Chapter 405: The Giant Octopus, Battered and Bruised
* * *
She... the giant octopus... was hungry.
That's only natural.
Lately, she's been so busy with her important task that she hasn't even eaten.
The energy required to sustain her giant body is enormous.
Frankly, the stage where she could recover by catching and eating small fish in the forest has long since passed.
Even though her work is finally done and she's free, it's too late.
All that's left is to journey to where her partner should be waiting.
That's how it should have been.
But... she found it.
A small... small but... an unseen two-legged creature, with a jet-black color, harboring an enormous amount of energy!
If she eats that...
If she eats that, her stomach will be full.
Life will once again fill her body.
The giant octopus's instincts told her so!
So she immediately commanded her body...
...Hunt it... kill it!
It was... the kind of impulse that she would normally suppress with reason, if she was calm, if it was a normal time.
She's inherently an intelligent creature.
An unknown creature is scary.
Just because it has a lot of energy doesn't mean it's not poisonous.
It might even have "too much" energy.
Probably, under normal circumstances, even if she had found the jet-black two-legged creature... she would have retreated to her den and hidden herself.
But she's hungry now.
If she does nothing, she'll die anyway.
Then, for the last time.
She'll challenge it.
She'll show it that she's not going down without a fight.
She finally made up her mind...
...And extended her arm towards the jet-black two-legged creature... Emi Rune... who was leisurely exploring the ruin!
* * *
The giant octopus, having lifted Emi into the air by wrapping her legs with an arm.
Her next action was swift.
The giant octopus swung Emi up even higher... and then slammed her against the ground with all her might!
The giant octopus knew.
That the ground around here, though covered in berries, is actually paved with white, smooth, hard stones.
She'll slam her prey against that hard ground... using her monstrous strength.
Thoroughly... again and again!
ZUGAN, ZUGAN, ZUGAN, ZUGAN!!
A gruesome sound of impact echoed through the silent foggy forest!
The giant octopus was desperate.
She desperately slammed Emi against the ground, again and again.
She didn't have the luxury of checking her condition.
Just... quickly... thoroughly... kill it!
That was her only thought.
But... her fierce assault didn't last long.
After slamming Emi down for the umpteenth time, the giant octopus felt something strange in her arm.
Concerned, she pulled back her arm.
And then, that arm...
The tip of that arm, which should have been firmly wrapped around Emi, sealing her movements...
...Was cleanly severed by something sharp!
"!?"
The giant octopus, not understanding what had happened, was surprised and confused.
And then, her eyes moved from the tip of her severed arm to the ground where she had been slamming her prey, and she was even more astonished.
There, the jet-black two-legged creature...
...Emi Rune!
Despite taking the giant octopus's fierce assault!!
...Was standing there nonchalantly!!!
What Emi was holding, as if cradling it, was the severed tip of the giant octopus's arm.
Emi quickly bit off and swallowed the entire thing, which should have been quite large, hard, and elastic, and...
...Muttered a single word.
"Delicious."
The giant octopus's instincts!
The instincts that had irresponsibly ordered her body to hunt and kill that creature!
Now sounded the alarm with all their might!
Run!
Run, run, run!
Run away!!
It's obvious to anyone.
Despite being slammed against the ground so many times, it's still unharmed.
They're on a different level.
There's no way she can win!
But... the giant octopus didn't run.
First, even if she runs away now, she has nowhere to go.
Second, she doesn't think she can escape.
Third, her pride won't allow her to run away after coming this far with such determination.
And fourth... if she sacrifices herself here and satisfies its hunger... there's a chance that... 'something precious to her'... will be saved.
So she didn't run.
She swung all her arms around wildly, attacking Emi.
And then...
Her body was sliced in two by a jet-black greatsword that Emi had created at some point...
...And she died.
Please... be satisfied with just my body.
Wishing that...