Chapter 121 - An Unexpected Helper

'...Wow, you couldn't leave my body alone even in this condition, huh...?' Jay thought as he looked at the history of messages that had come in while he was unconscious.

From the system trying to take control of his body, to the optimization of his body, Jay had now seen it all, including, of course, the fact that apparently the system could now also control his little ones.

However, that wasn't all, but a certain particular notification window popped up after the optimization ended.

_____________________

[The [Optimization: Chimera Poison] has been successfully performed.]

[Because the changes are numerous, the [Carrier] must open his status window to be able to observe all the details.]

_____________________

Considering that the system in the first place had been trying to make him able to withstand the chimera poison, Jay couldn't help but raise his expectations at this.

The next moment, he opened his status window.

_____________________

[Parasyte System]

Carrier: Jay Sacrest

[Status]

Strength: (D+)

Agility: (D+)

Resistance: (D++)

[Hosts]

Parasites Available: 25 (Original)

Two types of host have been identified:

[Esper] (+1% improvement in the assimilation process)

[Pugilist] (+1% improvement in the assimilation process)

[Skills]

Wind Control (D-): (97%)

Regeneration (Passive) (D-): (55%)

Core (Incomplete): +5% to the total energy of the [Carrier].

Overload (System Ability): The parasites inside the carrier's body temporarily become a part of the carrier's body, allowing him to double his statistics for 8 seconds in exchange for all the energy available in his body. (Only available if there are at least 10 parasites in the carrier's body.)

Available Skills:

Currently there are no skills available to assimilate.

[Traits]

Immunity to Poison (Human Version): An artificial Trait product of the system trying to adapt the body of the [Carrier] to a specific type of poison. Although the final result was not what the system was looking for, it fulfills its function, (85% Immunity to poisons harmful to humans. 15% Chance to produce a random type of poison.)

_____________________

"...This ...this ...is amazing!" Jay shouted suddenly sitting up, on his face a bright smile of genuine happiness.

Of course, this was an understandable reaction, after all, not only had his stamina increased to being just one step away from rank (C-), but he had even acquired a Trait!

What did it matter that it was artificial, the effects were incredible, and what was more important, it was his first Trait!

Though if anything was clear, it was that now that he knew the system was capable of developing Traits, it definitely wouldn't be his last.

"...Hm?"

At that moment, however, as he was about to focus on the other aspects of his status window that had changed, Jay noticed something odd, and that was the state of his body.

He remembered the fight with the chimera very well, and among the many attacks he had suffered to achieve victory, there were two that had undoubtedly damaged him the most.

In the first place would be the hit he received in his side, with which Jay could clearly feel how something fractured inside him, causing him such a great pain that he was only endure thanks to the fact that he had experienced something worse... the [Limit Breaker].

And secondly, although it might have gone unnoticed at first glance, was his left leg, which he had had to partially sacrifice in order to trick the chimera.

While he had managed to avoid receiving a direct hit from the bullet the chimera had launched, it still managed to graze his left leg, creating a wound that had narrowly missed tearing off his entire calf.

Normally he would have preferred not to have to use such methods to win, since even with his regeneration, that would mean staying a good while at rest, but thanks to the dangerousness of the situation, he had no choice.

However, now checking his body from head to toe, he couldn't find a single bruise or cut, let alone a fracture or the horrific wound on his left leg.

'Heh, although it normally sounds so cold and was even threatening to take control of my body, the kindness of the system really knows no bounds!" Thought Jay as a feeling of gratitude formed inside him, 'Well, I guess I'd better wake up the others-'

*CHAK*

"..."

Just as Jay stood up, the sensation of stepping on something slimy, accompanied with its corresponding sound, reached Jay's ears.

Perhaps because he had been excited, he hadn't noticed his surroundings, or rather, the place he was standing on.

Slowly moving his gaze downward, Jay could see what was without a doubt a scene worthy of a horror movie... or what one would see if they walked into a butcher shop.

The chimera's body, which had been face up and intact except for its skull, now lay completely open, with the arms and legs being the most affected places, with only bones inside.

Immediately, Jay's expression froze, partly thanks to the scene in front of him, as he definitely wasn't expecting such a grotesque sight, but mainly, because this created an incredibly serious problem.

'AND NOW HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO EXPLAIN THIS!?' Jay thought.

He knew that even if there was no teacher nearby, by the time his classmates woke up, the appearance of the chimera would no longer be a secret known only to the ones present in the farming fields.

Of course, Jay had no problem with this, indeed, he even planned to explain how he had managed to defeat the chimera by omitting certain details and adding others to make it more believable.

However, now that the chimera's body had been desecrated in such a way, no matter what excuse he gave, anyone would realize that something strange had happened, which would definitely raise suspicions.

This was not an outcome Jay wanted, so he was forced to think of another way to deal with the chimera's corpse.

"...I'll bury it! ...I should still have some time before they wake up... let's see, where did I see some shovels...I think over there."

With those words as his last, Jay then quickly headed off to get a shovel, he knew he didn't have much time, so he quickened his pace even more, moving away from the area in seconds.

Thanks to that haste, he couldn't notice that, a few feet away from where the chimera's body was, space could be seen fluctuating strangely, as if something was hidden in plain sight.

Then, for a brief moment, in the same spot, Faith's translucent figure appeared in the farm fields, her eyes riveted on Jay's back.

