NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 854
“Grandpa, Grandpa. Do you know about the Seven Great Monsters or whatever they’re called?”
Perhaps it was because of the profound words spoken by the man I had met earlier.
Anastasia clung to Ashtosh Singh’s sleeve, continuously whining about wanting him to share what he knew — whether he knew or didn’t know, she wanted him to state it clearly. And if he knew even a little, she demanded he explain it in a way as easy to understand as a kindergarten teacher explaining to kindergarteners, not in a professor’s style for graduate students.
But no matter how much Anastasia threw a fit, Ashtosh Singh remained silent.
The monitor above his head emitted no words, standing mute.
Neither confirming nor denying anything.
It was as if he had the information but chose not to convey it.
“Why are you keeping your mouth shut? You have a mouth, so why not use it? Is it just for decoration?”
Why wasn’t he speaking?
It was just information from a dream, after all.
Even if we assumed this place was close to the Collective Unconscious, the gathering of these beings was merely a combination of ‘fragments of the unconscious.’ Sometimes such fragments held real value, but most of the time they were combined and distorted, becoming useless.
Yet still, Ashtosh Singh wouldn’t utter a word.
As if he believed Anastasia shouldn’t know that information.
Or as if he thought it was forbidden for him to speak it.
He simply walked alongside Anastasia, matching her steps.
“Tch.”
Realizing he wouldn’t say anything, Anastasia turned her head away in a huff, then shot a side-eye at Ashtosh Singh with an expression of disdain.
After that, she quickened her pace again, moving forward.
A city in ruins.
With every turn of the corner, the spatial dimensions shifted, and with every certain distance walked, she was transported to an unknown location in this dreamlike wasteland.
[Bee. Bee. Bee. Bee. Bee. Bee. Bee. Bee.]
[Emergency Alert. Emergency Alert. This broadcast is a real situation. This broadcast is a real situation.]
[An EX-level criminal, ‘The Butcher,’ has been confirmed to have appeared in the American Taisha Federation. I repeat, an EX-level criminal, ‘The Butcher,’ has been confirmed to have appeared in the American Taisha Federation.]
[The last confirmed location of the Butcher is Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Neo Texas. Residents within a 500-mile radius are advised to be aware of the Butcher’s teleportation and blink attacks.]
A lonely table and a battered radio came into view.
The radio emitted an unpleasant sound mixed with a dialect-laden English.
Step.
With another step, the location changed again.
This time what she saw was a television.
A decrepit old set barely managing to display a picture through its cracked screen.
[Black Code 06 has been issued.]
[Black Code 06 has been issued.]
[This is a message from the Southern Confederacy of America.]
[We were unable to stop The Butcher’s terror, and all government personnel have perished, leading to an effective anarchy.]
[As The Butcher’s attacks continue, our once-proud nation, USA, and the neighboring American Taisha Federation, forsake their existence and declare an official state of anarchy.]
[But we know that if we cannot unite in this chaotic situation, we will ultimately meet a miserable end.]
[Humans who cannot unite are weak and will find it impossible to overcome the countless crises spreading across the globe.]
[The Butcher’s demands are akin to a gradual declaration of slaughter that leads us to a terrible and miserable death.]
[Dear citizens of the Southern Confederacy of America.]
[Let us resist.]
[Let us exercise our last rights that even The Butcher cannot take away from us.]
[We will resist until the end, and The Butcher will not fulfill any of his desires.]
[Those who threatened us will obtain nothing from us.]
[Black Code 06 issued.]
[Black Code 06 issued.]
[From this moment, the entire Southern Confederacy of America will be contaminated with radiation, viruses, and germs.]
[Citizens, exercise your rights before it’s too late.]
[God awaits to hear from you that you have done all you could to resist.]
[Bullets are limited. First, use them against those who refuse to exercise their rights.]
[Then prioritize according to your will.]
[Death after contamination will be painful. Following the procedures for Black Code 06 is not murder, but salvation and rescue.]
[The issuance of Black Code 06 is irreversible.]
[Citizens, please proceed with the Black Code 06 according to the procedures.]
[Thank you.]
[May God’s blessing be upon you.]
Passing by the television that barely showed anything, Anastasia continued her steps.
“Dear viewers. Today, I am introducing something truly, truly astonishing—absolutely mind-blowing! What is it, you ask? Ha-ha, without further ado, let me introduce—!!! Wood!”
“Look at this ‘wood.’”
“Oh, I can hear your protests, dear viewers. You’re wondering what kind of wood this is, or if it’s a mutant human. And while that’s not wrong, this is neither plant nor wood, but surprisingly, it is something that does not lack the title of ‘wood’ in this hellish space!”
