A fleeting moment.
I dove into the thick mud to evade the filthy tongue that lunged towards me. It seemed quicker to do so rather than attempt to dodge.
In fact, I even considered letting myself be caught by the tongue and dragged into its body.
I thought perhaps being devoured from the inside might resolve the situation without making too much of a mess.
But there were a few problems with this plan.
Setting aside some inexplicable aversion to becoming entangled with that tongue…
…there was the odd discomfort at the thought of acting on the plan, given that the thing was a jelly-like being not unlike myself.
It just didn’t seem like it would work…
I could feel an uncomfortable anxiety that I might get mixed up with its brown jelly.
So I submerged myself again in the mud.
Suddenly, my vision began to rapidly rise upwards. It seemed that the thing’s tongue had grabbed hold of my knowledge pouch.
The fact that it could be so affected by snatching just one pouch made me feel a little absurd.
It was like yanking on a vine and pulling up an entire sweet potato. But then again, it wasn’t that strange.
It must be because of how light I am.
Anyway…
Like a sweet potato being pulled from its vine, I floated up into the air. The force was so strong that the mud caked on my body fell off, plopping back down to the ground.
The thing, clearly not expecting me to be so light, seemed to have struggled to control its strength.
As I ascended, feeling as though I was on some intense carnival ride, I soon found myself face-to-face with its enormous mouth.
Though I’d rather not, given the circumstances, I figured I’d have to try my best.
However…
…the darkness didn’t come. The creature’s body, like mine, was semi-transparent.
Instead, my body inevitably started to take on the thing’s brown hue. Though our bodies weren’t blending, the color seemed to be purely a result of the creature surrounding me.
After seemingly swallowing me whole, believing it had won, the creature waddled a bit before placidly lying down in the mud, as if finishing a routine task.
Looking at the substances floating around inside its body, something about it irked me. Once the creature stopped moving completely…
…I began contemplating how to thoroughly punish the thing, first checking my physical condition.
The sensation I felt here was no different from the one I’d experienced upon arriving.
There was a tight squeezing sensation and the sticky adherence of its slime to my body.
However, when I emitted my own slime, its slime didn’t adhere to me.
Looking back, it now comes to me easily how to deal with these jellies. Although this method was hastily devised in reaction to its slime, it seems to have worked well.
Still… there is one thing I failed to anticipate.
The device around my neck has vanished.
I don’t know if it’s floating somewhere inside the creature’s body or has fallen outside.
The thought of my head somehow separating doesn’t fill me with anything but goosebumps.
Even though I’ve dropped my own head several times with no real damage, it’s a sensation that is extremely unpleasant, and I don’t wish to experience it at all.
Rather, the focus now should be on how to properly discipline the thing.
After observing its inner workings while contemplating the next move…
…I had no idea how to attack.
Among the only two bodies I’ve infiltrated thus far— one a whale and the other a nameless chunk of meat—this creature was completely different.
These previous two beings, despite their overwhelming size, had discernible organs or pathways to explore.
This one was different.
Just as it looked on the outside, it was all a semi-transparent brown jelly with no distinguishable internal organs.
It was irritatingly similar to my own body.
I could faintly feel something pulsating, but it was hard to pinpoint its location.
Sigh.
There’s only one course of action to take in such a situation.
I hardened my soft fingers. This made me feel like a character from a comic.
Thus, with my fingers hardened…
…I began to recklessly tear at the creature’s body.
The sensation of tearing its soft mass was quite satisfying.
I once wondered why videos of liquid monsters being touched were so popular online. It seems the people doing it were imagining just this sort of texture.
Although the context is different…
Nonetheless…
Clutching the creature’s soft inner flesh firmly, I pulled. Its body stretched like fake cheese. Initially thinking of placing the torn piece back down, I feared it might be reabsorbed, so I simply swallowed it.
The creature’s jelly tasted unpleasant.
Still, it seemed to be having some effect.
