Chapter 370: Episode 27

Finally, the full appearance of the Sea Siren was revealed. As expected, it lacked the agility to swim in the sea, but its ten tentacles moved very quickly, so one needed to be careful.

Squids and octopuses are also known as cephalopods. If forcibly applied to a human body, it would be a structure where all organs are stuffed into the head, and the limbs grow directly from the neck. A massive head is naturally unsuited for movement on land; the tentacles move busily, dragging the body along like a heavy load.

The enemies clinging to the city wall and attempting to climb were full of openings. Dozens of Quinn attacked simultaneously. I could easily approach the unprotected head.

But then the problem arose. To calculate the enemy's regenerative ability, I attacked it as a test. I fired a Hand Sword wrapped in Aura. Contact with the enemy's hand produced tiny Aura warts, vibrating at high speed. In this way, in addition to the physical ability enhanced by Aura, it could be granted the destructive power and sharpness of a chainsaw.

A regenerative squid of normal size has the power to split the whole body in one blow. As expected, I didn't think dealing with a Sea Siren would have such a result, but if one blow didn't work, then I should use two swords, three swords, and so on. I didn't think that much.

Release the sword. However, the enemy could not be damaged. I didn't know what happened. Take out your sword again. This blow definitely hit the enemy, with a feeling of tearing the flesh. However, the result was that it could not cause damage.

It is playing. By the time Quinn's hand tears through a thin layer of skin on the enemy, regeneration has already begun. And even if it continues to play during the attack, when the attack ends, the playback has already ended. Even if you fire a cyst Bullet, the infection stops at the epidermis, and it is expelled along with the surrounding tissue like dirt. The power of regeneration is much faster than the speed of the Explosion.

The degree of damage to the epidermis is irrelevant. Unless the nerves that form the basis of its regenerative ability are completely destroyed, it is impossible to kill it. This nerve is spread throughout the body, and even if only a part remains, it will regenerate instantly. No matter how close to the body surface, if it goes deep, it is difficult to even reach the attack.

If it is a technique that disrupts Aura wave resonance, it can attack to a certain depth. This is a skill that uses the enemy's own breath to generate an attack inside the body, so the obstruction to regenerative power is weak. However, because the enemy's body is too large, it cannot reach the deepest nerves.

I also thought about entering the body through the mouth. However, this is the same as being hunted myself, and it is not a route that can be invaded safely. Naturally, there is a huge regenerative ability at work in the esophagus, and another report of me leading Quinn has arrived; this is not an environment conducted in a decent state.

Even if I could send enough people to cover every corner of this monster's body, I feel I cannot defeat it unless they cooperate with each other without any deviation, completely destroying the regenerative nerves at once. Even if only one millimeter of nerve remains, it will regenerate before the next attack begins.

Is that possible? There is no guarantee that it will work. But I have to do it.

It is currently unclear what the purpose of this squid coming to this island is. Is it to prey on us, or to keep things it hates away from its territory? In any case, I don't think this squid will return to the sea obediently unless it is defeated.

This may not be a battle that can be solved in a day. The enemy's physical strength is endless, and facing our fierce attacks, they don't seem to feel any pain. On the other hand, he is not the kind of opponent that makes us feel that danger is imminent. Of course, the attacks released from its huge body are powerful, but its movements are slow. No complex tricks can be seen from the attack pattern, so it is not difficult to dodge.

Unable to stop the Sea Siren's invasion, they finally climbed over the barrier, allowing it to invade the lake on the island. If you can get to this step, you cannot poorly fire the railgun. This is because the Explosion will affect allies.

We decided to use our best tactics to win the game. This is "Swimming". Rather than swimming in water, it is better to swim in meat. High-speed swimming using Aura vibration is not a technique that is only useful in water. If you can recognize the waves in all things and make friends with them instead of going against them, then there is no place you cannot swim.

This attempt was not easy. Although it can bite into the inside of the meat temporarily, it is immediately pushed out. Cells are regenerating at a speed beyond our understanding, and the power to try to expel foreign objects from the body is at work. This is not like swimming in water.

It is speculated that the deeper the tissue, the faster the regeneration speed and the greater the resistance. However, I will not give up. Eventually, I overcame the sea of mucus that I thought I could never swim in at first. If you understand the wavelength (biological rhythm) of a creature called a Sea Siren more deeply, you should be able to swim.

I thought if I used some medicine, I could improve my sensitivity. However, it was soon dispelled. Relying on drugs here is a betrayal of my compatriots and myself. With pride, I can no longer be lost.

Defeat this monster, and you will get this ship. If you do this, you will be able to escape this island and have a huge foothold on the sea. This may take some time, but I don't think it's impossible.

