Episode 148: Strange events (8)
It was just a small incident that couldn’t even be a variable to Lucy. If the opponent, be it a small child or anything else, interferes with your goal, it is ultimately just an obstacle.
It has been that way so far, and it will continue to be that way.
“Karl… … !”
However, the people Lucy dealt with were different. Cassel’s eyes widened as he saw the small body being torn apart by Harpy Gamma’s blow.
There was no mercy or hesitation. A cold reality that does not discriminate between opponents and a disaster itself. Harpy Gamma, who killed the boy who attacked him without even a 1% chance of knowing, turned towards Cassel again.
[The momentum has changed. Presumed to be an emotional factor. The cause appears to be related to the boy who attacked just now.]
Lucy herself knows the power of emotions, so she noticed the change when she saw Cassel’s attitude change from before.
[The chance of winning is still over 80%.]
But that’s it. Emotions are ultimately just seasonings and can never be the center, so Lucy predicted her victory based on the data she had acquired so far.
“Die, monster!”
As expected, Cassel was furious and attacked Lucy.
At this time, when many residents had already fallen to the attack of the Demon King’s army, dark blue mana burned from his body as he did not run away but instead rushed forward.
[The enemy’s output increases rapidly. Technology not in the data.]
The power increased sharply compared to before, to the point where Lucy was momentarily embarrassed.
What Cassel has now activated is the use of a type of secret technique passed down among the Dark Elves. Not everyone can use it, and this skill, developed after being chased away from the infected, was not in Lucy’s data as she had never fought against dark elves before.
[Calculate efficiency, retreat.]
Lucy did not bother to fight with the awakened Cassel. I focused on retreating Harpy and Gamma and moving the other soldiers.
In any case, just because you couldn’t kill Cassel doesn’t mean you failed the mission.
The city had already been devastated by shelling and massacre, and he had obtained all the large amount of data he wanted.
“Come down now. “You cowardly monster!”
Cassel’s steel arrows loaded with mana got stuck in the shield and cracked it, but Lucy just mobilized soldiers armed with magic cannons to snipe him from a distance.
Cassel, who could not resist the bombardment pouring in from all directions from a distance, as if he were fighting at close range, had no choice but to retreat before his fiery power ran out.
[The city center was successfully occupied as planned.]
“This way, it doesn’t take that long either.”
And while the Demon King’s army devastated the city, Raon also almost succeeded in his mission.
* * *
“Hey, hey!”
“Shoot!”
The management headquarters building is slightly away from the city center and a little closer to the mine. Thanks to this, we were somewhat free from the strange creatures that attacked the city, but the Demon King’s Army, having already received information that the command center was here, dispatched the single most powerful entity here.
[Only a few attacks contain magical power.]
They used the firearms they had to destroy the outer wall and attacked Raon, who had infiltrated. However, no matter how powerful a firearm is, its power is greatly halved in front of a magic shield with strong resistance, so it can be ignored.
On the other hand, the blow Raon wielded was so powerful that even those wearing reinforced suits were blown away along with the walls and floor.
‘Are these monsters simply mutated infections?’
Lloyd, the management director, hid himself while listening to the screams and shouts of others.
Giant creatures floating in the sky, seen in the distance, neutralized the city’s defenses with artillery fire and assaulted the soldiers, devastating the city’s interior.
It was different from the infectious agents we had faced so far. It was never a group of runaway monsters.
“Uh, uh… … .”
[We found someone who appears to be the leader.]
Meanwhile, right in front of where Lloyd was hiding, an employee who was also hiding was caught by Raon.
Lucy knew the name Lloyd, but didn’t bother to ask and check the name, so she was satisfied with that and withdrew Raon.
I didn’t think that a single blow could annihilate the people living here and completely take over the city.
However, since they had completely destroyed all means of resistance on this occasion, he expected that he would in fact have taken over the city.
All that was left was to snipe those who would surely come here to support them.
From Noble mtl dot com
* * *
[Carthus is a large corporation belonging to a force called Rubran. As previously known, they dispatched personnel here to obtain resources and cooperated with the local Dark Elves to fight infections and develop mines.]
“Most importantly, what power do they have?”
[They are just one branch. It is said that most of their armament is made up of outdated military equipment purchased cheaply, and that they do not have battleships.]
“then… … “Is it worth doing?”
I chuckled at Lucy’s words, saying that the operation to raid the city was successful and the data I wanted was obtained. It is true that I was worried after learning the identity of the other party, but in reality, the other party was not a country or power, but a company, or even a small branch.
“But no matter how small the branch, news about us would have already spread. You attacked and neutralized the city faster than they could judge, but just looking at the map you obtained, there are more than a dozen cities like this. Moreover, beyond that universe, there is their headquarters, and the faction to which that headquarters belongs.”
