Chapter 781: December 14th: A Terrifying Entity
Author's Preface
Once I had the plot outlined, it only took me an hour to write.
The leader of the Great Multi-Species Alliance, the eternal existence of the Southern Seas' Rabituza.
The King of the Vorpal Bunnies...... Vysache.
The host of this gathering, reigning over the clifftop kingdom of Catzeria.
The King of the Cait Siths...... Nyai the Thirteenth.
The Cavalier King dismounting from the back of the super-super-super-massive non-standard biological entity, the cow-borne nation of Goblistan.
The King of the Goblins...... Rono Dor.
From the Far North. The unidentified white wise monkey who still conceals his true form within the blizzard-swept silver world.
The King of the Yetis...... Ashen Frame.
I see, they certainly live up to the name "Great Multi-Species Alliance." Looking to the right, there are kobolds that look like dog-headed dwarves, and Minotaurs,, and over there, are those centaurs? And that thing perching on a roost instead of a chair, is that some kind of Harpy? Seeing such a wide, diverse variety of monsters gathered around a round table normally meant for humans to sit at...... It really felt like something straight out of a fantasy.
For some reason, I feel like people are constantly shooting glances at me, but...... the reason is probably one of two things.
"............"
Are they keeping quiet because this is a multi-species summit? That might be part of it, but no.
Deep Slaughter shot a quick glance in my direction. Wondering if she was trying to provoke me in this situation, I met her gaze with half-lidded eyes, but for some reason, she violently averted her face. What the hell is her problem.
As for Survival...... No good, he's staring intently at the Queen of the Koropokkur (they're dwarves, but rather than the standard image, they're more like plant-human dwarves). This damn lolicon...... Has he finally reached the point where he's fine with non-humans too?
Yashirobird isn't even trying to make eye contact...... Ah, that bastard's shoulders are shaking! He's laughing at my current predicament, isn't he!?
And PT Overwerke is...... holding his stomach with a look of deep distress. Is it because the atmosphere resembles a corporate board meeting? I have no intention of prying into someone else's real life, but seriously, just quit your job already...... It's not like he's intentionally hinting at it; seeing him unconsciously suffering like that makes it impossible for me to know how to interact with him.........
"Korororororo........."
"Nu."
"Mu......... Forgive me."
"P-Please, don't worry about it........."
D-Did his stomach just rumble?
Damn it, Deep Slaughter, you usually act like you're needlessly reading my mind, so why the hell are you ignoring me now! Eye contact! Make eye contact!! Gah, she won't even look at me. What the hell is going on?
Even though she's ignoring me, if I poke her in the ribs with my elbow, she lets out this weird moan, so I can't even smack her upside the head. Guuuuh...... Even I am feeling a sense of dread......! If this were a combat encounter, it would be one thing, but precisely because we're in the highly rational setting of a summit's spectator seating, it makes this incredibly difficult to handle.
"*Sssssssssss*........."
The root of the problem started when we were guided to the spectator seats, and we sat down filling the row from the left in the order of PT Overwerke, Yashirobird, Survival, Deep Slaughter, and then me.
Which meant the seat directly next to me was left open, and naturally, any spectators arriving after us would sit there. To begin with, I was lounging with my legs spread, wondering if there were even any other spectators besides us...... And that was when he arrived.
I don't know...... This... What the hell is this guy?
In terms of his silhouette, or rather his base model as a character, his head is a wolf? A boar? Well, anyway, he's a humanoid with a beast's head. Albeit one standing over 3 meters tall.
And if his height is nearly double that of a human, that means his width is equally massive. Honestly, the spines? Carapace? jutting out all over his body look like they're going to stab me in the adjacent seat, and for a while now, I've been way more concerned about my right side than the contents of the summit.
Yes, carapace. An actual carapace. The individual sitting next to me was over 3 meters tall, as wide as a sumo wrestler, and his entire body was covered in a carapace possessing utterly vile lethality—not to mention his claws and fangs, four eyes, and a horn so vicious it looked like a rhinoceros beetle's...... specifically resembling an Atlas or Caucasus, or in ShanFro terms, a Quad Beetle, making for a downright dangerous-looking creature that was sitting in the seat next to me (occupying two seats, actually) looking incredibly serious.
At first, I thought he might be a Bugman. But his appearance didn't match any insect I knew of from my mother's hobby-induced extensive knowledge, and more importantly, Bugmen almost always have compound eyes. This guy's eyes were eyeballs close to a human's. Granted, he didn't have eyelids, so the half-buried eyeballs just darted around continuously...... Well, to put it mildly, his eyes were grotesque.
".................."
".................."
Somebody help me. N-No, wait. Based on his reaction just now, he must possess reason. His voice sounded like the heavy bass of a stone mortar grinding something hard into dust, but the fact that he could utter the word "Forgive me" proved he had intellect.
C-Can I do this......? If I fail, it won't just be a Pizza Study Abroad; it feels more like I'll be physically turned into the shape of a pizza...... C-Can I do this?
"......From the Raging Waves."
".........Eh, ah, yes?"
"I perceive You... as a Human... of the Raging Waves."
The Raging Waves? Ah............ I feel like......... I vaguely remember being called that before...... Right, isn't that what they call humans who came from the Old Continent?
With a "Fushurururu" sound, likely his breathing, coming from a mouth lined with fangs that looked less like standard teeth and more like thickened razors specialized purely for biting in and tearing flesh, Biological Slaughter Weapon Killing Beast-san (Provisional Name)'s four eyes stared at me. Looking closely, his mouth also kind of resembled a beak...... It was hard and angular. I had mistakenly thought it was a wolf's head, but perhaps the protrusions of his skull—or rather, his carapace—just made it look like wolf ears.
W-Well, I have multiple eyes too, you know! Plus, my face is on fire, so I'd say we're pretty much even here...... Ah, I'm even gonna cross my legs.
"There is a Matter... I wish to Ask."
"What a coincidence...... I have something I want to ask you, too."
Tension hung thick between me and Biological Slaughter Weapon Killing Beast-san. The summit was basically an afterthought at this point; at the very least, until I settled things with Biological Slaughter Weapon Killing Beast-san in the adjacent seat, I wouldn't be able to move forward.
"............"
H-Heh. Asking me to go first with my question, huh? Fine then...... As the Ruler of Time, I fear nothing! Affection ratings don't go up just by sitting around waiting! Don't let them eat pizza! Run!!
"......Your name and race, if you please?"
"......Ur Idim. I am... an Orc."
"Oh, bullshit!!"
Crap, it slipped out.
Author's Afterword
He's an Orc. His special skill is an ultra-vibration grapple that vibrates the carapace all over his body to destroy the enemy's physical structure from the inside out.
He's a human with a face on fire. His special skill is a supersonic five-hit combo utilizing the highest mobility among the Second Humanity.
For some reason, those two are chatting amiably in the spectator seats. How terrifying.
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