Chapter 194 – Warring States of Monsters (1)
[Medium-risk monsters appear one after another in the city… Public places are not safe]
[Suddenly increased number of reports of monsters, all ’embarrassed’]
[Lee Je-jae 曰 “Unknown trigger works, increasing confusion until it stabilizes”]
[“It must have been an air conditioner…” A monster appeared in a house in Incheon]
[“I ran for life”, A man in his 20s who almost got eaten by a park bench]
[“Unprecedented group awakening of monsters” Null, discussing countermeasures in conjunction with the government]
“What is this?”
As soon as I came back home, I turned on my laptop, thinking that it would not be possible… This is what it looks like.
The news section was full of monsters. Suddenly, without warning, he broke his mimicry and started hurting people. The ones that almost got eaten by the chairs are basically, even the monsters on the bus I saw today… There were so many different forms.
“Why all of a sudden…”
Are you awake?
The reason why the mimicry of a ‘monster’ is used is, of course, ‘to avoid being caught’… Things that are exactly the opposite of the monster’s instinct are happening. It’s an ‘abnormal situation’ that’s completely different from low-risk monsters that don’t even know how to hide.
Monsters don’t eat humans. They just chew a little and throw it away, but what they actually eat is not humans, their own kind.
Monsters eat monsters.
“…”
Even the monster knows instinctively.
He knows that he can be eaten by other large monsters, and that’s why he ‘mimicks’. To blend more naturally into the surroundings and to be able to hunt other monsters easily. But, that suddenly came to an end.
Completely contrary to instinct.
“It’s strange.”
Weird.
There’s something I don’t know. Looking back at the news section, the academic world is also in a frenzy. I still don’t know the reason for ‘the more perfect the degree of imitation, the stronger it gets’… Because something new has been added.
“…Let’s go to sleep.”
Turn off your laptop and lie down on the bed.
*
*
*
“Should I stand?”
“Let’s go to school together…”
As soon as I open the front door, Seol-ah looks up at me with a dreamy expression.
“Wasn’t yesterday enough…?”
“Oh, that’s not enough…”
She shakes her head left and right, saying that it is not Seol-ah. Glancing around, he still looks uneasy.
“No oppa… What are you doing in front of the front door- Huh? Seol-ah sister?!”
“Huh?!”
Her brother who was behind her whimpered and pushed me, and Seol-ah and her eyes met.
“What are you doing here?! What happened to my house all of a sudden?”
Her brother comes out the front door, smiling broadly. She is so happy that she makes exaggerated gestures and even tries to hug Seol-ah. The panicked Seol-ah uses me as a shield to avoid it.
“Oh, step out of your way. You can’t hug her sister.”
“…”
Yesterday, I even helped out by the side, even skipping class, but it still seems to be lacking. I haven’t even seen my brother since I met him at the mart, so even if I can’t speak, it will be very awkward.
I’m sorry Nayeon. Talk to Seol-ah later.
“Let’s hurry.”
I grabbed Seol-ah’s hesitant back and ran to the bus stop.
“Uh, uh? Brother?!”
“Huh… Uhh…”
Seol-ah struggles with her cheeks blushing. Her twirling eyes look at me. She stamps a card on a bus that has just arrived. She quickly sits down next to her empty seat, and Seol-ah looks up at me in bewilderment.
“Go, why are you suddenly like that, Taeho?!”
“You’re still a bit awkward with my younger brother. Looking at you, I could see you were flustered, so I just picked it up and carried it.”
“Aww…”
Seol-ah takes a deep breath and calms her pounding heart.
“Sorry for suddenly coming… Yesterday, right before I went to sleep, I could feel your eyes on me… Father, I came here because I was anxious…”
“It’s okay, take something like this.”
“I-I’m sorry though…! Thank you for coming with me…”
Seol-Ah leans on her shoulder and looks at me with her slightly twinkling eyes. Seol-ah smiles as she nods her head saying that she knows roughly.
“Now, should I stand…? Could she please stay away for a bit?”
“Ah, ugh!”
Seol-Ah was startled and took her head off her shoulder.
“More than that, Tae-Ho… Did you hear the news?”
“What news?”
“You know that… Medium-danger Mamuul…”
“Ah.”
Nod her head
“Nothing happened until two days ago.”
“Taeho, speaking of that… Those monsters, I don’t think they’re trying to attack people.”
“What?”
What do you mean?
“A man almost got eaten by a bench?”
“That was just to drive people away… At least that’s what I think. Tae, Taeho. You know this ‘stare’ I’m feeling right now…”
Seol-ah wiggles her fingers, still looking uneasy.
“Perhaps this line of sight is the problem.”
“Sight?”
“Ugh, gaze.”
Seol-ah pinches her right index finger.
“The monster is not ‘attacking’ right now. It is ‘running away’. To something unknown…”
The voice was full of confidence.
