The Second Coming of Gluttony - Chapter 83

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 83. A Glimmer of Hope Dredged from the Mire

Possibility.
Possibility means “an unexpected circumstance that might occur.” By dictionary definition, it’s often used as a supposition, and humans frequently attach “if only” to it when expressing hope or regret.
Perhaps in one out of ten thousand futures, there truly was such an outcome. Arriving in time—no, at the very least arriving before it happened, snatching her back from the brink. That was the future every rescue team dreamed of and yearned for.
But there was no point in such words once the deed was done.
Paradise is reality. Not a comic, not a novel, not a film. Certainly not a computer game where you can save and load by pressing a button from your chair. What has happened cannot be undone.
And so now, words like “if” or “by some chance” are meaningless suppositions. “For instance” or “perhaps”—these wishful thoughts lead only to self-deception.
When Ayase Kazuki spoke of rescue, he did not mean mere salvation. He meant something closer to deliverance. Not that there was anything wrong with it. His resolve to pursue the best course without hesitation in the given situation marked him as a practical Earthian.
Yet for all that.
Seol Jihoo could not abandon hope. With each step down the staircase, he felt himself drawn into an incomprehensible abyss. But somewhere in that mire, he wished for a glimmer of light. Even if it was no more than a single fragment. As long as it could be saved.
However, as the staircase ended, he felt the candle flame within his heart flicker violently at the sight that lay before him.
“Good heavens….”
Rahin Meery covered her mouth,
“…….”
and even Ayase Kazuki found himself at a loss for words.
A hell of screaming!
The space suffused with red light like that of a pleasure district was rife with horrors unbearable to witness. Even Sodom and Gomorrah, those fallen cities, could not have been this vile. If living hell had come to this world, it would be this place.
“I’ve never seen an Incubation Chamber this filthy.”
Kazuki murmured low, drawing out a piece of paper. But his expression showed no understanding. Just the visible numbers alone exceeded a thousand. Dizzying—overwhelmingly so.
“W-what are we going to do?”
Rahin Meery bit at her nails. Wait, muttered Kazuki softly as he studied the paper, then sniffed the air. Though still standing at the entrance, the sweetness of the odor was unusually intense. A mere brush past the nose brought on a light vertigo.
“What is this smell…?”
His keen eyes turned leftward. Underground 2nd Floor had two buildings, but they were not divided as the upper level was.
“Let’s check the Experimental Building first.”
No movement was visible. Kazuki proceeded cautiously, examining his surroundings.
The archer headed toward a reddish structure. The closer he drew, the stronger the stench became.
The interior of the small building erected beside the Incubation Chamber was a bizarre sight. Only a single Mutant Orc was visible, yet there stood dozens of enormous clay vats, each large enough to contain a human body. Ropes connected to the ceiling hung down limply above them.
The source of the scent was undoubtedly here. A stench so thick it was revolting vibrated through the air. When Kazuki rose on his toes to examine a nearby vat, his face contorted.
The vessel was filled with a thick, translucent liquid. He cautiously touched it with his index finger, then withdrew. A short strand followed before snapping—it seemed to possess a weak viscosity.
“What is this?”
In the moment he tilted his head and peered closer, the archer’s composed face twisted sharply.
“Retch!”
He threw his upper body backward and stumbled hastily in retreat. Seol Jihoo rushed toward him. Kazuki, breathing heavily, spat with a face drained of all color.
“Damn it! Aphrodisiac.”
‘Aphrodisiac?’
Even amid the chaos, Seol Jihoo’s expression turned dumbfounded. Which meant these dozens of massive vats were brimming with it.
His gaze naturally fixed on the Mutant Orc standing upright. From experience, he doubted that thing was here by chance. Now that he thought about it, only the rope above the vat directly before it hung taut.
Remembering how the Mutant Orc had lowered Hugo, he managed to spot a pulley-like mechanism nearby.
Despite his misgivings, he rushed forward, grabbed the handle, and turned it. Click-click. The rope wound and rose. Splash-splash. The sound of liquid echoed.
Presently, a figure bound from head to toe in rope suddenly emerged. Glistening bare skin dripped with the liquid. At the sight of the long, sodden crimson hair, it appeared to be a woman. Rahin Meery gasped in shock.
“Sister!”
Kazuki moved with nimble grace. He leaped, severed the rope in mid-air, and caught the woman as he landed. Seol Jihoo squinted. Though her limbs appeared intact, when laid on the ground, her arms and legs were bent at grotesque angles.
“Damn. Is she drowned?”
“N-no, that’s not it.”
She stammered through lips gone pale.
“Sister Lorence learned the Aquatic Breathing Ability. She couldn’t have drowned.”
Kazuki quickly placed a hand to the woman’s nose. She was breathing. Her chest rose and fell, however faintly.
