23 – Pilgrimage Road (1)
*Gulping…!*
In the next moment, a massive jaw emerged from the ground, swallowing the jeep whole.
“…It’s a Megatype.”
“Go! Damn it! Move, I said!”
Even with the Megatype’s appearance, the assailants’ firearms didn’t change direction. While one vehicle had been overturned, there was no sense of camaraderie among these hastily assembled teams to rescue anyone.
“Quick, snatch the core and let’s bolt!”
For them, money mattered more than anything else.
“Mueller!”
“Take out the guy firing the machine gun first. Leave the driver alone!”
Given the situation, there was no reason for hesitation even as Mueller.
“Lian. I’m jumping to that jeep over there now. And I’ll bring back the dismantled cores those guys have.”
The plan was to jump from one moving vehicle to another. Logically absurd, but it was the best option now.
Rather than facing the Megatype, it was far more likely to survive by collecting ten medium-small cores and fleeing toward the city.
“What should I do?”
“You seemed to have a strong sense of magical detection. Is that correct?”
“I can sense movement beneath the ground’s surface.”
At the direct and penetrating response, Mueller smirked.
“Good enough. If Focalos shows any sign of attacking the vehicles, inform Chen immediately.”
*Thud!*
And without any hesitation, he leaped out of the window.
“What a crazy bastard!”
“Shoot! Just shoot!”
The moment Lian confirmed that Muller had successfully landed on the attackers’ vehicle, his task was clear.
Dddddd…
To detect the imminent danger lurking beneath the surface, targeting their lives.
“Muller, don’t worry about this side, just protect Muller as planned.”
“Understood.”
“Chen.”
“I’m listening, so speak!”
No one here, despite having faced Lian just a day ago, questioned the fact that Lian was taking over Muller’s role. Lian’s demonstrated abilities were enough to impress even veteran mercenaries.
Lian closed his eyes, focusing all his senses below the surface.
“Spread it!”
Spreading magic throughout the ground, detecting the movements of the giant creature in real-time.
Even calling it an impossible task for beast tamers, and even so-called geniuses without prolonged training, Lian was accomplishing it without a single mistake.
“Chen! Brake!”
“Damn it!”
Chen shouted as he activated the brakes. The ground where the front wheels were located crumbled frighteningly as the vehicle decelerated.
Quaaang!
At the same time, tentacles thicker than ever before shot up into the sky.
“Damn, that’s disgusting!”
Chen cursed as he transformed the gear into reverse, and at the same time, a large figure emerged from beneath the giant paper pit.
Kiki-kiki-kick!
An unimaginably huge body. Hundreds of elongated tentacles.
Contrary to the information received from the data cube, the size of the Focalos that appeared before their eyes seemed to be more than 10 meters.
“…Insane.”
Even Chen and Miller, who had experienced countless battles walking along the front lines, were stunned and lost their minds as they gazed at the spectacle.
The other mercenaries were equally shocked by the size of the giant creature.
“R-run away…!”
“Damn it! Stop, you bastards! Help us!”
In an instant, just as the jeep that Miller had not yet boarded was about to escape, another large creature lurking beneath the ground swallowed the mercenaries in that spot.
Its terrifying biting force tore the modified vehicle to pieces.
The mercenaries on board couldn’t even leave behind corpses; they perished on the spot.
“T-two of them?!”
“…No.”
Lian swallowed dry saliva and turned her head sideways.
She had been spreading her magic power on the ground since before, sensing the movements of the Focalos, so she knew.
From Noble mtl dot com
Twaah!
From the beginning, the large bell was three.
“……This is insane.”
Muller.
While dealing with the heavy machine gunners, he was in the process of securing the cores of the Focaros stored in the cargo container.
‘…The ground.’
The ground was noticeably shaking.
There wasn’t enough time to grab everything. Muller stiffened his expression and threw himself into the air.
Crashing from a speeding vehicle at full throttle. Even though he was a war mercenary, he would undoubtedly suffer serious injuries, but now wasn’t the time to worry about that.
“Cough…!!”
