Hunting Time (2)
âWhy am I doing this leisurely? For your information, itâs not because I donât know what stuff youâre holding.â
Alice continued her words by pointing her finger at the rifles the soldiers were holding. She didnât look intimidated at all. Witnessing the scene, Instructor Yoon swallowed the saliva which had dried in her mouth â she was growing anxious.
âThe answer is obvious. Itâs because I know what you do. You guys canât even touch the tip of my hair.â
Deep boredom was buried in the eyes of the girl who added, âIâm not interested in kids like you who donât have a handful of Mana anyway. So, if you step back at this pointâ¦â
Instructor Yoon interrupted her and shouted sharply.
âThis is the last warning! Get down right now!â
The reason why the baseâs troops, including her, didnât immediately fire because of the suspicion she couldnât erase in her mind and the psychological resistance that the opponent in front of them was a child.
Alice sighed, realizing that the wills of humans in front of her wouldnât break. She murmured, her voice soaked with fatigue.
âAs expected⦠humans. You guys are just like Lewis, after all.â
Instructor Yoon, who didnât listen to the girl properly, was nervous. She doubted that the opponent in front of her was a wizard and was chanting a spell. However, her words that followed were heard, and she understood the meaning, but she couldnât understand the context at all.
âLewis was reckless like you guys; he was intelligent and foolish. His given lifespan was as short as a bug, but he was fearless.â
The girl, who briefly sighed with her head down, lifted her face again. As soon as she met her eyes, Instructor Yoon and the soldiers felt the pressure tightening all over her body. It was the first time they had ever felt a sense of fear â something like being thrown in front of a wild predator.
As the thought of something wrong passed through everyoneâs head, Alice continued.
âAnd he, like you guys⦠didnât listen to me.â
The girlâs eyes flashed coldly. Everyone in the place felt an unknown fear.
âYou could have gone an easier path. Yeah, Lewis and you, too.â
And, terrifyingly, as soon as she finished speaking, tiny pimples began to sprout on the girlâs skin. The little things rose from her cheeks, neck, and exposed arms as if stretching. They then flew into the air.
All around, the girlâs body was filled with shadows like tiny grass bugs in an instant. The little raw things that filled the space quickly roamed around and fluttered.
-Khrrrrrr! Oh my, where is this? Mammy! Mammy!
-Hello everyone? Itâs a good day. Who are you? Youâre really ugly.
-When the baby sneezes~â© Letâs beat it while swearing~⪠That way, we can eat pepper~â¬
-I want to eat goose! If itâs in front of my eyes now, Iâll eat all the bones and beaks!
-Wow, look over there! A bunch of humans! A bunch of people with stupid expressions!
Inspector Yoon realized that they couldnât delay any longer.
âShoot!â
According to her instructions, dozens of guns fired.
-Bang bang bang bang bang!
The bullets poured into the girl, but one of the rings Alice wore on her finger shimmered.
-Phiing!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
A transparent shield was created surrounding her. The bullets couldnât reach her and bounced off.
Meanwhile, the things born from her skin were constantly chattering and singing, flying at high speeds inside the shield. Alice clapped twice and said to them.
âNow, pay attention.â
The little things stopped flying, and the fuss stopped on the spot and looked at the girl.
The mucus that had covered them all over their body was almost dry while flying. Their hair, which was wet and looked dark brown, also regained its natural blonde.
All the raw things flying around looked like Aliceâs miniature version, the girl who created it. Numerous individuals all had the same blonde and the same face. The only difference in the motherâs body was that two pairs of translucent wings like dragonflies were attached to the back of her naked body.
Looking at their appearance, they were like the fairies from a fairy tale.
Alice saw the children who were waiting for her to speak, with the same face as herself. They held their breath and carefully listened while floating in the air. It was full of anticipation. A tiny, intermittent giggle and laugh leaked out of their mouth.
Alice stretched out one of her fingers and pointed to the humans shooting across the defensive barrier.
âAll of you, play with them.â
The childrenâs eyes widened as they bared their sharp teeth.
-Yeah! Mammy!
-Good!
-Letâs play! Letâs play with humans!
Like grasshoppers covering the barley field, the children flew in. They flapped their opaque wings and attacked the humans. All of them were full of innocent smiles on their faces.
âWhat, what!â
âShoot! Shoot!â
However, they were too small to aim at with a gun. Several soldiers fired in the air, but none were hit. The winged children burst out like daggers with mad laughter.
-Khrrrrrr!
-Letâs play! Play with us!
âAhhhhhhhhh!!â
The soldiers swept away the fairies attached to their bodies with their hands, but they couldnât stop them. Boasting unimaginable strength and durability for their small size, Aliceâs children constantly dug into the humans.
âKill them! Kill them!â
âOh myâ¦!â
Screams burst from all over the place. The fairies rushed in like insects attacking large prey. Despite the harsh human resistance, Aliceâs miniatures dug through a soldierâs eyelids and bit his eyeballs.
âKhaaargghhhâ¦â
A soldier let out a spine-chilling scream and rolled on the floor. He covered his eyes with his hands, but he couldnât catch the creature that had already dug into it. The fairy churning in his eye for a long time held a piece of the cornea in its mouth. Its whole body remained wet due to the sticky lens and blood.
It crushed one of his eyes and spat out the cornea that it had bitten in its mouth.
-Fun! Itâs fun to be soft, warm, and smooth! It feels good when it touches my body!
It spread the liquid on its bare skin and its forearm as if it was interesting, and then it brushed off its wet wings a few times before flying back into the air.
