Second Intermission (4)

Raul spoke with a stiff, almost expressionless face.

"I've never seen a monster that speaks human words. Those things alone are already unbearable, but if the monsters start doing that too…"

His face was clearly marked with deep-seated repulsion. It was an intense rejection that surpassed fear, terror, or disgust.

I had sensed it before, but the people here seemed to loathe creatures that mimic humans and deceive them more than monsters with outward physical features that could easily intimidate people.

Was it because monsters were perceived as more animal-like, true to their instincts? Or perhaps it's because these creatures have only existed for about 10 years, whereas true monsters have existed much longer and have a more established origin?

Maybe it was also because, deep inside people's hearts, there is an instinctive fear of things that resemble humans.

As Leonardo quietly explained the 'talking monsters' to Raul, I approached the wreckage of the destroyed village.

There were no bones, no blood, no signs of a struggle or overt injuries—only the broken remnants of objects left behind in this scene, which was strangely less violent in its form. It appeared that way on the surface, but only at a glance.

"Isaac."

Leonardo had quietly approached and gently placed his hand on my shoulder. His large, firm hand rubbed my shoulder as if to soothe me. Only then did I realize that my body had tensed up from the cold, stiffening in place, and I stood up, taking his hand for support.

At that moment, Vittorio rushed over to us. The child urgently pulled on Raul and spoke quickly.

"Earlier… you taught me how to follow a trail. So I checked around the village's outer wall, and something seems off."

Panting, Vittorio added hurriedly.

"It doesn't look like someone was eaten, but it seems like they were dragged somewhere…"

"What?"

Vittorio led us toward the broken outer wall.

The wooden stakes had holes, as if eaten away by acid, and beyond that, the forest was visible. Vittorio pointed to the ground. The damp earth had scratches from human fingernails. 

We could be sure it was from a person, as the dirt and gravel had been scratched and cut by nails, with blood slowly seeping through. Such blood could not have come from the monster's robust body.

More skilled than Vittorio, Leonardo carefully scanned the dirt path and found a half-broken fingernail. Perhaps thinking it would be too cruel to show the child, he refrained from pointing it out, but since I was watching him, I noticed the same thing.

"Look over there."

Raul's stiff voice pointed to something. A piece of cloth was caught precariously on a sharp branch in a low bush. It appeared the hem of a garment had been torn and snagged on the branch.

"It rained lightly the morning two days ago, and the ashes still cling to the fabric. It's likely the person was dragged recently."

"…"

"It might be some sort of winter preparation. Perhaps they were storing food?"

Leonardo carefully surveyed the area, then made a decision.

"We'll track it."

As we ventured deeper into the forest, the surroundings grew noticeably darker. The tall coniferous trees cast dense shadows with their thick foliage, and the damp soil and decaying leaves filled the air with their musty scent.

Occasionally, we heard the rustle of leaves and the distant calls of birds. As I silently pieced together the hypothesis in my mind.

Raul speculated that the had dragged the villagers away for the purpose of storing food, rather than killing them all, but I couldn't rule out other possibilities either.

They were creatures capable of evolution.

Having realized that their hunting method, which involved wearing the soft skin of humans, had been countered, they had come up with a way to don the tough skin of monsters.

The leap into becoming the allowed them to gain a stronger body and enhanced regenerative abilities—but at the same time, their weaknesses were more evident.

The physical weaknesses of a monster, and the vulnerability of the stitching sites where they had shed their skin and sewn it back together, were clear drawbacks. It was highly possible that they might have attempted some kind of experiment to compensate for these flaws.

They surely weren't satisfied yet.

'For example… they might be conducting another experiment to further improve their evolution.'

At the same time, my thoughts drifted elsewhere.

To Sub-writer 1—Godric. Until now, I had assumed that Sub-writer 1 was either in cooperation with them, or at least one of their pawns, a piece on a board that he controlled at will.

But the royal procession that arrived in El Dante last time, though it was made up entirely of those creatures, had shown that every individual was under the influence of .

None of the creatures affected by moved according to the will of Sub-writer 1 without resistance.

If that's the case, it means Sub-writer 1 is only using them to some extent, but can't fully control or dominate them. The reason they are trying to evolve on their own might stem from their desire to become beings with roles in this stage. Though I'm not sure if that can truly be called free will, it doesn't seem to fit the image of mere submission.

'Even Godric has limitations. He's probably not an absolute being who reigns unchallenged…'

At that moment, Leonardo, who was leading the group, quietly raised his hand and made a fist. The signal to stop was passed through the line, and Raul, acting like a trained hound, moved forward and swiftly climbed a tall branch to gaze into the distance.

Leonardo, observing Raul's signals, whispered briefly.

「There's a den up ahead.」

And at that very moment.