From the body colliding with the ground, an intense pain could be felt terrifyingly. The jeep he had just been on sank into the ground just as it was.
“…Damn.”
Not one, but three. Muller looked down at his body with a despairing gaze. With this kind of body, he couldn’t even run away, let alone get on the vehicle.
Muller’s thoughts couldn’t continue further.
Thud!
‘Caught?’
A strange sensation from the back of the neck. It didn’t take long to realize that it was someone’s grip.
“…!!”
At the same time, forcibly lifted up. The moment he regained consciousness, Muller could see himself located in the cargo container of the vehicle.
Next to him, Lian was also breathing heavily.
“You…”
“I’ll accept your gratitude later in cash.”
“What? hahahaha!”
Miller, who was stiff just a moment ago, raised the corners of his mouth. That’s how impactful Lian’s words were.
“Have you experienced a situation like this before?”
“Well, sort of. It’s similar.”
He hadn’t encountered monsters chewing on armored vehicles, but he had come close to death many times.
Crunch!
Dodging the tentacles thrusting towards them, Miller spoke up.
“If we continue like this, we won’t be caught up anytime soon. Chen is an excellent driver, but outrunning three large beasts is not within his capabilities.”
Lian glanced down at the desolate wasteland.
“Are you planning to jump off again?”
“hehehe. I might be crazy, but I’m not an irrational person to that extent.”
Miller’s laughter faded for a moment.
“There’s a place not far from here called the Pilgrimage Path. It’s where religious zealots known for ‘righteously’ rescuing citizens reside.”
Religious zealots. Lian could infer the reputation of those Miller spoke of from his blatant tone.
“If there are three large beasts… everyone here will have to sacrifice a few organs. Of course, we’ll have to offer all the cash we have before that.”
“It’s expensive.”
An exorbitant profit beyond imagination. Lian instantly understood why they were called zealots.
On the other hand, it also meant that the power of these zealots was strong enough to overwhelm three large beasts.
“The problem is…we’re not the only mercenaries heading towards the pilgrimage path.”
There are a total of 61 sections. Even if more than half of them died or escaped alive, there are still over a hundred mercenaries remaining.
Escaping to the city is impossible. It was clear where the other mercenaries in desperate situations would go.
“We have to be the first ones to rescue ourselves.”
“Yes. But by saying that…it seems like you knew about the Ahtak’s Paladins from the beginning.”
Ahtak? Paladins?
Although it was the first time she heard the name, Lian didn’t ask. The situation was too urgent to ask about such things.
“What should I do?”
“…Just be more quick-witted.”
Muller smiled and opened his mouth.
“Ahtak’s Paladins may value wealth, but there is one thing they prioritize above all else. Talent that reaches a higher level. I don’t know why, but those damn religious fanatics are obsessively attached to that kind of talent.”
Muller’s gaze was now directed towards somewhere beyond the horizon.
A narrow path where only one person could pass through.
At the end of that path, there was a small sanctuary.
“….”
Understanding Muller’s meaning, Lian fell silent. A religious group obsessively attached to talent that reaches a higher level.
She may not know anything else, but one thing was certain.
“Showing one’s talent alone seems to hold value.”
Lian turned her head back.
Kigigigik…!
Gasping…!
The massive creatures charging towards this direction. Even amid such thoughts, the distance between them was rapidly decreasing in real-time.
It will take at least five seconds for them to catch up.
At that moment, there would be no luxury to hesitate as now.
“…I should demand at least five million per person.”
“hehehe. Offer ten million, Cell.”
It might be impossible to kill all three of them, but enduring until Mueller calls the Knights of Ahtux…
It wasn’t impossible.
Thunk-.
Amidst the dust, Lian slowly stood up. Simultaneously, the large creatures stopped their movements, surrounding Lian.
Growl…!
An almost mocking howl.
However, Lian paid no attention and gazed firmly in the direction of the sanctuary.
Did someone mention an obsessive attachment to talent?
As Lian’s hand gently rose above his chest.
Roarrr…!
The atmosphere began to vibrate insanely.
‘Make sure you can’t breathe unless you come out.’