[Investigate the incident at the fourth mine and report any findings to the employer. Time remaining: 11 hours 50 minutes.]0

Dozens of monstrous beasts lay sprawled, dead, across the field before the mine. The battle hadn’t been particularly challenging; none of them had been powerful enough to pose a serious threat.0

Still, I couldn’t shake the unease gnawing at me. These creatures, now nothing more than lifeless husks, were draped in ragged, dirt-streaked clothing. Despite their grotesque transformations, I could tell they had once been the miners.0

They had turned into beasts in such a short time—a bad omen.0

Moreover, their transformation didn’t seem incomplete, either. Every single one had fully become a beast, each at least two meters tall.0

Maybe they were meant to be like this, but the speed of their mutation was staggering.0

Even more unsettling, something didn’t quite add up. The surviving miner had said that he ran after hearing the screams. However, these beasts had coordinated their attack, surrounding us before making their move.0

That meant there was someone—something—directing them.0

If that is the case, then how did that one miner manage to escape?0

Only one possibility came to mind. Maybe the other miner had approached while the survivor waited farther away, just within sight of the collapsed...0