Then the woman’s eyes opened with effort. Her gaze, still hazy, looked upward,
“Ahhh!”
She thrashed, twisting her body this way and that. Not a cry of pleasure, but one of extreme agony.
‘This person.’
Level 6 Imperial Knight. Erika Lorence. A powerhouse who rivaled Agnes.
“Ah—nngh, ahhhh!”
While Lorence gasped, the archer swiftly checked for infection, and the priestess chanted a Holy Incantation.
After a moment, Kazuki rose to his feet and spoke.
“Take her back with us.”
Those words meant that Erika Lorence had not been infected.
“Understood. Be careful.”
Rahin Meery didn’t protest, steadying her on her feet. The efficiency with which the two of them worked was remarkable.
A second rescued victim emerged following Hugo. Only two people remained.
After checking, the remaining cauldrons were all empty. Kazuki crouched silently on the ground. Seol Jihoo didn’t press him. Of every Earthian he’d seen so far, this one possessed the most decisive action. There had to be a reason he wasn’t moving.
“Seol.”
Kazuki broke the silence.
“With the time we have left, it’ll be difficult to search this entire place.”
That was true. Seol Jihoo himself had been feeling a quiet sense of helplessness. There were more than one or two Experimental Buildings, the Incubation Chamber sprawled vast, and the sheer numbers were overwhelming.
“So.”
Did he mean they should leave now?
“Think about it.”
What followed was unexpected.
“Dylan and Ali had their limbs severed and infected. The intent is clear: drain their strength, turn them into Mutant Orcs via Parasites, secure food from their bodies, build them as military assets, and use them as breeding stock.”
‘Food supply?’
The place Chohong had suddenly forbidden him to enter flashed through his mind.
“But Erika Lorence wasn’t treated that way. Her limbs were only broken, and she wasn’t infected with Parasites. She was merely soaked in Aphrodisiac—probably to shatter her mind. They knew that a sane mind couldn’t endure the Incubation Chamber for long.”
It was less a statement to anyone else than thinking aloud.
“In other words, they divided the captives’ roles by gender.”
“So the remaining person might not have been infected.”
“No.”
Kazuki shook his head.
“Not that they didn’t infect them—they didn’t need to. Breeding with Mutant Orcs causes natural infection.”
Kazuki continued.
“Erika Lorence simply endured. Like Hugo did.”
In other words, the two missing from here hadn’t. It was then that Kazuki’s eyes lit up.
“Found it.”
“?”
“Signs of being dragged away. Recent, by the look of it.”
“Two sets?”
“No. One.”
Kazuki’s expression showed his own confusion.
“If my hypothesis is right, there should definitely be two… Ayase Yuui or Teresa Hatse. I can’t tell which, but I only see one trail.”
“Let’s go check.”
The two of them quickly left the building. Kazuki’s pace gradually slowed.
“Damn… why are there so many tracks?”
It couldn’t be helped. If this were a desolate place, perhaps—but in a location teeming with multiple species, one didn’t need to see how many traces were layered over in a single day. Even the greatest tracker had limits.
“Could you describe your sister’s distinguishing features?”
“A single beauty mark under her left eye. Black hair, small frame. And she’s cute.”
Seol Jihoo’s gaze swept steadily across the surroundings. No matter how many times he looked, it was an unbearable sight. Countless women were bound to pillars or shackled to chains on the walls. And an equal number of Mutant Orcs stood or clung throughout the Incubation Chamber.
The problem was that humans weren’t the only ones. There were women who looked nearly human except for unusually pointed ears, four-legged beasts resembling wolves, deep-sea creatures, and even monsters he’d never seen before—all imprisoned. Mutant Orcs were visible everywhere there too. Anything with reproductive capacity had been captured indiscriminately, regardless of species.
Seeing this laid bare how the extraterrestrial Parasites regarded and treated humans and other sub-species. A fury of unbearable intensity surged within him.
‘Goddamned bastards.’
To the Parasites, males were meat to eat or use and discard, and females were livestock—nothing more, nothing less. Seol Jihoo bit his lower lip hard enough to draw blood, gripping his spear. He held his exploding chest in check, leaning on the wave of cold rising from within. Then it happened.
“Yuui?”
Kazuki bolted forward like lightning. Seol Jihoo rushed after him but his legs gradually stopped. The archer stood motionless, dazed as stone.
A woman bound by both wrists to a pillar, slumped on the ground, hung her head with a vacant smile. She was indeed the cute-faced girl Kazuki had described. But her entire body bore the marks of terrible suffering.
“Heh…”
Even with her true brother standing before her, she only smiled vacantly. He stared down at his flesh and blood. A sharp breath. He wiped his eyes with the back of his clenched fist. He knelt on one knee and pressed his forehead against hers.
“…I’m sorry.”
