RE: Reality Smuggler (R-18)

After a few minutes of searching, Primrose and I found two emergency magnetic master keys at the reception counter and searched for a room, starting with the largest rooms on the top floor.

Luckily, the locks had an internal battery that was still working, so we could open all the rooms without a problem. If it didn't work, we would have to break open the door.

After opening two rooms full of bloodstains and skeletal remains, we soon found a large room with two large dust-covered beds.

Twenty minutes later, after changing the sheets to a relatively clean set and dusting away the dust bunnies on the ground, we finally had a barely livable abode.

After taking off my leather jacket that was missing half a sleeve(My arm was cut off), my shoes, and Arly, I sat on one of the sofas to relax.

"Hah... So tired..." - I muttered, feeling the accumulated fatigue hitting me like a speeding train.

Glancing outside, it was around an hour before sunset, before the beginning of the dreaded night. It was enough time to take a nap. Luckily, this room seemed to have soundproofing, so I didn't hear anything from the outside.

I was ready to close my eyes when Primrose approached me.

"God, over ten thousand Minions have gathered near the hotel, and more are coming. What are your orders?" - Primrose asked.

"Hm...? Do as you see fit. I trust your judgment. Just try to fit as many Minions as possible in our defenses. Wake me up if anything happens, and don't be shy to shake me awake." - I said in a tired voice, my eyes already closed.

"Yes, God. Have a good rest." - She said quietly.

Shortly after, I fell asleep, feeling no fear or stress, having a little smile on my lips.

Finally, after all my hard work and risk-taking, things started paying off. At the very least, I can safely nap without worrying about a monster killing me.

 

...

 

After seeing her God falling asleep on the couch, the young Zealot, Primrose Goodman, curiously watched his sleeping face.

"So God's incarnation also needs sleep." - She mentally noted.

And then, she just stood there, her mind wandering off to her short life.

 

It has been less than two hours since she evolved from a Minion, and all memories beforehand were wiped, replaced by an overwhelming amount of knowledge. So vast that she could barely tap less than 1% of it.

This knowledge also included common sense and deduction skills, and she knew perfectly well her current situation.

She knew she was being brainwashed through some unknown means.

No, calling it mere brainwashing is an incredible understatement. It was beyond something as crude as brainwashing.

She felt connected to the Human— nay, Being, the living incarnation of God, whose name she knows but is too complicated to think about.

This connection can be considered a master/servant connection. One that made the servant worship the master as God.

 

It made her want to fight for her God.

To protect her God.

To spread the faith of God.

To be his tool for any purpose and need.

And, if need be, end her own life.

That is the kind of servant she is now.

 

Common sense told her that this situation was wrong, that she should resist with all her might and escape as far away as possible and seek help, or even kill this... God.

 

And yet, despite knowing all of that... She didn't want to.

Yes, she didn't want to.

The mere thought of it disgusted her to the core.

Instead, her connection to God made her feel comfortable and fulfilled.

It gave her a purpose and meaning.

 

When he looked upon her, she felt dotted on.

When he spoke to her, she felt happy.

When he gave her things, she felt grateful.

When he patted her head or praised her, she felt comfortable.

When he was threatened, she wanted to protect him.

When he was hurt, she was distressed and vengeful.

When he was maliciously targeted, she was enraged.

 

Hence,

She would do anything, ANYTHING, to make him as happy and satisfied as possible.

Be it betraying her race and species.

Be it slaughtering millions.

Or be it sacrificing her body, dignity, life, and even soul if it exists.

 

Her connection didn't rewrite her common sense but changed her attitude, beliefs, and core values, and this was done without lowering her independent and critical thought ability and intelligence.

It was to the point that even if her common sense told her she was walking toward the fire, she would gladly jump into it like a moth to the flame. Not because she doesn't know it will kill her but because her new core values included martyrdom.

That is her connection to God. It does not hamper constructive logic or reason but merely changes its direction to prioritize God. That is how terrifying it is.

Thus she is called a Zealot, an uncompromising fanatic that can't be reasoned with.

 

Of course, being a Zealot isn't necessarily bad.

As a Zealot, she is a trusted subordinate of God, and as such, she can receive divine gifts.

Heck, her first gift has already been received.

God evolved her from a Minion into an Ascended. From the bleak fate of a Minion, a mindless creature born to become cannon fodder and livestock, and perhaps evolving into a Soldier or Stalker if she is lucky, to becoming an Ascended, the true nobility of the Kin species!

This was above giving her a new lease on life. This was changing her fate!

For just that, the gratitude she felt was beyond words.

And that is likely only the beginning of the many benefits that she will receive.

Of course, she wasn't foolish enough to take these gifts for granted.

She had to prove herself worthy.

She also had to beware of her future competitors for God's favor.

Although she could deduce that she is likely the only Zealot now, it won't be for long.

