CHAPTER 261.1 - THE BEAST THAT CRIES OUT FOR LOVE

「Y-Yokomichi…」

On the other side of the sink stood Yokomichi Hajime.

That grotesque face and body were not something I would easily mistake for someone else's. And yet, perhaps because my brain refused to accept it, I was genuinely stunned for a moment.

Firstly, there was the factor of location, at the bottom of this frozen lake. And above all else, the fact that he was shamelessly baring his flabby, sagging naked body.

What happened to your clothes, dude? You were wearing them before, weren’t you? Somehow, I couldn’t bring myself to believe he’d taken them off for a normal, reasonable reason, like going for a swim in the lake.

「Bwohohohohoho! We finally reunited… Kotaro-kyun!」

「UWAAA!?」

Despite being underwater on the other side of the tank, that grotesque scream somehow echoed loud and clear—as Yokomichi slammed his face with a splat! right up against the glass.

His bizarre long hair drifted like seaweed in the water. With clouded eyes and yellowed teeth bared, Yokomichi wore a wide, fixed grin. Could a human being really make such a grotesque expression?

Fortunately, it wasn’t just a simple pane of glass. I knew it shouldn’t break that easily, but the sheer force of Yokomichi still made me scream in reflex.

「Y-You must be kidding me, right? Is this guy… Really Yokomichi?」

「What shall we do Kotaro? This guy smells like bad news!」

「OKAY!」

Maybe because he was too shocked to see that the terrifying creature before us was our classmate, Hayama-kun looked away with an incredibly strained look on his face.

On the other hand, Kyouko, who had met him before, already understands the danger he poses.

Yokomichi, who had turned into a cannibalistic monster, could be said to be the most dangerous monster in this dungeon. After all, his target was me.

And the worst part was the fact that Yokomichi had a powerful skill that allows him to devour and absorb monsters. When Kyouko met him before, it seemed like he was at a level that could be easily dispatched by Tendou-kun… But, how many monsters had he consumed ever since then?

At the very least, I knew that the current Yokomichi had acquired ice resistance and underwater mobility, allowing him to easily dive into icy cold water beyond freezing temperature. There was no doubt he had consumed many of the ice-type monsters that live in this region.

「Shall we fight him!?」

「Wait, Kyouko. I don't think our party is strong enough to confront the current Yokomichi.」

Since his danger level was unknown. With Mei-chan and Souma-kun, our ace-level forces, missing, it was far too risky for us to charge in recklessly.

Ah, damn it, I had to meet this guy now of all times. After being separated from the rest of my classmates. If he had shown up during our time at the school tower, we could have fought him together as a class and subjugated him.

Was this also the result of the manipulation of the goddess Elysion? Damn evil god. One day, I'll ask Ruinhilde-sama to give me stronger power and beat that evil god till she cries and suffers like something out of an erotic doujin.

「Retreat at once.」

「O-O~h.」

「I'm in.」

Fortunately, although he appeared right in front of us, we were separated by a thick aquarium glass. It looks like we could escape eas————

「Mmm— I love you, I reaaally love you— I looooove you so so muchhhhhh!」

Smack! Yokomichi’s face was slammed against the aquarium glass again.

Yokomichi slammed his face on the aquarium glass as if banging his head while letting out a disgusting shout.

T-The aquarium glass should be able to withstand that charge, right?

「Truuuuue loooove! Sweeeet loooove!」

He slammed his head against the glass like a madman. Even though it was underwater, he could bang his head repeatedly with such incredible speed that I noticed it too late.

The fact that his face transformed.

His mouth was split open. Jagged fangs peeked out from the torn cheeks, and large mandibles were sprouting from around his sideburns. The twisted mouth, a grotesque mix of human, beast, and insect, was the very image of savagery, clacking its jaws with a menacing snap.

That monstrous jaw slammed into the aquarium wall—— And at last, the glass let out a sharp crack.

「Oh no, the glass is breaking!」

「AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! NOTHING CAN STOP THIS LOVE OF MINEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!」

CRACK!!

The sound of shattering glass echoed in the hall.

Finally, the aquarium glass shattered, and Yokomichi’s face pressed through to our side. With the sound of water rushing in from the lake, he turned his face towards me, flaring his nostrils wide as he inhaled deeply.