“Last night… Right before going to bed, I struggled to match the waves emitted by the monsters with mine… I did…”
Together they were full of screams.
“…”
“I think that ‘unknown gaze’ stimulated the monsters’ survival instinct… Just like I’m trembling with fear. So maybe… The sleeping monsters hunt other monsters to survive… Fusion. Attempts to do so will increase exponentially, I am sure.”
Seol-ah puts on a hard expression.
My expression also hardens on its own. Something unknown stimulated the monsters’ survival instinct. Strong enough to “Prepare” By going against his instincts and hunting other monsters.
Then.
Unless that unknown gaze disappears. Does this chaos continue?
Pick up your phone and watch the news.
[Rather than discussing countermeasures for ‘mid-level monster confusion’, the priority is to put in manpower quickly]
[At this time, in Beijing, China, four monsters disguised as buses merge to form a ‘six piece’]
[Osaka, Japan, shelves ’empty’ due to stocking up on daily necessities]
[“I will help as far as I can”]
[“Sharp dug into my arm” Survivor interview]
The news, which was all about celebrities, politics, and economics, is full of monsters. Looking around, everyone seemed anxious.
‘This… Is more serious than I thought.’
A cold sweat runs down your forehead.
For a moment.
Maybe at our house?
Hurry up and text your family.
Taeho Kim – Is there anything strange about us? Isn’t it?
Nayeon – I don’t know, I don’t think there is a sex
Mom- Na Yeon-ah, what are you saying to your brother?
Kim Tae-ho – Mom, should I just go home right away?
Mom- No, it’s okay, Mom will check.
Mom- nothing has changed, just relax
Nayeon – Huh
Kim Tae-ho- No, it’s not really a vacation?
Nayeon – Mom, I’m just not going to school today.
Nayeon- What is that thing in oppa’s room, Longinur? I’m going to use that. Aside from that, I got a lot of presents from Cheon Soo-a the other day.
Kim Tae-ho – no
Nayeon- ㅅ
Mom – Taeho, I’ll be protecting you with Nayeon for now, so don’t worry, if the academy has monsters there, there’s no one else to protect it but you.
Mom- And there’s a person from the Seong-gwang side.
Mom- It’s a medium risk, so it’s enough to deal with it with field personnel.
Mom- So the academy knows?
“…”
At the same time, my mother sends me pictures of her recruitment certificate. Unstable.
– It’s already here.
“Whoa…”
Field workers who have already arrived surround the bakery. Among the dogs was Seol-ah’s adoptive father, Kang Geon-ha.
After that, I even called to confirm it, and only then was I able to let go of my heart.
“Ha…”
When I sigh, Seol-ah mumbles.
“It’s like, trauma… Ugh, I don’t know…”
When Seol-ah covers her head with her hands.
The bus arrives at its destination.
*
*
*
Confusion did not come suddenly.
Again, they came sequentially. Like a wave.
“…”
The suspiciously quiet classroom was proof of that.
Classes are in progress, but few students are paying attention. The desk seats were empty, and only about half of the students in the class went to school.
‘No, even half of them came a lot.’
The academy is like that. Maybe he didn’t care much, or he was forced out of the house. Or maybe he believes in the enhanced security of the academy.
Fortunately, there have been no major disruptions yet.
Confusing news broke out in the news, but the streets were quiet, and no ‘big event’ that touched the skin had yet occurred. Some said it was too much of a fuss, and there were also people who didn’t care because there were many areas where there wasn’t much damage.
“Uh… Now if you look at page 247…”
Tick tock, the second hand of the clock ticks by.
The second foreign language professor was especially quiet compared to the other professors. Maybe that’s why, the sound of the clock’s second hand, which I hadn’t heard before, pricked my ears.
Only 3 classes now.
I look down at my major book with half anxiety and half worry.
The monsters have already awakened ‘at the same time’.
However, not all have woken up. The monsters that had not yet reached the unidentified gaze were holding their breath and pretending to be objects, so I couldn’t let go of the tension.
‘All the guys caught in the detector are already dead.’
In other words, there may be monsters hiding that avoid even the most advanced search artifacts. I tried to ask Seol-ah for the search red magic, but it failed because I was not in good condition. If you are by my side, your complexion will improve, but nothing more.
I take a quick look around.
The usual sarcastic cadets who go to class and do other things have completely disappeared, and everyone is shaking their legs and lowering their heads in anxiety. There were a few students who were bright in the middle, but it was probably because they saw the news that a response force was coming. Except for that-
In the classroom, only silence.
There was nothing but static.
“…”
When class was in full swing.
Ugh-
My cell phone rings
– Hey Taeho, you’re coming.
“…Huh?”
A text from Seol-ah. It’s full of typos, whether it’s urgent. I swallowed my saliva and slowly interpreted the text.
‘Are you coming? Are you coming now?’
As soon as I read all the text.
Rattle-
“…Uh?”
“…Huh?”
The fan at the back of the classroom.
Start shaking
