Even the full process of a human being infected by the Gastrea Virus and turning into a Gastrea had never looked as horrifying and uncanny as what was happening right now.
The shock to the eye was overwhelming. Her heart hammered—thump, thump, thump—hard and frantic, yet the hand Takatsukasa Eika held her gun with stayed rock-steady.
"BANG!"
Flame spat from the muzzle again. The black round punched straight through the piper's head—entering through the forehead and blowing out the back with a spray of bright red blood.
The piper was forced to loosen his bite from that shot, but it was already too late. Utsunomiya Taiji was beyond saving.
"…"
Utsunomiya Taiji clamped both hands over his severed throat, his eyes full of regret and the terror of death.
His mechanized body had self-repair functions, but he'd been bitten clean through the neck. There was no way it could fix a fatal wound like that before he died. At most it could delay death by a moment—just long enough to give him a chance to speak.
But with his vocal organs ruined, every sound he forced out was a struggle.
"…"
"A…"
"E… A… £…"
Then a horrifying laugh, drenched in madness, suddenly erupted—as if it wanted to blacken all reason, to drag every soul down into the abyss of frenzy.
"Hahahaha! Blood! Rusty, stinking blood spreading in my mouth! Kukuku! Hahahaha! It's so foul—so good! I need more, more, more, more, more, more—fresh children's blood! Die, die, die, die, die…!!"
The piper's head—still tethered by that length of intestine—whipped around wildly in midair, spewing jeering, crazed, delirious laughter, as if the bullet hole in his forehead hadn't affected him at all.
Filthy blood kept streaming out of that little opening, dyeing the piper's green face—twisted by mania—into a bizarre, dark red.
"This lunatic… he's like that and he's still not dead? What is he—human or a ghost?"
Eika took an involuntary step back. Fear spread through her. What was happening in front of them was even more eerie, more insane, more indescribable than Gastrea and the Gastrea Virus.
"…It's the Gastrea Virus."
Toyama Hiroki looked grim as he spoke in a low voice. "This level of immortality can only be the Gastrea Virus… damn it. Don't tell me that organization doesn't just have a way to control Gastrea—they've improved the Gastrea Virus too? Did this guy go mad from being infected with a new strain, and then get thrown away?"
Trying to explain something beyond understanding with what you already know—that was human instinct. Like using science to explain old myths and legends.
Whether Toyama Hiroki's guess was right or not, it at least pulled the three of them back toward their senses… If it wasn't some god or demon, but "just" a Gastrea, then they could win.
With three super soldiers working together, they could kill even an ordinary Stage IV. Even if this was a new strain, could its immortality really surpass a Stage IV?
Just as they were about to move, Utsunomiya Taiji suddenly did.
"I'm going to… kill you—!!"
It was like a final flare before the candle went out. Utsunomiya Taiji raised his left hand to shield his head, his right hand clenched as he punched through the air and smashed toward the piper. Pale-blue light flickered across his right arm and chest… a sign that the machinery inside him was running at overload.
BOOM!
A deep roar like artillery detonated. The piper's head—still wearing that vicious grin a heartbeat ago—was smashed into pulp by Utsunomiya Taiji's heavy punch.
"Ghh… aaagh!"
Like a beast that had lost all reason, Utsunomiya Taiji growled and swung his fists, pounding the piper's head—now nothing but a puddle of sludge—again and again, one blow after another.
"Hmph… what an ugly sight."
Eika stepped up behind the crazed Utsunomiya Taiji and leveled her gun at the back of his head.
"Since we were teammates, I'll help you end this pain… no need to thank me. Once you're down there, even if you do thank me, I won't be able to hear it."
The instant her words fell—
Gunfire cracked.
BANG!
The bullet went straight through Utsunomiya Taiji's head. With his neck already severed, the impact launched his head clean off; it rolled several times across the ground slick with filthy blood.
And once he'd lost his head, Utsunomiya Taiji's burly body toppled limply to the floor.
