The Eldritch Files

"Iron Hook…!"

Sawtooth leaped up and caught Iron Hook's corpse. Seeing the chunk missing from his head, it was obvious he was dead.

Enraged, he pulled Iron Hook's body close and savagely took a bite.

It seemed to be some kind of ritual. As he chewed and swallowed the piece of flesh, and as the fetid, coppery smell in the air intensified, his mouth began to warp and split open.

Like some kind of sea monster, revealing fine, sharp fangs, he lunged viciously at Han Su.

Pores opened up all over his body—on his jaw, under his arms, along his ribs. A putrid, seemingly toxic gas spewed from these openings.

The gas only intensified the grayish, putrid stench in the cramped, sealed room.

Just then, the man beside them, Jackal, suddenly sprang into action.

While Sawtooth was attacking, Jackal snatched Iron Hook's corpse. He pressed a hand to its shoulder and began rapidly chanting a Spell of his own. The air trembled, and faint blue arcs of electricity seemed to flicker through it.

The storage room was filled with fragments of artifacts excavated from some ruins, many of them made of iron. The fight had sent them scattering everywhere.

As he chanted his Spell, screws, nails, and even some cables that had been buried for who knows how long, all scattered across the floor, began to tremble and roll toward him, as if drawn by the blue arcs of electricity.

Then, guided by his incantation, they burrowed into the joints, spine, facial orifices, and fractured skull of Iron Hook's corpse.

It was as if he were forcibly stitching and mending a corpse that was beyond dead. When he finished the Spell, Iron Hook's eyes suddenly snapped open. A cold glint shot from his single, intact eye.

At this point, it was hard to tell if it was a machine of flesh and blood, or a man.

"Sequence 3: Mechanical Ghost!"

...

...

'So these are the abilities of the three great Sequences?'

The transformed Sawtooth was surprisingly difficult to handle. His skin had become smooth and deathly pale, as if coated in a film of oil that made him incredibly slippery.

Even a blow from a left hand concentrated with Spiritual Power would have a third of its force deflected.

If Han Su hadn't been cautious enough to shoot him earlier, the fight would be much harder. The bullet had clearly affected him.

More importantly, the pores on his body periodically spewed a foul, toxic gas. This was another Sea Beast ability: releasing a neurotoxin. It had little effect in the short term, but with prolonged exposure, one's Spiritual Power would begin to suffer.

You would start to find the Sea Beast before you more and more beautiful.

By the time the "Dugong" in your eyes transformed into a "Mermaid," you'd be completely smitten, unable to land a blow.

After just a few rounds of close-quarters combat, Han Su was already starting to think Sawtooth was looking rather dashing.

But at that very moment, Jackal finished his work on Iron Hook. On his command, Iron Hook—who had just died moments ago—dropped to all fours and charged forward with lightning speed.

The two "brothers"—one living, one dead—had now teamed up against him.

Nearby, Pot Lid Head lifted his gaze slightly and shifted. Jackal immediately screamed at him, "What are you spacing out for? Charge! Get him! Let's kill this little Investigator and get out of here!"

Pot Lid Head went still again.

'Compared to the Zero Sequence, the three great Sequences all seem to turn people into monsters,' Han Su thought. 'It's just that not all monsters are created equal...'

With this question on his mind, Han Su engaged the Mechanical Ghost that charged him, even as he continued to fight Sawtooth.

It was hard to tell if this monster was man or machine. Even while fighting the transformed Sawtooth, he could still perceive his opponent as a rather dashing creature. But facing the Mechanical Ghost was like facing a cold, unfeeling machine—a machine that, somehow, possessed a life of its own.

It was cold, rigid, and could even release an electric current...

After joining the Disaster Management Bureau and tasering his fair share of people with electric batons, Han Su was getting a taste of his own medicine for the first time.

After just a few exchanges, he was already in a world of hurt.

Relying on his superb skills and reflexes, he weaved between the two opponents, the three figures clashing several times in the narrow storage room. Han Su had already sized up the situation.

His regular Spiritual Power was being pushed to its limit.

The advantage he'd gained by shooting them earlier was fading fast.

But these three D7s, empowered by their Sequences and high Spiritual Activity, were only growing more ferocious. He finally had a chance to take stock of the Mysterious Powers at his own disposal.

'In terms of Mysterious Powers, the Giant's Eye seems highly effective against projection-type abilities like the Banshee's, but it's not much use against internally manifested powers like the Sea Beast and Mechanical Ghost.'

'As for the Cross Copper Hand, Tier One gives me a huge advantage in a brawl, but I can't seem to use its more crucial corrupting ability in the heat of combat.'

'And summoning the Ghost Truck... there's not enough room to maneuver in here.'

