132
Ch.132 For a Quiet Meal
"Beep beep beep beep beep~ beep beep beep~"
In a closed District near W-City, behind a building where only my wagging tail was visible.
On top of my body, which was concentrating on something in my head, Sagugu was playing with a Pipikung doll.
"Huaaaa~ fluffy fluffy~"
And beside that, Gu Seo-ryong, who had climbed onto the mane area of my neck, moved her arms in a sweeping motion and burrowed into the fur.
Lost in thought, I pressed Gu Seo-ryong down firmly with my front paw, telling her to do it in moderation.
"Oh my my my? This is nice? Soft and squishy and smooth."
"Nyaat! Sagugu wants to do that too!"
[Don't enjoy it.]
Sagugu came down from my back and clung to my paw pad.
My pink paw pads when I'm in monster form seem to feel like soft cushions.
"Sagugu likes these paw pads. Today Sagugu will use them as a bed."
"Good idea, then can I use the opposite paw?"
[Don't bother me.]
After telling them to play in moderation, I focused on my head again.
The new core that appeared in my head after becoming Annihilation-class.
I still haven't figured out what this thing is.
Even the monster that's devouring me won't teach me how to use it, saying it won't allow me even this much.
The fact that it goes this far means this is something quite important to Annihilation-class monsters.
Probably, the presence or absence of this thing is the difference between Annihilation-class and Despair-class monsters.
If I don't know how to use this, I can't become a proper Annihilation-class.
So I want to figure out how to use it, but how exactly do I use it...
"Beep beep beep beep beep beep~ beep beep beep beep~"
[It's noisy.]
"Unyaaaat!"
When I crushed Sagugu with my front paw, Sagugu stuck both hands out between my toes and moved the Pipikung doll.
[What's with all this beeping and beeping from earlier?]
"That's the Pipikung anime song."
[Pipikung anime?]
"When I was looking for the next research facility I created an account to access other cities... B-City has free Pipikung broadcasts. It has been showing up every mealtime."
[Didn't you say you didn't want to show Pipikung?]
"What can I do since I already saw it thanks to someone? If I can't stop it, I might as well make use of it. Thanks to that, mealtime has become a bit quieter."
"Beep beep beep beep~ beep beep beep~"
"Though it's made everything else much noisier..."
[Just hearing it gives me a headache.]
I used my air manipulation ability to create a transparent barrier around Sagugu.
Freed from the beeping sounds, Gu Seo-ryong slowly made her pupils, which had been tensely stretched into vertical slits, round again.
"Oh my, I forgot you had this kind of ability too."
[So, did you find the next research facility?]
"The most suspicious place for now is B-City."
[The city of Pipikung.]
The wealthiest among modern cities, and a city where the boundary between villains and heroes is ambiguous.
Even in the monster era, it's famous for various industries repeatedly growing and disappearing, and for creating Pipikung.
"It's also the place with the highest energy consumption, and there are many illegal industries there too. There's a saying about hiding a tree in a forest, right? There's no place better than B-City for running something like a research facility."
According to the researcher's memories, it's also a place that does a lot of illegal human experimentation, so it wouldn't be strange if sudden disappearances or deaths occurred.
Since there are villains contracted with major corporations, there are also many superpower humans fighting monsters at a level similar to A-City.
In other words, they can obtain as much material to use as test subjects as they want.
[Are we going right away?]
"No, this time we don't need to go and investigate like last time. We have the master code, right? With this, we can find out everything we need to know from here, so once we narrow down the candidates for sure, then we'll go."
[That's useful.]
"Actually, it would probably be faster to go directly to B-City and investigate..."
Previously, when going to A-City to look up internal city information, there was a need to make contact with government people, but now that Gu Seo-ryong has obtained a high-ranking master code, there's no need for that.
The access permissions that A-City's master code has are considerable.
If we wait, we'll find it.
Then, Sagugu came through the transparent barrier holding a Pipikung doll that had been crushed by hand strength.
"Pipikung is broken."
"Sigh... Here, a new Pipikung."
"It's Pipikung number 82!"
When Gu Seo-ryong took out a Pipikung from between her chest and gave it to her, Sagugu excitedly returned to her original spot.
"Because of that thing, we can't go to B-City."
[Because of Pipikung?]
"That's right, B-City has Pipikung parks here and there, and B-City itself is the city that appears in the Pipikung anime... If we go to such a place, I don't think we'll be able to control Sagugu."
Sagugu is a weapon that fills in Gu Seo-ryong's lacking combat power.
If that weapon doesn't listen and chases after the Pipikung around the city, it's obvious what will happen without even looking.
Chasing after the running Sagugu, spending time trying to detach Sagugu when she clings to Pipikung, and if she gets too excited and accidentally transforms into a monster, the research facility will respond in advance.
"We already revealed ourselves in A-City, didn't we? Because of that, the research facility is probably on guard too, so I want to move more secretly. If we take Sagugu, that'll be difficult."
[Couldn't I just go alone?]
My size is too conspicuous, and since I haven't completely suppressed my core, other monsters might notice my approach.
But whether they notice or not, couldn't I just smash everything?
"Well, it would be nice if it were that easy, but... Isn't it strange? The research facility releasing 5 Despair-class monsters in A-City."
Gu Seo-ryong refuted my thinking.
"No matter how useless those failures were, they used too many. It was too conspicuous... 5 Despair-class monsters appearing in one city all at once, even an idiot would find it suspicious, right?"
[What are you trying to say.]
"Isn't it too excessive to call it the research facility's desperate struggle after being chased by Kage? So..."
[There's another meaning.]
Either they thought it didn't matter to use about 5 Despair-class monsters, or there was a need to throw away that many Despair-class monsters.
Yeo Woon-jae and the monsters were sufficient to kill Kage, Electress, and Baskerville.
