Chương 36: Chapter 10 First Contact(Part 1)

The thing that emerged from the darkness was a monster in the truest sense of the word. Its head resembled a giant sea anemone, countless tentacles hanging all the way to the floor. It had only one arm—its right—which ended in something resembling a gun barrel. Where its left arm should have been, a blinking lens-like device protruded from its shoulder. Its legs bent backward like those of a dog or cat, and though their proportions were different, the structure was unmistakably animalistic.

The creature stood nearly two meters tall. Its murky, sewage-colored skin seemed almost liquid, twitching and rippling across its entire body.

"Fire!" Despite the sudden order, the three officers reacted instantly. They moved ahead of us, spread out, and opened fire. The monster merely shifted its body with a sluggish, fluid motion and turned its left shoulder toward them. At this distance, missing was impossible. Fifteen rounds screamed through the air. None of them landed. Not even a sound of impact echoed through the corridor.

"Oh dear. What a shame."

"First, what happened?"

"Simply put?" Tsukasa smiled faintly.

"The bullets vanished."

"Vanished?"

"Didn't you see it? That beam extending from the lens on its shoulder. Laser, particle beam, magic—call it whatever you like. It intercepted every single shot." A chill ran down my spine. Modern firearms had been rendered completely useless. The certainty mankind had relied upon for centuries had simply disappeared. A gun was supposed to kill. A bullet was supposed to wound. Those assumptions no longer applied here. Beside me, First clicked her tongue in irritation.

"Those damned Sotes... If monsters like this overflow into the real world, ordinary people won't even have a chance to survive." I couldn't disagree. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

"Still," she continued, "we learned something valuable." She stepped forward.

"Modern weapons are practically worthless against these things."

"First—""Stay back, Tachibana." She twirled her rod casually.

"I'll show you how it's done." The rest of us had frozen. Yet the only civilian among us walked calmly toward the monster. She had claimed her first victory was mostly luck. And yet now she advanced without hesitation. Her elegant steps looked composed. But somehow... I could sense the tension hidden beneath them. Tsukasa's POV I had made a grand entrance. The problem was that I had absolutely no plan. The self-hypnosis was working, sure—but it was only meant to help me get through the livestream. Damn it, Sotes.

If you were going to send a monster, couldn't you have at least sent another Three-Eye? I'd already played tag with one of those. I knew how fast they were. My only advantage right now was the knowledge left behind by the Witch and the Sage. The creature in front of me had erased bullets from existence. That fact alone shattered one of humanity's oldest beliefs. If you shoot something, it dies. If a bullet hits, it hurts. That was common sense. Movies, action stories, science fiction—guns were everywhere.

They were mankind's answer to danger. But that answer had just failed. Which meant there was only one thing left to do. Wing it. I'd managed to create fire earlier. The principles were already lodged somewhere in my head. So I followed them. Think. Imagine. Visualize. Control. Manifest. Break the laws of reality. What would work? No idea. How do I kill it? No idea. What do I have? A rod. My body. My class. Then what do I need? Speed. Power. Run like a horse. Fast. Faster. Faster. Strike like a bull. Strong.

Stronger. The image took shape. The impossible became real. I stepped forward. The world blurred. My body moved like the wind. Yet somehow, I never lost balance. A horse didn't stumble because of its own speed. Neither would I. The distance vanished in an instant. I swung the rod. A horizontal strike. The blow landed. Too shallow. Several tentacles shot out and wrapped around my arm while the monster recoiled backward. But it had moved. Which meant it could still be hurt.

"Burn." The wound erupted into flames. The monster reacted immediately. Its cannon-like arm swung toward me. The muzzle glowed. A shot was coming. I could see it. I lunged. My left hand grabbed the barrel and forced it upward. A blast exploded into the ceiling. The shockwave shook the corridor. Using that momentum, I dropped low and pulled the creature forward. Its reverse-jointed legs couldn't maintain balance. Its body lurched. And I struck. The rod smashed into what passed for its head.

The impact launched it backward. I released my grip and jumped away. Please. Just die already. You don't even have a head anymore. The monster collapsed. It didn't move. Not even a twitch. For a few seconds, everyone remained silent. Then the body began to fade. Its grotesque form dissolved into particles of light. When it disappeared completely, only a crystal remained.

"... Is it over?" Tachibana asked. I stared at the crystal. Just like the Three-Eye. No mistake. I'd killed it. Only then did my left hand begin to shake. The fear arrived late. My right hand refused to let go of the rod. I clenched my jaw. Not now. If I wanted people to follow me into this madness, then I couldn't show weakness. I forced my trembling hand into a fist. Opened it again. Pulled a cigarette from my ring. Lit it. Took a long drag. Then I turned back toward the others with a smile.

"This is the loot." I tossed the crystal toward Tachibana.

"You can have it." The cigarette smoke drifted lazily around me.

"Good demonstration, wasn't it?" I smiled wider.

"Once you have a class, you can do this much too." Then I pointed the rod toward them.

"Next time, you're fighting."

"Don't worry."

"I'll back you up." And with that, I started walking forward again. As though defeating monsters was the most natural thing in the world.