Chapter 11: Bone Armor (1)

There are two primary ways to utilize bone parasites in The Defense.

The first method involves directly implanting the bone parasite into the body through a specialized surgery and a combination of drugs.

This method is risky, but if successful, the results are undeniably powerful.

'You'd gain complete control over the bone parasite's abilities… The power to extrude bone from any part of your body…'

Both offensively and defensively, bone parasite implantation is an overwhelming advantage.

In fact, starting from Violet Line, Ark has an elite unit dedicated to using such soldiers—

The Skull Knights.

The second method is to use a monster's heart as a core.

The process is relatively simple:

Inject a special drug into the heart of a monster. Allow the bone parasite to infest the heart. This suppresses the parasite's monstrous instincts, making it controllable by humans. Integrate the infested heart into a Level 2+ protective suit's energy core.

Thus, the Bone Armor is born—

A system that allows indirect control over the bone parasite's power.

'It's not as effective as the first method, but it's still damn useful.'

If this were a game, I'd always choose the first option.

It's vastly more efficient. If I failed, I could just restart since it's still early-game.

A Bone Parasite Reroll, so to speak.

But now?

Now, things were different.

Even within Ark, where the best medical facilities exist, implantation is considered an extremely dangerous procedure.

Technically, I could just shove the parasite into my body without proper surgery—

Relying solely on a few drugs and sheer willpower.

But honestly?

That didn't sound appealing.

From my experience, the odds of successfully implanting a bone parasite without Ark's help are about…

1 in 10.

If I were playing a game, I could just reset after a failed attempt.

But in this world?

I only had one life.

And I wasn't about to gamble it away on a 10% chance.

'I only have one shot at this.'

If I died here—

What would happen to me?

There were two possibilities:

I'd return to my original world. I'd die for real.

And if there was even a 1% chance that the second option was true—

Then there was no way in hell I was risking it.

Thus, the only option available to me was the second method.

Not that I really had much of a choice.

'First, I need a monster heart.'

Finding a monster's heart wouldn't be too difficult.

If I simply went down the mountain, I'd find the corpses of the Hellhounds I hunted last night.

Many of them still had intact hearts—

Because I'd deliberately avoided destroying them.

'I could use one of those if necessary…'

But ideally?

I wanted a stronger monster's heart.

The strength of the Bone Parasite depends on what kind of heart it's attached to.

Naturally, the stronger the monster, the more powerful the bone parasite.

Of course, the trade-off is that stronger monsters make the parasite harder to control.

But that's nothing compared to implanting it directly into my body.

A minor risk at best.

That said, Bone Parasites can always switch hosts.

I could start by using a Hellhound's heart and replace it later with something better.

The problem?

Every time I switched hearts; I'd have to repeat the entire process.

And that was a pain in the ass.

Currently, I had three vials of Type-55 Painkillers.

These weren't just for pain relief—

Their composition made them perfect for controlling Bone Parasites.

That was exactly why I'd asked Lt. Imosha for them.

She probably had no idea what I actually intended to use them for.

'I could get more later, but…'

I might need these for their original purpose.

I had no idea what could happen in the future—

So I needed to use them wisely.

'First, I need to hunt.'

My priority now was securing a strong monster's heart.

It was always better to have options rather than being forced into a choice.

So, before anything else—

I needed to hunt.

Before leaving my shelter, I set up a camouflage net over my hot spring and cave.

My location was already well-hidden—

But just in case.

'You never know.'

In The Defense, even the smallest mistake could come back to bite you later.

And I wasn't about to let my guard down.

'Alright… Time to move.'

With everything ready, I finally set out.

Compared to when I first climbed Noah, I felt light as a feather.

I had ditched my heavy backpack, leaving me with only:

A basic field pack My Ark-15 rifle My HE2050 pistol My Smel Machete A canteen filled with hot spring water A Multi-Calorie Bar An empty backpack for carrying loot

I could move freely like this.

With the Wave yet to begin, trekking through the mountains wasn't too difficult.

Noah's harsh terrain naturally kept monsters and aberrations away.

And right now—

That was incredibly convenient.

As I climbed, the darkness of dawn began to fade.

A golden glow spread across the horizon.

The sun was rising.

It had only been one day since I arrived in this world.

And yet, so much had already happened.

I had a feeling every single day from now on would be just as insane.

As I moved, I bit into a Multi-Calorie Bar for breakfast.

At first, it had tasted like a brick.

But somehow, it was starting to taste like actual chocolate.

Maybe I was just getting used to it.

'Once I finish dealing with the Bone Parasite, I need to start gathering food.'

I still had almost two months' worth of Multi-Calorie Bars.

But honestly?

Two months wasn't as long as it sounded.

Right now, I had more urgent priorities—

So, I was delaying food collection.

But in reality?

This was a serious problem.

'If I think ahead… I should start rationing the bars now.'

Multi-Calorie Bars were compact, efficient, and calorie-dense.

They were perfect emergency rations.

So, the more I saved now, the better off I'd be later.

There was no better emergency ration than Multi-Calorie Bars, so I wanted to preserve them for as long as possible.

In The Defense, there were three primary ways to obtain food:

Buying from Ark Trading with external merchants Gathering food directly

The first two options were immediately out of the question.

I still had extra ammunition to trade, but I needed to save it for something far more important down the line.

That left me with only one choice—

Hunting and gathering.

'It's hard to find food inside Noah… but outside of it, things are different.'

Volcanic ash makes for excellent fertilizer.

Because of that, while Noah itself was mostly barren, there was a massive forest region on its far side—

A place known as the Great Forest.

The sheer size of Noah made the journey there time-consuming, but just knowing it existed was already a good sign for food procurement.

Of course, my main food source would still be monster corpses.

Monster meat was naturally toxic, but certain plants found in the Great Forest could neutralize the poison.

In terms of game mechanics, monster meat provided great satiety, but there was one issue that always came up in its description—

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"It tastes absolutely disgusting."

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'…Well, I'll manage somehow.'

After hours of trekking across Noah's midlands, I finally arrived at my destination.

The dark storm clouds above had begun to part, and rays of sunlight streamed through.

'I have to be careful from here on.'

Noah was vast.

Naturally, some parts bordered Ark's defensive lines—

While others did not.

This was one of those places.

Here, humans weren't the dominant species.

Here, the true rulers were the monsters and abominations.

Carelessness meant death.

'Alright…'

I adjusted my 36x scope to its maximum zoom and began scanning the area.

Stronger monsters were categorized by their tier—

The higher the tier, the stronger they were.

But…

A higher-tier monster didn't necessarily mean it was hard to hunt.

Even powerful creatures had weaknesses.

And I was looking for a very specific type.

The perfect target:

✔ Massive size

✔ Thick hide

✔ Slow movement

If I could land a precise shot on its weak points, it wouldn't matter how tough it was.

I could take it down easily.

Fortunately, I spotted one quickly.

It was hard to miss—

Both because of its distinct appearance and its sheer size.

'Found you.'

A Grade 6 Aberration.

Mossback Kupf.

The owner of the heart I was about to take.

***

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