Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Into the Unsettling Darkness
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Screeeech... Pshhh. Thump!
Screeeech... Pshhh. Thump!
Screeeech... Pshhh. Thump!
The sound of some unknown machine diligently at work echoed from somewhere.
The deafening noise of a pump rotating and pistons firing in rapid succession made my head spin slightly.
'What the hell is that sound...'
And it wasn't just the sound that grated on my nerves.
Pipes snaked out from the walls, ceiling, and floor, and the pathways were teeming with trash and insects.
This was a place that would become unbearable to stay in for long.
Especially when the haphazardly stretched-out pipes trembled and leaked polluted water, sending a smell so foul it made my nose sting.
"It's disgustingly dark..."
It was even darker than a moonless night.
I was fine since I had my Altered Vision, but for a normal person, the brightness was too low to even walk straight.
Furthermore, no light sources, including flashlights, were permitted. If you didn't have a night vision-type skill, you'd be stuck here as a lost cause.
If I tripped over a pipe while walking, I could get seriously hurt. Or I might fall into that unknown polluted water.
'And if I get lost in a place like this...'
There was a high chance I'd never make it back home.
"Let's see..."
I walked through the narrow alley, avoiding the pipes that grew like plants from the walls, floor, and ceiling.
Since I had no idea where to go, I followed the path that seemed to have fewer pipes, and soon I exited the narrow alleyway and came out onto a large street lined with various shops.
The space had the feel of a large underground shopping mall.
And from the open shops, a soft purple light emanated, making it feel a bit better than the alley I was just in...
"Huh...?"
The alleyway was gone. As if it had been blocked off by a wall from the very beginning.
The door was gone, and the alley was gone. This made me realize one thing for certain.
'Damn...'
The black market was a far more dangerous place than I had imagined.
I needed to look around as quickly as possible and get out.
I had a bad feeling that if I messed up even slightly, I'd waste four hours just trying to find a door with a keyhole.
Just as I was about to turn around again.
Tap.
"Kirara."
"Ah. So, sorry...?"
A dolphin?
Its head was shaped exactly like a dolphin's. A somewhat cute face that didn't suit this place at all.
"Kirele. Kireee."
The being I bumped into let out such a strange cry and then went on its way.
"Hah... What the hell is that guy..."
But strangely, I understood its language.
It definitely meant, 'Watch where you're going, you moron.' For some reason, I could understand it.
I figured it was an effect of the Brand of Myriad Demons I got from encountering Kashnax. It said it would allow for smooth communication with myriad demons.
At least that was a relief. To face such a bizarre being in this strange place and not be able to communicate would have been genuinely creepy.
I was truly glad I could at least understand it.
'But there are more people wandering around than I thought.'
They were all freaks dressed in black.
There wasn't a single human, and most of the beings wandering around had their faces covered.
'Cephalopods... Insectoids... What's that? Are all these guys aliens?'
They also all had a dark SF-style look. For example, some wore gas masks on their faces, puffing out rough breaths, and others wore black coats like something out of The Matrix, with the collars pulled up high.
On top of that, there were fanatics in deep black hoods, grouping in threes and fives, and even two-legged creatures that were crawling around, dripping slime.
High-level two-legged creatures with appearances that would make you scream and use skills without a second thought were wandering around openly.
'This is... the black market...'
A place where beings of various races with disgusting appearances wander around nonchalantly, buying things or chattering in strange languages...
Thinking that there wasn't a single human like me here and that they could all be hostile aliens made me feel a little scared.
For some reason, they seemed like beings I could never subjugate and turn into slaves. That terrified me.
And here and there, I saw beings standing guard, watching over those two-legged creatures. They were probably the security guards of the black market.
They were huge freaks wearing brass-colored diver helmets that looked like they belonged in a 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea story. Their tight black leather outfits were so conspicuous they made me feel uncomfortable just looking at them.
Also, you couldn't see inside their helmets, and they were looking around, creating a strange sense of intimidation.
I wanted to approach them and ask where a door might be, but as I got closer, they reached for their waists and subtly gripped some kind of weapon.
'I guess I have to find it myself...'
As I looked around again, trying to decide which way to go, someone approached me.
"Black market. First time?"
It was a being with a box jammed into the spot where its head should have been.
"Me. Guide. Help needed?"
No. This guy was absolutely not some peaceful guide or anything of the sort.
The ominous aura I felt from him made my skin crawl.
Especially since the box on his head was slightly ajar, and it was filled with the eyeballs of creatures I didn't even want to identify.
