Ch.69A Walk

# Citizens, instinctively terrified by the brain-eating worm monsters, voluntarily complied with control measures and avoided contact with others.

This behavior was only possible because of their belief that heroes would eventually eliminate the monsters.

While this made isolating the infected easier, eradicating the fundamental problem—the worm monsters—wasn’t going smoothly.

No matter how many they eliminated, more worm monsters kept flying in, and there was no sign of an alpha specimen.

Based on the direction the worms were coming from and previous incidents, Yu Anna formulated a hypothesis.

The Monster Cult might be controlling these worm monsters.

“Where’s the senior?”

“She’s communicating with D City again.”

“…Do you think what the senior said makes sense?”

“Well, there are stories about the Monster Cult almost taming a Homicide-rank monster before, right? For monsters below Homicide-rank… it might be possible, don’t you think?”

Perhaps because of the unusual specimen called Black Cat, W City’s heroes had shifted from the absolute premise that monsters could never be tamed to the possibility that they might be tamable.

Yu Anna contacted D City for confirmation.

She planned to investigate the Monster Cult in cooperation with D City’s heroes.

However, when Yu Anna tried to locate either the alpha monster or whoever was controlling the monsters at the Three Principles Church with D City’s cooperation, she received only cold responses.

“This is driving me crazy, seriously.”

“What happened?”

“Same as before. D City claims they haven’t seen any worm monsters at all, and when they went to investigate the cult directly, they found no traces.”

Emerging from the communications room, Yu Anna grabbed a cold sandwich prepared in the operations room while expressing her frustration.

After this brief rest, other heroes sighed as they watched Starlight prepare to deploy again.

“So they went there and basically told them we’re suspicious? What are those D City folks thinking?”

“Seriously, shouldn’t we start considering the worst-case scenario?”

“…I really hope it doesn’t come to that.”

W City’s heroes compiled all the strange observations they’d made while fighting the worm monsters and added hypothesis upon hypothesis.

Humans infected by the parasites appeared to act normally, but when Black Cat was mentioned in conversation or when shown an image of Black Cat, they began to act abnormally.

The parasites’ target was Black Cat, identical to the Monster Cult’s objective, and all cult members were infected with parasites.

They couldn’t help but conclude that the parasites had been implanted by the Monster Cult.

The reason no alpha was visible among the beetles in W City was because the leader was hiding somewhere far away.

That leader was in the Monster Cult, in D City.

If that were true, D City couldn’t possibly be safe.

Even the heroes who communicated normally might already be infected.

“D City has always been known for having little traffic with outsiders.”

“If the entire D City has already become a monster nest… it would explain why these beetles keep coming endlessly…”

The problem was that even if this were true, there was nothing they could do in the current situation.

Humans infected by parasites behaved normally when their specific target, Black Cat, wasn’t visible.

Even if they tried to examine the worms closely, the parasites would release acidic fluid and commit suicide along with their hosts the moment they were exposed to special abilities that threatened their lives.

They eliminated their own evidence.

Unless one knew about their existence beforehand and investigated accordingly, it was impossible to detect the parasite monsters.

But without evidence, could they judge D City as an infected monster nest based on hypothesis alone and request hero support?

From W City, not D City itself? When D City’s heroes were communicating lucidly, refuting the claims, and getting angry?

Moving solely on suspicion of infection lacked sufficient justification.

“Seriously, what kind of monster is this?”

“Getting pushed around by monsters that aren’t even Homicide-rank?”

“Hah… I’d rather be toyed with by two Despair-rank monsters—at least my body would feel better.”

Currently, the strongest shell protecting the parasites wasn’t the beetle monsters but the human social system.

Moreover, removing that shell wouldn’t resolve the current situation.

This crisis wouldn’t end unless all monsters were killed.

If D City had truly become a beetle nest with even heroes infected, was it acceptable to kill already infected humans?

Or should they endure indefinitely until they discovered a way to selectively kill only the parasites?

Could someone whose brain had been eaten and was no longer in their right mind still be considered human?

If the parasites replacing the eaten brain were removed, could they return to being human?

When they hunger and fear just like everyone else, and still feel like living humans even to superhuman senses, should they be killed just because they’re parasitized?

To make any of these choices, they needed to peel away the shell of human society.

And that would take too much time.

“Any word from the research department? Still no cure?”

“They say they haven’t even found a starting point.”

Starlight sighed at the hero’s head shake.

Everyone protecting W City wanted to save the parasite-infected humans if possible.

But they were already at their physical limits trying to hold out.

Heroes are, after all, human.

While they considered the citizens of D City who might be infected, W City’s citizens could become infected and die.

Once again, the pressure of choice weighed heavily on Starlight.

Should she kill a few to save the rest, or struggle to save everyone and end up killing all?

To survive in the monster era, humans must make choices.

Without making the right choice, they die.

#

The heroes’ pace in eliminating the beetles was gradually slowing.

Even superhumans have physical limits.

