EP.18 To Hong Kong (4)

 

 

 

“Now, there’s just one left. It’s here.”

 

─What kind of creature is waiting at the last one?

 

After a few more hours, Parang arrived at the location of the final object.

 

The viewer count was now at 30,000. It had been only 10,000 when she was inside Rassius’s stomach.

 

Word must have spread on the internet about the thrilling Rassius ASMR.

 

“This time, it’s really not something disgusting.”

 

The chat was instantly flooded with various emoticons. Were they angry?

 

“Are you angry?”

 

─Yes

 

─Me

 

─Me

 

─Rock

 

─Rock

 

─Me

 

─Yes

 

─We’re mad

 

“I see.”

 

Not that Parang cared much.

 

“This time, we’re going into a ‘Hive.'”

 

─Hive?

 

─What’s that?

 

─The name sounds ominous

 

─Is it what I think it is?

 

“The concept is roughly the same. It refers to structures or terrains that serve as colonies for monsters.”

 

─’Gorani’ donated 1,500 won! –

 

[ Is it different from an object? ]

 

“A Hive is also a type of object. However, it’s large enough to house hundreds or even thousands of monsters. You can think of it as similar to a dungeon on land.”

 

─How big is it?

 

─Hundreds of monsters?

 

─What???

 

─If it’s like a dungeon, does it have a boss too?

 

“Exactly. Just like a dungeon, a Hive often has a boss monster. These bosses are usually much stronger and more dangerous than the regular monsters inside.”

 

Parang continued to explain as she approached the entrance of the Hive, preparing herself for what lay ahead.

 

“There is. But what we’re hunting today isn’t the boss.”

 

Usually, there was a species that reigned as the top predator within the Hive ecosystem. Some, like Aurita, lived in groups, while others, like the sperm whale, dominated through sheer size.

 

“By the way, there’s one in the East Sea too. It’s actually quite large.”

 

─????

 

─The East Sea I know??

 

─And it’s quite large?

 

“Scary, right? You definitely shouldn’t dive.”

 

─You say that without even changing your expression

 

─How can we see her expression from this angle?

 

─Just feels like she didn’t change it

 

─That’s true

 

“Someday, I’ll explore the Hive in the East Sea too.”

 

That area was originally Parang’s responsibility. She had to clean it up periodically.

 

Usually, she called upon the Kraken, but it was manageable without it, except for the boss. Taking Xiao or Elvira along would be fine too.

 

“Hmm.”

 

Enough idle thoughts. It was time to get to work. Parang had already decided what to eat in Hong Kong. She wanted to finish quickly and relax.

 

Parang turned the camera to show the Hive.

 

“This is the Hive in the East China Sea. Underwater hunters call it the ‘Kitchen’ for convenience.”

 

The viewers were shocked by three main things.

 

First, the appearance of the structure called the Hive.

 

At a glance, it was clear that this was a Hive. The structure stood prominently underwater.

 

A gigantic conch shell. Its spiraled shell, elongated entrance, and rib-like protrusions along its tail made it unmistakable.

 

If you attached a string, it would look just like a magical conch shell. It was that classic in appearance.

 

Second, the size of the Hive.

 

The elongated oval entrance had deep-sea fish swimming in and out, resembling spaceships entering and exiting a massive warp gate in a sci-fi movie.

 

In other words, the monstrous creatures they had seen, which were several tens of meters in size, looked like tiny spaceships in front of a giant gate.

 

Third, the glimpse of the interior through the entrance.

 

─Why does it actually look like a kitchen??

 

─I’m not the only one seeing that, right?

 

─This is really insane

 

Inside, there was clearly something that could only be described as a “pot” peeking out.

 

However, the handle of this pot was the same size as the monster passing by it.

 

It was an utterly incomprehensible, supernatural, and grotesque sight.

 

“It’s a Hive. According to the underwater hunters, about 500 monsters live inside.”

 

By underwater hunters, she meant Oceanos. Ordinary underwater hunters couldn’t even reach this place, let alone study the population.

 

The current depth was 3.5 kilometers underwater. Being near the Hive, there were an enormous number of monsters around.

 

While monsters several tens of meters in size wouldn’t specifically target a human less than 2 meters tall, there were plenty of monsters that could kill a person as easily as stepping on an ant, even without intending to eat them.

 

“Alright, I’ll go inside, quickly deal with the target, and come out.”

 

Parang increased her swimming speed to enter the maze.

 

Swimming swiftly between the monsters slowly heading toward the entrance, Parang looked like the protagonist’s car in a racing game, speeding ahead alone.

 

Thanks to this, the viewers could fully experience the sensation of swimming among various monsters.

 

From the common deep-sea fish like anglerfish to familiar ones like Rassius or Belua, and even sea snakes, swordfish, sharks, and more.

 

Of course, there were also monsters they had never seen before, things that barely looked like fish, and even some that made them question if they were alive at all, heading into and out of the Hive.

 

Parang finally entered the Hive, gracefully passing all of them.

 

Surprisingly, the inside was quite bright. It felt like a restaurant during the day with the lights off. For some reason, bright light was streaming in from rectangular structures on the walls that seemed to mimic windows. She wasn’t sure if “mimic” was the right word.

 

The floor had a chessboard pattern of white and black tiles, and the walls were lined with pristine white metal tiles.

 

It genuinely looked like a kitchen. There were only two differences from a kitchen on land.

 

First, a kitchen on land wouldn’t be this enormous. It seemed designed for someone about 700 meters tall.

 

Second, a kitchen on land wouldn’t have monsters occupying various spots. There were creatures clattering inside the sink, starfish clinging to ladles, and eels peeking out from the dishwasher.

