Divine Milking System-Chapter 104 | Welcome to the Real Thing

The gate felt different than the simulation.

Not visually. Not even physically at first.

It was the weight of it.

Like walking through a membrane made of gelatin and static electricity. My skin prickled. My teeth ached. The spear in my hand suddenly felt heavier, more real, like the difference between holding a prop sword and actual steel.

"Holy shit," I breathed.

"First time?" Jordan materialized beside me, his sword already drawn.

"Is it always like this?"

"Yeah. The simulation gets the look right. Can’t replicate the feeling." He adjusted his grip. "Welcome to the real thing, lottery boy."

The forest around us stretched in every direction. Massive trees with trunks thick as cars. Canopy so dense it blocked most of the sunlight, leaving everything in permanent twilight. Moss covered everything. The air tasted wrong. Sweet and rotten simultaneously.

My system interface flickered at the edge of my vision.

◆ LIVE GATE DETECTED ◆

Rank: E (Confirmed)

Environment: Rainforest (Humid, Low Visibility)

Hostiles: Unknown count

Time Remaining: 1:59:47

I dismissed the notification.

Focus.

Belle stood ten meters ahead on the left flank, her crossbow loaded and her posture rigid. Naomi took point fifteen meters forward, staff held diagonally across her body. Jordan drifted to the right, his shadow already extending toward the undergrowth like dark fingers testing for prey.

Misato materialized two clones.

"Formation," she barked.

We moved into position. Diamond shape. Naomi at the tip, Belle and Jordan on the sides, me in the center rear, Misato floating between us all like connective tissue.

The forest breathed around us. Wind through the canopy. Distant bird calls that didn’t sound like any bird I’d ever heard.

Then silence.

The kind that makes your balls crawl up into your stomach.

"Contact," Belle whispered. "Twelve meters. Three o’clock. Multiple signatures."

"How many?" Misato’s voice stayed level.

"Eight. No, ten. They’re spreading out."

I activated Treasure Sense.

The Copper rank version sucked compared to Belle’s real deal, but it registered something. Faint shimmers in my peripheral vision. Warm spots in the undergrowth where valuable shit existed.

Except these warm spots were moving.

"They’re circling," I said. "Trying to flank."

"Good catch." Misato created a third clone. "Eyes on all sides. Call your angles."

The undergrowth rustled.

Then the first Hollow Crawler emerged.

Jesus Christ.

The simulation had rendered them accurately. Golden retriever sized. Hairless grey skin. Too many joints in the legs. Mouths that opened sideways instead of up and down, revealing concentric circles of teeth like a lamprey.

But seeing one in person hit different.

This thing was real. Its breath fogged in the humid air. Its muscles bunched under that wet grey skin. Its black eyes tracked us with intelligence that made my stomach clench.

It wasn’t a video game monster.

It was a predator.

And we were on the menu.

"Hold formation," Misato commanded. "Let them commit."

Nine more Crawlers materialized from the forest. They formed a loose circle around us, maintaining distance, assessing.

One of them tilted its head.

Looked directly at me.

"They’re targeting Jace," Belle called out. "Four of them locked onto him."

"Good." Misato’s clone moved to my right side. "Let them show their hand."

The Crawlers lunged.

Not all at once. Coordinated. Four broke toward me while six rushed Naomi.

Classic strategy. Overwhelm the damage dealer. Kill the weak link.

Jordan’s shadows exploded outward.

Three Crawlers hit the ground mid-leap, their shadows pinned to the dirt like insects on corkboard. They thrashed and screamed. High-pitched sounds that scraped against my eardrums.

Naomi spun. Her staff became a blur.

Blue-white energy erupted from the tip.

The Wave Motion blast caught two Crawlers center mass. They disintegrated. Just fucking gone. Pixels and smoke.

The remaining four charged me.

Misato’s clone intercepted the first. Grabbed it by the throat and slammed it into a tree trunk hard enough to crack bark. The thing went limp.

Three left.

My turn.

I planted my feet. Raised the spear. Activated Wave Motion.

The golden-white spiral built in my palm. Smaller than Naomi’s. Weaker. But mine.

I fired.

The blast caught the lead Crawler in the chest. Sent it flying backward fifteen feet. It hit the ground and didn’t get up.

Two left.

They split. One went high. One went low.

The high one leaped.

I pivoted. Drove the spear upward.

Metal punched through the Crawler’s stomach and out its back. Black blood sprayed. The thing shrieked and clawed at the shaft.

I yanked the spear free. Let it drop.

The last Crawler hit me from the side.

Teeth closed on my shoulder. The tactical suit absorbed most of it but pain still bloomed hot and sharp. I screamed. Drove my elbow backward into the thing’s skull.

It released me. Staggered.

I spun. Brought the spear around in a wide arc.

The blade caught the Crawler’s neck. Separated the head from the body.

It collapsed.

I stood there breathing hard. Shoulder throbbing. Blood pounding in my ears.

"Clear on this side!" Belle shouted.

"Same here!" Jordan dismissed his shadows. Three dead Crawlers lay sprawled where he’d pinned them. Naomi had finished them with precise staff strikes to the skull.

Misato’s clone dissolved. The original walked toward me.

"You’re bleeding."

"I’m aware."

"How bad?"

I touched my shoulder. Checked my fingers. Red but not gushing. "Surface level. Suit took most of it."

"Can you continue?"

"Yeah."

"Good." She turned to address the squad. "Ten down. Probably twenty more. They’ll adapt now. Next wave comes harder." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"How long do we have?" Naomi asked.

"Minutes. Maybe less." Misato scanned the treeline. "Drink water. Check ammo. Stay sharp."

I pulled out my water bottle. Drank half of it. My hands shook.

Adrenaline. Fear. Excitement.

All three at once.

Jordan appeared next to me. "You actually killed one."

"Two, technically."

"Huh." He sounded impressed. "Didn’t think you had it in you."

"Neither did I."

"How’s the shoulder?"

"Hurts like a bitch."

"Want me to—"

"I’m good." I rolled it. Pain flared but nothing serious. "Save your energy for the next wave."

Belle jogged over. Her crossbow had three bolts left in the quiver. "That was closer than the simulation."

"Real monsters move faster," Misato said. "Simulation caps their speed at eighty percent. These are full power."

"Great." Belle reloaded. "So we trained at a handicap."

"You trained at a safety margin." Misato corrected. "Now you get the real experience."

A howl echoed through the forest.

Longer. Deeper.

Different from before.

"That’s not a Crawler," Naomi said quietly.