The Daily Life of the Demon King

Chapter 252 - 252: Another Encounter with Necromorphs

Alex and Valmet stood in a grim room, saturated with the stench of death. Corpses lay scattered chaotically across the floor, while the walls and ceiling were covered in bloody symbols written in the language of the Marker.

This was already the second time Alex had encountered these signs in this world, and it only confirmed his suspicions: either a shard of the Marker had been in the city of Tanegashima, or it was still here. However, the likelihood that the Evil Corporation hadn't taken it was extremely low.

Alex rubbed his face wearily, suppressing his irritation. Everything was only getting worse, and he didn't need to be a prophet to understand—the situation would escalate even further soon. The apocalypse, which had already engulfed the world, was about to gain a new player—Necromorphs.

But right now, something else was bothering him: was there an Evil Corporation lab in this city, and how had the Marker's influence spread here? There were two possibilities: either it was the result of the corporation's experiments, or some idiot had accidentally found a shard and decided to carry it around as a souvenir, completely unaware of the consequences.

"What are we going to do?" Valmet asked, gently placing a hand on his shoulder, trying to pull him out of his thoughts. "Do we head back to the girls or

He stepped aside to contact the other raid groups and update them on the situation. After accessing the general channel, he informed them that he had encountered a new type of infected. The data had already been sent to the group leaders via holograms.

"The new mutants are dangerous and incredibly resilient. Also, they can pretend to be dead," he explained. "If you come across strange writings in blood, scan them."

He was about to disconnect when a voice came through the communicator.

"Alex, come in! Are you still there?" It was Kota.

"Yes, I'm listening. What's going on?" Alex asked.

"We found something… strange nest," Kota's voice sounded tense. "After what you said about the new infected, I think you should see this."

"A nest?" Alex immediately guessed.

"Honestly, I don't even know how to describe it... but you should see it yourself. One word—disgusting."

Alex's expression darkened.

"Got it. I'll be there soon. Don't stick your necks out," he replied briefly, ending the call.

Alex turned off the communicator and returned to the girls. By the time he approached, they had calmed down and were now discussing the next catastrophe that the Evil Corporation was planning to cause. Seeing him, they immediately asked what he had been discussing with the other raid groups.

"I just passed along the data so they know what they might be facing," Alex answered. "Also, Kota mentioned they discovered some strange nest and asked me to check it out personally."

These words piqued the girls' genuine interest.

"Alright, I'll go check it out, but be careful," Alex said, looking at each of them in turn. "We don't know how many of those creatures are still roaming the city."

"Be careful yourself," Kiriko noted, stepping toward him and gently squeezing his cheeks. "We know you're strong, but a little extra caution never hurt anyone."

"Heh, I'm always careful," Alex smirked, taking her hand. "And if you get into danger, contact me immediately. I'll be there in an instant."

"Go already! And don't forget to take a picture of that strange nest," Rebecca added with a grin, waving her hand.

Alex smiled, then, before leaving, kissed the girls on the cheek, skipping Miu and Renka since he had no relationship with them. Waving goodbye, he accelerated and jumped onto the wall of the nearest building, running along it like a ninja. The girls watched him until he disappeared around the corner, then continued their search for supplies, hoping they wouldn't have to face the nightmare they'd seen in the clinic again.

Meanwhile, Kota put the communicator back in his pocket. Before they had stumbled upon the nest, they had checked out several locations but hadn't found anything useful. Then someone suggested they check out the basement… and that's where they saw it.

The group silently studied the strange formation, trying to figure out what they were dealing with.

"So, is he coming or what?" Takashi broke the silence, lazily leaning against the wall.

"He said he'll be here soon," Kota replied.

"Dear, maybe you could show us the new mutants Alex discovered in the meantime?" the female officer asked him.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot," Kota pulled out the hologram and activated it.

They gathered around him as he began loading the files sent by Alex. The first images to appear on the screen were of strange symbols found in the clinic.

"Some creepy symbols… What are they written with?" Mernna frowned, leaning on Kota's shoulder.

"There's no doubt about it, that's blood," Takashi replied grimly. "Look at the pictures, there was a real slaughter."

"Looks like a crazy cult went on a rampage there," Matsushima muttered, staring at the images.

"Alright, let's move on," Takashi urged Kota. "I want to see what new mutants we're dealing with."

Kota nodded and opened the next file. As soon as the hologram displayed the images, everyone's face showed expressions of disgust. The new mutants looked as though they had been turned inside out, their bodies horrifically deformed.

"Necromorphs…?" Takashi muttered, reading the name. "Why does Alex always give mutants such stupid names?"

"Is something wrong with that?" Merna scoffed, glancing at him. "If you're so smart, come up with something better."

Takashi just rolled his eyes. He had gotten used to the fact that the girls in Kota's group were only kind to Kota, while the other guys were treated like enemies. He didn't understand how Kota managed to lead them, but he wasn't about to get involved in this drama.

Meanwhile, the group continued to discuss the new type of mutants while also studying the data on how to fight them.

Alex, running along the walls towards Kota's group, spotted them in the distance. After making one last jump, he landed nearby and saw that everyone was huddled around the hologram, examining some data. His gaze fell on two newcomers in the group — Takeda, the boxer, and his judo friend Ukita.

