Chapter 363: The Aberration
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 363: The Aberration
Stink.
A foul, putrid stench.
Like the rot of a decaying corpse, the odor rode the night breeze, flooding her nostrils and surging into her lungs. It felt like countless fine steel needles pricking at her nerves, inch by inch.
"What is..."
Liya started to speak in horror, but the unprecedented stench forced her to clamp her mouth shut. She instinctively covered her nose and mouth.
Her stomach churned. Such a loathsome smell was unbearable for any young woman, but Liya forced herself to stay alert, peering out the window.
The silence of the town had been shattered. A few curses echoed through the night; it seemed others had sensed this abnormal change and were startled from their sleep.
Beyond that, there was only pitch-black darkness.
Under the shroud of night, it was difficult to see anything.
If only there were a moon, Liya thought... Wait, the moon?
Shouldn't there be a bright moon in the sky?
Liya jerked her head up, but she saw no moon.
Yet, in that moment, she realized something.
It wasn't that the moon was gone.
It was that something was blocking it.
Or rather... something was blocking her entire field of vision.
It was right in front of her eyes.
—A dark shadow.
Like a piece of softened modeling clay, it hung down from the eaves of the window, draping from top to bottom and obscuring almost everything she could see.
The silhouette of the shadow was too blurred and complex, and with the light source blocked, Liya couldn't distinguish what it was at all.
However, as her eyes finally adjusted to the gloom and the thing drew a fraction closer, she finally saw it clearly.
A face.
A face extending downward from the shadow.
Pale, twisted, bloated, and utterly bloodless.
Like a corpse.
And yet, that face was smiling.
A satisfied, blissful, incredibly sincere smile.
Its mouth was split wide, its eyes crinkled, and its eyebrows were arched high.
It looked as if it possessed every beautiful thing in the world.
It looked so happy it couldn't help but shed tears.
Tears of blood.
And when its dilated, vacant pupils—which seemed to be searching for something—locked onto Liya’s...
The face grew even happier.
"Ah... ugh..."
A sound like a painful sob squeezed out of the face's throat. It was shrill and grating, like two rusted iron plates rubbing together, yet an eerie excitement could be heard within it.
"So hungry..."
"So full..."
"Eat... ugh... I want to eat..."
"Let me eat..."
A chilling aura rushed over her. Liya suddenly felt herself surrounded by a deep, heavy darkness.
A certain will swept toward her along with those voices, causing every one of her joints to freeze. She couldn't make a single move.
She couldn't even make a sound. She tried with all her might to push her breath and vibrate her vocal cords... but all that came out was a muffled gulp in her throat.
Like a lamb already placed on a dinner plate, her fate was sealed the moment the silver cloche was lifted. She could only watch in despair as she was about to become a delicacy under the other's knife and fork.
She couldn't resist.
She couldn't even call for help.
There was only...
"Don't be afraid."
Suddenly, a warm presence covered her, dispelling all the darkness and chill.
Liya felt a strong arm wrap around her waist. Accompanied by a puff of warm breath, a mellow, deep male voice sounded in her ear.
"Close your eyes."
Her heart settled instantly. Without a hint of hesitation or doubt, Liya immediately closed her eyes.
Then, she heard a squelch.
A sharp blade had pierced into flesh.
Light flared, illuminating Muen's grim face and the full form of the shadow.
It was a mass of meat.
Yes, a mass of meat.
Fat, muscle, and veins were clumped together haphazardly, forming a twisted, unspeakable creation.
It looked like a thousand-kilogram pig without limbs—only bloated flesh and fat that stretched its skin taut, pressing it into layers of folds.
Yet, the thing wasn't exactly limbless. Or rather, it had many limbs.
Grotesquely shaped arms and legs sprouted from that twisted torso. It was using these limbs, along with its seemingly boneless, soft body, to hang from the window eaves.
Only that face... looked somewhat "normal."
And at this moment, the pure white short blade in Muen's hand was buried precisely in that face.
Fury flashed in his deep, lake-like eyes. Muen gripped the hilt and slashed downward violently!
The "Sharpness" intent, bestowed by the world's strongest Grand Magister, manifested here. The fierce flash of the blade was like a draped galaxy, instantly tearing through that twisted body of flesh.
"Aaaagh—"
The expression on the face remained satisfied and blissful, yet a miserable shriek erupted.
Like a water-filled ball being sliced open, pale-red fat gushed from the wound Muen had carved. The stench of it, mixed with the scent of decay, was even more nauseating.
Its entire massive, hulking body began to tremble and writhe frantically. Its numerous limbs flailed wildly, clawing at Muen.
Muen didn't continue to trade blows. Instead, he held Liya and retreated, pulling back until they were out of the shadow's reach.
Inside the room, the firelight was still flickering. Perhaps sensing the warmth, Muen felt the stiff, delicate body in his arms finally soften again.
"Are you alright?" Muen asked.
"I'm... I'm fine."
Liya took a deep breath. "I was too careless."
"It has nothing to do with you."
Muen's expression was grave.
"No one expected the aberration to happen so suddenly. Even I almost didn't react in time."
He still felt a lingering fear.
Everything had happened without warning. Even the expensive alert artifacts Muen had personally set up showed no reaction at all.
If not for his constant vigilance and his extraordinary reflexes, just now...
"Um..."
Liya suddenly shifted her body, a faint blush creeping up her swan-like neck.
Only then did Muen realize the posture in which he was holding her was very intimate—more so than at any time before.
"Ah, sorry. It was an emergency."
Muen quickly let go, rubbing his nose out of habit.
"No... that's not what I meant."
Liya murmured softly, then opened her eyes.
She didn't need to adjust to the light; everything came into view.
In an instant, the relief of her body regaining its freedom and the joy brought by that warmth were mostly washed away by the horrific sight before her.
"What... is that?"
She whispered, her voice trembling.
Not far away, the unspeakable monster was struggling and squirming. Its numerous limbs scratched against the wall, making a piercing noise as if it were in a rage.
Yet, that face, which had been split in two by Muen, still wore that blissful smile.
The face healed quickly, but it didn't continue its attack. Instead, it lowered its head.
Beneath the face on its obese torso—it had no neck—the massive wound hadn't fully closed. Large amounts of fat and flesh were spilling out, writhing and struggling, sprouting new membranes as if they had a life of their own.
The creature thought for a moment and decided not to let them grow freely.
Instead, it suddenly reached out with its grotesque limbs, grabbed the spilling fat and flesh...
And stuffed them into its mouth.
Chewing.
Crunch, crunch.
Then swallowing.
Gulp.
Its body grew visibly larger by a full circle.
As blood-colored tears flowed, the expression on that face became even more blissful.
"Delicious..."