Paradigm Parasite

Chapter 130: "Separation"

No wonder it should sound familiar.

I hadn't heard it for so long that it didn't come out on the spur of the moment.

It's my original voice.

...What the hell is going on here?

--I'm not listening to you. I said give it back, idiot!

I ignore the annoying voice and think.

First, let's get the situation straight.

The owner of this offending voice is the original me.

...So this is not interference from the outside, but a voice coming from inside me?

The voice is still squeaky and loud.

Am I the one who speaks in this unpleasant way?

Digging through my memory - oh, I was like this.

I hear it on the side, that's right. It's a weird voice and way of speaking.

But still, you've been asking me to give it back since a while ago.

-I'm sorry, but this is my body, not yours. Would you shut the fuck up?

--? Don't fuck with me, you thieving bastard! You forgot how much I owe you for saving my life! Fuck you!

There's a deep sigh.

Can't you do something about your language?

The spider guy from the other day was pretty much the same, but this guy's vocabulary is just as bad or worse.

I'm not sure what to say, but he did say something that bothered me.

--Helping? What are you talking about?

--What are you talking about? Don't forget! I saved you when the earth dragon tried to eat you! You ungrateful bastard! You're still scum!

Earth dragon?

........................ Oh.

Come to think of it, there was a time when that happened.

At Mt Shudras, I wondered why my body moved on its own for some reason, but it was this guy's doing, wasn't it?

I feel like I could have managed without getting involved, but it's true that you saved my life, so I should at least be thankful, right?

--I see. Thanks a lot. When you're done, why don't you just go away?

--I've been watching you.

What's with the creepy come-on? You're a stalker.

What can I do?

--You're not in control of anything.

--Huh.

--I can do better than that! So give me back my body and fuck off.

He's a very well-spoken guy, coming out of nowhere.

What's he going to do when he says he's gonna do better?

-- What's your plan with the body, anyway?

--Huh? What? - Well, first I'm going to help some slaves in trouble, and then we'll form a party. You're an adventurer with just the two of you, you idiot!

...Ho.

--After that, I'll have such a useful power. I'll kill everyone who gets in my way and show them my power! You're sneaking around when you have power, what are you thinking? Are you an idiot?

...Ho.

--I've got a territory, I'm going to use my modern knowledge to develop it, and while I'm at it, I'm going to take Fatima and... phew.

.......

-Heidi is moderately good, but it's still Fatima! It's a different world! The level of the girls is high.

..........

--Hey... I'd like to ask you, what do you think about the spider guy you killed one day?

There was something that bothered me a little, so I asked without thinking.

--What about the... The Spider Bastard? ...... Ah, that piece of shit. In the first place, he's the worst kind of person, using force to make his slaves obey him. And he's the worst kind of bastard who was violent towards children. He deserved to die.

...Ah, I see. So? What's the difference between him and you?

You're the worst.

Was I really like this?

I'm beyond sad, I'm in despair.

--So I'm going to ask you to give me my body back.

What should I do, I have to shut this guy up somehow, or I'll get stressed out and I won't be able to--'

'But...'

I suddenly lost the freedom of my body.

--Ora, give me my body back quickly! You idiot!

Next came a sharp pain.

When I looked at my body to see what had happened, my whole body started bobbing and rippling.

Hey, hey, hey. What's going on?

I concentrated my attention on my whole body and scrutinised it.

The cause was immediately apparent. The roots of my whole body started moving on their own.

No control over it?

No, not totally unable, but being interfered with from somewhere?

-Don't go on a rampage! Give me your whole body quickly!

You bastard.

I don't know how you did it, but you're trying to physically take over me.

Concentrate on manipulating my entire body so that I don't lose control.

- - Ugh, you're so annoying! Just give it to me!

When I search for him while ignoring the noisy voice asking me to give it to him...

...it was there.

There's a foreign object I don't remember making in my stomach area.

I stretched out my left arm at once and smashed it into my stomach.

The centipede bit through my stomach and penetrated.

I overdid it and even broke my spine, but that's a minor thing.

I separated into my upper and lower body.

I manipulate it further and let it grab the ground around it to shrink and distance itself from the separated lower body.

I reconstitute the lower body in a great hurry for the time being.

I felt my energy drain, but it's an emergency now, so I ignore it.

My trousers are taken away, so I take off my coat and wrap it around my waist.

Trying to hold up the Club Monster - not in hand?

The sensation of being robbed of my entire body is gone.

Reflexively, I look to the front.

The lower half of my detached body slowly rises up, the wound bobbing and pulsing and the upper half growing back.

The physique, the face, everything is exactly the same as mine.

The only difference is his expression.

He is grinning and has a nasty smile on his face.

