A Delicious Tease
I lowered my sword toward the remaining meaty chunk of the Ebolacho core.
“Kraaaah!”
What a magnificent scream. Too over-the-top, like a third-rate villain’s death monologue.
“Don’t think this ends here…!”
That was the kind of clichéd last words a second-rate villain would spew.
How much longer did he think he could live? Chanting magic like that.
The core shattered. It melted across the floor like spilled ink.
In truth, it had turned into a shadow and fled as fast as it could.
The escape was way too obvious.
It wasn’t caught.
I parroted the classic line myself.
“…Is it dead?”
Whenever I said that, the person who supposedly died would definitely come back alive.
‘You still aren’t allowed to die yet.’
Originally, only three refugees had entered this village.
Because I knew the original world’s setting, I never forgot there was one human left.
The Ebolacho, starved and half-dead after losing two precious hosts, where would it go?
To the last one, of course.
‘I’ll meet you again soon, Ebolacho.’
It’ll make a perfect long-term piece of bait I can use later.
I flicked the sticky fluid clinging to my blade and neatly sheathed it.
I put on my gloves.
I picked up one of the Ebolacho’s tentacles writhing on the ground and turned on my heel.
As we passed the control zone’s boundary, the watcher and soldiers came running toward us with faces pale as death.
“E-Elia! H-how did it end in there?! No casualties, right?!”
I held up the tentacle still dangling from my hand.
“I killed it.”
“H-Hiiik…”
The soldier’s face turned the color of fresh paper.
“I-it’s disgustingly grotesque…”
“Don’t touch it carelessly. It’s a virus clump.”
I warned the soldier who was backing away in sheer terror with a completely nonchalant voice.
“If you’re unlucky enough to get any of that secretion on you… you know what happens, right?”
“Huh! Y-yes! I’ll remember!”
The secretion from that monster was lethal to Receptors.
I was being meticulously careful to stay in character.
The soldier, now ghostly white and fumbling to open a special airtight case, I hurled the tentacle dripping with secretion. At the same time, I tossed the glove covered in fluid.
The case slammed shut.
The outer appearance of the Ebolacho incident was resolved.
I pressed my hand to my forehead and sighed with fatigue.
“I told them to capture it alive, but in a fit of anger I killed it. I wonder how much the king will sulk this time.”
“Our troops alone couldn’t handle such a dangerous monster! Elia-nim’s judgment was correct.”
“Even the king would probably think the same way.”
“T-that’s…”
No, absolutely not.
He’d probably call me over to interrogate me. Plus, considering Ebolacho’s traits, he could even control a Receptor.
I had killed it.
“Well, at this point it’s all over, but actually, a perfect antidote to fully dissolve it already exists.”
“R-really?!”
“It’s related to the Chimera Virus from Sandrobel. They had countermeasures ready, didn’t they?”
The soldier’s mouth fell open in shock. He fumbled, utterly unable to understand.
“Then why didn’t you use the antidote and just go in yourself…?”
“I was curious how much power a materialized Chimera Virus actually has. I just wanted to test it by slamming into it with my own body.”
Well, if I were a Receptor, I wouldn’t have been so bold.
The antidote would actually kill you.
Plus, it’s not even a dangerous enemy. At least not to me.
It ran away so fast even after slicing a few tentacles off.
My opponent isn’t even that strong.
I’ll keep it alive and use it later.
‘That guy said I was really unlucky, didn’t he?’
He’ll think my appearance is arrogant. Too bad. I’m showing off my real skill, not just playing a role.
The watcher and soldiers were struck speechless. Probably because I answered too arrogantly.
I gave the soldier instructions.
“The tunnel—fill it with concrete immediately and seal it completely. Even if the higher-ups report it, I’ll handle the cover-up from my side as much as possible.”
“Yes! Th-thank you, Elia-nim!”
“And just in case I add this: no one, absolutely no one, should crawl in beneath it. We don’t know what else is still lurking inside.”
“A-alright!”
Leaving the soldiers handling the aftermath behind, I boarded the waiting vehicle and casually climbed in.
I leaned back against the leather seat and closed my eyes.
Ebolacho.
Honestly, I was a bit disappointed. But still, it was one of the viruses I’d met right before my death.
How would the remaining people, including Libera, react when they encountered Ebolacho?
‘But if I apply the tentacles properly, it’d be a great ability. Why is he so useless…’
It was strangely sad.
◆◇◆
I stood before the Sandrobel King.
I’d been getting along with him fine until today, but the atmosphere today was terrible.
He had been reading the report and let out a deep sigh. The document he was holding was flicked onto the table with clear displeasure.
“The Chimera Virus created by fusing the Ebolacho virus with Cordyceps has been eliminated? Is this true?”
“…Yes. Rats secretly infiltrated the control zone. A host was born, but we handled it cleanly before it could cause more damage.”
“I simply cannot understand this.”
The king straightened from his slumped posture in the chair. He stared at me with piercing eyes.
“You could have subdued it at a minimum level. Why kill it?”
“Are you overestimating me? You know how difficult it is to capture a rampaging Chimera Virus? Elia’s ability is specialized in killing.”
