Paradigm Parasite

Chapter 196: "Heart"

Falling gently with a momentary sense of levitation. I headed downwards, feeling a slight unease at the walls gradually closing in on me.

After a little while, I came out into a large space.

From the position, I guess it is around the belly?

There is a huge pillar in the centre, pulsating with a low sound.

Behind it - the wall on the side of the torso - was bulging in a gentle curve, which was also pulsating with a low sound.

I landed near where the people who had descended before me were positioned to watch the surroundings.

A little later came Aspizal, who jumped down after me.

"I've been amazed ever since I got here. Really amazing."

He mutters this as he looks around admiringly.

"I know it's amazing, but is that the heart?"

I point to the pulsating column.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure that's it."

"Then what's that thing pulsating in the back?"

"Hmm. I think it's the liver or something."

Is that the liver? It's probably a reasonable size considering its size, but it's a joke.

The huge internal organs overwhelmed me a little, but I got myself together and quickly set about destroying the heart.

"I saw something quite unusual, but I don't have the luxury of taking my time, so let's just destroy it as soon as possible."

"I agree. We don't want to stay here too long, so let's get on with it."

We were trying to move--.

--

The words slip into my head like a surprise.

I still don't know what it means, but I get some nuance out of it, you know?

It's probably something like 'feed me every time' or something like that.

What is this guy saying with his heart in our hands?

I'm not comfortable with him ranting in my head, so let's get on with it...'

"Hey! Watch out! It's coming!"

At the same time as Hieda's sharp voice rang out, a large number of human-shaped objects came from the surrounding walls and above.

What are these things?

Flesh kneaded into a human shape... no, the shape is clear. Do they have skeletons?

"Are these made from the bones of the beastman who just died or something?"

"What?"

Aspizal seems to have mumbled something like unintentionally, but I was a little curious about the content.

"No, yeah. There was one that wasn't completely encased in flesh when it came out, but then I saw the bones. The shape was a bit... you know."

The reason why he was slightly brusque was probably because he lacked confidence.

Well, human bones don't just spring up out of nowhere, so it's reasonable to assume that they are the bones of people who died here.

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The humanoid began to change its shape, but since there was no reason to wait around for it, he reaped around the torso with his left arm, the Human Centipede.

The humanoid, cut in two from the waist, rolls around, but the change does not stop.

Useless.

The individual that completed the change turned into a grotesque creature that looked like a mixture of those above and people.

They look very different. Are they used for different purposes than the ones above?

"Hey, hey, hey, hey. You've got to be joking..."

"Oh, we're going to be like that too?"

Upset spreads among the beastmen.

The beastmen, with their keen senses, were able to sense the situation well.

They seem to have sensed that they are the material of the group.

"Don't be frightened! The dead will laugh at us if we get scared here! Don't worry, if we smash that big pillar, we'll win! Keep your heads up!"

Hie blows away the atmosphere by raising his voice.

I leave it to Hieda to maintain morale, and I hit the nearest guy with my left arm, Human Centipede.

I feed it to the head of the distorted creature, which looks like a fish part forcibly attached to a man.

The guy whose head is blown off falls over on his back, but regenerates by gathering flesh from the nearby walls and floor.

It gets up. Is this impossible to finish it off?

Looking around, it seems that the other beastmen have also noticed their regenerative powers.

"Oh, shit! They'll get up even if you crush their heads!"

"How are they going to die!?"

Mouths were raised in bewilderment, but Hieda shouted a warning.

"Do the limbs! If they're going to regenerate anyway, slow them down!"

With Hieda fighting while shouting instructions, I ignore my surroundings and aim straight for the big pillar, the heart.

I glance at the surrounding enemies.

The one that was cut in two earlier, the split parts seemed to have both regenerated, so it seems difficult to finish it off without shattering it into pieces.

However, the individual whose skeleton has been completely destroyed cannot get up by itself and is moving as if crawling.

It seems that damaging it is not a waste of time.

... well, it doesn't change the fact that you can't finish it off, does it?

I immediately decided to ignore those around me.

I only cleaved the enemies in my path of advance with my legs, and only blocked their movement.

At the edge of my vision, Yonomori was punching away with hardened fists, but they were regenerating from the shattered edges, so I switched to a strategy of grabbing them and throwing them far away.

Aspizal also put in some magical cover.

He launches a spear made of water into the legs and the ground.

The magic that hits the target freezes the moment it pops, engulfing the surrounding area.

It seems that they are also aiming to restrain rather than destroy.

"...as I thought, it's not as powerful as I thought it would be..."

In a somewhat bitter voice, I heard Aspizal mutter a small but unconcerned remark.

Cleave the enemy in my path, and when the way is open, I extend my left arm human centipede at once.

The centipede bites into the heart, and sinks its fangs into it.