He just shook his head, thinking to himself that these two were complete idiots. What was the point of joining Kota's squad if your main skills were punching and throwing? That wouldn't help against zombies.

"Yo, you guys tired of waiting?" Alex called out, drawing the group's attention.

"Always fast, huh? Decided to go straight through again?" Takashi responded, turning his head to him.

"Nah," Alex scoffed, then looked at the newcomers. "What are you two doing here? Can you shoot? Do you know anything about fighting zombies?"

"We came as laborers," Takeda explained. "Someone has to move heavy stuff for loading onto the transport. We're unlikely to help much in combat, but extra hands never hurt."

Alex nodded, acknowledging the sense in that, and then turned his gaze to Kota.

"Alright, now tell me, what kind of nest did you find, and why do I have to see it?"

"You can't explain it in a few words, better see it for yourself," Kota replied, gesturing for him to follow.

Alex raised an eyebrow in surprise but followed him anyway. The rest of the group joined them. On the way, he asked questions, but neither Kota nor Takashi could explain anything clearly, only vaguely hinting at something strange. This only fueled his curiosity.

The zombie nests they had encountered before usually belonged to either night mutants or Jumpers, and they always looked the same — dirty lairs littered with corpses. So if this time things were different, it must be something truly unusual.

They circled around the warehouse to the back, where the basement entrance was located. Kota stopped in front of a heavy metal door.

"We found this downstairs. In a word, disgusting," he said, shaking his head.

"Well, I'll go take a look. You guys stay here and keep an eye on things. If I find anything interesting, I'll let you know," Alex said, reaching for the door.

"Wait, you're seriously going alone?! Is your head on straight?!" Takeda exclaimed, blocking his way.

"What's the problem? I'll take care of myself. You should be more careful," Alex waved his hand, signaling that everything was under control.

Without waiting for further objections, he opened the door and started heading down. Takeda and Ukita stared after him in disbelief, unable to believe that he was heading into the unknown without a hint of fear.

"Does he even understand what he's doing?" Takeda muttered, looking at Kota.

"This is Alex. He's always like that," Takashi shrugged.

Meanwhile, Alex descended into the basement and snapped his fingers, activating a light spell. As the room lit up, he was greeted by a repulsive sight.

The entire basement was covered in biomass made of dark red flesh, pulsating like a living organism. Vascular protrusions, resembling intertwined veins, stuck out of the walls, and in some places, there were what appeared to be eyes, slowly moving in sync with the grotesque breathing.

Alex's eye twitched in disgust.

"Shit... I've seen some gross stuff, but this is something new," he muttered.

He didn't even want to touch this disgusting stuff, let alone step on it. So he pulled out his Chastifol from his inventory and transformed the spear into a convenient flying cushion. Settling onto it, he slowly floated forward, carefully observing his surroundings.

"This crap looks like it's alive," Geirölul's voice sounded in his head.

"Don't I know it... It even breathes, the bastard," Alex grunted, feeling the foul stench of decaying flesh filling the air.

Discussing with the Valkyries the disgusting mass that covered the entire basement, Alex continued moving on his flying cushion, hoping to find some clues. Carefully scanning his surroundings, he suddenly noticed a strange anomaly among the biomass. Flying closer, he saw that the flesh had formed something resembling an altar. However, what caught his attention the most was the object resting on this grotesque organic platform.

"Looks like some kind of altar," Reginleif spoke first.

"Better pay attention to what's on top of it," Alex pointed out, indicating the black stone ominously shimmering in the dim light.

"Could it be... what we think it is?" Hrist asked in surprise.

"Exactly, a fragment of the Marker," Alex confirmed. "But it's strange, why hasn't it been taken yet? Either way, it's better to remove it just to be safe."

The Valkyries unanimously agreed with his decision. Before touching the artifact, Alex tried to determine whether this fragment was connected to the others. Upon closer inspection, he noticed faint energy threads extending upwards and disappearing into the distance. This meant that even separated, the fragments of the Marker maintained a connection.

Taking a massive black box from his inventory, Alex prepared to seal the find. The stone, about the size of a human head, was covered in strange symbols, but studying them now didn't make sense. Everything could be checked later.

As soon as he touched the fragment, he felt a foreign presence trying to infiltrate his mind. Alex merely rolled his eyes, ignoring the effect, and quickly placed the stone in the box, sealed it, and put it back in his inventory.

"Well, that's done," he said, clapping his hands as if shaking off invisible dust.

"Alex, look! Something's happening with the flesh!" Randgriz suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the side.

Following her gesture, Alex saw the biomass rapidly changing. It trembled, contracted, and began to dissolve into a sinister, foul liquid. It became clear to him — the fragment of the Marker was holding this flesh together, and once the connection was severed, the entire mass started to break down.

Watching the transformation of the disgusting growth into a viscous sludge, Alex had no intention of collecting samples for study. He certainly didn't want to touch that filth.

Deciding there was nothing else to do in the basement, Alex turned the cushion around and, wasting no time, headed back to the exit.

To be continued...

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