Chapter 55 The Monster of the Uncanny Valley
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Ah—before I could even react, the world turned red.
A thick mist spread, rolling down from the mountains into the basin like a warm storm after rain. Though it was noon, the light dimmed under the haze, and smoke-like clouds wrapped everything.
Inside the dungeon, the air was dim. Beyond thirty meters, shapes blurred into shadow. But this fog wasn’t cold—it was strangely warm, red as blood, and it swallowed sight whole.
For someone like me—a being of thought—the fog didn’t block my vision. That meant it wasn’t natural. If it were, I couldn’t see through it. So this haze had to be some kind of illusion or an attack from a monster.
”Well, I can see through it, but that doesn’t make it any less creepy… What’s that? Another person from the nearby town?”
Ignoring Kaede-san and the others tightening their guard, I scanned the mist. Since that bell rang, the fog had deepened fast. Maybe I was the first to notice something had changed inside the dungeon.
Cautiously, I moved closer.
Who was that? Someone’s walking. Another normal person? Damn. I hoped whoever it was would run away before Kaede-san’s team spotted them. I was tired of watching people die.
If they could escape, good. Maybe the fog could help hide them.
No… wait.
Something was wrong.
That figure—its head was too long. At first, I thought it was a woman. Then I saw there were two of them, hand in hand, moving like people out for a quiet walk.
”Hm? Wait…”
I looked closer. Their faces had no eyes, no mouths. Their hands had no fingers. When I glanced again, their faces—no noses, no ears—nothing at all.
Now that I really saw them, they weren’t human at all. Just lumps of flesh walking.
”Like clay dolls,” I muttered.
The two figures moved like parent and child, hand in hand, at a normal human pace. Flesh drooped from where their faces should have been, hanging down almost to the ground.
”What are those? Not human at all. Feels sick. Why did I even think they were people for a moment?”
I watched the two shapes fade into the red haze, a cold unease crawling up inside me.
Kaede-san and her team hadn’t noticed—the mist was too thick. They could barely see ahead, their tension rising. They kept turning, scanning the surroundings.
”I can’t see far. Switching visor to Nagami mode. Add camouflage—it’s too visible. Kiri, keep normal mode and stay alert.”
”Aye aye, captain. Try not to die, huh? Oh wait, were we told to?”
”…”
Their visors shifted color. First green, then melting into dull red and stone-gray, blending into the mist. Even their suits faded into the background.
They moved forward carefully, watching through the fog. The red haze had swallowed the sun; the world below was a sea of dim, heavy air. It felt like walking through hell’s deep sea.
Sometimes, far away, gaps in the fog showed cliffs and boiling poison swamps flickering in and out of sight.
”Not dying. Not until I kill it,” Kaede-san said flatly.
”Serious as always,” Kiri replied.
The damp air clung to my throat. I worried for them. Please, don’t meet that monster.
For a while, nothing moved. The silence pressed heavy. The ground was sticky—each step dragged. A few centimeters down it was wet, but below that lay solid stone. It felt like stepping at the bottom of an abandoned pool.
The quiet came from the fog swallowing sound. Whatever approached, no one would notice until it was too close.
We reached a red-brown rocky valley. Steep cliffs rose on both sides—this was the bottom. The mist here hung thick, unmoving. Kiri-san muttered, breaking the still air, her tone lazy under strain.
”Nice vacation spot. Should’ve come sooner. Bit hard on the eyes, though.”
”…”
”From five in the Exploration Squad, now down to three. Guess it’s about time someone came to pick me up too.”
”Stop talking nonsense.”
”Sorry. Mouth moves faster than the brain.”
Then I saw something strange ahead.
Maybe I was too tired to care, but I drifted closer. I was safe anyway—being what I was. Maybe I was just done caring. My nerves were worn thin.
A lump of flesh crouched in the mist. About a meter wide. It pulsed, slow and wet, like a beating heart.
Kaede-san and the others hadn’t noticed. They were about to walk right past it.
I rushed ahead, reaching toward Kaede-san. I linked my thoughts to hers briefly, alerting her to the danger.
She froze. “Another presence.”
Kiri-san frowned, glaring at Kaede-san like she’d just stepped in filth. “So it’s your turn, huh? Guess I really wanna die now.”
”Temperature’s off. That rock,” Kaede-san said, pointing.
The lump split open. Cracks ran across its red skin, peeling back. Five thick limbs unfolded, forming arms, legs, and a head. Before it could rise, a red-hot bullet tore through its center.
”—Gyuh?!”
The red creature screamed, but more bullets punched through its limbs before it could move.
”Waste of ammo,” Kaede-san said sharply.