He checks that the fangs have firmly sunk in, and now shrinks.

The body is pulled and flies as if drawn towards the heart.

Since no one was using a flying tool, it was able to attach itself to the heart as it was.

...Okay, I'm just going to let him eat the [Withering Death] and be done with it.

The magic's power is attenuated, but it doesn't matter if you're in contact with it.

Let's quickly turn this big, useless heart into sand and finish it off.

It's using magic to sustain itself, isn't it?

If you crush the heart, which is probably the source of supply, it will collapse under its own weight and die on its own.

If he still persists, let's go outside, smash through the pillar of water and drop him down.

If possible, I would like to suck the memories out of the corpse.

- caught.

For some reason, I understood the meaning of the voice I heard as it slipped into my brain.

The moment I try to activate the magic, the image of a sticky smile appears in my mind.

My alertness lifts, but it is too late.

A tentacle-like object extended from the pulsating pillar of flesh, and as soon as I recognised that it was entangled in my whole body, I was swallowed by the pillar as it was.

"Hey, hey. Roe's been eaten!"

Hearing Hie-san shouting that in Japanese, I - Azusa Yonomori - stopped moving, startled by the scene in front of me.

"Azusa! Don't stop moving!"

Asu-kun magically cleaves away the enemies who attacked me by taking advantage of the gap.

As it is, they scramble through the enemy and come close to me.

"I never thought the heart could do that. I thought I'd thrown all common sense out the window since I came into this world."

"Hey! What are you gonna do? From the looks of it, I don't think it's a good idea to hit him directly."

At the same time, Hieda also joined us here.

"That's right. It's dangerous to touch it directly, and if it's a long-range attack, I'll be the only one who can effectively attack it..."

Asu-kun mutters, 'That's tough'.

In any case, it is difficult for me, who has no other method of attack than contact, and Hieda-san, who is worn out from using his 'trump card', to strike an effective blow to that pillar.

Then, by process of elimination, Asu-kun is the only one I can rely on completely.

"Im sorry, but Ill come close, so please support me. As expected, it's tough to use magic at this distance."

"Do you get it. I will assist you. I'm sorry, but I'll leave the closing to you."

"To be honest, I'm not sure, but I'll give it my best shot."

I'll do my best.

I'll show you how to protect Asu-kun, no matter what!

Fists clenched, looking ahead -

"Wait a minute. That... what do you think?"

Asu-kun raises his voice and points to the heart.

I was watching too, so naturally I noticed the change.

The rhythm that had been beating regularly and at equal intervals earlier began to get disturbed.

"Hey, hey, hey, isn't this bad? Is it feeling energised after eating the Roe?"

The heart, which was beating at high speed, began to ripple violently on the surface.

This is more like - rather than energetic.

"No, it looks different. Could this be suffering?"

I agree.

The changes caused by absorbing Roe... maybe it hasn't been absorbed yet?

"... does that mean he's suffering from food poisoning?"

"Maybe, but I think Roe is acting up inside..."

"Really? I knew he was something special, but to go berserk in that state..."

Hie-san was muttering, 'It's not half bad,' while I looked at Asu-kun.

What are you going to do? with a question on top of it.

Asu-kun, who understood, gave a small nod.

"Let's buy some time. Maybe Roe can do something about it."

"No, you're relying on that guy?"

Hie's voice is filled with confusion.

I agree with that opinion.

I think Roe, who would be rampaging in a state of captivity, is a big deal, but isn't it dangerous to rely on him?

"I don't want to drag Roe down by interfering from the outside, and from the looks of it, I think he'll do more than you think."

"...... You guys seem to have a lot of trust in each other, even though you've only known each other for a short time."

Asu-kun responds to Hie's voice, which is laced with dismay, with a smile.

Seeing this, I had a feeling of discomfort.

I'm not sure how I can trust that kind of man that much.

Such thoughts were beginning to swell in my chest.

I did get a bad feeling from that man, that's for sure. ...I'd like to think I'm sure.

Otherwise, I would say that I was behaving that way out of jealousy.

I don't want to think I'm that narrow-minded.

But I do have a place in my heart for having captured Asu-kun's heart so quickly.

I don't have any answers, only a whirlwind of messy things.

"So we're just going to stay here until Mr Low comes out, is that right?"

"Yes. I'm counting on you, Azusa."

The smile that comes back to my confirmation is always the same.

Without any evil intentions. Asu-kun's smile is reassuring to see.

I feel a stab of pain in my chest at the fact that it is not directed only at me, but I forcefully shake it off.

I turn my shoulders and crack my joints.

Let's go on a rampage and blow this muffled thing out of the water.

Fortunately, there is no shortage of sandbags.

...Sorry, but you'll have to deal with my outbursts.

I attacked my nearest enemy with my fists clenched.