As a Zealot, she instinctively knew that other Zealots were her allies but also competitors.

When the time comes, she will need to compete for merits and make herself more valuable in the eyes of God.

Her inherent knowledge told her that those who distinguish themselves get promoted, while those who don't remain stagnant, demoted, or even fired.

Hence, she had to make the most of her temporary lead to please God as best as possible, to make him see her as a valuable asset, even more than all the other Zealots.

Then and only then could she be confident of her place in future power conflicts.

 

With the effect of emotions, benefits, and invisible pressure driving her, Primrose's eyes refocused as her mind cleared.

"God has tasked me with reinforcing this hotel and ensuring the survival of as many Kin as possible. I must not fail him."

With that thought, she closed her eyes and focused on macro-controlling.

Although the Soldiers and Stalkers are as intelligent as Humans in some areas, even superior in certain aspects, they are also inferior in many areas. Among them are their creativity, tool-making, and architecture.

It is understandable, as they were designed as tools of war, not scholars, tacticians, and artisans. That is the role of the Ascended.

Through her crystal, Primrose casually connected to the Kin crystal communication network. It was a hivemind, able to communicate and channel orders between the Kin. The stronger the Kin, the higher the authority and control of the hivemind.

Kin Leaders have a sensing radius of a Mile, and their ability to convey orders is limited, and they lack Vision and cannot see the bigger picture. That is to say, except for giving and receiving simple messages, they are blind and deaf to those they are connected to. Even if their subordinates die, they are blind to it unless they focus on that specific area at that time or it is very close.

But the Ascended are different. They can sense in a radius of five miles, and they have the Vision the Kin lack. They can send complicated messages and have a higher level of control over the Kin under their control. Not only can they sense the death of even the most insignificant Minion, but when they choose to, they can see through the eyes of their subordinates and hear what they hear. Although she can't control their actions directly, she can instruct them in detail.

That is the difference between the Kin and Ascended. It was like comparing a beginner chess player who can't see past the first move to an expert who can see ten steps ahead.

 

And now, Primrose is using this ability.

A 2d image projected itself in her mind, with the relative placements of all the Kin in a 5-mile radius.

A total of 31 Soldiers, 35 Stalkers, and 40,839 Minions, one of which is evolving in the hotel after eating the Leader.

During this time, 192 Minions died, and 179 were born. This death rate likely occurred because the Minions encountered wild animals while migrating.

It didn't surprise her, however, as she sensed it all. It was an acceptable result within the calculated error margin.

Seeing no anomalies, she moved her sight to one of the Soldiers.

It was placing a car near the hotel as a makeshift barricade.

Moving her sight to a nearby Stalker, she saw him placing some materials in a pile.

After another scan over the town through the eyes of the coming Minions, she calculated the number of vehicles near the hotel.

Roughly calculating the number of materials and cars, fortification plans were formulated inside her head.

After a minute, she started giving out commands as skillfully as a bandmaster leading an orchestra.

 

"Puncture the tires, don't let any car be raised. I want it seamless!"

"Hammer some steel rods there, there, and there..."

"Wrap barbed wire over those poles. I want three lines. Don't leave a blind spot."

"Reinforce those windows and block them with tables. I want them sealed shut."

"Not enough cars and materials. Minions gather up in squads of ten and carry cars over. The rest of you, bring more supplies from the construction company."

"Stalkers, position yourselves on the following roofs and relay hostile advancement."

"And you two, place those sundries by the door."

 

...

 

While taking a nap, I heard a soft voice.

"God... God... Please, wake up..." - Primrose said softly.

"Mm... What is it, Primrose?" - I asked groggily, my eyes still closed.

"Thousands of mutated animals entered the town and are heading toward the hotel." - Primrose said carefully.

"Crap... And I hoped to get more shut-eye." - I muttered and got up.

I already predicted such a scenario could happen. By gathering all the food(Minions) in one place, it is reasonable that most predators would come looking for trouble. Still, for the points, I had to do what I had to do.

"What is their composition?" - I asked while putting on my shoes.

"The majority are large rodents, with large canine packs in the mix." - Primrose reported.

"Rats and dogs, hah? How are the defenses coming up?" - I asked casually.

"The defenses are completed, God. I built a 110x105m barricade around the hotel and sealed the doors and windows on the first floor except for the front entrance. All the Minions have been gathered and wedged tightly within the defense perimeters, roughly five Minions taking a single square meter. I also recalled the Stalkers keeping watch." - Primrose reported.

"Good job." - I nodded and walked to the window.

After lifting the veil, I saw it was already nighttime. The skies were cloudy, likely about to rain a downpour in the next half an hour.

Looking down, the first thing that caught my eye was the endless sea of Minions huddling together like sardines, canned inside a wall of cars, reinforced with metal and plastic materials, with the finishing touch of barbed wire. All the tires of the cars were punctured, making them almost touch the ground with their Undercarriage.

