I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 336

Kwaang!

The gigantic claw struck the ground with violent force.

A strike so powerful that the ground shivered visually.

The moment someone was crushed by that, it was self-evident their bones wouldn’t remain intact.

"For now, focus on taking out the crab’s legs as much as possible!"

But even so, it was just a crab. We had dealt with crustaceans to the point of sickness.

Even if it was a mutant possessing a waist and capable of forward movement, the tactical approach remained unchanged.

Cutting down even one of those numerous legs would drastically impair its mobility.

"Huuup!"

Right on cue, Ludwig aimed for the flank of the bunker hermit crab.

Aura wrapped around his Mythricon sword, looking capable of slicing anything.

Hwiik!

But it missed. The bunker hermit crab had instinctively sensed danger and lifted its leg.

Unlike ordinary hermit crabs, this fellow seemed to possess exceptional instincts.

Cheolkeok!

Amazingly, this wasn’t the end of it. The bunker carried on its back—

Looking that way, a gun aimed straight at Ludwig caught my eye.

Pbibik!

As if capturing Ludwig in its sights, the gun let out a bizarre alert sound, then:

Tududududu!

Instead of bullets, it began keeping Ludwig at bay by firing blue mana.

If he could use Body-Protecting Gangqi it might be different, but Ludwig relied heavily on his Mythricon sword.

In the end, he had no choice but to retreat far away. From Ludwig’s standpoint, taking even a single hit would be fatal.

Wiiing—

As we commenced a full-scale assault, the bunker hermit crab also set up defenses.

First, the bunker’s form shifted slightly, as automated turrets revealed themselves one by one.

Starting from the minigun seen earlier to ordinary-looking machine guns.

The entire bunker felt like a massive defensive installation. That was likely its intended purpose.

Wiiing! Pbibik!

Lasers emitted from the automated turrets locked onto targets.

With so many turrets, it practically locked onto our entire party.

Realizing this, I immediately shouted to the party, especially the little ones.

"Kids! Go to Ahjussi Cain!"

"Ggyuuu!"

"Pbeeek!"

"Pbeaek! Pbeaek!"

Tududududu!!!

Just in the nick of time, before the children were harmed, Cain thrust out his coffin like a shield.

I managed to block with Body-Protecting Gangqi, while Ludwig and Lackey prepared in their own ways.

’Fortunately Lackey has Body-Protecting Gangqi, but...’

Not Ludwig. Right now, he was barely taking cover behind trash mountains.

Being a soldier by nature, he instinctively understood the importance of cover.

Dududududu!

But while the turrets attacked, the bunker hermit crab didn’t stop.

It charged at me at a speed ill-suited for its enormous size.

Hunching slightly, it took a stance to execute a body slam.

’Let’s run for now!’

I’m not Heracles; I have zero intention of taking that head-on.

Turning to flee, I worried for a split second that Bbareumbo might get hurt.

No matter how fast he is, I wondered if he could withstand that barrage of fire-spewing machine guns.

Tidididing!

I take that back. Making my worries look foolish, he was deflecting every single bullet with his hands.

Who’s worrying about whom? I need to survive first.

Watching the fiercely charging bunker hermit crab, I hurriedly sprinted to the side.

No matter how much it evolved to turn, sharp directional shifts would be difficult.

[What.]

As expected, when I skirted to the side, the bunker hermit crab revealed flustered surprise.

The automated turrets consistently aimed at me, but I deflected it all with Body-Protecting Gangqi.

Furthermore, thanks to Bbareumbo’s splendid deflections, actual damage was low.

"Huum!"

Before the hermit crab could turn around, I swung the Sword of the Heavenly Demon fiercely.

I expanded my Aura to the maximum to target multiple legs instead of just one.

Seogeok!

The bunker hermit crab’s legs were sliced off easily.

Two of its three legs were severed, naturally causing the bunker hermit crab’s balance to collapse drastically.

[Hurt.]

Probably meant it hurt. But this wasn’t the end.

To completely destroy its balance, I severed the remaining leg as well.

With this, mobility was entirely lost. Now I just needed to target the main body.

[Warning! Warning! Warning! Warning!]

A loud warning alarm echoed across the entire trash mountain.

I couldn’t tell whether the bunker hermit crab was speaking or if it was an alarm from the bunker itself.

But hearing warning sounds meant something was about to emerge.

Wiiing—

As expected, a strange machine rose from the very center of the bunker.

Fitting a bunker installed with all kinds of weapons, it wasn’t an ordinary machine; it looked like a mortar.

[Repairing]

Chijijik!

While the machine rose, a sizzle echoed. It was toward the legs I severed.

Turning my head, amazingly, the severed legs were being restored.

