Boom! Boom!
In a crisis like this, staying calm was good, but there didn’t seem to be any clear solution in sight.
Perhaps I should’ve stood closer to Han Seori and listened to what she had to say.
But then again, if I had, Han Seori wouldn’t be Han Seori right now but rather a pile of bloody pancakes. It wasn’t a scene I wanted to recall, so I erased it from my mind with effort.
Considering the circumstances, the one chasing me must’ve hurt itself on the glass tube containing me while we were both on the run, and I didn’t want to witness its state, even considering my own transformed condition.
Even though I might seem reckless with no solution in sight, since it endangered myself in trying to protect me, it seemed like the right course of action.
And it was quite a satisfying thought, but…
What should I do now?
The guy is running towards me as if I were the nemesis who killed his parents, shaking his head menacingly. With that Boom! Boom! sound.
Because it was a road he’d already crossed, the floor was already caved in.
Also, there was another feature—no humans in sight.
Well, given that things like those were wandering around, it would indeed be strange if people were swarming here.
That said…
With all this noise and sirens blaring, I wondered why the people who used to appear in the sewers hadn’t shown up yet.
They had those terrifying firearms which could quickly turn such a large wooden barrel into scraps.
…Perhaps I’m the weak one they sent to capture, and the one chasing me is too strong for them to even approach?
I kind of felt their evaluation of the situation within my heart.
Weak-strong-strong-weak… What an awful scenario.
But on closer reflection, would it really be like that?
After all, given that something like this exists here, it implies that it has been captured, so maybe some accident has occurred along the way?
Not sure exactly what, but…
I started to think it was possible that the organization may not be as thoroughly precise as I originally imagined.
Come to think of it…
Those people who work here aren’t aliens—people who eat the same food as me. What’s so different about them?
Over there, across the sea, those white and black ones carry guns in every household, but having a gun doesn’t necessarily make you special.
I’ve fired a gun before.
Not a great memory, though.
In any case…
Ultimately, it’s something done by humans, so there will inevitably be mistakes.
Alright, now I’ve figured out that an accident has happened.
But the fact that I’m running remains unchanged—
Clang!
Suddenly, the sound behind me shifted from Boom! Boom! to Clang! And I felt as if my body had been thrown from its perch.
I turned my perspective back and saw the one who had been hopping after me crumpled on the ground.
His fallen face was covered in the fresh blue chunks that had separated from my body.
It would’ve been great if exhaustion had caused him to fall.
But…
He got back up.
…Isn’t that cheating?
Cold shivers ran down my spine due to his sudden dirty play, causing a trickle of Jelly.
This game feels really messed up.
Given that this is a life-or-death game of tag, getting touched doesn’t mean the pursuer changes roles.
Thus, with newly regenerated Jelly, I ran again.
Now I couldn’t just look ahead. I had to frequently glance backward too.
And that was no simple task.
If we maintained the same speed, looking back while running would surely result in getting caught.
On the other hand, I couldn’t afford not to look back, having previously lost some Jelly because I didn’t.
A previously undetected sense of danger washed over me.
Ah, I’m losing it, really.
If only I had eyes on the back of my head, wouldn’t that be useful?
…Hm?
Bang!
In the brief moment I turned my head, the guy pulled another dirty trick. Luckily, I dodged it, as I felt it wasn’t something I couldn’t avoid while seeing it.
During the time he was momentarily flattened on the floor, indulging in an intimate connection with the Jelly on his face…
A moment of enlightenment struck me, as if my mind had been struck by lightning.
Isn’t this what they call an enlightenment moment in martial arts novels?
The realization I had was why I had to turn my head to check my surroundings.
On reflection…
Regrettable though it may be, I’m not human anymore. That’s an unchangeable truth no matter how much I deny it.
Right now, I am a small, wobbly Jelly, one carrying a bag of knowledge dangling from my head.
Even more, I’m translucent.
Though I retain the silhouette and features of a human, that’s merely an outward appearance.
Could it be that my body isn’t perceiving the world through the eyes on my face?
When I thought about it that way, my perception expanded.
Without any bubbling changes.
Just a shift in thought led to the world, previously seen as if through human eyes, now looking different.
Perhaps it’s like viewing a panoramic photo all at once?
I felt a slight sense of motion sickness, but it vanished quickly.
Would they call me cowardly… Master of the Great Army?
I swiftly resumed running.
Though I no longer needed to look behind, I hadn’t found a solution yet.
