The Acid Tentacler's Molting
The Acid Tentacler (5) had stopped glowing, but without support from above, there was nothing more we could do. The creature that had ceased its glow now sat perfectly still, as if dead. Was it actually dead? Probably not... We needed to regroup first. With that thought, I called out to Nayoon, who had taken shelter in the building ahead.
“Nayoon—! Nayoon——!”
She spotted me, and I raised my index finger, signaling for her to come up. She nodded in understanding. The moment I confirmed it, I moved. I rushed straight to the second floor of the building, climbed out the window, and scaled the wall.
“——Hah.”
The scene atop the wall was even more horrific than I had imagined. Many people who hadn't managed to dodge in time had been hit by the acid. As soon as Nayoon climbed up, she began issuing calm orders.
“Anyone who can still move, take the injured and get downstairs!”
“Y-yes...!”
“Aaaagh—! It feels like my skin is burning——!!”
“J-just hang in there...!”
“Over here... Someone help over here—!”
“Hurry and get down—!”
Even with Nayoon's arrival, the chaos showed no signs of settling. At least no one was injured badly enough to die—though the pain was excruciating. With Nayoon and Jaehoon hyung working together, things should stabilize soon. So I turned my attention elsewhere.
I sprinted over to Seorin, who was slumped against the parapet.
“Are you okay...?”
“Y-yeah... Urgh...?!”
The left sleeve of her coat had partially melted. She must have been hit by a few drops of acid. She had mentioned it had some defensive effect, but... surely the System wasn't lying, right?
“Get downstairs and get treated! Sohyun, help her down!”
“Uh, okay...”
“Wait, you should go down too... You're hurt pretty badly, aren't you...?”
Seorin glanced over me while being supported by Sohyun. My clothes were riddled with holes, and a burning pain lingered, but it wasn't unbearable. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry, but my Pain Resistance was gaining experience at an alarming rate...
I reassured her.
“I'm fine, so... Someone has to hold this position. Get treated quickly and come back!”
I felt pathetic for not being able to tell her to rest comfortably while getting treated. Without Seorin's firepower, we couldn't win. She nodded reluctantly at my persuasion and descended with Sohyun's help. Halfway down, she turned back and said one last thing.
“Be careful...”
“Yeah... You too!”
I forced a smile to put her at ease as I watched them go. Once they were out of sight, I shifted my gaze to Daon. Thanks to Nayoon and Jaehoon hyung, things here had calmed down, but Daon's side was still getting worse with more injuries piling up.
“Anyone whose injuries aren't critical, please move aside! I'll treat the most urgent cases first!”
Even so, thanks to Daon's efforts, things were holding together reasonably well. It wasn't just her Healer abilities—she was also putting her skills as a pharmacy student to good use. Despite her own confusion, she was directing people effectively. Still, it was clear she was reaching her limit. I joined up with Nayoon and Jaehoon hyung afterward.
“Nayoon, hyung—are you two okay...?”
“I'm fine!”
“This much is nothing!”
Both of them had minor injuries, but they were clearly enduring the pain. Since they weren't showing it, I focused on what came next rather than worrying.
“Hyung, could you head down and help Daon out?”
“Got it. Things look rough down there too. I'll follow Dohyun's lead!”
Fortunately, Nayoon and I were on the same page. Jaehoon hyung immediately went downstairs to assist. With him helping maintain control, I could finally relax about the situation below. Once that was confirmed, Nayoon and I turned our attention back to the Acid Tentacler. It still hadn't shown any significant movement. That bought us some time to prepare, but it also meant this was the perfect opportunity to strike. We needed to launch an all-out attack while it was exhausted and finish it...!
“Dohyun, that thing's moving again!”
“What...?!”
Just as Nayoon said, the Acid Tentacler began to twitch. But its movements looked... off. Its body was trembling violently—a motion it had never shown before. Not knowing what it was planning, we watched in silence for a moment longer.
Then its back split open with a loud crack.
Was it actually dying...?
My hope was in vain. When the shell cracked, the flesh underneath should have been exposed. Instead, there was another shell beneath the first.
“What the...?”
I recalled its name.
[Acid Tentacler (Larva) Lv.35]
Was it about to become an adult in this situation...?!
The shell continued to split as the creature moved forward. It shed its broken outer shell and emerged clean. Then it charged straight into the wall, making it shudder violently.
Thud——!
“Kugh...?!”
“Damn...! Can Dohyun hold it?”
She was asking if the wall could withstand it. I had no choice but to shake my head. In its original state, it might have held, but the connections between the wall and the buildings had already been severely weakened. Seeing my answer, Nayoon immediately turned and shouted.
“Everyone, get as far away from the wall as possible!!”
BOOM——!!
“Whoa...!”
