Paradigm Parasite

Chapter 119: "Human"

Strike left and right, then open wide and scissor from the front.

The bucket head dodges the left and right strikes without difficulty, then leaps backward and ducks.

The bucket head returns the favor with a hammer strike.

It is received by hardening the left arm's centipede.

Impact. The armor caved in and pieces scattered.

It's better not to take it directly.

The outer shell should have been modified to increase its hardness, but it is not a mere hammer by any means.

It is a special equipment of the Cathedral knight. It is not an ordinary hammer.

I manipulate my left arm and push it back.

The bucket head doesn't resist, but takes a few steps back, and this time, it spins its entire body around and strikes the hammer.

I see that it is the head of the hammer that is the problem, not the handle.

I step in the opposite direction and go to hit the handle, not the head.

I guard the handle with my arm.

I grabbed his armor and threw him on my back so that I could put him on his back.

"Wait!? Are you serious?"

The bucket head screams in surprise, if that's what it really is.

I slammed him to the ground.

"Oh..."

A breath leaked out.

I open Club Monster wide, and shear the bucket head's arms and torso as hard as I can.

I put all my strength into it, but it is so hard that I can't even scratch it, let alone crush it.

Well, that's to be expected.

"It's useless! This armor..."

Twin headers are deployed.

I didn't expect this gimmick to come into play so soon.

"--such an offensive..."

Activation.

With a tremendous roar, the gimmick spins and sparks between it and the armor.

I put all my strength into my arms and shear as hard as I can.

"What the hell is that weapon!?"

Buckethead moves his arms and manages to break free of the restraints, but don't think you can peel them off so easily in this position.

With a grating sound, sparks and what seems to be a piece of armor fly off.

Okay, is it possible to cut it off like this?

I thought so, but it seems impossible.

The bucket head is starting to jiggle himself up and force the scissors open with his arm strength.

I had sensed that there was a difference in pure arm strength, but to this extent?

He moves his legs to stand up when he fully raises his upper body, but I don't let him do so.

I turn on the left arm's centipede.

The centipede attacks to bite him, but the bucket head stands up, undeterred by the leg attacks and bites.

Well... then.

I change my aim.

At the same time, a bucket-head kicks me in the gut and blows me away.

While being blown away, my left arm scratches the slit in the helmet and pulls it off.

The bucket-like helmet flies in the air.

"Damn..."

The exposed face was that of an ant with a smooth black head and a distinctive large jaw.

Ants this time. Considering the conditions, I would say that most of them are insects.

His head is so big. No wonder he needed a bucket to fit in there.

When I turned my attention to the club monster, I saw that its twin headers were cracked and battered.

Oh, come on. What happened to the catchphrase, "It can cut down a giant monster with a shell."

In contrast, the bucket-head's armor is also completely damaged at the arms, revealing shiny black skin.

Well, it's a good thing I was able to remove the armor, even if only part of it.

The gimmick is changed to nippers. The damaged twin headers retract to reveal the blades.

Now it looks like I can at least shred the arm.

It opens and closes a few times, clattering menacingly.

"Is that a pair of scissors...or a machine? Is it?"

Bucket-head - I guess I'll just call him an ant man now that he doesn't have a helmet.

He mutters as if to confirm this, then throws away the arm part of his useless armor and readies his hammer with both hands.

The exposed hands are shiny black, like the head, and are shaped in a way reminiscent of armor.

...For all that, the shape itself is solidly humanoid... with five fingers.

Before seeing his face, it looks like he's wearing armor underneath his armor.

"Please, at least listen to me! Why won't you tell me anything! If you have a reason, tell me, and I will surely help you..."

You're persistent, aren't you?

I let out a rather exaggerated sigh and slung Club Monster over my shoulder.

"Let me ask you this. What do you want to do with all these monsters you call apostles? Do you want to form a mutual aid society of non-humans?"

You want to make a brighter tomorrow by pooling our efforts together?

Ha-ha-ha. Nonsense. There's nothing more shady than helping each other in a world where the law has no enforcement power.

The ant man also unbuckles his stance and raises his hammer.

"No! We are not monsters! We're human beings!

"That doesn't answer the question."

The ant man stammers a little, then lets out a small breath and cools down.

"We're collecting people who fell from another world."

I can tell from looking at it.

"Its purpose is twofold: to return to its original world and to return to its original form. Now that may be difficult. But I've made a promise to the people of Gnosis and to the powerful people of my country that they will help me! It will take time, but we will return! And for that, I need friends! As proof of that, they gave a student like me the awesome title of Cathedral Knight. So..."

"Oh, you don't have to say it anymore."

I held out my hand and broke off the chilly, passionate speech I'd heard somewhere from the ant man.

The more I ask, the more I don't care.

Go back to where we came from? Back to where? You're already dead, what are you talking about?

