Chapter 23: Protection? Bombing the Nest

Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Protection? Bombing the Nest

Nicholas Jensen swallowed hard.

He could only think that this woman, Seraphina Sullivan, was just too cruel.

’Beautiful women really are dangerous.’

But feeling the cold touch on his neck, he quickly nodded. "No problem! I’ll do whatever you say!"

Only then did Seraphina Sullivan put away the Silver Needle and look around. "This building is pretty sturdy. There’s a storage room on the second floor that should be good enough for you to hide in for now."

As she spoke, she grabbed Nicholas Jensen by the collar and started dragging him toward the stairs like a sack of potatoes.

"Hey, hey! Gently! I’m injured!" Nicholas Jensen winced in pain.

"Shut up. You can’t feel it anyway because of the paralysis. Keep yelling and I’ll just dump you somewhere."

Nicholas Jensen immediately fell silent, forcing a bitter smile as he let this fierce "savior" drag him upstairs.

He swore internally, ’Once I can move again, I’m staying far away from this terrifying woman... But if she can really protect me through the night, giving her a few weapons doesn’t seem like such a bad deal, does it?’

Seraphina Sullivan tossed Nicholas Jensen into the storage room.

Looking around, she noted it was a decent hiding spot. As long as Nicholas Jensen didn’t make a fuss, he probably wouldn’t be discovered by the parasitic monsters at night.

She then took a steamed bun from her backpack and tossed it to him. "Here, eat this and fill your stomach. Don’t starve to death."

Nicholas Jensen picked up the bun and stuffed it into his mouth.

Just as he finished eating, he saw Seraphina Sullivan’s back as she prepared to leave.

"Wait!" Nicholas Jensen called out to her. "You... you’re not staying here tonight?"

Seraphina turned back with a strange expression. "When did I ever say I was spending the night with you? You’re dreaming, aren’t you?"

"!!!"

Nicholas Jensen grew anxious. "Then what am I supposed to do if I run into danger in the middle of the night?!"

Seraphina paused, her foot hovering mid-step. She nodded thoughtfully. "True, that is a problem."

Seeing her turn back, Nicholas Jensen let out a long sigh of relief, his tense body relaxing.

However, before he could even catch his breath, he saw a special syringe glinting coldly suddenly appear in Seraphina’s hand. She wore a chilling smile on her face.

"Wh... what are you doing?!" Nicholas Jensen tried to shrink back in terror, but his paralyzed body wouldn’t budge. "You promised you’d protect me!"

"Don’t be nervous~" Seraphina waggled the syringe, her tone as light and cheerful as if she were about to give someone a vaccine.

"Now that you’ve had a full meal, it’s time to send you on your way... COUGH COUGH, no... I mean, it’s time for a good long sleep."

Nicholas Jensen...

"Wait! Don’t come near me—"

Before he could finish, Seraphina had already deftly plunged the Universal Syringe into his arm.

As the liquid was injected, the Effect of the [Pain Paralysis] was deliberately amplified several times over.

Nicholas Jensen felt the world spin as his vision rapidly darkened. The last thing he saw was Seraphina’s smiling face.

Nicholas Jensen’s final thought was: ’This woman is pure evil!’

’Just as I thought, the Effect is pretty much the same as an Anesthetic,’ Seraphina thought, looking with satisfaction at the instantly unconscious Nicholas Jensen. ’Sleep tight. By the time you wake up tomorrow, you’ll be making weapons for me.’

She efficiently dragged the unconscious Nicholas Jensen to the most hidden corner of the storage room and began her meticulous "Disguise project."

First, she moved a few empty cardboard boxes to stack around him. Then, she sprinkled a thick layer of dust over everything, and finally, she used some torn cloth and old newspapers to create a simple cover.

After all this, even if a parasitic variant broke in, it would never discover that a person was hidden here.

"Mm, perfect!" Seraphina clapped the dust from her hands, admiring her handiwork. ’This guarantees your safety and saves me from having to stand guard all night. Two birds with one stone~’

Seraphina looked up at the sky. The noon sunlight was still blazing, and there was a long time to go before nightfall.

’Still time to find more supplies!’ She quickly walked out of the building where Nicholas Jensen was hidden, her mind already formulating a new plan.

Looking at the two dozen or so heavy grenades in her Space, a bold idea popped into her head. ’Since I have all these bombs, why not do what Nicholas Jensen did and blow up a parasite nest? It would be a quick way to complete the second mission.’

Recalling that Nicholas Jensen had survived such severe injuries, Seraphina became even more convinced that the [Body Transformation Pills] were definitely something good.

She bit her lip and made up her mind. ’I’ll risk it! The monsters hide in their nests during the day anyway, so it’s the perfect time for a surprise attack.’

But before taking action, she still needed to make some preparations.

Riding a bicycle she had found on the side of the road, Seraphina headed straight for the large shopping mall in the town center.

The inside of the mall was a complete mess; most of the shelves had been picked clean.

But in the storage room of a winter coat store, she was pleasantly surprised to find a dozen or so unopened, extra-thick down jackets.

’I don’t know what other instances this Doomsday Game will have. If there’s a winter one, at least I’ll be set for gear.’

Without a second thought, Seraphina stored all the brand-new winter clothes in her Space.

The toy store was her next target.

Unlike other areas, the toys here were remarkably well-preserved.

However, a thick layer of dust also made the toy store look dilapidated.

Seraphina walked right past the plush toys and headed straight for the model section.

All sorts of toy guns, tank models, airplane models, and even an exquisite military base building block set were all swept into her Space.

’If all of these could be turned into the real thing...’ Seraphina picked up a toy sniper rifle and examined it, unable to help but marvel, ’That guy Nicholas Jensen’s Talent is simply heaven-defying!’

Although there were still many areas in the mall she hadn’t explored, the mission came first.

Seraphina got back on the bicycle and sped off in the direction of the nest marked on her map.

The noon sunlight compressed her shadow beneath her wheels. Sweat trickled down her cheeks, but she showed no sign of slowing down.

"I have to make my move when the sunlight is at its strongest," she muttered to herself as the wheels crunched over broken glass.

As she got closer to the nest, the surrounding buildings became more dilapidated, and suspicious, dark-red stains began to appear on the streets.

Seraphina slowed down, vigilantly observing her surroundings.

At a crossroads, she saw the bombed-out factory.

It was Nicholas Jensen’s "masterpiece" from the previous night.

"That’s the place..." Seraphina stopped her bike, took five grenades from her Space, and carefully clipped them to her belt.

She checked her Silver Needles and Sound Wave Gun again, making sure all her equipment was in optimal condition.

She put on her Analysis Glasses.

Taking a deep breath, Seraphina crouched down and crept toward the factory.

Through a collapsed section of the Wall, she could clearly see the massive hole in the ground.

The entrance to the parasite nest.

Even under the bright noon sunlight, the pitch-black entrance still emanated an unsettling Aura.

"Alright, time to get to work." She tightened her grip on a grenade, her gaze sharpening.

This raid was extremely risky, but for the reward that could strengthen her body, it was worth a try!

Seraphina first used mode three of her Sound Wave Vibration Gun, the [Sound Wave Detection] Ability, to check how many parasitic monsters were hiding inside the dark hole.

She had no idea what to expect, but what she found was a shock!

’A hundred? Five hundred? Over a thousand!!!’