The moment Nayoon yelled, the Acid Tentacler slammed into the wall again. The shaking was even more intense this time! The situation was urgent, but people's reactions were too slow. Before everyone could react and move, the creature rammed the wall once more, and it toppled backward. A sound similar to when the building collapsed echoed through the air.
CRACK——!
“Nayoon, we'll get caught in this! We need to escape!”
Nayoon nodded, and just before the falling wall hit the ground, we both jumped at the same time, barely avoiding disaster. Dust billowed everywhere, and horrific screams rang out from all directions.
“Aaaaaaaaah—— My leg, my leg...!!”
“S-someone's trapped...!”
“Kgaaaaaaaaah——!!”
As the dust settled, we witnessed the devastation firsthand. But there was nothing we could do. Right in front of us, the Acid Tentacler was already climbing over the fallen wall!
“Everyone, run——!”
There was no such thing as a strategic retreat. If your legs still worked, you had to run!
“R-run...!”
“Wait, we have to take the injured with us!”
“Grab that one, quick!!”
“Anyone who's fine, help out!”
I wanted nothing more than to run myself, but many people were trying to help the injured. I hadn't even checked on the others because I'd been distracted. My eyes darted around, and thankfully, I spotted them quickly. Seorin, Daon, Sohyun, and Jaehoon hyung were all safe. Each of them was tending to the wounded. Thank goodness...
After confirming that, I looked back at the Acid Tentacler. I want to live...! But more than that, I wanted all of us to survive together. Even if it was an excessive greed, I couldn't help it. I stood firm alone, blocking the Acid Tentacler's path. No—correction. Nayoon was standing beside me.
“Do we even have a chance of surviving?”
Nayoon shook her head. Did that mean she didn't know, or that there was none? What she said next caught me off guard.
“Just shut up and fight—!”
“......?”
That wasn't something Nayoon would normally say. I immediately realized it. She had used that skill... And I understood. With no one else around besides me, it was the perfect situation for her to use it. Nayoon charged forward without hesitation.
“You insect bastard, I'll kill you!”
“W-wait... Damn it!”
I had no choice but to follow her. The Acid Tentacler lashed out with its tentacles in response. Fortunately, it hadn't regenerated all of them—the number was the same as before. If they had returned to normal too, it would've been telling us to just die...!
We cut down every tentacle in sight. Nayoon filled the gap left by Sohyun's absence with Radiance. I moved faster than before, ignoring the strain on my body. If I didn't, I wouldn't even be able to hold it back. But the monster was just as serious. Hisss——. It sprayed acid from its tentacles, though not as much as before. The liquid flew toward my face like someone playfully shooting a water gun—except getting hit by this would melt my face off. I desperately dodged. But Nayoon didn't care whether she got hit by the acid or not. She took the hits and kept charging forward.
“That...!”
Surviving alone was already difficult enough... If she collapsed like that, I'd be finished too.
“Nayoon, don't just charge in like that—!”
“Shut up. I'll fight however I want! Yeah, this is exactly what I wanted!”
“Crazy bitch...”
The words slipped out without passing through my brain. ...There was no way Nayoon in that state would cooperate. In that case...
“Fine, I'll make a path for you!”
I'd just help her on my own. Cooperation meant helping each other, but what did it matter as long as we survived!
“Get in my way and I'll kill you!”
“Let's talk about that after we survive!”
Fortunately, the crazy woman didn't reject even that. I stuck right behind Nayoon and blocked any tentacles trying to attack her with everything I had. Surprisingly, we worked well together. Though this probably wasn't the time to say that...
Nayoon reached the Acid Tentacler. She slashed at it in one swift motion. As expected, it blocked her. No—something was different? I felt a moment of disappointment, but then I noticed the clear cut marks and grew puzzled. When Nayoon had used the same attack a few days ago, it had only left shallow scratches. Thinking about it, had the creature grown? No, it had grown, but more precisely, it had molted and increased in size without becoming an adult yet. Right—caterpillars needed to become pupae before turning into adults! I'd heard somewhere that crustaceans and similar creatures were most dangerous right after molting. Wasn't this thing in the same state? Maybe there was still a chance. It had shed its damaged outer shell and recovered from its wounds, but that had created a fatal weakness. If Seorin could use her magic here... But there was one problem. Could Seorin even use magic right now...? After firing three spells in a row earlier, she hadn't been able to use any more. From what I'd seen just now, besides her injuries, she was sweating profusely and looked pale. Classic signs of nearly depleted mana.
“Hraaaaagh—— Keck?!”
Nayoon tried to charge again, but I grabbed her by the collar and pulled her back.
“W-what are you doing?!”
“Mindless attacks won't work! Come back, Nayoon!”
I didn't need the current Nayoon. I needed the one who could communicate!
Nayoon fell silent for a moment... then spoke again.
“I'm back... You can let go now!”
“O-okay...”
She had told me once before that if there was a big enough shock, she could return to her senses by her own will. Good... We almost ended up fighting each other...