Chapter 26: The Beast

The heavy footsteps were drawing closer and closer, and at that moment, the member of the Blackstone Group exploration team seemed to sense something as well. His breathing grew rapid, so much so that both Ferren and Eluca could hear his frantic gasps. The footsteps approached relentlessly, the ground beginning to tremble beneath their feet.

“No, no, don’t come over here, don’t come over here, ahhh—!”

Suddenly, with a piercing scream, a deafening barrage of gunfire erupted. Amidst the flickering flashes, the two caught sight of a trembling shadow cast onto the floor. Then, a massive, looming form slowly emerged, engulfing the unfortunate man’s silhouette.

“Ahhh! No…! No…no—!”

In an instant, the screams ceased abruptly. The furious gunfire also vanished, leaving Eluca in a state of shocked confusion. She yearned to peer around the corner, to see what had transpired in the corridor, but dared not move. An instinctual sense of danger warned her against any rash action, for the consequences could be unimaginable.

But…

Just as Eluca glanced sidelong at Ferren, hoping to find some hint of his intentions, she was startled to see him simply turn and step out from the shadowed corner!

What is the commander thinking?

Seeing this, Eluca’s eyes nearly bulged from behind her glasses. Did he not realize how strange and dangerous the situation was? Why would he expose himself now? She didn’t know what manner of creature lurked beyond, but anything capable of driving a trained bodyguard to the brink of madness was certainly no trivial foe. Shouldn’t they be avoiding it, or hiding to escape its notice?

There was no other choice. She steeled herself.

With a sharp bite to her lip, Eluca sprang from the corner, immediately raising her laser rifle to aim ahead—only to find…

The corridor before them was empty. Only bloodstains smeared across floor and walls remained, proof that what they had witnessed was no dream. Beyond that—nothing. No corpse, no monster. Had they not heard the screams themselves, they might have thought it all a hallucination.

“Commander, what is—”

Eluca edged cautiously to Ferren’s side, her voice trembling with unease. But Ferren merely gestured for silence, knelt, and gently brushed his fingers across the blood. He rubbed it thoughtfully, observing the viscous crimson clinging to his fingertips, raising his brow. Then, he stood and surveyed their surroundings.

“It seems we’ve encountered a troublesome creature.”

Ferren needed say no more; Eluca understood well how perilous the situation was. Judging by the blood splattered across walls, ceiling, and floor, a savage, brutal battle had taken place here. Considering how quickly it had ended, the horror of what had happened was all the more clear.

“What should we do, Commander?”

Though Eluca’s face was pale, she forced herself to speak, suppressing her fear and lowering her voice. Ferren watched his fingertips, paused, then replied.

“We’ll confront this thing first, then find a way out… Keep me in your sight at all times, understand?”

“Yes, Commander.”

Though the order sounded strange, Eluca nodded without hesitation. Even without an explanation, she understood why. Delin and Kurona, along with the others, had vanished only when she looked away from them. It was likely some condition imposed by the enemy of this place. The simplest solution was to never avert her gaze, thus minimizing the chance of being separated again.

Tracking the mysterious creature proved easy; it made no effort to conceal its trail. Following the blood dragged along the floor, the pair soon arrived at its lair—a conference room at the corridor’s end. Through the slightly ajar door, they could hear the “crunch, crunch” of chewing. The source hardly needed guessing.

“Wait for my signal,” Ferren commanded, gesturing to Eluca crouched at the corner. Rising, he moved ghostlike toward the conference room, careful to stay close to the wall and watch his surroundings. As a level-three authorized ability-user, Ferren could feel the powerful, blood-soaked aura emanating from within. Judging by the oppressive force alone, the creature inside was likely on par with the elite energy-siphoning fiends Ferren had faced before. If Delin were here, Ferren would have confidence fighting alongside his familiar, but with only Eluca, the odds were far less favorable.

Yet Ferren would not retreat.

One step, two, three…

Silently, he reached the nearly closed door, shifting to peer through the crack. Just then, the sounds of chewing abruptly stopped.

Danger!

Ferren reacted instantly. As the noise vanished, he leapt back. At that moment, the door exploded with a crash, and from the smoke, a massive, muscular arm lunged toward Ferren!

This hand was even larger than those of the mutated beasts they’d encountered in the basement. Its grip could easily crush Ferren’s entire body. Yet as the monstrous hand swept toward him, Ferren’s expression remained unchanged; his right hand flicked forward, sending several surgical knives, already prepared, hurtling toward the giant palm.

“Shick, shick, shick!”

The blades, sharp enough to cut steel and stone effortlessly, barely scratched the massive hand. They didn’t even penetrate the skin, for the creature swatted them aside with ease. But Ferren seized the moment, darting clear of its grasp.

“Hu…man…human…”

A low, rumbling voice echoed. In Ferren and Eluca’s view, a colossal black figure slowly emerged from the swirling dust.

Compared to the gaunt zombies below, this monster was powerfully built—like a shrunken version of the green giant. Merely standing there, it seemed to fill the entire passage. And this was no narrow residential hallway, but a spacious office corridor, wide enough for four or five people to walk side-by-side. Now, the creature alone blocked it almost completely, its sheer bulk a testament to its terror.

“Hu…man…human…!”

The green giant lifted its head, eyes blazing red with madness, fixing Ferren in a wild, crazed stare. It opened its mouth, foul blood and saliva dripping from its lips, revealing a half-chewed finger lodged inside.

“Well, I know—Orcs never submit,” Ferren sighed helplessly at the monster’s roar. He opened his right hand, and several more surgical knives appeared.

With a leap, Ferren charged straight at the green giant!

“Human!”

The creature seemed enraged by Ferren’s move, bellowing as its enormous right hand again lunged for him. This time, Ferren refused to be caught. He pushed his speed to the limit, darting forward in a blur, and as the giant reached for him, Ferren leaped high. His black cloak flared out like wings, carrying him bat-like along the ceiling.

Ferren’s timing was impeccable, landing in the giant’s blind spot. The creature hadn’t expected its prey to fly, pausing in surprise. In that instant, Ferren’s surgical knives flashed from the darkness, slicing down like a beast’s claws and stabbing into the giant’s skull.

“——————!!”

A thunderous roar erupted, shaking the very air. The next moment, Ferren was flung back like a cannonball, crashing hard to the ground.

“Commander!”

Eluca cried out in alarm at Ferren’s plight, but he was far from panicked. Instead, he calmly reached up to adjust the hat on his head, then slowly stood. His left arm hung limp and useless.

Broken.

Feeling the searing pain and weakness radiating from his left arm, Ferren frowned and looked up at the green giant.

The monster wasn’t faring much better. Half its head had been sliced away by Ferren’s knives; even the skull was pierced. Yet this did not mean it was dead. Quite the opposite—sensing Ferren’s gaze, the giant slowly raised its head, opening its mouth in another chilling roar.

“—————!!”

As it howled, the blood-red flesh of its split skull began to squirm and regenerate, sealing the wound in seconds.

“I never imagined I’d see muscles growing inside a brain… Life truly is incredible,” Ferren mused, then issued his order.

“Action, Tulip.”

“Yes, Commander!”

Hearing Ferren’s command, Eluca knew exactly what to do. She rolled out from the corner, raised her laser rifle, took aim at the monster, and squeezed the trigger.

[Heavy Firepower], activate!