In addition, I saw Soldiers wielding sledgehammers, axes, or sharpened metal poles in one hand and makeshift shields attached to the other arm. The Stalkers stood behind the Soldiers, acting as support.

The only flaw in the wall was that it was too short, on average only 1.2m tall, and the front and truck even lower. Even with those enhancements added to cover it up, the flaw exists.

However, it is an intentional flaw.

Tearing my gaze from our defenses, I looked at the approaching enemy.

Narrowing my eyes, I saw dozens of rats approaching, each at least as large as a small dog, with some as large as medium-sized dogs.

Taking out a sniper rifle, I used the scope to look at them.

The rats had oily fur coats(Brown to dark grey), blood-colored eyes, and thick tails even longer than their body. If that was all, it was fine, but here comes the kicker. On their long short stubby legs were lengthier claws, and their mouths sported sharp front teeth.

From an evolutionary perspective, this type of rat was probably more successful than other types in this environment, where they have no foliage to hide in and can only dig tunnels and hunt monsters and other animals for sustenance.

Looking around, I also saw packs of canines approaching. They were hybrids of large dogs, coyotes, and wolves, all large-sized at the very least, with some reaching the size of a calf. What distinguished them from the canines I know, however, was that they looked more muscular. It is likely to increase protection and tearing power.

I can understand this evolutionary path since they need to tear off the head from the body of the Minions.

All of these were within expectations. I would be more surprised if they had any over-the-top impractical mutations.

What DID strike me odd was something else, however...

"Why are they not fighting each other?" - I said out loud.

Dogs and rats, two animals practically nemesis to each other, are running side by side while keeping a distance from each other. It was as if they came to a tacit agreement on a truce or something.

"Rats and Dogs are intelligent animals. Their intelligence has likely improved, allowing them to negotiate with each other for a common goal." - Primrose said from the side.

"Intelligent... this will be annoying." - I said with a cringe.

Strong but stupid animals would attack like idiots one by one. Intelligent animals, on the other hand, can develop simple tactics and even cooperate.

"Hm? God, flying animals are spotted!" - Primrose suddenly declared.

"flying animals?!" - I exclaimed, startled.

I turned to the sky, where I saw a few large shadows above, around the size of a Bald Eagle and with long beaks.

"Shit... this just got a lot harder... and dangerous." - I grumbled.

Our air defenses amount to Primrose and me... which is not much.

"Call over two Stalkers to be our guards in case these birds intend on attacking our window." - I ordered.

"Yes, God." - Primrose nodded.

Previously, we didn't need guards. Although the animals are most definitely dangerous, they are not to us. Their goal is to fill their bellies, not kill us all.

At most, I can sacrifice a few thousand Minions tonight in exchange for our lives. It will hurt my interests, but I can swallow this property damage.

But the flying animals directly threatened Primrose and me, having the ability to skip our defenses. At most, only Primrose and I can shoot them while taking the risk of one of them swooping down for the kill.

Turning to Primrose, I saw she was not armed, so I took out my spare sniper rifle.

"I trust you can handle this, right?" - I asked and gave it to her.

"Yes, God. I have trouble carrying it, but if I lean it on a window and use a chair, I can shoot it." - She respectfully received it and said.

"Good, because you will likely need to use it soon." - I said and turned to the window.

I saw the animals congregating around a hundred meters away from the barricade.

At first, they were a few dozen, but the numbers quickly inflated to over a few thousand within minutes and still expanding. And the number of birds in the sky multiplied from several to a few hundred.

In my head, I started doing some rough calculations.

"A predator's daily intake is 3-4% of their body weight. If I assume they are all starving, they will devour 10% to be satisfied. A single Minion weighs like an average Human, 65-70kg, and has around 35-40kg of meat. I reckon a Minion can satisfy four or five starving dogs. As for the rats, they eat slightly more on average, but their mass is proportionally much less. A single Minion can satisfy a hundred small dog-sized rats. As for the flying animals, I guess they will each eat a pound of meat so a Minion can satisfy 70 of them. A dozen or so Minions can satisfy a thousand birds."

"In other words, a thousand Minions can satisfy the daily intake of ten thousand dogs, a hundred thousand rats, or seventy thousand eagles."

"For a 5-mile radius, such a large number is already close to the limit this area can support. It is more than likely that only a third of that is the number of animals, considering the now-dead Leader likely hunted them actively. As for the sieging animals, it can only be less."

"Now that I think about it, did I overreact? Even in a worst-case scenario, I will, at most, lose a thousand Minions." - I wondered.

In retrospect, gathering all the Minions in a single place can be considered making a mountain out of a molehill.

Then again...

Looking outside at the over ten thousand rats, thousand hounds, and hundreds of birds of prey ready to charge, wanting to eat my cattle, my eyes turned cold.

"Nobody touches my property..." - I muttered with clenched teeth.