Your original form? There is no particular inconvenience as it is now.

Cooperation from Gnosis and other powerful people in the country? You're just being used for your own good.

You need a friend? You want me to get sucked in by the Gnosis people with you? That's no joke.

The title of Cathedral Knight? You know what they say about candy and whips?

I'm happy with the way things are, so I don't see any appeal in joining the Gnosis.

There's a lot going on here, but I don't think I need to explain it to you in detail.

"I don't find anything appealing about your story. If it's a solicitation, hit someone else."

Even so, Gnosis, for all its posturing of purity and innocence, is not doing a very good job of what it does.

They are dangling bribes such as return and original appearance to the reincarnated to make them listen to what they say.

To begin with, the reincarnated are excellent as an asset, looking at the ant in front of me.

There is no way they would give him up without a second thought.

Don't you realize that? They would end up being used up.

Or are you thinking that if push comes to shove, you can just show off your power?

You are too naive.

No matter how much power they have, human wisdom and viciousness will surpass it.

You think too lightly about belonging to an organization.

Conclusion.

This guy is physiologically unacceptable.

"Hey! Why? You fell from another world, didn't you? You don't want to go home..."

"I'm done talking. Get ready."

I turn my left arm against him again. My target is the head.

The ant man spins the hammer dexterously with one hand, and a dull thud is heard, and the centipede bends over as if it had been punched from below.

I know it is the ability of that hammer, but I still don't understand what is being done.

Well, I knew it would be dealt with, so I didn't care and closed the gap.

I open the club monster and rush in.

The ant bastard swings his hammer sideways in an attempt to keep it away from me.

I have no idea what the attack was, but I do know something.

I swung the club monster in the opposite direction of the line where the hammer swung.

It hits something.

It is heavy, but not that heavy. It's powerful enough to bounce it.

As I expected, the attack flew in a straight line along the line of the hammer's swing.

From the feel of it, it was not a shockwave, but a solid object.

Hmmm.

I think I'm getting closer to finding out.

The ant guy spun the hammer more and swung it to scoop it up.

I saw that too.

The ground explodes, sending dirt and burnt-out house scraps flying.

I sidestep to avoid it and step forward to open up the club monster, closing the gap between us.

He seems to be wary of the stones, and steps backward with his hammer at me.

...You're going to keep your distance, aren't you?

You're going to cut me off at long range...... No, you're not. ......

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the bats I had taken over crash down, its head blown off by the bat-woman's ultrasonic attack.

Is he trying to buy time for her to get free?

Did he decide that it was too dangerous to fight me head-on?

You are very cautious. I thought he would be a bit more impulsive, but he seems to be the steady type when it comes to fighting.

What a pain in the ass.

This won't take long.

I roll up the sleeve of my right arm and place my eyes on the exposed arm.

There are three of them, each processed into three different types of magical eyes: restraining, blind, and gravity.

Since there is a possibility that the armor is resistant to magic eyes, I decided to use all three types for the time being.

If even one of them works, I'll be happy.

Now, let's see... ...... What's this?

The surroundings suddenly became brighter.

I looked at the sky and saw something shining dimly.

I wondered what it was and immediately got an answer.

...Oh, I remember what he said about magic on a large scale....

"Oh shit. I had completely forgotten about it."

"What in the world is that...?"

The ant man looked around while muttering to himself.

The bat-woman's eyes widen in surprise.

Next, a sound similar to the sound of bells echoes out of nowhere.

The sound is different, but it somehow resembles the atmosphere of the ...... something...something sound that rang when the devil came out.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me! How could it be at a time like this?"

The bat-woman muttered in a trembling voice and flew away without looking aside.

It seems that the magic is very bad.

I'll run away too.

The ant man in front of me looked at the outer wall and froze for some reason.

I don't know what it is, but it's time to pull out.

But still, nothing I've done since I came to Royal Capital has gone well, and I've missed my prey.

There is no point in thinking about it.

As long as my mask is not removed, I'm not completely exposed.

Recovery will work well enough.

I'm leaving too. The ant man completely ignores me, his gaze fixed on the outer wall.

I tilt my head at his reaction, but decide to let him go without hesitation.

I run where I have enough distance.

The brightness of the sky increases as time goes by.

The sound of the bells grows louder and louder in proportion.

...It's so loud. What is this sound?

It is a sound that strangely disturbs my nerves.

It's not a sound I want to listen to for a long time.

From the light in the sky, the target is probably only in this poor neighborhood, outside the outer wall, out of range.

So, I quickly climbed over the wall and got out.

It was a complete surprise.

My foot cut through the air as I was about to kick the ground.

I tried to look at my feet to see what was going on, but my surroundings suddenly went completely dark.

...What is this?

Before I could confirm what had happened, I felt a momentary floating sensation, followed by the sensation of falling, and at the same time I lost consciousness for the first time since I came to this world.