Even if S-rank heroes came for support afterward, considerable damage couldn't have been avoided.
"Considering A-City's power, the force the research facility deployed was overkill no matter how you look at it. Especially, Yeo Woon-jae was like a joker made specifically targeting Kage. No matter how you think about it, it was excessive. The research facility was aware that there was no need to throw away that much. But they still did it."
[So it didn't matter if they used that much.]
A situation where Despair-class monsters were no longer precious. There's only one possibility for that.
[Does that mean they've already created Annihilation-class?]
"Or, even if not Annihilation-class, they created a successful work that meets their purpose."
The reason it wouldn't matter if people found the commotion in A-City strange.
The research facility had already accomplished their goal.
"So, I think it's better to be careful."
[I don't think they can control Annihilation-class.]
"Same thing. If the research facility's goal wasn't Annihilation-class monsters but special Despair-class monsters... The moment you show yourself, they'll hide even more thoroughly, right? Are you confident you can find that?"
[Hmm.]
No. While it's easy for monsters to find other monsters, finding humans is as difficult as finding ants in a sandbox.
Once you find them, you can discover them all at once, but finding them the first time isn't easy.
Especially if it's finding specially-formed ants.
"So Deun-deun should wait quietly, Auny will find them well."
I have no choice but to leave it to Gu Seo-ryong, who's good at finding such things.
Thinking that I wouldn't be leaving W-City for a while until Gu Seo-ryong finished her investigation, I asked her about something that suddenly came to mind.
[Do you think it'll take long?]
"Well, why? Would you like it to be quick?"
[If tracking the research facility takes long, I'd like to visit some cities unrelated to the research facility before that.]
"Huh? Why suddenly?"
I briefly told Gu Seo-ryong about the refugees and agents.
[To eat quietly, I need to sort things out once.]
"If you leave them alone, they'll keep thinking they can take you away and bother you, so you want to go show them that's not the case?"
The refugees and agents believe that if they do well, they can extract me from W-City and establish me in their city.
How about I go near the cities and do what I want to show them that's not the case.
"That's stupid, don't do unnecessary things."
[Why?]
"If you do such things, wouldn't it be adding fuel to the fire?"
Gu Seo-ryong completely denied my idea and explained her thinking.
"The current number of agents and refugees in W-City is very small considering you're an Annihilation-class monster. The cities still don't properly trust it and are still exploring. Whether you're really an Annihilation-class monster, whether a safe District is really created... Citizens will be especially suspicious. But if you go directly and show them about creating a safe District, do you think they'll stay still?"
[You mean they'll all flock to W-City.]
"If that happens in the current state, do you think the residential areas or even W-City's food factories can handle it? We're already struggling with Sagugu's food costs, and I don't want food expenses to rise further here."
Hearing that my movement could cause greater chaos, I gave up on stopping by other cities.
[Good thing I asked.]
"...Well, I'm smarter than you."
[That's not what I meant.]
The reason I asked Gu Seo-ryong was because she seemed like she could come up with a better answer than me.
[Since you're closer to human, I thought you'd come up with an answer closer to a human perspective.]
Gu Seo-ryong's eyes twitched when she heard my words.
"...What are you talking about? I'm a monster, you know? Both you and I are monsters. You know that, right?"
Neither Gu Seo-ryong nor I can return to being human anymore.
Even if we had human hearts transplanted like in monsterization surgery, the monster cells already spread throughout our bodies would devour the heart.
[How many monsters were you mixed with?]
"About 10, why?"
[I stopped counting after surpassing 100. So compared to me, you're human.]
Gu Seo-ryong gave off a sweet and salty dual emotion at my answer.
"You know, a good man should know how to lose arguments to women sometimes. I'd prefer if you only crushed me so thoroughly like that in bed."
[I was just stating facts. Even now, you knew better than me how humans would move.]
"Isn't it just a socialization problem? You haven't been out of the research facility for long, and I came out much earlier."
[It would be the same even with time.]
Now that I've become an Annihilation-class monster, I can tell with senses more expanded than before. Gu Seo-ryong has been used less than me.
She said she's enduring with drugs against instinct, but using those drugs is Gu Seo-ryong's own will. The reason Gu Seo-ryong endures even while using drugs is.
"Hmm, I don't like you looking so deeply into me."
[Is that so.]
Gu Seo-ryong, who read part of my thoughts from my gaze, extended her hand in refusal, telling me to stop.
"As I said before, if you want to have such deep conversations with me, it has to be after mating. Doing it without any intention of doing so is against the rules. Cheating."
[What rules did I violate.]
"The rules between men and women, males and females set by nature?"
[Do monsters need to follow such things.]
"Oh my, that's too much. Are you saying only you will cheat? Of course, that unreasonable aspect of yours is charming but..."
"Mom, give me new Pipikung."
"Just how many do you break in a day?"
"It's Pipikung number 83!"
Gu Seo-ryong, who had been licking and stickily stroking my fur, sighed and took out a new Pipikung. Finding that sight interesting, I looked at Gu Seo-ryong's chest and asked.
[How many Pipikung fit in there?]
"Curious? Should I show you from behind?"
[Not many go in.]
"Oh my? Secretly looking again? Such a lewd cat."
Using my ability to see three Pipikung tucked between her underwear and chest, at the sides, below, and center, I lost interest.
Gu Seo-ryong also quietly looked at Sagugu, not me, and didn't cling to me anymore.
Then, cooking smells vibrated from far away.
[Is it mealtime?]
"Should we go eat? We should go do some shopping too."
"Beep beep beep beep beep~ beep beep beep beep~"
[It's noisy.]
"Beep nyaak!"
I pressed down the noisy Pipikung Sagugu was playing with, with my front paw and got up from my spot.