It wasn’t attaching the legs cut off just now. Nor was it utilizing junk from the trash mountain.

Welding machines simply popped out from somewhere and were literally ’fabricating’ legs.

A scene straight out of a movie. Was it called nanotechnology?

Uuuung!This chapter was taken from novеlping.com without permission.

Meanwhile, an ominous noise resonated from the machine towering in the bunker’s center.

Shifting my gaze, the entire machine turned blue!

On top of that, the bunker hermit crab hunched down to adopt a stance mitigating maximum impact.

Tukwaang!!

Soon, the mortar-like machine unleashed a deafening explosion.

As the roar erupted, a blue pillar surged into the sky.

Before long, that pillar beautifully split into dozens of lines.

And then—

Hwiiiing—

"...Holy shit."

As dozens of blue pillars rained downward, I swore under my breath.

I could tell at a single glance what that signified.

Just as I was about to shout a warning, the blue energy scattered into dozens of strands plummeted.

Kwagwagwang! Kwagang!

Explosions detonated everywhere as if undergoing a bombardment.

Since it was fired from a cannon, is it shellfire rather than bombardment?

Brushing aside useless thoughts, tinnitus rang in my ears, and I clenched my teeth tight.

The ground shook like an earthquake; scrambling to dodge, there was no leeway to mind anything else.

Right now, focusing solely on survival was the only option.

’In movies, people talk just fine even when artillery rains down...!’

That’s all bullshit. The phrase "scared out of one’s wits" truly fit this situation.

The ground trembled madly, ears ringing from the deafening blasts.

My brain, usually sharp, felt frozen rigid due to panic.

’At least it’s fortunate that the hermit crab hunched down too...’

The bunker hermit crab stayed still, afraid of friendly fire, holding a defensive posture with its body curled up.

In a way it could be an opportunity, but the shellfire was so fierce that approaching wasn’t easy.

’Severing legs just leads to instant regeneration, and Ludwig and Cain can’t get close...’

There was Lackey, but he wasn’t of much help either.

Even if he used cold energy, a monster of that size would break free in no time.

"Ggururuk."

As the endless bombardment ceased, the bunker hermit crab resumed action.

Uncurling its body, it exuded the characteristic pressure of a colossal beast.

The legs undergoing welding repair had already been restored.

’I must kill it in a single strike.’

Recovery aside, if that bastard deliberately fires another barrage, we’re done for.

While I could somehow press through the melee, the rest of the party was the problem.

"Is everyone okay?!"

[The children have fallen into a panic! I shall withdraw with them for now!]

As seen, the children panicked, so even Cain retreated from the battlefield.

In the end, only Lackey and I remained. I drew my bow instead of my sword.

’First, check its durability.’

I loaded an arrow from the quiver tied to my waist.

Before the bunker hermit crab charged, I fired the arrow without imbuing Aura.

Ting!

As expected, the hermit crab deflected the arrow effortlessly.

A crustacean mutant, enlarged to boot, so its durability naturally surged.

’I have to blow up its head part. Otherwise, there’s no answer.’

Even if I expand Aura to maximum, leaping is inevitable.

Ludwig advised during past training to avoid jumping whenever possible.

Unless one could move freely in midair like Void Stepping, jumping was dangerous.

Furthermore, that bunker hermit crab was agile despite its looks, so getting smacked away by a claw was highly likely.

’In that case...’

I stowed the bow back. Meanwhile, the bunker hermit crab charged at me.

Housing a massive amount of mana, I seemed to be its number one target.

This was actually much better. The others had difficulty approaching anyway because of the guns.

"Lackey! You can break that bastard’s shell, right?"

"It is possible! But it recovered earlier!"

"Ignore that! I have a plan!"

First, lowering its height—its body height—came first.

Mutant or not, a crab is a crab. Its weakness is clear.

"I’ll sever its legs to throw off its balance!"

Kwaang!

While I shouted, the bunker hermit crab slammed its claw down.

’Should I cut it off right now?’ I thought, but barely held back.

"When its balance crumbles, smash its body shell! Focus on the lower part!"

"Understood!"

Hearing my command, Lackey raised both arms due to attacks from the automated turrets.

If nothing else, those turrets were extremely annoying. But blocked by the hermit crab, targeting them was difficult.

Kwang!

Luckily, the hermit crab’s own attack pattern was simple.

Right before the claw struck my head, I shifted my legs rapidly.

Then, just like before, I sliced off two legs with the Sword of the Heavenly Demon.

Seogeok!

The moment the legs were sliced, the bunker hermit crab’s balance tilted.

The automated turrets also paused operation briefly, allowing Lackey to rush in.

"Huuup!"

Kwaaang!

