Chapter 47

Chapter 47

They were on the stairs leading down to the first floor. Thankfully, both of them didn’t appear to have any significant injuries.

[ZZZ ZZZ(Well done)]

「Big baby, you’re bleeding」

Number 26 expressed concern when it saw my body riddled with holes. It tried to extend its tentacles to lick my wounds, but I quickly withdrew.

[ZZZZ ZZZ Z ZZZZ (My blood is dangerous)]

「?」

I gestured towards the droplets of blood on the floor. The creature in front of me, with a peculiar nod, seemed to understand.

「Understood.」

[ZZ (Yes)]

Before the enemies could catch up, I checked my body. The tentacles were severely damaged and would take more than an hour to recover. The penetrated areas were healing as new flesh grew, but it would take about 10 minutes to fully repair.

‘The injuries are worse than I thought, but the operation went well.’

There were only two police officers and one android left as enemies. Thanks to the police officer controlled by the parasite who shot his own colleague, we had one less enemy to deal with.

Unfortunately, the android quickly dealt with them, so we couldn’t expect more significant results.

‘There are three enemies left.’

Ideally, we would face them one-on-one, but that wasn’t possible. The first-floor enemies weren’t foolish. By now, they would have realized we weren’t alone and would come prepared.

‘I have regenerative abilities, but they don’t. Unlike me, Number 26 and Adhai won’t recover from critical injuries. A gunshot wound is potentially fatal, and if it’s severe, they could die.’

‘I might have superior regenerative abilities, but...’

We can’t tell whether they have that trait or not, so we can’t rush into a fight.

‘Should I use the monster’s tentacles?’

The enemies on the first floor have been taken care of, and the remaining enemies are gathered on the second floor. They can’t move freely like me, so they’ll likely come through the corridor. If I use the monster’s tentacles to fire a psychic breath in the corridor, the enemies won’t be able to escape total annihilation.

‘The downside is that it’s impossible to deal with unexpected situations.’

After using the psychic breath, I’ll be temporarily incapacitated. It lasts roughly between 3 to 5 minutes.

‘The enemies are also in a disadvantageous position, so they probably requested reinforcements earlier. Delaying further would make things harder when the enemies increase.’

The new reinforcements will likely be several times greater. With my current abilities, it won’t be easy to annihilate all of them.

‘Let’s use the monster’s tentacles.’

Coincidentally, the enemies are approaching, following the traces of acidic blood on the floor.

Before welcoming them, I instructed Number 26 and Adhai.

[ZZZ Z ZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ (I’ll be momentarily weakened after this attack)]

「?」

[ZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZ ZZZZZZ (You’ll have to protect me this time.)]

「Big baby, are you growing again?」

[ZZZZ ZZZ ZZZZ ZZ (No, it’s different this time)]

「Got it. I’ll protect the big baby.」

「I」 「Don’t」 「understand」.

「The big baby is a baby, so he takes naps sometimes.」

「Understood.」

It’s not really a nap, but there’s probably no need to explain.

I pushed them back and extended my head down the hallway to assess the enemies. As soon as anything popped out, they fired armor-piercing rounds.

Thanks to the strong exterior of my head, it didn’t turn into a beehive, but the pain didn’t entirely go away.

‘...I need a better armor strategy.’

Several possible gene essences that could be obtained in this city come to mind, but right now, I’m in the middle of a battle. Clearing my mind, I used the walls and the outer shell of my head as cover, firing controlled bone shots at the enemies.

“Dammit!”

“Please use me as cover for shooting.”

“I know!”

The police officers cursed as the spines flew towards them. The androids, having lost their ranged weapons, were now using the power bunker to break through the concrete wall and use it as cover.

It seemed like a good idea, but it was clear that our opponent was formidable. The cover was meaningless against Psychic Breath.

I activated the monster’s tentacle, and the long tentacle that reached my shoulder began to move slowly.

‘Huh?’

In an instant, I felt a sudden depletion of energy throughout my body, which almost made me collapse in place. The glossy exterior I had moments ago turned pale, and the powerful tail that had been at its peak collapsed onto the ground.

‘...This consumes an enormous amount of energy.’

It felt like all the energy that had been flowing through my entire body had been sucked into my head. From my claws, tail, four combat arms, even the little arm on my chest, all the strength was drawn in, and the tentacle that had absorbed almost all of my power shone with a distinct purple hue. There was so much psychic power concentrated at the end of the tentacle that even a human with limited psychic detection abilities could feel it.

The tentacles, which had accumulated an immense amount of energy to the point where the air crackled, all pointed forward and concentrated their ends.

“High-level psychic power detected. Evacuate immediately.”

“What?!”

The purple radiance flowing from the tentacle tips converged in mid-air. The enemies desperately tried to retreat, but it was too late.

In the dark corridor, a subtle purple glow permeated, and the gathered energy in mid-air was finally released.

‘Hmm? Where have I seen him before?’