Yet damage hadn’t spread further because heroes weren’t the only ones hunting monsters in W City.

Three Despair-rank monsters, including myself, hunted the beetle monsters in areas where heroes were absent late at night.

During the hunt, I spotted Sa Gu-gu chasing beetles in the night sky and landed in front of Gu Seo-ryong, who was on top of a building.

“Hmm… the more I look, the more interesting it is. So fascinating.”

“Dissecting again?”

“Oh darling, you’re here?”

“Meow!”

The two monsters greeted me with relaxed smiles and continued what they were doing.

Sa Gu-gu with her hunting game, Gu Seo-ryong with her parasite dissection.

Gu Seo-ryong brought a small glass plate and delicately cut open the parasite with her sharpened nails, expanding her vertically slit pupils into circles as she examined the organs.

“What can you learn from dissecting like that?”

“Many things~! How the organs are structured, how they possess monster fluid without a core, how they control people. When you don’t understand the operating principle, dissection is the easiest way to learn.”

“…You sound like a researcher.”

“Hehehe, well, I grew up watching it, you know? Would you mind stepping aside for a bit? You’re breaking my concentration.”

“Sa Gu-gu, come here.”

“Huh? Meow!”

While Gu Seo-ryong was dissecting the parasite, I called Sa Gu-gu, who was foolishly gnawing on a beetle carcass, and burned the inside of her mouth with fire.

Sa Gu-gu spun around in pain, but realizing I had removed the parasite for her, she rubbed her head against me.

“To think they can control people like this… it’s quite crude, but effective.”

Gu Seo-ryong cut the parasite carcass into small pieces with fascination.

Over time, her reasons for catching parasites and beetles had changed.

At first, it was disgust and discomfort; now, it was curiosity.

A monster’s instinct to become stronger intertwined with human curiosity.

Shortly after, Gu Seo-ryong organized the dissected parasite remains onto something like a small disc, wrote the date on it, and put it in her pocket.

“Gu Seo-ryong.”

“Ah~ alright, I’ll tell you.”

As I waited quietly for her to finish her investigation, Gu Seo-ryong smiled and lay down on Sa Gu-gu’s back.

“With this many samples, I’m pretty certain. Do you want the complicated, detailed explanation or the simple one?”

“I don’t like complicated.”

“Then simply put, there’s absolutely nothing Deun-deun wants. That’s it.”

The reason I had been waiting patiently for Gu Seo-ryong to dissect the parasite was to discover a method to detect parasites and kill them without harming humans.

According to what I heard through Starlight, the heroes hadn’t found a method yet either.

If there’s no answer even with this level of research, perhaps humans already infected should be considered the living dead.

There’s no way to restore humans whose bodies have been taken over by parasites.

“…We have no choice but to kill them.”

Humans consumed by parasites cannot return to being human.

If I see a human infected by a parasite, I’ll kill them before they commit suicide.

If I swallow them in a state of powerful energy like flame or lightning, I can kill the parasite while eating the human.

Monsters mimicking humans.

Monsters… must die.

“Are you going now?”

“Mm.”

“Well… I doubt you’d be in danger, but I’ll worry about you a little and tell you to be careful.”

Having made up my mind, I nodded and transformed into my monster form.

Knowing what I was about to do, Gu Seo-ryong stroked Sa Gu-gu’s jaw and said:

“You remember what we talked about, right?”

These parasites have no male or female.

They’re not hermaphrodites, nor do they divide.

The fact that so many have appeared despite not reproducing means there must be a separate mother entity that produced these parasites.

Something of a higher species, not an alpha of the same species, that endlessly produces parasites.

All parasites targeting me is by the mother entity’s command.

The mother entity’s location is the Three Principles Church, nowhere but D district.

“Looking at the current situation, the nest is probably already complete, and the fact that they’re targeting you means they’re already expecting you to come.”

A monster’s danger level increases by at least half a rank when it’s in its nest.

Moreover, if it’s prepared with a specific target in mind, even more so.

It’s the same principle by which Gu Seo-ryong, much weaker than Starlight, momentarily overwhelmed her before Kowloon Walled City collapsed.

As I turned my back to Gu Seo-ryong and prepared to take off, I left one warning.

[Stay put.]

“Yawn~ If that’s what you want, finish quickly and come back. All this running around at night because of bugs has been bad for my skin lately.”

Gu Seo-ryong waved her hand, covering a yawn, showing no concern whatsoever.

I quietly rose into the sky and increased my speed.

No matter how many beetle monsters and parasites we exterminate, there’s no end to them.

Before monsters attack, I’ll find the distant one and kill it.

I confirmed the effectiveness of this method while clearing out the underground monsters.

As long as I, the target, don’t leave W City, they’ll keep coming.

Until I kill the mother entity or leave W City.

As if confirming this prediction, beetle monsters gradually began to follow me as I raced across the sky.

Indeed, there’s no other way.

Late at night, I quietly left W City.

My destination: D City, the Monster Cult.

For me, it’s just a slightly long walk.