I Became a National ‘Disaster’ Level Monster

Chapter 3: The Shrimp is Unscathed in a Whale Fight

“Entity Niflheim has appeared! But this time, the size of the thing is…”

“It’s almost 20 meters! In terms of danger level, it’s suspected to be a gigantic monster at the top of the C-rank, comparable to a B-rank!”

“Damn it… Do we have any weapons left?”

“Well, the missile we received for support against the humanoid monster was lost, and we’re almost out of monster-specific ammunition…”

“…I see.”

A reptilian monster, which would normally be only about 10 meters, with red eyes hanging all over it.

Entity Niflheim.

Whether it was a mutant or a special entity, that wasn’t important right now.

What was most important was that we had an overwhelming lack of firepower to subdue it here and now.

“Commander, what should we do…?”

“For now, we retreat… Everyone here will follow me to Yeongdeungpo.”

“…! Yeongdeungpo, where the Hunter Headquarters is! You’re planning to request support there, Commander!”

“No.”

“…Pardon?”

“My armament is there. That’s why we’re heading there.”

“…!”

“Alright, let’s move!”

There was nothing more we could do here anyway.

The current team, formed by the Korean military and Hunters, was being led by the commanding Hunter, who tried to move as quietly as possible to avoid being noticed by Niflheim.

Of course, while we were gone, that thing would likely turn Jamsil into a wasteland.

Such thoughts briefly held the commanding Hunter back.

“Commander…?”

“No. Let’s go.”

If I had been alone, I might have volunteered as bait, running between buildings to lure the monster away.

But right now, I was carrying far too many lives to use such a tactic.

She bit her lip, frustrated by her own incompetence as she turned her back on the monster.

“Quickly, contact the helicopter by radio. Tell them we’re retreating to Yeongdeungpo.”

“Ah, yes! Understood!”

The distance from Jamsil to Yeongdeungpo was approximately 15 kilometers.

Even getting outside of Jamsil would surely divert the monster’s attention towards destroying human settlements there.

Therefore, if everyone currently in Jamsil could safely escape, she planned to use her superhuman speed to dash to Yeongdeungpo.

To use her weaponry.

Even a commanding hunter could fight adequately with the right equipment.

But her foresight was rendered meaningless.

[Crackle… Ugh, aaah…! Crackle… C-Commander!]

“What’s happening? Eagle. Respond…”

“C-Commander! The entity named Niflheim has… c-captured the helicopter with its tongue!”

Urgent screams echoed from the radio.

Simultaneously, the operations staff member who had been supporting her turned around, pointing fearfully at the sky.

Hunters and soldiers who looked beyond that pointing finger fell silent.

Even the usually composed commanding hunter felt a drop of cold sweat fall from her temple.

“Niflheim… fights like that?”

“H-Headquarters just sent new information! The entity, Niflheim, is presumed to be a queen of the highest grade! It can grow up to 25 meters and unlike common entities, it can use its highly developed tongue like a chameleon!”

“So, what’s its threat level?”

“T-That is… it’s…!”

[Crackle… Aaaahhh!!]

[Crackle… We can’t escape! Crackle… Help… Crackle.]

From the radio on her belt, increasingly desperate screams were heard.

The propeller had already stopped. The helicopter, wrapped tightly by a long tongue, was barely maintaining its shape.

The monster, jaws wide open, was about to devour her subordinates.

The threat level shown by her operations officer and secretary on the tablet was.

“Niflheim Queen… Threat Level B+.”

“In theory, it would take at least five units of hunters well-balanced between tanks, ranged, and melee to barely handle it…”

“……Damn.”

A humanoid monster that remained unscathed even after a direct missile hit, and now the most powerful queen among the Niflheim entities had appeared.

Could today truly be the last day of Jamsil?

Even if the military and all hunter forces were deployed to kill those two, this area would probably be reduced to a Stone Age level.

Hundreds of thousands of citizens would certainly lose their homes within a day.

No, more painfully, she realized there was nothing she could do to save the subordinates pleading for their lives inside the helicopter.

“I have to save them… I have to save them…!”

“Commander. Please calm down! What could you possibly do even if you go there now?!”

“At least I could act as bait…”

“…! E-Everyone, hold the Commander back!”

“Y-Yes!”

“Please calm down, Commander!”

“No, I can’t… Those inside are my subordinates… Yoo Seung-jin! Lee Chun-yong! Both of them are married! I’ve had meals with their wives! No… No, no, no!! Stop it!!”

“Commander!”

Ignoring her screams, the Niflheim Queen opened its maw and swallowed the helicopter whole.

Gulp.

The monstrous sound that followed plunged the scene into silence.

Everyone held their breath.

It was the first time witnessing a person being devoured alive by a monster.

