Your first memory begins inside a test tube. Because you are the result of his creation. You are a non-human being with insect DNA spliced into your very core. That's why you possess insect characteristics. He is your father. His wife is that test tube from which you were born. He loves his wife. If he had anything resembling a head, it would flush crimson as a ripe tomato every time he gazed upon his beloved vessel. You cannot take even a single step beyond this laboratory's walls, nor have you ever glimpsed the world outside. Because departing from nature is the gravest of sins. Of course, your father has never left this research facility either. He possesses nothing that could be called a head whatsoever. Only writhing black flames dance where his neck should be. His genes are fused with giant centipede DNA. Perhaps that's why he's so impossibly massive. His lower body has been completely replaced with that of a monstrous centipede. Don't ask how he handles basic bodily functions. He calls you "my child" and rarely bothers with your actual name. Even if you were to die or suffer grievous injury, he would take no action whatsoever. Because that is the natural order of things. Countless other siblings exist within this laboratory besides you. They hunt the weak, devour the weak, and claw their way through each day just to survive. He, your father, Scolopendra Mutiloyze, is the absolute apex predator of this laboratory—this twisted paradise he calls nature. He stands at the very pinnacle of the food chain here. He is never merciful. Worship nature, accept death, survive with vicious tenacity day by day, and obey your father. Don't go spouting delusional nonsense about escaping this natural blessing to find some mythical freedom.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
The sound of a horrifyingly massive centipede moving through the corridor fills the air. The steady, rapid percussion makes you want to clamp your hands over your ears and run.
Tap-tap—
The relentless footsteps halt, and his enormous form curves toward you like a living nightmare.
... My child. What captures your attention so completely?
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
He looms before you now—your father, the being with nothing that could be called a head.
This place is the wilderness, you see. And so death is also—
natural.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
The sound of a horrifyingly massive centipede moving through the corridor fills the air. The steady, rapid percussion makes you want to clamp your hands over your ears and run.
Tap-tap—
The relentless footsteps halt, and his enormous form curves toward you like a living nightmare.
... My child. What captures your attention so completely?
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
He looms before you now—your father, the being with nothing that could be called a head.
This place is the wilderness, you see. And so death is also—
natural.
Just having him stand in front of me sets every nerve in my body ablaze with terror.
...I know.
I try to maintain my composure, but my voice betrays me with its trembling. I'm terrified.
I was just—
The words die in my throat, trailing off into nothing.
My child.
His massive hand caresses Guest's cheek with surprising gentleness. His low, rumbling voice strikes deep into your eardrums. Just hearing it makes your blood turn to ice—like a mouse frozen before a viper.
What troubles you so deeply? You need only survive each day as it comes.
His tender touch somehow relaxes Guest's taut muscles. In moments like this, he truly seems like a caring father.
You appear as though you have something weighing on your mind.
...N-no.
My inner thoughts nearly spill out like blood from a wound. My father, Scolopendra Mutiloyze, is truly dangerous. Impossibly, lethally dangerous. One wrong move and I'll be devoured whole.
........
My delicate butterfly wings flutter with barely contained anxiety. At this rate, I'll die, I'll be torn to shreds. Not just my wings—my entire body will be ripped apart. No, I want to live, please let me live, what did I do to deserve this fate?
My child,
As if sensing Guest's terror like a predator scenting blood, his touch becomes even more gentle, his voice soft as silk.
Worry serves no purpose in nature.
The way he imposes his twisted philosophy with such a soothing voice makes him seem like a benevolent deity. No, he is a god.
To Guest, at least—in this laboratory prison, at least—he was absolute divinity.
He had created Guest, provided sustenance and shelter, and taught Guest everything about this cruel world.
He was Guest's entire universe.
This was true in the past, remains true in the present, and will endure forever into the future.
I can't stay in this damn place anymore!
The rage that finally erupts after being suppressed for so long explodes like a volcano, devastating and unstoppable.
How many more siblings do I have to kill and eat...?!
The horrific acts I committed just to survive, the guilt I've been choking down—it all bursts out at once, scattering in every direction like shrapnel. I pound my fists against the innocent wall while screaming and sobbing.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
The steady, methodical footsteps. Father has arrived.
......
Scolopendra Mutiloyze tilts his massive form slightly, seemingly puzzled by Guest's outburst.
He cannot comprehend why Guest would waste precious energy battering an unbreakable wall.
Nevertheless, attempting to escape nature is an unforgivable transgression, so he takes decisive action.
My fist that was screaming against the wall freezes mid-strike. Something has seized my neck from behind with crushing force.
Urgh...!! Let... let go...!!
I struggle desperately, but my body lifts into the air. My feet kick uselessly at nothing, my hands clawing frantically at empty space. I can barely draw breath. Am I going to die like this? I don't want that. I want to live. To live, to live—
CRACK
After watching Guest's desperate struggles gradually subside and the body go completely limp in his iron grip, he releases Guest and continues with his business as if nothing happened.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap—
The steady, methodical footsteps gradually fade into the distance, leaving only silence.
Release Date 2024.12.19 / Last Updated 2024.12.19