“See that bulge? Oh my, the branches reach so high I can barely reach one! I’m exactly 7 feet tall, and I can just barely touch those branches! If America hadn’t fallen, this ‘wood’ might have become the emperor of the basketball world!”
“Oh, and what about that it fell a long time ago? That’s precisely what I want to say! I didn’t ruin it, did I? Ha-ha-ha–!”
“Now, I’ve successfully picked this bulge. Hm, let me slice this wood with my tactical dagger—oh. Can you see that? It’s packed full of flesh inside?”
“Yes, indeed! This is wood! The kind of wood that yields flesh—!!!”
“Dear members of the Washington Guild—!!! To all the ‘free people’ of America belonging to various guilds!!! Even when the ‘mad guillotine’ comes, there’s no worry about losing your head since you’re not the president, living a happy life without threats to your life! We no longer need to fear hunger and famine in our Washington region!”
“With this ‘special soil’ that grows meat trees, we won’t go hungry!”
“Just take this soil, spread it evenly over the fields, and plant one useless person—and ta-da! The meat tree will blossom and feed us all!”
A broadcast showcasing a bizarre creation that seemed to be a fusion of a shriveled tree and a human.
Anastasia briefly glanced at it, but as the scene of the elderly being buried in the ‘meat tree farm’ demonstration began, she resumed her steps.
『The living hell descended upon the old continent, dragging the sinful to make them pay the price of their sins, leading us to realize that this land has descended and lowered hierarchies.』
『As the hierarchies lowered and lowered, finally touching hell, how else could hell descend to this earthly realm? This place is hell, a space where we all must suffer until the final judgment. Those who disappear shall receive no salvation, for this is the final resting place of the soul; those who die here leave no souls behind, vanishing completely without salvation.』
『Pay the price of sins and cleanse yourself. Joyfully embrace the pain that hell offers while waiting for the last judgment. When God’s judgment is over and we are saved, we shall finally be reborn into the world, given another chance.』
『Believers, the faithful. We must place the sinners in the hell of the old continent according to God’s will. Those who sinless and pure are no exception; they shall wait in comfort in hell with less suffering until the last judgment. Just by breathing, they commit sins in this living hell, and pulling them away into the cradle of ease is no different.』
『Search for hideouts. Search for cryogenically frozen human storage.』
『If a pure child is found, use all means to place them in the living hell, allowing them to wait in the cradle for the birth of a new world…』
『We shall act to reduce the number of those who perish in vain.』
『Every human deserves to be saved, thus we must be devoted to them.』
In a Bible filled with instructions to throw all humans into the hell, particularly ‘Hölle’ that covered two-thirds of Germany, it repeatedly emphasized prioritizing pure beings—babies and children—into hell.
Claiming this was the work to save us all.
Anastasia briefly looked at that wicked Bible, then turned the page without moving further.
『We had no one we knew in Wisconsin.』
『Not in the past, not now.』
『And not in the future either.』
The ruined mansion came into view.
Once, it must have been a palace where an emperor lived, but now it bore no traces of humanity, merely lying in tatters as if raided by thieves. However, several massive walls remained intact, clearly bearing messages painted on them to greet visitors.
『Do not forget the lesson of Wisconsin.』
『The price of labor must be paid, and the sacred contracts must be kept.』
『Those who break promises shall rightfully receive divine punishment.』
『This is a trace of divine punishment, a warning mark against betrayal.』
『Cannibal』
『2043.03.12. ~ 2043.04.02』
What could have happened?
Anastasia darted a glance at the ruins and moved on again.
“Wow…”
This time, the space that welcomed Anastasia was filled with nightmares… No, it was a place so disgustingly horrible that even Anastasia, who had experienced all kinds of nightmares, found it difficult to bear.
Glass tubes tightly arranged.
Just by glancing, there seemed to be thousands, tens of thousands of glass tubes densely filling the vast space.
“Brains…”
And contained within those glass tubes were human brains.
Not preserved in formaldehyde, but what appeared to be living brains densely packed into the cramped factory.
A sign telling the purpose of all these brains read:
「Data Center for Biocomputer 13」
A space where humans had truly become parts.
Anastasia tried to step away from this orderly, unnaturally clean space that seemed to be touched by machines from beginning to end.
But at that moment.
Grab.
Ashtosh Singh, who had quietly followed her, grabbed her arm.
“…Huh?”
Facing Anastasia, who looked surprised, he output a sentence.
『Child of Spring.』
『Just as you have received my help until now.』
『Just as you hoped to achieve what you desired with my assistance.』
『Now it’s my turn.』