Some remained silent, some burst into tears.

“Guys…”

Some couldn’t hold back their nausea and vomited, while others…

“Well, I guess it’s time to go.”

“M-Monster Uncle!”

“Krrk?”

From an alley of collapsed buildings, a humanoid monster emerged, carrying an old woman on its back and holding hands with a young girl, stepping onto the main road.

He gently set the two down and looked up at the much larger monster.

“Thank you for saving us…”

“Krrk!”

“Ah!”

Unable to speak with his monstrous vocal cords, he gave the girl a thumbs-up instead.

Then he leaped into the air.

“It’s just been swallowed. It shouldn’t have digested yet.”

Entity name: Niflheim Queen.

A formidable type of Niflheim with a lizard-like form and powerful digestive abilities, unlike the common types that primarily consumed high-rise buildings, this one was a hunter, making it even more troublesome.

But it had swallowed an entire helicopter, not just a person.

There was a chance they were still alive.

No, he hoped they were still alive.

They were caught in this unexpected situation because of him.

He had to save them.

Given that Niflheim was a gluttonous monster, its stomach for digesting food was the largest among its organs.

So the helicopter could only be in one place.

“Uwooooooo!!”

“Eek?!”

“A humanoid monster?”

The commanding hunter and her team, frozen mid-retreat at the sight of their comrades’ deaths, turned their heads back towards the Niflheim Queen at the resounding roar.

And they witnessed it.

Boom!

“C-Commander!”

“Y-Yes, I saw it…”

“O-Oh…”

“Uwoooooooo!!”

The humanoid monster burst through the stomach of the B+ grade Niflheim Queen, which it had leapt onto and ruptured in a single move.

By some stroke of luck, the remains of the swallowed helicopter, though partially melted, were lifted in the monster’s arms.

Simultaneously, the radio, thought to be disconnected, crackled to life.

[Crackle… C-Commander!]

[W-We… Crackle… We’re alive!!]

The joyful exclamations came through clearly.

“Wowwwww!”

“What kind of miracle is this?!”

“It seems that during the clash between the monsters, the impact somehow resulted in them being rescued!”

“Haha! Instead of the shrimp getting crushed in the whale fight, the whale fight saved the shrimp!”

“How lucky can they get?!”

The soldiers and hunters who were headed to Yeongdeungpo turned their steps towards the monster, now collapsed with its guts spilled.

A perfect victory, the result of overlapping coincidences.

Everyone thought so. With joyful faces, they ran towards the city to rescue their comrades in the helicopter.

“Commander, let’s go quickly!”

“Y-Yeah… Go ahead… I need to think for a moment…”

“…? Ah, understood.”

Everyone but one.

The commanding hunter.

Of course, she was happy too.

Her subordinates, whom she thought were dead, had come back alive.

But amidst the joy, there was an inexplicable sense of unease.

Clashes between monsters were extremely rare occurrences.

As a commanding hunter, she had witnessed it a few times. She had also met people who had barely survived by sheer luck.

However, she had never seen a rescue like today’s.

“The monster was definitely ‘holding’ the helicopter when it emerged from the Niflheim Queen’s stomach. The helicopter didn’t come out with the spilling guts. It was deliberately brought out.”

Why?

What business did the monster have with that helicopter?

The option that it was a rescue was obviously off the table.

It was a monster, after all.

Even though it was humanoid, it was called that merely because its size and appearance were somewhat human-like.

A monster is a monster.

Surely, it was an evil enemy of humanity…

At that moment.

[Commander, can you hear me?]

[Yes. I can hear you clearly.]

[Ah, yes! I’ll report then! First, both helicopter pilots are safe. They have some minor burns, but they are at a level that can be fully healed with proper treatment.]

[Whew. That’s a relief.]

The commanding hunter sighed in relief, putting aside her other thoughts for the moment, knowing her subordinates were safe.

[Ah, and we discovered some refugees who hadn’t evacuated yet on our way.]

[A peddler selling goods, I assume?]

[Yes… It seems so. There was an elderly woman over 80 and a young girl under 10.]

[Are they both safe?]

[Yes, they are.]

[It’s good to know they’re safe.]

It was not uncommon for peddlers to be rescued from evacuation zones.

Just as she was about to stretch and relax, thinking the situation was under control.

[Ah, and Commander, there’s something else…]

[Hmm?]

[We found one more refugee who couldn’t evacuate in time.]

[One more?]

[Yes. But, this child…]

[What is it? Quickly, tell me.]

The operations officer and secretary hesitated, fumbling with their words during the radio transmission.

The commanding hunter pressed them for an answer.

[It seems they have amnesia.]

[…What?]

Next to the wrecked helicopter.

Having reverted from my monstrous form, I was being rescued by the people, now looking as young as an elementary school student.