"Kuhi. Hee-hee-hee. Hyahahahahaha. I did it! I'm back! It's my body!"

The lower half of my body - we've already separated from each other, so we're completely different.

Then what shall I call it?

"But it's only half of me. Ora, give me the other half too."

Yeah... I'll just call it 'that'.

The thing picks up the fallen Club Monster and carries it on its shoulder.

"Well. I guess I'll have to kill you and take the rest of your body."

I also check my condition while focusing on my left arm and bracing myself.

Have almost 60% of the body's roots been taken?

In addition, the wear and tear on the lower body regeneration is great.

Normally, I would have retreated and regrouped, but...

...but that's impossible.

Running away? Against this guy?

I snicker at my own thoughts.

Running away, are you joking?

"Oh, yeah, yeah. It was because of you?"

I can't help but say the words.

"Huh? What the hell is this guy talking about?"

The thing looks dubious.

His mouth twists unknowingly.

In the shape of a smile.

A hollow feeling inside me.

What is it that has disappeared?

It's that thing in front of me.

...I've always thought it was strange.

Occasional outbursts of emotions that are so out of control that even I think they are unnatural.

The impulsive behaviour that results from it.

Interference with thoughts.

I feel the source of it disappearing.

I let out an unintentional laugh.

Was it you, the one who has been annoyingly interfering for some time now?

I had given up on it as something that came from within me, but to have the cause in front of me and the opportunity to make it go away - that's great.

Let me say it again.

Running away? You're joking.

I'll kill him here. I will definitely kill him. I will kill him without mercy.

I order my left arm.

Rip that thing in front of you in eight pieces.

The Left Arm Human Centipede attacks the thing with a gaping maw.

"Oh, no!"

The thing pops the centipede with a club monster as it lunges at me.

I run to close the gap and deploy magic.

[Heavy pressure]

"The one you remember is Explosion, right? I can read you, scum!"

When it stopped moving, I slammed my fist into its face.

It's the full force with no additions or subtractions.

The fist felt like it was going to shatter, but as it regenerated, I turned my head back and headbutted it with all my might.

"Gahaha. What, suddenly--"

The left arm's hundred legs are put back, wrapped around the arm and then slammed into the thing.

The thing is harder than a fist. It's harder than my fist.

"Gobble!"

The thing is slammed to the ground. When it was in a good position, I kicked it.

I didn't stop it, so it blew up as hard as it could.

Hey, hey. It's not enough, okay?

Let me hit him harder.

"Damn. Why does it hurt so much? You piece of shit! Don't get carried away!"

Don't talk shit in my face.

It's holding its hand out towards me.

Magic.

[Explosion]

You say you know one thing, but you use it too?

I was expecting it, so I rush in while preventing it with [Wind Shield III]

I ploughed through the flames and tried to hit it, but before I knew it, it had moved away and was preparing its magic.

This time, [Wind Blade] and [Fireball] flew at me.

I close the distance while avoiding them, but the thing goes [Flying] into the sky while screaming something.

Hey, hey, hey.

Is it only at the beginning that it's so vigorous?

It's relentlessly repeating long-range attacks.

If you don't use it, can I have my club monster back?

"Don't do it! I'm gonna get a little serious!"

What is this guy talking about while running around?

What now?

The thing's arms start to bob and swell, and a lot of root-like mass appears.

"Sleigh!"

The thing scatters a lump around the area.

The lump disappears as if sucked into the ground, then something appears from it.

At a quick glance it looks like a lump of meat...

The lump of flesh gradually took shape - oh, is that Savage?

It took on the shape of a Savage.

...but there's something slightly different about it.

It's about a size smaller and the details are kind of cheap.

Savage (fake) snarls and jumps at me.

I move half a step to the side to avoid the bite, grab it by the neck and slam it to the ground, then stomp on it and break its neck.

It is still moving, so I use [death] to turn it into sand to finish it off.

Now that was a bit of a surprise, but no matter how many of these mooks come...

I turned to the thing and before I knew it, quite a few lumps of flesh were wriggling around and forming shapes.

Oh, come on, how many are you going to bring out?

They all look like something I've seen somewhere else.

Starting with Savage (fake), the second class goblins from Mount Shudras, Trust, the Temple Knights, Heidi, Fatima, plant zombies, Darzain's people, and many others.

Unlike Savage, this one is highly reproduced.

What are these reanimated monsters?

They are all expressionless, as if they have no face, as if they are not even able to reproduce the inside of the body.

The equipment is generally cheap, but it's all here.

Each of them pointed their weapons at me silently.

Fatima and the rear guard hold up their staffs.

"Ha. I'm going to torture you to death like this! Hey! Get 'em!"

A swarm of reanimated monsters rushed in without a sound.