novelraw Chapter 154 : The Higher the Mountain, the Deeper the Valley (4)
Chapter 154 : The Higher the Mountain, the Deeper the Valley (4)
Chapter 154: The Higher the Mountain, the Deeper the Valley (4)
“If word reaches him that intruders were allowed inside….”
“Wouldn’t it be better to provide us information and survive as an insider instead of dying by his hands?”
“…….”
“If you’re thinking about stalling for time, give it up. If you can’t decide within thirty seconds, we’ll start the human experimentation you love so much.”
“…Aren’t you the ones who’ll be in trouble without information?”
“Not really? It’d be nice to have, but it’s not like we’d be helpless without it. We’ve got plenty of other ways to pressure the Bernhardts.”
Once I presented the proper carrot alongside a very obvious stick, there was no reason for him to refuse.
The researcher, who introduced himself as Ernst Wagner, first disabled the magic linked to the interception turrets deeper inside.
Though with a sword pointed at his back, he didn’t exactly have much of a choice.
Afterward, we restrained his hands with the handcuffs we had brought just in case.
“Tch. Like some mere researcher could escape in front of the legendary war hero.”
“Shut up and walk.”
Crossing the stone wall, we finally entered the interior proper.
At the same time, the three reporters hurriedly unpacked the equipment they had brought.
Creeeak… creeeak….
Meaningless signboards fluttered in the wind.
The old buildings scattered across the vast empty lot looked so decrepit they seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
Judging from the exterior, most appeared abandoned.
Only the central dome-shaped building still had lights on.
Without anyone saying a word, Ernst naturally began walking toward it.
“And where are you rushing off to?”
I grabbed the back of his neck and stopped him. He answered with a resigned expression.
“Well, you told me to provide information. I hate wasting time too. Thought I’d let you inspect things quickly.”
“…….”
He wasn’t wrong, so I loosened my grip without complaint.
The moment we entered the building, what greeted us—
Were screams.
KAAAH!
KEEEEK! KEEEEEK!
Unlike the three reporters, whose faces were filled with tension, Francia looked surprisingly calm.
The same went for me.
This wasn’t unfamiliar.
Based on the sounds alone, it was no different from ordinary Beasts.
And I had already experienced the shrieks of creatures halfway between human and Beast before.
Clank! Clank!
The interior was packed with well over a hundred iron cages.
The creatures inside screamed as though determined to bend the bars apart with brute force.
The cages shook violently enough to inspire fear.
The reporters flinched simultaneously.
Yet even then, they never stopped recording.
That alone was incredibly like them.
I walked toward the nearest cage.
Despite its face being torn open against the bars, the creature ignored the pain entirely and bared killing intent toward me.
‘…Their Beast instincts have grown even stronger than before.’
The Beasts used during the battle near the operation area had still shown signs of unfamiliarity with pain.
That had been what convinced me they were once human.
But now, even that distinction was becoming difficult.
‘No matter how you look at it now, these are pure humanoid-type Beasts.’
Just how many humans had they sacrificed?
I shoved Ernst toward the cage and barked at him.
“Hiiik!”
“When did these experiments begin?”
“I-I don’t know when they started! I’ve only worked here as a researcher for the past five years!”
The instant I began interrogating him, Stefan quickly rushed over with his Phono Orb.
“So what exactly have you been doing for five years?”
“Isn’t it obvious?! Human Beastification! Research into raising Beasts to fight other Beasts! That was the entire purpose!”
“Not research for the Bernhardts?”
“Power depends on how it’s used. What purpose someone uses it for isn’t my concern. I was simply paid to conduct research.”
“You’re saying turning humans into Beasts is really possible? How?”
“We continuously administer a drug made from dissolved Mana Stones. That’s the foundation. After that, we take various measures to awaken the Beast instincts.”
“You’re saying you can just feed people Mana Stones? There’s no way it’s that simple.”
“Of course not! You need special Mana Stones. Truly horrifying creations condensed from twenty spells across six magical systems, including Mutation Magic, Curse Magic, and Amplification Magic!”
Listing off his research achievements somehow seemed to excite Ernst.
His shameless attitude made me shove him directly in front of the cage.
“WAAAAAH! STOP! STOP!!”
After he struggled desperately while crying and sniveling, I finally pulled him back again.
“Huff… huff….”
“It must’ve taken quite some time to discover the optimal magical combination. And that alone wouldn’t have been enough, right?”
“R-Right. That’s why we also needed Beast blood that wouldn’t trigger rejection within the human body. Finding that combination took a ridiculous amount of effort too.”
Compared to his earlier resistance, he was answering far too obediently now.
Had they already destroyed the evidence?
No—even if they had, it no longer mattered.
We had already recorded countless traces of Beastification here.
There was no escaping punishment anymore.
Was he resigned because he knew that?
Or did he still have another trick hidden away?
Thinking that, I continued pressing him.
“Even if Beastification succeeds, it’s meaningless if they can’t be controlled. I doubt you’ve achieved that part yet.”
At that moment—
As though he had been waiting for those exact words.
The atmosphere around Ernst changed completely.
“The theory was completed long ago. We simply lacked proof.”
At least until one month ago.
“Now we can finally take the first step.”
“Toward magnificent progress.”
“What kind of bullshit are you—”
Just as I moved to shove him again—
“Seems you’ve gotten yourselves involved in something troublesome, Ernst.”
A voice echoed from far away.