William had an excellent memory when it came to people, considering his work on the detective team. Although he didn’t recognize the man’s face, his physique seemed familiar.

‘He’s not from the Harbor District, but where have I seen him?’

He had met this person recently.

“We have a car waiting outside. Follow me.”

“Okay, just let me grab my things.”

In any case, he had to report to the higher-ups quickly, so William only gathered a few belongings and followed the man.

During their journey, there were medical androids working the night shift who tried to stop them, but they encountered no issues. The individual guiding William had displayed his police electronic badge and provided identification, which was sufficient to allow them to proceed.

Once they reached the parking lot outside the hospital, the police officer pressed a button on his car key. The headlights of a regular car, not a police car, blinked in the distance.

“Get in.”

Seating himself in the driver’s seat, the police officer said nothing more.

‘Why aren’t we in a police car if we’re going to report to the higher-ups?’

William felt puzzled. It appeared that they were not currently carrying out official police duties. The officer’s attitude indicated a lack of interest in potentially deceiving him for nefarious purposes.

William reached into his pocket and grasped the laser pistol he had concealed.

‘The electronic badge he showed to the androids is different, but I also have one.’

The badge the officer had displayed was different in format, but William possessed the same kind. This electronic badge, used by law enforcement authorities, contained a unique ID and pattern that made replication or forgery impossible. Additionally, if someone else attempted to use the badge for identification, alarms would immediately sound, rendering theft and use by others unfeasible.

Although the officer’s behavior was unusual, as long as he held the badge, William was certain he was indeed a police officer.

After a brief moment of contemplation, he eventually got into the car. The police vehicle, with William on board, left the dimly lit parking lot behind. Leaving the brightly lit hospital behind them, the car navigated the midnight roads.

The car ride was silent. The police officer simply focused on driving, while William continued to wonder about the identity of his companion.

‘If the last person I saw from the Global Security Team was... Could this be an armed policeman?’

“You...”

“We’ve arrived.”

William, who had just thought of asking a question, saw that the car had stopped. Looking outside, he realized that they were not in the administrative district.

A quiet street with no one in sight, dark alleys, and a nearby manhole.

‘This is the border between zones, right?’

It was a place William was familiar with, serving as the border between the residential and harbor districts. Because it straddled both areas, the respective security teams often avoided patrolling here, making it ironically a place where crimes happened if people forgot about it. There were no cameras or streetlights.

“Get out.”

“What is this all about?”

Quickly, William drew his laser pistol and aimed it at the officer’s throat.

Now he remembered. The person with him was one of the armed police officers who had been dispatched to capture the monster at Apartment C-3. At that time, he had been wearing a helmet and a mask, preventing William from seeing his face clearly, but now he recognized him.

“Get out, and you’ll find out everything.”

“What do you mean?”

The officer, or rather, Number 103, didn’t offer any resistance. He just kept repeating that William would find out everything once he got out.

“What could it be?”

William had seen what had happened to Number 103. He had shot his own colleague under the influence of an unknown organism.

“I’m sorry, Captain.”

“What?”

“It’s already too late.”

In the dark car, he turned his head towards William and chuckled. Number 103 was looking at William’s face, or more precisely, at what was behind him.

‘Behind?’

Before William could turn to look, it was too late. The sound of the passenger window breaking accompanied a sharp object piercing William’s neck from behind.

As soon as he felt a stinging pain, he realized his entire body was paralyzed. He couldn’t move a muscle, not even his fingers to squeeze the trigger on his laser pistol.

Then a powerful force pulled him out of the car. He was thrown to the ground, but there was no pain.

Finally, William came face to face with “it.” Four thick toes that resembled hooves at a glance, reverse joints that seemed completely different from a human’s, and muscular layers to support the heavy body.

A long, thick tail that seemed like it could be used as a belt dangled near the hip area. The legs were covered in armor-like outer skin from the waist to the chest. Small arms sprouted from the chest area.

The creature had more than just arms. In addition to what would be equivalent to human arms, there were two pairs of arms positioned at the shoulders and armpits. While they resembled the smaller arms, they were much larger in size. Among the arms, the one beneath the left arm was uniquely different, featuring a long, rod-like structure in place of a hand.

The fingers attached to the ends of the other arms numbered four, and their nails were hook-like and sharp, making them appear highly threatening.

Up to this point, the creature’s appearance was already nightmarish, but what truly horrified William was its head. The head was reminiscent of reptilian creatures, but with two horns, an outer covering that resembled a helmet encompassing the entire head, and a cluster of tentacles at the back of the head, this creature could by no means be considered typical in any sense.

Number 103 got out of the car and knelt before the creature.

“I’ve brought him as ordered.”

The creature briefly glanced at him, then turned its gaze back to William.

The creature opened its mouth, revealing sharp teeth.

“I never miss my prey.”

The voice that flowed from the creature’s mouth was eerily familiar. It was the voice of 112, one of the police officers who had entered the building during the operation.

As the creature’s head approached, William let out a scream. However, there was no one to hear his scream except for himself.

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