This is a dangerous one. Pull back.
Getting advice from Indicron only increased my dislike for him.
However, it was a bit unsettling that Indicron's voice sounded strangely faint.
It felt like the connection was unstable?
Still, thinking that they were watching over me for now made me feel a little better.
"Help. If you want. Give me. A little. Coin. Little one. Then. I will. Guide you. To a good place."
As I took a step back, he took two steps closer, mimicking human speech with an awkward tone.
"Ah, no."
"Don't refuse."
Soon, he reached for my shoulder.
I quickly slapped his hand away and scowled.
As if I'd kill him with a Tentacle Summon or an Abyssal Maw if he bothered me further, I awakened my mana, and he slowly backed away.
"He. Help..."
"It's fine..."
"Is that so. What a shame."
The Box-head clicked his tongue at my sharp response and went on his way.
I glared at him for a moment as he left, and a woman's face, like that of a human with her eyes gouged out, popped out from his back and said something to me.
I couldn't hear the sound, but the shape of her mouth was so creepy.
It looked like she was saying, 'Save me.'
"Hah... Fuck..."
I quickly escaped that spot.
If I just stood there like an idiot, another one of those strange beings would probably latch onto me.
Forget about the shop or whatever, I needed to find the exit first.
This place was truly, unimaginably, insane.
Then, hearing the sound of something bubbling, I turned my head and saw a restaurant.
Boil, boil
"..."
I was drawn in by a strange aroma, as if under a spell.
My head clearly knew I shouldn't approach anything strange, but my body naturally led me to the source of the smell.
The scent was so sweet... my head...
"Ugh..."
However, once I arrived in front of an old restaurant that was the source of the aroma, I couldn't hold it in any longer and stumbled back, retching.
There, a two-legged creature that looked like a bug was squeezing its own stomach and throwing larva-like things into a pot, boiling them vigorously.
"That's disgusting..."
I snapped back to my senses, covered my nose to avoid the smell, and hurriedly ran off to another place.
I couldn't bear to watch the scene of a caterpillar screaming "Mommy!" being thrown into the pot any longer.
Then, someone grabbed my shoulder tightly and stopped me.
"Hey."
"Yes?"
"Don't run in there."
"Uh... Yes."
The moment I started to run, I was warned by the security guards.
I had no choice but to move around at a fast walk.
'This is seriously a crazy place.'
There were various restaurants along the way, but not a single one was normal.
Since their main customers were two-legged creatures, there wasn't a single thing a human could eat with a sound mind.
They were all making unspeakable, absurd foods—things you couldn't even call food—and the two-legged creatures who ate them with gusto made just looking at them feel nauseating.
Everything here is abnormal.
'The rules of use listed poachers, slave traders, and drug dealers...'
The fact that only those three were listed in the rules of use probably meant they were the only ones who definitely did business with humans.
The rest were probably beings you had to filter out.
I continued to move in one direction.
I wasn't worried about getting lost. After all, I didn't know the way anyway. And just as the alley and doors could disappear, this was a space where the location and place could change at any moment.
Instead of wasting time standing still, it was better to quickly find the door with the keyhole.
'There are no doors. Not a single one.'
I was going crazy. It had already been almost an hour since I entered this place.
Yet, as if to deliberately trap me here, there wasn't a single door.
They were all either replaced with tents or left wide open.
Or if there was a door, it had no keyhole to insert a key.
As I felt a suffocating, tightening sensation and grew increasingly anxious.
After passing by restaurants selling incomprehensible dishes and continuing forward, I arrived at the end of one path.
"Hah..."
And there, I found a shop called the Poacher's Hovel.
I couldn't find the door I was looking for, but I did find one of the shops mentioned in the rules of use.
'How much time is left...'
Instinctively, I checked my watch.
Ever since entering the black market, I'd been checking my wristwatch out of habit every five minutes.
Two hours and fifty minutes left.
'Should I take a look?'
Since I already found it, it would be better to go in.
Maybe there's a door with a keyhole inside the shop.
If it looks hopeless, I can just quickly get out and go back the way I came.
Flap.
I lifted the tent covering the shop's entrance and went inside.
"It's been a while since I've seen a human."
The man sitting in the shop muttered to himself.
He was a freak wearing a black mask.
And he was wiping some unknown creature's egg with a yellow towel.
'The place is full of iron cages... No door?'
I quickly scanned the shop.
Hanging iron cages and glass bottles were filled with everything from bizarre lifeforms to the body parts of various insects and animals that were still moving.