A voice impossible to consider human—
Yet undeniably speaking human language.
---
“…….”
“That thing… what exactly….”
“…Human? Beast? Which is it?”
“Neither.”
Answering shortly, I calmly stared at the approaching enemy.
Its facial features were far too clear to be considered Beast-like.
Yet its massive body exceeded three meters in height.
The eyes emitted the distinct glow unique to Beasts.
Its skin was a dark crimson-black.
A being that possessed both the traits of Beasts and humans simultaneously—
Able to utilize a Beast’s physical abilities and instincts alongside human intelligence and experience.
In MAGA, this new species was called—
A Demon Human.
‘…I’ll have to reduce the limit from six months to three.’
I had considered the possibility of this happening.
But even so, facing one directly still came as a shock.
I never expected to encounter a Demon Human this early.
The Empire was extremely proactive regarding Beastification, and Ribenia had been the first nation to successfully complete human Beastification.
Of course, because it was such a horrifying development, it only occurred in certain high-difficulty modes.
And if that mode happened to be Apocalypse Mode—
It became humanity’s greatest catastrophe.
Once the Empire reached the final stage of Beastification—the Demon Human stage—they managed to create over a thousand Demon Humans within a single year.
Then, once the true great disaster began, every single Demon Human became controlled by spiritual entities and turned against humanity.
Preventing that from ever happening by eradicating the possibility at its root—
That was my job now.
The sudden development drew all our attention toward the Demon Human.
And Ernst used that opening to barely escape my grasp.
“1966! This is an emergency! Subdue them immediately!”
“…….”
“What are you doing?! Move already! Tear off these handcuffs too!”
“Ah, should I?”
The Demon Human grabbed Ernst’s restrained wrists with one rough hand—
And crushed the handcuffs together with the bones.
“GAAAAAAAAAH!!”
“Ah, sorry. I misjudged my strength.”
“Y-You insane bastard…!”
“But is this really an emergency? It doesn’t look like one to me.”
“Can’t you tell just by looking?! They’re all here to kill you!”
“I don’t think so.”
“AAAAARGH! Your intelligence got way too high for your own good!”
Oddly enough, the two of them had surprisingly good chemistry.
Drawing my sword, I shouted toward the Demon Human.
“You seem to roughly understand the situation already, so I won’t explain in detail! Hand over Ernst and submit peacefully! If you do, I’ll free you!”
“…….”
“What? You think I’m lying?”
“Ah, no, that’s not it….”
The Demon Human awkwardly scratched his forehead before pointing toward his own chest.
“Sorry. I’m about to lose consciousness. Ernst triggered my berserk state.”
The moment those words left his mouth—
The flow of mana surrounding his entire body transformed into a raging torrent.
And then—
Clank!
Clank!
The iron prison doors lined up on both sides opened all at once.
“…Figures that bastard had another trick prepared.”
Pointing at us with a crazed expression, Ernst screamed.
“This place is getting shut down anyway! Whether I live or die, there’s no chance any of you are making it out alive!”
Watching him screech while both wrists hung shattered and twisted was honestly pathetic.
Apparently unable to stand the sight anymore, Francia instantly rushed forward and knocked him unconscious.
KYAAGH!
KEEEEEK!
More than thirty enemies burst out of the cages alongside terrifying screams.
Unlike the Demon Human we faced last, these creatures were incomplete failures.
Far stronger than ordinary humans, yes.
But nowhere near equal to Beasts of the same rank.
There was no way they could stand against Francia and me, who had even defeated an SS-Rank Beast before.
The same applied to the other three as well.
These reporters had specifically been selected in preparation for a situation like this.
They might not be able to defeat the enemies themselves, but they certainly wouldn’t drag us down either.
Watching the incomplete creatures gradually surround us, Francia carefully asked,
“…They were human originally, right?”
“Not anymore.”
“But still… they used to be human.”
“Focus on defense as much as possible, Francia. I’ll handle the killing.”
She had experienced countless things already, but she was still only eighteen years old.
Even by Imperial standards, she had only just become an adult.
Even if they looked completely like Beasts now, being prepared to kill something that had once been human was an entirely separate matter.
And yet, she gripped her sword even more firmly and asked one final question.
“There’s… no way to return them to normal, right?”
I answered silently.
Unfortunately, they were no longer human.
Their consciousness had been completely erased through repeated experimentation, and their instincts had fully tilted toward the Beast side.
There was no longer any means left to suppress their savagery.
I didn’t know how Ernst had triggered their berserk state, but once they entered it, the best thing we could do for them—
Was kill them quickly and spare them further suffering.
The girl who stared silently at my face slowly closed her eyes and readjusted her grip on her sword.
“…Then I won’t hold back.”
Right then—
KYAAAAAH!
One impatient Beast charged first, wildly swinging both arms.
Francia assumed her stance and condensed mana to its absolute limit within her blade.
She smoothly redirected the enemy’s savage claw strike—
Then sliced diagonally through its body in one clean motion.
The cut was so perfect that not even blood splattered.
Seeing their companion reduced to chunks of meat sprawled across the floor, the other Beasts began screeching violently.
Having steeled her resolve, Francia’s gaze was already fixed beyond this battle itself.
Seeing that, I stepped forward with a smile filled with fighting spirit.
“Sorry about this.”
I pity you.
But I can’t let you live.
I briefly glanced toward the four people behind me before staring forward again.
At the same time—
Three Spears of Darkness slowly began emerging from the ground.