Chapter 168: Human-faced Fish (2/2)

“What hunting grounds?” Zazu asked perplexedly, having finally become a Player two days ago and was promptly dragged by Mufasa to help fishing.

“Haven’t you heard what Mister Wilf said, Zazu?” Simba asked helplessly. He had hanging over his back that looked just like Mufasa’s albeit being a size smaller.

“I was playing Tierra Blocks and wasn’t listening at all…” Zazu, who had a wand clipped to his belt replied awkwardly. “But my score is going to exceed Mister Wilf’s score soon!”

“I remember Mister Wilf saying that there the city watch is patrolling this place… won’t we be noticed if we simply walk right in here?” Nala warned the others softly, holding a tiny crucifix.

“We should have been caught early on—the border patrols aren’t supposed to be so lax… and yet we haven’t seen a single patrol after so long.” Mufasa said calmly. “With my experience of having dungeon beasts ganging up on me, they are either hiding somewhere to plan how to capture us, or it’s something more troublesome.”

“More troublesome?” Simba drew a blank.

Having been a young thief in Lancaster for some time, Simba could not imagine what could be more troublesome than having the city watch finding and hunting them.

Soon, however, he realized what Mufasa was talking about.

As they continued forward, they began to find bits and pieces of human corpses. From the look of the shattered custom-made armor, all the dead bodies were city watch—including their elites.

After all, not all city watch troopers had the right to wear armor!

“Were they ambushed by monsters?” Nala asked even as she shuddered. In fact, she almost fainted, having just recently become a player and still lacking in mental composure. “Or maybe something inside the hunting grounds is drawing the monsters?”

“I don’t know, but I guess we’ll find out when we find the culprit.”

Being a Player who was used to seeking his own demise, Mufasa did not hesitate to continue forward to the heart of the hunting grounds.

Soon, a massive figure appeared in front of them.

At first, Mufasa assumed that it was a gigantic lizard—the sort that has no wings, but he soon realized that he was wrong.

It was a fish that had human limbs and teeth but grew over eight meters long, and it was chewing something.

Not a moment too soon, what remained of a human arm dropped out of the enormous mutant fish, wrapped around a long trail of white drool as it fell on the ground like a puddle of mud.

Then, the fish saw Mufasa and the children.

“I see, so it’s not something inside the hunting grounds ‘drawing in the monsters’…” Mufasa unsheathed his sword somberly.

While Simba and the other children were stunned by the abnormal sight, they followed Mufasa’s example and drew their weapons too.

The fish suddenly smiled bizarrely then, and began to flail the limbs it seemed not accustomed with, holding its body aloft as it rushed towards the four of them.

“It’s just attracted by the food called ‘humans’!” Mufasa growled.

He had a hunch at the same time too.

Could the reason that the swamp fishmen were going on a rampage was because this monster chased them out of the Seira Marshes, and not because there was not enough food due to increased breeding?