A sudden crack rang out, and the branch that Raul had been perched on snapped and broke.

"Ugh…!"

Raul had been high up, and falling from that height would have likely shattered his legs or smashed his head. But in an instant, he hastily drew his spear, thrust it into the tree trunk, and hung on.

Raul's weight caused the spear to scrape along the tree trunk as it bent, straining under the pressure. The spear recoiled, snapping back, and Raul swiftly jumped to another branch, narrowly avoiding the fall.

"Ambush!"

At Leonardo's command, the members of the hunting party instinctively formed a defensive circle. The sound of the conifers swaying in the wind grew more intense, and in the damp shade of the trees, the noise of something approaching, stepping on branches, grew louder and closer.

Then, the creature revealed itself.

[Viewing information for specified entity.][Role – The Nameless Ones]

Three humans, and one that is a mixture of a monster and a human. I selected only the information about the monster.

[Species Name] Two-faced Viper (Adult)

[Habitat] A venomous predator found in dense vegetation areas.

[Ecology] A venomous snake with no tail and heads at both ends, it has a vicious nature and is highly aggressive. It is capable of spraying venom that can even dissolve rocks, and its blind spots are nearly nonexistent. The body is very long, giving it an extended range. It is also referred to as a malicious strangler… (Read more)

The long-bodied snake hissed loudly, with heads at both ends, as it opened its mouth wide and made a threatening sound. When I warned Leonardo about the venom using , he relayed the information to the troops in a commanding voice.

Meanwhile, I examined the strange, artificially combined scales. The body was massive, almost as thick as a tree stump, and I immediately understood why they chose this creature's body. 

'There are no sutures!'

There were no marks from cutting the skin to empty out the interior and fill it with human components. Since it had heads at both ends, it could have entered through one head, emptied the bones or internal organs, and come out through the opposite head.

Leonardo, noticing this as well, had a stiff, tense expression.

Raul, hanging from a high branch, leapt down and jumped over the snake's head, immediately stabbing his spear into it. The spear pierced through the head and emerged from the underside of its jaw, causing venom to drip down, forming a small puddle on the rock beneath, where the acid began to melt the stone.

The opposite head bared its long fangs and lunged at Raul, attempting to bite and throw him. Raul nimbly jumped off the snake's head, landing on the ground like a gymnast performing a roll. As he gritted his teeth, the serpent violently shook its head, seemingly trying to shake off the spear.

"Shields up!" Leonardo shouted.

The knights quickly raised their shields and took cover. I, too, followed suit and protected myself, but my gaze remained fixed on Leonardo.

"Leo, catch!"

As Raul, staggering from his landing, pressed his head down, I threw a shield from the cart. Leonardo, who had slid under the shield as it came near, raised it, shielding himself.

The snake's venom, sprayed from its twisted neck, hit the iron part of the shield with a sizzling sound, burning a round hole through it. Beyond that hole, I glared at the serpent. Despite its attempt to hide its biggest weakness, the creature's vulnerabilities as a monster were still there.

[Weakness (1) / Venom Spray] Since both heads share a single venom sac, while one head is spraying venom, the other head cannot use venom.

Fortunately, thanks to Raul stabbing the spear, one of the heads was dripping with venom. On the other hand, the other head was unable to produce any secretion. However, this alone was not enough to kill the creature.

[Weakness (2) / Tongue] Since it detects scents through its tongue, losing its tongue significantly reduces its sensory ability.

"Cut off the tongue of the head that can't use venom!"

As my shout reached him, Leonardo immediately lowered his shield and stomped the ground. Climbing onto the writhing body, he drove his sword into the scales and climbed up to the head, quickly cutting off the creature's tongue.

It wouldn't last long, of course. Thanks to its regenerative ability, the tongue would likely grow back soon. The other head, already impaled by the spear, twisted its body and seemed to push Leonardo away, before twisting mid-air. The monster began tightening its body around the knights' formation, gradually constricting them.

As the sensory organs were damaged, making it difficult to gauge the distance of smaller objects, the creature focused on targeting several larger groups instead. The nameless creatures slowly tightened around the knights, their presence growing increasingly threatening as they whispered.

"If you hand it over… we'll let you go."

As the creature coiled and tightened its massive, thick body, the knights trapped beneath it gasped for air, choking in the pressure. Soon, the other head, its tongue having grown back, joined in, hissing and whispering.

"If you hand it over… we'll also return the humans we've taken."

Were they referring to the villagers they had kidnapped?

With the creature's almost coaxing whispers, Leonardo, his expression hardened, did not respond, and Raul spoke up in his place.

"What do you want us to hand over?"

At that moment, the two heads of the snake turned and stared directly at me. Without dragging it out, they spoke clearly in unison.

"Hand over the outsider."