Near the entrance to a large room on the 30th floor of the Labyrinth of Medicinal Herbs.
What in the world happened??
One moment, my hearing sharpened, and the next, my Vessel Body’s five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell) ceased to function.
I don’t understand any of this!
BOOOOOM!!
The moment I tried to investigate the surroundings with my Astral Body to find the cause, a blinding light and shockstruck my Vessel Body, right as my Astral Body’s head emerged.
Who attacked my Vessel Body!?
No matter how much I screamed in my Astral Body, they couldn’t hear me unless they had psychic abilities.
But how could I not scream?
“Hey?!?!”
Keke, why? Why are you attacking me?
Did I anger you that much?
Ah, the Queen Ant is also confused by Keke’s explosive attack on me… Waiiiit?!!
BOOOOOM!!
“Gyaaa!! (Ah, it burns!!)”
“Hahaha~ Come on, thrash around~? Or I’ll throw even nastier chemicals at you~? Oops!~ An ant’s acid, is it?”
“Gishaaaa (What in the world are you doing?!)”
He actually threw a flammable chemical—a Molotov cocktail—at my Queen Ant right in front of me…
Keke… No, KEEEEKE.
“You have committed three unforgivable acts!!”
“Possession.”
Dokun.
Dokkun.
“Gishaaaaaa?! (What are you doing to me?!)”
“Good, that’s just right~!”
POOF!!!
I possessed the remnants of my blown-apart Vessel Body… probably its left leg.
The Queen Ant, enraged by her burned exoskeleton, lunged at Keke.
But Keke, prepared for such an attack, pulled a small bottle containing a transparent liquid from his pants pocket and smashed it on the ground, creating a smokescreen.
It seemed to contain components that not only impaired vision but also caused tactile hallucinations.
The Queen Ant spun around in circles, confused and crying out, an inexplicable behavior. Just as the smokescreen cleared, additional small bottles flew in an arc.
CRASH.
WHOOOSH.
This time it was a red smokescreen… no, fog?
It looks like a status-effecting smoke. If that’s the case…
“Giiiiishaaaaaa!!!”
Ah, just as I thought.
Her reason has completely snapped. Arousal fog. Hmm, I haven’t learned how to make that yet.
DokunDokun…
While observing that, I focused on cell proliferation. I used Wind Magic to draw scattered flesh fragments towards me, hurrying the restoration of my Vessel Body.
BOOOOOM!!
“Giiishaaaaaaa!”
“Why are you here?!”, “Bug-type monsters come out here?!”, “You guys! Do something!”
Thanks to Keke, the Queen Ant was now attacking a Party that had been hunting Boar Beasts in this large room for profit.
“I don’t know what your objective is,”
I won’t forgive you!!
Koppou.
Dokun.
My left leg transformed into my left hand, and my right hand became a mixture of charred flesh fragments. As I dripped blood, I began to run across the ground.
“?? Eek?! A hand ghost…?!”
The other Party members were startled to see me, but I didn’t care. This wasn’t the time to care.
“KEEEEKE”
I’ll kill you right here!!
“Heh, huh? What’s this?!?!”
I marked you, so finding you won’t be difficult.
THWAP!!
“Ku-”
Toss!
CRASH.
BOOOOOOM!!
I tried to launch a surprise attack, but with only my hands, I could only leap, extend my claws, and tear. My accumulated Possessed Magic Power was concentrated in my chest area. The remaining magic power in my left leg and flesh fragments was fully utilized for propulsion. Being met with explosives was unavoidable.
“I’ve been torn to pieces again…”
I forced Keke to use up one of his attack options. How many more does he have?
“Gather, my intact flesh fragments~”
“…Hah?! No way… Why are the pieces moving… Die?! Dieeeeee?!”
CRASH.
BOOOOOOM!!
CRASH.
BOOOOOOM!!
Keke was surprised that my Vessel Body was moving and didn’t hold back, rapidly throwing explosives. Gunpowder seems to have more uses. Well, it explodes on contact with air, so usage is the issue.
“Haa haa… How’s that~?”
All the flesh fragments I possessed were now charred. I looked down on Keke, who was gloating in my Astral Body.
I turned my attention to the sounds of battle coming from the Unreasoning Queen Ant and the Explorers. Keke, what are you trying to achieve by letting the Queen Ant go berserk and attack the Explorers in this room? From what I heard when I was drunk, you’re not of the World’s Strongest bloodline, are you? If it’s not for the EXP, then your belongings? Did you want to become a Maze Bandit— Explorers who attack others in the labyrinth and prey on their belongings and lives? And on top of that, my Queen Ant.
“Don’t mess with me. DON’T MESS WITH ME, KEKE!!”
“Possession.”
I possessed the corpse of a Boar Beast—still in the process of material stripping. Zombie Boar Beast, born!
“…”
“Uwaaaaaaaa?!”
The Explorer Party, trying to hide behind the corpses amidst the chaos, fell on their rears. Backing away, they ended up hugging each other and staring at me in terror. I’ve never seen guys hug each other like that.
Stomp, stomp.
My legs don’t have any strength, my balance is terrible, and panicked Explorers are attacking me. Get out of the way!
THWACK!
“Augh…”
“Are you okay?! Z-Zombie, guh.”
THWACK!
I swung my head, disregarding my joints and body. It felt like the bones in my neck snapped and dislodged, but it was fine. Dragging my jaw against the ground, I walked in Keke’s direction.
Stomp, stomp.
Keke hadn’t achieved his objective. He was scurrying around the room. If he went to another floor, I couldn’t pursue him, but he’s still here, so it’s not a problem at all. “Tch, an Undead this time? What’s going on on this floor?”
Stomp, stomp. Toss.
Keke noticed my slow-moving Vessel Body and threw another explosive.
BOOOOOOM!!
BOOOOOOM!!
“…”
A corpse has no pain sensation. It doesn’t matter if my head is blown off or my foreleg is reduced to my knee; I will charge forward.
“Guh. Status effects don’t work on Zombie (Undead).”
Keke again tried to escape, blending into the commotion. Well, he just moved somewhere else in the room.
“I won’t let you escape~”
Trailing a stench of decay and blood, I pursued Keke. With my head and forelegs damaged, my only means of attack was crushing. And since I was slow, I was slashed and bombarded with magic by Explorers I encountered—some still confused, others fleeing from the Queen Ant—rendering my Vessel Body unusable.
“Sheesh… Which one should I possess next~?”
There are many possible targets: corpses being stripped of materials, unfortunate bodies killed by a newly appeared Boar Beast shrouded in black mist, bodies killed by those who lost all distinction between friend and foe, bodies killed by the Queen Ant. I have plenty of options!
“I think my target should be an Explorer’s corpse next~”
After all, having limbs will allow me to inflict a more painful death on Keke.
“Possession.”
Dokun.
Twitch.
DokunDokun.
Twitchy.
“Vo-aw…”
“Aaaahhhhhhhh!”
They’re such cowards! Well, I did intend to scare them, and my acting isn’t half bad!
“Vahhahaha…~”
Fuhahahaha~ Now, I’d be troubled if I were hunted down like a zombie. Shall we go kill Keke?