The creature, which was curled up like a sleeping body, began to toss and turn as if with a stomachache.
If I were a human, I might feel dizzy from the motion, but it didn’t affect me. Confirming the creature’s suffering, I more aggressively tore and swallowed its insides.
While doing so, I had a strange feeling about who the real monster was, but the thing deserved it for harming humans, so I felt no guilt.
…Now thinking about it, it’s a bit funny to start feeling this way.
I momentarily felt a bitter mood, but a newly acquired identification tag rekindled my determination.
Should I be thankful for the poor digestion?
While ravaging the creature, I couldn’t help but wonder.
What exactly are these Singularities supposed to be?
Some are helpful to humans, but most seem outright hostile.
…This is not a question for someone like me, who has lived without knowledge of their existence.
Thus…
…I focused on my immediate task.
However, my vision suddenly began to rapidly shift. The pressure I had been feeling on my body lessened. Regaining my senses, I saw the creature’s wide-open mouth. Seeing the outside through it…
…It appeared that the thing was about to vomit me out.
This was an unfamiliar situation and slightly refreshing, but it shouldn’t have swallowed me in the first place.
Instead, noticing the extra space, I immediately extended my tentacles in all directions.
Not for gripping but in the shape of sturdy, sharp spears.
Then…
…A strange sound, like the jelly being pierced, rang out as my tentacles pierced through the creature’s body.
[“Gwaaaagh!”]
Simultaneously, the creature made a sound like retching and began to heave its insides. I could see the slime that had enveloped my body being expelled.
Though my body was swept up in the flow, it remained anchored like a ship that has dropped its anchor.
Having secured myself with my tentacles, I again reached out to tear at the creature’s insides.
[“Gaaagh!”]
With its mouth open, the eerie sounds it emitted came through starkly.
Hold on…
How can this thing, made of jelly like me, make sounds?
…It’s a little annoying.
Offended, I vigorously and repeatedly tore at its body. I then spotted something that felt akin to a vital part within me.
Perhaps this is the foundation of the creature…
…this faint speculation arose in my mind.
And indeed, it was probably accurate. When I extended my hand toward it, the creature, which had been writhing in pain, suddenly came to its senses and drew its tongue back into its body.
The sight of something destined for the outside returning inward was somewhat surreal.
The creature’s tongue, which was trembling as if enduring pain, approached me slowly compared to how it had earlier swallowed me.
Recollecting my hand that had reached toward its core, I grabbed its tongue instead.
I could feel something akin to a heartbeat in the tongue, and it was unpleasantly damp.
Hence…
I tightened my grip and solidified my hand. I made it sharp, as I had with my tentacles. What was left to do was already decided.
…Tearing the creature’s tongue to shreds with my hand.
Watching the chunks of its dismembered tongue reminded me of the ox tongue I had once eaten in a foreign country.
Will I ever be able to eat it again?
Anyway…
…It seemed to be one last struggle. Despite losing its tongue, the creature writhed and vomited slime attempting to eject me, but…
…It was of little use.
Having completely dismantled the creature, I emerged holding what appeared to be its most precious part.
It was technically outside, but anyway…
…I saw its body gathering around the precious thing. Even if it was a worthless opponent, it was necessary to acknowledge its vitality.
Now, what should I do with this?
Ultimately, there are two options.
Here, I could break it.
…Or I could take it outside along with my identification tag.
While contemplating this…
…I sensed something unusual and looked around. I could feel something approaching, a strange sensation.
Soon…
…I noticed a mass of toads slowly advancing from various directions.
Much smaller than the one I had just disassembled, but their numbers were concerning.
Ah, was this guy not alone?
Cold sweat slid down my jelly-like body.
I may be stronger than I thought, but even the strongest have limits.
…Time out.
However, my thoughts didn’t translate outward, and the swarm of tiny toads, as though bent on vengeance…
…began charging aggressively towards me.