"U-ugh."

At that moment, a student then showed signs of awakening.

*Bam!*

"Ack!"

But before he could fully awaken, a slender hand suddenly appeared from nowhere and delivered a blow to the back of his head, forcing him to fall unconscious again.

"..."

Making sure that the student was truly unconscious, Faith then let out a small sigh.

Unexpectedly, it seemed that Jay, thanks to this unknown helper, had bought himself a little more time.

***

While Jay took care of disposing of the chimera's body, Vedran, who had been running at full speed on his way to the bronze city, had already covered a good distance.

Right now he was running along a relatively new road that was positioned in the middle of two forests, which meant that the road was not completely smooth and had the occasional pothole, making it a somewhat tedious task to pass through here..

Despite this, thanks to his strong physique enhanced by his skill, there were barely a couple of beads of sweat on his face even in these conditions.

At this rate, there was no doubt that he would soon reach the city.

*CRASH!*

"!"

However, a loud sound coming from the forest to his right then interrupted him.

Vedran quickly stopped, shifting his full attention to the forest, his ability further empowering his body by reflex.

It was an aggressive reaction, but there was a reason for this, and it was because the sound was identical to the one the chimera in the farm fields had made when it appeared.

So fearing that it was another chimera suddenly attacking, Vedran prepared for the worst, though it didn't take long before he realized some vital information.

"No, wait, what am I doing, if it really is a chimera then I'd better get away!" Vedran said, remembering the effect of the purple smoke from the other chimera.

Thereupon, Vedran again started running towards the city, this time at a much faster speed than before.

*CRASH!*

"RHAAAAAAAAGH!!!"

Just as he had feared, the cause of those sounds had been none other than another chimera.

Both its size and appearance were different from the one he had seen before, with this chimera reaching nearly 6 meters tall and having a body that seemed to be made up mainly of parts of a lion and a bear.

However, if one had to mention something in which it resembled the previous one, that would undoubtedly be the thick cloud of smoke that surrounded it, which threatened to only be equal to or stronger than that of the other chimera, not weaker.

Seeing this, Vedran wasted no time in increasing his pace, relieved that he had not stayed to fight.

To his bad luck, the chimera had noticed him, and turning its large body, began to chase him.

Despite its large size, its speed was no joking matter, Vedran estimated that if it wasn't for him using his ability to improve his physical skills, the chimera would undoubtedly manage to catch him.

"I just have to keep up, it shouldn't be long before I reach the city." Vedran said, reaching the city being his goal and greatest cause for relief.

This chase went on for a short time, in which neither wanted to give up, until finally, the chimera's heavy footsteps stopped, indicating that it was no longer pursuing Vedran.

This, of course, served to reassure him further, so confidently, Vedran turned for a moment to see how far away from the chimera he had gotten.

The moment he did so, however, he could see the chimera, with one arm stretched back and holding a large stone, suddenly hurl it in his direction.

"Sh-!"

*CRASH!*

With a thunderous sound, the stone impacted directly into Vedran, who although had managed to put his arms in front of him to protect himself at the last moment, had gone flying anyway until he had crashed hard into a nearby tree.

"A-Agh...!"

Vedran couldn't help but let out a groan of pain, the product of not only his arms, but various parts of his body having taken a great deal of damage.

*Bam*

On the other hand, the chimera, seeing that its attack had been successful, began to approach Vedran at a relatively fast pace.

It was clear that if he didn't do something soon, he would definitely lose his life, so Vedran, despite the pain he was feeling, tried to move.

"Argh!"

His body was in agony, letting out worrying sounds with every little movement Vedran made.

But still, Vedran kept moving, no matter that his body was in agony, no matter that he couldn't feel his arms or legs, he was going to stand up!

"ARRRGGGGHHH!!!! I... WON'T DIE HERE!!!"

Letting out a scream that contained his will to live, at the same time as he stood up and his blood was boiling, his vision turned red.

And in that world now of red, the first thing that entered his field of vision was his arms, which were undoubtedly broken in a gruesome way.

It was a sight that made Vedran incredibly angry.

Immediately, the blood in his body began to move violently, rushing to his arms and, with a sudden movement, crashing against his broken bones, putting them back into their original position.

This caused another wave of pain that flooded his mind and body, but regardless of this, Vedran merely gritted his teeth and repeated this process throughout his entire body.

Although it might seem that he was healing, Vedran himself knew that this, in reality, was far from being a solution, the wounds and fractures were not going away, they were still there, threatening every moment to return to their original state.

However, Vedran would not allow that to happen.

The whole process took only a few seconds, but it was enough for the chimera to get to where he was.

*Swoosh!

A stream of air passed through, carrying the purple smoke the chimera exhaled directly into Vedran's face, causing his mind to blur.

The chimera, seeing its prey dizzy, took the opportunity to attack, quickly moving its two arms to catch him so it could begin its feast.

*Bam!*

But the next moment, instead of grabbing Vedran's sides, its hands were intercepted by Vedran's, who despite being dizzy, had moved to counterattack, taking the chimera by surprise.

Then, using his ability to strengthen his body, and specifically his muscles, Vedran proceeded to tighten his grip with all his might.

*CRACK!

"RUOOOOOOAHHHHHH!!!!"

Apparently, this time, it was the chimera's turn to scream in pain.