Chapter 428 No Longer Human (IV)

Swimming through the shadows that danced down on the black, metallic floor of the warehouse quarters, he caught up with the two, masked low-ranking members who carried the mysterious jars.

This led him into an area past the warehouse, quietly lurking behind the two as a single bridge expanded over a vast canyon.

'--What is this?' He thought.

For a moment, he stopped when walking onto the metallic bridge, looking down at the abyss below, finding it even more unbelievable just what sort of vastness the base held. It felt as though there was too much of the area to explore and find out information on, and not enough time to do so.

Continuing to follow the two low-ranking members across the bridge, he lurked in the very shadows they created, not having to move as he simply tagged along their path. Across the abyssal bridge, only one door was found on the other end, etched into a wall built of circular, metallic rims.

"...Almost there," the masked woman said, shuddering at the thought.

"Just stay focused. You know how Krimjaw is–if he senses weakness, you're done for," the masked man told the woman.

The door was nothing less than ominous, kept secured by arm-shaped, stone arms that unwrapped themselves as the masked member stepped close to it.

"Open," the man commanded nervously.

Jin stayed within the shadows, watching the unorthodox door unseal itself. As it opened, the veteran instincts of the man flared up, sensing something deeply disturbing laying beyond that door.

'...This mana signature, it's rotten. It's human, but doesn't feel like it–far too cold and relentless, more like a human-loathing monster than anything else,' he thought.

Nonetheless, he betrayed the warnings given by his own instincts as he silently followed the two grunts beyond the door, entering into an odd facility tucked away within the base. Metal tubes ran along the walls and the floor, which was slick with blood and grime.

"Eugh..." The masked woman shuddered as she walked down the hall.

"Stay calm," the masked man whispered.

In his experience, all of the members of the nefarious organization that Jin encountered were death-welcoming lunatics; to see a pair of them frightened to the core by one of their own was something he didn't expect.

"Ghh—"

Without intending to, he unintentionally let out a wince as his chest tightened with another set of heart pains.

The sound he made immediately alerted the two grunts of the mysterious group, who turned around at the same time.

"What was that?" The masked woman asked.

The masked man looked around for a second, unable to see the figure that was hiding within the shadows themselves, "...don't know, probably something of Krinjaw's. Let's go."

"Right..." The woman hesitantly continued.

"Yes, yes, yes–it's here, it's here–I cannot wait any longer!" Krimjaw excitedly said to himself as his wicked words echoed throughout the chamber.

All Jin could do was watch as the eccentric figure unscrewed the lids to the jars, which caused steam to release from the magically-sealed containers.

"Carefully now, remove the contents," Krimjaw commanded to seemingly nobody.

Around the table that the jars sat on, an odd mechanism made out of light-gray wood activated; artificial arms made out of the wooden material moved as their mechanical limbs cracked. From what the half-elf man could observe through the shadows, the set of a dozen, long arms of wood were empowered by a large core in the form of a white-and-black magic rune.

'A sort of golem? Never seen one like that,' Jin thought.

The wooden hands reached down into the jars, slowly removing the drenched contents inside: a pitch-black heart and a blackened liver.

Jin's eyes immediately widened at the sight of it, taken aback by the wicked items, "--?!"

"There it is! I feared it was lost in the aftermath of that unfortunate battle: the flesh of Dread itself!" Krimjaw said in delight, caressing the accursed organs.

Hearing the name that rang like taboo to the eyes of the stealth adventurer caused the hairs on his arm to stand up as a chill ran up his spine.

'Dread?...The Aspect that escaped during the last world-class trial? How the hell did they get their hands on that, wasn't Dread erased by one of the rookies? Either way, this is bad–I feel it in my gut,' Jin thought.

Every fiber of his being wanted to act, feeling as though it was deathly necessary, right then, at that very moment, to strike Krimjaw down. It wasn't as though he knew what threat the mere organs of Dread held, but the impossible horrors of all spectrums was understood; he knew well that the Children of Chaos could not be predicted–and that was their true weapon.

Just watching the thin, goggle-wearing figure gawk at the accursed pieces of flesh made his skin crawl as he manifested his shadow daggers into his grip.

'Just one strike. One strike and I can end this,' he thought.

Focusing himself, he prepared to strike down the figure who was too busy being enamored with the accursed organs, however–Jin found himself paused at the sight of something else, past Krimjaw.

Suspended in one of the liquid-filled tubes was a young girl with long, silver hair that seemed to subtly glow like a night star. Compared to the abhorrent creations in the other containers, she seemed completely unchanged.

'A girl? It doesn't look like he's gotten to her yet–shit...' He thought.

BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP. BA-DUMP.

Before taking any action, he sat against one of the containers while staying hidden, holding his own chest as his chest tightened with an inevitable condition. It was a painful development for him, finding something that can be saved amongst the terror of the hideout.

For the half-elf man, he already accepted this mission to be his last, forsaking any chance of leaving the Godless Continent, however–the existence of the lone girl gave him something to protect.

Glancing at the unconscious girl that was suspended in that clear-glass container, he felt a heartwarming nostalgia when seeing her, reminded of a younger sister he hadn't seen in some time.

'...I can't just abandon her. Not in a place like this. Nobody deserves that,' he decided.

–Still, this didn't change what needed to happen. As he gripped the daggers forged out of shadows, he waited for his perfect moment to strike before–

"I see you."