The moment was brief. He rose quickly, drawing his Longsword. Seol Jihoo was stunned.
“Kazuki?”
“It’s too late.”
“Too late? But—”
“She only looks intact on the surface. There’s nothing to see. Inside, she’s already transformed.”
Kazuki turned with hollow eyes.
“Will you stop me?”
“……”
“You’re free to try, but understand—every moment you delay is time taken from finding the Princess.”
Seol Jihoo found he had no words.
Soon Ayase Yuui’s neck was severed cleanly. Kazuki, who had burned her remains, dragged the young man standing stunned beside him.
“Let’s go. Only one left.”
Seol Jihoo watched the man with eyes full of reverence. The way he suppressed his emotions so completely and continued the mission was worthy of Dylan’s recognition—a true archer. Watching him, the agitation that had gnawed at Seol’s mind all the way down the stairs began to settle. And he felt ashamed of his own comportment.
‘Focus on the mission.’
Finding the two of them faster than expected had at least partially made up for the time they’d wasted.
Having steeled himself, he swept his gaze across the surroundings, searching for Teresa Hatse. But she was nowhere to be found. She wasn’t even difficult to spot by her distinctive features. Time kept slipping away, yet that characteristic rose-pink hair was nowhere in sight.
He’d even tried commanding the Mutant Orc using precious Ludium, but to no avail. Even when he’d explained Teresa’s features to the human they’d recently captured and ordered it to guide them, the creature refused to move.
“Have you seen any traces of the princess?”
“If I had, I wouldn’t be doing this.”
Kazuki, who had been chewing his lip, placed his hand on his ear. The Communication Crystal hanging there was emitting a pale light.
– Seol?
It was Chohong’s voice.
“We’re searching together. How are things on your end?”
– We’ve set the traps and everyone’s regrouped safely. You still haven’t found the last two?
“Ayase Yuui showed signs of Infection, and we’ve dealt with it. We still can’t find Teresa Hatse.”
– We’ve got less than ten minutes left. Wrap it up and head back. If it doesn’t work out, we can try again in seventy-two hours.
“Understood. Don’t worry.”
The crystal’s light went dark. After that, the two of them searched the surroundings thoroughly without speaking for about a minute, but found nothing. Finally, Kazuki let out a sigh.
“Seol.”
“Yes?”
“Head back ahead of me.”
Kazuki continued.
“I can’t be certain, but there’s still some time left, so I’ll search alone a while longer.”
Kazuki was a high-ranking archer. Since he was fast, he could afford to spend more time searching and still make it back. That was surely what he meant. Seol Jihoo understood the kindness in the offer, but he refused.
“No. I’ll search a bit more too. I’m confident in my speed.”
“Hmm?”
“I have this.”
He pointed to his left ear. Seeing the Festina Earring, Kazuki looked troubled. Before coming, they’d exchanged as much information about each other as possible, so he knew what that earring was.
“Didn’t you say you couldn’t control it yet?”
“Sustained running is possible. I’ve even practiced evasion in rough gorges. Traversing the Underground 1st Floor shouldn’t be difficult.”
Fair point. Considering the Underground 1st Floor’s linear structure, that made sense. And at triple layering, he could cover a hundred meters in three or four seconds. At that speed, he’d be moving more than twice his maximum velocity in that minute.
“All right. Let’s do it this way.”
Kazuki mumbled as he handed over the Communication Crystal with the ring attached.
“You hold onto one too. From now on, we’ll search separately. If a message comes through while you’re searching, just make your way back on your own.”
“Sounds good.”
“I’ll search four more minutes and twenty-five seconds, then head back. Try not to go over six minutes and forty seconds yourself. Don’t cut it close—be back one minute early.”
With a final promise to call before leaving, they parted ways.
Seol Jihoo counted silently in his head as he crossed the endless Incubation Chamber. But Teresa was still nowhere to be seen.
‘Princess, princess…’
As he continued walking deeper, Seol Jihoo suddenly noticed the surroundings had changed. No pillars, no chains. Instead, what caught his eye were several structures that looked like pens.
Seol Jihoo furrowed his brow. The number of Mutant Orcs had dwindled—and now around the pens, several smaller ones were wandering about. They looked like juveniles, not full-grown.
On the dry straw, several creatures lay moaning. A stench mixing blood and filth hung thick in the air.
“Ah.”
Suddenly, his footsteps stopped. While scanning carefully, he caught a glimpse of that color he’d been searching for. Though dirty, it was unmistakably pink.
The woman lying motionless had a belly so swollen it was round. With eyes dulled as if she’d lost consciousness, she could only twitch irregularly, making weak sounds—”Ah, ah.” His chest tightened.
“Princess Hatse!”
Seol Jihoo rushed forward and reached to grab her shoulder, then hesitated. It wasn’t Teresa. Only the hair color was similar—this was a Sub-species woman. The black wings splayed carelessly from her back made that certain.
