As the noises fade, the bloody mess around the room also evaporates like melted cheese until the illusion is finally gone. It was all a ruse after all, something that a Zystem could only do.
Zeth finally mellowed down, but there is still a sense of dread looming, and he can feel it.
Zach was just standing still and doing nothing a second ago, but now they have the underling under their spell. Fearful for his life.
Zeth doesn't know if he should be afraid or impressed. But, for now, he thought about how lucky he is that Zach is on his side.
"Alright! Let's ask that dude some questions."
Zach brushes off his hands, walking past Zeth, who was frozen in fear. Zach lightens up the mood by playfully tapping Zeth on the shoulder.
[We should eat him… Or get his hands!]
Shut up!
Zeth looks up, striking a quick observation of Zach's whole being. After the display of power, Zeth thought that he was with a different person.
Zach stands near the frightened enemy, and he puts himself close enough for it to be on edge.
"I want to ask your name, but asking what you are is a better question, yeah?"
Zach crouches down, trying to get a better look at the now pitiful creature that was just horrifying to look at a minute ago.
The creature winces like a man, but acts petrified like an animal. It slowly raises its head, trying to get a better look at Zach in the eye.
"T-This is my Zystem… I create illusions! I project illusions to make me look strong and scary! I manipulate what you see and hear! The noises you've been hearing lately? That was all me! Please don't kill me!"
It spoke gravely. Its raspy voice was shaken.
[That's a Zystem? Ha! You were scared shitless, Zeth! Let's get that!]
"That's why your appearance did not match your weak undead aura. Your threat level is probably Solo-Z only. Listen, I want to know some things, so it's better if you answer truthfully, alright? But first, can you transform back to normal, please?"
"Y-yes."
The creature nods, sits up, wincing as it does so, then its skin sheds away, crumbling like ashes. Beneath its grotesque look, a frail-looking man emerges. There is nothing notable in his features, but he appears to be the average citizen.
"Now, tell me, how did you infiltrate the city so easily?"
"W-we are accompanied by our boss! He- He's pretty strong, you see… Also, there was a hole in your walls thanks to our two scouts who went in first… After that, we just kinda rushed here with Zypno's horde! Please don't kill me!"
The man answers, his voice cracking, a stark contrast to his monstrous form.
"Just for one newborn? Why are you guys doing so much effort, and why here, inside the inner city? Those rich people will probably kill you guys rather than me!"
Zach follows up on the answer, rubbing his chin with such curiosity.
"Y-Yes! It's been that way even before I became part of the kidnapping missions, so I don't know. But it's true! That's how we get newborns and raise our underling army! We went for the inner walls because we know you have our Zion… We want him back!"
"Underling army? Were you kidnapped and brainwashed like the reports say?"
"N-no, I was born in a city."
The man was quick to answer, fearful for his life.
"Well, Zion's on our side now. So, now what?"
"Oh… I don't know."
The man's breathing sounded upset.
"Alright, one last question. Did you encounter a woman with a fan for a weapon? You know, that's her Meltdown."
"N-no…"
"Thank you!"
"I have a question for you as well. Which city do you serve?"
Zeth tries to chime in, and the man turns to him, ready to answer.
Zach stands up, stretching his legs, and lets out a groan. Then, while looking at Zeth, he puts his hand sign again, aiming at the man.
"No! No! Wait!"
The man shouted, in rage and fear, and he tried to use his illusions in desperation to live.
Then he imploded, his entrails spread everywhere, except at Zach and Zeth's immediate space.
"Two more to go."
Zach yawns. He couldn't help but get bored.
Zeth couldn't believe it - how easy it was for someone to vanish like that. Witnessing it for the second time still makes him sick, but he could digest the fear a little bit.
"Why would you do that!?"
Enraged and in confused fright, Zeth shouted at Zach.
"No time for useless answers. We need to keep going. We have to check if Zephyr and the others are safe!"
