The Sunken Core
I entered the field together with the sunken core, Chaei, and the squad leaders. The ground wasn't just damp—it was outright muddy. The air itself was saturated with moisture. It felt like we'd stepped into a tropical rainforest. It was summer, but the rainy season hadn't even begun yet, so there was no way it should have been this humid. Isolated fields usually possessed environments completely different from the original terrain. Of course this area was different from what had existed before. But this wasn't an isolated field.
When I crossed the boundary, I had focused intently on observing it. The scenery showed no abnormalities. That was the problem. If it had been an isolated field, the trees and rocks would have looked sheared off like a clean cut. Damn it. This is an erosion-type field. The worst-case scenario. This type eroded existing regions and altered the environment. If left alone, it would endlessly transform the surrounding area.
Is the disconnection from the outside because of a special object? Unlike isolated fields, erosion-type fields aren't cut off from the exterior. The fact that this one was severed like this had to be due to some special medium. Even so, an environment like this was rare. Just what the hell was in here?
"Captain, is this dangerous?"
"We're fine."
Even if the worst assumptions proved true, we would be safe. Because we had the tower.
"Han Chaei, stay away from me. Don't go too far either. That's an order."
"Ung."
Chaei took a step back. I immediately summoned a tower at maximum range and used it to scout the surroundings.
What the hell is this?
Erosion-type fields changed the environment itself, so their transformation speed couldn't possibly be this fast. Yet judging by how completely the terrain had already converted—
A swamp? This quickly?
This made no sense. No matter how many things had changed because of patches, this was outright denying the WAW system. If every erosion-type field transformed at this speed, the entire planet's environment would be destroyed in moments. Seoul could turn into a tropical rainforest or a desert. At that point, zombies would no longer be the main problem.
A cause. There has to be a cause.
If not, even I had no answer. I possessed plenty of knowledge about WAW, but I wasn't a climate expert.
Found it.
I spotted the monster the squad leader had mentioned. The low, elongated skull typical of reptiles. Skin covered in keratin scales. A lizard's tail. Limbs modeled after a human skeleton. It was a humanoid monster—a Lizard Tail. The creatures were hiding their bodies inside the swamp puddles.
Strange.
Lizard Tails were famous for being extremely aggressive. They didn't leave their territory, but once they encountered prey, they were hunters that chased their target to total annihilation. There was no way they would simply let raid members pass.
"Seventh Squad Leader."
"Yes!"
"The ones you saw were Lizard Tails. When you encountered them, how did the Lizard Tails react?"
At my question, he looked upward as if recalling the moment.
"I was too frantic to observe properly, but the moment they spotted us they charged forward, then immediately turned their backs and ran."
"What?"
This definitely meant something was off. Running away before even fighting was something that should be impossible for them.
If that's the case, then maybe...
Perhaps they had retreated to protect something instead?
"Everyone, listen carefully."
"Yes."
"This place is what we call an erosion-type field. The monsters living here are Lizard Tails."
I gave the raid members a simple explanation.
"They're humanoid monsters that walk upright. They'll be carrying weapons too. Dealing with them is similar to fighting humans."
The squad leaders had at least experienced close-quarters human combat before.
"But at your current levels, you'll be significantly outmatched physically. Keep that in mind."
"Yes."
"Then let's move."
I didn't know what they were protecting, but to erase this erosion-type field we had to exterminate them.
"Watch out for the puddles. That's where they hide their bodies."
And we needed to find and destroy the medium maintaining this erosion-type field.
Since we'd advanced quite deep, I began scouting again. Lizard Tails were hiding here and there. Their numbers weren't high.
With this few, it doesn't look like they swarmed in.
If they had, the area should already be packed. If that wasn't the case, it was truly fortunate. No—in fact, it was good. The creatures that had been such a major headache would simply become experience points for the squad leaders.
Summon.
Creak. Creeeeak. Creak.
I kept the long-range towers on standby.
"Listen up. You guys will be hunting the Lizard Tails now. I'll weaken them appropriately, so finish them off."
"Yes, understood."
"Leave it to us."
No matter how swampy it was, they should be more than enough against opponents who couldn't use their legs properly.
Fire.
The moment a Lizard Tail emerged from the swamp, the upgraded towers unleashed bundles of arrows in perfect timing.
Thudthudthudthudthud—!
Whoooosh—!
Sniping shots aimed at their legs from their blind spots. It was only meant to incapacitate them, yet—
Crunch—!
Crack—!
Thud—!
Thump—!
The remaining energy after completely shattering their knees—
Splat.
Not only blew their bodies away but planted their heads straight into the swamp.
This is crazy.
It was destructive power that shouldn't be possible in the current wave. It could even be considered several stages higher. All my various worries melted away in an instant.
"Go finish them."
"Yes."
They answered with solemn expressions, but I felt a little sorry. This time it would basically be nothing more than confirmation kills.