 

There were bizarre chunks of flesh floating around, dark green slime stuck to the floor looking upward, and black, thin-legged clams crawling into the trash can.

 

And then there were the skeletons swarming around, biting into the monsters’ flesh. Those were sent by Xiao, a form of automated hunting.

 

In any case, the familiar setting of a kitchen combined with these alien elements made for an incredibly grotesque and surreal scene.

 

─There’s something like this in the East Sea?

 

─Damn, seriously

 

─The visuals are insane

 

“The one in the East Sea is about five times bigger than this.”

 

─’ㅇㅇ’ donated 10,000 won! –

 

[ So if I swim down from where I usually swim, I’ll see a scene like this? ]

 

“That’s right. Underneath where you swim, these things exist.”

 

The chat went silent for a moment.

 

The deep sea, which they had vaguely thought of as another world, suddenly felt real and terrifying when they realized it was right beneath their feet.

 

─I’m quitting diving from today

 

Parang’s mood improved significantly.

 

“I don’t want to stay here long either. Let’s quickly deal with the target and get out.”

 

Her voice tone was slightly higher, indicating her excitement.

 

─But what’s the target?

 

“That.”

 

Fortunately, the target object was located closest to the entrance within the “kitchen.”

 

What she pointed at was a crab inside a pot near the entrance.

 

It wasn’t the long-shelled blue crab commonly found in crab dishes.

 

It was a fiddler crab with one abnormally large claw. Normally, a fiddler crab’s claw and body are similar in size. After becoming a monster, its claw grew to the point where the body seemed attached to the claw. In fact, vital organs, including the brain, moved into the claw. The body was reduced to just legs.

 

“It’s called Tubuka. Unlike serpent-type monsters that use body length as a size standard, Tubuka uses claw length. That one looks about 100 meters.”

 

Originally, Tubuka’s claw wouldn’t exceed 50 meters. Given that it had settled inside this object, it was an expected result.

 

Around the pot with the fiddler crab were the corpses of various monsters. From ordinary fish to clams, unidentified creatures, and even amorphous entities that made one question if they could be eaten.

 

Tubuka had its claw embedded in the plump flesh of a monster’s corpse nearby.

 

It was feeding. Tubuka’s mouth was located on its claw.

 

Parang quietly swam towards Tubuka, cutting through the water.

 

While other monsters might be a challenge, there were many easy ways to handle Tubuka.

 

She had been worried about needing to use the Kraken, but fortunately, that wasn’t necessary.

 

Anyway, Parang approached Tubuka silently. She didn’t like ambushes, but capturing Tubuka this way was the quickest and most certain method.

 

Parang reached a distance where she could touch the claw that was over a hundred meters long. At this point, it looked just like a wall.

 

Given Tubuka’s field of vision, it couldn’t detect the 1.6-meter human hiding right behind its claw.

 

Parang quietly but quickly swam into the space between the carapace forming Tubuka’s body and the carapace making up its claw.

 

No matter how enormous a monster was, it couldn’t ignore something entering its body.

 

ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Tubuka immediately started thrashing around wildly, causing chaos.

 

However, Tubuka had concentrated all its combat power, mobility, and even cognitive ability into its claw. If Parang had entered its body, Tubuka could have crushed her by slamming its body down. But the claw? With its body having atrophied except for the claw, what could it use to slam down?

 

Tubuka tried desperately to slam its claw against the pot walls and floor, but Parang, who had already burrowed deep inside and grabbed onto the soft flesh, had no intention of letting go.

 

Instead, she made a grinding noise as she tore through the soft tissues inside the claw.

 

The pain was unimaginable. To put it in human terms, it was like a 1.6-centimeter insect entering your ear with a 2-centimeter harpoon and wreaking havoc inside your head.

 

It was impossible not to lose one’s mind.

 

And the viewers were losing their minds as well.

 

It was like watching a first-person video of an insect exploring a human brain.

 

The only source of light was the flashlight in the dark space, illuminating chunks of flesh and blood vessels.

 

The camera capturing Parang’s view showed unknown organs twitching and writhing, with occasional bursts of blood and eyeballs being pierced.

 

Even hunters, who were used to seeing blood and flesh, would be startled by such a sight. How much worse would it be for ordinary people?

 

It was sheer torture.

 

─You said it wasn’t disgusting, you said it wasn’t disgusting, you said it wasn’t disgusting

 

─Was that the lung or the heart that just passed by?

 

─It was the lung

 

─No, it was the heart?

 

─Didn’t both just pass by?

 

Parang shredded Tubuka’s brain and eyes. This was undoubtedly a fatal blow.

 

With the subjugation of three special objects complete, Parang leisurely exited the “kitchen.”

 

She then swam at an incredible speed once more.

 

Parang’s eyes were colder and more focused than ever as she stared ahead.

 

When she arrived in Hong Kong, she absolutely had to eat xiaolongbao. That thought filled her mind.

 

Her stomach was likely to growl. She hadn’t eaten anything since leaving Pohang.

 

Well, it wouldn’t be great if that sound got broadcasted.

 

“We’ll stop here for today. Thank you all for your hard work.”

 

─Thanks to you, we worked hard too, damn it

 

─At least you know we worked hard…

 

─Lol, I closed my eyes and just listened, damn it, should’ve blocked my ears too

 

The chat exploded instantly.

 

But Parang didn’t care. People who found this disgusting and left wouldn’t be diving again.

 

As soon as she ended the broadcast, her stomach growled. Parang swam faster than ever.

 

A while later, at a pier in Hong Kong.

 

Bubbles rose to the surface, and Parang’s head popped up with a “plop.”