-Help! ---

We keep in close contact via radio waves. I cannot convey my thoughts immediately as I did before. Even in telepathy, information is sent and received in the form of language. In front of an enemy where cooperation is essential, information exchange is chaotic. A voice announcing an anomaly came from it.

There is no doubt that this is a distress signal. However, no further messages appeared. The caller was far away from me. I don't know what happened.

I don't know if I should go to help, but I have been assigned offensive and defensive duties on the front line. I cannot leave my post. We just need to let the rest of us handle it.

A word of help. There is a real sense of urgency in this. There was no contact after that. I am filled with indescribable anxiety, but all I can do is believe in the safety of my friends and pray.

That was a moment. The change happened right beside me.

We are a unit waiting in the rear defensive position. The perseverance of the comrades fighting on the front line did not last long. In particular, the rear unit that maintains physical strength is only necessary for opponents who are expected to fight for a long time. I do my best to be able to rotate and fight at any time.

Suddenly, without warning, one Quinn's body was covered in Crystal. We knew the situation. It is a technique that wraps the whole body like armor with the Red Plant ore "Carbuncle". This is called "Carbuncletalisman".

However, the technique is a forbidden art, and once used, it becomes uncontrollable. A large amount of "Malice toward oneself" is generated at the end of a sense of guilt and self-loathing that could destroy a person's spirit. This is a technique that uses the Almeiza Machine to visualize Malice, turn it into a hallucination, and wear it as armor. Using this, one can exert powerful power, but on the other hand, Quinn will fall into a state of loss of control.

Of course, the Sea Siren currently invading this island is a very powerful enemy. But if it is said that it is an opponent I must use 【Carbuncle】 to deal with, I can directly deny it. The disadvantages are obviously greater.

Moreover, just before the technique was activated, a distress signal came from Quinn's main body. Didn't he use this technique voluntarily? After that, I tried to contact him through telepathy many times, but there was no response. The main body was taken into the armor along with Quinn.

At first, I suspected that this was some kind of special attack by the Sea Siren, but it seemed to have nothing to do with the problem. In any case, if we don't find out the reason, we can't do anything.

One thing that caught my attention was Quinn's upbringing. There is no difference in our body structure and relationships. It has uniform characteristics like a Clone. However, the Quinn main body that activated "Carbuncle" has a unique consciousness.

She is the last remaining subject in the consciousness federation. After a period of time, the number of people leaving the community exploded, but not everyone left immediately. While independent forces were rising, there were also a few who remained in the old shared consciousness.

However, this also led to a breakup in a short period of time. All individuals are now independent, and the union only operates within the individual network. Although she had lost control and was not independent until the end, she could not belong to this community because everyone else had left.

This does not mean she has mental problems. It's just that she made up her mind a little later than the others, and she also had the intention to leave. Until now, he lived a normal life like the rest of us.

However, when I compare the current situation with her upbringing, I cannot assert that it is completely irrelevant. A part of me cannot be considered just a Coincidence; she is a participant in the thousands of anomalies that happen to us.

The Quinn covered by Carbuncle stood motionless, falling into an eerie silence. Even those of us around were in a stalemate because we couldn't easily provoke them.

In the rampage of the "Carbuncle Armor", Quinn became extremely aggressive and launched reckless special attacks on the enemy. However, it did not completely lose its mind. Do not take unprofitable, incoherent actions. You shouldn't do anything to hurt us, your allies.

However, unexpected situations have already occurred, so I have to be careful. If the technique was activated normally, it would be strange if the main body's consciousness operation was not clear. Quinn is the only one who ran away.

But this doesn't mean I can just watch. Since the person herself asked for help, it is very likely that the situation is still ongoing and cannot be helped. At the very least, the subject must be pulled away from Quinn in some way.

A Quinn moved. The out-of-control Quinn reacted as if this slight act was the beginning. We lost her.

It disappeared from the scene as if it had never existed from the beginning. Sometimes, he disappeared suddenly, as if seeing a bad hallucination.

My thoughts had a brief blank. But my understanding caught up with me. This is Absolute. "Zetsu" is so advanced that even if it is right in front of you, you will forget its existence. Immediately "Together" look for the enemy.

And when she appeared next time, at this moment, a fatal fist was sent to one of her companions. A palm covered in black smoke and Red Crystal hit Quinn's chest.

There was a huge Boom and Wind, but this fact reassured us. The defense after Quinn was attacked was timely. Usually, it would block the impact that could cause the body to fall apart, converting it into sound and Wind energy and effectively dispersing it. In fact, the Quinn hit by the palm did not move a step from there.

From there, they counterattacked. I stabbed my fist into the "Carbuncle". It doesn't matter if you have Hard armor protection. Microwaves pass through minerals and will definitely destroy the inside.