Then Eika picked up that miraculous flute, intending to bring it back for the organization to study—see if they could uncover how the piper had controlled rats and rat-type Gastrea.
"What do we do about these bodies?" Otagawa Yuya looked at the scattered gore all around them, troubled. "All this flesh is infected with the Gastrea Virus. If other rats eat it, they might turn into new Gastrea."
"But we can't clean all this up," Toyama Hiroki replied. "That would take too long. And to clean it properly, we'd need fire—burn it all down to ash. We didn't bring a flamethrower."
Hearing that, Eika suggested, "I've got bombs loaded with Varanium. After we leave, we'll use those to blow this place up. Even if it doesn't destroy every last piece, at least it'll bury everything."
"…That's the only option."
After that, they set the charges while talking about the flute.
Toyama Hiroki asked curiously, "This flute seems like it can control all rats. Want to test it here?"
Eika looked utterly, absolutely disgusted. "No way! That psycho's been using it who knows how long—it's definitely covered in his spit, and it's soaked up the stench in here. It even fell on the ground earlier. Just thinking about it makes me feel dirty."
Otagawa Yuya nodded. "Same. Even if you washed it after bringing it back, I still wouldn't dare put it to my mouth."
As for Utsunomiya Taiji's corpse, the three of them unanimously decided to leave it here.
Reason one: hauling a corpse around would be a massive hassle. If a fight broke out again, it would be dead weight.
Reason two: his body contained cutting-edge technology belonging to Goshoukai. Letting it be consumed by the explosion ensured that tech wouldn't fall into outsiders' hands.
Reason three: his body contained a lot of Varanium, which would strengthen the explosion's lethality against Gastrea and the Gastrea Virus.
"Still… that freak really scared me," Eika said, lingering dread in her voice. "To be alive with only a head…"
"…No." She swallowed. "I don't even know if you can call that 'alive.'"
"But he should be dead for real now. It's been a while and there's no movement." Otagawa Yuya glanced at the puddle of rotten flesh on the ground. "Even if he wasn't completely dead, once the bombs go off, he will be."
After all the charges were set, the three of them followed the only path forward, continuing the search for Nursery Rhyme.
Not long after they left, several little rats came through the pipes to the place where corpses were piled. Some scurried to the piper's ruined flesh; others went to the head of the already-dead Utsunomiya Taiji.
They tore into the meat, feasting—while also crawling into Utsunomiya Taiji's mouth, eyes, ears, and other openings.
Not long after, every bomb around them detonated. Firelight and scorching wind swallowed everything in an instant…
The three who'd set the charges were already out of the sewer.
Once outside, they realized they were inside a room—and they saw Nursery Rhyme again. She stood at the doorway, looking at them with a puzzled expression.
"So sad, so sad. The killed, the discarded… their souls go uncared for. I can hear beasts wailing and evil spirits' hatred echoing through this lost kingdom. Their souls twist more and more each day, unable to reach the rest they deserve…"
Otagawa Yuya answered in a low voice, "Regrettably, we don't believe in souls or rest. In this world, death means falling into nothingness—nothing remains. Rebirth and retribution are nothing but crude lies."
Nursery Rhyme shook her head, her clear voice ringing out. "Whether you believe it or not, I'm just explaining the rules of the game. I really want you to keep me company a little longer. If you bow out early just because you don't understand the rules, it'll be so boring."
"A game…" Toyama Hiroki stared straight into Nursery Rhyme's eyes—those eyes brimming with childlike innocence—his brow tightly furrowed. "So many people died on our side, and to you it's just a game?"
"Mm… I don't really get what you mean." Nursery Rhyme tilted her head in confusion. "If it's a game, then isn't it normal for people to die? As long as you have a save file, there's nothing to be afraid of. When you restart the game, you can revive."
Those innocent words felt more cruel than anything. That adorable smile felt more terrifying than anything. The three of them looked at Nursery Rhyme and felt a chill crawl up their insides.
It was as if they weren't facing a young girl at all—
But a writhing mass of madness.
Driven by the intense unease in her chest, Eika drew and fired without hesitation.