Then it found its next prey.
âEaaaaarrrgghh!â
The method spread like a fashion to other children. One soldier succumbed to the pain and dug his own eyes with his fingers to bring out the infiltrating fairies. However, the children who were messing deep in his eye sockets bit his fingers when they came in.
The fairies had phenomenal powers that their size couldnât explain. Their sharp teeth cut bones and flesh quickly. The finger inserted through the eyes to dig and bring out the fairy was cut off instantly.
âHuaaaaarrrghh!â
The soldier rolled over the floor, screaming as if his throat would burst. Suddenly, at some point, he flinched and stopped moving. It was the moment when one of the fairies dug deep into the eye and bit the meninges. Bubbles flowed out of the soldierâs mouth for a while, and then it stopped as time passed.
âKrrrrrrrh!â
The soldier trembled and immediately stopped breathing while looking at the sky.
The fairies then came out of the soldierâs eyes, which was messed up as if a bird had dug them up. Their whole bodies were stained with the brain, lens, and blood. The children groaned and inserted two of the cut-off fingers into the dead soldierâs empty eye holes, rooted down, and then flew back into the sky.
Those little things with wings raged everywhere. The soldiers rolled on the floor while they were biting their vital spot. Even their guns were rendered useless as the little beings dug through their battle suits and their flesh.
âThis is crazy⦠It must be a dream!â
Instructor Yoon rolled on the floor while shaking off a fairy that was digging into her neck.
âOuuugghh!â
Her mind was on the verge of panic, but she instinctively moved to survive.
âNo!â
In the meantime, another one that flew bit Instructor Yoonâs lips and drooped. Hot blood spurted out and flowed.
She closed her eyes tightly, and then while biting her lips, she gave strength to her hand that held the drooping fairy. She ripped it off at once.
âUgh!â
The flesh of her lips that the fairy was biting was torn off. Blood poured out of the indented wound, and her chest was getting wet. She held back her screams and crushed the fairy in her hand.
If it were a similar-sized bug, its whole body wouldâve burst and died at once. What component were those bodies made of to not show any changes at all?
âHuhâ¦! Uuuuughâ¦!â
Her grip had been developed through hard training. Still, it didnât work on the fairies. Her clenched fists cracked, and the tiny creature slipped out. It flew up with a grin. There seemed to be no scar on its body. Even its weak-looking wings were intact.
As soon as she managed to take one off, another fairy rushed in again. She barely rolled her body to dodge. It passed through her chest and suddenly sniffed her nose and shouted.
-Guys! Look here!
Some of the children, who were attacking the other soldiers, stopped moving and looked at the shouting entity. The fairy, who caught their attention, pointed to Instructor Yoon and spoke.
-It smells sweet!
The other fairies began to roar.
âWhat? What? What was that smell?
The fairy cried out with its face full of joy.
-This human smells like milk!
âWhat⦠what?!
Instructor Yoon felt goosebumps all over her body.
-What?! Really?!
-Where? Where is it?
Their reaction was explosive.
Some of the fairies flying around her swooped at her, tasting her again. Instructor Yoon felt a sense of crisis, so she crouched and protected her whole body. She couldnât even get up and run away since her ankle was already bitten.
-Sweet scent! It smells good!
-Good! Good!
-It will be delicious if you mix it with blood!
âKyaaaaaaargh!â
Instructor Yoon twisted her body and resisted, but the fairies overpowered her with terrifying strength. She curled up with her back in the air like a turtle, but several fairies had attached to her arms and legs and turned her body upside down. Her limbs were caught in the air, and with her stomach up, she screamed.
âNo⦠Noooooooo!â
A desperate scream tore through the air.
Alice stared at the scene with no emotions in her eyes.
âWell⦠is this enough?â
She thought that the humans who had gathered wouldnât be able to interfere with them anymore. Just as she had made countless children just before, she prepared to bring out another creature. After her body grew, she could no longer ride a crimson parrot.
Alice put her left hand forward. Unlike before, however, her whole arm was shaking. A long, flesh-colored mass fell beneath her feet, and her left hand returned to its original form.
The lump that fell on the floor was crushed and smudged on its own like flour dough, and then it swelled enormously. Its size increased and made a distinct form. The white skin turned dark blue, and countless hairs sprouted over it. It was the head of a giant cat, and it was as big as her body.
The head floated in the air with no lower neck. It had two Amber eyes with brown pupils, which were split vertically. Countless teeth were protruding from its small open mouth.
Alice frowned.
âClose your mouth. It stinks.â
The catâs head responded.
âThen why didnât you make it smell good in the first place?â
âYou always talk back to meâ¦â
The cat said, rolling its eyes, âThen, why donât you make me answer obediently? Iâm one of your divided consciousness after all.â
Alice thought there was no point in arguing anymore.
âGet the body under your neck.â
It was made to be ridden, but just the head alone made for a precarious ride. Still, the cat obediently followed Aliceâs words. Its body appeared faintly below its neck. Its chest, two front feet, belly, and two rear feet gradually appeared like shadows rising from a fog.
âStop, I donât need the tail. It bothers me when it swishes behind my back.â
As she said, the cat who was just making the base of the tail stopped its activity. Only roots were left, like a rabbitâs tail. Alice climbed up behind its back. The catâs four paws were floating shallowly in the air, never touching the ground.
Alice gave the cat instructions.
âLetâs go over there. I can feel itâs full of Mana inside.â
The cat ran in the air, leaving behind the screaming humans and joyful fairies.