However, although out of control, the other party is also a master who has practiced like us. Just like when she fought the dead tree man in the past, she dodged their resonance attacks by changing the power in her body and changed the wavelength of the Aura flowing through her body.

The attacks did not intersperse with each other, and they were closely combined Together. However, they were not evenly matched. The friend of the person being attacked was at a disadvantage.

"Carbuncle Armor" is not just a piece of armor. It acts as an exoskeleton that strengthens the body from the outside, improving the basic ability of the Aura enhancement coefficient. It goes without saying which one has a higher enhancement rate, a slender girl, or a girl covered in a phantom exoskeleton.

Whether it is defense or offense, Quinn's physical ability in the out-of-control state is far beyond the usual Quinn. In addition, she trained on this island and gained sensitivity to "Waves". Even if she is running wild, his fighting skills will not lose their sharpness.

This is not an opponent that can be defeated head-on in a One Pair. It was just a Coincidence that I was able to withstand the first blow. If the person who ran away were to attack seriously, she would definitely be defeated.

Because you know its performance, you cannot misread the difference in ability. It's clear that she is relaxed. He almost lost his normal consciousness, but perhaps the last reason worked, hesitating to attack.

However, he knew that even that Prediction was naive.

"Hmm..."

The fist that Quinn was attacked with was covered in Red Crystal. I thought I was using "Carbuncle". But this was a bad move. It is a technique that covers the fist with red cactus like a glove, but it does not have the transformation performance of "Carbuncletalisman". It is useful as protective equipment, but it has no more effect than that, and it is best not to use it because it is flexible, rather than hindering the movement around the fist.

But these Predictions were completely wrong. From the moment Quinn's fist hit the runaway, the "Carbuncle Armor" spread. It was as if the attacked Quinn was covered in "Carbuncle", like a creature infected by the Almeiza Machine, turning into an explosive disease.

I did not activate the technique from myself. Trigger. Before the anomaly, the person being attacked was the first to take action. Decided to abandon Quinn immediately, and the main body left.

But don't miss it. Except for Quinn, who can move quickly, the main body that can only move slowly, no matter how fast, making quick decisions, cannot be compared with the speed of an out-of-control individual.

The main body, which was attempting to flee and leap, was trapped in mid-air. In an instant, I was drawn to a Red Crystal.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo"

After that, there was no further reaction.

Although my thoughts were on the verge of freezing due to the sheer number of things happening, fear still made my body move. We are no longer at a stage where we can relax, such as suppressing and rescuing someone who has lost control. We do not have time to figure out what it is or what caused it.

This is an opponent I must finish off definitively. This kind of existence can annihilate us. There have only been two victims so far, but somehow, I am convinced.

"Prepare 'System Shock'!"

The most important thing is to touch the enemy. That 【Hermit Gauntlet】 has been infected. We should be able to suppress the activation of the Almeiza Machine and be drawn into it without resistance. Never make contact with the enemy.

Therefore, your options for action will decrease. Facing an enemy with different abilities, I cannot even defend myself, so I can only keep dodging. If it is even scratched, that is our loss.

The only remaining method is a long-range attack. With the power of 'Erosion Machine Bullet (System Shot)', it is impossible to destroy that armor at all. Therefore, we used a newly developed technique.

"System Shock" is a railgun currently forming. It is the same as creating a morning glory bud-shaped barrel centered on the main body, but its size is not as large as the "Erosion Bud Bullet (System Burst)". Its total length is about 60 centimeters.

Compared to a railgun that exerts tremendous power as a fixed turret, the "Erosion Bullet" emphasizes mobility and is sized for portability. Its advantage is that it can fire the next round faster. However, the power is far inferior to that amount. There is also the issue of barrel size, but this is because the power had to be suppressed to a level that could suppress the shooting impact force held by Quinn.

As a result, its performance as a railgun is low, and it generates extra friction and resistance, creating plasma that hinders electromagnetic induction. However, this technique uses plasma expansion pressure to fire the bullet. Its performance is similar to a thermal gun.

Its power is not in proportion to artillery that uses gunpowder for propulsion. No matter how powerful and flexible the defense of the "Hermit Gauntlet" is, it cannot block this strike.

Against an enemy whose enhancement rate is significantly superior to the opponent, our only weapon is numbers. You can defeat them by surrounding them and firing at them. The battle situation here is still favorable. However, the longer it takes to kill them, the more casualties they will have. The battle must proceed quickly.

Activate "Erosion Bullet". The formation of the gun takes some time, although not as much as a railgun. The one sitting and waiting for that gap is not the enemy. Come here. I have eyes.