'In that case...'

As these thoughts raced through his mind, he felt his Spiritual Power bottom out, just as the new "battery" kicked in.

'Then it's time!'

He suddenly straightened up and leaped, running several steps along the wall to evade the pincer attack from the Mechanical Ghost and the Sea Beast. Then, while still airborne, he raised his right hand high and began to chant the Fishing Song in a low voice.

[The Gods have sent down a decree!]

[...]

He chanted in a low but extremely focused voice.

Scorching. Searing.

He felt it as the Fishing Song fully activated his Spiritual Power: the burn scars on his body came alive once more. This time, however, they erupted into visible flames.

The flames leaped and grew, yet they gave off a cold, sinister aura.

Compared to the Tier One activation using his own Spiritual Power, this version, channeled through the Fishing Song, was far more powerful. It possessed a strange, uncanny Activity.

BANG!

He finished the Fishing Song just as he landed, slamming his right hand firmly onto the floor.

The next moment, the Ghost Flame surged down Han Su's arm, spreading wildly across the floor before engulfing the Mechanical Ghost beside him.

ZZZT...

A shower of sparks erupted. Under the assault of the flames, the blue electric arcs covering the Mechanical Ghost flickered chaotically before being extinguished.

Its flesh charred inch by inch, and metal parts began to fall from its body.

On the other side, Sawtooth reacted quickly and leaped back, but the flames still shot out nearly three meters, catching him. Sawtooth immediately let out a pained shriek.

His face swelled, turning beet red, as if a kettle were boiling inside his skull. Billowing steam rose from the top of his head, and flames even seemed to dance in his eyes.

BANG!

Han Su lashed out with a kick, sending the Mechanical Ghost—now shedding parts—flying into the wall, where it snapped in two.

The next instant, he focused his mind, strode toward the screaming, agonized Sawtooth, and slammed his left hand onto the man's face. The Cross Copper Scar pulsed on the back of his hand. With a sickening CRUNCH, half of Sawtooth's head disappeared.

"Hm?"

At that same moment, Pot Lid Head noticed the extensive burn scars on Han Su's body. His eyes flickered, and a glimmer of life seemed to enter their dark, empty depths.

He seemed to be trying to recall something.

Han Su, having used up a whole "battery" charge for that attack, retracted his hand, lost in thought. 'The Ghost Flame has powerful invasive properties. It's just a shame I can only bring it out using the Fishing Song...'

'Does this mean a lack of Spiritual Activity is my biggest weakness right now?'

'I really can't win without an ace in the hole…'

'...'

'This is the rookie that broad said got in through connections?'

Seeing that things had gone south, an indescribable terror filled Jackal's face. He cursed internally, 'What kind of rookie has this many tricks up his sleeve?'

At this thought, he scrambled to his feet and bolted for the storage room exit.

He had barely taken a step when a smiling, bald man deftly moved to block his path.

It was Pot Lid Head, who only now seemed to be taking the slightest interest in the proceedings.

"The fuck you smiling at?!"

The sight of the "smile" on Pot Lid Head's face sent Jackal into a rage. He cursed, raising his hands. Blue arcs of electricity coiled around his fingers as he clapped them down hard on Pot Lid Head's temples.

This was another Mechanical Ghost ability: releasing bio-electricity from his fingertips to disrupt a person's thoughts, effectively turning them into a "biological machine."

In the face of Jackal's tirade, the smile on Pot Lid Head's face remained unchanged—mainly because he hadn't been smiling in the first place. He just took a single step forward.

Jackal's fingers, crackling with blue electricity, missed and crossed behind Pot Lid Head's head. Jackal's eyes went wide as he stared at the man who was now suddenly nose-to-nose with him. A chill shot through his heart.

The next moment, Pot Lid Head headbutted him, sending Jackal sprawling to the ground. He howled in pain, cursing nonstop.

Pot Lid Head slowly lifted a foot, hooking the storage room door shut. As he walked toward Jackal, he shot Han Su a look and jerked his chin.

He was signaling for Han Su to kick over a short knife lying on the ground nearby.

'What's this guy's deal?'

'He wouldn't lift a finger to help before, and now he's ordering me around?'

And Han Su actually...

...lifted his foot and gently kicked the knife over to him.

Pot Lid Head, hands still in cuffs, stood up with the dagger. He slowly approached Jackal, who shrieked in panicked desperation, "You... You... What are you doing?"

"AHHH, FUCK..."

"Save me! Investigator, save me...!"

...

Han Su found it hard to watch. He couldn't help but turn his head slightly and ask Pot Lid Head, "What are you doing?"

Pot Lid Head was engrossed in his work. Without looking up, he replied in a low voice, "A hobby."

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