”Yeah, yeah. Gotta shoot the first one at least once,” Kiri laughed.
Kaede-san drew her sword—a thick blade like the Imperial Guard used, heavier and rounder than I remembered, almost like wood.
”Saving resources,” she muttered.
She raised it high, shifted sideways, and lunged with a clean step, sweeping the blade like cutting grass.
Slash.
The blade cleaved through the monster’s body with a wet sound, like chopping raw meat. The creature split in two, screaming.
”Gya—Aah! Hurts!”
”Too soft,” Kaede-san said calmly.
”Dazukyuro!” it shrieked.
One thick arm swung, smashing into her. She didn’t flinch.
”Stubborn thing.”
Piece by piece, Kaede-san chopped the trembling flesh apart, then crushed the remains under her boot.
Squelch. Squelch. Squelch.
”This ends here,” she said softly.
The red mist swallowed the sound.
With each heavy breath, the red giant—easily two meters tall—was pressed down, reshaped beneath Kaede-san’s boots into a pool of blood and minced flesh. Like a child splashing in puddles, her shoes soaked in red.
Her small shadow swayed beside the monster’s bulk as its body lost form, melting into useless scraps of meat. She didn’t pant, didn’t flinch. Even under her visor, her eyes stayed still, untouched by emotion.
”Ordinary monster. Weak. Just stubborn,” she said.
”Impressive. Never seen anyone fight that filthy before,” her sniper partner said, not even lifting her gun, just crossing her arms to watch.
Kaede-san flicked her limbs, sending streaks of blood flying. Her way of killing—cold, efficient, like a dreadful house chore—was a nightmare made routine.
”Good blade,” the other woman said. “Switched swords?”
”Yeah. Thirty kan weight,” Kaede-san replied, nodding as she ran a hand down the thick blade. The single-edged sword gleamed dully, drenched in blood. Thirty kan—around a hundred kilograms. That was heavier than gold, denser than tungsten itself. No metal on Earth could match that weight.
’A super-heavy material… must be a mystical object,’ I thought. ‘No way she could swing that freely otherwise.’ Her strength was terrifying—enough to cut through a whale, maybe even an elephant.
”Hey, that—” someone started.
”What?” Kaede-san looked down. A small maggot had bitten into her arm. Calmly, she pinched it between her fingers, pulled it out, and crushed it. The tiny thing squirmed before bursting wetly.
”Look,” she said. “The bitten part turns to flesh.”
She wiped the wound clean so we could see. Kiri-san and I leaned closer. The bite mark was swollen, the skin warped like keloid scars—flesh twitching on its own, moving like it wanted to crawl away.
”Town folks wouldn’t survive that. It spreads fast,” Kaede-san said quietly.
”So, if they get bitten once, that’s it, huh? Scary,” Kiri muttered, grinning faintly.
”Yeah. Probably. Check Natsume too—make sure none got on her.”
”Ugh, fine,” she groaned.
Kaede-san plucked another maggot off Natsume’s cheek, tossing it aside.
GONG—
The sound rolled through the mist, deep and distant. We all turned toward it. The cliffs around us echoed like layered bells, ringing again and again until the air itself trembled. It sounded grand—holy, even. In any other place, I might’ve listened in awe.
”The fog’s getting thicker. You should switch to Nagami mode too,” Kaede-san said.
”Waste of charge. I’d rather shoot,” Kiri replied.
”Do as you like.”
Kiri brushed her hair aside and pulled her long rifle close. With practiced hands, she pressed a button near the base of the barrel. A soft hiss—steam and a puff of smoke. A used capsule dropped out. She replaced it with a golden one, loaded it, and slung the rifle back over her shoulder.
”Leave enough power for your visor,” Kaede-san warned.
”My business,” Kiri said flatly.
”…”
”What’s the point of saving it? We might not even make it back.”
”…Kiri.”
”Alright, alright. I’ll ration it.”
She waved off the scolding and moved on. We walked deeper into the valley, the path opening into a wider, darker rift. Twice more, the bell rang. Each time, the mist thickened until even they could barely see one another. Only I still saw clearly.
It was strange—fog and sight overlapping—but it didn’t block me. Inside that haze, I could see red maggots writhing everywhere. Small ones like fingers crawled along the ground, eaten by thicker ones with shells. Even rat-like animals joined in the feeding frenzy.
’Gross. Monsters eating monsters. A whole ecosystem,’ I thought.
That red lump of flesh showed up again too. Before I could even warn them, Kaede-san’s team tore it apart mercilessly. Each time they killed one, it scattered more of those maggots across the stone.
