Reverse Escape - 2
Unfortunately, it was too late at night to carry out the brilliant idea that had popped into my head.
Sleep is a must.
Beauties need their beauty sleep, don't they? So there's nothing to be done about me needing so much of it.
People should play in the bright daylight rather than the dead of night, right?
Cadavers would prefer the warm sunlight on the surface over playing hide-and-seek in the pitch-black underground, too.
I returned to the garrison in a refreshed mood.
Ah, making sure to dodge the eyes of those Executor uncles on night watch, of course.
Executors might be superhumans, but they can't do a thing once I burrow into the ground!
The midnight mafia game had wrapped up, and I greeted a refreshing morning.
But what time is it now? Something feels off—the morning seems brighter than usual.
"That inspector girl from yesterday isn't here?"
"What, did she run off? Or maybe she's been napping this whole time."
"Nah, no way. You think 1st Platoon Leader would just let her?"
Hmm, looks like she left without a word, interest be damned.
Guess I finally got some long-overdue sleep. I was planning to slack off plenty, but not vanish without a trace.
I'd even resolved to work diligently in my own way! Show my face in the morning and hustle back early for my "Reverse Escape Cadaver Operation." But it all went to hell.
This is why sleeping in is dangerous. Stayed up late, woke up late—simple as that.
The bus has already left. In times like these, it's better not to scramble for a fix but to relax and enjoy the situation. Skipping the whole day like this doesn't sound half bad! And no one seems to care about me anyway.
It's been a full month since I parachuted into this Executor unit, and my spot still feels undefined.
Carlos's words really hit home: even if you sneak off, no one will say a thing.
Of course, he probably meant to jab back at the clingy Executors with a word or two, not literally slack off. That uptight Carlos wouldn't openly tell me to be lazy.
But there's one thing Carlos doesn't know.
Actions speak louder than a hundred words—seeing is believing.
No Executor has shown outright fondness, but their direct actions are as good as causing my disappearance.
From now on, they'll mull over that miraculous day I appeared, wracked with regret every single day.
Yes, this is a protest of sorts. On a whole different level from skipping work because of a little oversleeping.
So, time to head out. No one's looking for me anyway, and there's no reason for them to rummage through my solo camp spot.
I extended thick tentacles from my body. Carefully, so no noise leaked out, I slithered along the ground and slipped away from the garrison.
Last night, I'd come up with an amazing idea.
What if I made the Cadavers pull off a Reverse Escape again, just like before when I sent them charging back?
The Cadavers have burrowed deep underground in fear.
Frightened Cadavers won't come out no matter how hungry they get! They've got severe trauma from whatever they encountered on the surface!
But what if that presence reached them underground too? The cute little Linker pack would freak out for sure.
As they say, you fear what you know—and after tasting it once, they'd bolt even faster this time.
The issue was how. I couldn't exactly dive deep underground myself to emit signals.
Not impossible to burrow, but it'd be just as much hassle in the end.
If I had some cloning jutsu, sure—but no such ability yet. Wait, in a world like this, would a clone even be a clone? More like a doppelganger, right?
Gives me chills. Better off without cloning powers.
Anyway, the key was remote signal emission. And luckily, I had a way to do just that!
The electricity ability from Teacher Tortuga. I'd forgotten about it since I rarely used it, but isn't it perfect for a situation like this?
I slowly raised one hand and focused intently.
-Crackle.
Unlike the weak sparks before, a visibly intense current surged through.
Stronger than I thought! Still not enough for tough Cadavers, but plenty to startle a cute Linker swarm.
Next up: a medium to carry the current.
The answer was simple: just bleed into the ground!
That sticky fluid constantly flowing through the body, regulating life. Normal creatures would shrivel like mummies if they bled too much, but that's got nothing to do with me.
For me, blood is an ever-flowing spring. A universal resource I can use for anything.
Bleeding out was no big deal, and channeling current through it? Even easier.
I plunged a thick tentacle into the earth.
No need to worry where to spill it.
With swarms of Linkers, their paths have twisted into an ant hill maze from all the burrowing.
Spill it here or there, and it'll follow their tunnels deep underground.
Doesn't even need to reach the deepest parts.
Even Linkers can't endlessly dig against mounting underground pressure.
Just seep into a decent depth, emit my signal from there, and the Linkers will panic.
Soon, blood sprayed wildly from the tentacle—like a busted fire hydrant.
Overwhelming for a single organism, but negligible against the vast ground.
No matter how strong I am, I'm still just one lifeform.
And that's when I realized a fatal flaw in this plan.
So... how long do I have to keep this up?
1st Platoon was diligently handling Linkers popping up from underground as usual.
There wasn't any super-efficient way to deal with them.
Just patrol in military vehicles and shoot any that emerged.
-Bang!
That was the whole operation.
"Argh, seriously! Blood sprays or noise don't even faze 'em. Hey, Leader, doesn't it feel like there are fewer?"
Lira grumbled, her body itching for action.
Most Cadaver sweeps conjure images of endless battles against swarming foes—and that's usually the case. This lull was the exception.
No chance for Lira to move. No need to when Cadavers barely peeked out from afar.
Carlos or Nova could just blast their heads from range.
"Never had such a boring op."
Lira finally slumped over her seat.
"Can't be helped. We'll take it slow."
"Cadaver. Detection negative."
Carlos drove in silence, while Nova stared endlessly at her detector.
"Hope they don't swarm like last time?"
"I'd rather not. A mass rush would mean casualties for sure."
A sigh of pure frustration. Even hordes of Cadavers posed no threat to 1st Platoon.
To threaten them, it wasn't quantity—it was quality.
But that was because 1st Platoon was abnormally strong.
If Cadavers popped up everywhere without warning, regular Executors would get hurt just fine.
The op's whole point would change.
Not just exterminating Cadavers, but protecting wounded, weakened allies too.
1st Platoon was strong, but that strength protected themselves—not everyone else.
Someone who could shield all others? That'd be more god than human.
They knew it'd play out like this, so the Defense Bureau mobilized every Executor. What was needed wasn't overwhelming force to wipe swarms in one go.
To hunt Linkers peeking across vast badlands, they needed masses of eyes to cover every inch.
Lira sighed deeply at the conclusion.
"No way around it."
Her gaze naturally drifted to the wasteland. Her job now: keep eyes peeled for mole-like Cadaver heads.
"What's that over there?"
A black dot in the distance. Lira figured Cadaver, obviously—no lone human would sit out here.
Carlos glanced her way and raised his Finisher.
Bang! The White Crystal Bullet flew and struck true.
Then Lira's bewildered voice followed.
"It... blocked it?"
Silence hung in the vehicle. The engine's roar felt oddly distant.
The same question burned in everyone's mind.
Blocked the bullet? Who? Is there a Cadaver that can block a White Crystal Bullet?
Brief hesitation. They all reached the same conclusion.
Lira, sprawled on her seat moments ago, now had her Sky Piercer gauntlets equipped.
"...Let's go."
Half in disbelief, Carlos floored the pedal.
Who knew where a newly evolved Cadaver might pop up next? And White Crystal Bullets getting blocked wasn't unheard of.
But right now, 1st Platoon had only one entity in mind.