A feeling of intimidation, gripping your heart. I indicated that our gazes met, but I don't know if that was appropriate. It is a fact that the enemy recognizes me and attacks me, but that does not mean I have any Malice toward me. The black smoke spewing from it is a sense of self-reproach, not directed at others.

It felt as if a Wind blew away debris or something. It was so simple that if you dodged, it would pass by.

But this is just my personal feeling after all. If you touch it, you will definitely die. No, I don't know if I will die. The whereabouts of the captured comrades have not yet been confirmed. The enemy I am facing is such an opponent.

A hand with Penetration approached along the trajectory of the chest. Twist half of the body to the right while stepping back. The enemy's kick passed through the place where Quinn was just standing. I can tell from that sharp hand that it was a feint. My main goal is walking payment. I don't need strength. The enemy can win by touching here. Compact, fast, think and hit.

Posture and stance, the movement of the torso and center of gravity, and the joints of the human body are not infinitely movable. If you look at it, your next move is naturally restricted. But this does not only apply to the attacker. It is also true for the defender.

I can go from the kick to where it connects to the right fist. I turn to the right to prevent it from happening. However, the enemy also instantly read the dodge. The left side is slightly open. The elbow might be next.

It was trapped there. My Quinn has not yet finished his evasion move. It is as if the passage of time between me and the enemy is different; I cannot act in time.

Come. A buzzing sound and auditory hallucinations (noise) crawl up. It converges to that point so that the world is drawn to it.

The left elbow goes in. Quinn's body was blown away by the Explosion and impact.

However, the impact was not due to the enemy's attack. Quinn was injured but safe. It is not included in the "Hermit Gauntlet".

My friend's support came just in time. The "Erosion Mistletoe" exploded, separating me from the enemy and pulling me away. My heart, which had stopped due to fear, began to move as if it had regained life.

Deafening gunshots layered on top of each other. The enemy dodged quickly. This is a move that cannot be done unless you can accurately grasp the surrounding situation and predict the trajectory of the bullets. However, even so, it is impossible to dodge all the high-speed approaching bullets.

A bullet hit me. Sparks flew. This is the end. I prayed to heaven that it would happen. In other words, this means I thought I couldn't finish it.

Of course, the power of the bullet was enough to penetrate the armor. However, that energy was blocked as if it had slipped from his fingertips. Unexpected strength and technique. The body handling, which combines hardness and softness, greatly reduced the power of the bullet. Even the scars on the cracked armor were instantly repaired.

Unless you shoot in a stationary state, it is unlikely to cause decent damage. And such an opportunity is hard to come by. Besides, our current lineup is not good either.

We surround the enemy like a siege. If you try to aim at the enemy, the line of fire will overlap with the allies behind you. With this, I cannot casually fire the powerful "Erosion Amphibian". Moreover, we are densely packed in a small area, even though we are surrounding the enemy from a distance. This situation is unavoidable because the enemy suddenly appeared among the troops waiting in the rear.

At this rate, the siege will be broken. If it turns into a melee, it will be unnecessarily disadvantageous. No matter the situation, this enemy will not lose his cool. Of course, he can dodge and parry bullets. I cannot imagine the scene of a bullet hitting me.

"Now!"

Someone cried out. From that sound, the scenery before my eyes changed completely. Coming here, I finally understood. The dense siege formation is not disadvantageous to us.

Quinn, who was standing at the forefront of the runners, jumped out at once and performed a certain technique. It was "Ryu". However, the purpose was not to look for the enemy. A hemispherical space mastery spread around Quinn. I metalized the soap bubble-like aura film with the Almeiza Machine.

I have used this technique before. It is a technique to quickly create a dome-shaped Crystal shelter to protect oneself. However, this time it was used for capture. When multiple Quinns use this move at the same time, the circular shelters will have overlapping areas. Just like a Venn diagram representing a set, the overlapping areas are broken down and isolated into small rooms.

Lock the enemy in that small room. This is one of the strategies we have all practiced many times. Originally, it was information Exchange through radio communication, and actions were taken after ensuring cooperation, but this time there is a high possibility that the enemy intercepted the communication. So he dared to continue moving forward without contacting him.

Perhaps instructions like eye contact had already been made. I didn't realize it, but my comrades correctly understood the intention and successfully performed the operation.

Even if you stack the circular sheds in several layers, they are just partitions made of thin metal plates. It is not a restraint that can contend with the power of the "Hermit Gauntlet".

But the enemy needs to destroy this small room first. One move is absolutely unavoidable. In a state where they are isolated in a small room and their line of sight is blocked, even if they "work together" to prepare for the next attack, they cannot defend in time.

The muzzle of the "Erosion Mr. Bullet", which has completed the Magnetic charge, is aimed at the small room where the enemy is held. I pull the trigger. All the set-up gunshots erupted in unison.

Now you are trapped.