For ordinary people, even winning a fight here meant death—the parasites would find their way onto your skin sooner or later. Every swing of the sword scattered them. Every cut birthed more.
’Now I’m starting to get it,’ I realized. The dungeon deepened with each toll of the bell. The mist grew thicker, and new creatures came with it. The fog wasn’t just weather—it was a bridge to another world. And people who entered this place got infected… possessed, maybe. What came after, I didn’t know.
It was past noon, but no townsfolk were in sight—only monsters roamed now. Maybe they knew this was the danger hour and left before it hit.
The three Imperial Guards were covered in maggots, their skin blistered and raw. Yet they walked steadily, unfazed. Their endurance turned the infection into something like a mild burn. Their bodies resisted where normal humans would rot.
’They’re brute-forcing poison with stamina,’ I thought. ‘No Psionic Power used—and still that strong. Wait—’
Maybe I got too relaxed. I saw movement—something different this time—but I didn’t warn them soon enough.
From the rocks, a massive shape crawled out—a giant crustacean. Blue claws glinted, as big as a two-story building. Its limbs twitched and shifted, like a crab crushed flat into a god’s statue.
In the fog, countless red eyes blinked open.
’Shit. Huge.’
”Hard shell,” Kaede-san muttered.
’What?’
It happened in a flash. Without a heartbeat of hesitation, Kaede-san lunged. Her small frame and the monster’s bulk crossed paths before I could even blink.
Her visor couldn’t see through the rocks, but her reflexes were lightning fast.
Yet the blade bounced off. A deep clang shook the air, like striking metal pipes with an iron beam.
Time seemed to freeze. The world slowed around me. Even Kaede-san’s lashes moved in slow motion. She was locked still, nerves shocked from the impact—too much force at once.
A paralysis no human could block.
”Kii… kii—”
”Not good,” she hissed.
’Ah—’
The huge claws swung with terrifying speed. The air screamed. The scissor edges blurred like blue wind, slicing the space before my eyes.
”Block—?! Guh!!”
The industrial claw struck her sword—a fork of steel strong enough to crush concrete. Kaede-san’s body flew back, slamming into a rock wall.
”Guaah!”
Cracks split behind her, dust exploding outward. The sound was sharp, like fireworks breaking stone. Watching it, even I knew—a normal person would have died instantly. It looked like a crane hitting flesh at full swing.
”Kiri! Ki—Kiri—!”
The blue giant slid forward. It rushed past me without a glance, charging straight for Kaede-san’s fallen body. Its twin claws hammered down again and again, the sound cracking through the air.
”Kii—kikikii!”
The earth shook under each strike. The claws snapped like a bird pecking grain, so fast they blurred—one, two, three strikes a second. The rocks were its cutting board. Kaede-san, soft meat upon it. And the monster, a cheerful butcher at work.
”Charge complete,” Kiri muttered.
A line of light flashed across my vision. “This’ll hurt. Not that you can hear me now,” she said quietly.
”Kii—?”
That glowing line swept sideways. It passed through the monster’s shell like nothing—clean, silent, splitting the world in two. The beam sliced through the red haze and vanished into the far sky.
The monster froze mid-motion. Then, with a slow twitch, its claws lowered. Legs spasmed wildly. From the glowing cut, its shell slid apart, the two halves still huge as they fell. Each flailing limb shattered the rock below.
”Jeez. Dead, I hope,” Kiri sighed, her voice lazy. She lowered her rifle from the hip. The faint light at its barrel faded, and her boots sank slightly into the ground from recoil. Behind her, the weapon’s stock split into four metallic plates, releasing the spent capsule, which spun up into the mist. Hot steam burst from the open seams, pushing the red fog back in waves. She slipped in a new golden capsule, a chirp sounded, and the gun folded back into shape.
Then she stepped toward the monster’s corpse.
”Damn thing. Hey, Natsume, you useless brat—help me move this thing.”
”Eh… ehehe… heh…”
”Don’t. If she’s dead, it’s just you and me.”
The crab-like monster lay still, its head nearly sliced in two. Not a twitch left. Blue-black blood pooled underfoot like rainwater on asphalt.
’Ah… it’s really dead. I—I can’t keep up with this,’ I thought numbly. It had all happened in thirty seconds. I almost cried again. My mind blanked, staring at the wreckage of flesh and stone. It wasn’t fear anymore—just pure exhaustion. I almost wished I could scream like a horror movie girl, anything to release it.
Then Kaede-san moved. Her crushed body slid out from under the monster’s shell. Her neck was severed, parts of bone and organ spilling out. The smell hit me hard—thick, raw, alive. I gagged as bile rose in my throat.
”…”
”Damn, that’s rough. Hurts too much to talk?” Kiri asked.
