Chapter 56
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Creptonos Eggs
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Priscilla hadn't faced Tebier in person or shared words with him in over ten years.
Ever since she fell out of favor with the Chief Supervisor and was driven out of town, she'd communicated with Tebier through pollen.
It was just like sending letters.
The World Tree's pollen that Tebier dispatched would find her no matter where she was on the continent, connecting and dispersing to form messages. If she had something to relay, she'd send it back the same way.
Though Priscilla belonged to the 감사원, in truth, she followed only Tebier. It was their little secret.
When Tebier ordered her to join the hunting party, Priscilla hadn't understood his words at first.
[There's an amusing human serving as captain. You'll surely take a liking to him.]
Tebier knew exactly what Priscilla enjoyed. And yet he claimed she'd like a human, not a monster?
The moment Priscilla met Dane, she grasped the meaning. And just as Tebier predicted, she took a liking to him.
[I met the Dane Butchery Squad. I want to open it up, but I'll hold back.]
That was the pollen message Priscilla sent Tebier from the ancient forest.
But now it went beyond that.
‘Can I hold back?’
She debated whether to inform Tebier of her thrilled feelings.
* * *
‘So that’s why she warned me to be careful.’ Dane paid special attention to the antennae as he butchered them.
As Dane swung his twin blades in every direction, methodically slicing through their joints and necks, it wasn't long before every monster collapsed to the ground.
Catching his breath atop one of their torsos, Dane reflected on the bewildering moment he'd just experienced for the first time.
All his hunts so far had been clashes of raw power, tests of speed against speed.
Dane always held the advantage by projecting himself into his opponent's body and pre-cutting their strength, and even if they proved stronger or faster than expected, he'd overcome it with the authority of regeneration.
If they were too massive to kill easily, diving inside them had worked well enough.
‘Still, predicting damage like paralysis is tricky.’ Without prior intel, even Dane would face perilous moments. Experiencing and overcoming it firsthand carried too much risk. It wasn't the same as getting sliced or bitten.
‘Good thing I heard about it beforehand.’ Priscilla's advice had been a huge help. He hoped next time she'd offer a bit more kindness and detail in her warnings.
His pondering shifted to another unresolved issue.
‘Are these all of them? My heart's still pounding.’ He scanned the surroundings for any more, but nothing appeared.
‘Then either there are more monsters inside the village, or I need to eat these ones’ meat to calm down.’
The God of Butchery Kaipatu had instructed him to debone, portion, and seek out flavors. That might mean Creptonos meat held something special.
‘Is it tied to their paralyzing ability?’ It could be like pufferfish—dangerous but delicious. Or maybe like spicy food that numbs the tongue.
If so, all he had to do was try it.
Dane gripped the claw with both hands, spread his arms, and tore it right off.
A suitable chunk of meat came away attached to the shorter side. When he'd severed the joint earlier, all the fluids had gushed out, leaving no fishy smell in the flesh.
The exterior resembled shellfish, but inside it was bright red meat. The texture was unique, soft and marbled like snowflakes.
“River! Salt!”
River reflexively pulled a lump of rock salt from her emergency seasoning belt at her waist and tossed it over. Dane caught it with the claw, sprinkled a bit on the meat, and brought it to his mouth.
The texture was extraordinary, the flavor intriguing. It was tender yet dense, offering a satisfying chew.
“Mmm…….”
He closed his eyes to delve deeper into the taste. It felt like eating shellfish and meatballs together, just as it looked.
A rich savoriness melted across his palate, lingering with a subtle sweetness at the end.
It would be perfect steamed whole in its hard shell like a pot. Too bad they were too big for that.
It was certainly unique and good meat. But not exceptionally so.
Maybe it varied by cut, or perhaps the real answer lay inside that village. He'd have to tackle them one by one.
As Dane selected one to strip its carapace, portion the flesh, and sample bits, River and Priscilla approached.
“Try this. Shame about the lost moisture, but it's pretty decent.” Dane handed over the cut portions to River.
River examined the textures by section, tasting small amounts as she pondered recipes. If cooked preserving the internal juices as Dane suggested, the meat's savor would deepen even more.
“Why'd you cut off its arm earlier?” River asked. Recalling the scene twisted her expression into a grimace.
“The antennae had paralyzing venom. It spread through my body, so I sliced it off preemptively.”
“Paralysis? So that's what Priscilla meant by dangerous…….” Just then, Priscilla, who had been rummaging through a Creptonos's innards, pulled out a thick organ.
“This is it.”
“What is it?”
“The paralysis venom gland.”
River stepped forward to inspect it. Meanwhile, Dane and Priscilla's eyes met, and she unwittingly averted her gaze.
She didn't know the reason for her emotions. She just had to suppress the pounding impulse.
“Hmm…… this is pretty good, actually?” Amid it all, River was tasting the gland's juice on her tongue tip.
“I'd need more tests, but if used right, it could work as a spice. It's got this unique spicy, tingling kick.” It was astonishing how she interpreted it that way. If Dane was serious about meat, River was serious about cooking. But the word “tests” concerned him.
“Tests mean…… trying different amounts to see what's safe?”
“Yeah.”
River replied nonchalantly, slipping on gloves made from beast intestines before squeezing the Creptonos's paralysis gland to collect the juice in a vial.
“Probably…… on me and Bankers.”
“Obviously.”
A peek into her bag revealed dozens of small vials. River continued.
“Sometimes you crave bold flavors, right? I collected stuff like this from toxic herbs for those moments.”
“Just don't mix it up with seasonings.”
“Will the organs regenerate?”
“Who knows…… I’m not exactly eager to test it.”
The two chatted without noticing Priscilla's eyes sparkling brightly.
“Dane, you done portioning this side?” Bankers arrived with Dink, pointing at the severed Creptonos chunks.
“Oh, hang on. I'll wrap it up quick.” Everyone silently focused on their tasks.
Dane portioned the meat at blinding speed, separating the joints, while Bankers transferred them into Yadus storage boxes. River steadily collected the paralysis juice.
Priscilla wiped her hands clean with a cloth and examined the withered World Tree roots.
She stared intently at the roots tangled across the ground, then took a protruding strand and sucked on it.
The sight drew everyone's attention.
“Is that…… research?”
“Is that…… research?”
“Is that…… what research looks like?”
Priscilla ignored them, closing her eyes and immersing herself in profound sensation. At the end of each taste came notes, and after notes, she'd snap off the strand and chew it.
She repeated this, moving from spot to spot, until she reached the village entrance. She even sucked on roots entwined in the fence and protruding branches.
After a long while, she stared beyond the invisible fence, then pushed hard on the massive gate tangled with twigs and roots. It was monstrous strength for her frame.
Dane followed without surprise. He had something to check too. His heart still pounded.
* * *
Conwell Village's beginning and end came into view at a glance. It was that small, but the buildings looked sturdy enough.
Yet despite the tight space, no people were visible. Even after the chaos outside, not a soul stirred.
“What the hell? Where is everyone? Are they all dead?” River's voice trembled faintly.
“No.”
Dane sensed life in the houses lined up left and right. But it felt too unnatural to call it hiding. He headed to the house with the strongest aura and flung open the door.
“Eh!”
River let out a short gasp.
There was life, but could it be called proper life? The figures sprawled here and there merely twitched their upper bodies, oblivious to the visitors.
Dane recalled memories of living corpses from long ago. It felt exactly like that, though fortunately, they showed no aggression. Their unfocused eyes just swayed blankly.
“Whoa…… first time seeing anything like this.” Bankers sighed too. Even the usually unflappable Priscilla widened her eyes, scanning the people with curious interest.
“……!”
Projecting into the people, Dane found a common alien presence in all of them.
The one thing explaining these inhuman humans was the grape-like clusters lodged inside their bodies.
Dane stepped out to check other houses. All suffered the same symptoms, harboring the same thing. It spared no one, young or old, man or woman.
“Something's inside their stomachs.”
“Inside their stomachs?”
River, following behind, asked. Priscilla shared the same curiosity for answers.
“Not entirely sure. But everyone has the exact same thing in their bodies.” Dane described its precise shape, making Bankers shudder.
“How do you know that?”
“Hmm…… call it intuition.” He had his suspicions, but nothing concrete.
“I want to open them up.”
Priscilla voiced what everyone was thinking, bluntly inserting herself. The idea of something inside their bellies sparked intense curiosity.
“Kill them?”
River asked.
Priscilla silently pointed to River's bag. Its contents. She meant using the Creptonos paralysis venom for surgery.
“We don't know how potent the paralysis is yet. Using enough for surgery might make it temporary or permanent—we can't tell. But……” River paused, and Dane finished for her.
“If we leave them, they'll die anyway.” It was plenty predictable. They were little more than corpses on the outside.
“Didn't expect tests this soon. We'll have to try small doses and observe reactions.” River spoke resignedly, as Bankers and Dane added their thoughts.
“Removing whatever's inside might snap them back from this corpse-like state to normal. Then we could learn what happened.”
“Let's try on one for now. Worst case, if they come to like River says, great. Either way, we need to check.” No transfusions or proper meds available, but this wasn't the time for nitpicking.
Once decided, preparations moved swiftly.
They picked the cleanest house, cleared it out, had Bankers boil water in an Elite pot to wipe surfaces, and River disinfected the table with cooking spirits.
As hunters, they knew enough to keep wounds clean during treatment.
With prep done, Bankers laid the worst-off villager on the table. River trickled paralysis venom into the man's mouth bit by bit, monitoring him.
“Looks good now.” Dane, peering into the man's body, spoke. His heartbeat slowed, blood flow visibly sluggish through his veins.
They stripped the unconscious man's upper clothes, revealing a scar from sternum to upper abdomen.
“Manmade, that.” It looked less sewn than forcibly glued. The grotesque sight made Bankers shiver.
“Cut here.” Dane precisely indicated a spot near the man's sternum, explaining surrounding organs and incision depth.
Priscilla wielded her scalpel exactly so.
Dane had acknowledged her skill from dissected monster corpses before. But watching up close, she was highly proficient.
‘She'd slice just the skin perfectly without instructions.’ It wasn't overnight mastery. Her precise, swift movements and minimal bleeding proved it.
“Huh?”
Bankers flinched back.
She swiftly opened the chest, spreading only as needed, revealing exactly what Dane described.
Priscilla carefully extracted the cluster and placed it on the table.
Dane lifted it and projected inside.
Beyond the black membrane, past another transparent one, embryonic life pulsed visibly.
Reassembling the movements in his mind, he could even guess the parent's form.
A Creptonos egg.