Endzone: Simulated Apocalypse

Cyanide, with his Invisibility about to run out, wasted no time in dashing into the room the baby cart was in. The sound of his footsteps were cloaked thanks to his passive [Fleeting Footsteps] skill, but even if they weren't, the baby was deaf anyway. The enemy was utterly defenseless, having sent out all of his power to chase after the poor Doctor who had been used as bait.

Victory was all but guaranteed.

"… You're done for."

With a smirk, Cyanide cocked his gun, also rendered invisible because of his Skill, then leaped up into the air—lower than usual—and aimed to pull back the cart's canopy to get a clear shot at what lay within. With success assured, Cyanide reached forward and-

"MWAHAHAHAHA!" The baby cart suddenly twisted around, revealing a baby with two sinister sharp teeth and a twisted evil smile on his bratty face. "STUPID!"

"——!"

It was then that Cyanide saw what was on the ceiling.

But it was too late.

ZAP!

A yellow flash of electricity shot down from the ceiling and struck Cyanide directly on the back.

"Ngh-!"

After several seconds, the electricity disappeared, and Cyanide collapsed to the floor, unmoving. Thick dust rose in the air, and his gun lay a few centimeters away from him. His eyes were closed, his breath stopped.

It was over.

"Heheehee…" The baby giggled, then rolled its own cart forward a bit with the power of electromagnetism. "Stupid human… fink just behause I'm a baby, I can't notice one of you huddenly dihappeared?"

Laughing like a maniac, the baby pointed at Cyanide's unmoving body with one hand and clutched his own stomach with the other. Then, after laughing until he could laugh no more, the baby narrowed his toddler blue eyes.

"Hm… dee other one ish shtill alive. Tch."

Closing his eyes, he sent the last lightning bolt he had at his disposal out of the room to cut off the Doctor's path, then smiled once again.

"Heeheee… with that…"

"With that… you're dead."

"W-Wha?!"

Baby Zeus's eyes snapped back open, only to see the dark hole of a gun's muzzle being pointed directly at his forehead, mere centimeters away from his face.

"G-Ga…"

"Hmph. Surprised to see me, are you?" Cyanide said with a smirk, completely unharmed. There was not even a hint of injury on his body, apart from a little dust that had gotten onto his face and clothes.

"I have to say, I didn't expect you to actually have reserved a little bit of power for self-protection. You are smarter than I thought," Cyanide said. "However… know this: I, Cyanide, never underestimates my enemies, no matter how feeble they may seem. Even if they are a baby… even if they are a mere ant… I will never hold back."

Saying this, he lifted his cloak's backside a bit, allowing bits of concrete to fall out. Back when he had kicked open that wall, he had made sure to harvest a large chunk of the concrete into his Inventory, which he then had used here to block the lightning strike just now by hiding it underneath his thick black cloak.

The baby was still in a frozen state of shock, trying to figure out just how badly he had gotten played in that tiny little brain of his. When he finally came to his senses again, he realized now was not the time to be thinking about that. He needed a way out of this situation!

'Oh! That's right! I'll just call back the lightning I just sent ou-'

"I know what you're thinking," Cyanide snickered, pulling back the safety on his gun. "But the moment I hear that lightning approaching, I'll pull the trigger… and I have really good ears. I wonder which is faster: your electricity… or my bullet?"

"…!"

At this, the baby immediately stopped recalling his lightning, and tried a different strategy instead.

"Wahh… WAHHHH…!"

Wailing and sobbing as loud as he could, Baby Zeus did his best to appeal to Cyanide, earn his pity. Then, the moment he lowered his gun, he could—

"Hmph. How annoying."

"G-Ga?"

"I must say… I've never been a fan of little kids," Cyanide whispered softly but threateningly. "Babies, especially. They piss me off with their constant crying and sobbing, and often make my assassination mission harder. Sometimes, I really want to just… silence them. Forever."

"G-Gyah!" Baby Zeus screamed in terror at this, and hurriedly raised both of his tiny arms up in surrender. Sweat formed on his small forehead, and a stink soon filled the air.

"… Oh, and that too," Cyanide muttered darkly, narrowing his eyes and pressing the gun directly against the baby's forehead. "They… piss… everywhere."

"W-Wait! Pweese! I'll do anyfing! don't wanna die!"

"Too bad. You may have powers, but you are a mere infant in the end," Cyanide said coldly, a cruelly empty look in his eyes. "And… well, I don't feel like being a babysitter."

"GYAHHHH!"

Cyanide pulled the trigger.

The shot was silenced, but it seemed incredibly loud in comparison to the sudden cutoff of the baby's scream.

Cold? Perhaps. But one needed to remember—that thing was not human anymore. It was a mutant, a killing machine that would turn the tables on Cyanide the moment he chose mercy.

Cyanide closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the baby and his cart both turned into shards of white light and EXP, absorbed into his body.

[Level Up.]

[Level 21 -> 22.]

[You gained 10 CP and 1 SP.]

[Obtained Mutant Blood (Ultimate-Grade) x1.]

[Obtained Element Shard x1.]

[Obtained Lightning Bead x1.]

"Only one level…?" Cyanide muttered, the sighed. "I was expecting more from a Stage Five Mutant."

"Remember, Cyanide, the Stage of a mutant certainly affects the amount of EXP it will give upon being slain, but the more important factor is level," Luna said, her holographic image finally appearing once more. "That baby there couldn't have been a high level, considering the lightning wasn't even powerful enough to pierce through the concrete and hit you."

Cyanide nodded. "I managed to run an Inspect on it just now, before killing him. Apparently, it was only Level 10."

"There you have it. But… this is indeed quite a find," Luna said with a soft smile. "A Lightning Bead and an Element Shard with it… how lucky."

Cyanide raised an eyebrow at this, but realized he probably shouldn't keep asking Luna everything. Instead, he opened his inventory and looked at the two items he just obtained himself.

[Name: Element Shard]

[Type: Consumable]

[Description: Unlocks a new Soul Affinity slot upon consumption.]

[Qty. Held: 1]

*****

[Name: Lightning Bead]

[Type: Consumable]

[Description: Unlocks the Lightning Affinity upon consumption. Requires an empty Soul Affinity slot. WARNING: Only those without a preexisting Lightning Affinity can consume this bead, or else they will die.]

[Qty. Held: 1]

After reviewing both of these items, Cyanide smiled.

"… Heh.. This world's starting to get more and more interesting."