No reply. She crouched, grabbed the body, and pulled hard. Flesh tore free from the rock with a wet ripping sound.
I winced. The noise her body made was wrong—like breaking dry crackers. No living thing should ever sound like that.
”Over here,” a voice called from behind a boulder.
We turned. “Oh. Just your head that flew off,” Kiri said.
”Let my guard down,” Kaede-san answered, as if it were nothing.
”Yeah, that’s rare,” Kiri replied dryly.
Kaede-san’s tone was casual, almost cheerful, as if she’d just tripped in the street. “Something good happened recently,” she said.
”Even rarer.”
A short distance away, her severed head rested on the ground. Her face was calm, though her eyes were bloodshot and her lips still bled. Black-and-white hair streaked with dust and gore made her look like a painting of a saint’s decapitation.
”My body,” she asked, “will it die?”
”What, can’t tell?”
”No. Lost feeling.”
”…Half and half,” Kiri said after a pause.
Kaede-san didn’t react. Life or death—it seemed neither mattered.
Kiri slung her gun across her back, glancing around to ensure the area was clear. “I sprayed some med compound. You’ve got a fifty-fifty chance. We’re tough girls, at least physically,” she said.
”Thank you.”
”Don’t say that. It creeps me out.”
The two of them settled right there for a break. Maggots and small beasts crept toward the bodies—the fallen monster and Kaede-san’s half-dead torso. The women struck them down and casually tasted what they could eat.
”Hmm. Not bad,” Kiri said.
”Yeah. Quite good.”
”If you die, the med’s wasted. And every charged shot costs three yen. Guess I’ll put that on your tab.”
”My condolences,” Kaede-san murmured faintly.
”You’re the one to talk.”
I’d heard from Trash-san that veteran Imperial Guards could digest poison for nutrition, but seeing it in person was still horrifying. They’d killed a monster—and were now eating it.
”My awareness… fading. I’ll rest,” Kaede-san whispered.
”Any last words?” Kiri asked lightly.
”In the drawer, bottom layer, there’s a fine red hairpin. Take it. My will’s in the trunk of my office,” she said.
”…Rest easy, then.”
Her pale face went still, eyes closed.
Natsume, the remaining woman, still smiled faintly, crouching to toy with strange lumps of flesh like a child at play.
I stood frozen, watching, numb.
’No—no, she’ll die! I have to do something!’
How could they all stay so calm? After everything? It was insane. They treated life like it meant nothing.
’I don’t get it! Just—just hang on, Kaede-san! I’ll get medicine!’
Even knowing she couldn’t hear me, I shouted anyway.
Then I ran—fast as thought—back to the private room.
I snapped awake in bed, rummaging through the drawer. “Medicine… where’s the medicine?”
Inside the lacquered box lay what Trash-san had bought for emergencies: a high-grade, mystical healing drug—liquid form, rare and expensive. I hesitated for only a second before breaking the seal.
”Ugh… nasty,” I muttered after tasting it.
It could be drunk or applied, but I couldn’t carry it with Psionic Power, so I filled my mouth, cheeks swelling with the bitter fluid. About a fifth was gone already.
I lay back, focused on the mental list—Kaede-san’s name wasn’t crossed out. Relief. Then I jumped straight back to her.
’Please… please work…’
When I tried to pass the liquid to her, it was already gone. My mouth empty. Damn it. Still, the bitter taste lingered—I hoped some trace remained. Desperate, I pressed my lips to hers, forcing my tongue in, pushing the faint taste into her mouth.
Her breathing was faint, weak. I fed her what I could. The smell of blood lingered between us.
Slowly, her breaths steadied. My vision dimmed. Then, finally, I blacked out beside her.
My main body, choking on the medical treatment drug and losing consciousness, was something I only realized after waking up.
Notes:
• Kaede – A female psionic explorer known as Necksplitter, is a veteran assassin and messenger of Lord Ichimatsu. Her appearance is both young and old, with gray hair streaked through black and vibrant, unlined skin. She is graceful yet carries the fatigue of a long life in war, resembling an old hunting dog. Her psionic ability is mysterious and potentially dangerous.
• Kiri – A female sniper and member of Kaede-san’s team, white-haired with sleepy eyes, wielding a disguised sniper rifle, known for her quick hands and slow speech, often joking in dire situations.
• Natsume – A female companion and younger sister of Kaede-san, cared for by Kaede-san during their journey through the dangerous valley, at risk of infection from the parasitic creatures.
• Psionic Power – Mental energy concept in Chapter 35’s lecture. Trash-san teaches it to strengthen the protagonist’s mind after dungeon ordeals.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply