Leave The Monster Alone

Mark was still reeling over the fact that he had someone ejected out of the base without even facing the boss which was not something he had even deemed possible.

When this mission had been assigned to him, he had been advised to bring 4 party members with him but he had not thought much about it at first. However, this one incident made him feel as if there was more to the whole 4 party members than a mere suggestion.

Maybe the system suggested this because it knew the existence of this base and wanted him to be ready. 

"You're back early. Didn't you go in just a few minutes ago?" Rika called out once she saw him. Alan followed behind her but his attention was still more on the boat than himself. 

"I found the key so I came back without fully checking the place out. How long had I been in exactly?" Mark could not tell how much time had passed since he had been inside. He had not bothered to set his watch when he went in but he had a feeling Rika had.

"You were inside for close to 10 minutes. It's not a short time but still, that was fast" 10 minutes? That was roughly the time required to walk to the checkpoint. It was possible that time had frozen outside when he reached the checkpoint.

Or it could also be that time had moved far slower the whole time. After all, he had not kept up with the time and now it felt too bold to ask. 

"You have the key? Good, bring it here. I read the user manual in the meantime so I know how to work it now" she read the whole thing in 10 minutes? What kind of freak was Rika?

"She means she did not read the whole thing. She just read enough to start and stop that thing. We'll still need to figure out the rest" the female huffed in a silent protest at being outed but Mark felt much better now. 

She was not a freak, just smart enough to make her words seem more than they were.

"Anyway, give me those keys and I'll drive" the other two passed each other with a look of concern. Rika did not look like someone who had a driving licence, much less a boating license. Just how big of risk were they taking here?

It must have shown up on their faces because the female turned grave, her eyes hard and unyielding.

"I won't kill you yet so try having a little experience" and she got a sheepish reply in return. They were not trying to judge her but it came out as such anyway.

Since her words did not leave any room for a rebuttal and her eyes said that she would fight if they went against her, they allowed her to have her way. 

Kuro was already inside the boat, her body shrunk down to her regular size and right in the centre. Mark beckoned her to come toward the side and have a look but she firmly ignored him in favour of curling up.

Looked like she didn't have any intention of facing the water at all.

When Rika started the boat, it gave a jerk that almost caused Mark to fall into the water. Alan seemed to be in a similar position but far more stable.

"I think I should steer the boat from here," Mark asked once he established himself. The river was wide but there was no ocean and it would take hardly a few minutes to reach the other side. 

Still, he had no intention of being a passenger of such a shaky ride. Rika's driving did not make the boat any stable and Mark was beginning to feel the effects. He had never been seasick before, nor did he have motion sickness but he was willing to bet that the churring feeling inside his stomach was what it felt like.

Alan was likewise green in his face and his eyes begged for mercy too.

"Don't be foolish. I'm driving perfectly safely so you don't need to worry. Though, do hold tight because there are some obstacles in the way" Mark did not get any time to adjust to her driving before the boat took a sharp jerk in the opposite direction.

It was startling enough that even Kuro hissed at the moment of the boat. Mark felt something brush against his face before the boat jerked and it was out of sight.

"Rika, what the hell are you doing?" Mark asked, trying to keep his voice as calm and collective as he could. It was not working as intended but the female heard him nonetheless.

The monsters are blocking a lot of our way but they are not aware of us just yet. We'll be on the other shore in another minute or two so stay tight" so that had been a monster? The thing that brushed his cheek?

With another sharp turn, Mark came face to face with his terrified reflection before the boat stabilised once again and crashed.

That was a painful crash but one he had been thankful for. Rika gave a groan of pain as her middle clashed with the steering device while Alan let out a sigh of relief as the rocking motion finally subsided.

The freedom was finally here but the danger was not over yet.

"Get away from the shore and do it fast. Those monsters know we are here"the information came at the same time the bodies in water turned toward their direction. That fish looking thing was the very same Mark had felt a subtle brush against his face and he finally noticed just how many there were.

The party hurried to get off of the boat and Mark somehow managed to store it before the monsters could clash with it. Then those bodies stopped, just right before the shore which made one thing certain - they could not come to the land at all.

"This place is not safe either. Water is just one of our many problems. Let's keep moving and find the base" Mark led the part away from there once their hearts had calmed down. The forest was eerily quiet and the party of 4 felt the chills there.

Somehow, the emptiness of the place was much more unnerving than a place crawling with monsters.

"Do you think a strong monster is here?" Rika asked, her voice finally having a hint of fear to it. She had only been out once but her training had been rather successful and it also made her capable of handling herself.

But she would be the first to say that she was not the best so this situation was a little horrifying since these kinds of silence generally meant one thing.

"These must be the top predators in these parts. We should do our best to avoid it. Mark, can you check the location of that monster?" Alan asked, his voice soft to not alert any monsters. Somehow, the silence was nerve-wracking.

"Maybe but the base should be safe. At any rate, we are not here to find any trouble. If you come face to face with a monster, do not engage with it unnecessarily" the other two nodded.

Keito checked the location of the base one final time before realising that they were in the perimeter of that base already.

But neither he, nor the others could see any building in the vicinity. What's even more, the place was still counted among the monster's domain which was odd.

Since bases were supposed to be safe places, monsters could not exist inside their perimeter. Even at their home base, you could find monsters in between the boundaries, never inside.

"Kuro, can you sniff out the entrance to the base?" Mark asked, not sure how much the feline could help here. The place felt weird to him but the map could not be lying.

Both the map and Liam had pointed him toward this area which meant that something must exist here after all. Kuro ignored his words, her body tensing at an unknown enemy and her form transformed.

Before the party knew it, they were dodging gunshots and many muffled voices could be heard. These must be humans from the base but why were they attacking them?

"The monster has hostages. We need to separate them and rescue the humans" the leader called out, his voice clearly ringing through the vicinity. Mark met his eyes and the other tried to pass him a relieving smile.

Though it came out as a scared one to Mark. The other looked far too terrified of Kuro to actually reassure anyone. Their guns also seemed like normal guns and they would likely not hurt Kuro at all but they would hurt if they got hit in the process.

Mark needed to get their attention but the others were not paying attention to him at all, their eyes focusing on Kuro and he felt helpless.

What could he do to get their attention without scaring them?