defense”.



“Kudou-san.”



“Yes…”



This is a chance for us.



Now that its “Automatic Defense” is inactive, we can have Peony enjoy the full extent of our “trump card”.



The problem is with the preparation work.



We would have to think of ways to direct Peony towards where we want it to be standing.



“Kudou-san!”



I turn around when I hear someone’s voice, only to see Ichinose-san limping towards us in tatters while being supported by Rikka-chan.



“I-Ichinose-san!? What happened to you?”



She’s in an extremely sorry state.



There are tears in her clothes and blood all over her arms.



Not only that, her nails are all soaked in blood.



Despite her injuries, the corners of her mouth lift up, and Ichinose-san smiles, albeit forcibly. 



“I somehow…managed to shoot them all…”



“Eh…?”



“54 shots…Was that enough?”



It takes me a few seconds to realize what she’s on about.



“Did you… continue shooting with that monstrous rifle even after Kiki’s ‘Support Magic – Buff’ wore off?”



“Kudou-san…everyone’s doing their best…I must fulfill my role as well…ehe…”



“…!”



I gently put my hand on her back and pat her head.



“You’ve done well…thank you.”



“The last bullet was fired around 5 minutes ago. It should be ready by now.”



I had requested Ichinose-san to shoot Peony at least 20 times before Kiki’s “Support Magic -Buff” wore off.



She went above and beyond by landing more than twice that amount of shots.



It seems like she wasn’t caught even after shooting that many bullets because of the fierce battle between Peony and us.



…Even so, she has pushed herself too much.



“…Please leave the rest to us.”



“…Yes.”



Ichinose-san gives me a thumbs-up while leaning on Rikka-chan.



Thank you.



Thanks to her, we are fully prepared now.



“Nishino-kun.”



“Yes.”



Nishino-kun and I turn around to face everyone that has gathered here.



“I will now explain our ultimate strategy, so please listen carefully.”



Everyone hardens their resolve.



Will we survive, or will we lose everything?



That’s the nature of this strategy.



Peony, let’s settle this once and for all.



*****



Meanwhile—



“—Hoh, what an unexpected development.”



“It” was watching everything unfold from a distance.



“Goruoo…?”



“Yes, it’s wonderful. Better than I ever anticipated. I never thought Peony would start to regain its ‘ego’. It even had to activate ‘Fertility Eating Rye’[1], its trump card. It seems like I’ve truly underestimated the humans.”



“It” smiled and cackled gleefully.



“There would’ve been nothing we could do if it had remained intoxicated by its skills, but it’s a different story now. Hehe, good thing we didn’t leave this town.”



“Goruoo…?”



“Yes, we’re making our move as well. If things go well, we’ll be able to take ‘Gluttony’, ‘Envy’, and ‘that’ skill in one fell swoop. It’s an opportunity that we can’t afford to miss.”



With that, they also headed to the battlefield.



*****



Notice:



Skill: “Fertility Eating Rye”



A skill held by Peony.



Can spawn special units known as the “Fertility Eating Ryes”.



The number of “Fertility Eating Ryes” produced will be proportional to the amount of damage that Peony has received up to that point. This time around, 2500 units were produced.



These spawns are considered a part of Peony’s body. Hence, they will not disappear even if a long time has elapsed.



After suffering a certain amount of damage or devouring a certain amount of prey, they will burst, splattering poison around them.



Even if they are defeated, they will not provide any experience.



While the skill is being used, “Automatic Defense” will be inactive. 



TN:



[1] 豊穣喰ライ: Had no idea how to translate this, so I put it in Google Translate.