Also, the display stand was packed with seeds and eggs of strange creatures. The whole shop was disorganized and chaotic, and all sorts of unknown lifeforms and items inscribed with meaningless characters were crammed in to the point of overflowing.
The phrase 'it's a mess' could sum up the atmosphere of this shop.
'A door...!'
And behind the poacher's back, I found the door I had been desperately searching for.
'Ah...'
Unfortunately, there was no keyhole.
Worse, it was a sliding door.
"You can look around, but you can't pick anything here. The only thing I can offer to a 'Player' like you is the 'Today's Recommended Item'. Would you like to take a look at that at least?"
"Uh, well..."
I checked my wristwatch.
It hadn't even been two minutes since I entered the shop.
To be honest, I was incredibly curious about what they had.
It was definitely right to get out of here quickly, but... wouldn't it be okay to look around just a little, very little?
'Alright, since I found it, I'll just take a quick look. Just five minutes.'
I'll quickly look at the recommended items and get out in five minutes flat.
I nodded to the shop owner.
"Alright. You seem to be in a hurry, so I'll show you quickly."
He presented the egg he was wiping as a product and placed the other items on the counter one by one.
There were a total of four products.
"Today, I can only recommend these four. If you want to see something more precious, you'll have to build up something you guys call 'favorability'. Don't you want to know what's inside the door behind me?"
"Uh... Yes..."
The rules of use said not to go near the breeding pens. There must be a breeding pen behind that door.
For now, I didn't want to waste any more time, so I answered with a vague smile and checked the items on the counter.
Item Info
[Unknown Egg: You won't know what will hatch from it.]
[Price: 10,000C]
If something hopeless crawls out of a cherished egg, it's all over.
Item Info
[Coralbug Adult: If you chew and eat it alive, your mana increases by 70. There is a 70% chance of being infected with Coral Roundworm.]
[Price: 25,000C]
It's a bit tempting, but challenging a 30% success rate just to raise mana by 70 when I don't even know what a Coral Roundworm is seems like a bad idea.
Item Info
[Steven's Tentacle: A severed tentacle found at the entrance of Chaos. Can be attached to a missing body part and used as your own.]
[Price: 50,000C]
This Steven guy... Could he be the owner of the Steven's Pillar item? That phallus I offered to Kashnax...
Item Info
[Dwarf Rearing Set: You can raise dwarves at home.]
[Price: 45,000C]
This was a set that allowed you to raise hamster-sized humans. It was interesting, but not enough to buy.
All the items were insane, and the prices were all too expensive.
Steven's Tentacle was a bit tempting, but I couldn't spend 50,000 coins right now.
"Hah. It's too expensive... I'll come back next time."
"Well. That's to be expected. They're hard to come by. Take care."
I left the Poacher's Hovel.
Luckily, I was able to check the items and get out quickly.
But a problem arose.
"Where is this now..."
The location had changed again.
The Poacher's Hovel I was just in was gone, and now I was standing alone in a place that looked like a sewer.
Does the location change every time I come out of a place?
"I'm seriously screwed."
My throat went dry from the tension.
The marketplace with those creepy high-level two-legged creatures might have been better.
Being left alone in this dark, damp place was driving me crazy.
"Fuck... Fuck."
I had no choice.
There was no other way, so I just had to keep walking.
I walked through the musty smell and the unsettling dampness, past the bones of unknown things under my feet and the sticky mud.
After walking for another 30 minutes, a shantytown appeared.
"Ughh... Give me some coins... Please..."
"Drugs... Give me some drugs... Hey!! Don't just go!!"
"Hurehreh. Heh... Hehehe... Shiiibaaaaa."
This was a den of crazy drug addicts.
From insectoids who had completely lost their minds to lumpy, unknown beings.
There were even dead bodies strewn about here and there. Rats the size of dogs were happily gnawing on them.
I looked back, but it was too late to turn back now that I'd come this far. In that case, it would be better to go into the shop I could see and come back out.
I kicked away the drug addict bastards trying to grab me and entered a shop with a flickering neon sign.
"Welcome. Oh. What a cute human friend?"
The one who greeted me inside the shop was a crossdresser with two heads.
However, strangely, one of the heads was muttering strange things as if high on drugs.
This guy must be testing drugs on his own body...
"Come on in. Welcome to Drug 'n' Rush."
This was a drug dealer's shop.
And the crossdresser, smiling brightly, handed me a cup filled with a drink.
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