Chapter 33

The monster brought me to a place that existed in my memories.

But the difference was that the barbed wire surrounding the building had collapsed, and the main gate was torn like paper.

So, in short—yeah.

“This is the shelter I first came to.”

A shelter built above ground, with the 5th floor being the sturdiest—what kind of nonsensical structure is this?

As the monster carried me inside the shelter, I slowly looked around.

To anyone, it was clear there was no path leading underground.

Why did this monster come here?

*Creak, creak—*

“Is this the place?”

In a corner of the shelter’s first floor.

It was just an empty floor, but the monster pointed at it.

Is there a passage here?

When I tilted my head and asked, the monster nodded.

“Hmm…”

*Thud, thud—*

When I lightly tapped my foot, I heard a hollow sound from below.

Big enough for a human to pass through, I guess.

Just a little more force and it might open, so I lifted my foot, but the monster’s hand subtly reached out from under me.

“? Why?”

*Creak, creak—*

What? Don’t do something dumb, use that?

The monster pointed at my neck, so I quietly lowered my leg.

Ah, I should use the keycard.

“Ah, so that’s why the child was separated from their mom…”

Both disappearing from the shelter and the mart.

The child was left alone while they went into the underground lab, so of course, they had to be separated.

And showing the monsters down there to the child would’ve been impossible.

*Beep—*

“Got it…!”

Just because I took out the keycard didn’t mean the door opened right away.

I had to find the scanner, so I wandered around for about 10 minutes before finally finding it.

But hey, finding it this fast is pretty good, right?

“Thanks for guiding me.”

*Creak, creak, creak!*

Before stepping into the passage, I thanked the monster, and it bounced around, waving both hands.

Is it seeing me off?

I don’t know if we’ll meet again, but I’ll remember the kindness of bringing me here.

“Alright, let’s continue the exploration I couldn’t finish last time.”

The starting point is different, but given the nature of city buildings not having underground entrances, it’s likely connected.

Well, even if it’s not, it’s no big deal.

Especially since the underground lab is different from the surface—I can act freely without causing problems, which I really like.

“Villains build their bases underground for a reason.”

If they did these experiments above ground, they’d get slammed for human rights violations and being inhumane.

Looking at it this way, humans are way more vicious than monsters.

Monsters kill humans cleanly, but the humans here make them wish they were dead—no comparison.

“Oh, the vibe here is different from last time…”

The machines with unknown functions are the same, but unlike last time when it was half monsters and half humans, this time it’s just pure monsters.

Wait, once they’ve been touched by humans, can they still be called pure monsters?

“What should I call them then… cultured monsters?”

Yeah, that works.

Anyway, what kind of wealth and glory were they chasing by secretly building a lab this big to research monsters?

What, did they want to become monsters themselves?

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity.

“Knock knock, anyone in there?”

*Gurgle—*

Oh, there’s a reaction.

There’s a warning sign saying not to touch the test tubes, but that’s not my problem.

“Should I let you out?”

I didn’t feel any sympathy for humans, but seeing the monsters, I felt a little sorry for them.

Like, we’re all friends despite looking different, you know?

Anyway.

“I’ll let you out, so behave.”

*Crack—*

At this rate, they could probably break out on their own, but since they haven’t, maybe not.

Maybe they’re more vulnerable to external shocks.

I hummed while looking at the cracked test tube.

One down, I guess.

“Feels like I’m on a quest to rescue civilians kidnapped by a research facility.”

Though calling them civilians is a bit of a stretch given their appearance.

I waited for the liquid inside the test tube to spill out.

With a *plop*, the monster started pulling itself out of the tube.

It looked like a bird hatching from an egg—kinda cute, I guess.

*Gurgle…*

“What’s wrong? Do you have something to say?”

Even after coming out of the tube, the monster didn’t leave. When I tilted my head, it slowly bent down.

I couldn’t understand what the monster was saying, but I could guess its intentions.

It looked like a worshipper bowing to a god.

…Though it’s probably just my imagination.

*Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle—*

“You want to follow me? Ah, do you want to save your fellow monsters here?”

It’s not a problem if you follow me—no, actually, it’s better if you come along.

Since I’m not into killing humans myself, having a monster to do it for me sounds good.

Alright, let’s agree to have you follow me.

“I’ll be looking around, so go ahead and free the other monsters.”

*Gurgle—*

Of course, freeing the monsters isn’t the main goal.

My primary objective is touring the underground world.

Leaving the monster to its bashing, I started looking around.

The first thing that caught my eye was a beaker filled with liquid human despair.

“Can I drink this?”

It’s lower quality than the Magical Girl essence from the doctor’s lab, but this concentrated human despair looks pretty good.

Feels like I’m at a supermarket sampling booth.

I brought the beaker to my lips while looking at the despair inside.

*Gulp, gulp—*

“Mmm, tasty.”

The Despair Circuit felt joy at encountering such concentrated despair after so long.

This is heaven, no doubt.

Plus, I can indulge in despair here without worrying about hope interfering.

I might not like humans, but I’ll give them credit for this.

*Creak— Gurgle—*

“…The numbers have really grown in this short time.”

One monster breaks one tube, two monsters break two tubes, and now there are four.

What were they thinking, cramming so many in one place?

With this many monsters in such a small area, I can’t even imagine how many are in the rest of the facility.

“The city’s underground is a monster farm, a monster farm.”

I wonder if the monsters here can survive just by eating the humans underground.

They’d probably have to go outside to get enough food.

Well, the city has Emerald, so it’s fine.

Monsters of this level are nothing to Emerald.

*Gurgle…*

“Alright, let’s go deeper.”

I’ve seen everything nearby.

Who knows, maybe they’re researching Magical Girls deep inside.

The monsters beside me urged me to hurry.

“Ah, I’m going. Stop nagging, okay?”

This makes me feel like the matriarch of the monsters.

Even though I’m actually one of the youngest.

“Intruders ahead, intruders ahead! Multiple test subjects escaped! Requesting backup! There are too many!”

As soon as the monsters started causing a ruckus, humans came running.

The difference from the mart’s underground lab incident is that this time, it’s not a mix of humans and monsters—it’s just pure monsters.

And there are way more of them.

“B-bullets aren’t working!”

“Retreat, retreat, retreat!”

The humans’ pitiful bullets couldn’t harm the monsters.

Unless they forge bullets out of hope, it’s like throwing stones into a river—no effect.

“Ah, thinking of hope bullets reminds me of Sapphire.”

I pictured Sapphire, the cool beauty with a sniper rifle-like weapon, shooting down monsters.

Come to think of it, do the other protagonists from the original story not have memories of the previous world?

I’ve wondered about it sometimes, but it’s a relief that at least Emerald, who’s easy to handle, remembers.

“If Sapphire, Ruby, or Diamond had their memories…”

Ugh, just imagining it is terrifying.

Shaking off the pointless thought, I trembled.

Anyway, that’s not important right now.

*Gurgle? Gurgle, gurgle—*

“Ah, are you asking what to do now?”

What to do? Just do whatever you want.

With that meaning, I nodded, and the monsters beside me charged at the humans.

The feast had begun.