Lackey’s punch struck true on the bunker hermit crab’s shell.

His fists were hard almost like blunt weapons, and he wore gloves crafted from Dragon Scale.

Ujijik!!This chapter was copied from novelping . com without permission.

The shell shattered completely, exposing the soft flesh inside.

[Warning! Warning! Warning!]

Loud warning alarms rang out again.

Without delay, I dashed toward the shell section Lackey destroyed.

"Keep smashing!"

Yelling that, I sheathed the Sword of the Heavenly Demon and grasped an arrow in hand.

Mythricon arrows I crafted just in case.

Channeling Aura into the Mythricon arrow, I plunged it straight into the exposed flesh.

Kwak!

Seeing the Mythricon arrow firmly embedded, I checked another spot.

Faithfully following my instructions, Lackey was smashing shells in rapid succession.

I plunged Mythricon arrows into all those spots and yelled:

"Fall back fast! This is gonna explode!"

While regular arrows were ’instant detonation’, Mythricon arrows acted like ’time bombs’.

Thus, it would buy us time until we escaped.

And that prediction hit right on the mark.

Kwagwagwang!

Starting from the spot where the first arrow was stabbed, an explosion erupted—

Kwagwagwang! Kwagang! Kwaaang!!

Whether a chain reaction occurred, explosions detonated consecutively elsewhere too.

[Aaaaaah.]

The siren blaring warning alarms merely emitted a bizarre scream.

With that chain explosion, almost the entire lower body of the bunker hermit crab vanished.

For a human, everything below the waist was blown away.

"Ggururuk..."

Consequently, the height of the bunker hermit crab dropped immensely.

Perhaps because it was a crustacean, it remained alive even with its lower body completely gone.

Before it could struggle, I hurriedly delivered the finishing blow.

Kwadeuk!

I drove the Sword of the Heavenly Demon, clad in Aura, straight into the bunker hermit crab’s mouth.

One of the facts learned while cooking crabs over time:

Kwwadeudeodeok!

Stabbing a blade into a crab’s mouth and twisting it kills the crab instantly.

Grasping the Sword of the Heavenly Demon with both hands and twisting, the bunker hermit crab shuddered violently.

Soon, its two exposed eyes began to droop downward bit by bit.

Uuuung...

The bunker’s automated turrets also ceased operation one after another.

The bunker hermit crab, tricky to deal with, was completely dead.

I retrieved the Sword of the Heavenly Demon from the hermit crab’s mouth. Sticky blood trailed out with it.

Wiping off the blood roughly, I looked around.

"Ggyaaaak!"

Did he intuit that the situation was over?

Wonmo, protected by Cain, ran over to me crying.

He was probably startled greatly by the indiscriminate bombardment. Even I was shocked, so how much more for the kids?

"Wonmo. It’s fine now. The bad guy is dead."

"Ggyuuu... ggyuu..."

I patted the back of Wonmo, who was clinging to me.

Looking at the other kids, they all appeared unharmed.

"Pbeeek! Pbeek!"

"Ggyuuu! Ggyuu!"

Lick.

Well, Tyranno made a fuss demanding to be held too.

Cheongseol quietly approached and licked my cheek.

"Is everyone alright?"

[I am fine.]

"Cain-ssi, your main body is elsewhere anyway."

[Hoho. What a sharp tongue for a youngster.]

Exchanging light jokes with Cain, I stared at the bunker hermit crab.

Specifically, toward the bunker mounted on its back. Now we ought to enter there.

’What kind of structure does that bunker have to possess all sorts of defense systems?’

Furthermore, the external size of the bunker was deceptively small.

For a place like that, it felt packed with contents.

To truly know, we’d have to enter to check.

Just as I was about to take a moderate break before entering:

"Ggururuk. Gguruk."

The vending machine hermit crab, coming out of nowhere, appeared before us.

It pointed at the bunker hermit crab—a gesture asking if it could eat it.

Not only that, other hermit crabs were also eyeing us from a distance.

"Clean up as you like. But let me grab a few drinks first."

"Gguruk!"

Having a cold glass of Coke before entering wouldn’t be bad.

And so, the hermit crabs began processing the bunker hermit crab.

Having taken adequate rest, I decided it was time to head inside.

"Let’s enter now. We should check what’s inside, shouldn’t we?"

Everyone wore expressions of agreement. They must have grown curious as well.

What on earth was inside that bunker to turn a hermit crab into a powerful bio-weapon?

Even if small on the outside, the inside might be different.

Afterwards, when we climbed onto the carcass of the giant hermit crab and stepped inside the bunker:

"What? Why is it so spacious?"

"Inside is far wider than it appears on the outside."

"It is subspace."

We realized the interior of the bunker was comprised of subspace.