BANG!
The bullet flew past Nursery Rhyme. Nursery Rhyme kept smiling from start to finish, as if she didn't care in the slightest whether it might hit her.
"Looks like onii-chan and onee-chan have finally perked up. That's wonderful." Clasping her hands before her chest, Nursery Rhyme beamed. "Then let's continue this delightful game!"
Before her words had even fully landed, Toyama Hiroki had already charged at her—only for the door in front of him to slam shut on its own.
He threw a punch. The super soldier's monstrous strength shattered the wooden door instantly. When he burst out of the room, he found the house they were in was fairly large. Just on the first floor alone, there were countless doors in every direction—and on the staircase to the second floor not far away, he caught sight of Nursery Rhyme.
How could she get that far in an instant…?
Toyama Hiroki didn't have time to think. He bolted after her.
The other two rushed out after him and also saw Nursery Rhyme on the stairs. Eika, as if refusing to believe it, drew and fired again—yet the bullets, as if they had minds of their own, all slipped past Nursery Rhyme without so much as grazing a hair.
"Damn it—why can't I hit her?!" Eika cursed under her breath, then holstered her gun and sprinted after them.
By the time the three reached the second floor, Nursery Rhyme had vanished from right under their noses again.
But the second floor was different from the first—there was only one large door in front of them. Unless there was some hidden passage, the only place Nursery Rhyme could have gone was inside that room.
But when they shoved the door open, they didn't see Nursery Rhyme.
They only saw a black-and-red giant with his back to them.
"Women… women… I need women… why is there no woman who can satisfy me…?"
The giant muttered to himself, then turned around and noticed Toyama Hiroki and the others.
At the same time, the three of them finally got a clear look at him.
He was an ugly giant with black-red skin and no clothes. His face had four eyes. His teeth were like iron nails, and with every breath he exhaled scorching white vapor.
"Who are you… to dare invade my bedchamber? You deserve death…"
All at once, the giant's gaze locked onto Takatsukasa Eika.
That stare raked over her entire body—hot enough to make her skin crawl.
"A woman! It's a woman! Hahahaha! A woman's delivered herself to me!"
"Eek—!!"
Eika recoiled in pure reflex, terrified by the giant's hideous appearance and the lust dripping from his voice. To her, this giant was even more disgusting than the rats in the sewer.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
She aimed at the giant advancing toward them and fired again and again. The bullets sparked off his body, but didn't deal so much as a scratch.
"Hahaha! Useless, useless!" the giant mocked, pride ringing in his voice. "See? This divine, peerless armor—so wondrous only idiots can't see it! As long as I wear this armor, I am invincible! You must worship me! Kneel in fear! I am the absolute sovereign!"
He said that, but the three of them couldn't see any armor on him at all.
Was that black-red skin itself what he meant by "armor"?
Thunderous laughter echoed through the room. The giant reached toward Eika—only to run into an invisible resistance.
Otagawa Yuya had stepped in front of her, his repulsion force field already deployed.
"Get out of the way! My palace is not a place for filthy men like you to set foot!"
The giant flew into a rage and swung his club down with crushing force.
That monstrous strength instantly blew past the repulsion field's limit. Otagawa Yuya was blasted backward, slamming hard into the wall behind him.
"Even the defensive field… can't block his attack? This monster…"
At the same moment, Toyama Hiroki seized the opening created by the giant's strike on Otagawa Yuya. His fist, wrapped in a gust of force, drove straight into the giant's abdomen.
BOOM!
An explosion-like impact burst at the point of contact. The giant took a single step back—while Toyama Hiroki, the attacker, was hurled away, tumbling messily across the floor.
"Didn't I tell you it's useless? You idiots who can't understand human speech! Yes, you're all idiots! That's why you can't see the invincible armor I'm wearing!"
The giant bellowed at full volume, as if Toyama Hiroki's punch hadn't affected him at all.
---
T/N: 4 chaps meeting this weeks quota, last week it was 7dtd this week it was tomodachi life..... teehee
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
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