Ch 496: Ancient Cataclysm And A Failed Negotiation Leads To An Assault

Appearing before the two people was a gigantic thing, a fusion of metal and flesh, pulsating like a heart. It was unclear whether this thing possessed sensation, nor what exactly it was.

“Were you the one who called me here?”

Grey asked, but received no answer. The Main Body simply extended several tentacles to retrieve Nia’s Greatsword and Grey’s Longbow. Then, a tentacle pointed to a glowing Tablet.

“Do you want us to go over there?”

The tentacle seemed to understand. It swayed up and down, then pushed the two people’s backs, urging them forward. Nia hated the feeling of tentacles touching her. She slapped the tentacle away and pulled Grey towards the glowing Tablet.

“Grey, I hate this kind of thing, hurry up.”

“Yeah, I know.”

The two reached the glowing Tablet, and two Metal People brought over Chairs and placed them behind them.

“Wouldn’t it be some weird chair?”

Nia touched the chair. The hard sensation somewhat reassured her, but she wasn’t reassured enough to casually sit on a chair offered by strangers. Grey, for some reason, felt a strange sensation towards this Main Body.

“Nia, sit on my lap.”

“Mm.”

Once the two sat down, some Text appeared on the glowing Tablet. This Text was the same as the Text they had seen earlier on the Metal Plates. They couldn’t translate it; they didn’t understand it at all.

“Can you change it to text we can understand?”

Grey asked with a wry smile. Unexpectedly, the entity controlling the screen actually obeyed. The text on the screen immediately began to change, quickly transforming into text they were familiar with. The grammar and spelling had some errors, but it was harmless; it was barely understandable.

The screen roughly stated that they, or it, was a Shelter created by a very ancient Ancient Civilization. In that distant era, there was no Magic in the world. For the Humans of that time, Magic was a deadly poison. They were tormented by the Magic Essence in the atmosphere, so they had to find a place where Magic Essence could not interfere. Finally, they chose to build the Shelter underground. This was because Magic Essence could not penetrate the Soil Layer, and the Metal used in these Shelters was a Material that could isolate Magic Essence.

Seeing this, Grey felt something was wrong.

“Wait, are you saying that in the past, the world’s atmosphere didn’t contain Magic Essence?”

The text on the screen paused for a moment, then answered Grey’s question. Grey saw the affirmative answer on the screen, and he continued to ask.

“You say this place can isolate Magic Essence. Why can we still use Magic here and replenish our Magic with Magic Essence?”

The light on the screen flickered, and then text appeared.

“Should I continue? Fine. But let me say this first, you cannot do anything to me or my Companion during this time. If I or my Companion discovers it, this conversation is immediately cancelled. Let me state this beforehand: one of us can annihilate this place and its surroundings.”

『We understand, then let’s continue.』

Grey looked at the text on the screen and hugged Nia tightly.

『There are no walls that are impenetrable, and this is the same here. After decades of our lives, Magic Essence still invaded this place. The Humans here were infected by the Magic Essence, and anomalies quickly appeared. They began to mutate, their appearance and thoughts changing. Finally, in an incident, a small number of infected people seized control of this place. They turned those who opposed Magic Essence into walls and Canned Food, using their Hearts to create new energy to power this place. We were also modified like this. This Room is the Core of the entire Shelter. Those people forced us to merge after integrating themselves into machinery. They took out our brains and integrated them into this Core. As long as we are destroyed, this place will collapse.』

Grey and Nia both felt a wave of discomfort. If this thing was telling the truth, then they might very well be the descendants of these madmen. If that were true, it would be a huge shock to their perception.

“Looking at the situation, it doesn’t seem like there are that many people here? Where did all this flesh come from?”

『Hunting. They periodically open the Entrance here to lure later generations of Humans inside. For immortality, they fuse themselves with machinery.』

“From what you’re saying, you seem different from those madmen?”

『We are the same, except that the Main Brain used for thinking is now asleep, and we, the Sub-Brains used for analysis, are temporarily in charge of this place.』

“Let me ask, were the bloodstains on the second floor and the seriously injured Adventurer your doing?”

『……Yes.』

Looking at the constantly flashing cursor on the screen, Grey stood up.

“Then there’s nothing more to say. You hurt someone, and that’s enough for me to not accept you.”

Grey raised his hand; in his hand was a Dragon Tooth Dagger. But he didn’t point it directly at the Core because he knew he had no chance of defeating this thing at the moment. He still had a question that needed answering. Grey saw that these things were targeting him; they wanted Grey’s brain. So Grey pointed the dagger at his own head. The tentacles that had been extended instantly stopped. Grey had guessed right.

“Why are you after me?”

『You are the best match for us, and you are calm enough.』

“Then why did my Detection Magic fail here?”

『We used the Magic Essence here to block your perception of Creatures.』

“I see. Then there’s nothing more to say. I will remember the fact that you once lived, but now I still have to live a few more decades with my Family, and I have no intention of becoming a Monster.”

Grey paused, then raised his left hand and shouted.

“Nia, begin the destruction!”

Upon hearing Grey’s Instructions, Nia immediately erupted with intense Magic. This was the sign of 『Beast God Possession』, and also the way to summon Phia and the others.

『This Magic!』

“Sorry, my Little Fox isn’t an ordinary Fox.”

Platinum-colored battle markings covered Nia’s hands and legs. Her Tail became nine tails and turned a sacred white. Although she feared the invasion of God’s Country again, she was more worried about failing to protect Grey.

Nia was like a Lightning bolt. She drew the Short Sword from her sleeve and began to Sever the tentacles reaching for Grey. Each strike left marks on the wall behind the tentacles. If it were only Nia, she could solve this, but it would be slower, as she would also have to take care of Grey. But with the others joining, it would be different.

“Grey, we’re here!”

Phia, Bal, and Yselle appeared behind Grey, each holding their Weapons.

“Although I’m the weakest in this Family, you’ve targeted the wrong person.”