The squad leaders collected the spears the Lizard Tails had left behind. They weren't item-grade weapons, but the quality was surprisingly good. I handed a few to the squad leaders who used spears and stored the rest in my inventory.
What kind of setting allowed these monsters to possess such advanced smelting technology? It had always been a question while playing WAW.
"This doesn't seem like much?"
"Yeah, even without what the captain weakened, it was manageable."
"I got nervous when Youngseok called it a monster. Tsk."
The squad leaders seemed to have relaxed. Fortunately the worst assumptions had missed the mark, so there was no need to worry too much. We just needed to clean up the field quickly and stop the erosion.
We cleared the area four more times in the same manner. And finally we discovered what appeared to be the root cause that had created this erosion-type field.
A feather-decorated headband like those used by shamans. A staff that writhed like rippling waves. A necklace strung with animal teeth. It was a Lizard Tail Shaman.
The creature seemed to be performing some kind of ritual in an area beyond the puddles that formed a small lake. With its eyes closed, it waved its hands through the air as if chanting a spell.
It probably wasn't generating this unusual erosion-type field with its own power. I'd check the details after dealing with it.
"I'll handle this one, so stand by."
"Yes."
It worked out perfectly. This was a good opportunity to test the Gigantic Beast Slayer Tower.
Summon.
Creeeeeeeeeak—!
All kinds of grass and trees were ripped out by the roots. The waterlogged ground folded and surged away like a wave.
Rumble!
A massive structure rose in its place. The building that occupied a vast area looked less like a tower and more like an enormous fixed installation. Mounted atop it was a mechanical device capable of launching a harpoon so gigantic it could only be described as a pillar.
The shaman blankly stared up at the structure that had risen while reshaping the terrain. Coming to its senses late, it shook its staff and tried to chant a spell, but—
"Keeeeet!"
The instant blue light began gathering in its hand—
"Fire."
The meaningless resistance ended.
Crunch!
With a sound like a bear trap snapping shut, the fixed device released. The condensed force surged forth.
Thud!
Kwaaaaaang!!—
Chrrrrrrrrrrrr—
The iron chain attached to the giant harpoon twisted like a dragon as it flew.
Splash—! Chrrrrk!
A violent spray of water exploded outward. Finding any trace of the creature seemed impossible. Compared to the pillar-like harpoon, it had been nothing but a tiny insect.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the majestic sight of the enormous harpoon sinking into the lake like an anchor being dropped.
Before long, we located the medium maintaining the erosion-type field. Thanks to the tower, we didn't have to dredge the swamp ourselves.
"Is this the medium?"
"Yeah."
"It just looks like a rock? Or maybe a gem?"
"It's a rock. They're called black magic stones. You can either smash it or take it out of the field."
A stone the size of a human head that resembled obsidian. Isolating this black magic stone from the field would release the field itself.
"Or just toss it into the inventory like this."
Since they were quite durable, this method was commonly used to dispel them. Taking the black magic stone didn't serve any particular purpose anyway.
"Can we head back now?"
"No, wait a moment."
"Why?"
"There's something I need to confirm."
We waited like that for ten minutes.
As I thought.
The altered environment showed no signs of reverting. If it had been caused by the erosion-type field, it should have begun returning little by little the moment the field was dispelled. There was something else—separate from the field—that was changing the environment of the entire area.
"Everyone, search the surroundings."
I called not only the squad leaders but every raid member to conduct a search.
What the hell is it?
Even after combing the area for an hour, nothing particularly noticeable turned up. The only place we hadn't searched yet was—
Could it be beneath that lake?
That would make it difficult to find. While I was blankly trying to think of a method, my eyes suddenly fell on the giant pillar submerged in the lake. It was the harpoon from the Gigantic Beast Slayer Tower that I hadn't dismissed yet.
Let's pull it.
Following the usage that instinctively came to mind, I ordered the iron chain connected to the harpoon to wind up.
Chrrrrrrrrrk.
As the enormous mechanism began to turn, the taut iron chain started retracting.
Rumble—!
The giant harpoon came with it, flipping over the muddy ground like a rice paddy.
Swooooosh—
"Ack, get out of the way!"
"Aww, my shoes are completely soaked."
"It's all wet and gross...."
As the giant harpoon carved out a new waterway, the water drained away. The overflowing lake soaked the entire surrounding area. The giant hooked harpoon tip dragged up the muddy ground intact, and—
"Could that be it?"
Embedded between the clumps of earth was a cloudy crystal the size of the black magic stone.
I approached and examined it closely. It was an object I had never seen once during my three years surviving in WAW. Inside the cloudy crystal, an ominous red energy swirled and churned.
What the hell is this?
The moment I formed that question, as if it had been waiting—
◈ Ominous red energy swirls within the cloudy crystal.
◈ Never encountered during three years in WAW.