[That’s right.]
“If they are sincere, can they handle it?”
It was difficult to think optimistically. Because the concept of ‘universe’ had expanded, it was impossible to simply calculate it as it is now.
Currently, Lucy is driving out the corrupted World Tree and infected entities and taking over a huge continent as her territory, but what would have been a tremendous power originally is only a part of a single planet in the universe.
“Don’t show too much power until you have enough stored up, Lucy. Think about how they were blocking the huge number of infectious agents that were running rampant to take over this world at the level of a single company branch. “The moment they recognize you as the ‘true enemy,’ we may be instantly annihilated by overwhelming power.”
I advised Lucy that it would be better to hide her powers.
From what I heard, the reason they let the infected organisms go without wiping them out was because they just didn’t want to invest money, but it wasn’t because they lacked the technology or ability.
That logic would apply to Lucy as well. If the risk of the Demon King’s army, which they believe to be a mutant infectious agent, exceeds a certain threshold, they will invest capital to capture Lucy.
[In that case, we will first remove all corrupted world trees and suspend activities until nesting is completed]
“I can’t help it. “You have grown so far by preying on local strongmen, but the opponents you have met now cannot be compared to the enemies who have devoured a continent at most.”
After learning about the other person’s identity and power, I controlled Lucy by being a little more involved than usual.
Of course, we won’t be able to stop Lucy forever. Because Lucy absolutely hates being still. We must fight, grow and evolve. No matter how big and thick the obstacle in front of you is, there is no way you can collapse, even if you try to destroy it.
“Is the call over?”
“okay. “Let’s go now.”
Jiyeon Lee approached me after I ended communication with Lucy.
Today is the day we get back to work after a long time. The dungeon was already welcoming us with its huge mouth open.
* * *
“Survival rates have increased dramatically since the shield code was activated. “Thanks to this, more stable firepower projection is possible, which is a bonus.”
“thank god. “I think it’s a bigger help than I thought.”
In fact, Jiyeon Lee didn’t even come forward. He just watched our troops’ battle from the base with me.
But this time, there was no particular moment of crisis. There were no higher-level species that suddenly appeared, and most importantly, our allies were able to resist the enemy’s bombardment with magic shields.
“It’s not just domestic. Dungeon penetration rates are rising rapidly overseas once again. And as the dungeon penetration rate increases, the gate occurrence rate decreases.”
Jiyeon Lee proudly said she was happy with this result.
Humanity, which had actually gained the means to protect itself, pushed the monsters hard. Conquering the dungeon is an attack by humanity.
Each time an attack was successful, the frequency of occurrence of gate attacks by invasive species decreased inversely.
As the number of gates decreases, more space and resources become available, which can then be invested in conquering dungeons. It’s a virtuous cycle.
“You don’t have to get rid of it completely. “If you just keep it like this, it’s big.”
Compared to the days when gates were opened from all directions every day, it is extremely peaceful. Some people were excited and thought they had finally won.
“Every time something like this happens, their characteristic is to become stronger one level at a time and beat the second.”
“that’s right. So honestly, I can’t like it with peace of mind.”
However, we have already completed our learning. Because I have already experienced the characteristics of enemies several times, who always appear stronger just when I was happy to have caught up and try to break my hope and will.
“Wow, we’re in big trouble. “A new type of invasive species is now emerging from overseas!”
In fact, it didn’t last long before negative news began to spread.
The news that one of the employees made a fuss about was a video filmed during a raid in a large foreign dungeon.
“Huh, a giant species?”
“No, it’s more than that.”
We all were shocked to see it. Same goes for me.
This new invasive species was completely different from the extra-large monsters that had been released so far.
“What on earth?”
Jiyeon Lee, who was in a panic, bit her lip after watching the video. But for some reason, I felt a little familiar with that appearance.
[It looks like a ship-type soldier. However, it is bigger than our allies’.]
While I was speechless, Lucy also recognized it and opened her mouth.
As said, the giant monster shown in the video looked similar to the ship-type soldier that Lucy had created by modifying a super-giant flying bell.
A body that is long and wide, has an appearance that does not resemble a living organism at all, and is covered with a hard-looking carapace. Nevertheless, some body organs wriggle.
Its size was comparable to that of Island, a floating organism that spans kilometers.
“Hey guy, what did you do now?”
But it wasn’t because of its appearance that everyone was shocked. This was because this bizarre monster attempted to bombard the enemy by firing rays of concentrated magical power rather than barging its teeth or claws like other monsters.
‘The limits of living organisms have been exceeded.’
I applied the same evaluation I made after seeing Lucy’s first ship-type soldier.
It was like that until now, but this ship-shaped soldier that I see now was even more like that.
The result of freely evolving beings ultimately reaching their peak. A biological weapon disguised as a living organism.