「Snnnfffff… Mmm, this smell… Kotaro-kyun’s rich, luscious scent… Ahh, we’re finally breathing the same air now, aren't we?」

「KYOUKO, FIRE!」

「DIE PORKY!」

Kyouko fired advanced attack magic, 『Terra Fortis Sagita(Rock Spear)』 with her rock blaster.

Please blow that disgusting face to pieces!

「Screeeeech! Creeeak… That was close call, Randooo!」

「Are you telling me that my advanced magic can't even kill him!?」

Yokomichi stopped the massive stone spear head-on, with his mouth. Using his teeth, fangs, and mandibles, he clamped down hard on the sharp tip of the rock spear and stopped it completely before it could pierce through his throat.

And then, his mandibles tightened even further along with an annoying grinding noise——and the tip of the rock spear was crushed in his mouth.

What the hell is with that jaw strength? No, the fact that he stopped an attack of that speed means that his reaction time and precise movements are just as terrifying.

「Heh, looks like there are a lot of annoying bugs around, huh? Since they’re trying to interfere with my pure love for Kotaro-kyun… Then, I’ll just eat them first.」

Yokomichi was laughing, his face becoming even more twisted and grotesque than a goma’s, as he opened his mouth wide. It was opened so wide that it looked as if his jaw might have snapped from its sockets, and something emerged from within his mouth.

「Dammit, that tongue skill is coming aga————」

When that thing shot out of Yokomichi's mouth, I thought it was an attack using that long, extending tongue.

However, I saw right away that I was mistaken. The extending tongue, which he seemed to have acquired by eating a frog monster, was a disgusting technique on its own, but what I’m seeing now was a horror that far surpassed even that.

「Shaaaaaaaaa…」

「Creaaaak.」

「Screeech!」

It was a monstrous worm. Each one let out groaning, alien-like noises, drooling from their round mouths lined with spike-like fangs.

They were about 30 centimeters in diameter. I had no idea how many meters long they could stretch. Worms the size of a giant anaconda came slithering out of Yokomichi’s gaping mouth—three, four, five… You’ve gotta be kidding me! How many of these things can he spit out!?

「DEPLOY SMOKE SCREEN, RUN!」

When Yokomichi, who was just as grotesque as the worms he spat out, was about to rear their heads and lunge at me, I fired the air launcher.

Hinagiku's smokescreen exploded, billowing thick white smoke that instantly obscured my vision. In the spacious hall that looked like a boss room, the smoke spread in no time, filling the entire space.

Still, I doubted those worm-like tentacles relied on vision to hunt their prey. But even if the smokescreen was only obscuring Yokomichi’s own line of sight, I wanted to believe that alone made this worthwhile right now.

「Take this, 『Terra Blast(Rock Cannon)』!」

As soon as I deployed the smoke screen, Randou-san unleashed an AoE attack magic, firing it in a conical-like trajectory like a shotgun.

On the other side of the smoke, I heard the worms' scream, "Giiiii!", followed by the sound of flesh being torn. This indicated that Kyouko's attack had at least partially hit, and it served as a decent deterrent.

In this kind of situation, being able to land a strike in the heat of the moment might be due to the difference in combat experience between Randou-san and Hayama-kun.

The same goes for Hayama-kun, though, he's quickly shifting into a proper escape stance, so he might be more capable in terms of agility.

He had already made a beeline toward the entrance of the boss room and was letting Kinako through first.

「MOMOKAWA, RANDOU, HURRY UP!」

「Don't worry Hayama-kun, you go first————」

We should've had enough leeway to escape.

However, I would soon regret such naive thoughts. I should have left this place as soon as possible.

「———— HAYAMA-KUN, WATCH OUT!」

A worm's head, dripping with drool, shot out from beyond the smoky white haze. It appeared right next to Hayama-kun. Why on earth would something appear from that place, as if it deliberately circled around?

A chill ran down my spine. At the same time, I cursed my own carelessness.

I shouldn't have used the smokescreen to block vision. There were probably more worms than I had seen, and they were likely operating autonomously, reacting to sound to hunt for enemies.

However, it was too late to regret that blunder.

The moment Hayama-kun turned around, the worm had already arrived right before him, opening its wide mouth.

Splat————

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My first CN project, why waifu though? Well, coz the main heroine's job is buying soy sauce till the end of act 1

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Harem, Hero, Demon King, Seven Deadly Sin, Seven Virtue, Sacred Beast, Sword and Magic, Dystopian Future, DESTINY PROJECT HAD IT REALIZED!, Dungeon, Dragon, 72 Demons, Reincarnations

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