Chapter 35
Chapter 35
"Everyone, run!"
We started running.
It's best to run away when we don't know anything about it.
It's a look that really fits a horror game!
"I've never seen a monster like that. No, it's the first time I've seen a combination like that."
Is it similar to how the spider monster fused with the Buddha statue?
...No, it was more like parasitism than fusion.
Could it be that monsters of the same kind could merge? No way!
In the midst of the confusion, a strange noise came from inside James' coat.
Beep beep beep...
It sounds kind of familiar.
He took out the machine he had used on me the other day from his coat and checked it. It's the measuring instrument. I wondered why he brought it out in this situation.
He said in a slightly stiff voice.
"That's a demon."
"What?!"
That is a demon?
"The machine is reacting. It's not a perfect demon because it doesn't have a soul, but it definitely falls into the category of one."
Then you're saying that is not a cryptid? Such an unexpected enemy makes my head hurt.
"This demon... Why is it here? What does it have to do with the monsters merging?"
James seemed to know more about demons than I did, so I started questioning him.
"I don't know why it's here. Maybe it was born here."
"A demon born here..."
He threw out some examples for me who didn't exactly understand.
"If you receive a crown rightfully through a succession ceremony of a country, a crown demon is born. If you try making people mistake an ordinary snake for a dragon and then perform an appropriate ritual, a dragon demon is born."
It was possible for demons from the outside world to be born that way.
...Fucking world view! Only what the creators have implemented in the game will come out! That's why the children were set-up...!
Let's calm down. Let's sort it out.
"...Does that mean its possible to create a particular demon if you establish a story and context?"
James nodded as if I was correct.
"It's a theoretical idea. The details are unknown. Besides, it's not easy to do that. My guess is that the Devil here is frighteningly efficient at creating demons. I don't know what context they established, but they seem to have quite a bit of power."
You call tell by looking at that huge body.
Considering it was that huge, I wondered if it would be stronger than Mary.
At least it's not a opponent we can win against.
-Sswaaaaaa.
My whole body gets wet in the cold rain.
I can't read its expression because the head is a radio, but the fact that it got rid of the crew in charge of the firepower means that it's quite smart.
Perhaps there was a reason it aimed to make rain.
Bzzz-
"This! Ha-rim, take the white doll out of the bag!"
[Breaking news. A large amount of acidic components were detected in the rain. Citizens, I hope your brain melts. May you make a mountain of bones. I hope you return your soul and become a piece of meat.]
Water droplets full of acid cut through the air and viciously attacked.
But the droplets never reached us.
It was thanks to the doll Ha-rim took out.
In Korea, it's a talisman called sunny doll, and in Japan, it is called teru teru bōzu.1
Because is has the power to clear the weather, it was able to block attacks that used rain.
Kyeong-min exclaims.
"Water droplets are floating in the air!"
Literally, the acid rain was floating in the sky.
If you look closely, you can see it moving back to the clouds.
Even though Ha-rim used the doll, the weather wasn't completely clear.
"It looks like a power struggle."
A conflict between the power to make rain and the power the clear the weather.
This is an item that specializes in clearing the weather. It doesn't seem like the doll will be pushed back as much as other items.
Since the rain does not reach the ground, the water mist is no longer created and was lifted. The demon's figure was clearly visible.
"...Do we have to get rid of that?"
Eun-jeong asks me in a frightened voice. I patted her on the shoulder to soothe her.
"We have no choice but to do it."
[Backwards.]
A sign suddenly emerged from the air.
We started going backwards, in the opposite direction we were running.
"My body moves on its own!"
We were going to the direction of the radio demon.
It seems to be a ploy to induce us to get closer to it.
[Right. Left. Straight.]
"I'll use the cross!"
Maria's cross radiated light.
Then the evil power that had been affecting us disappeared.
That cross is close to all-purpose, but it can't be used a lot.
If we don't find a way, it's nothing more than an emergency measure.
After the sign attack was blocked, the junk demon immediately changed the attack.
Bzzz-
What are you going to do again this time?
[Ah- To Seoul- To Seoul- The train is leaving.]
Paaaaaaaaang-!!
A train came out from the right side of the road and attacked.
Even to me, it would be fatal if hit.
"Everyone, avoid!"
The children screamed and twisted their bodies, barely getting away.
That ability is too dangerous.
We were in a wide area so we were able to avoid it.
There's no guarantee that I, James and Maria will be able to avoid it in a confined space, much less the kids.
Radio broadcast... It's a much more powerful ability than I thought.
In the end, the ability was synthesized with monsters as materials, so there must be a method of eliminating it. We just need to find it.
[We are a bunch of junk. It's empty, so we clutter. All of us are given meaning by becoming one. A father's approval is a son's primordial desire. Now, it seems we don't matter.]
My body throbs.
Is it a curse this time?
Sensitive to the strange power, I could sense that this was an instant death curse.
If you get hit, all your internal organs will go out and your body will be empty.
[First question. Does your father wants your grandfather's approval? It's painful.]
"It would be nice if it attacked in moderation, and I hope the trains honk next time."
Jingle- Jingle- As Eun-jeong shook the bell, the curse disappeared. Then, as she waved the bell in the other direction, I felt lighter.
Since she used the speed buff, it became easier to run.
As our movement speed increased, I thought about what to do as I felt a little more relaxed.
"Where should we go?"
"..."
It's hard because it's quite far from school. But even if we entered somewhere, we would hear the radio broadcast in a narrow place and not be able to deal with it.
Then Ha-rim asked me.
"Hey. Ella. Didn't you say there was an art gallery nearby?"
"That's right. Do you have any thoughts?"
A protagonist who specializes in survival. If it's Ha-rim, I think she will suggest a way to solve this.
"I saw the gallery on a publicity poster before, and there was a picture of an art piece pasted on it. It was a large art piece in the shape of a sun and moon! I think it was exhibited in the back and front of the gallery respectively."
Come to think of it, it seems that there was such a thing as a background object that couldn't be interacted with in the game.
Paaaaaaaaang-!!
A train jumps out and cuts off the conversation.
I was able to avoid it with a slight movement because I noticed that it was deliberately aiming at me from a blind spot.
"The material of those two works of art are mirrors! Mirrors big enough for a train to pass through!"
"...!!"
'Enough to pass a train?'
No way.
"You plan on using it's own attack against itself!"
An unexpected idea. That's also the quality of the main character.
However, moving between mirrors and sucking into mirrors are completely different abilities.
I don't know if I can combine them in an instant.
It is possible to move between mirrors with objects.
Nonetheless, this time it was no different from creating a portal that connects between spaces.
...It's worth a try.
"It might be possible. But how are you going to lead it there?"
It doesn't move it's massive body. It shows a relaxed attitude as if it was only a matter of time to catch us.
"...Maybe like this?"
Ha-rim took out her cellphone and played loud music.
The sound of the radio demon was buried in the ringing so loud that hurt my ears, so I couldn't hear the broadcast well.
[...]
"It's quiet. Since sound is the medium, can we block it with noise?"
James was amazed. So was I.
"Last time at school, we exterminated a monster that was made of sound. If this works, maybe-"
[...Bzzz...]
Before Ha-rim could finish her words, it moved. The ground shakes.
Scythe-shaped legs protruded from its gigantic body, raising itself.
[Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz]
The demon immediately pursued us with a sharp metallic sound.
It looks like a centipede. Even though the body wasn't long, I couldn't think of the appearance of running with many legs except for a centipede.