Still…
Bang!
It was better than before.
I could see everything about the pursuer’s movements clearly, after all.
Moreover, things that I hadn’t noticed until now became starkly visible.
Broken doors, for instance.
…And the bloodstains therein.
Despite never having seen the faces of those people, my mood wasn’t good.
Clang!
While evading the attacker who had toppled again, a fork in the road appeared.
Had it been earlier, I’d have turned my head to inspect which way to go, but with the enlightenment I’d gained, I could just keep running.
One path was clean, while the other bore traces leading to that guy.
Glass shards were scattered all over the other, evidence of a fierce struggle. Judging from the occasional spots of red, some humans seemed injured.
But beyond that…
I saw, beyond an open door, a large vehicle.
The man’s heart-pounding, big, sturdy vehicle.
It looked so solid that it might be able to withstand that guy’s rampages. The thought crossed my mind.
Without hesitation, I chose the direction with the vehicle at the crossroads.
Crunch, crunch.
The shards I stepped on entered my body.
The taste of glass was unexpectedly rough and dry, almost burning my throat. Maybe because it’s originally sand? Not sure, though.
I tried hard to ignore the somewhat familiar taste mixed in.
Thus, upon reaching the vehicle, I briefly looked around and climbed not into the driver’s or passenger’s seat but what I assumed to be the cargo bay at the back.
Hoping that the fallen pursuer hadn’t noticed me, I climbed into the cargo bay. I grumbled a bit as I closed the bubbling Jelly, then found myself enveloped in darkness.
Though the brief serenity that followed was ruined.
Bang! Bang!
I could feel the pursuer approaching nearby.
As the vehicle swayed each time he moved, there was no way for me not to notice.
Bang!
The ground-stomping sound of the pursuer nearby reached me.
Did he lose me?
I really hope so.
Also, when will these people arrive, already?
Clank!
Between cursing and grumbling about their absence.
The sound of something heavy being crushed reached my ears, judging by the shaking of my body.
Clank!
That crazy Jangseung must know where I am.
He was a truly toxic kind of stalker.
Clank!
Though I judged it as wood colliding with solid metal, why did the metallic sound occur? Am I losing my mind?
I thought of the destroyed rooms that resembled the one I had earlier, realizing this could very well happen.
…But there were temptations here that sparked a man’s fantasy, leading to my decision.
Kraaa!
The container, which couldn’t withstand the pursuer’s assault, crumpled like a crushed piece of paper. Through the crinkled walls, the monstrous face of Jangseung began to peek through.
With no impact, his facial features seemed worse than before.
Before it completely disintegrates…
Groan!
I have to decide what to do.
Either run…
Or maybe…
Try to fight back.
Recalling the behaviors I observed while on the run, I thought to myself…
If I observed calmly, it seems like it could be handled.
Now that I possess no blind spots, even more so.
However…
Can I handle that thing too?
The attacks I can perform amount to nothing more than spewing mucus and dissolving things.
Ah, but I did harden after eating the Horned Wolf, so that might be possible.
With the few attacks at my disposal, I could learn new skills.
Clank!
Even this sturdy container wouldn’t withstand my punch.
So it comes down to one question.
Can I melt it?
That’s the sole decision to be made.
Recalling the things I had consumed…
The metal pieces Han Seori gave me…
It might be possible.
I gained confidence.
Clang!!
The moment the beast got stuck in the crumpled container.
I opened the container door and stepped out. The door was already weakened from the impacts, so opening wasn’t really necessary.
I climbed onto the creature’s body as it thrust its head into the container.
The sticky quality of my body made climbing as easy as climbing a tree, further aided by the incline.
Squeak…
When I reached what would be around the nape of the human neck…
The beast pulled its head out of the container.
I climbed on top of its scalp and stuck myself onto its head to devour it.
Gurgle…
Though it didn’t melt quickly as usual, I could feel the slow digestion of the creature’s body.
Despite the awful taste, I clung onto its head, spotting potential.
Clang!
The beast, sensing this, swung its body wildly to knock me off, flailing around crazily.
Wham! Hoooom!
It felt like riding a Gyro Drop without any safety bars.
The wind howling past was enough to throw parts of Jelly out.
While enduring that, I saw…
The figure of a person cautiously approaching from the place I had emerged.
…Did they finally show up?
They were unbelievably late.
Just then…
The guy plunged his body into the sharp edge of the severely caved-in container.
The sharp shard of metal rapidly approached my field of view.