Zach said in his usual upbeat tone. He started walking away from the scene, stepping on the leftovers of the man he had just erased from existence.
Zeth felt stressed, and his breathing was labored. He was frustrated with how everything had been happening recently. He looks around, trying to find evidence or clues that he can salvage. Somewhere on the floor, the man's eyeball rolls near him.
[You're not seriously thinking about that, are you?]
Zeth glances at Zach, who is gaining distance away from him, then shifts his stare back at the eyeball, thinking.
…
"My minions! Eat that old bastard!"
Zypno cackles desperately as he commands his horde. The obedient Zenos rushes towards a mound filled with the undead, piling relentlessly on the ever-replicating Hannibal.
"How's that?! You think you can sneak a punch and scar my beautiful face?!"
The horde of Zenos growls and claws its way inside the mound.
Meanwhile, underneath the pile, sits Hannibal, pondering in a cross-legged position. He sits in a dome created by his copies, protecting the original. Every second, a clone of his dies and disappears into golden steam, but is quickly replaced by another one that he creates.
"He couldn't possibly have this many Zenos."
Hannibal said to himself, scrubbing his fine sideburns.
"Well, we couldn't just keep doing this!"
A snark reply came from a copy of him while punching an intruding Zeno.
"Yeah! Let's just beat this small fry and help outside!"
Another one said, and it immediately turns to steam after being bitten. A wave of support came from the voices of other clones in agreement.
"Well?!"
A protest erupted, disrupting the main Hannibal's thinking, visibly getting annoyed.
"Fine."
The main Hannibal sighs and moves his body from where he was sitting, revealing a dug-up manhole.
Inside the manhole are his copies, working hard to make a tunnel underground. They are punching the dirt and eating the discarded earth.
"Well?"
Hannibal calmly said, directing his attention to the miners who resembled him.
"We are sick of eating dirt! So, I think the tunnel towards him is good to go!"
The copy of Hannibal in the tunnel said as he chewed another piece of gravel, he fell suddenly and poofed away from existence.
The main Hannibal, however, shakes his head and jumps inside the tunnel. He was greeted by bloated earth-eating Hannibals that disappeared instantly when they saw him enter.
Hannibal rushes to the end of the short tunnel, which continues upwards, and at the end is a cement layer.
On the surface, the mound was overrun. Golden smoke puffs out as the Zenos finally caved in the pile at Zypno's delight.
"Ha! I did it! I defeated this city's general! Frank and the others will be delighted to hear that the great Zypno has single-handedly overwhelmed a general!"
Zypno let out a loud, hysterical howl as the Zenos continued to flush down the drain that he wasn't aware of.
"Huh?"
Zypno watched as the hole that Hannibal made sank and slowly drained all the Zenos, burying them in the process. More smoke and dust obscured his visibility.
But behind him is a silhouette of a large, muscular man with golden glowing eyes. He could hear a growl that sounded like it came from a beast. He didn't know it yet, but he was already dead.
When Zypno turned around with a gaping mouth from the shock of an unexpected flank, Hannibal violently penetrated his massive arm into Zypno's throat, dipping inside the air pipes.
The enemy underling's throat enlarged from the pressure. Zypno could only resist by thrashing his limbs and scratching his nails onto Hannibal's skin, but he is slowly running out of air.
Hannibal, however, was unimpressed by this effort. His eyes were dull and absent, and he used his other hand to hold Zypno by the neck and raise him up.
"Your throat can't handle me."
Hannibal said plainly.
Zypno begins to turn purple, and his eyes are about to pop from their sockets. He is ready to meet his end.
But Hannibal has other plans. Inside the enemy's airway, Hannibal twists his arm and forms his hand into a fist.
Then Zypno's body bursts as Hannibal creates a copy from inside. The duplicate wriggles out like a worm and gloriously lands on his feet.
"What did I miss?"
The copy said, showering in warm blood.