Relief mingled with a sigh. The time to leave was drawing near.
‘Should I go back?’
In truth, there was no absolute obligation to find her. But Teresa was a Paradise Being. If she died, it was truly the end. No—aside from that, he still remembered the intense pull he’d felt when they first met.
‘It’s as if I’ve met her somewhere before.’
Though it might be a mistake, abandoning her now would leave eternal regret. At the very least, he shouldn’t give up until the end. That way, the pain of regret would be lessened.
There was still time left. Seol Jihoo shook his head. Not yet. Not yet.
‘This won’t do.’
Wandering aimlessly was getting nowhere. He needed to think like Kazuki.
‘What if she’s not in the Incubation Chamber?’
Until now, he’d been searching according to Header’s hypothesis. But the fact that he couldn’t find her might mean that hypothesis was wrong for Teresa. He quickly shifted his line of thinking.
‘What’s the difference between the princess and the other people who were captured?’
A Paradise Being and an Earthian. Thinking it over, he suddenly hit upon a new hypothesis. Though his sample size was small—only a few creatures tested—it was a thought born from the fact that the Mutant Orcs didn’t know Teresa’s whereabouts.
‘What if the princess has a different value as a captive?’
That is, a value beyond being a mere breeding vessel. The greatest military strength of the current human forces is the Earthians, but in truth, it’s the Seven Gods standing behind them. And the first people the Seven Gods made contact with were Paradise Beings—specifically, the royal line.
‘The Royal Oath!’
Considering that point, could the princess of the Harama royal family be receiving some different kind of treatment? Perhaps she was taken to extract secrets about the Seven Gods.
A Parasite queen who devours gods—that would be another matter. But a command hierarchy can only enforce control; it’s not omnipotent. Besides, the moment a human becomes infected, they lose their reason and become a puppet. She might not have been infected carelessly if she held such secrets.
I can’t be certain. But it’s possible. I might be thinking too hopefully, but I’m in a situation where I have to grasp at straws.
In any case, the conclusion is that she might not be in the Incubation Chamber.
‘Then.’
I’ve descended to Underground 2nd Floor and come in quite deep. Because of that, I don’t see many Mutant Orcs. To the left, across the way, I can see the Experimental Building.
If she was taken to the surface, there’s no hope—but she might be in the Experimental Building.
‘Which one should I enter first?’
There’s not just one or two buildings. If worst comes to worst, I’ll have to search one by one, but just in case, I activated Nine Eyes. The entire area turns yellow then. Except for one building.
‘Red?’
Approach with caution. Except for the fact that it’s built of brick, it’s a small shipping container structure with one tiny window.
I don’t have time to deliberate further. I press myself against the wall. The door is closed, so I can’t see inside. When I put my ear to it, there’s silence. No sign of movement.
There must be a reason for the caution warning. Normally, I shouldn’t go in. But she might be here.
‘Just in case.’
I grip the Ludium. If I have a means to avoid danger, there’s no need to take the risk.
‘Open the door as quietly as possible so we don’t get caught. If you see any moving kin inside, pretend it’s a mistake and come right back out.’
I send a nearby Mutant Orc in first using the Ludium. The door creaks open, and the interior becomes partially visible.
‘It looks just like a torture chamber.’
I continue giving instructions while pressed against the wall.
‘If there’s a human woman inside, nod.’
The Mutant Orc nods. Its eyes sharpen. My breath catches. That thing hasn’t come back out, which means at the very least, there’s no sign of moving kin. I’ve found her.
I move inside immediately. The moment I see what’s in here, I can’t contain the surge of relief and close my eyes tightly. My fists clench involuntarily. I’ve confirmed that I didn’t waste the precious Ludium.
I open my eyes and step forward. A woman hangs from a wooden frame shaped like an X, her wrists and ankles bound. Her face isn’t visible because her head is bowed, but the rose-gold hair cascading down like a waterfall is unmistakable.
I tuck an ice spear under my arm and slowly reach out my hand. I brush aside her hair and gently touch her soft cheek. Her body jolts violently at my touch.
“…Ugh!”
A delicate tremor runs through her slender neck. A thin, strangled sound escapes.
“Kill me!”
A voice I know well. Instead of answering, I place my hand on the Communication Crystal hung at my ear. As I channel my mana into it, it glows.
“I will never surrender—”
—What’s happening?
The moment Kazuki’s voice comes through, the woman’s words cut off.
The next instant,
“…What?”
Her head snaps up. A young man with one hand to his ear, speaking in a calm voice over the communication channel.
“I’ve located Princess Teresa Hatse. I’m returning immediately after securing her.”
Teresa Hatse’s eyes, looking at me, go blank.

(To be continued)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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