“Then at least bring troops. Why did you go in alone to that dangerous place?”
“I was enough by myself.”
I really was enough by myself.
The air suddenly froze.
“…You think I don’t know what’s in your head.”
The atmosphere changed noticeably.
Doubt bloomed in the king’s eyes.
“I do favor you, but sometimes I find it hard to overlook your antics. A Receptor—a monster that feeds on despair and sorrow. That is your true nature.”
“…!”
At the moment, I didn’t show any of that viciousness. If anything, I looked like I was willingly stepping forward alone to protect my subordinates. I will ask you directly: did you really enter alone because your subordinates were in the way?”
The king slowly rose from his seat. His massive shadow fell over me.
“Could it be… that my consciousness has already been consumed by the original owner ‘Elia’?”
What an interesting hypothesis.
‘Consuming consciousness? No way.’
I frowned slightly, feigning extreme discomfort.
“…What are you talking about?”
“I’m asking if you’re merging with Elia’s human consciousness.”
Hmph. If I laughed it off, the situation would only worsen. There was no such atmosphere.
I straightened my tilted head and looked at the king with lowered eyes.
“…Don’t misunderstand. Elia is already dead.”
“…!”
“What do you mean by consciousness? What a strange thing to say. Humans, after their breath stops and their bodies rot and decay… do they still have a consciousness?”
The king’s brow furrowed in distaste.
“You couldn’t see with your own eyes how Elia died? Well, Your Majesty should have confirmed the queen’s final appearance yourself.”
It was a rude way to speak to the Sandrobel monarch, but that was exactly how my created Receptor would speak.
“She died a truly pathetic death. I even found it strange that a human’s end could be so horrific.”
The Sandrobel King didn’t even twitch an eyebrow.
“I know she absorbed Elia’s memories and emotions. Is that why you resent me?”
“Resent? There’s no such reason. Who am I? I’m Elia.”
I moved forward and stood right in front of the king seated on the throne.
The guards drew their swords, but the king stopped them.
I ignored them and looked down at the king arrogantly.
“If I had been swayed by my emotions, we would have fought right here. I would die, or you would die.”
I deliberately called him ‘you’ instead.
“…!”
“Of course, if I say I’m 100% loyal to you, that would be a lie. You probably didn’t expect that much, did you?”
I leaned forward slightly and met his gaze.
“But there is a clear mutual interest between us. Plus, our Receptors understand human hierarchies amazingly well. They calculate who is on top and who is below extremely fast.”
The king’s cold eyes swept over my face.
I even tilted my head slightly, exposing my flawless white neck defenselessly.
“If you don’t trust me or suspect me that much, cut off my head right here.”
“…!”
“If my head flies off, I’ll leave without a trace. I’ll just go look for a usable body. Well, from Your Majesty’s perspective, it’s losing one excellent long-term piece.”
“…Do you think that will be that easy?”
Correct.
If a Receptor could swap hosts freely, it would never have gone extinct in the first place.
“Of course I know. Actually, losing a host and moving is a risk for me too. But you cannot kill me.”
“Why are you so certain?”
“Managing the Chimera Virus was just an attempt to lure and tame me, wasn’t it?”
The sticky secretion the Chimera Virus spits out.
It has a unique aphrodisiac effect that only affects Receptors.
Humans feel nothing, no matter how you touch them.
I leaned forward further. I whispered only for the king’s ears.
“Do you want me to stay by your side? Hmm?”
Well, the king had probably planned to grab me with the secretion somehow. Not a chance.
The king looked at me as if he could see through my intentions.
When I answered with one eye wide and a brazen smile, he clicked his tongue.
“…Handle yourself well from now on.”
In the end, it was the Sandrobel King who backed down.
He lay back on the throne. The cool air gradually warmed.
“Of course. Who am I working under.”
“…So?”
A voice with a hint of suspicion but noticeably softer.
“Are you alright?”
“My body?”
“After slicing Ebolacho’s tentacles, some secretion must have splashed. Are you asking if any touched you?”
That guy’s secretion.
If I answered that I was splashed, how would his delighted expression look?
The aphrodisiac effect doesn’t work on me.
“Showing off a poor skill that swallows the secretion? If I really had been hit by it, I wouldn’t be standing here talking normally in front of Your Majesty.”
“Hmph. If you really did get hit and crawled in, you’d be lying under me right now.”
Tsk, still hiding.
He couldn’t express it directly.
“…I hope the next time you call me, it’s for something more interesting.”
I left the audience hall.
As the distance grew, a sigh of relief escaped.
“Hoo…”
Honestly, it was pretty dangerous. The king was sharper than I thought.
When he brought up my consciousness and struck at the core, I was genuinely afraid I’d been exposed.
The monarch of Sandrobel really isn’t someone anyone can sit on the throne.
Well, I handled it perfectly.
‘Speaking of secretion…’
There might come a day when I swallow it once.
Hehe.
I’ll show it in front of the Administrator.
Plus, since it’s women, maybe such a situation won’t happen.
I’ll just despair.
Or maybe it’ll just look awkward because she doesn’t remember.
Either way.
Then I should show it to Libera.